On the morning of April 3rd, Husky woke up in the guest room.
He stared blankly at the ceiling, realizing that he had already been here for a month and a half.
From the initial despair, to the confusion upon waking, and now to gradually settling in—getting used to this regular, structured daily life…
In the blink of an eye, a month and a half had passed.
Yet to him, it felt like a lifetime.
Getting out of bed, Husky walked into the living room.
At that moment, the lady of the flower shop was in the kitchen, wearing an apron and preparing breakfast.
Soft footsteps came from the staircase. Yuna, now in her petite form, stretched lazily as she walked down from the third floor.
She glanced at Husky and casually said, "Morning," before pouring herself a glass of water. Out of his sight, she added a spoonful of resin into it—her "nutritious tea" for the morning.
To this day, Husky still didn't know that the "miracle potion" he received every noon only contained a single drop of resin.
If he ever found out that Mia and Eileen regularly came to Ron's Wonderful Flower Shop for full-body resin spa treatments…
He might just collapse on the spot, lamenting the sheer waste.
After greeting Yuna and Nora in the kitchen, Husky headed downstairs, passed through the storage room, and entered the backyard.
Ron had just finished his morning practice of the Light Sword Codex.
Once Husky arrived, the two began their usual daily sparring session.
After this period of training, Ron had finally made noticeable progress in actual combat.
At the very least, he was no longer just a "decorative" fighter.
Though it was still unclear how well he'd perform in real-life, death-or-glory combat, in sparring, he could now hold his own against Husky, who had recovered to second-tier strength.
A third-tier fighting a second-tier and only managing a draw might sound unimpressive—
But Husky had real battlefield experience, and his physical condition was close to peak fourth-tier. Aside from his Battle Aura Vortex not being fully restored, his overall strength was essentially at a normal third-tier level.
Of course, in a real fight to the death, Ron still wouldn't stand a chance.
After sparring, Ron went upstairs to shower.
Husky remained seated in the yard, idly watching the lush green leaves sprouting from the roadside trees beyond the fence.
Although the spar had been even, Husky had clearly held back—he hadn't even broken much of a sweat.
At that moment, Jorina arrived at the shop.
She peeked out from the storage room, spotted Husky's back, and immediately broke into a bright smile.
Skipping over, she lightly tapped his exposed neck—and took the chance to ruffle the fur there.
"Morning, Husky~."
"Morning, Jorina," Husky replied.
By now, he no longer resisted her sneaky petting—he even occasionally enjoyed it.
For some reason, being around this human girl always made him feel calm and at ease.
That was one of the reasons he chose to stay.
"Mason said yesterday that the Magic Academy's on break," Jorina said, pulling out a comb and brushing her hair as she spoke.
"He's bringing over a dozen teaching assistants to the tabletop room today. They all want to play War of the Gods with you."
"That's fine. I'd be happy to," Husky nodded.
Those assistants had clearly taken an interest in his skill at the game—and in beastfolk in general—so they always invited him to join.
Since he couldn't help much around the shop otherwise, he didn't mind at all.
Besides, he genuinely enjoyed the game himself.
After chatting a bit more, Jorina finished brushing her hair… and quietly moved the comb toward Huskys head.
As the comb touched his thick gray-white fur, a shiver ran through his body.
A pleasant numbness spread through him—surprisingly comfortable.
Seeing that he didn't resist, Jorina's smile widened as she gently combed through his fur.
A few minutes later, just as the two were immersed in this oddly peaceful moment—
The second-floor window suddenly opened.
Ron leaned out, towel in hand, as he dried his hair, laughing at the scene below.
"Breakfast's ready. Come up and eat."
The two snapped out of it.
Jorina's face flushed red as she hurriedly stood up, while Husky remained calm and composed.
Ron glanced at Husky's head—and burst out laughing.
That center parting…
Impressive.
Upstairs, Husky sat at the staff table and, with Ron's permission, joined everyone for breakfast.
The rich flavors of Spice Pine seasoning exploded across his taste buds, overwhelming them completely.
In the blink of an eye, he devoured enough food for three people.
Leaning back in his chair afterward, he patted his stomach and let out a contented sigh.
Back in the tribe…
He had never eaten such a full breakfast.
After the meal, Nora hurried off to the Moonview Street tournament venue, leaving the dishwashing to Yuna.
The shop staff also headed downstairs to prepare for opening.
Husky went next door to the second-floor tabletop room, took out a deck of War of the Gods, and began studying strategies to pass the time.
In the flower shop kitchen—
Ron leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching Yuna—standing on a small stool—awkwardly washing dishes.
"Must be tough," he said with a grin.
In her petite form, Yuna rolled her eyes.
"Why don't we just tell Nora already? She should know who I really am."
"Yeah, I was thinking the same," Ron nodded. "That group of soldiers we sent from the City of Chaos should've arrived in Tansen City by now."
"Since you're taking charge of building my private army, you can start with them."
"My count title won't be officially granted until mid-April, so for now they're just 'guards.'"
"You can handle the details however you see fit."
"As for Nora—I'll explain everything to her myself."
Placing the clean dishes into the cabinet, Yuna hopped off the stool and wiped her hands.
"Got it."
"My real body will stay with you. I'll have my puppets handle the soldiers."
Ron nodded. "Let's head to Tansen City later. I'll introduce you to them."
"Ordering people around without hesitation, huh?" Yuna snorted lightly as she walked past him.
In the next moment—
She dissolved into a mass of shadow and sank into the ground,
Becoming the shadow that guarded Ron.