Despite asking Alfred to play our guardian, it was me who led our small group out of the temple complex, as I could barely wait to meet strangers and acquaintances who had failed to get the message about my sudden promotion. Just a little bit of normality was all I wanted right now, especially after the long talk I had with the head priest. The adventurer’s tavern, as chaotic as it could be, promised just that!

Contrary to other pubs and restaurants, the adventurer’s tavern had been built on the outskirts of the town, close to the forest and opposite the guild building, where the men and women would find most of their work and income. This not only allowed them to be rowdy without becoming too much of a bother for their surroundings but also kept them close to the town’s wall, where their services would be needed in case of monsters finding their way out of the forest.

The last time that had been required had been just a little over two weeks ago when Kiomi had caused a dungeon break out of fear from that rotten soul of a man that had tried luring her to her doom.

Hundreds of monsters had made their way out of the mountain back then, both chasing us and spreading out into the forest, and it was only due to sheer luck and a flash of blinding holy magic that most of us had made it out alive and into the thickly grown underwood.

Others had not been so lucky, as Abervale Forest was still home to monsters of all kinds and shapes, forcing the major to make the difficult decision of advising those leaving the town for business to only do so in groups of at least five with capable guards. He obviously couldn’t make a law out of that as he lacked the power to do so, but life still had changed in the otherwise peaceful town of Abervale.

I quickly shook my head, trying to think of something brighter. And it just so happened that there were countless people to be seen walking on the streets right outside of the temple’s gates, seemingly each and every one of them celebrating the birth of a chosen dungeon right at their doorsteps. Two of the men nearby were even talking about a new champion having been chosen among the clergy, not knowing that said champion was walking past them right at the same moment.

Naturally, I couldn’t help but smile about the two. If they were not in the know, maybe the folks over at the guild and the adventurers’ tavern hadn’t gotten the news yet, either. I could only hope this was the case.

As we made our way towards the town wall, more and more strangers and acquaintances crossed our paths. Some of them immediately went to whispering as they saw our diverse group, shrinking my hope somewhat, others simply greeted us like usual. When I then finally saw the tavern’s black roof, a faint smile once again grew on my face. It was my favorite place to take my mind out off things, after all, and certainly exactly what was needed to compensate for the strictly regulated life I had at the temple - or used to have until today.

Once we had reached the tavern’s entrance, I had Albert do the honors of opening the door, allowing Fren and me to slip right into the loud chaos that I had grown to love. The ratkin seemed rather hesitant at first, freezing upon entry, but she soon followed me as I made my way over to Old Jack, the barkeeper and owner of this well-loved establishment.

The man, old and gray as his name implied, greeted me with a simple nod like usual, before his gaze wandered past my face and up to my ears, both of which were now standing tall on my head rather than being hidden by my long blonde hair like usual.

Naturally, this change was already enough to baffle the man, but when he then also discovered the long, fluffy tail that was barely hidden behind my body, his eyes couldn’t possibly go wider. The next thing I saw, the mug in his hand had already fallen to the ground, splashing the wooden floor with dark ale.

I couldn’t help but laugh at his reaction as I approached, having never seen Jack look so surprised. When I then went to grab the mug from the ground for him, I even made a show of bending down and waving my tail from one side to the other as I did so, leaving him utterly stunned. It was only after a few moments that he came back to his senses and hesitantly took his mug back from my waiting hands.

“What- what happened,” he finally asked.

“Beats me~”

“Aren’t you enjoying yourself a little bit too much,” I heard Alfred protest.

The paladin stepped up to my side, before placing his armored hand on my head and gently forcing me to apologize.

“You'll soon find out,” I explained wearily, “just let me have this one day, will you?”

“She has a lot on her mind right now,” Alfred added. “As you can probably imagine. So give us three of your strongest. The gods know she needs it right now.”

Jack stole another glance at my ears before finally nodding to the paladin’s request. “Will do.”

The barkeeper immediately went on to do his work, filling three of his wooden mugs with a liquid as black as tar. I immediately recognized the dwarven brew for what it was, having seen it in action quite a few times. Never had I thought about trying it out myself, however, as its smell alone was enough to make me feel tipsy. So naturally, when the paladin handed me the drink, I couldn’t help but gulp.

This time it was Fren who was all smiles. The ratkin happily took her share of the drink before making her way over to one of the empty tables at the far end of the room with Alfred right on her heels. Jack gave me a soft smile before handing me a basket filled with fried sticks of bread, which supposedly went well with the drink.

“Thank you,” I whispered before chasing after the two.

It was only on my way over to the table that I noticed the eyes on me. Not everyone was staring at me, no, most of the adventurers sitting here this early in the day seemed to mind their own business, but there were still those among them who knew a very different version of myself and were now openly showing their disbelief.

I tried not to mind the eyes trying to burn holes into the back of my skull, instead making my way over to my friends as silently as possible. My tail didn’t exactly help me this time, as it was too long and bushy to overlook, but I somehow still made my way onto one of the shabby chairs only to notice I was now having trouble sitting on it.

With a sigh I sat on it sideways instead, giving my needy tail all the space it asked for. Fren watched this happen with a knowing smile on her face, having had the same issue for all of her life. But the ratkin soon went to explore the ominous-looking brew waiting in her mug, soon taking a hearty sip from it. It was obvious she knew the drink by heart, not being bothered by its taste or smell in the slightest. At least I couldn’t tell, as she only let out a satisfied sigh before placing her mug back down.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

It took me a while to try the same, slowly lifting the mug to my lips before taking a single sip. I fought the urge to immediately spit the ale back out, the brew tasting more like an alchemist’s failed experiment than anything a sane person would consider drinking! Luckily, the snacks Jack had provided seemed to be the perfect thing to soak up this nasty aftertaste. They had both just the right crispiness and spice added to them, making them great to chew on.

Alfred waited for me to take another sip, before asking “What're you planning on doing with all that's going on?"

“I'll stay at the temple,” I answered with a shrug, “It's the only thing I know.”

“What about the girl?”

I couldn’t help but take a few deep gulps of the liquid fire, before stuffing myself with breadsticks. It was only after minutes of doing so under Alfred’s watchful eyes that I finally found my answer.

“She needs me. And I'll stay at her side for as long as I can.”

“Even if that means moving to the campsite?”

A sigh left my lips. The camp was one of the head priests’ more vivid ideas. The plan was to send out most of the paladins living in the temple towards the newly discovered dungeon, where their main tasks would involve building temporary shelters for the workers that would soon arrive as well as securing the makeshift road that would connect the site to Abervale. A small town would then be built surrounding the dungeon's entrance, with a temple dedicated solely to Cilia being its main facility. Several inns, taverns, and even smithies would find their place in the newly founded town, each of them catering to the needs of the pilgrims and adventurers who would soon travel to visit the newly anointed chosen dungeon.

Of course, most of this required the help of the king, who would pitch in with both workers and coin, as well as appointing a mayor for the makeshift town. He would surely jump at the chance to be part of this, with how precious the dungeon could turn out for the kingdom.

“Sounds like a giant mess,” I summed it up before taking another deep gulp out of my quickly emptying mug.

“That it does…”

“But I will move there,” I decided, before quickly adding: “If I can bring a real bed with me.”

“Make it three,” Fren joined in.

“I am sure that can be arranged,” Alfred answered with a laugh. “But why three?”

“I will personally toss one right into the dungeon,” Fren answered before flexing her non-existent muscles, much to the chagrin of the men sitting at the tables surrounding us.

A single glance at Fren’s mug revealed what I already knew, the vessel now devoid of ale. Alfred, upon noticing this, happily ordered a second round of the nightmare brew, seemingly wanting to see us all more than just tipsy. A part of me was ready to protest his decision, but I knew this was one way, albeit not the best, to take my mind off the temple, the dungeon, or the politics surrounding them both. So I reluctantly accepted the challenge that soon arrived at our table.

“Just heard the news,” Jack said before pointing at the bar that had one of the older priests, Garald, sitting on one of its stools. The man in question gave me a shy smile, before quickly turning around, seemingly finding the bottles on the wall-mounted shelves in front of him far more interesting all of a sudden. “This round's on him,” Jack explained before turning to the others, "though you two will still need to pay."

“Fluffy ears is cheating,” Fren immediately decided.

“They really do look soft,” Alfred readily added.

“They are! And the tail is almost better!”

“How would you know,” I couldn’t help but protest, “You never touched them!”

“I petted the girl plenty of times,” Fren claimed, “and if you're anything like her, you'll even start purring like a cat!”

Alfred stared deep into my eyes, seemingly searching for any sign in them that confirmed the ratkin’s story and honestly, even I believed her. Before I knew it, I was already reaching out for my ears, exploring them with my shaky hands. The outside of them was soft and warm to the touch, much like Fren had claimed, but it was the fluff on the inside that really took the cake. Just touching there sent shivers down my skin.

The paladin couldn’t help but take a deep sip of his dwarven brew, watching over the rim of his mug as I explored the changes to my body for the first time. A faint redness was to be seen on his face, one that would surely be mirrored on my own, and likely stronger to boot.

Fren stared at the two of us in disbelief. The ratkin sighed deeply before taking a few big sips from her freshly aquired mug. She then stood up, grabbed both of my hands, and put a sudden stop to my session of self-discovery.

“Get a room, you two!”

“We're not like that,” I immediately protested.

Alfred roughly smacked his mug back onto the table, louder than even he himself expected, as he then shyly met the stares now bearing down on him.

“I'd still like to touch them…” he finally admitted.

I couldn’t help but look around, trying to figure out just how many people had overheard him. There were easily dozens of them now watching our table, some of their eyes glued to my foxy attributes. Only a single man seemed to mind his own business, his burly muscles flexing as he emptied a mug of dwarven brew in one go.

“Only if you defeat him,” I heard myself speak out.

Alfred immediately went stiff as stone, before shoving his mug away in a single swift motion. He then raised up from the table, not minding the chair loudly falling to the floor, nor all the attention it gathered. With large strides, he moved over to the stranger's table before falling into the chair opposite of him. Before I knew it, he'd already placed his arm on the table, ready to challenge the guy.

A few words were exchanged, most of which I couldn’t quite understand over all the shouts of encouragement now flooding the room, but soon enough the muscular stranger turned around to watch me up and down, before nodding in satisfaction.

Seconds later, the two men were already going at it. First, they were putting some strength into their arms, but they soon realized they were facing a real match. Before I knew it, the two of them were already putting their whole weight behind it, trying to overcome each other with pure force. It was only now that words made the round about what all this was about in the first place.

“The winner gets to pet the champion!” I heard a voice shout.

The whole room immediately grew rowdy, leaving me no choice but to hide behind my quickly emptying mug. Fren on the other hand was clearly having the time of her life. The ratkin healer was all smiles and giggles as she began counting her mana potions, readying herself for their use. And she was proven right, as the fight at the men’s table suddenly came to a halt.

Alfred's hand had found its way on the table. The paladin had lost, a fact that he clearly wasn’t willing to accept. Before his opponent could even find the chance to celebrate his victory, a fist had already struck him across the face, making him fall to the ground together with his chair.

Within seconds the fighter was already back to his feet. He shook himself and checked his now crooked nose before vaulting over the table with a giant leap, right at the widely smiling paladin.

Someone nearby took this chance to walk up to me, seemingly wanting to take the promised prize right now, but he was quickly shoved into a wall by another dude thinking of doing the same. And before I knew it, fists were thrown all around me, with dozens of men and even women going at it. Even Garald, a rather weak-looking man compared to all the others surrounding him, was now happily risking it all, tossing both fists and kicks at anybody coming too close.

Jack watched all of this escalate with a big sigh, before hiding his valuable glass bottles behind the bar, where the fight would hopefully never reach them. He then came out from behind it with a bat larger than his own arm in his firm grip. The old barkeeper took a few test swings before calmly sitting down on the now-empty bar stools, seemingly ready to defend this position with his very life.

I was just about to stand up and try to calm them all down again when a gentle hand pushed me back into my seat. I turned around only to find Fren had already sidled up next to me. And before I knew it, she'd wordlessly stolen the prize all of these men and women were fighting for.

“They are just the same,” the ratkin happily exclaimed.

This time I could swear I could hear Old Jack sigh, even over the chaotic shouts and cries numbing my ears…