Are all the matches around the Female Master raised on beast dung or what?
Jasper’s jaw tightened as the thought flashed through his mind. His gaze lingered on the necklace resting against Rory’s slender neck, and irritation flickered beneath his composed exterior. How could any male—any of them—allow her to wear sothing like that? She deserved brilliance, rarity, the finest craftsmanship the stars could offer. Not a trinket that barely held value.
Suppressing the surge of emotion in his chest, Jasper carefully softened his expression before speaking.
"Female Master," he asked cautiously, "do you... truly like this necklace?"
My Female Master was never ant to wear sothing so cheap, he thought grimly. She should be adorned in the finest jewelry in the galaxy.
"Yeah." Rory nodded imdiately, her face brightening as if the question itself delighted her.
She didn’t even wait for him to ask why. Instead, she leaned closer to the projection, her voice warm and earnest.
"Because it’s from you. Even if you had Dax deliver it, it still ca from you—and that’s why I love it."
Jasper froze.
For a split second, words completely failed him.
That sly fox...
Realization struck him like a sharp blow. Dax had played him cleanly, and he’d walked straight into the trap. He’d trusted the fox far too easily—treated him like a friend, let his guard down. The irritation simring beneath Jasper’s calm exterior spiked sharply.
Damn it.
"Jasper?" Rory tilted her head slightly, studying his silence with mild curiosity. "Is sothing wrong?"
Judging by the subtle shift in his expression, she already suspected he’d pieced things together.
Jasper exhaled slowly, then lifted his gaze to her again, offering a gentle, almost bashful smile.
"I’m fine, Female Master," he said softly. "I did ask Dax to help choose the necklace, but... he never showed the final piece."
His eyes flicked briefly to the pendant before returning to her face.
"Now that I see it on you, I don’t think it really suits you."
"Huh?" Rory blinked, montarily caught off guard. She glanced down at the gemstone resting against her collarbone, her brows knitting faintly.
"Yeah... maybe you’re right," she murmured, uncertainty creeping into her tone.
Seeing her reaction, Jasper’s smile grew warr—gentler, almost indulgent.
"Female Master," he said, voice low and sincere, "why don’t you take it off for now? When I return, I’ll make one for you myself. Sothing truly worthy of you. Would that be alright?"
Rory’s eyes widened, instantly alight with surprise and admiration.
"You can make jewelry too?" she asked, her voice bright. She had always known how to complint others naturally, without sounding forced—and now it ca effortlessly. "That’s incredible."
She looked at him as if he’d just revealed another hidden facet of himself, her gaze sparkling.
Jasper t her eyes and felt sothing soften in his chest. In that mont, she looked impossibly sweet—open, trusting, unguarded.
She’s far too naive, he thought ruefully. No wonder that fox managed to take advantage of her.
Aloud, he chuckled lightly.
"I have plenty more skills," he said. "Once I’m back, I’ll show you one by one."
"You’re really the sweetest, Jasper," Rory said sincerely.
She truly believed it. He wasn’t just gentle by nature—he had a way of speaking to her, coaxing her emotions, that always left her feeling warm and at ease. With him, there was no sense of calculation or pressure, only quiet reassurance.
They talked for a while longer, the conversation drifting lazily from one topic to another. Before long, Rory felt a pleasant heaviness settle over her eyelids, sleep tugging gently at her awareness as the call continued into the quiet of the night.
She ended the light-btain call and curled up, reminding herself she had to be up early tomorrow to hunt beasts. On the other side, the mont the call cut, Jasper’s pleasant smile slipped away. His eyes darkened, heavy with an unreadable expression.
He turned to the two n standing behind him. "Look into Dax from the Blood Moon Fox for ." I can play the obedient one in front of Female Master, but that sly fox really thinks I’m easy to push around? Trying to screw over? Just wait and see.
***
At the first pale hint of dawn, when the sky was still washed in cold gray-blue light, Rory marched into the room and grabbed Dax without the slightest hesitation, yanking him straight out of bed. The blankets went flying, and the quiet of the early morning shattered instantly.
"I warned you yesterday, didn’t I?" Rory snapped, hands planted on her hips as she stared down at him. "We’re going beast hunting today. We’re leaving any minute now, and you’re still sprawled out like you’ve got nowhere to be?"
Dax swayed as he sat upright, his movents sluggish and uncoordinated. His eyes were half-lidded, glassy with sleep as he fumbled for his light-brain and squinted at the glowing clock projected above it. His face twisted into a deeply aggrieved expression, as though the universe itself had wronged him.
"Female Master..." he groaned, dragging the words out pitifully. "It’s barely five in the morning." He rubbed his eyes, then muttered under his breath, "We’re just hunting a rank-five beast. Is this really worth sacrificing my dignity—and my sleep—for?"
Rory crossed her arms, wholly unmoved by his theatrics. "I already told Gina we’d be heading out at five-thirty sharp," she replied coolly. "That ans we don’t dawdle, we don’t oversleep, and we definitely don’t lounge around pretending this is a leisure trip."
Her gaze dropped pointedly to Dax’s outfit—soft pink pajamas rumpled from sleep, the fabric doing absolutely nothing to hide how utterly unprepared he was. One eyebrow arched in clear disapproval.
"You’re not seriously planning to hunt beasts dressed like that, are you?"
Do foxes really go for colors this flashy? Dax blinked at the sight of Rory bustling around the room, her movents brisk and precise even at this early hour.
"Co on, get up and freshen yourself," Rory commanded, her tone sharp but not unkind. "I’ll fix us sothing in the kitchen, but we’re leaving in twenty-five minutes. We’re eting Gina’s family at the villa out front, and I refuse to make anyone wait." She hated the thought of showing up late—it felt disrespectful. Rory would rather arrive early and look composed than be rushed and sloppy.
"Breakfast?" Dax’s eyes imdiately lit up at the sound of the word, the last remnants of sleep evaporating instantly. mories of the pancakes and bacon from the day before danced in his mind, the aroma, the taste, still vivid and tantalizing. His stomach growled in anticipation.
"Am I getting a share too, Female Master?" he asked eagerly, unable to hide his excitent.
"Of course—if you can make it downstairs on ti," Rory replied without pausing, already striding toward the kitchen with confidence and purpose. The promise of food was enough to spur Dax into action. He leaped out of bed, quickly dressed, and rushed through washing up, his movents frantic but efficient, until he burst into the kitchen.
Rory had already prepared a few items in advance. Dumplings rested uncooked in storage, waiting for the morning steam. Today, she stead them to perfection and also cooked a pot of fruit oatal, knowing it was Gina’s absolute favorite. The interstellar stove burned with a strange, otherworldly fla, its heat oddly precise, cooking everything in a fraction of the ti a conventional stove would require. Within ten minutes, the morning feast was complete.
By the ti Dax stumbled down the stairs, Rory was just finishing up, carefully sealing the food into neat lunch boxes. She handed him a compact, neatly packed portion.
"Here. This one’s yours."
She placed another slightly larger box aside for Paros, and the remaining three went into her storage band for later. Dax’s gaze inevitably fell on the substantial box ant for Paros, and his brow furrowed in mild indignation.
"Female Master, why is his portion so much bigger than mine?" he asked, the protest clear in his voice.
Rory’s tone carried quiet authority as she replied, "Because Paros paid with star coins."
Dax huffed, crossing his arms in frustration. "But I hunted beasts today too! I could’ve earned star coins as well. I worked just as hard as him. Why do I get so little?" He glared at the small, neat box in his hands as though it were personally insulting him.
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