I crossed my arms under my breasts and puffed up my chest.

“Let’s get something straight, Viela: I am not like the other summoners you’ve met. I’m the kind of noble lady who just spent a whole platinum this morning—on equipment, mind you. I’m more connected than you know with many friends in high places. Got friends in low places, too. And the strongest bonds are not bought with coin. You see what I’m getting at here? Summoning another spirit would be merely a trifle for me, but I see potential in you. If you follow me, I can make all kinds of things happen.”

Viela played with her hair while she considered my bluff. “Oh, is that so? You sure talk a big game, but I want you to know something, too: you’ll never meet another foxy like me. Can any of your friends do this?”

She snapped her fingers and instantly disappeared in a puff of smoke. This… This was not a part of the plan!

The fox spirit shouldn’t have been able to escape the boundary of the ritual circle, but I didn’t see her anywhere around me. I thought she might have cast some type of invisibility spell on herself—until I looked to the ground and a chill ran down my spine at the sight of a small fox sitting inside the circle, wagging its bushy tail and grinning up at me.

“Y-You can really transform like that?” I accidentally thought aloud.

“Of course,” the fox said in her same voice as before, grinning a little wider now. “Did you really read that book?”

How was I supposed to know what ‘high shapeshifting potential’ meant?! More importantly, this just threw off my whole bluff! Was there even a way to salvage this now?

“There, there. You did your best, ‘Lady Beryl,’” Viela said with a questionably genuine tone, “but the magic in here is starting to feel rather faint. You know what that means, right?”

As much as I didn’t want to agree with her, the circle’s glowing light had dimmed to a dull reddish-brown that almost blended in with the dirt. For all I knew, she could get unsummoned back to the Spirit World at any moment! How did this happen? Was it all over now?

“Beryl, it doesn’t have to end like this,” she continued. “Viela Vixen is many things, but ‘heartless’ just isn’t one of them. Before I go, I’ll let a pretty girl like you give me a little pat or two.”

The fox turned around a few times like a cat trying to feel out a good place to lie down, then she curled up in the center of the circle. Ohh, if only I could feel that fluffy tail for a second…

Wait, no! She was wagging her tail innocently enough, but I could recognize that mischievous glint in her eyes! This sly fox was probably going to bite me when I stuck my hand close enough! There was no way I would get outfoxed like that, and that just gave me an even better idea.

The book said that given the variety of demon species, the summoning ritual was designed to allow the final step of sealing the contract to be done by touching any frontal limbs together. That meant if I could grab her fox paw with my hand, victory would be mine!

There was no time to mull over the details. I began stepping toward Viela with my left hand extended to ‘pat’ her, preparing to lunge forward with my right when I got close enough. This would have been easier if she had picked a spot to lie down closer to the edge so I didn’t have to step in the circle, and the threat of getting bitten made my hands sweat again, but some risks were worth taking! I advanced step by nerve-wracking step, closer and closer…

Hold up, why was she still grinning like that?

I only realized it too late. The moment my foot stepped inside the circle’s boundary, I heard a sudden fizzling hiss, and the dim ring of light sputtered out of existence. All that was left on the ground was the ritual diagram carved in the dirt…

And a feverishly grinning fox.

“Amateurs! Oh, I just love ‘em! That trick works every time!”

What just…! “Hey, what the hell was that?” I shouted. “Do you realize that you’re stuck here now?”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” the fox said coyly, standing up and stretching her legs. “Every spirit who knows her stuff has her own way of getting back—when the time is right! Oh yeah, thanks for the ride! Toodles~!”

And with that, she took off into the forest.

“Wait! Where do you think you’re going?!”

***

Her fox legs were short and tiny, but Viela still had incredible agility bounding over tree roots and diving under thick foliage. She had even gotten a head start since I had to spend a moment snatching the summoning book off the ground before I could run after her. As hard as I tried to keep up the chase, it wasn’t long before I lost all sight of the wily fox spirit. My body was begging me to slow down and take a breather, but the last thing I wanted to do was to give up now after all that work!

Surprisingly, Viela hadn’t fled in a zigzag route or tried shaking me off her trail, so I continued running in the direction she had been going. Soon I heard a familiar sound of running water, and within a minute the forest opened up to the same blue-green creek I had been to yesterday. Except this time, there was a striking new addition to the scenery.

A thin pile of thin clothing sat discarded behind a busty, fully nude brunette lounging on the riverbank. When I got close enough to identify the fox ears and tail, I could obviously tell that she was Viela back in her human form… sunbathing?

“Just what are you doing now!” I said after catching my breath.

She lazily stretched her arms behind her head, each huge breast bouncing down to either side of her body, not the least bit alarmed by my presence. “Ahh, it’s been too long since I’ve been out and about in the human world like this! The sun is so lovely here, you know? It’s a little different where I’m from.”

I crossed my arms again. “You sure you want to be lounging that casually right now? You’re wide open, and we’ve still got a contract to make!”

“Yeah, you were supposed to take care of that before the summoning circle went ‘poof,’” she replied with a sweeping gesture. “It’s kinda late for that now.”

Shit… “What are you talking about? What the hell even happened back there?”

Viela let out a heavy sigh. “Didn’t you know? The first rule of summoning is supposed to be common knowledge: whatever you do, don’t step in the circle! It’s a safety measure designed with the ritual so humans don’t accidentally get sent back to the Spirit World.”

So that was it… Why did that almost sound familiar?

“This can’t be happening,” I groaned. “After all this time… Do you know all the crap I had to go through to get the stuff to bring you here?!”

“Yes, I’m sure you worked very hard,” Viela said with another lazy gesture. “Don’t worry, I might come around to visit you soon! So why don’t you take a load off right now and join me? There’s plenty of room.” Her breasts jiggled as she patted the ground next to her. “Come here, I don’t bite! Well, maybe just a nibble if you’re cute. If you ask nicely, I’ll even give you a quick rub wherever you need it!”

I knew it! Even the damn spirits are perverts here! And why did that last bit kind of feel like sexual harassment?

Actually, of all things… why did I suddenly wish I had my manhood right now?

“What, were you expecting something more?” Viela asked with a scandalous wink. “Sorry, I’ve gotta get to know you a little better first. Now I’m going to have to ask you to start stripping and lie down or get a move on, else I’ll have to start charging you for staring.” She blew me another kiss.

This fox…!

“You really don’t know who you’re dealing with here!” I shot back. “You better remember that you missed out on this chance to join me and share all the glory when Lady Beryl becomes the legend who slays the Demon King!”

“That sounds totally rad,” she smiled back. “You just let me know when that happens, okay sweetie?”

God damn it, I can’t stand her!

Malonymous

She'll be back ;)