Chapter 4

The inn's food wasn't that great, but because Jamie was a poor college student in his past life that lived off of shelf food and vegetables that he grew on his little veranda, his taste buds barely found anything wrong with it. As for the General and his men, they were mostly soldiers that lived on the battlefield, so they too found nothing wrong. It was only Randall whose tongue had always been a bit of connoisseur that ate only a few small bites before pushing it away. When the General saw this, his eyes softened and whispered in the man's ear, "Just wait a little longer, when we go home. I'll have the chef make you something delicious."

Feeling the man's warm breath on his ear, Randall shivered slightly while his ears turned pink. Jaime was too busy eating and the soldiers didn't care for their General's blatant flirting, so no one saw. 

When he was finished, Jamie brought back a roasted wild boar leg for his fox friend. The little thing sniffed it and squinted its eyes in disgust. It seems that the tiny fox was even pickier than the human downstairs. Jamie ripped off a piece for him and laid it in front of him. "Eat this for now. When we reach the Capital, I'll try to find you something better to eat."

The little fox wanted to protest, but seeing his gentle human's insisting eyes, it ended up giving in and gnawed on the tough meat.

As he ate, Jamie pondered, "Hmmm... I wonder what I should call you. I don't think calling you little fox all the time is appropriate now that we are friends..."

Hearing his human wanting to give him a name, the little fox's furry ears perked up. 'If you give me a name, then that means I could eat your Qi! Yes, human! Hurry! Give me a name!'

Jamie saw the little fox's eyes light up and fluffy tail wag in delight. Finding the scene funny, Jamie laughed, "Then let me think what we should call you."

After a moment of examination, Jamie gave a list of names such as Pepper, Amber, and Cinnamon. But each time he said a name, the fox's bright eyes became dimmer and dimmer. Jamie long noticed the intelligence of the tiny creature and knew that the names he offered were all disapproved by the way his tail was flicking in annoyance.

Sighing, Jamie plopped down in disappointment. "I guess I'm not very good at thinking up names... How about we hold off on this until I think of a really good one?

Since Jamie wasn't planning on naming him today, the little fox just turned around and continued to eat the disgusting piece of meat.

~

Over the next few days, Sir Randall joined them on their journey, closely sitting on the right of the General. Should anyone look closely, they would see their bumping knees rarely weren't touching. In a way, oblivious, straight man Jamie was thankful for the man because he was a good conversationalist that explained a lot of questions that weren't answered in the novel. Since the original body's owner was a child that lived in a secluded village, neither Sir Randall nor the General was surprised by the number of questions he had.

A day before they reached the Capital, Randall left on horseback to do a few errands to prepare for the General and Jamie's arrival. This left Jamie and his new dad alone once again. While traveling, Jamie found the General to be kinder and sweeter than the book described. This dispelled most of the awkwardness Jamie felt toward the bear-like man.

And unlike the first day, Jamie sat more comfortably, leaning his head on the window. Occasionally, he would ask a question or say something odd to the General. And though he was a man of few words, the General added his own commentary and slowly got to know the young boy. The conversations weren't very heartwarming or special, but it certainly brought the new father and son to feel a bit more comfortable with each other. By the time they reached the Capital, Jamie was even able to change his way of referring to the man from General to Father.

At the city gates, Jamie found that they were able to quickly pass the long queue and enter the gates directly. He guessed that it was because his father was a venerable figure that he received such a privilege. In fact, during their travels, Jamie noted that the General was well-respected despite being feared. Many people would bow their heads when their carriage passed and give high praise to him.

Jamie found the behavior strange because it was much more respectful than what he remembered in the book. But since he didn't completely understand this foreign world, he shrugged it off.

When they entered the city, Jamie's eyes widened to the point where they almost fell out from seeing the Capital's bustling streets and ancient architecture. On the opposite side, the General almost let out a rare laugh. He's been traveling with the boy for a few days already but he's never seen this type of childish expression. Through their conversations, he found Jamie to be a very intelligent and mature child. Rather than speaking to a young boy, it felt like the General was talking to a youth in their late teens. He also found that Jamie was much more feminine than he thought.

The General was used to being near masculine soldiers that brimmed with testosterone and vigor. All they wanted to do was fight, train, and fight some more. But the son he picked up was much more different from those whom he usually interacted with. He thought that since his son climbed trees and played in the dirt, he would be very boyish, but Jamie was far from that.

The boy said he liked growing flowers and cooking. And from the way he doted upon that tiny fox, it was obvious that he also loved small animals. Putting all of these together with his son's naturally pretty face it was easier to say that he picked up a fairy daughter rather than a son.

Initially, General Jedrek Lovel was planning on training the boy like a soldier if he ever wanted to learn martial arts or combat skills. But his son seemed so pure and innocent like a flower that should be forever protected. It was a bit disappointing, but Jedrek thought that this type of child wasn't too bad either. The child still had that brightness that made him want to adopt him.

'Well... the future is long, no need to rush anything.'