Chapter 2

There was an odd sensation crawling on Jamie's face. It felt ticklish, like a feather duster of some sort. Then after a while came a wet and warm feeling that licked around Jamie's eyes, prompting him to open them. Staring back at him was the unexpected face of a cute and fluffy creature with bright, amber eyes and a tiny, black nose that blended its matching fur.

Seeing the person wake up, the little creature yipped in excitement. His puffy tail wagged back and forth as he ran circles around Jamie. Jamie was certainly amused by the tiny thing when he soon noticed his surroundings.

His current location was a dense forest of red, orange, and yellow hues. Though not all the leaves have fallen yet, it was easy to discern that the season was late fall. Jamie's eyes widened in confusion. 'Where the hell am I?'

Jamie tried to sit up when he felt a wave of dizziness and nausea hit him. He held the back of his head while he tried to recall his memories. 'I... I died... right? No. Most definitely I died.'

Thinking back to the thief that tripped and pushed him into oncoming traffic, Jamie had a million and one curses in his mind. 'I even stepped out of his way yet that bastard still had the audacity to kill me? Ba! If I ever see him again, I'll-'

Realizing that there was no possible way for Jamie to seek revenge on the evil purse-snatcher, he let out a deep sigh. 'In any case... God gave me a new lease on life, right?' Holding out his small and delicate hands, Jamie could see that he definitely reverted back to a kid. 'Shouldn't this body hold some memories of some sort? Like how this kid died or his name... Wait...'

All of a sudden, Jamie felt a bizarre feeling in his gut. He turned back to the little black fox that sat patiently beside him. Staring at the little beast, Jamie then took a second look at the autumn landscape and then to his delicate-looking hands.

Every feature on his face contorted into a horrified expression. "No. N-no way!" Remembering the abominable novel he read the night before, Jamie wanted to smash his head into the nearest rock and ask God for a third chance at life. "Out of all the novels I read, it had to be this one?!"

Jamie held his hands up to the heavens and asked a thousand times, "WHY?!" After a while, Jamie's voice became hoarse from screaming and breathing in the cold air. Slumping back down into the pile of leaves he woke up on, he let out a deep breath. He looked back up to the sky that was mostly blocked by the tree branches and tried to recollect the first chapter. After transmigrating, the MC found himself waking up in the forest where he met a black fox that the original owner used to feed and play with. The original owner wanted to say goodbye to the black fox one last time because he was being adopted that day by General Jedrek Lovel, also known as the Marquis of Claudius

The MC left the little fox only to see it following him. However, having no sentimental ties to the little thing, the MC decides to kill the animal and use its pelt as clothing since it was late autumn and already cold. It was only after killing it did the MC realize that the creature possessed godly powers that gave the MC an automatic level-up in light elements right at the get-go.

Jamie looked pitifully at the fluff-ball with amber eyes. If it wasn't him who transmigrated but the purse-snatcher, then the tiny fox would have soon been dead. Jamie motioned the obedient animal to come over and patted its soft fur. 'Ah... that man is so freaking cruel! How could he even think of harming such an adorable creature?'

The little fox yipped happily and rubbed its muzzle on Jamie's hand. It was so scared earlier to see its human fall from the tree so suddenly. Usually, the human would come to the forest and forage for food, thus he'd typically climb trees and such. Who knew the branch would break and the human would fall down and hit his head?

Jamie smiled at the little thing. It reminded him of a neighborhood dog he used to take care of back when he was young. He never gave the poor thing a name, only calling it doggy when need be. Jamie was always regretful never taking in the dog. It was probably almost half a year of interaction when he saw the stray was dead on the side of the road covered in blood and gore. Jamie cried his eyes out and picked up the bloody corpse, ignoring how the dog's innards were staining his clothes. He hurried home and dug a hole beneath a large tree before burying it.

After some time, Jamie heard the sound of people in the distance. Standing up, he patted off the leaves that clung to his coarse clothing.

"Big Broooo!"

"Big Brother Sun, it's time for you to go! Sister Mary told us to come and get you!"

Jamie patted the head of the little fox for one last time. "It seems I won't be able to see you anymore. I hope you stay safe and live well. Try to stay away from other humans. Some of them might end up trying to hurt you."

"Oh, there he is! Big Bro!" Standing not too far away were two children who seemed to be around the ages of 7 or 8.

Jamie nodded to them and silently went forward. He wasn't too sure what the original Jamie was like, but since it was the last day of him being here, he thought it should be okay to just pretend to be sad and quiet.

The two children saw his solemn expression and began to tear up. Seeing this, Jamie's body stiffened. 'Crap! What do I do?' A moment passed and Jamie missed his chance to prevent any misgivings. Immediately, the floodgates opened and the watery eyes of the two children turned to full-on sobbing. Jamie's mind whirled while thinking of how he should resolve the issue. 'Did I bully them before? Why are they crying? Is my face scary? But I read the MC was supposed to be a handsome boy that turned into a strong, robust manly-man!'

Throwing all caution to the wind, Jamie straightforwardly asks, "What happened? Why are you two crying?"

The little boy who had tears the size of golf balls dripping down his face and snot flowing out like a faucet whimpered pitifully, "You said you weren't sad, but you were clearly sad just now!"

The little girl with the ruddy face and wet eyes sniffled, "Don't worry Big Brother, the General is a nice man even though he looks scary! Sister said that he's a hero and got that scar on his face from protecting the country!"

Realizing that the two kids were just concerned for him, Jamie sighed in relief and patted their heads. With a gentle smile on his face, he explained. "Mhm. You're both right. But the reason I was sad was because I won't be able to see all of you anymore." He rummaged through his pockets to see if he was carrying a handkerchief of some sort but found nothing. Thus, he pulled his coarse sleeves and lightly wiped the faces of the two.

Jamie held the hand of the two youngsters that seemed to be a full head shorter than him and returned to the orphanage together. If he remembers correctly, the MC's body should be 10 years old when he transmigrated.

Once they reached the edge of the woods, Jamie hears a series of consecutive yips. The little fox who has been following silently from behind, called out to the human and runs circles around him before jumping onto his shoulder.

"Woah there!" Jamie is surprised by the sudden weight on his shoulders.

"Yip! Yip! Yip!"

The two children look up to see the infamous little black fox pouncing on their big brother like that. The animal was well known for being a snooty creature that hated people and would run away whenever it saw them.

With a pout full of envy, the little boy pointed at the creature. "No fair big bro! Why does the little fox like you so much? Do you know how much effort we put in when trying to catch it before?"

"Obviously, it's because big brother is kind and gentle. Why would the fox want to be friends with someone like you who chases it around constantly?"

As if it could understand the little girl, the tiny fox nodded its furry head and yips in response. Finding this action cute, Jamie smiled gently. "Little fox, you should go home already. I won't be able to play with you anymore."

The little fox then whipped its tail in annoyance, feathering the back of Jamie's neck. 'You darn human dared to abandon this great beast? Ha! This beast has already claimed you.'

Jamie felt a ticklish sensation from the swaying of the fox's tail, causing him to yip himself.

Finding the scene funny, the smart little girl guessed, "Big brother, I think the fox wants to go with you."

Hearing the little girl's intelligent observation, the fox barked like a dog rather than giving out a cute yip. Bending down, it patted the girl's head with his tiny paw, provoking a sweet giggle from her.

'Very good, child. You seem to be very intelligent for a human.'

Jamie turned his head halfway into the little fluff ball and asked, "Is that so?"

The black fox craned its head so that Jamie could see its amber eyes. Then, as if to answer, a tiny pink tongue licked his cheek in approval.

Jamie's smile widened in elation. He's always wanted a pet, but after the death of the neighborhood dog, Jamie was always scared to get attached to something. Yet conversely, he always blamed himself for not taking the animal in.

"Then, from now on, let's get along. I promise to treat you very well."