“Me? I can’t change back?!” Fate’s sapphire-blue eyes tightened slightly as she stared in shock at hands that felt both alien and strangely familiar.

“Don’t pull that face like your mom just died,” Christine said with a careless stretch of her slender waist. “It’s not like you’ve never been a girl before.”

“But I’ve been a man for thirty years!” the golden-haired girl cried out in despair, her clear azure eyes clouded with wistfulness.

“I don’t get it. It’s just a bump going in and a dip coming out. What’s so hard to accept? You’ve survived near-death trials for years—your mental fortitude can’t be this fragile, can it?”

“‘Just’?! Those were my rugged, hard-earned muscles refined over nearly thirty years! Now… totally gone…” Frantically, she traced her body: smooth calves, rounded thighs, a willowy waist with not a trace of extra fat.

Gone. All her muscles—vanished!

Her perfectly tempered physique, forged through countless trials… *gone*!

Even the fat had migrated straight to her chest and hips…

Whether from becoming a girl or the Fox Demon Bloodline’s influence, a hint of a sob tinged her lark-like voice.

She pressed her arms where chest muscles once flexed rock-hard at will. Now, straining with all her might only made those two ripe peaches jiggle faintly…

Fate slumped to the ground, drained. Some people face death without flinching—but crumble over what they cherish most.

“No need to despair. It’s just a level reset. Besides, you weren’t staying a knight anyway. A new look isn’t so bad, is it?”

“…”

Leaning against the stone coffin, golden hair spilling across the floor, she hugged her knees and buried her face silently.

“Alright, alright, Miss Saint Lune—drop the gloom,” Christine sighed, exasperated. “Lucky for you, I’ve got a solution.”

“…”

The girl didn’t speak, but lifted her head slightly. Starry eyes peeked through a narrow slit, blinking up at Christine.

Christine pulled a delicate blood-drop stone pendant—diamond-shaped gold frame—from beneath her skirt and tossed it into the girl’s hands.

“Catch.”

“What… is this?” Cradling the ruby pendant, she tilted her head.

“I happen to carry a top-tier enchanted item for emergencies,” Christine said with a pained grimace, smoothing her skirt while watching her reaction.

“Top-tier? So valuable? Are you… really giving it to me?” Her eyes lit up, then dimmed with hesitation.

She already owed Christine a debt. Accepting more would leave her unable to repay it—even if she sold herself.

*In this world, free gifts cost the most.*

Christine feigned reluctance, secretly tracking the girl’s expression. Seeing doubt flicker, a barely-there smirk touched her lips.

“I… maybe I shouldn’t,” the girl murmured, biting her lip. “Too much trouble for you.”

“True. Far too precious. We’re not close—I can’t just hand it over,” Christine nodded, beckoning.

Fate pursed her lips and reluctantly returned the pendant.

*Clatter!*

It slipped from her clumsy fingers onto the dirt floor.

“Ah?!” Too slow to react, Fate gasped as the pendant hit the ground.

“Oh no—I’m sorry!” She scrambled to pick it up.

Unseen by Fate, Christine—perched on her scythe—flashed a triumphant smirk, then instantly shifted to impatience and disgust, flawless and seamless.

“I’m sorry! It’s dirty but not broken—still usable,” Fate said, lifting her head… only to meet Christine’s disdainful glare.

She shrank back, guilt-stricken, words stuck.

“…Fine. My bad luck,” Christine rolled her eyes. “Dropped? Dirty? Don’t hand it back.”

“Then…?”

“I’ve got OCD. Anything that touches the ground? Trash.”

“I don’t want it. You deal with it.” Arms crossed, Christine looked down haughtily.

“Oh! Should I… toss it in the coffin for you?” The girl tilted her head, motioning to discard it.

“…”

Christine nearly toppled off her scythe.

*Wait—shouldn’t you say “keep it”?! Why follow the script?!*

“You… if I say throw it, you’d *actually* throw it?!”

“What else?” Fate blinked, genuinely confused.

“You… don’t you know ‘waste not’? Use it yourself!” Christine snapped, laying it bare for this airhead.

“I do,” Fate nodded firmly. “But you own it. I respect your decision. You say throw—it’s thrown.”

“…”

*Wrong. She’s not dumb. Just stubborn. Literal. Single-track mind.*

“…Fine. Better a fox than waste. Keep it.”

“But it’s too valuable. I can’t repay you.”

“I don’t expect a penniless girl like you to,” Christine said, glancing pointedly at her chest. *Tsk. So all the nutrients went here?*

“Pendant’s yours. Don’t offer it back—I don’t want dirty things.”

“…Thank you.”

Watching Fate accept it with uneasy gratitude, Christine’s heart sang.

*Exactly the effect I wanted.*

Truth? The pendant wasn’t “precious” to her. But every sigh, every “I don’t expect repayment,” was crafted for Fate’s ears—to deepen gratitude, cement the debt.

A tiny trick. Total devotion.

Deceiving this earnest girl? Far too easy.

“Your Majesty.”

“Hm? What?”

“I have a question.” Calm now, the golden-haired girl tilted her head, studying Christine.

“Why were you *here*… and why did you *happen* to carry an enchanted item that solves my exact problem?”

“…”

*Oops.*

Christine froze.

She’d overlooked one thing.

This blonde airhead might lack a full brain—but the Fox Demon Bloodline now dominates. And with it… sharp intelligence claims the high ground.

*Careless. I never thought the Fox Demon Bloodline would actually forge her a working mind.*