Chapter 477: Arabel's third contract
Idan woke up early.
After he became a Golden Rank awakened, his life changed dramatically. He was no longer an ordinary mortal who needed daily sleep. But even after that, he and Arabel, like most awakened ones, could not get rid of the habit of sleeping.
However, everyone understood that with each increase in rank, their lifestyle would change. And soon they will completely abandon the habits of ordinary people and adapt to their new state.
The reason Idan woke up so early wasn't because of that, but because yesterday he and Arabel had forgotten to agree on who would cook breakfast in the morning. So he decided to wake up early to make breakfast.
On leaving his room, Idan suddenly bumped into Arabel, who had also left early. They stared at each other and laughed softly, realizing that they had both woken up with the same thoughts.
But then Idan's attention was caught by something Arabel was hugging with her arms.
At first, Idan did not pay attention to it, thinking that it was Coco, because he saw a fox's face. However, then he felt a sudden and familiar feeling on his shoulder, and it made him take a closer look at the black lump.
Arabel noticed where Idan was looking and, smiling shyly, showed him the black creature.
At first glance, it was a black fox with eyes as black as the abyss. But the most amazing thing about it is the three tails, more precisely, the tentacles.
"What kind of thing is this?" asked Idan in surprise, looking at this unusual beast.
"It's not a thing, but, as I understand it, an Octopus Fox," Arabel said, a little offended. "It hatched from that very egg after I made a contract with it at night."
"Octopus Fox?"— this was the first time Idan had heard this strange and amazing combination. Individually, he had imagined two completely different beings, but now they had merged into one.
"Did a fox copulate with an octopus and get this?" he asked himself, looking at the little creature.
The fox, frightened by Idan's gaze, tried to hide in Arabel's arms.
"You scared Octo," Arabel protested, hugging the fox cub.
Idan couldn't stop looking at this little creature that Arabel had named Octo. The fox itself didn't raise any questions, but the tentacles… For some reason, Idan didn't like them.
"Maybe we should make takoyaki," Idan suddenly suggested, which shocked Arabel.
"No!" she said, stepping back and covering the fox cub, as if afraid that Idan would take it away.
The fox cub sensed his mistress's fear through the connection and, realizing its cause, instinctively turned its tentacles into three fluffy tails.
"Huh?" — Arabel herself was surprised to see this.
"System, what kind of creature is this?" asked Idan curiously, because he got this egg from the System itself.
[Host, this is an Octopus Fox. A creature with two forms — a fox and an octopus. As a result, he has two sets of different abilities and an affinity for two elements.]
[In the form of a fox, this creature has affinity to the element of darkness, and in the form of an octopus, it has affinity to the element of space.]
[In addition, this creature has a hybrid form in which it can combine the abilities and elements of both forms.]
[However, at the moment, in this form, it is only able to change its appearance.]
"Hmm, amazing," — Idan said when he learned the details about the little creature.
"You're lucky, Belle," he added. "Affinity to the elements of Darkness and Space."
"Heh heh. It's all thanks to you. So thank you," Arabel said happily, hugging the fox cub.
Although they already had Coco, Arabel was very happy to receive a fox as her third contract, and not a simple one, but a slightly unique one, with affinity to the elements of space.
She was very interested to see what this creature would turn into when it grew up.
"Woo-woo-woo," — Coco was slightly jealous, looking at the other fox cub that Arabel was hugging.
"Are you jealous?" asked Idan, taking Coco off her shoulders and hugging her.
"By the way, what is the gender of this creature?" asked Idan.
"Like a male," — Arabel said uncertainly. Then, lifting the fox cub, she felt its tail.
"Yes, definitely a male," — Arabel said.
The little fox was different from the newborn cubs from their world. He was a little more developed, and it was easier to determine his gender.
Idan, laughing, said, "Well, Coco, you have a younger brother now."
The little fox cub Octo looked at Coco with interest, feeling a certain closeness to her.
Coco also kept her eyes on this adorable little fox. She felt kindred feelings for him, because for the last half a month she had been taking care of him while he was in the egg. However, now, in addition to interest, jealousy has awakened in her soul.
Coco was afraid that this cute little fox could claim her favorite sweets. And she couldn't let that happen.
"Okay, I'll go make breakfast," — Idan said, setting Coco down on the floor.
"Excellent," — Arabel agreed, not having any objections. She went into the living room to take a closer look at her new contract and try to understand what it was capable of.
Felicia had already left after dinner, as had Hailey, who had gone to run an errand.
She returned just as Idan was finishing cooking.
"I've completed my assignment," she informed Arabel when she arrived, looking with interest at the new fox cub Arabel was tinkering with.
"Oh, how fast! Well done," Arabel praised.
"What kind of fox cub is this?" asked Hailey.
"This is my new pet, Octo," — Arabel introduced.
Hailey repeated, puzzled, because besides Coco, she had never seen the animals tamed by Idan and Arabel. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Yes, Hailey, this is my third contract," Arabel confirmed her guess.
"The third one?" asked Hailey. "Where are the first and second?"
"Heh, they're not with me," Arabel replied with a smile, looking at her surprise. "Although you've seen my first contract before."
"What? Really? When?" — Hailey exclaimed, but then she remembered the black cat Arabel had petted on the way from the airport to the hotel. "That black cat?"
"Yes, that's her," Arabel confirmed, nodding. Then, noticing the desire in Hailey's eyes, she said:
"Don't worry, you'll soon have the opportunity to have your first pet."
Hailey remembered what Arabel and Idan had shown her yesterday, and realized that Arabel wasn't lying. She was very excited by this news and began to think about which beast to tame first.
In their world, there were already many varieties of beasts that had evolved and were significantly different from their mortal ancestors.
"I'll need to find an up-to-date encyclopedia of evolved beasts.", — Hailey thought.
"Breakfast is ready," came Idan's voice from the kitchen.
Arabel got up from the sofa and headed towards the kitchen. Halfway there, she stopped and noticed that Hailey was standing still, although there was a clear desire on her face to join in.
"Come on," Arabel called to her, and Hailey followed her with undisguised joy.
After a hearty and delicious breakfast, having fed Rizzy, Idan and Arabel began to get ready for a shopping trip.