"Po... Pochi?"
Hearing Fang Mo's words, little Rin Tohsaka unconsciously murmured the name.
"?"
Pochi, who had been staring at Zouken Matou in the distance, seemed to hear her. It turned to glance at little Rin Tohsaka, then suddenly froze before tilting its head in confusion.
"...Eek!"
Being stared at by that monster-like beast, little Rin Tohsaka visibly shrank back in fear.
But Pochi did not realize the problem. It deliberately moved closer, then lowered its head and began sniffing her with its nose.
"L-Lord God?"
Seeing that terrifying beast suddenly take an interest in her daughter, Tohsaka Aoi immediately tensed up.
"Oh, it's fine."
Fang Mo reassured her. "Pochi means no harm. It's friends with little Rin. It just doesn't understand why she suddenly became smaller."
He was not lying about that. Whenever Fang Mo had nothing to do on White Earth, he occasionally walked the dog. A few times, he had wandered all the way to Shirou's house for a meal, so Pochi really did know Rin Tohsaka. It was just that, with a dog's intelligence, it could not understand why this human smelled exactly the same but had turned into a pup.
"...Woof?"
Pochi clearly could not figure it out. It tilted its head and barked at little Rin Tohsaka.
"Eek!"
Little Rin Tohsaka jumped again in fright and instinctively burrowed into Fang Mo's arms, burying her entire head in his chest like an ostrich.
"Pochi, don't do that."
Fang Mo secretly reveled in it, but on the surface, he deliberately spoke to Pochi. "I fed you this morning. Why are you hungry again already?"
"?"
Pochi tilted its head again.
"Little Rin, don't be afraid."
Fang Mo patted little Rin Tohsaka's back to comfort her. "Look... when mammals can't understand something, they all briefly tilt their