[Author’s Note] Thank you! Pre-orders, recommendations, and comments are always welcome.
Chapter 9. Elixir025 – Elixir #1
The Table of Gods.
Just the grand name made my head tingle!
“Are there gods? An omniscient and omnipotent absolute being?”
“Omniscient, omnipotent, huh? Such fancy words for a little beast. If such a being existed, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were called a god. But the god I’m talking about isn’t like that. Just some long-lived beasts, like me.”
The witch Eve spread her arms wide.
“So you’re saying you’re a god?”
“There was a time when I was called that, yes. Now, sadly, I’m just a forgotten has-been. But, I guess I should be grateful just to still exist.”
“Ah.”
I nodded in realization, feeling that indeed, she was a goddess. Her beautiful appearance and elegant demeanor made it all too clear.
“Of course, I should be thankful to still be alive. Thousands of gods have been devoured in this land, you know? All except a few, at the mercy of their own creations.”
“Creations…you mean the Behemoth?”
“I love how quick you are on the uptake. That’s right. The Behemoth is a masterpiece crafted by the gods. The ultimate beast born from the gods’ desire for the ultimate taste. They say it was so extraordinary, it was like combining all beasts together. But it was utterly ferocious—beyond control. It devoured everything in sight, even its own body.”
“Hmph.”
I felt a bit queasy. Eating one’s own body as a final act? How horrific!
I stared at the stains on the table, lost in thought. I wasn’t sure if what the witch Eve said was entirely true, but she didn’t seem like one to lie.
‘Could I end up like that too?’
I looked at my front paws. The white fur covering them was now an all-too-familiar sight.
But the thought of devouring my own body was hard to imagine.
“That’s from thousands of years ago. But there’s no guarantee it won’t happen again. The Magical Beasts thought to be extinct are right here before my eyes. They don’t seem as fearsome as I’d heard, though—quite the cute look, actually.”
The witch Eve approached and began to pet my head. She smelled sweet, like grapes.
“I think you showing up suddenly has some reason behind it. Perhaps it’s destiny handed down by the Mother World Tree. So how about becoming my familiar?”
“A familiar? What’s that?”
Eve continued to scratch under my chin and ears, her skilled touch making my eyes lazily shut.
“It’s nothing complicated. Just a matter of being petted like this and sometimes hunting outside. I can’t go out of this house, so I need some help. Until now, Leaf has been helping me, but Leaf is still a child, so I can’t have him do anything dangerous.”
“I see.”
I understood it to be somewhat like the role of a hunting dog or a pet. But I couldn’t quite grasp what benefits that held for me.
‘Wait, just being a beautiful lady’s pet is already a prize in itself, isn’t it?’
That could be worth it to someone. Perhaps I could enjoy the same happy moments as before.
I ran a positive happiness circuit in my head. But then I realized I needed to strictly separate daydreams from reality.
“If I become your familiar, what kind of tasks would I primarily have? Will hunting be dangerous?”
Knowing what duties I’d have was one of the most critical pieces of information to acquire before a job.
Having spent so long job hunting, I decided to reverse-interview her.
“Duties…shouldn’t be too hard. You’d catch creatures like the hedgehogs you caught today. Of course, sometimes you’ll also need to be a subject for my experiments. You look strong and sturdy, so I think we can test various things, unlike Leaf, who isn’t as tough. After all, you’re a Magical Beast Behemoth.”
“Hmm.”
Experiments? Was this what it meant to be a witch? It certainly raised my suspicions.
On top of that, hunting hedgehogs? I wanted to avoid getting hurt.
“What rewards will I receive? What do I gain from becoming your servant?”
At my question, Eve stopped petting me and propped her chin up with her hand.
“Rewards, huh… Well, it wouldn’t be right to just treat you like a mere child beast without paying you for your work. Hmm, would affection like family suffice?”
“No way.”
I flat-out refused.
In my numerous job interviews over time, places that talked about “family-like” work usually harbored a lot of landmines.
“Why not? Think carefully. Opportunities to serve me don’t come by often!”
Eve moved behind me and began to massage my shoulders and neck. Her expert hands sent chills all over my body.
Somewhere among the Wildlings’ fluids, I’d heard there was a property to regain vitality. Could that be the magic when meeting those detailed human-like hand movements?
“How could I refuse?”
Her ample bosom pressed against my head felt wonderfully soft. Having experienced that firsthand, I could vividly picture its shape in my mind.
“No way.”
No matter how lovely she was, I could not become a strange experiment’s guinea pig.
“What a shame. It’s too burdening to make someone unwilling a familiar. Well then, how about helping me occasionally like this? That should be acceptable, right?”
“Occasionally helping you? What kind of tasks do you mean?”
“Today, for example, gathering materials for the Elixir. As for the rewards…”
“That sounds good.”
I smiled even before hearing the reward.
Witch Eve spent what felt like hours simmering her concoction in the pot.
It was a pot large enough for me to climb in, and the strange liquid bubbling within was gelling until it almost burned.
Eventually, only a sip or two of the black liquid remained in the pot.
Its dark, sticky appearance could easily be mistaken for tar or dark matter.
“What a fantastic amount! Truly remarkable! The color matches what’s written! They say darker colors indicate a high-quality potion, and this is pitch-black! Very good!”
Witch Eve beamed as she declared herself satisfied with the brew.
The foul-smelling substance almost made me gag.
Eve scooped out a few drops with a ladle and brought her small, pretty pink lips to it.
“Gyu, gyu—!?”
Her face turned bright blue in an instant.
Seeing her squirm and convulse in such a bizarre manner made me think I definitely shouldn’t eat strange things.
“Excellent! I can tell just by looking! This is truly a wonderful Elixir! Amazing! It feels like all my energy is surging! With this, maintaining form for a month will be a breeze!”
As Eve regained her composure, she waved her tongue around, continuously praising her weird creation.
While I couldn’t fathom what it was, at least the creator was happy with it.
“Would you like to have a taste too? The ingredients you provided are the core of this potion. You have a right to taste it too, right?”
Eve offered me her ladle.
“Guaah!”
With the nauseating smell wafting in every direction, I almost threw up. Plus, didn’t that stuff include my own bodily fluids?
Tasting that would surely shatter me—in every sense of the word, both as a man and a beast.
“No, thanks.”
“Really? What a bummer. There’s more than I anticipated… But if you drink too much, you might suffer from an overwhelming mana flow and ruin yourself. They say Elixirs can’t be stored, after all.”
Eve seemed pensive as she stared at the black liquid in her ladle for a while.
Then she suddenly got it. “Oh!”
“Take it to Yan-Mite!”
“Y-yan-Mite?”
I froze at the unexpected name from Eve’s lips. Images of the giant wolf fighting the dinosaur flashed across my mind.
Its thick tail, sharp front claws, and terrifying roars were still fresh in my memory.
“Yeah, I owe that kid a lot too. I should’ve repaid them somehow. This is perfect.”
With a sing-song hum, Witch Eve filled a clear glass bottle with the dark liquid.
She then handed it to me.
“Here, take it over.”
“I-I have to go? I’ve heard Yan-Mite is incredibly ferocious…”
“It’s okay. If you say you came at my request, they’ll probably treat you well. If you don’t know the way, bring Leaf with you. Leaf should be sleeping at home right now. As a member of the Southern Forest, you ought to greet the master of the south, right? This will be more than sufficient as a greeting. They’ll surely be pleased.”
Eve spoke as if I were to deliver rice cakes to a neighbor on moving day. With a strong grip, she shoved the glass bottle into my hand, leaving no room for refusal.
‘The Master of the South…’
As long as my safety was guaranteed, I was also curious to meet this individual.
I wanted to know just how strong the master of the forest was.
Above all, they seemed to be at odds with Kublai, the wolf that smashed my home.
If that being had charged out of the brush that day, perhaps I’d have fared much worse than I did.
‘Not that they were trying to save me. But still, an enemy of my enemy could be my friend, right?’
I stared intently at the glass bottle in my hand, containing the black liquid.
“What, what’s going on? What time is it…”
The raccoon Leaf rubbed his sleepy eyes and got up. Looking up at me standing awkwardly in his home, he grumbled.
“Can’t just barge in like this since it’s not your home, you know?”
“If you don’t like it, lock the door or something. Anyway, you and I have work to do. I need you to guide me to the Southern Cave. It’s a favor from Witch Eve.”
“A favor from the Witch, huh? What are we doing at the cave? Who are we seeing?”
“Yan-Mite.”
“What?”
At my answer, raccoon Leaf blinked rapidly. Then he burst into laughter, as if I’d told a hilarious joke.
“Ha ha ha, you’re joking, right?”
“Nope.”
“Please…please say it’s a joke! I can handle Belger, but Yan-Mite is too much!”
“Let go of me, you little rascal!”
Leaf clung to my leg, making it hard for me to move as I pushed him off.
I tried calming the excitable raccoon, who seemed ready to explode with terror.
“If I say I’m here on the Witch’s errand, everything should go smoothly.”
“Sure, that’s true, but it’s still scary! That tracker Yan-Mite? Just making eye contact with them is terrifying! I don’t even want to be in the same space!”
Leaf trembled like a quaking aspen, quickly hiding his tail between his legs while covering his eyes and flattening himself on the floor.
I had predicted he’d be terrified. This little guy was too clever for his own good.
Being smart means having a vivid imagination, which in turn means he can visualize and anticipate danger vividly.
I recalled what the witch had said.
“After this, she said she’d lift your curse too.”
“Is that for real?!”
The once-cowering raccoon jerked up his head like a launched missile. The sudden shout made my sensitive ears ring.
“Yeah, I don’t know the details, but she’s going to lift your curse. She said after drinking the Elixir, you’ll be powered up or something.”
“Ooh, let’s go! Let’s hurry up! We need to get this done quickly!”
Raccoon Leaf grabbed my front paw and tugged eagerly.
Having gone from petrified to overflowing with eagerness, his unpredictable behavior furrowed my brow.
I pressed down on Leaf’s shoulder, attempting to calm him down.
“Right now, it’s night. Let’s move during the day. It’s dangerous with all the beasts around at night.”
“No! We have to go at night! The Master of the South, Yan-Mite, wakes only at night. If we go during the day and wake them up, it could lead to big trouble! Now that the moon is up, it’s the perfect time to go!”
