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Chapter 31: The Adventure of the Magical Beast, Raccoon, and the Peculiar Raccoon #1
Ding-dong!
A sound that couldn’t possibly belong in this pure, natural forest. But I had heard various tinkling sounds in this forest several times before.
I crouched low and heightened my vigilance.
“That’s the sound of a Duoksini.”
It brought back memories from my late-night stroll to meet Yan-Mite, my time at Eve’s hut, and the last sight of Suka transformed into a Duoksini in the Western Forest.
Ding-dong, ding-dong.
The clear bell-like sound drew nearer. At that moment, the ground began to stir as someone poked their head out from below.
“Come on in!”
What peeked out from the burrow was a raccoon that looked a bit like Rita.
Judging by the deeper voice, it seemed to be a male.
“Looks like this guy is our guide. He’s been hiding in the burrow.”
Leaf and I poked our heads into the tunnel formed in the forest floor.
“Do we need to close the entrance? Shouldn’t we block it with dirt or stones?”
Leaf asked the raccoon, who was crawling ahead.
Since Leaf’s home also had a tunnel leading into a treehouse, he seemed quite curious about it.
“Let it be. The wolves will come later and bury it anyway.”
“Aren’t you coming in?”
“Even if I did, finding my way would be tricky. I’ve set traps everywhere.”
The male raccoon answered with a nonchalant tone, as if he were a civil servant about to clock out for the day, clearly confident that his home wouldn’t be discovered.
Indeed, tunnels appeared on both my left and right, leading who-knows-where.
“Getting lost here could result in starving to d*ath. I’ve smeared my scent all over, so you won’t know which way is the real one. Sometimes I get confused, too. Was it left from here?”
As we followed the winding passage, the ceiling gradually rose, revealing spacious areas of a reasonable size.
“Looks just like the anthill we went to last time.”
Leaf and I dusted off the dirt that clung to our legs and backs.
Ahead of us, we saw the raccoon placing small flowers on a wooden board. I quickly asked the busy raccoon a question.
“Are you Mori, the nine-fingered one?”
“Mori, the only beast that calls me by that name is just one. You guys are the ones sent by my previous partner, Rita. Here, eat this.”
The male raccoon, our guide from the East, extended a wooden platter to Leaf and me. On top were elegantly cut flowers that bloomed in white.
As Leaf and I hesitated to reach for them, Mori giggled.
“These are lettuce flowers that only bloom in the Eastern Forest. They’re edible and can only be picked at night!”
Mori picked one of the flowers from the platter and bit into it. The crunching sound echoed in the burrow, along with the burst of moisture.
I grabbed a flower.
“Yingyi.”
The Yingyi clinging to my nape made a sound.
“Do you want one?”
“Yingyi.”
Though we couldn’t communicate through words, I had a vague idea of what the little guy was asking for. Pretending to place a flower in its mouth, I instead popped one into my own.
The sweet and crispy taste spread on my tongue, reminiscent of a flower carved from thin slices of pear.
“Yingyi…”
“Alright, alright, I’ll give you one properly this time.”
I offered one of the flowers from the platter to Yingyi.
Suddenly, it gobbled up my entire arm, munching away. It felt oddly like my body was being devoured by a cloud. Of course, it didn’t hurt.
“What a cute Cloudring! I’d heard they were friendly, but I didn’t expect this level of affection.”
Mori stared wide-eyed as he stroked the portion of Yingyi on my forepaw.
“Isn’t this the head?”
“Yingyi.”
“At first glance, he looks like a good little guy.”
I squinted as I watched Mori petting Yingyi. Just then, the bell-like sound echoed again.
“Are you perhaps a Duoksini?”
“No, but I’m certainly not a Demigrass Raccoon anymore. You could say I’m half-and-half.”
“Wh-what? A Duoksini?!”
Leaf quickly hid behind me. Mori chuckled lightly, watching his reaction.
“Don’t be too scared. I only eat grass and flowers. That’s probably why I stopped transforming into a Duoksini.”
Mori popped the last flower from the wooden platter into his mouth.
“Is the transformation into a Duoksini affected by what you eat?”
Upon my question, Mori paused in thought.
“I’m not sure, but maybe? Beasts that eat meat and the smarter ones lose their reason faster. It’s just a hypothesis, but given I’m maintaining my sanity now, it’s probably correct.”
“Does that mean you’re not very smart?”
“Not really. I’m a raccoon that eats grass every day. Everyone called me a fool except one. How’s Rita doing? I haven’t seen her since becoming like this.”
Mori trailed off, reminiscing about the sweet demeanor of his wife, contrasting with his rougher qualities.
I recalled Rita, the raccoon with one leg lost. Should I tell him the truth? Nah, I decided to dance around the subject instead.
“Your wife seems well. I saw her tending to flowers and trees on the cliff.”
“Oh, she finally made an indoor garden. It must be full of all sorts of flowers! I want to go see it.”
“Then go.”
“You speak so plainly, don’t you? I want to go, but as I said, I’m not a Duoksini anymore, and now I’m not a raccoon either.”
Seeing Mori’s bittersweet expression made me think, ‘Even love among beasts can take on many forms.’
Mori, whose expression had turned a touch gloomy, turned his gaze towards Leaf.
“This one’s a raccoon?”
“I’m Leaf.”
“Oh, you’re Rita’s younger brother, Leaf. I’ve heard a lot about you. They say there’s a brazen raccoon stealing from the forest master’s food—that’s you, isn’t it? They’re worried because you don’t listen and wander off.”
“Ah, no, it’s not quite like that.”
“Now that you want to roam the night forest, it must be worrying your sister.”
“Haha… Oh, here, take this.”
Leaf pulled out a long, red fruit from the vine bag tied around his waist and handed it to Mori.
Mori’s expression darkened as he accepted the fruit.
“Tabasco fruit.”
I saw Mori’s sudden stiff face and spoke up.
“What’s wrong? Isn’t this your favorite? Rita told me to give you this.”
“Oh, I really like it. It’s extremely spicy, after all. Did Rita ask you to give this to me?”
Mori sighed deeply.
“Ugh, something must have happened to Rita. This is our signal. The redder the fruit, the worse things are. And it’s spicy too. Is Rita really okay?”
Stumbling on how to answer, I was saved by Leaf, who stepped in.
“She hurt one of her legs badly. She said she’s quitting her guide duties.”
“A leg… I heard the southern forest was in a bad state lately, so I guess an accident happened. I should be thankful it only ended up being a leg injury… Is the garden she made big?”
“It was huge, right?”
Leaf passed the batton of the conversation to me, and I awkwardly nodded.
“Uh, yeah. It was pretty big.”
Mori nodded, as if pleased.
“Looks like you want to leave the Night Forest and grow your own plants to eat. It’s safer and better than doing something dangerous like this, though it may frustrate her character…”
The mood in the burrow grew quite somber.
Not wanting any more dark conversations in the damp, earthy aroma, I decided to steer the topic.
“Anyway, I hear you’re guiding the paths of the Night Forest. That won’t be a problem, right? Whether you’re a Duoksini, a raccoon, or Rita’s ex-husband.”
At my words, Mori’s crease of a frown straightened into a smile.
“Of course! I’ve been living off that all this time! Normally, I’d receive rare flowers, but since you’re friends of Rita, I’ll let you pass with just this red fruit.”
“Great! What do we need to learn to survive in the Night Forest? How long will it take to learn everything? The faster, the better.”
“A night is enough. As long as you do what I say and avoid what I tell you not to do.”
Mori spoke confidently, like an academy instructor sure that anyone who followed him would pass the exam within a year. I recalled my days in a certification test academy and asked Mori.
“So, when do we start?”
“Let’s wait for the sun to set first. No need to rush; night will come.”
“Yingyi.”
Thus, Leaf and I explored the raccoon Mori’s burrow for a while.
I initially thought it was just a randomly dug-out cave, but inside it held everything from a small vegetable garden to a trash dump, a bathroom, and even a room for pets.
“Yingyi.”
“Yingyi.”
Mori’s pet, a blue Wildling, and Yingyi rubbed their cheeks or faces together.
Is this how it feels when people bring their dogs to the park and they greet each other?
Leaf and I watched the adorable interaction between Yingyi and Wildling, feeling warm inside.
“Those little guys look delicious.”
Saliva began to drip from my mouth, and Leaf rushed to block my path.
“Hey, hey, you can’t eat that!”
“Dude, even though I like Wildlings, I’m not savage enough to eat someone else’s pet.”
I hastily wiped the drool off my mouth with my forepaw.
The rustling sound made me turn my head, and I saw Mori approaching with a glowing stone.
“Here you are! This is my pet Wildling I discovered down here. Isn’t it cute?”
Mori gently patted his pet Wildling’s head with his paw.
I thought, ‘A beast raising another beast? That’s oddly amusing.’
“I only feed this guy flowers, so even its fluids taste sweet! I’ve meticulously selected flowers grown in my very own garden.”
Mori picked up his Wildling with his paw and squished it side to side, almost like he was trying to pop a water balloon.
“Yingyi.”
Then, droplets of blue liquid dripped down from the Wildling’s bottom.
‘So that’s how you extract Wildling fluids.’
Just a few drops released a sweet and refreshing fragrance that made my mouth water.
‘An organically raised Wildling. I wonder what it tastes like.’
As I licked my lips, Leaf jumped back into the conversation.
“Wow, that’s amazing! So how long do we have to wait? Is it still not night?”
“Not too long. We just have to wait until dusk.”
Thinking about dusk, I pictured the sunset and how the shadows elongated. Just then, I wondered how one could even tell the shadows were casting in this burrow.
“Zzzzz.”
“Zzz.”
Tiny spiders, as small as a pinky nail, began to appear around the burrow.
“See? The dusk is scuttling down into the ground. The sun must have set outside.”
At Mori’s explanation, I nodded, observing the tiny spiders.
‘So dusk isn’t just a saying; it’s an actual little spider.’
I watched the tiny spiders as they busily scurried off somewhere and soon buried themselves deep into the burrow floor.
“Alright, it’s time to head up. Just think of it as a casual stroll. Nothing will happen, and no one will get hurt, as long as you follow my precautions.”
Mori pushed our backs toward the burrow exit.
