Chapter 55: What I Met at the Everlasting Snow Mountains (2)

Lucas hated his beast form to death. However, he was an eccentric who pathologically loved investigating things, and there was no better method for spying than this cute yet deadly form.

In the Beast Kingdom, it was taboo for the ruling class to show their true form. While some had powerful true forms, many were too delicate and cute, which could become a weakness.

Especially since while most who transformed to fight on battlefields became large beasts, Lucas was different.

Lucas’s beast form was a raccoon.

Also known as the American raccoon.

‘How shameful that I’m a raccoon.’

When becoming an animal, instinct dominates over reason. Though rationality remains, one becomes subject to animal instincts.

But even under the curse, he could uniquely transform between human, beast, and giant form at will. This also meant he was of a lineage that received the most powerful curse.

‘Why did I even come here anyway? Though I’m getting quite a tour of the eastern Everlasting Snow Mountains.’

He had stowed away on the carriage to get a proper look at the Saintess, only to end up at the Everlasting Snow Mountains.

The raccoon scurried through the thick underbrush on short legs. He would run ahead a few meters, peek his face through the leaves, and wait for the Saintess’s group to arrive.

First came Ethan Aralat with his black hair and facial scar.

Following him was a tall black-haired woman with eyes as dark as the night sky. Instinctively, Lucas felt afraid of her.

Lucas shifted his gaze behind the scary woman. There walked a woman with golden hair shimmering in the wind and glass-like sea-colored eyes that sparkled.

Lucas stared entranced at the beautiful Saintess’s appearance.

‘She’s a goddess, my goddess.’

Today’s spying was a great success. His already raised snout lifted even higher.

Yuria was her name, wasn’t it?

Recalling the contents of his informant’s report, Lucas’s raised mouth drooped.

‘That Duke Auguste, how dare he snatch my goddess.’

He felt bitter that he hadn’t met Yuria first.

“My lady, we seem to have come quite far in. Where should we go?”

Ethan Aralat’s voice came from the front. Lucas quickly flattened himself to the ground. The cool air dampened his black nose. Soon after, the Saintess’s voice was heard.

“…Hmm, check if there’s a cliff nearby.”

“First, since it’s getting dark, we should find a temporary shelter near the water.”

Lucas raised his short neck to look up. The sky, surrounded by jungle on all sides, looked as if it had a white hole in it. Through that gap, dusk was gradually settling in.

*

Ethan quickly found a place to rest. Following the sound of water, he led us to a cave with a small spring flowing through it.

“I’ll make a fire.”

He gathered branches, clacked some stones together, and whoosh — started a fire. My frozen feet began to thaw in its warmth.

‘He’s a complete man of the jungle.’

Even Rosetta, who discriminates against people, seemed to see Ethan in a new light.

“Amazing! General Ethan, I’m impressed.”

“Heh, this is nothing.”

After he finished setting up the area, Ethan gathered his arrows and said to me.

“My lady, we brought biscuits but have no meat, so I’ll go hunting.”

“If it’s for my sake, you don’t have to…”

“You said the Valian flower is on a cliff, right? We’ll need energy to climb the cliff at dawn.”

“True. Alright then.”

I nodded quietly while warming myself by the campfire. Rosetta clenched her fists and cheered for Ethan.

“I’m expecting great things again!”

“Yes, understood.”

Ethan’s tanned neck reddened slightly as he rushed out of the cave. Rosetta’s clear voice followed after him.

“Catch something delicious! Our lady loves meat!”

“D-don’t worry!”

Rosetta spread our snow-dampened clothes on rocks beside the fire.

I walked deeper into the cave to change into spare clothes. As I went further in, the cavity widened and cool air clung to my skin.

Trickle trickle.

‘Must be the spring Ethan mentioned nearby.’

The damp clothes were making me increasingly cold. Just as I was about to remove my clinging clothes.

Splash splash.

…Is someone playing with the water?

Instead of the natural flow of water, I heard artificially created sounds. Slightly creeped out, I carefully approached the spring.

‘What’s that sound? Is someone there?’

A thin twilight beam illuminated the spring in the middle of the cave. By the water, some creature flinched and stared at me with its mouth open. Water dripped from the biscuit in its hands.

“A raccoon dog?”

A raccoon dog suddenly appearing in the cave.

I approached closer, dumbfounded.

“Keeking-king.”

The raccoon dog cried out something while waving its thin arms. In doing so, the biscuit plopped into the spring. Its already open mouth opened wider as it stared blankly at the sinking biscuit.

Finally, it let out a sharp scream.

“Keek!”

“Pfft.”

There’s another silly one just like Kiki.

“What will you do now that you dropped the biscuit you worked so hard to steal?”

At my voice, it met my eyes and its shoulders twitched. Its black eyes rolled around before it pulled its tail with its hands and buried its round eyes in it.

‘Is it embarrassed? Hmm, stripes on the tail?’

“Ah, you’re a raccoon! Not a raccoon dog!”

Seeing the striped tail reminded me of a broadcast comparing raccoons and raccoon dogs. The raccoon slowly raised its head to meet my eyes, then buried its head in its tail again.

“Aack, what is that?!”

Rosetta’s scream-like voice came from behind me. Simultaneously, two apples dropped from her hands.

Roll roll. One stopped at my feet, one rolled to stop in front of the raccoon.

Rosetta covered her mouth with both hands and backed up several steps, unable to come closer. Though it was getting dark, she had somehow gone out to pick fruit — the leaves stuck to her changed clothes showed as much.

“My lady, please step back!”

“It’s alright. That’s an animal called a raccoon. It’s peculiar but not dangerous. Isn’t it cute?”

The raccoon nodded up and down as if agreeing.

“See? It even understands what we’re saying. It’s a smart and good animal.”

“B-but.”

Rosetta’s face contorted as if she’d encountered a cockroach.

‘She really wasn’t kidding about hating animals.’

Calming Rosetta was the priority, so I decided I should send the raccoon back to nature.

“Since Rosetta doesn’t like it, I’ll send it away.”

“Please do, my lady.”

Rosetta, who’s taller than me, hid tightly behind me. The raccoon also seemed surprised, frozen with round eyes.

I picked up the fallen apple. A fragrant sweet smell rose from my fingertips.

I took a step toward the raccoon and knelt on one knee to reach for the other apple. Just as I was about to touch it, the creature quickly picked it up with both hands and started spinning it in the spring.

“……”

Splash splash splash.

“L-look at that. It is a bad animal after all. You told me stealing is wrong, My lady, but the raccoon stole our apple and is washing it. Come to think of it, the food bag’s biscuits were messed up!”

Wasn’t it this one who did it? Rosetta asked, meeting my eyes.

Ah, those biscuits.

However, the raccoon paid no attention and continued washing the apple, spinning it up and down.

“Rosetta, it’s just an animal. It must be hungry.”

“But…”

Rosetta looked at the raccoon with a dissatisfied expression before closing her mouth.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to send it back to the forest.”

“Yes, my lady. I trust only you.”

Even during our conversation, the raccoon took a firm bite of the thoroughly washed apple.

Chomp chomp chomp.

As the juicy chewing sounds echoed through the cave like surround sound, Rosetta couldn’t hold back and screamed.

“It’s d-disgusting!”

The startled raccoon froze its constantly chewing snout. Then it suddenly threw away the apple it had been eating. As if it had eaten something it shouldn’t have, despite washing it so seriously earlier.

It shook its cute triangular head vigorously before charging fiercely toward me.

“Oh my!”

“You!”

Rosetta, mustering her courage, tried to block it by waving her arms, but the raccoon landed on my lap. It curled its plump body into a ball and looked up at me. Those eyes were quite bright and sparkling.

“How cute!”

They say animals know who likes them. This one seemed to know that I like animals too.

“Cute?! Please put it down quickly. It’s dirty! It’s dangerous!”

Rosetta jumped up and down making a fuss.

“It’s fine, really. Look how well-behaved it is.”

But I needed to change out of my damp clothes soon. I grabbed its sides and put it down on the ground. Its soft flesh on its sides was squishy. The raccoon blinked its innocent round eyes and tilted its head.

“My clothes are damp, that’s why. Just wait a moment.”

“My lady, please go change quickly. I’ll watch this thing.”

“No, that’s not necessary…”

Rosetta, who had found a stick somewhere, stood in front of me with a determined expression while tapping the ground next to the raccoon. She had even put on mittens at some point.

The creature tried to run toward me, peering around, but Rosetta had good reflexes and above all, great stamina.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

After thwarting the raccoon’s several attempts, she caught it by the scruff of its neck. The creature suspended in mid-air flailed its four legs, but to no avail.

“Rosetta, are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine so please go behind the rock and change quickly.”

“I can change here though? Why behind the rock?”

“My lady, didn’t you know?”

Rosetta looked at the raccoon’s face and raised the corner of her mouth.

“This one’s male.”

“Huh?”

The raccoon’s four dangling legs suddenly stiffened in mid-air.