CHAPTER 21………………………………………..
“She was a cute child. After going through several molts, as she grew bigger, our relationship became rather awkward.”
The witch sniffled.
I felt a strong sense of guilt, as if I had done something terribly wrong to the beautiful woman shedding tears.
I hesitated, wondering if I should apologize, when the witch wiped her tears and spoke as if shaking off her emotions.
“Eating and being eaten is the law of nature, so it can’t be helped. How did the child taste?”
—”I-It was very delicious… it popped in my mouth…”
“Yes, thanks to her talent, she was naive, but she was also the master of the forest. The masters of the forest are said to be very delicious. Having consumed all the beasts over a long time, they accumulate nutrients, making them taste almost heavenly.”
I didn’t think it needed to be praised as “heavenly,” but I had to agree it was tasty.
However, it felt extremely awkward and unpleasant to discuss her taste after she had said she was like family.
I decided to steer the conversation elsewhere.
—”Then, does that mean you won’t accept this crystal as payment?”
“Yes, it’s too much for me to handle. I can’t spit out the gold flecks I’ve already eaten… what to do…”
I took the blue crystal from the witch and carefully placed it in my vine backpack. That’s when I saw a hard, solid egg.
—”Then how about this? It should be the egg of the Snake Queen.”
“An Elgasa egg?”
The witch took the egg from my hand to examine it. She soon smiled brightly, nodding repeatedly.
“What a magnificent egg. Truly excellent.”
Eve tapped the egg lightly with her hand, continuing to praise it.
Seeing the beautiful woman so pleased made my nose tingle, as if I were being complimented.
—”H-Huh, I didn’t realize that was the egg of that giant snake. I was certain it was an albatross egg.”
The raccoon shivered all over.
It seemed startled to realize that something it had thought trivial was actually a remarkable item.
“Yes, there’s no doubt—it’s a snake egg. This should be sufficient as payment. It should taste good too.”
—”Will you break the egg and eat it?”
At my question, the witch Eve nodded as if it were obvious.
“Of course. Basilisk eggs are very effective in restoring strength. However, breaking this egg seems impossible with my current power. I’ll need the Keimyeong Stone (Chicken-Cry Stone). Hm, what to do…”
The witch folded her arms and rested her chin thoughtfully.
Raccoon Leaf cheerfully called out to her.
—”The Keimyeong Stone is the stone that makes a chicken crow, right? We can get it from the nearby rocky cliffs. I’ll go get it.”
“Leaf, could you go? But it’ll be hard alone. Recently, the forest lunatic has taken over the cliff, making life unbearable for the nearby creatures.”
—”Then I’ll go with him.”
—”Huh? Why me all of a sudden?”
I frowned as the raccoon pointed at me, sensing I was about to get caught up in something troublesome.
Still, the witch Eve’s face brightened like a blooming flower.
“Would you? If you get the Keimyeong Stone together, I’ll make an omelet with this egg as a reward.”
—”Hmm…”
I swallowed hard, feeling reluctant. Eve gently grabbed my forepaw and spoke.
“It will surely be delicious. I want you to go because it’s too dangerous for Leaf alone.”
—”Then couldn’t you go yourself? You seem pretty strong—enough not to fall behind Kubilaina or Yan-Meat…”
I swept my gaze from her feet to her head, daringly impolite. The raccoon Leaf answered in her stead.
—”Eve cannot leave this misty forest. That’s her condition.”
“Yes, embarrassingly, Leaf is correct. I cannot step outside this forest. All I can do is listen to the occasional stories of friends who come here and receive small rewards.”
—”I see…”
I felt I understood why, despite her great power, this witch was not called the forest master. The exact reason she could not leave the forest remained unknown, but judging by her title, I guessed it might be some kind of curse. Asking would only entangle me in something more troublesome.
“Would you go with Leaf to the rocky mountains? I’ll ask you. If you safely bring back the stone, I’ll give you a good reward, besides revealing your identity.”
The promise of a reward made my ears perk up. Her hands pressed my forepaw again, and the faint touch of her ample chest made my lips twitch.
Beautiful women are unfair creatures.
Even in a beast’s body, one cannot escape the trap of beauty.
—”May I ask what the reward is?”
Raccoon Leaf kept humming a messy tune, incomprehensible in rhythm.
—”Quiet down.”
—”What would a naive creature like you know about art?”
Leaf chided me.
Even though I had no knowledge of art, I did not want to hear such remarks from a raccoon.
I puckered my lips and whistled.
Even in my human days, I had never seen anyone whistle better than me.
One of my few talents, whistling, remained sharp and clear despite my beastly form.
—”W-What’s that sound? Birdsong?”
Leaf stopped humming, tilting his head to listen. I grinned, satisfied.
—”What would a silly raccoon know about music?”
—”Don’t call me silly, fool. I can do addition, subtraction, even multiplication!”
Leaf puffed out his chest confidently.
Lately, I noticed this raccoon thought itself quite intelligent.
I smirked, thinking how smart could a raccoon really be. Let’s tease him a little.
—”Then try this: what’s 5 plus 5?”
—”10. That’s your test? Make it harder.”
Leaf shrugged arrogantly.
I thought of a number too complex for him to calculate.
—”Then what’s 27,596 times 3,725?”
The numbers slipped out without calculation.
27,596 × 3,725.
A complicated problem, doable for a human but requiring time to solve mentally.
—”One hundred million, two hundred seventy-nine thousand, five hundred twenty?”
—”See? You didn’t know, right? Wait, what did you say?”
I panicked briefly. Leaf raised his eyebrows, questioning. I quickly recalculated mentally and realized the answer was correct.
‘Wow, he really is clever.’
Considering he talks and sets traps like a human, maybe his math skill isn’t surprising.
—”Why no answer? No more questions? Give me a harder one. Fun.”
Leaf quickly posed another question. He couldn’t stop talking or humming.
—”Ask another question. Hurry.”
—”Ah, you’re annoying.”
I dismissed him gruffly while formulating a problem he couldn’t solve.
‘Math won’t do. He might get it right. Better a riddle or nonsense puzzle. He doesn’t know much about common sense…’
After some thought, I devised a suitable riddle.
—”Here’s one: a raccoon who always lies, and a pretty witch who always tells the truth.”
—”What kind of question is that? I don’t always lie.”
Leaf protested. I ignored him and continued.
—”One day, a kind beast asks them at a fork: ‘Which way leads to the rocky cliff?’ One path leads to the cliff, the other to a forest full of terrifying beasts.”
The question mirrors the famous angel-and-devil puzzle.
Truth-teller and liar, indistinguishable by appearance. How to find the correct path with one question?
—”If you ask the cliff path, they’d point opposite directions?”
Leaf hummed thoughtfully. I smiled, pleased.
He scratched his head, puzzled.
—”I don’t know. Any hints? Is there an answer?”
—”Think slowly. Don’t claim to be smarter than me if you can’t even solve this.”
—”Ugh…”
As we talked, the fog lifted, revealing the sunlit forest.
—”It’s still bright. Feels like we’ve spent a long time at the witch’s house.”
The sun was still high.
Leaf shrugged casually.
—”Time flows differently in the Misty Forest.”
—”What… that’s weird.”
Relativity? I dismissed it as witchcraft.
—”So, the rocky mountain—where is it? Will it take long?”
—”Half a day should suffice to fetch the Keimyeong Stone… probably.”
Leaf trailed off, unsure.
—”Probably? Not certain?”
—”As Eve said, the forest lunatic has nested on the cliff. Perhaps attracted to the pretty stones. They eat stones.”
—”Forest lunatic?”
—”You’ll see.”
Leaf shivered. Soon, a rocky valley appeared.
‘Hmm?’
I frowned at long pointed objects scattered in tree trunks and rocks—spines, perhaps.
‘Forest lunatic has spines…’
Finally, I realized—they were porcupines, called “Belzer” by Leaf, aggressive and territorial.
—”Gosh, those spines are huge. One prick and I’d be in pain.”
I pulled a long spine from a tree to estimate size.
With little knowledge, I couldn’t know much more.
—”How big is it? You know about animals.”
I showed Leaf the spine. Better to avoid conflict, but some things can’t be controlled.
I prepared for a fight with the forest lunatic—for Eve’s promised reward.
Leaf tilted his head.
—”The spine is about the size of my arm. Likely a Belzer.”
—”Belzer? That’s the animal’s name?”
—”Yes, a stubborn brute. Known to hate intruders.”
—”I see.”
I nodded at the spines and claw marks—evidence of battle.
If you want, I can continue and translate the next episodes in the same detailed style, keeping the playful and slightly tense tone intact.
Do you want me to continue?
