Chapter 386 |
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"Kahaha!"
"Over here! This way!"
The laughter of children playing happily in the yard could be heard.
The atmosphere in the village had been somber for a while due to an incident that happened two days ago, but it seemed that the children recovered quickly.
"They're having so much fun."
Kaneff, who was watching the children through the window, muttered. I replied as I packed my things to leave.
"That's true. I feel like it'll be hard to say goodbye since they became close so quickly."
"Speaking of which, what are we going to do about that one?"
To be more accurate, it was more like the fox was being chased around against its will.
I awkwardly smiled while scratching the back of my head.
"I guess we'll have to take it with us?"
"Ugh… Is that okay? It tried to do harm to Speranza, after all."
"Well, that's true. But it has lost its power now, so it's pretty much just a regular baby fox. Besides, I have it under control, so there shouldn't be any major issues."
"I still feel a bit uneasy about it…"
Kaneff's uneasiness was echoed by Lia, who had been listening nearby.
I understood both of their concerns.
Although it looked cute now, its true nature was a fox spirit that almost put us in danger.
But strangely, the fox spirit followed Speranza's words well.
At first, we were on guard for any malicious acts, but so far, there had been no signs of such behavior.
As we discussed the fox spirit, someone knocked on the door.
-Knock. Knock. Knock.
-It's Anis. May I come in?
"Yes, come in."
As the door slowly opened, Anis entered the room.
Perhaps it was due to the closeness that had formed from going through various events together, everyone warmly greeted her. Terzan, who had been hiding, also peeked out and waved to her.
Of course, Kaneff only gave her a quick glance…
Anis, who sat down, started speaking with a regretful expression.
"Are you already done preparing to leave?"
"Yes. It seems the chaotic atmosphere has settled down, and we want to go back before it gets too late."
"It's such a shame. I couldn't properly treat you as guests since I was busy with village matters… My mother will be very disappointed as well."
She subtly hinted that she wished we could stay a bit longer.
I responded with a sheepish smile.
"Is everything taken care of now?"
"Yes. Those with severe injuries are receiving appropriate treatment, and most of the people with minor injuries have returned to their daily lives."
"That's a relief."
Not only me, but Lia and Terzan also looked relieved.
Although it was an unavoidable situation, we were the direct cause of the injuries to the villagers, after all.
Seeing our reaction, Anis quickly added an explanation.
"You don't need to worry too much about that. My mother personally told the elders that you all are not at fault."
"Did the elders believe her?"
At Lia's cautious question, Anis smiled and answered.
"Of course. In fact, my mother scolded the elders quite harshly. She said that the guardian deity was angered because they created unnecessary conflict over the position of the shrine priestess's successor, and that's what led to this commotion."
"Hahaha, that's great! I didn't like what those elders were up to!"
Kaneff, who was looking out the window, burst out laughing.
It must have been gratifying to see the Erul Tribe elders put in their place, especially considering they tried to use Speranza politically. I, too, felt a sense of satisfaction.
Lia, with wide eyes, muttered,
"That's Speranza's grandmother, Mirna, right? Has she recovered from her discomfort?"
"Yes, she's back to her old self.
"When I saw her briefly back then, she looked so majestic, but I can't imagine her scolding the elders."
"Actually, my mother is quite strict. That's why the elders, who can be considered the adults of the village, get really nervous in front of her."
As the conversation began to fade,
I very cautiously brought up a sensitive topic.
"Anis, about the… fox deity…?"
As soon as she heard the word ‘fox deity,' Anis's body flinched. She calmly composed her expression and nodded.
"As you suspected. My mother decided not to disclose anything about the guardian deity."
"Hmm…"
The fox spirit, who had been revered as the guardian deity of the Erul Tribe.
In reality, it was nothing more than a swindler who had brainwashed and confined the Erul Tribe within a barrier to find a sacrifice for its resurrection.
However, it didn't mean that the entire faith of the Erul Tribe was wrong just because the existence of the guardian deity was corrupted.
If that belief was invalidated, it might have caused even greater chaos than the turmoil that had occurred two days ago.
Mirna must have had no choice.
I nodded my head slightly without mentioning it further. Anis, with a bright expression, opened her mouth.
"My mother actually said it was a good thing. She said there's no longer a need for the Erul Tribe to hide within the barrier."
"That's definitely good news."
"And she said that once the role of the Priestess is over, she'd like to visit Sihyeon's farm. She said she'd like to live comfortably with Speranza without worrying about the eyes of others there."
"Haha! She’s always welcome. Speranza will love it, too."
Anis's eyes sparkled as she asked me,
"Am I welcome, too?"
"Of course. Come visit anytime. We'll be waiting for the day both of you visit."
"Just hearing that makes my heart flutter."
We all laughed, promising to meet at the farm someday.
⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩
-Bow woo wooo.
As usual, Yakum's cries echoed throughout the farm.
In the middle of it all, I was surrounded by big furballs after a long time.
"Hey, hey! You guys back off. This isn't for you."
-Bow woooo.
-Bow woo wooo!
Despite being told to back off, the Yakums gathered around me stubbornly. What they had their eyes on were the fruits and herbs packed in the bag next to me.
With winter over and in the midst of spring, the Yakums' appetites had exploded recently.
Normally, I would have given in and shared a little, but today the recipients of the fruits and herbs had already been determined.
"Big Horn! Big Horn! Please stop these guys."
-Booooow……
Big Horn responded with a reluctant sound but didn't ignore my request for help.
As BigHorn approached and glanced around, the disobedient ones stealthily backed away.
As expected, Big Horn is reliable!
I sent a trusting gaze and raised my thumb, although BigHorn turned its head with a grumpy cry in response………….
"Alright. You've waited long enough? Come quickly and eat."
-Bow woo wooo.
-Booo wooooo.
Three Yakums approached me.
They obediently received and ate the specially prepared fruits and herbs.
The reason these three Yakums received special treatment was simple.
They were expecting mothers within the Yakum herd for the first time in a long while.
For some time, there had been no news of pregnancies among the Yakum herd, but as soon as spring arrived, three of them announced the news simultaneously.
When I returned from the Erul Tribe village and confirmed this, I was so overjoyed……………
"That's right. Like Hermosa and Chorongi did. I'll help you have healthy babies. Don't worry and trust me."
-Bow woo woo.
-Booo wooo.
The three Yakums approached in turn and nuzzled their heads against me. I smiled warmly at their expression of trust.
After distributing all the food,
I finished cleaning up briefly and left the barn.
"You were in the barn, Sihyeon."
"Did you take care of the pregnant Yakums again?"
Andras and Alfred came up to me when they spotted me. I smiled pleasantly and nodded.
"Yeah, I got them some special treats."
"Let's go and rest together if you're done with your work, Senior."
"Let's go together. We were just about to take a break too."
"Shall we?"
I joined the two and headed towards the farm building. The warm spring afternoon weather made me feel drowsy and a little hungry.
As Andras and Alfred seemed to have similar thoughts, we discussed snacks while entering the building.
‘Huh? What is this delicious smell?’
As soon as we entered the entrance, a delicious scent wrapped around our noses.
Feeling hungry, we followed the traces of the scent like we were hypnotized and moved in unison.
Following the increasingly clear scent, we arrived at the kitchen.
Someone sensed our presence and poked their head out.
"Oh? I was just about to call you, and here you are."
Freeze!
As soon as we saw Lia poking her head out from the kitchen, the three of us froze as if we had made a pact.
Kitchen + cooking smell + Lia = Danger! Danger!
Accumulated experiences sounded a warning signal in our heads.
Lia puffed her cheeks and looked perplexed by our reaction.
"Ugh, don't worry. I didn't cook this."
"Oh… is, is that so?"
"Ahem, ahem!"
"Phew…"
I showed an awkward expression, Andras cleared his throat in embarrassment, and Alfred sighed in relief.
Lia turned her head with a slightly offended look.
"Oh, my, the young lord is here."
"Ah! Namira."
The fox-like Namira greeted us with a warm smile.
"Did you cook this, Namira? It's still a long way from dinner time……………"
"Hoho, I didn't prepare a meal, but I wanted to practice, so I made a little bit of everything. It's perfect timing. Would you mind tasting it?"
Namira's cooking skills were already famous among the farm members. Recently, I had been receiving a lot of her help with meal preparations.
Therefore, we had no reason to refuse the tasting.
Inside the kitchen, the finished dishes were already neatly arranged on plates. We each picked up a plate and tasted the appetizing dishes one by one.
"Oh! Try this. It's really delicious."
"This is a dish I've never seen before. Can I know its name?"
Compliments poured from Alfred and Andras' mouths as they tasted the food. I was no exception.
"It's really delicious."
"Hoho! Thank you, my lord."
"But why did you suddenly make so many dishes? With this much, you could hold a party, couldn't you?"
"It's the little lady's birthday soon, isn't it? So, I thought I'd practice by making a little bit of everything."
"Ah, I see. The little lady's birthday… Huh?"
For a moment, everyone's movements stopped, except for Namira.
I quickly looked around, wondering if I had heard wrong, but it was no use. There was no doubt that I had heard correctly.
It felt like a smack on the back of the head.
That's because the little lady she was talking about was…
"Oh my, you didn't know? Speranza's birthday is coming up soon."
CH 378-387 (Speranza & Sihyeon) $2CH 388-397 (Happy Birthday my dear daughter) $2CH 398-407 (Subduing the Angels) $2CH 408-417 (Farm family, Assemble) $2CH 418-424 (The END) $2Prev I TOC I Next