Chapter 258

Page Seventy-Five Small Animal

“Apologies, Ling Meng, I might have fallen for a trap.”

Sister Zǐ teased her pet ferret with a hint of apology.

“It’s just a decoy prepared by Mysterious Girl A. I guess she used a technique to transform it into human form and then controlled it remotely through that bracelet. Once discovered, she would abandon this decoy and escape.”

As she spoke, she peeled open the pine nuts hidden beneath the drawer of the coffee table and fed them one by one to the pet ferret on the table.

If what Sister Zǐ thought was true, Old Lady was indeed more cautious than I imagined, but could such a decoy strategy really work?

Dango Sakura also landed on the coffee table and asked, “Theoretically, it is feasible. Then, where do you think Mysterious Girl A herself is?”

Her vision was even shorter than the ferret’s, and she was playfully scratched by its tiny paws.

“I guess it has something to do with the jewel you took. Soon after you left, she turned back into an animal…”

Sister Shān answered, stroking the ferret from its back to its tail.

“…This little guy’s fur feels so comfortable.”

Sister Zǐ also reached out to touch it, half-jokingly saying, “Fur coats use the fur of its kind, so it must be soft. However, this one is too small, perhaps only enough to make a warm pair of gloves.”

As if understanding Sister Zǐ’s words, the ferret’s fur suddenly stood up, its black eyes alert and fixed on Sister Zǐ. It was both alert and quite endearing.

—”It’s not impossible for it to understand human language. After all, our mother’s magic skills are… peculiar? If it’s her, she might actually have a way to directly impart knowledge and elevate the soul of a small animal.”—

Even if this ability requires divine authority?

—”Actually, I have a hypothesis. Since Lubifang can use magic to let Qian Xia steal incomplete divine power, there’s no reason our mother couldn’t do it. Perhaps she achieved this through some means.”—

While murmuring, Cherry Sauce manipulated her tiny tentacles to wrap around the furry body, which tried to struggle but couldn’t escape.

“Grrk—”

It emitted an animal-like scream, indicating it indeed couldn’t speak.

—”Maybe it’s just pretending.”—

Cherry Sauce, as if performing a binding act, completely wrapped around the little creature, leaving no room for struggle. It was immobilized and began trembling at a frequency that was almost sensual.

“Sss!”

She closed her tiny eyes to endure, but eventually couldn’t withstand the continuous stimulation, even drooling at the corners of her mouth.

If she were still in human form, it would surely be a very seductive scene…

“Oh! Don’t! Stop shaking! I’m going numb!”

…a light, sharp voice.

The pet ferret really spoke!

Mission accomplished, Cherry Sauce released the bindings. The little ferret curled into a trembling ball on the coffee table, covering its face with its paws, still muttering.

“I’ve been tainted, I won’t be able to marry off.”

The pet ferret’s self-reference was very girlish.

Although it said so, its tiny paws took the pine nuts offered by Sister Zǐ and stuffed them into its mouth hurriedly.

“Incredible, to actually use magic to impart knowledge to animals?”

Sister Zǐ remarked, then asked, “So, what’s the name of this little ferret?”

Having exposed its ability to speak, it no longer pretended to be foolish.

“It’s called Yòu Zi because the owner said I belong to the weasel family… I’m thirsty, could you give me some water? (Pawing)”

—”Yòu Zi, this name has the same style as Orange. It can only be said that naming taste is inherited.”—

Sister Shān poured some water into a bottle cap and asked, “Then, can you tell us where Mysterious Girl A is?”

Yòu Zi replied, “I don’t know. I was hit by that violent woman and knocked unconscious. Even if I knew, I wouldn’t betray my owner… Oh! Let me down!”

She was lifted by Sister Zǐ by the nape of her neck, swinging her tiny tail in the air, looking very cute and helpless.

Though Xiao Cangyu is like a small animal, this genuine small animal is cuter.

Sister Zǐ threatened sternly, “It’s better to confess honestly. I know someone who is a tailor and can ask her about leather-making. They’re short of a pair of cold-resistant leather gloves… After all, even if you have intellect, you still don’t have any rights.”

Yòu Zi protested, “How could you! That’s too cruel! I’ll apply for protection from the small animal protection organization!”

Cherry Sauce advised, “Honestly, we’re looking for her for her own good. You might not know, but your owner is in a state where she could disappear at any moment. We need to send her to a safe place as soon as possible.”

The words were sincere. Cherry Sauce treated Yòu Zi as an equal rather than a small animal, so Sister Zǐ put her back on the coffee table to drink. Yòu Zi held the bottle cap with both paws, lifting her head, her tiny eyes showing full humanity.

“I know. Though my owner hasn’t explicitly said it, she has hinted at it multiple times. She told me that if I want to repay her in the future, I should help Miss Chang Kai.”

No, she isn’t just any ‘Miss’?

“I want to know the relationship between Miss Chang Kai and my owner,” Yòu Zi asked again.

Cherry Sauce replied, “Unfortunately, it’s prohibited. Just mentioning it would cause trouble for your owner… But if you consider her as a sister, it’s fine.”

“Eh, is Miss Chang Kai my owner’s younger sister?”

Due to the ambiguous answer, Yòu Zi misunderstood something strange.

Enough, no more entangling this already complicated web of relationships!

Sister Zǐ asked, “Tell us more about your owner, like your residence. Even if you don’t know where she is now, you should know where you usually sleep, right?”

Yòu Zi shook her head and then asked, “What about the jewel?”

Cherry Sauce countered, “You mean the one hanging around your neck just now?”

“Mm-hm! That’s a very important, very important thing!”

“No way, that’s something my master made, so I’m keeping it for now.”

Cherry Sauce found a seemingly legitimate reason to claim the jewel and asked, “So, can you tell me what it’s for?”

“First return the jewel to me!”

Seeing how nervous she looked, Sister Shān asked, “Could it be that the jewel is related to your transformation into human form?”

“…Yes! I can only turn into human form when wearing that jewel, but each time is limited.”

That’s how Yòu Zi answered.

So, indeed, she transformed into human form after we took the jewel.

—”Huh? A jewel that can transform animals into humans? It could be done directly with divine techniques, but for Lord Háilìlùyà, who cannot leave the Divine Court, it seems unnecessary. Without divine authority, it’s reasonable that imparting knowledge is impossible.”—

Hmm, maybe Lord Háilìlùyà’s hobby is playing with jewels?

—”That lord isn’t so idle.”—

There are still too many mysteries about Old Lady, and Yòu Zi seems to be a good breakthrough.

—”I agree.”—

Cherry Sauce said, “We can return the jewel to you, but you need to answer some questions first.”

“How can you be so demanding!”

“What’s being demanding? You haven’t said anything useful anyway.”

Yòu Zi crossed her paws in a very human manner and sat down.

“…Alright, ask away.”

Cherry Sauce asked, “Do you know her purpose?”

“Purpose?” Yòu Zi tilted her head in confusion.

“She has repeatedly told us she has a very important plan, but she never told us what it is.”

“I don’t know either. My owner keeps many things secret from me!”

Yòu Zi shook her head and added, “But she has been working on a super complex spell at home. I don’t understand it, but just looking at it makes it seem incredible! It’s so dense that it doesn’t fit on the workbench!”

“A super complex spell?”

This topic intrigued Sister Zǐ, who asked, “What kind of spell? Can you describe it somehow?”

“That’s hard to explain.”

For someone completely unfamiliar with spells, this was a tall order.

“Let me compare it with this…”

Sister Zǐ took out a metal box from her pocket, infused it with magic power, and formed glowing purple circuits on it.

“This is one of Boss’s finest creations. The box itself is a semi-permanent barrier that doesn’t consume any magic power to block the flow inside and outside.”

Quite… eco-friendly?

After explaining, Sister Zǐ asked Yòu Zi, “Compared to the spell on this box, how much more complex is your owner’s spell?”

Yòu Zi wiggled her elastic whiskers.

“At least a hundred times more complex!”

Sister Zǐ raised an eyebrow at this exaggerated response.

“A hundred times? That’s so exaggerated?”

“Not exaggerated! It’s not only bigger but also has finer lines and more complex symbols!”

Balancing with her tail, Yòu Zi straightened up on the coffee table and spread her paws wide to gesture.

I knew she wanted to express how grand her owner’s spell was, but her arm span was barely wider than my palm, making it hard to convey.

Sister Zǐ asked, “What is she trying to achieve with such a large-scale spell?”

“I already said I don’t know. But she said that if it succeeds, she can stay, but if it fails, she will vanish completely.”

…Clearly, this is about self-preservation.

Though she never mentioned it to us, Old Lady is using her own methods to survive.

She never gave up, even when hope was slim. She wants to live.

“Is she not telling us because she doesn’t want to disappoint us?”

Cherry Sauce murmured, then asked, “Why didn’t you let us share the burden? I could help her with magic, even if it’s just providing magic power or divine power…”

Realizing the reason, she fell silent.

—”She doesn’t want your divine trials to fail. After all, helping her means going against the Heavenly Path and inviting punishment.”—

If saving my mother means offering this mysterious altar, why not?

Yòu Zi wiped her whiskers with her paw.

“My owner has her own ideas… Can you return the jewel to me?”

“I understand.”

Cherry Sauce seemed somewhat disappointed and didn’t seem to want to ask more.

Sister Zǐ said, “Just to be safe, let’s put it in this box first.”