Chapter 345 – Man’s Best Friend! (2)

-Creak!

-Squeak…

Following the sound of crying, we entered the dense forest, where we found a raccoon dog sobbing pitifully after receiving a punch from a leopard.

…What is this thing doing here?

I was so surprised that my mouth hung open without my realizing it.

Well, the leopard is one of the most representative beasts of Man, so it’s possible that it could be seen around here.

But why is there a raccoon dog here…?

Isn’t this animal supposed to be across the Pacific Ocean?

While I was still confused, Hong Yeon-hwa rushed towards the raccoon dog, seemingly unconcerned about its presence.

“You! Get away from the raccoon dog, which could become my mistress’s pet!”

Ah, I see. You just thought it was a raccoon.

The leopard quickly retreated after being hit by Hong Yeon-hwa’s hand, which was swift and fierce.

It only made a few moves, but its momentum was strong enough to make the previously confident leopard turn tail and run away.

“Kiiing…”

“Ahem! It’s my victory!”

After chasing away the leopard, Hong Yeon-hwa turned her head to look at the raccoon dog, as if she had just realized something.

“Did you see that? I am the savior of your life! So hand over your head to me…uh…?”

Only now did Hong Yeon-hwa look closely at the animal she had saved, and her expression twisted in amazement.

A beak like a duck, a body like a raccoon, and a tail like a beaver.

The raccoon dog, which looked like a rough combination of several creatures, looked up at Hong Yeon-hwa with bright eyes.

“Squeak…?”

As if asking if it was really alive now, the raccoon dog made a sound that seemed to question whether it had really been rescued by Hong Yeon-hwa.

Although it was true that animals recognize their saviors, no one here could pay attention to such things.

“Oh, a raccoon dog with a duck’s beak…? You! What the hell is this thing?! Is it a bastard born between a duck and a raccoon dog?!”

“Calm down, Hong-unni! It’s impossible for a child to be born between a duck and a raccoon dog! So that means…this is a wicked experiment!”

“Well…So-so’s words are a bit exaggerated, but…why. Although it’s a little different from this creature, Yeon-hwa-unni was also born through sorcery, right? It doesn’t seem completely impossible…”

“Young-ryeong-a! Even if that’s the case, how can you treat this thing, which is neither a human nor an animal, the same as my lady?!”

Everyone was panicking at the sight of the strange creature they had never seen before.

“Even though it failed, the Shipyunjinbeop was still the closest technique to perfection,” Sammayeoryeong said, her hair still standing on end.

It was a technique that allowed one to control everything according to their will, except for a few fundamental principles of the universe, such as resurrecting the dead or manipulating time.

“But look at these guys! They’re using this shoddy technique and calling it the Shipyunjinbeop? This? This isn’t how you use a technique…! Aaah! Ugh!”

As she spoke, Sammayeoryeong’s anger seemed to rise again, and she began to jump around in place.

I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed for her, as if someone had tried to show off a poorly made sword and call it a divine weapon.

While I was trying to calm Sammayeoryeong down, the confrontation between the men of my past life and the unknown men continued.

By the time Park Soo-ho realized that the martial arts world he had only heard of in legends actually existed and that the men holding him captive were part of it, one of the bulky men stepped forward and spoke.

“I think we understand the situation now. The martial arts world exists, but it’s slowly declining.”

“What does that have to do with me?”

“Listen to me until the end. Natural energy is fading, and talented people are no longer being born. We can only learn and pass down the declining martial arts, but even if we manage to do that, we’re being pushed aside by modern weapons. The martial arts world is shrinking, and if this continues, it will disappear completely in a hundred years.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Was this really the future that Blood Demon had foretold?

But what the next bulky man said was even more unbelievable.

“So, the princess has decided to launch the Martial Arts Preservation Project.”

“The Martial Arts Preservation Project?”

“Yes. By analyzing the bodies of those born with special constitutions, we will cultivate artificial talent. We will then restore the original form of the declining martial arts and find the power to replace the fading natural energy. That way, we can continue the 3000-year history of the martial arts world. That is the will of the current martial arts princess, the Sword Master.”

“….”

Wow.

What kind of insane plan was this?

Of course, those with power would never willingly give it up.

If the martial arts world still existed, I expected some kind of resistance.

…But I never expected something like this.

Feeling like I had been hit in the back of the head, I scowled even more than before.

“So what? I still don’t see how this concerns me.”

“Park Soo-ho. You were born with a special constitution.”

“What nonsense is this?”

“Yes. I haven’t seen it in person, but I’ve seen pictures of it. But it’s true that it’s not supposed to be here.”

“If it’s not supposed to be here, where should it be? In the lab?”

“Please, let’s not go down that path.”

After a deep sigh, I gave a brief explanation about the raccoon dog.

Starting with the fact that it’s originally from the Australian continent, even the people who first discovered it didn’t believe it was a real animal and tried to tear off its beak.

After hearing the story, Samayeorang nodded her head.

“Jin-rang’s computer? I think I’ve seen the name Australia while playing with it…and Jin-rang has no reason to lie, so it’s probably true.”

“…Do you really believe what Samayeorang says? Isn’t it just a distant animal from a faraway land and not some monster?”

“Yes. It’s not like it’s dangerous anyway. We saw it getting punched by a leopard earlier.”

“That’s…yes. That’s true. Hong Yeon-hwa was scared because of its strange appearance.”

Blushing, Hong Yeon-hwa looked embarrassed.

“So…you’re saying it’s just a simple animal?”

“Well, not exactly. It doesn’t seem like an ordinary raccoon dog.”

“Huh? Oh! Come to think of it, it seemed like it understood your words earlier!”

Hong Yeon-hwa’s pink eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“Raccoon dog, raccoon dog.”

“Huh?”

“Follow the hand that I raise. Can you do it?”

“Huh?”

Confidently nodding its head, the raccoon dog lifted one of its front paws, matching the direction of Hong Yeon-hwa’s raised hand.

“Wow…! What about this side?”

As Hong Yeon-hwa raised her other hand, the raccoon dog lifted its other front paw.

“Amazing! Can you do this one too?”

Left hand, left hand, right hand, left hand, both hands.

“Huh? Huh. Huh? Huh?”

At first, the raccoon dog seemed a little confused, but soon it calmly lifted its front paws in the order that Hong Yeon-hwa showed it.

“Wow! You’re amazing! Then can you do this one too?”

Finally, Hong Yeon-hwa raised both hands, and the raccoon dog lifted both of its front paws.

“Wow…! You’re amazing! Then…this little one is Yeongmul!”

“Yes. That’s what it seems like.”

Although it was very faint, I could sense something murky inside.

Now that the raccoon dog had no black mark, wasn’t a dangerous creature, and was even a smart Yeongmul, Hong Yeon-hwa’s eyes lit up with determination.

“You. I’ve made up my mind.”

“I think I know what you’re talking about, but let me get some water first. What do you want?”

“I want to take this little one with me!”

“Sure.”

“Think about it a little more! The reason Bonnyeo came here alone must be because of this little one… Huh? What did you just say?”

“I’m okay with it. I’m curious about how a raccoon dog ended up here, and it’s not right to just leave a smart little one like Yeongmul alone.”

“You…!”

Hong Yeon-hwa looked at me with a deeply moved expression. But soon, her expression turned into a mixture of anxiety and anticipation as she looked at the other women.

Everyone chuckled at the sight of her transparent emotions.

“Well…if it’s just a rare animal, then I think it’s okay, Hong Unni.”

“Yeah. I agree with So-so Unni. I was worried about something that might be behind this little one, not the little one itself.”

“He’s smart, and there are plenty of people who can take care of him even if we can’t. I’m in favor of it.”

With a bright smile on her face, Hong Yeon-hwa asked the raccoon dog in my hand.

“That’s right! What do you think? If you have nowhere to go, come with Bonnyeo.”

“Quack…?”

As if asking if it’s really okay to follow her, the raccoon dog cried out.

Without saying a word, Hong Yeon-hwa reached out to him, and he slowly stretched out his front paw.

Although it didn’t reach her hand, did the message get through?

Hong Yeon-hwa grabbed his claws and shook them up and down like a handshake.

“Okay. From now on, you’re Bonnyeo’s friend!”

“Quack!”

“By the way…can Bonnyeo pet him a little?”

“Quack…?”

The raccoon dog tilted its head, but still leaned its head forward for Hong Yeon-hwa to pet.

Hong Yeon-hwa smiled happily, as if she had everything in the world.

Yes. In the end, she achieved her true purpose for coming here alone.