Chapter 186: Mother and Daughter (6)

Chapter 186: Mother and Daughter (6)Brigitte plucked some fur from the raccoon dog and put it into a strange beaker.What was she doing?

"What are you doing?""To create an antidote, we need to know exactly what kind of poison it is. For example, the antidotes for eating poisonous mushrooms, being bitten by a venomous snake, or being stung by a hornet are all different."

It sounded quite obvious once she said it.It's easy to lump everything together as 'poison', but in reality there are many different types of poisons.After all, poison was simply used as an umbrella term, so it was easy to forget that there were many different types like toxins, venom and so on.Toxins refer to poisons synthesized by living organisms, while poisons are types that cause harm when touched or ingested.And venom, I knew, referred to poisons that enter directly through the bloodstream, like hornet stings or snake fangs.

Why did I know this?I wish I didn't.Anyway.

What kind of poison could be causing pain to this giant, fluffy, warm, and cute-looking raccoon dog?Soon, Brigitte said.

"It's a virus.""A virus... you mean like a disease?""Yes. This giant dog raccoon has contracted a disease. It's a disease that doesn't exist in raccoon dogs, but does in humans. Have you heard of Falkins disease?"

What could Falkins disease be?I know about Parkinson's disease, but...However, listening to Brigitte's explanation, the symptoms of the two diseases seemed similar.

"It's a disease named after the wizard Falkins. When you contract this disease, your hands shake and you can lose your memory. And in many cases, you lose your eyesight. It's very similar to this raccoon dog’s symptoms."

I see...With almost no medical or magical knowledge, I could only nod my head.

The only thing that came to mind was that my great-grandfather, who had been a decorated military officer, had suffered greatly from Parkinson's disease.He had been an incredibly impressive person, but after the illness, he became a completely different person.I heard there's no perfect cure for it.

"Falkins disease is a condition that only affects humans with magical power as they age. It occurs when the flow of magic to the brain becomes irregular due to a certain virus."

A raccoon dog contracting a human disease.Is such a thing possible?As I was feeling puzzled, Brigitte spoke.

"This is just one of the more radical hypotheses, but there's a saying in academic circles these days. They say that women's bodies change after being intimate with men.""Really?""There are a few cases where women who had no talent for magic suddenly manifest magical abilities after being intimate with men who have exceptional magical power, especially when they become pregnant."

It was a fascinating phenomenon.Could it be that the woman absorbs some of the child's qualities while carrying the child in their womb?

Soon, something flashed through my mind.It was the story of how Elle Cladeco fell ill after falling in love with a man from another world and conceiving Tywin.Also, I recalled what Naru said, about Brigitte suffering greatly from being pregnant with her.

"This..."

...Could this be related to the current situation?Perhaps the existence of 'me', a human from another world who had become a strange demiurge, could have a negative impact on the mothers of children.As this worry arose, I felt unnecessarily anxious.

"Can you cure this raccoon dog?""Well, Falkins disease itself isn't difficult to cure. It's been thoroughly researched by various wizards, so it's been completely conquered. Healing magic isn't my specialty, but the treatment method isn't difficult. It's just a bit tricky to meet all the requirements."

Whatever it was, it was a relief to hear it could be treated.

"The treatment method is to project powerful magic into the brain. This causes the virus to die off as it can't withstand the magical heat, and eventually everything returns to normal."

The treatment method was simpler than I expected.Fortunately, Brigitte was a magician with an enormous amount of magical power, so she was capable of treating this giant raccoon dog.

"But first, we need to remove the emperor hornet's venom circulating in its body. Although this venom is suppressing the activity of the magic virus, if we don't remove it first, the exposure of intense magic might cause an explosion in her body. Judas, do you have the medicinal ingredients we received from Ilgast?""Yes, I do."

Brigitte promptly took the ingredients and began preparing the antidote.I didn't know Brigitte had the skill to make medicine too.As I was thinking how impressive this was, Brigitte scratched the back of her head, as if she had read my thoughts.

"Well, you know. Making medicine on the spot is just common sense for adventurers to increase their survival rate. I can't make it as well as Ilgast though.""I see."

At that moment, Naru arrived.Naru had brought a child named Princess Makana, tightly bound with ropes. Despite being a hornet, she lived up to her self-proclaimed title of 'princess' with her high princess power.Her princess power was at least B+.If her personality hadn't been so aggressive, she could have easily achieved an A grade.Brigitte spoke to Princess Makana.

"I'm sorry, but I prefer regular raccoons to raccoon dogs. I'm thinking of bringing some to the northern forest after driving you raccoon dogs out. I'll bring back the squirrels too. I like things with black stripes like hornets."

Indeed, both raccoons and squirrels do indeed have black stripes.In the end, Naru slumped down.That's when Nari opened her lips with a growl.

"We raccoon dogs... can bloom special flowers in this Muke-muke Forest. They're called 'Nari' flowers. The fragrance of these flowers is incredibly sweet! And I heard that you Bashkir emperor hornets can produce special honey from Nari flowers? Without us, you won't be able to make honey from Nari flowers!""Hmm-."

Makana made a long nasal sound for the first time, as if she had heard an interesting opinion.

"I like Nari flowers too. Our emperor hornets also have worker hornets collect honey directly from them. I have plenty of Nari flowers in my room too. Alright. I'll give you one hour. If you succeed in making Nari flowers bloom, I'll forget about this invasion."

It was a strange negotiation.

# # #

"Flower.... Seeds of Nari flower..."

Naru held the seeds of Nari flowers in her hand.They were tiny seeds, like grains.However, even though she held them in her hand or watered them, the flowers did not germinate.While Naru was talented in many ways, she was clearly not good at things she couldn't do.

"Naru, should have... studied science harder...! Molumolu did all my science homework for me!"━Meowww.

Naru was visibly dejected.Seeing this, Nari snorted.However, Nari also seemed to be struggling quite a bit with making the flowers bloom.

"Mom was the best at making Nari flowers bloom. I should be able to do it too. I'm her daughter after all! Even though I've never learned─hmm, I'm half raccoon dog too!"

Nari planted the seeds and circled around them.Her face was already grimy, with dirt and dust mixed with sweat. How messy!

━...

Naguri, Nari's mother, watched this scene silently with dim eyes. She seemed to want to say something as her mouth twitched and her front paws fidgeted, but she kept her mouth shut.Her daughter, Nari, was busily trying to make the seeds sprout on her own, digging into the ground, burying the seeds, then digging them up again.Then she spoke to her mother.

"Mom! I'm going to protect this forest too! Tell me how to make flowers bloom! I'm going to be a proper raccoon dog!"

━...

Naguri remained silent.Finally, unable to hold back, Nari looked down at the buried seeds and began to cry.

"I actually wanted to learn more from you, Mom! I wanted to spend more time with you, walk through the forest with you! Because, I love you, Mom! I love you, my raccoon dog Mom!"

A cry full of yearning.It reminded me of when Naru once said, 'I want to be a thief like Dad!'Becoming a thief.It was a foolish thing to say, but in a way, it made me feel a bit proud.

That's when it happened.Where Nari's tears had fallen, a small sprout emerged from between the wet soil.And then, beautiful pink petals gently poked out their heads, finally blooming brightly like a rose.

It was a truly magnificent sight.And it also meant that Naru had lost.

"Naru... lost..."