CH 59

Chapter 59 – It was a talking Hairball!

“Baaahhh! What is this thing!? It just started drinking from my udder!”

Celes shouted, and then the other Mopes opened their mouths as if in realization.

“Ah! That’s the thing that was drinking from mine as well!”

“Baaahh! Mine too! So this is the culprit!”

“This is an outrage! A degenerate milk thief!”

The Mopes began to talk angrily.

And so I addressed them.

“Now, now! Still, what race is it?”

A fur ball that was completely black… The Mopes also looked like balls of fur, but they had clearly visible faces.

However, this thing that drank Celes’s milk had no face that I could see. I could not even distinguish its arms and legs from its body. It was just a sphere.

“Well, it seems like it can understand us… I suppose it was hungry.”

Iria muttered. And then Melk, who was in her wolf form, brought it a fish.

She was going to give it to the fur ball.

“Fish. Will you eat?”

“Oohh! I thank you! Thank you very much indeed!”

The ball bowed its head…or rather, leaned its body forward, and with a speed the eye could barely follow, dragged the fish into the fur.

As we could hear the sounds of it being eaten greedily, it was clearly a living creature with a mouth.

It really had no hesitation…and seemed restless.

Besides, while it talked like an elderly person, the voice was high-pitched, like a child.

Demihuman, monster… Hmm. I could not tell.

In any case, it seemed to be satisfied with the fish, as it muttered, ‘That was delicious!’

And so I called to it.

“Uh, I am Joshua. Who are you?”

“Who am I? I am Ymir!”

“Ymir, huh? Your race… Uh, is there a name that represents you and your kind?”

“Our name… We are the Pelekus!”

“Pelekus. Iria, have you heard of them?”

Iria shook her head. I asked the village elders as well, but they did not know either.

I even turned to Ecleshia and Melk, but they shook their heads.

A tribe unknown to Kijin, werewolf and Ents.

I doubted the Tengu would know either.

“Ymir. You and the others. Where is your house?”

“…Uh, what? What is that? I was living in a cave with my family…”

Ymir pointed to a distant mountain to the east, and then began to shiver violently.

While I could see no expression, it seemed like it was crying.

“Did something happen to your family?”

“Mmm… Suddenly, the mountain began to shake…and the cave was closed up.”

“An earthquake…? And only you were able to escape?”

“As I am small, I was somehow able to slip through the cracks in the rocks… However, even that gap collapsed… I tried my best to move the rocks, but…”

Ymir’s voice was trembling.

“I could do nothing… Eventually, the others said that I must go out alone and survive. But I want so much to help the others… And so I decided to go and find someone who can help. But I became very hungry…”

“I see. And then you found the Mopes.”

Ymir’s body moved as if to nod.

“Please, will you not help us?”

At this, Iria and I looked at each other.

And then Iria nodded firmly.

“Ymir. We will go with you and help the others.”

“Re-really!? They will be saved! Thank you!”

Water began to slosh out of Ymir’s fur ball. It was probably tears.

And like this, we headed towards the cave in the east.