Chapter 99

No Way, Right?
Ice Spiders are weak against fire magic.
Use wind and fire magic to aim at the mouth or face, which are the sources of their ice magic attacks.
When I asked why they don’t aim for the rear, I was told that the cold threads can be mixed with silk threads to make a fabric that feels cool to the touch. However, since they're hard to obtain, they fetch extremely high prices.
So while the spiders are hunted, they try not to damage them too much in order to recover as many cold threads as possible.

Once their mouth-based attacks are neutralized, the next target is the legs.
Their bodies are tough and are used for shields and breastplates, so they try not to split them in half.
They deactivate the fortress’s rooftop barriers and prepare to intercept the enemies.

I was told there were 8, but there are 11 Ice Spiders surrounding the fortress. Their numbers have increased.
Because of their long legs, they look even bigger.
It's fine since we're watching from the rooftop, but if we encountered them in the forest, I can totally see how people would panic.
I’m just observing this time, not participating in the hunt.

Brother Gerald and the others are firing fire and wind magic at the Ice Spiders' faces, but perhaps due to the distance, the spiders are dodging by wrapping their cold threads around trees and leaping from tree to tree.
Despite their large bodies, their movements are swift.
But one by one, they lose their heads and legs, and all 11 are finally defeated.

The rooftop barrier is restored, and we approach the slain Ice Spiders to begin recovering the cold threads.
They’re so cold to the touch, like ice—I want gloves.
Brother Gerald tells us we're heading to the place where they previously encountered Ice Spiders to collect more of the cold threads.

After walking for about an hour, we arrive at what looks like a previous battle site.
Cold threads are wrapped around the trees, and unaware of the threads, some orcs and brown wolves are getting tangled and flailing about.
We’re told we can take them down, so I defeat them with Waterballs and Water Shots.

“Who’s there?” My mother said, firing a Waterball up into the trees.

I thought there was no one there, but then something fell from the spot where she’d aimed.

Its body resembles a penguin, but it has soft, fluffy yellow fur—like a chick.
And there are two of them, one big and one small.
They're full of charm and incredibly cute.
… No way, right?

I looked at Brother Gerald.
He approached me and said,
“It’s a Pulchee, isn’t it? I can’t believe we actually ran into one. Hardt, you really are lucky.”

Sigh… I knew it.
Yet again, I’ve run into a monster from the design on the decorative knife.
The beast depicted on the knife I chose as a birthday present for my mother.

The reason I chose Pulchee was simple—I was looking for a monster I could draw using the citrine chips I picked up in a dungeon.
There happened to be a bag of citrine chips among the dropped items.
Pulchee specializes in defensive magic, making it a perfect match for my mother’s healing magic. Plus, it’s fluffy and adorable.
Since Mother occasionally pets Atre and won’t let go, I thought it’d be just right for her.

Pulchee’s nickname is “Spy.”
It can’t attack, but it’s incredibly good at hiding, and because it's so rarely seen, it’s ranked A.
The parent is about 30 cm tall, and the child is about half that, around 15 cm.

We safely recovered all the cold threads from the Ice Spiders, and Mother carried the two Pulchees back to the fortress.
She immediately asked Atre to interpret.
The two Pulchees were a mother and child.
They had come to the fortress as part of the child’s stealth training.
Apparently, it’s easier to begin training against humans than high-ranked monsters of the forest.

So… does that mean humans are less likely to notice Pulchee’s presence?
They seemed to regret being noticed by my mother and me.

Even me?
Apparently, the one I made eye contact with on the rooftop earlier was a Pulchee.
So it wasn’t just my imagination.
I asked them what they want to do now.
Mother glared at me, but I told her, “We can’t force them to come with us.”

The Pulchee mother asked what will happen if they come with us, so I explained.
They’ll leave the forest and live with us as part of the family, but they’ll still have a fair amount of freedom.
They’ll receive mana from Mother.
And if they want, they can talk with Fenrir and Fiamma here—those two are bound to us siblings through familiar contracts.

The Pulchee mother and child say they’d like to speak with Atre and Ripka, so the four monster huddled together, and we give them space.

“Mother, I know they’re adorable and you’d like to bring them home, but we can’t ignore Pulchee’s wishes.”

“Mother, Hardt is right. I understand how happy you are to have met a Pulchee, but if you force them to come with us, they’ll just run away.”

“You’re right. I got a bit carried away. Let’s pray they choose us.”

What do you think about this chapter?