Chapter: 762
A rabbit has become part of our family.
And seeing as there are two of them, it seems the situation has been considerate enough to send one male and one female.
‘What should I do?’
I exchanged awkward glances with the rabbits, pondering what to do with them.
It’s a well-known fact that a rabbit’s reproduction capability is astonishing. Even those who lack knowledge about animals know that rabbits are symbols of reproduction.
However, that impressive reproductive ability is not just about “these guys have a lot of babies.” Leave a couple of rabbits for two or three years and voila—before you know it, the place transforms into a rabbit den!
‘It could even cover an entire continent.’
I even know of an actual case where someone released rabbits into a continent that had none, and the population exploded into the hundreds of thousands. That was done for hunting purposes, yet the rabbits continued to multiply despite being hunted regularly!
Hence, I couldn’t help but view the rabbits sent by the situation with serious eyes. If I messed this up, the entire mansion could fill up with rabbits.
‘I can’t exactly turn them into meat, can I?’
For the time being, the two rabbits sent by the situation are obviously off the menu, and what to do with the offspring they might produce is a whole other headache. If the offspring are seen as gifts from the situation, does that mean they’re also part of the same conundrum?
It’s complicated. Is it even possible to spay or neuter a rabbit? I’d love to have them ‘de-peanuted.’
– Hwee-ung…
– Hwi-ing…
Noticing my plight, the two rabbits looked up at me with their slightly glistening eyes.
No way! Even if you look at me like that, I can’t handle your reproductive prowess—
– Hwee-ung.
– Hwi-ing.
The rabbits began rubbing their faces against my legs.
What in the world? Is this the rabbits’ way of maintaining their dignity? No, did rabbits actually make sounds like “hwee-ung” or “hwi-ing”?
‘This is maddening.’
Seeing the bunnies act all cute to survive tugged at my heartstrings.
And then I remembered the rabbits in Atelius’s cave, which made my inner conflict even worse. The rabbits there had also come to recognize my face, greeting me in their subtle way when I arrived.
Though they were different rabbits, I had developed a bond with the species. Under these circumstances, ignoring this cuteness and ruthlessly getting rid of their ‘peanuts’ felt like a difficult task.
“Let’s at least say hello first.”
With a small sigh, I scooped the rabbits into my arms.
Since they’ve become part of our family, I shouldn’t make decisions alone. It would be better to discuss it with the other family members or the staff. Perhaps we could come up with a better solution together.
“Is there magic to prevent livestock from breeding? Maybe that could help?”
However, I didn’t expect to find a good solution that soon.
“There is such magic?”
“Yes, many are unaware because livestock breeding is usually advantageous, but there are specific cases where its existence is maintained. When the population balloons too much, it becomes too difficult for the caretaker, doesn’t it?”
“I see…”
I couldn’t help but smile wryly at Trixie’s kind explanation.
‘How foolish.’
In hindsight, it made perfect sense. Given the situation, they had given me a pair of rabbits, right? If they were breeding wildly, the Imperial Palace would have turned into a rabbit paradise by now, yet it remained eerily quiet. This indicates that there are indeed ways to control reproduction.
Plus, every time I saw the rabbits in Atelius’s cave, their numbers had remained constant. Unless Atelius had been periodically eating them, they should have increased in number.
“So we probably don’t need to cut their ‘peanuts’ after all?”
“I find that thought even scarier. They can be controlled with magic, yet you want to resort to physical removal?”
I quietly shifted my gaze to Trixie, who looked at me with a somewhat peculiar expression.
But in the world of possession, removing them was standard. The place had no magic, after all.
“Come, both of you. Our kids seem to have taken an interest in rabbits, so your timing couldn’t be better.”
– Hwee-ung!
– Hwi-ing!
Anyway, the two rabbits maintaining their dignity hurried over at Trixie’s call.
It seems these two will likely see Trixie as their lifelong benefactor. I would feel the same if someone helped me keep my dignity intact.
“Oh! Carl?”
“Yeah?”
“What are these kids’ names?”
That made me remember a letter I had received with the rabbits.
It said that the Count of Tailglehen, from my benefactor, believed number 7 and number 8 would be well taken care of.
“They don’t have names yet. I guess we’ll have to make them ourselves.”
I spun a white lie, unable to say those names aloud.
Honestly, seven and eight just won’t do. What kind of pet name is 7 and 8? Even military dogs deserve better names than that!
“Then let’s name the male ‘Mane’ and the female ‘Mine.’”
“I don’t mind, but what do those names mean?”
“What meaning does a pet name have? It just has to sound nice.”
Her nonchalant answer made me shut my mouth quietly.
So what does it make me, who once tried to name a pet ‘Beatitudo’? It meant ‘happiness’ in Latin.
‘Is that why it was rejected?’
Thinking back, the name Beatitudo had been unanimously ignored by the ladies. At least I managed to salvage the ‘Ti’ from Beatitudo—count that as a small victory, I suppose.
‘Mane and Mine sound nice.’
I reluctantly accepted the new names for my new family members, pushing aside my bittersweet feelings.
So, Mane and Mine. Please become good friends with our kids.
There are older rabbits that came first, but they might not be an excellent match, so treat them gently. Though in practice, your links of authority will be higher than those previous ones since you are gifts from the situation.
Mane and Mine adjusted to the mansion at a remarkable speed.
– Hwee-ung!
“What the heck? I’ve never seen that before!”
Mane dove headfirst into the fluffy fur of Plenty.
“Put me down! Get me down right now!”
– Hwi-ing?
Mine started to prance around the mansion with the wings of humility clamped in its mouth.
Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to treat the older ones with any respect, treating them like mere toys. While they might genuinely be trying to befriend them, to us humans, it looked like a couple of hooligans sporting the situation’s colors ransacking the place.
“Master! Save me! Make them stop!”
As soon as our eyes met, Humility cried out in despair.
“Mine, don’t pick on him. Put him down.”
– Hwi-ing!
“Didn’t I say? Don’t just try it once! Multiple—AHH! Don’t lick me!”
At this rate, it seemed like Mine might as well give me a saliva bath. I instinctively brought my hands up in front of Mine.
At that, Mine reluctantly placed Humility on my hand. It looks like they understood the peanut talk from earlier and pledged loyalty to Trixie, showing that they somewhat understand human language. Or maybe they just have great instincts. Either way, the situation has taught them well.
“Owner! I think I’m going to start hating rabbits from today.”
“Don’t hate them too much; they just want to play.”
I offered some consolation in response to Humility’s grim mutterings.
Considering the durability of the spirit beings, I guessed nothing too disastrous could occur. Yet, if left too long in torment, their spirits would likely become distressed. I’ll need to help them out when necessary while also providing comfort to maintain their mental well-being.
“I’m already exhausted from dealing with the spirits, and now this?”
‘Hmm?’
However, my ears perked up at the next words.
“Tired because of the spirits? It’s been quite some time since they first arrived in our mansion, and Humility hasn’t shown much interest in them. It’s strange for Humility to express fatigue now.”
“What’s going on with the spirits that makes it so exhausting? Did they disturb your sleep?”
“Oh. The owner doesn’t know yet.”
With that, Humility fluttered his wings, brushing off any leftover spit from Mine, and then plopped down onto a seat, speaking.
“Recently, mid-tier spirits have started appearing in the mansion’s vicinity. Unlike lower-tier spirits, they can communicate simply and have taken on living forms.”
“What?”
I was completely taken aback by this new revelation.
For the spirits in our mansion to have upgraded from lower-tier to mid-tier? The spirits usually gather around Catlea, and since I take care of Catlea daily, I shouldn’t have missed this!
“They’re curious and cautious mid-tier spirits. Since this is their first time here, they roam around the mansion, but they usually keep their distance from humans. That’s why the owner hasn’t seen them.”
“They’re avoiding humans?”
“They often see elves more than humans. Your wife and daughters, who have elven blood, must be familiar, but pure humans still seem frightening to them.”
It’s funny that they’re not afraid of animals but scared of humans.
At that thought, Humility shuddered slightly, as if recalling something dreadful.
‘Wow.’
I could kind of see the situation unfolding. The small chick, Humility, was likely too easy prey for those cautious mid-tier spirits. Therefore, it seemed the spirits had clustered around Humility, avoiding humans altogether.
Even lower-tier fireflies, which can’t speak, can sometimes be bothersome; so I can imagine how much worse it must be with mid-tier spirits that can communicate.
“Well, once they get used to it, won’t they come out in front of humans?”
“Well… the owner is a benefactor to the spirits, so they will likely acclimate quickly, but the way spirits perceive time is different from that of humans. I can’t tell how long it will take. If unfortunate, they might remain quiet until your death.”
“Oh no.”
Thinking about Humility suffering for nearly 500 years only for the sake of getting used to spirits made my pity for him swell. Given that timeframe, it’s likely that Humility would escape the mansion faster.
“Anyway, the mansion is yours, so you should be aware if any guests are hiding around. Don’t be surprised if suddenly someone you’ve never seen appears.”
“How should I know what they look like?”
“As I mentioned earlier, they take on living forms. Generally, they resemble dogs or cats. They’re about the size of a fist.”
With that, I discreetly tilted my head and glanced beyond the hallway.
“…Like that?”
At my hesitant response, Humility jumped a bit before turning his gaze to where I was looking.
– Get out of the way! Get out of the way!
– Hwi-ing!
In the direction where both our gazes converged, a small green creature had become entangled in Mine’s fluff.
It was the size of a fist, just as Humility described.
“Owner.”
“Oh. What is it?”
“Where on earth did you get such thugs?”
I had no idea where these two rambunctious creatures came from, just that they were ‘gifted’ to me.
I never expected these would be the kind of monsters capable of overpowering spirits!
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.