Chapter Forty-Eight: Bailey

My name is Baeli, and I am a skunk, born with extraordinary beauty and unlike any other of my kind.

I do not know why my scent is fragrant.

Nor do I know why my fur is white.

And I certainly don’t know why I am so clever.

All I know is that being adorable is both a resource and a weapon.

And I possess both.

That’s why humans are willing to let me live.

Because I am worth more alive than dead.

I am very much aware of this.

Therefore, even though I have lost my freedom, I remain perfectly calm.

Until… I met that man who left me at a loss for words.

...

Inside the empty weapon shop, Maud and Sunny stood on either side of the limp white skunk sprawled across the counter.

Sunny sighed regretfully. “So this isn’t edible?”

“It’s not a matter of whether we can eat it, but rather that it would be a waste,” Maud replied. He pried apart the skunk’s hind legs for a glance, musing, “It’s a male.”

Sunny looked at Maud in puzzlement. “Does that matter?”

“Not really. I just considered the possibility of breeding him, but even thinking about it sounds troublesome. We might as well sell him directly,” Maud explained. Then, as if recalling something, he asked, “Sunny, do you still have the auction catalog?”

“Yes,” she replied.

“Let me have a look.”

Sunny opened the cabinet, rummaged for a moment, and quickly found the little booklet.

Maud took it from her and leafed through the pages.

Last time, Sunny had skimmed it quickly because she had no interest in rare and exotic creatures. At the time, Maud had only managed to sneak a glance at the briefest of descriptions.

“Found it.” He stopped at the page listing the white skunk.

There was no picture, but the page was filled with details about the animal.

Maud read through, line by line, finally learning that the white skunk was a hybrid, with physical traits and fur quite unlike the average skunk.

Sunny leaned over to read as well.

Together, they quickly finished the description.

Essentially, it was a skunk with unusual fur and sweat glands, especially the latter, which gave off a pleasant fragrance.

Because of this, the white skunk was valuable for auction.

Creatures exuding such unique aromas were always coveted by perfume companies.

Yet, this white skunk had ended up among pirates, like those impulsive enough to want a pet—someone like Aibei, who would spend money on a whim.

“Definitely not an ordinary skunk,” Maud said, gazing at the creature on the counter as though he were appraising a newly forged blade.

“It would be a shame to eat him,” Sunny agreed, eyeing him as though he were a bulging purse.

Sensing their stares, the white skunk, having finally given up struggling, lay motionless and limp as a puddle of mud.

“Sunny, tend to this little one’s injuries so he doesn’t end up crippled. Also, do we have chains in the shop?”

“We do. I’ll get them,” Sunny said, now realizing that the skunk was essentially a walking bag of money.

She went to the basement and returned with medical supplies and a length of chain as thick as a finger.

She first treated the skunk’s wounds, then, afraid he might escape, wrapped his upper body tightly with the chain, binding him like a dumpling.

By the time she finished, more than half an hour had passed.

Sunny nodded with satisfaction at her work, but then a more pressing issue occurred to her.

“Where should we keep ‘Baeli’?”

In just this short time, Sunny had already given the white skunk a fitting name.

Maud glanced around the empty weapon shop. “How about here?”

“No,” Sunny shook her head, rejecting the suggestion.

Maud pondered for a moment, then thought of a better place.

“How about hanging him in the bathroom?”

“The bathroom…” Sunny considered the idea.

Thinking of Baeli’s ever-present pleasant scent, she found it quite appealing.

It would only be a little troublesome to move Baeli in and out when using the toilet.

But compared to having purified air, that was a minor inconvenience.

“Yes, let’s put him in the bathroom,” she decided.

Thus, the white skunk, newly christened “Baeli” against his will, could see no bright future ahead.

Why are you doing this to me?

If there is a hell, it must be here.

Three minutes later, Baeli was hung in the bathroom, serving as an air freshener.

Afterward, Maud went to his room, put on ankle weights, and returned to the shop to exercise while keeping Sunny company.

It was only then that Sunny, belatedly, asked about Baeli’s origins.

How had a rare and exotic auction creature ended up wounded and in Maud’s hands?

She was genuinely curious.

“That’s a long story,” Maud replied. He didn’t hide anything and recounted the afternoon’s events to Sunny.

By the end, Sunny looked at him with a strange expression.

“Baeli was quite a windfall. When I picked him up, I had no idea he was valuable. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have tossed him aside. Luckily, he ended up back with me in the end,” Maud said with some emotion.

He’d almost missed out on a small fortune.

As for Aibei and Kazte’s lingering threats, as long as they stayed in the shop, Saul would have their backs.

Sunny nodded solemnly. “Thank goodness.”

Time passed quietly.

By evening, Saul’s Weapon Shop had ended another day with no income.

Sunny went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

Maud closed up the shop and cleaned before joining Sunny to lend a hand in the kitchen.

His cooking skills weren’t as good as Sunny’s, but the dishes he made were still tasty.

“Don’t forget to prepare an extra portion for Baeli,” Maud reminded, thinking of the skunk hanging in the bathroom.

“Right, I almost forgot,” Sunny replied, taking two extra slices of steak and a handful of vegetables from the fridge.

Maud glanced at the meal Sunny prepared for Baeli.

When it came to food, Saul’s Weapon Shop never cut corners.

The two busied themselves in the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Saul, having just woken up, came downstairs, still bleary-eyed, and headed straight for the bathroom.

Seconds later, a shrill scream rang out from within.

“Help me!!!!”

The voice was youthful, filled with panic.

Hearing the unfamiliar cry for help from the bathroom, Maud and Sunny, busy in the kitchen, paused and exchanged glances before hurrying over.

They arrived to find Saul gripping Baeli’s head with one hand, as if ready to squeeze at any moment.

Baeli, his eyes wide with terror, looked desperately at Sunny and managed, with great effort, to speak:

“M-Mother, save me!!”

“?”