At Harp's Call, Yujun...
At Harp's call, Yujun crossed the distance in a single stride.
He had been wondering why the little one's voice echoed so strangely, and now he saw why. Harp was deep underground. The mound of excavated earth was enormous; he had dug that far down.
"Is that where I need to go?"
"I'll bring them out! Please wait just a moment!"
"All right!"
Harp popped back out almost at once, a small water deer clinging to his back.
"That's a divine beast?"
"Yes! But they're really hurt. At this rate, I don't think they'll last even thirty minutes."
"They really were dying. You did well, Harp."
"Dad. This child... can't we help them?"
"Of course. If our Harp is asking."
Even if Harp hadn't asked, Yujun had meant to help anyway. A divine beast was far too precious a life to let die so pointlessly here.
True to a divine beast only recently born, the water deer wasn't very large. Small enough to ride on Harp's back—that said everything. And that made them cute.
Water deer aren't all that cute once they grow up. Especially the cry...
Of course, this one only resembled a water deer. It wasn't the real thing, so there was no great cause for worry. A harp seal, on the other hand, stayed cute no matter how many years passed. Conclusion: Harp was cuter.
Nothing's going to beat our Harp for cuteness.
Somewhere along the way, Yujun had become a hopelessly doting father.
This isn't the time.
Right now he needed to focus on the water deer.
He examined the little divine beast closely.
"Hmm..."
From the outside, he couldn't tell what was wrong. He laid a hand charged with mana on the water deer's back, and the mana seeped slowly into the divine beast's body. He was only trying to read their condition, so he didn't pour in much—and the body was so small that a tiny amount was plenty.
"Hrm..."
Yujun lifted his hand and swallowed a groan.
Touch of Healing had done nothing. Anything that so much as brushed his hand—curses, diseases, the usual—ought to have been cured outright.
"Dad. Is it really bad?"
"I don't know what it is. I don't even know why they're sick. They look fine, as far as I can tell. And I don't think they're faking, either..."
"I couldn't tell either. They don't even seem weak."
"Could they just be hungry? No. They're too plump for that."
"The soil here is rich in nutrients. I think they've been eating well and growing well."
"Ah—wait. There's a faint gold sheen to the body. Could this be a golden divine beast, like the Golden Race?"
"That could be... oh. I think you're right, Dad."
Watching the water deer gleam brighter in the sunlight, Harp grew certain.
"Right?"
A smile tugged at Yujun's mouth. He was starting to get a feel for it. This divine beast wasn't injured anywhere. He didn't believe any curse or illness existed that his mana couldn't detect.
"They are hungry. Just hungry for something else."
"What do you mean?"
"Let's try feeding them some gold."
"...Gold isn't food, though."
At Harp's words, Yujun looked at Dolf.
"Why me?"
"You said you can grow stronger with gold, didn't you? Maybe this divine beast can be saved the same way."
"Don't tell me you're going to feed it gold."
"Yeah."
"Why waste something that precious...? Give it to me."
"Honestly, giving it to a divine beast is several times more profitable than giving it to you. Objectively speaking."
"There's no guarantee the thing gets better just because it eats gold. Give it to me and at least you'll see results right away."
"And I get nothing out of giving gold to you, either."
"...So when are you going to tell me the secret?"
"That's not what's important right now."
"It is important."
Yujun ignored him and focused on the water deer. The little one's lifeline was nearly spent. Drag this out any longer and it would truly be dangerous. He couldn't see an answer. All he could do was try something.
He snapped off a nearby golden flower with ease and poured the melting, flowing liquid into the water deer's mouth. Even through the pain, the moment the gold touched their tongue, they managed to gulp it down. Yujun took that as a good sign. He kept his hands still and watched, checking the divine beast's condition.
"Kiiing..."
The water deer made a real sound for the first time. Harp bounced with joy.
"Dad! I think it's working!"
"Looks like it."
But the divine beast wanted more gold. Yujun bit his lip hard.
They aren't going to keep gorging on gold, are they?
A little was fine. If he had to keep feeding them gold, though...
No. Don't get greedy. I've already stockpiled plenty. If it comes to it, I can just melt whatever's nearby and feed them that.
Besides, if he pinched pennies here, Harp might take him for a miser. The little one was desperate to save the water deer. He couldn't hesitate any longer.
Yujun began feeding the divine beast gold by the handful. And wouldn't you know it—their color improved by the moment. Their breathing settled into something normal, too. Feeding them gold really had been the answer. A creature that hadn't so much as reacted to Touch of Healing had improved from a bit of gold.
Well. It hadn't exactly been a little...
"Dad! They're awake!"
Just as Harp said, the water deer opened their eyes. Clear, sparkling eyes with not a speck of the world's grime on them. They looked so lively that he almost doubted this was the same beast that had been dying.
"W-who are you?"
The divine beast—the golden water deer—backed away, face full of fear. But their body had been stiff for so long that they promptly toppled onto the ground.
"Are you all right?"
"W-why are you doing this to me?"
"Dummy! Why are you talking to Dad like that! Dad saved you!"
Harp scolded them. At the sight of his face, the golden water deer's eyes went wide.
"...Huh? A divine beast?"
"Yeah. Same as you."
"Whoa."
"Want to... be friends?"
"Okay."
The two baby divine beasts shared a bond in their own way. Yujun watched with a satisfied smile, then spun around.
"Dolf."
"Hm? Did you call?"
Dolf, who had been wholly absorbed in digging through his inventory for an item, scrambled to his feet.
"Picked an item?"
"I have."
"If I don't like it, I'm not telling you anything. Choose carefully."
"...I don't exactly have many items."
"I know."
"Then I'll give you every item in my inventory except what I'm wearing."
"Oh?"
He hadn't hoped for that much. Hearing Dolf offer everything made the dwarf's desperation painfully clear.
"You might lie, so how about we make a soul contract?"
"...A soul contract?"
The color drained from Dolf's face.
"What? If you just keep your promise, there's no problem."
"But if you abuse a soul contract, I'll be no different from a slave!"
"I know. That's why I'll set exactly one condition. The moment you hand over every inventory item, the soul contract ends. Fair enough? Keep to what we already said, and nothing goes wrong."
"...Fine."
Yujun swiftly formed a soul contract with Dolf and received the items.
"What is this junk?"
"T-that's a bit harsh, isn't it? Junk..."
"Why are you carrying trash like this? I don't get it."
"......"
Yujun had junk items of his own, of course. The problem was that Dolf's inventory contained nothing but junk.
"You held something back, didn't you?"
"No. I gave you everything. The soul contract's effect is gone, isn't it?"
"Damn it. I got played."
"It's not as if they're all bad. There was even a level 550 Legendary piece of gear."
"The problem is that that's your best item."
It felt like Dolf had scammed him. He had found a few decent consumables, but none of them were particularly useful to him now. In truth, very few items could satisfy Yujun, and there was no way Dolf would have had any of those. Still, he couldn't help being angry.
"How do you not have a single top-tier consumable on you?"
"Isn't it normal to use those the moment you get them?"
"Yeah. That is the unwritten rule, but..."
"I gave you the goods, so tell me how to harvest the flowers, as promised."
"Suddenly I don't feel like it."
"W-what?! We even made a soul contract!"
"Nowhere in that soul contract does it say I'll teach you the method."
Dolf collapsed face-down, utterly devastated. He looked deeply crushed.
"I'll still keep my promise."
"R-really?"
"Yeah."
Yujun gave a brief explanation of Chaos and told Dolf to obtain Touch of Healing.
"Touch of Healing? Does it have to be that specific ability?"
"No. I'm not certain. It's just that Touch of Healing is the only healing ability I have. I figure other skills or traits have a good chance of working too."
People with healing abilities weren't exactly rare. Obtaining Chaos, though, would be the real hurdle. Honestly, he didn't think Dolf would ever get it. It was a rare power, and a difficult one to handle.
Even if Dolf did obtain Chaos, combine it with a healing ability, and become able to harvest the golden flowers, there would still be a problem. Raising one's Chaos was no ordinary feat. It wasn't the sort of energy you could increase with unallocated points, the way you could with other stats or mana. He would harvest a few golden flowers, take a handful of steps, and then have to rest for ages just to replenish his Chaos.
That was why Yujun told him without hesitation.
"Thank you! Truly, thank you! I'll be going, then..."
"Where do you think you're going? You promised you'd die last."
"Ah. Right."
"This won't do. Make a soul contract that you won't run."
"...Again? Another one?"
"You're too impatient. You look ready to bolt any second."
"I do want to go find Chaos right now."
"Wanting it doesn't mean you'll get it. Just give up and stick with me until the event is over."
"A-all right."
Yujun made sure to seal that soul contract as well, leaving nothing out.
"Dad! Hyuri says they have something to say!"
Harp and the golden water deer had already grown close.
"Your name is Hyuri?"
"Yes!"
Harp answered for them. Shy, the golden water deer ducked their head and couldn't keep their front hooves still. Harp patted Hyuri's back with his short arms, urging them on. Only then did Hyuri speak.
"Um... thank you."
"For what?"
"For healing me. Thank you."
"Harp's the one who found you, and Harp's the one who asked me to heal you. Thank Harp."
"Harp, thank you."
"Hehe."
Harp smiled, pleased.
"I want to repay you."
At Hyuri's words, Yujun's eyes went wide and he leaned in uncomfortably close.
"Repay me? Are you going to become my divine beast?"
"I... I'm bound to the Golden Flower Garden. I can't become anyone's possession."
"Ah. I see."
A shame—but if they were bound, what could he do?
"Instead, I'll give you some good information. There's a temple hidden underground near here."
"A temple?"
"Yes. Right after I was born, my mother told me about it. She said it's a place where tremendous treasures are hidden... and that when I grew up, I would have to guard it."
"Where did your mother go?"
"She passed away."
"I see. But isn't the Golden Temple a place you're supposed to guard? Are you sure it's all right to tell me?"
"Yes! I think it's all right if it's you. Harp is kind, and more than anything, I thought Harp's master could never be a wicked being."
"Hyuri. You saw it exactly right. Everything you said is correct."
Yujun said it with a shameless grin.