Evolution and Job Change (9)

Some shaggy thing was staring intently at us. Although its nearly white-gray fur made it difficult to tell, I could still make out its build. Its head was small, its torso round, and its limbs seemed short. It almost looked like a ball of fur with limbs growing out of it. Stylized a little, it could even serve as a mascot.

Because its entire body was covered in fur, it was not wearing anything resembling clothing, and it did not appear to be carrying a weapon either. Its gender was also impossible to determine because of the fur. It was an utterly mysterious being.

The creature it was riding was also covered in fur. It was probably a monster, with dark gray fur, four legs, and a few horns protruding slightly through its thick coat. It was probably a goat.

The golden lights visible beneath the fur must have been eyes. They were watching us intently with four eyes. I had heard about them from Iris and the others. Apparently, they had watched us from afar the last time they went exploring as well.

"Just as we'd heard, it's really only watching us without doing anything."

"It feels like it's keeping watch."

As Raga said, it seemed to be doing nothing more than monitoring us, and I did not sense any hostility or malicious intent. If they had been hostile, they would have hidden themselves and waited for a chance to ambush us, or surrounded us in numbers rather than coming alone.

However, I had no idea whether they were friendly. Their attitude was not that of someone actively trying to deepen friendly relations. The distance they maintained from us made that clear.

"What're we gonna do? We can pick a fight if ya want."

"Oh, my. You just want to fight, don't you, Jigoro?"...