Unveiling Event

When you attack, strategy was important.

That didn’t change whether the opponent was an army or simple villagers.

When you fought, you must never show mercy to the enemy—one of my father’s teachings.

So, without the slightest pang of guilt, I decided to launch a strategic assault on the villagers.

“And with that, these are the Tree Guardian Beasts.”

“Meow.”

“Woof.”

“Oink.”

“Kyu.”

The kitty licked its paw, the dog panted with its tongue out, the pig snuffled its nose, and the mole suddenly popped its head out of the ground.

“““So cuuute!!”””

My first targets were the village women and children.

One Tree Guardian Beast per household.

Even if it was necessary for security and combat strength, forcing this on them could leave long-term resentment.

Taking care of a pet was surprisingly hard work and took time.

If this were imposed as an order from above, resistance would be inevitable.

But what if I first won over the ladies who couldn’t resist cute things, and the children?

The Tree Guardian Beasts were extremely cute—even in the eyes of their creator.

And whether intentionally or not, they were dangerously, calculatedly cute.

Once people fell for their charm, the rest would be easy.

If the children and mothers—more than half the household—were in favor, even the practical-minded fathers would have no choice but to accept it. And once they actually started raising one at home, the fathers would inevitably melt under the guardian beast’s charm too.

Heh heh heh… my strategic insight was terrifying.

So sharp it honestly scared even me.

“Aira, is Woody playing villain again?”

“Yes, truly… he really is hopeless.”

While I was secretly grinning to myself, voices came from behind.

Before I realized it, Nadja had also arrived at the Tree Guardian Beast unveiling.

“Hey! Stop giving off newlywed vibes!”

“It is not newlywed vibes. I am giving off the vibe of a long-married, seasoned couple.”

“T-that’s even worse!”

I tuned out Nadja and the others as they began bickering, and instead observed everyone interacting with the animals.

“Meow!”

“Wow, the kitty’s so cute!”

“Try touching around the throat area—like this…”

“It’s purring!”

The Fire Cat seemed to be the most popular, and a waiting line had already started to form.

It looked like there were a lot of cat lovers in Tree Village.

“…Oink.”

“Its nose is wet! So cute.”

“Its eyes are surprisingly round…”

Unexpectedly, second place went to the Wind Pig.

Like a sweets shop that gained popularity through word of mouth, people were slowly but steadily gathering.

Being able to interact with a pig like this seemed quite rare, and the response was much better than I’d expected.

As a dog person, I’d thought dogs would be the most popular, so this was surprising.

But could dogs really be only third?

They were common pets and usually very popular… or so I thought.

While I was tilting my head in confusion, Aira and the others returned after finishing their argument.

Nadja was holding the Water Dog, while Aira had placed the Fire Cat on her head.

“There are Sand Dogs in the desert. The image people have of dogs probably isn’t very good.”

“…I see. That was a blind spot.”

In the desert, there was a canine-type monster called a Sand Dog.

They were numerous, ferocious, and cruel creatures that delighted in tormenting the weak.

Because of that association, dogs didn’t seem to be very well received by desert folk.

“…Mog.”

And the overwhelmingly least popular was the Earth Mole.

Earlier it had proudly held up its claws, but now it looked completely dejected.

With a gloomy air, it was drawing pictures in the dirt with its claws.

That was… a self-portrait, wasn’t it?

It captured its features quite well—surprisingly skillful.

As I patted the drooping mole’s back, a girl holding a cat approached me.

“Woody-sama, what do these children eat?”

“Basically, they’ll eat almost any fruit. Though their favorite is usually Element Fruit that matches their own attribute.”

I’d prepared answers in advance for questions likely to come up at the unveiling, so I responded smoothly.

Normally, cats and dogs had a lot of foods they couldn’t eat—but as expected of guardian beasts.

They were all basically omnivorous, and even foods that should have upset their stomachs were eaten without issue.

Their preference for Element Fruit matching their attribute was the same as Simurg-san and the others (incidentally, Wheel-san’s entire family liked earth-type Element Fruit).

And with that, the unveiling event ended in success.

In the homes of Tree Village’s residents, one Tree Guardian Beast per household was adopted.

The most commonly chosen guardians, in order, were Water Cat, Fire Dog, Wind Pig, and Earth Mole.

When it came to actually raising one, dogs still seemed strong contenders.

And the Earth Mole’s overwhelming unpopularity… only two households chose it.

Mole… stay strong…