Chapter 21

Owlbear (2)

Every animal is cute when it's young.

People even say that their cuteness is what earns them mercy from predators and helps them survive.

No matter how fierce the species, most animals are irresistibly adorable as babies.

"Kyuu?"

Just like the baby owlbear standing in front of me.

All it did was tilt its head, yet it dealt a critical hit straight to my heart.

If I had to describe the baby owlbear...

It looked like a fluffy ball of fur staring at me with wide, round eyes.

The adult owlbear had a face that was terrifying beyond words, but this little one's face was incredibly gentle.

Still, this was the wilderness. Even an owlbear cub would have a hard time surviving here alone.

So what should I do?

"Here, here. Come on."

"Kyuu."

What else?

Pet it, of course.

I beckoned with my fingers, and the baby owlbear tilted its head before cautiously waddling over.

It pressed its nose against my hand and began sniffing it, acting on pure instinct.

While it was busy smelling me, I slowly raised my other hand.

Pat... pat...

"Kyung?"

The one thing four-legged animals could never do for themselves—

Having someone gently stroke their head.

The baby owlbear blinked in surprise at the unfamiliar sensation and looked up at me with wide eyes.

Its huge round owl-like eyes...

The little tufts of feathers sticking up from its head...

How could something this adorable even exist?

It was only about the size of a medium-sized dog, so it wasn't particularly intimidating.

"Grrr... rrr..."

Apparently my petting felt good.

The baby owlbear closed its eyes and let out a strange, contented rumble.

While continuing to rub its head, I quietly opened the Gallery.

***

Title: Found a Baby Owlbear

Wild Grylls

(Photo of the baby owlbear.)

(Another photo of the baby owlbear.)

(Video of me petting the baby owlbear.)

(Video of the baby owlbear smiling.)

Killed its mom, then found this little guy. Seriously adorable.

LOL it's so cute.

Look at that fluffy fur.

└ Completely different from the adults.

Wait... you killed the mother of something this cute? You're evil.

The Orphan Maker strikes again.

LMAO Orphan Maker.

Wild Grylls: Excuse me?

The moderator's authority is unstoppable.

Tyranny!

LOL.

Can I post my face too? I'm cute.

Don'tAbandonTheHero: Posts that cause psychological damage will be banned!

Look how serious they are. LOL.

?

PrincessChaenggu: What the hell? If you've got a problem, fight me.

Heavenly Demon: Sacrilegious. I feel like hugging it until it bursts.

Don'tAbandonTheHero: Three-hour ban.

Wild Grylls: ??? Wait, why?

Don'tAbandonTheHero: Cute things require at least ten photos and three videos.

Wild Grylls: That was a rule?

Don'tAbandonTheHero: I just made it.

Grylls, you're an orphan too. Did you really have to make another one?

Wild Grylls: Its mom was trying to kill me. I wanted to live too.

Fair enough. Survival comes first. LOL.

Heavenly Demon: It truly is adorable. I'd like to hold that little ball of fluff at least once.

└ PrincessChaenggu: I know, right? Just like me.

...Heavenly Demon?

?

Most of the comments were filled with praise for the baby owlbear.

Honestly, anyone's heart would melt at the sight of such a fluffy little creature.

But the wilderness was always cruel.

One particular comment caught my eye.

Who cares if it's cute? You'll have to kill it eventually anyway.

Why would you kill something this adorable?

Boo! Trash!

No, seriously. If you don't kill it, are you going to raise it? The moment it gets hungry it'll eat Grylls first.

I heard about this. A noble who raised an owlbear went on vacation and got eaten when he came back.

You can even raise one?

As long as you keep it well-fed, its loyalty is incredible. Stop feeding it, and you become the meal.

Besides, this is the wild. How are you supposed to raise it out here?

Do you really have to kill it? It's so cute.

Judging by its size, it looks like it was just born.

After reading those comments, I looked down at the owlbear.

It was happily rubbing its face against my hand.

Just watching it made all the gloom in my heart melt away...

But a wild animal was still a wild animal.

Especially an owlbear.

Apparently they were notorious for their enormous appetites.

They even ate their own owners on a regular basis.

"Kyuu... Kyuu..."

This little guy?

I looked at it with a heavy heart.

To be rational, the safest option would be to kill it myself.

Some people might ask why I couldn't just raise it...

But I was barely surviving as it was.

Even wealthy nobles struggled to keep one.

How was I supposed to?

'And it's not like you can easily buy food for something like this at the auction.'

If it were that easy, I would've bought it long ago.

It was a shame, but there was no helping it.

Still...

Killing it left a bad taste in my mouth.

It would be better to release it back into the wild.

I made up my mind.

Wild Grylls: I'll just let it return to the wild. I'm barely feeding myself as it is.

So you have no sense of responsibility?

Wild Grylls: Its mom tried to kill me. What responsibility?

...Fair point.

Fastest agreement ever. LOL.

Just buy meat at the auction. Aren't you rich now, Grylls?

Wild Grylls: If it were that simple, I'd have bought meat for myself already.

Come on, you've got money. Can't even feed one baby?

Wild Grylls: Why should I raise it? I'm trying to save money in case something happens.

How much money do you even have?

Let's see...

After getting paid so generously by Allfather, I did have a comfortable amount of money.

But raising an animal cost a fortune.

Especially not a dog or cat—

A bear.

Even if it was still a cub, its appetite would only get worse.

Wild Grylls: I do have money, but spending it on this is...

Are you an idiot? Just keep the owlbear as your bodyguard.

Wild Grylls: What are you talking about?

You know how strong adult owlbears are. Once it grows up, nothing beats having one beside you. Treat it like your personal knight.

...That's actually convincing.

Not gonna lie, that's a really good idea.

Yeah, raising it sounds better.

The argument was surprisingly persuasive.

I looked at the baby owlbear.

This adorable little puffball would eventually grow into that terrifying monster.

And as long as I kept it well-fed, it would supposedly be fiercely loyal.

...It would be nice to have company, too.

The Gallery was nice, but it wasn't the same as interacting with a living creature.

The baby owlbear stared back at me with curious eyes.

Maybe...

Keeping it as a companion wasn't such a bad idea after all.

If I ever ran short on money, I could always sell a mandrake or hunt more golden poison frogs.

'But... what does this thing eat?'

Bears were omnivores that would even eat carrion.

But this wasn't an ordinary bear.

It was an owlbear.

To find out what it liked to eat, I made another post.

***

Title: What Do Owlbears Eat?

Wild Grylls

Pretty much anything.

Yeah, same as the comment above. Their diet's basically identical to a regular bear's.

Wild Grylls: Do they like honey?

They absolutely love it. LOL.

Perfect.

Then I'd test it myself.

I opened the auction house and searched for honey.

Just to be safe, I carefully read the reviews.

Apparently the seller's family had been running an apiary for three generations.

Their proof was... something else.

How do we even know that's real honey?

(Photo of the seller's face swollen from countless bee stings.)

...Alright. I'll buy two jars.

Now that's convincing proof. LOL.

Something like that.

Thanks to those reviews, I bought it without hesitation.

After purchasing the honey, I also bought a large wooden spoon.

I scooped up a spoonful of honey and held it out to the baby owlbear.

"Kyuu?"

"Go on. It's delicious."

"Sniff... sniff..."

The little owlbear hesitated, apparently seeing honey for the first time.

Watching the thick honey drip off the spoon felt almost wasteful.

Still, its keen sense of smell soon won over its caution.

Before long, it slowly opened its mouth wide.

"Yum."

"Is it good?"

"..."

After taking a bite of the honey, the little creature froze for a moment.

"Kyuuuuuu!"

"H-Huh?"

"Kyuaaaa!"

It let out a bizarre cry and began devouring the honey in a frenzy.

Startled, I set the jar on the ground and backed away a couple of steps.

"Chomp, chomp, chomp, chomp!"

It sure knew how to make food look delicious.

It was also fascinating to see such a long tongue emerge from that short beak.

The baby owlbear was completely entranced by the sweetness of honey, something it had never tasted before.

I hadn't even gotten a single bite.

Had I known this would happen, I would've tasted some first.

Anyway, it seemed to like it, so that was a relief. It would take a while to finish the whole jar.

'What should I name it?'

I had decided to raise it for the sake of my survival and mental well-being.

I'd never owned a pet before, but even I knew that choosing a name was important.

'It's a fluffy ball of fur, so... Fluffy?'

Was that too lazy?

Still, no other name suited it better.

Asking the Gallery to name it seemed like a bad idea.

They would probably come up with all sorts of ridiculous names.

"Fluffy."

"Chomp, chomp, chomp!"

"Fluffy?"

"Chomp, chomp, chomp!"

Was it ignoring me because it was too busy eating honey?

Well, I'd already decided on the name. I could slowly teach it to respond later.

Before that, I had to upload a picture.

How could I possibly keep something this cute to myself?

***

Title: Decided on a Name

Wild Grylls

(Photo of the baby owlbear eating honey.)

Its name is Fluffy because its fur is fluffy. Objections will not be accepted.

You really put zero effort into that name. LOL.

How is that any different from naming a dog Brownie? LOL.

LMAO.

Wild Grylls: Then you guys come up with something.

Heavenly Demon: Since it is a round ball of fur, how about Wonmo, meaning "Round Fur"?

Wild Grylls: Ma'am?

Of course the old-timer would suggest something like that. LOL.

It does roll off the tongue, though. Wonmo!

Your name is Wonmo from now on. LOL.

SwordMaster: Fluffy isn't bad. It's cute.

Wild Grylls: Can't you think of anything else?

SwordMaster: Is it male or female?

Wild Grylls: Give me a second.

The moment I read that, I cautiously moved behind the owlbear.

Then I lowered my head and spotted two round balls.

It was unmistakably male.

There was no more reliable way to check.

Wild Grylls: Male.

SwordMaster: Alexander II. What do you think? Sounds cool, right?

Wild Grylls: ...

Isn't that the name of a general?

Yeah, a famous general from Messiah. LOL.

If it were female, she'd have named it Alexandria. LMAO.

PrincessChaenggu: How about Naldo?

Who's Naldo?

Some famous football player.

PrincessChaenggu: You caught me.

Caught you doing what? LOL.

Look at how shameless she is. LOL.

PraiseTheSun: Sultan VII. You can tell at a glance that he has the face of a king.

What part of that fat thing looks royal?

PraiseTheSun: Pigs have traditionally been considered one of the faces of royalty.

Really?

PraiseTheSun: Absolutely. I swear on my son.

Why are you betting your son on it? LOL.

Naturally, my opinion was ignored, and they started a vote without me.

See?

All kinds of bizarre combinations were already appearing.

It would be better to simply call him Fluffy than let the Gallery decide.

Unfortunately, the Gallery users had other plans.

There are too many names. We should settle it with a vote.

So the five choices are Fluffy, Wonmo, Alexander, Naldo, and Sultan?

Any more suggestions? If not, I'll post the poll right away.

Shouldn't Grylls be the one to post it?

No way. He'll obviously rig it so Fluffy wins.

Wild Grylls: ??? I'm the owner! Why are you deciding this without me?

***

Title: Vote for the Baby Owlbear's Name

Fluffy: 1%Wonmo: 39%Alexander: 21%Naldo: 19%Sultan: 20%

By the principle of majority rule, his name is officially Wonmo! Decision finalized!

This was absurd.

I was the one raising him, so why were they naming him however they pleased?

But who were the Gallery users?

A bunch of people who never listened to anyone else.

Heavenly Demon: Everyone has excellent taste. I am pleased.

SwordMaster: Why did Wonmo win? That name sounds so old-fashioned.

PrincessChaenggu: I refuse to accept this.

PraiseTheSun: What a shame. He truly has the face of a king.**

Wild Grylls: I keep telling you, he's my pet. Why are you deciding his name?

Heavenly Demon: If you dislike it, then use whatever name you desire. This lady shall respect your decision.

You can feel the disappointment radiating from that comment.

Grylls, the elder is asking so nicely. You're not really going to refuse, are you?

If you refuse, you're seriously a terrible person.

Wild Grylls: ...

What a rotten situation.

Now I had no choice but to name him Wonmo.

The Heavenly Demon had helped me many times, so it was hard to reject her suggestion.

I rubbed my face and sighed.

Why was I letting the Gallery control me like this?

'Still, Wonmo isn't that bad of a name... is it?'

Wonmo.

It sounded like the sort of name people used in old countryside villages.

It felt rustic to the point of sounding a little dim-witted.

'At least they didn't name him Dolsoe.'

Although...

Would Dolsoe have been better?

I honestly couldn't tell anymore.

I looked at the baby owlbear, who was still eating honey and had now somehow become Wonmo, before quietly calling out.

"Wonmo."

"Kyuu?"

Wait.

You didn't look up when I called you Fluffy.

Why did you immediately react to Wonmo?

I stared at the baby owlbear—Wonmo—with an incredulous expression.

The longer I gazed into those round eyes, the calmer I felt.

'Ah, whatever.'

I approached him.

Honey was dripping from his beak.

I stroked his head and firmly imprinted the name into his mind.

"From now on, your name is Wonmo. Got it?"

"Kyuu!"

He gave me a bright smile, as though he loved it.

But why?

***

Meanwhile, at around the same time...

"Hehe."

The Heavenly Demon, Yu Sowol, smiled proudly.

The name she had suggested, Wonmo, had become the baby owlbear's official name.

The Gallery was already clamoring for more pictures of Wonmo.

That alone proved how powerful Wonmo's appeal was.

What could possibly be more satisfying than this?

'To think the name received such an enthusiastic response even in the Gallery. Grylls must be delighted as well.'

Had Grylls heard that, he would have started foaming at the mouth.