FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

I opened my eyes, taking a moment to stare at the pure white ceiling, trying to calm my thoughts.

So this is how one leaves Tel'aran'rhiod? Was there any reality in the previous dream? I wondered if there was another Snow who shared the same dream as me. If we met in reality, would we even recognize each other?

With that thought, I let out an involuntary sigh, realizing it would probably be unproductive to dwell on it.

So I got out of bed and immediately found the blue capsule in the vacuum tube and swallowed it.

This little adventure was fun, but I'd really rather live to see my assignment, and I'd like my sleep to be restful.

But if I hadn't entered Tel'aran'rhiod, would that Snow have died there? What was that place, anyway? To him, was it merely a tower, or was it also a dream world? Could he have been a licensed dreamwalker?

I shook my head, letting go of the urge to overanalyze.

After all, to get answers, I'd have to admit to someone that I'd broken protocol by entering Tel'aran'rhiod without permission.

Stepping into the bathroom, I set the panel, letting the perfectly warm water wash away all the lingering questions. I just needed to focus on easing my slightly sore body.

After drying off, I glanced at myself in the mirror and decided to try untangling my fur a bit, at least smoothing out the knots. But as I touched my left arm, an odd sensation froze me in place—under my fingertips, the fur had been sharply cut off, as if by a clean, slicing blow.

Tracing along the stubbled fur ends, I confirmed it covered roughly half my forearm, matching the area where I'd been struck.

This answered some questions but raised even more.

But, just as I concluded earlier, no matter how curious I was about Tel'aran'rhiod, I'd have to wait to learn more.

During dinner, I ordered a rare ribeye steak to treat myself, specifically choosing the most concealed corner to avoid attracting attention.

“I was wondering where you went, vanishing all day like that," Altai Wapiti set his plate across from me and sat down in an easygoing manner. “I didn't break anything, did I?"

“Senpai …" I stared down at my plate, unable to meet his eyes, feeling my ears pressed against my head beginning to heat up.

“Ah, language skills might be at fault, I guess," Kotetsu senpai teased, and I could only respond with silence, quietly placing the piece of meat I'd just cut into my mouth. “Ever thought about trying venison?"

What?

Startled, I looked up at him, only to start coughing uncontrollably.

“Careful, don't choke," Kotetsu senpai was clearly amused. “You can't swallow that big a piece all at once."

I was pretty sure my head was about to explode, so I buried my face in my hands, silently reciting the ten principles of logic to calm myself down.

“On the flip side, when I first tried wolf meat…" he had no intention of sparing me.

“Senpai …" Uncontrollably, a small groan escaped me, hoping he would stop this topic. I really didn't want to discuss this in a public setting, especially when I was this tired.

“All right, all right, I'll stop teasing," he chuckled, and once I finally calmed down enough, I lowered my hands, meeting his gaze. “Are you okay?"

“I'm fine," I sighed, continuing to cut my steak. “Just a bit sore."

He chuckled again, and I had to believe he was just in a very good mood.

At that moment, I suddenly noticed the way his mouth lifted. Whether it was a red deer, an Altai Wapiti, or even more distantly related species, that expression was so similar. I thought perhaps that meant something.

“I saw your name on the tower climbing permit list," Altai Wapiti swirled a small bunch of clover with his chopsticks, chewing it slowly. “Should I sell off my stock of adamantine?"

“What?" I didn't quite understand what he meant, but I was grateful we were finally back on a normal topic.

“You know your crazy adamantine purchases have caused serious inflation in the Academy, right?" Kotetsu senpai pointed his chopsticks behind me, and I glanced at the other diners in the restaurant, not quite catching his drift.

“What's inflation?" I asked, putting another piece of steak in my mouth.

“Basically, it means you've made life very hard for cadets who aren't exactly wealthy." I raised an eyebrow in confusion at his explanation. “But that's not the point." He waved a hand dismissively, continuing. “What I really want to know is if I should sell off my adamantine and nanodrones."

Seeing my bewildered look, Kotetsu senpai sighed and began to explain.

“Now, outside of faction-exclusive trades, practically all the adamantine in the Academy is yours. But now you can go find adamantine on your own. So, there are two main predictions." Senpai pointed his chopsticks at me twice, then picked up a slice of cucumber. “One is that production will go up—your skills are well-known—and your irrational buying will stop, so the price of adamantine is bound to crash." Altai Wapiti rolled the remaining clover into a ball, stabbing it a few times. “The other possibility is that you don't plan to sell your adamantine, and production will actually drop because you're no longer acting as a beacon, creating a monopoly." Senpai finally popped that clover ball into his mouth, chewing with force. “So, I just want to know your plan, so I know what to do with my adamantine and nanodrones."

“Oh." I didn't entirely understand his explanation, or how this related to nanodrones, but I didn't have enough interest in trade practices to put much thought into it, so I planned to simply give a straightforward answer to end the conversation. “I probably don't plan to sell adamantine. I'll stop when I collect enough."

“Then, why are you hoarding so much of it?" He frowned at me.

“Hmm…" My mouth curled up uncontrollably, not planning to spoil the surprise just yet. “Secret."

Clearly missing my sense of humor, Altai Wapiti's frown only deepened.

But I was more comfortable with this than his constant teasing over past incidents, so I didn't bother to explain further.

Afterward, we chatted about ordinary things, including our respective course schedules and plans, discovering that we'd both be taking Gaia History this year.

When we finished dinner, Senpai absentmindedly poked his empty plate with his chopsticks, as if contemplating something. After a while, he seemed to make up his mind, looking up to meet my gaze.

“What are your thoughts on collars?" From his tone, I detected a hint of unease.

Was it my imagination?

“What do you mean?" I was somewhat aware of the situation with Gaia's serf and the big cats on Ares, but I wasn't sure if Kotetsu senpai wanted to discuss politics.

“Well," his large brown eyes uncharacteristically drifted upward, and he scratched the base of his antlers. “Simply put…"

In the time that followed, Kotetsu senpai explained some of the other potential uses for collars.