Chapter 58: Crino Prairie 2
They had no choice but to accept their fate. After all, the system was completely ignoring them. Instead of wasting time complaining, they were better off hurrying to complete the mission. Perhaps they would finally get to eat after finding the Beastkin.
Some people in the crowd started looking for acquaintances, thinking it would be safer to do the mission in a group.
Besides, who knew what dangers lay hidden on such a vast prairie? There was safety in numbers.
Quite a few people thought this way, and soon, some of them had formed temporary squads.
A few people wanted to recruit Moira Lynch, too. After all, among a crowd of "shabbily dressed" players, her attire was particularly conspicuous. One glance was all it took to see she was fully prepared.
Moira Lynch, naturally, had no desire to team up with these people. To put it bluntly, they would just be a burden to her. Not only would they be of no help, but they would also slow her down immensely.
So, sensing things were about to get complicated, she simply made a run for it, never looking back no matter how the people behind her called out.
She only stopped once she was a safe distance away.
"Patience, do you know anything about this place?"
"Loading data. Crino Prairie, home to numerous Beastfolk and Beastkin."
"Wait a minute, aren’t the Beastfolk and Beastkin the same thing?"
"Of course not. Beastkin are sentient and quite similar to the Human Race, except they possess certain animalistic features. They are all natural-born warriors with simple, honest personalities, and they despise deception. The Beastfolk are the Beastkin’s primary food source."
"All right. Can you help me find any sign of the Beastkin?"
"No trace of Beastkin detected in the vicinity."
Moira Lynch couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed to hear that.
"Fine, then. I’ll search around some more. Keep an eye on our surroundings along the way and see if you spot any resources, like those Water-cooling Stones."
"Okay! (^_-)-☆"
To speed things up, Moira Lynch pulled out an electric vehicle and zipped across the prairie, moving like the wind.
The Crino Prairie was vast, so vast its edge seemed to stretch beyond the horizon.
About an hour later, Patience’s voice suddenly rang out.
"Beastkin village detected ahead."
"Thanks for the heads-up, but I’ve already seen it."
Arriving at the village, Moira Lynch saw that it wasn’t small; a considerable number of Beastkin must live there.
’No way. Could her mission really be completed on the very first day?’
Moira Lynch’s heart leaped with excitement, but then she thought back to the previous game rounds. ’The first game as an official player can’t be this easy, can it?’
Besides, before the game started, the system had mentioned guest satisfaction. This was likely the difference between simply completing the homework and acing it.
With that in mind, Moira Lynch put away her electric vehicle and walked closer to the village.
"Patience, do you know what kind of Beastkin live in this village?"
"According to my analysis, this should be a village of the Rabbitfolk. As one of the most prolific Beastkin groups, the Rabbitfolk need to hire many nannies every year."
’Taking care of kids!!’
Moira Lynch gulped. ’I’m completely clueless when it comes to this sort of thing.’
’Oh well,’ she thought. ’I’ll ask if there are other jobs. If there really aren’t any, I’ll just have to give it my best shot. A little Rabbit-kin should be easier to care for than a human baby... right?’
With this thought in mind, Moira Lynch walked into the Rabbitfolk Village.
Soon, the Rabbitfolk discovered her presence.
The Rabbit-kin were a rather timid race. Upon seeing a stranger like Moira Lynch, they instinctively grew wary, hiding in the shadows to observe her.
They thought they were well hidden, but in reality, her spiritual power "saw" every one of them with perfect clarity.
This was where Moira Lynch’s knowledge of the interstellar language came in handy.
"Don’t be afraid. I’m here looking for a job."
As she spoke, she brandished the smiley-face badge on her chest, as well as her Interstellar Citizen ID Card.
The system had procured the ID card for her; it had only been delivered to her yesterday.
Sure enough, upon hearing Moira Lynch’s words and seeing her smiley-face badge and Interstellar Citizen ID Card, the others visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
Just then, an Old Rabbit Beastman emerged from one of the houses and asked in a friendly tone, "Do you know how to look after children? A lot of little Rabbit-kin were born this year. You could help take care of them."
Moira Lynch maintained a polite smile. "Of course I can take care of children," she said courteously. "It would be my honor to help you. However, I’m actually much better at collecting trash than I am at babysitting."
She still decided to struggle a bit, to see if she could escape her fate as a babysitter.
She was only trying her luck, but who knew the Old Rabbit Beastman would suddenly grab her hand, exclaiming, "Really? That’s wonderful! Winter just ended, and our village has accumulated a ton of trash. Please help us take it all away!"
’Why the sudden burst of enthusiasm? Is garbage collection really that popular out here in space?’
Just then, the previously hiding Rabbit-kin all came out, scrambling over each other to have Moira Lynch collect the trash from their homes first.
These Rabbit-kin were just too enthusiastic. In the end, it was the Old Rabbit Beastman from before who made the final decision: they would go from house to house, from the front to the back. No cutting in line.
First in line was a mother-daughter pair of Rabbit-kin. Moira Lynch followed them home.
’Weren’t the Rabbit-kin supposed to be prolific breeders? Why are they the only two in this family?’
Moira Lynch asked around a bit and learned that the daughter with Mother Rabbit was her eightieth child; the others had all moved out after growing up.
At that, Moira Lynch nodded, her expression showing she understood.
’Something’s not right,’ she thought. ’If the Rabbitfolk are such prolific breeders, then why are there only a few dozen houses in the village?’
’Considering how much the Rabbitfolk reproduce, that shouldn’t be right, should it?’
Moira Lynch soon found out why.
The houses on the surface were just for outsiders to see. Each one represented a family, but the Rabbitfolk actually lived underground.
Moira Lynch followed Mother Rabbit, constantly scanning her surroundings out of the corner of her eye.
Though they had dug out these underground homes little by little, the walls were covered in a sturdy material decorated with all sorts of patterns.
’They must dig out the houses first and then renovate them. It’s not only aesthetically pleasing but also an effective way to prevent collapses.’
"We’re here," Mother Rabbit said, standing before a large door. "I won’t go down any further. You go on."
Moira Lynch gave a polite nod, but the moment she opened the door, the scene inside left her utterly stunned.
Seeing her reaction, Mother Rabbit assumed she was stunned by the sheer amount of trash inside. "During the winter, when I’m idle at home with nothing to do, I like to shop online," she said, embarrassed. "And then I just keep buying and buying and..."
Her children were immersed in it from a young age and inherited her hobby, which is how things ended up like this.