Baby Squirrel Is Good at Everything

"Squirrel? And a beastkin at that?"

"A squirrel beastkin? What kind of power could they possibly have? Maybe gathering acorns?"

"How ridiculous that we have to take care of something like that."

Beatty's small shoulders instinctively jerked at the thought that surfaced in her mind.

"No, no, that's not important right now."

Shaking her head fiercely to clear the dark thoughts, Beatty huffed out a confident breath, mimicking a roar of a wild beast.

Now, let's think.

"What do I do now?"

She had acted on impulse, but there was no denying that she had to think ahead.

"If I don't want to be locked up in the annex again, now is probably my only chance."

After her first encounter with Ritter before her regression, the mansion’s guards had become even more strict.

Her aunt locked her away under the pretense of giving her bridal lessons, and released fierce guard dogs that prevented her from escaping, even in her squirrel form.

Had she returned after meeting Ritter, simply transforming into her beastkin form wouldn't have been enough to escape the mansion so easily.

But...

"It’s dangerous to stay here like this."

The outside world was far too risky for a young beastkin.

She knew well from the time when, as a child, she had ventured outside and almost been kidnapped when her beastkin identity was discovered.

A shiver ran through her body as she remembered that moment. Beatty, for the tenth time today, checked her squirrel form to make sure it hadn't worn off, almost obsessively.

"If I could get my hands on a Signum, there would be so many people willing to risk everything to take it."

The Signum, a celestial star fragment, had been sold at an auction only once in history.

A fisherman had accidentally pulled a whale beastkin's Signum from the sea, and it was sold for a price that could buy three castles and vast farmlands.

The story of that fisherman making a fortune from selling the Signum was famous across the continent.

"If people notice...”

Beatty shuddered slightly as she gently touched the small Signum hidden under her fur.

"If only I could grow up quickly. Why did I have to regress right before adulthood?"

She had planned to escape after her coming-of-age ceremony.

When a young beastkin got too excited, their ears and tail would reveal themselves, and before they grew fully, they couldn't separate their Signum from their body.

Only when they matured into adults could they control their beastkin traits.

"I just wish I could find a safe place until then."

She had finally escaped the mansion she so desperately wanted to leave, but now, she had no idea where to go.

She didn’t have a single coin to her name, and now that she had regressed to a child, finding a way to earn a living seemed impossible.

Her only hope was not to be kidnapped and sold off.

"...Should I just live in the forest?"

If she stayed hidden, avoiding the maids, what would happen?

But what if she ran into predators like eagles or wolves?

"At my age, I’d probably get eaten even if I stayed in human form."

A deep sigh escaped her.

"Where should I go...?"

In her anxiety, Beatty chewed on a protruding piece of wood from the wagon roof, lost in thought.

Just then.

"Did you hear? This time, Lord Lion dealt with those arrogant people from the Sacred Empire! They say so in the newspaper."

"Oh, oh! Be careful! If you bring it too close to the window..."

"Ah! My newspaper!"

Fwoosh!

A huge sheet of paper was suddenly blown toward her by the wind.

"Wh-what's this?"

Startled, Beatty waved her short arms and, seeing the words on the paper in her hand, tilted her head.

"What's this...?"

The Fastest Kingdom News, Astrum Daily

Publication Date: 718th Year of the Continental Era, □□ Month □□ Day

Beatty, who had been tilting her head in confusion, suddenly looked up when she saw the number at the top.

718th Year of the Continental Era.

The year was a full 10 years before the day she died.

A feeling of having found a clue made Beatty quickly read through the article.

[Over the past five years, the Holy Empire's army has repeatedly breached the kingdom's borders, and now their main force is marching toward the kingdom.

However, under the command of the kingdom's final protector, the Northern Wall, the Sword Saint, the ‘Golden Lion Duke,’ Aslan, the kingdom’s forces defeated them in the first battle.

If these victories continue, it is expected that the long-running ‘Great War’ will soon come to an end...]

This is it!

Beatty, who had been carefully studying the article, tapped the final part, where it mentioned the “end of the Great War.”

Ten years ago.

Everyone had expected the end of the long war, but it had actually marked the beginning of an unexpected retreat.

The first recorded "retreat" of the Golden Lion Duke, who had previously only celebrated victories, was about to take place.

If I can change this...

People couldn’t even imagine it now, but ten years later, a solution to this problem would have already been suggested.

Beatty knew the answer.

Her eyes sparkled.

This is my chance!

Though her eight-year-old body limited what she could do, Beatty realized she actually had a huge advantage.

The year was now 718. It was ten years before the time she remembered.

That meant...

I can use the knowledge of the next ten years!

“Yesss!”

Eureka!

Beatty jumped up and raised her arms in triumph.

I’ll give this information to the Duke’s family. They’re known for valuing their soldiers, so if I offer to solve their problem, they’ll surely protect me in exchange.

Quickly running the thoughts through her head, Beatty looked down at the accompanying illustration in the newspaper.

There was a battle scene drawn, with the portrait of the Supreme Commander beside it.

The Golden Lion Duke, Leonhardt Elde Aslan.

Beatty stared at the picture for a moment, then silently called out his name in her mind.

Father.

Though she was the Duke’s direct descendant, Beatty had never once called him by that title.

He was the one who had sent her away to the capital, disgusted by the sight of a squirrel beastkin born into the lion family.

Her aunt had always claimed that it was because he was too ashamed to keep her at the main estate.@@novelbin@@

But...

Beatty had never once seen her father during her childhood. As far as she could remember, he had never visited her.

The only time she had seen his face was in a portrait in the newspaper.

Not even a single letter...

While he showered his beloved son with letters and affection during the war, Beatty had never received a single response to her own letters.

Even when she sent several, hoping for a reply, none came.

The only reply she ever got was a torn letter returned to her.

...He didn’t have to tear it apart.

For a moment, Beatty’s shoulders hunched in frustration, but she quickly straightened up.

No, I can do this.

Puffing out a confident breath through her squirrel nose, Beatty confidently declared:

“Ch-chu chu chuuut!”

If I bring this information, even if they dislike me, they won’t be able to throw me out!

For a moment, the cute squirrel sound that filled her ears almost made her lose her confidence, but Beatty quickly clenched her tiny fist with determination.

Even if they hate me, I need to offer them a deal they can’t refuse.

After all, with her eight-year-old body, there weren’t many places she could go.

I’ll go to the Duke’s mansion and present my idea. In exchange for solving their problem, I’ll ask for protection to stay at the estate.

As long as she had a place to stay until she could work on her own, it would be enough.

Just until I become an adult.

Once she passed her coming-of-age ceremony, Beatty dreamed of entering the merchant guild.

With the knowledge of the future, she believed she could survive anywhere.

Or, maybe... I could even start my own guild?

The thought of the value of future knowledge made Beatty's dreams grow even bigger.

Alright.

The information she had to offer was her trump card.

The trade she would propose would be a place to stay until she became an adult, and eventually, seed money for her business.

“Ch-chu chu!”

I will make this deal work!

That was all she needed to think.

Until now, at least.

***

A Few Weeks Later

A scruffy little squirrel, wearing a torn piece of cloth like a cape, appeared in front of the Duke’s mansion.

The northern mountains, covered with eternal snow, stood in the background.

Underneath the towering, massive stone walls of the mansion, Beatty, lifting her small arms in excitement, finally arrived at her destination.

I made it!

Having crossed half the kingdom from the capital to the north, Beatty had finally reached the Duke’s estate after a long, difficult journey.