Future Pet Shop

Chapter 117: It’s a Raccoon Cat

"Sylvie, you go that way. Hah’Er, you go this way. Cheeky... uh, you just keep an eye on things from the sky. We absolutely cannot let it get away." Shen Yibin quietly directed Hah’Er and Sylvie to circle around from the left and right while he tiptoed toward the hole from the front, trying to surround it on three sides.

"What kind of animal is that? It looks a little... a little like a raccoon?" Sylvie whispered as she walked. She had caught a fleeting glimpse of a figure darting past the hole in the package crate and thought it looked familiar.

"It’s similar, but I don’t think so," Shen Yibin whispered back. The animal had flashed in the opening for a moment. Shen Yibin had vaguely seen that this pet was short and stout, slightly smaller than a dog. Its fur was a dark brownish-black, its muzzle was white, and its short limbs were black. It had a thick, short tail and a ring of black markings around its eyes. It certainly resembled a raccoon, but it didn’t seem to be one.

"Hmm?" Hah’Er touched the black rings around his own eyes, seemingly pondering if this new pet was some kind of relative. ’Why else would it have black circles on its face too?’

Just then, the pet inside the package crate seemed to notice them. It cautiously poked its head out of the hole to size up the three of them, not looking particularly scared.

"Hey there, little guy. I’m here to take you home." Shen Yibin first clapped his hands to get its attention, then waved, beckoning it into his arms.

As soon as it saw Shen Yibin’s gesture, the pet seemed to perk up. It leaned its body out of the hole, copied Shen Yibin by clapping its paws, and then made a waving motion.

’I’m trying to get you to come over, why are you mimicking me?’ Shen Yibin wondered. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a compressed biscuit, unwrapped it, and held it out in his palm. "Here, you must be hungry, right? Want to try this?"

The raccoon-like pet once again copied his actions, patting around its own waist. Of course, it couldn’t find a compressed biscuit. It started to get anxious, fretting and spinning in circles before suddenly pouncing on a small rock on the ground that was about the same size as the biscuit. It placed the rock in its paw and held it out toward Shen Yibin.

By now, its whole body was out of the package crate. It had a round face, big, dark, round eyes, and a round nose. It looked friendly and gentle, not at all aggressive. At this point, Shen Yibin was able to identify the pet’s species. "This looks like a Japanese Raccoon Cat, doesn’t it? No wonder it likes to copy my movements. It probably thinks I’m dancing."

In Japanese folklore, the Raccoon Cat is a magical animal that loves to dance, is skilled at mimicking sounds, and can use leaves to transform into various objects or even people. This particular Raccoon Cat probably couldn’t perform all those transformations, but its love for dancing seemed to be intact.

"A Raccoon Cat? Not a raccoon?" Seeing that the Raccoon Cat showed no signs of running away, Sylvie and Hah’Er also drew closer, curiously sizing up the new pet.

"They’re different. Strictly speaking, this pet’s scientific name is ’raccoon dog.’ It’s part of the canine family, whereas raccoons are part of the feline family. It’s true that it looks similar to red pandas and raccoons, but there are differences if you look closely." Shen Yibin pointed to the Raccoon Cat and explained, "Raccoons don’t have a black ’mask’ and have reddish-brown fur. Red pandas have a black mask like the Raccoon Cat, and black-and-white fur, but they don’t have this thick scarf of fur around their neck."

"Look again. Although the Raccoon Cat has five toes, its thumb is vestigial. A red panda’s five digits are short and thick, while a raccoon’s are long and slender. You can tell them apart at a glance," Shen Yibin continued. "And then there are their tails. The tails of raccoons and red pandas have rings, but the Raccoon Cat’s doesn’t."

"It seems you’re right. And this one definitely looks a bit fatter than a raccoon, but it’s so cute." Sylvie couldn’t help but rub Hah’Er’s big head. "I just love this kind of chubby, fluffy animal."

"Alright, enough of that for now. We should focus on getting it back home. It’ll be trouble if we don’t get out of the woods before dark." After speaking, Shen Yibin took a few more steps forward, squatted down, and held out his hands to the Raccoon Cat. "Come on, little guy. Come home with me?"

Hmm? The Raccoon Cat seemed to find this difficult. The squatting motion appeared to be too hard for it with its big belly. But it didn’t give up. It tried to copy Shen Yibin and squat down, but it lost its balance and—THUD—plopped right down on its butt.

This sent Sylvie and Cheeky into fits of laughter. Hah’Er just grinned foolishly and patted his own belly, as if to say, ’Wow, someone with an even bigger belly than me has finally shown up!’ Of course, a normal Raccoon Cat certainly wouldn’t have such a large stomach, but since this was a product of the Future Pet Shop, being a little strange seemed perfectly normal.

"YIP!" Although the Raccoon Cat had "Cat" in its name, its cry was completely different from a cat’s. It was a short, high-pitched sound, more like the yelp of a playful puppy.

It saw Hah’Er patting his belly and looked up at the sky in confusion. Seeing only the sun high overhead and not a trace of the moon, it grew a bit dejected and simply decided to stay put on the ground.

Just then, its stomach let out a rumbling sound. It seemed hungry. Shen Yibin and the others were amused by its expression. By now, Shen Yibin was starting to get the hang of dealing with it. He broke the compressed biscuit in his hand in two.

"Ahh, this is delicious!" He brought half of the biscuit to his mouth with an exaggerated motion, then nodded repeatedly, pretending it was the tastiest thing ever. "Tastes great! Don’t you want to try some too? ...Hey, you can’t eat that!"

Before Shen Yibin could finish, the Raccoon Cat copied him, putting the small rock it had placed in its paw earlier into its mouth and biting down hard.

"OWW~" That really did a number on its teeth. It clutched its jaw and hopped around on the ground, only calming down after a long while.

"Sigh, it’s over. We’ve got one with a lower IQ than Hah’Er. Is stupidity contagious?" Cheeky cackled, gloating. It shot a meaningful glance in Shen Yibin’s direction. ’Like owner, like pet. The heavens must have been blind to send me here.’

"Dear, even if you’re going to copy me, you should at least check if the thing in your hand is edible. Here, try this." Once the Raccoon Cat had calmed down, Shen Yibin shook his head in resignation and offered the biscuit again.

"Yip?" The Raccoon Cat cautiously took the biscuit, seemingly worried it might chip its tooth again. It first stretched out its nose to sniff it, then tentatively licked it with its tongue before finally putting it in its mouth and biting down gently. It was a bit reserved at first, but once it got a taste, it started chewing faster and faster.

’Once it eats, things should be fine. I can probably take it home now, right?’