Immortal Takeout - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Ta Nuo

When Ta Nuo opened his eyes, he felt very painful, as if countless little otters were blowing trumpets in his ears: “Today is not a good day to get up early.”

He rolled over and over on the soft mattress, messing up his fur. Finally, he slowly got up, forced himself to sit up straight, and began to rub his cheeks. He did it from top to bottom, from left to right, very seriously. After rubbing for a long time, until his fur was hot to the touch, Ta Nuo finally woke up.

A new day, a new struggle! Today he was going to pay a visit to Mr.Xiao Luo, the new owner of Da Luo Grocery Store.

Ta Nuo changed into human form, prepared a large plate of clams and a small plate of razor clams for himself, ate breakfast carefully, then wrapped himself tightly, moved up and down to do a warm-up exercise, and then pushed the door open to go out. As soon as he went out, a cold wind blew in his face. He sneezed loudly, put his hands in his pockets, and walked towards the river shivering.

The air was a little cold and stung his face. The Lantern Festival had just passed, and the weather seemed to be warming up when a cold front swept in from the south, sending everyone retreating back to their nests. Ta Nuo, wearing a thick hoodie, was still shivering with cold, his ears red and pressed against his scalp.

Encyclopedias can be deceiving, Ta Nuo thought. Sea otters aren’t necessarily immune to the cold. He hurried on, and soon his hunger returned. He fished a glass jar from his bosom, filled with dried sea salt shrimp that the otter mother had roasted for him. The shrimp were bought from the market, each about the thickness of a finger, oven-roasted until they glowed red, their surfaces coated in glistening shrimp oil and emitting an alluring, sea-smell. A bite revealed a crisp, springy texture, and a delicious taste.

With a pop, Ta Nuo uncorked the glass stopper, reached into the jar with his fingers, and quickly picked up a shrimp. With incredible speed, he stuffed the entire dried shrimp into his mouth, bulging it full. He puffed his cheeks and chewed vigorously, quickly devouring one. He licked his fingers with relish, then carefully licked his lips with his tongue. Then, he let out a long sigh.

In short, Ta Nuo was a sea otter, which was extremely rare. Not only in Maochun city, but probably the entire continent. He had been adopted by a family of otters on the south bank of the Hongjiu River and had been living with them for nineteen years.

The residents along the Hongjiu River woke up late, and along the way, Ta Nuo did not encounter any familiar faces. At the shallow end of the Hongjiu River, Ta Nuo caught sight of a golden squirrel carrying a bamboo basket filled with fresh red roses. That was Rousong, who lived on the fifth white pine tree south of the northeast corner of the Baiye Forest.

Rousong was round all over, with a beautiful furry tail he was proud of, two green bean-shaped eyes, and two cheeks always puffed out, as if hiding something good. Because he was so plump, everyone called him Rousong. He and Ta Nuo were old acquaintances. Upon spotting the sea otter from afar, he let go of  the bamboo basket, extended his two short, slender claws, and greeted him enthusiastically.

“Good morning,” Ta Nuo replied. “What are you doing with all these roses?”

“Don’t even mention it,” Rou Song said, feeling dejected. “Yesterday was Valentine’s Day for humans, right? I bought a bunch of roses in bulk in advance, thinking I could make a profit by reselling them. But there weren’t many humans or demons out yesterday, and I didn’t sell many flowers all night. These flowers are already bought, and leaving them in the cave would be a waste. So I thought I’d try my luck again today, selling them at half price, buy one get one free. But none of these lazy guys got up. I’m so angry. I won’t be able to buy pine nuts this month.” His eyes welled up with tears.

Feeling sorry for him, Ta Nuo bought the most beautiful one out of his own pocket, and didn’t ask for the second one Rousong had offered him. He planned to give the flowers to his little brother, the otter, when he got home. He said goodbye to Rousong, carefully tucked the rose into his hood, and headed back into the woods along the shore.He selected a suitable piece of driftwood, transformed his claws, and began to carve it carefully.

He intended to make a hollow canoe for drifting. He had learned this craft from Mr. Beaver, who had visited Maochun a few years earlier. Mr. Beaver was the first true sea creature Tamano had ever seen—although he was later ruthlessly corrected that a beaver was actually a river creature—Mr. Beaver was a learned man, understanding almost everything. For a time, Tamano felt a deep reverence for him.

It was also Mr. Beaver, who told Henuo that beyond this continent, across the vast ocean, there were hundreds of other creatures like him ,sea otters. Sea otters are magical creatures. They spend their entire lives in the vast, endless sea, swimming in groups, floating on their backs, claw to claw, drifting with the ever-changing waves, free and unfettered.

This was a scene Henuo had never seen before. He had never held claw to claw with another sea otter. He had never seen another of his kind. He was an outsider, out of place in the world around him. From the moment he was born, he had lived in a freshwater world, with his otter family as his only kin. The scent of the ocean, the sight of a group of sea otters—these were nothing more than faint, blurry memories in his dreams.

What do true sea otters look like? He longed to see them.

The canoe was quickly constructed, though it appeared plain and rather crude, it was sturdy enough to support him for an entire day of drifting. He lay inside to test it, and it fit perfectly. The wind direction today was favorable, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, the wind would carry him eastward, drifting all the way to the source of the central river of Maochun City. From there, he could disembark and, after walking for a short while, would reach Liu Village.

The small boat swayed gently, following the current downstream.

The sunlight was soft and gentle, like a freshly sun-dried cotton quilt, gently covering Ta Nuo. The sky was so vast and distant, and the vegetation on both banks grew increasingly distant. It seemed as though he was the only one left in the world. Ta Nuo lay on his back inside the small canoe, closing his eyes to catch up on some sleep. The rose pinned to his hat emitted a sweet fragrance. He smacked his lips, cradling a glass jar filled with dried shrimp, imagining himself floating in the boundless ocean like a real sea otter.

He soon fell into a deep sleep, a smile playing on his lips.

When Ta Nuo awoke again, Maochun City was already within sight. He carefully sat up, wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth, and hid the glass jar.

The real test was about to begin.

At the thought of this, Henuo, who had just woken up, slumped again, his head drooping.

Henuo now runs the family business: Immortal Takeout. This family business was founded a month and three days ago.

As the name suggests, Immortal Takeout delivers takeout to little demons—though some might argue that a service delivering to demons should be called Fairy Takeout. While the self-made little demons and monsters didn’t particularly care about such mundane terms, Fairy Takeout was a bit unpleasant. But Immortal Takeout was different. Immortals often symbolized good omens.

This is Ta Nuo’s vision: to bring the same joy to both humans and little demons.

Today, Ta Nuo is heading to Liu Village to discuss the largest contract since the establishment of Immortal Takeout: the strategic cooperation agreement between Divine Being Delivery and Da Luo General Store.

This strategic cooperation agreement was drafted during the lifetime of Mr. Luo Xitang, but the two parties had never formally signed it. With Mr. Luo’s unfortunate passing, the agreement was inevitably aborted.

However, Ta Nuo has no intention of giving up. He believes that if he could persuade Mr. Luo once, he can certainly persuade his descendants as well. Once Divine Delivery and Da Luo General Store form a strategic partnership, the entire Wutai Mountain, the entire Baiye Forest, the entire Hongjiu River, and even the entire Maochun City will become his exclusive supply areas.

Originally, Ta Nuo was going to join the group in seeing Mr. Luo off last night. He had already planned to approach Mr. Luo as soon as the ceremony was over and sincerely request he reconsider the partnership. However, things went against his will. Before leaving, Ta Nuo was entangled by his youngest otter brother, who insisted it was Valentine’s Day and that the older brother should spend the holiday with his younger brother.

Although Valentine’s Day is a human holiday, many young demons also enjoy it, making it a trend among the younger generation of demons. It seems even the underage otter couldn’t escape the custom.

He spent a lot of time putting his younger brother to sleep before rushing out. By the time he arrived at the Luo family courtyard, everyone was already leaving, and he only managed to catch a glimpse of Young Master Luo’s back.

The young boss looked very young and tall, with a long, slender shadow cast on the ground. Ta Nuo had never seen a human taller than himself. What kind of person was he? If he was as kind and gentle as Old Master Luo, that would be wonderful.

Regardless, he couldn’t fight a battle he wasn’t sure he could win. Ta Nuo encouraged himself mentally, using the last stretch of the journey to prepare himself mentally.

Immortal Takeout is the only non-human food delivery service in Maochun City. Its emergence has significantly filled a gap in the market. The founder, Sea Otter Ta Nuo, has quickly become a well-known young entrepreneur and was interviewed by the Dandelion Daily, securing an entire page of coverage. The issue of the Dandelion Daily has since sold over 2 copies.

The company’s performance was also quite impressive. Although only a month old, Ta Nuo had already secured three orders, with Otter Dad, Otter Mom, and Otter Big Brother.

As he wrote his performance report, Ta Nuo’s head drooped to his chest, unable to lift it up.

“Alas, this seems a bit disappointing,” he thought to himself.

Ta Nuo got off the boat, walking quickly while eating shrimp from a glass jar. After finishing the last dried shrimp in the jar and licking his fingers clean, he finally arrived at the Luo family’s front gate. He carefully hid the shrimp jar, raised both hands, rubbed his cheeks with his palms, and forced a bright smile. Just as he was about to call out, a black whirlwind suddenly swept toward him. He instinctively jumped aside, and a heavy object grazed his shoulder, crashing down with a dull thud where he had been standing.

What the hell! Ta Nuo’s sea otter fur stood on end, and his eyes widened in shock.

On the ground lay a human—or at least, it appeared to be a human. But he was covered in bruises, his face swollen and bruised, and his head unusually swollen, making it difficult to tell whether he was human or animal.

Probably a male human, Ta Nuo thought. Hearing the other’s painful moans, he felt a little sorry for them. He took a half-step forward, bent down, and whispered, “ Excuse me, are you okay??”

The response was still a muffled groan.

At that moment, a click sounded at the door. He looked up and saw a white straight-handled umbrella tilted sideways, staring at him.

An umbrella—was—staring—at—him—