"I'm sorry. I ended up getting greedy and made little Bao Bei work too hard. But being able to distinguish them so accurately is an amazing thing, you know. When herbs are mixed, it can sometimes be dangerous. Still, it's really hard to properly sort them out. Especially when they've been dried or broken into small pieces. We can't harvest all of them ourselves, so we rely a lot on suppliers. If you can help again in the afternoon, that would be a big help."
"Okay! Bao Bei will do his best!"
With a lively and energetic reply from Bao Bei, Jihl walked out into the hallway with him still dangling from his arms.
Just then, the previously quiet and limp Bao Bei began to wriggle around.
"Bao Bei wantsh to waalk by himself."
As if to protest, his tail lightly smacked Jihl's arm. When Jihl lowered him to the ground, Bao Bei grabbed onto the hem of Jihl's jacket and toddled along behind him.
Jihl's lips relaxed into a faint smile and he headed toward the dining hall.
