Redd the Kitsune

Your mind had been occupied for days trying to decipher your last meeting with Tom Nook. It had left you with more questions than answers. You decided to slow down your island-building operation as a way to figure out his true motives. In the meantime, there were plenty of ways to spend your days on the island. The spring season had just arrived which meant that new bugs and fish were available for you to catch and catalog. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom and there seemed to be more meteor showers happening at night.

Today, you take a long meandering walk along the south beach to clear your head. Suddenly, you hear someone gasping for air. A seagull in a sailor outfit is lying in front of you, nearly passed out. You run to his side to see if he needs help.

"Zzz. No, YOU walk the plank, Ahab," he mutters as he drifts in and out of consciousness.

You give him a smack on his back and the life slowly returns to his eyes.

"Mrrph. No! Don't make me go back to space!" he yells as he awakens. "Oh. I must have fallen off my ship and washed up on this beautiful isle. Well, no problem! I'll just message my faithful crew with this here communicator."

The seagull pulls out a device from his pocket. But when he flips it open, water starts pouring out and the screen appears to be cracked.

"Oh boy, this is not good. Hey, do you think you can help me out?” he asks you as you eye him suspiciously.

He introduces himself as Gulliver and before you know it, you’ve already agreed to help him find a new boat to travel in. Not knowing where to even begin, you make your way to the other side of the island to gather wood and possibly build a makeshift raft for the seagull you had apparently just befriended. As soon as the north beach is in view, you realize your task may have just become 100% easier. A mysterious ship is docked near the rocks. Eager to see if this new visitor has room for Gulliver, you climb aboard and head down to the hull of the ship. There, a red fox wearing an apron greets you immediately.

“Welcome to Jolly Redd’s Treasure Trawler!” he exclaims. “I have come to your island to sell you the most beautiful art I could find during my travels abroad. There is nothing finer than fine art, am I right? Now that we have become close, I might as well call you family! In fact, how about I give you a family discount? This painting would normally sell for 498,000 Bells, but just for you, I will lower it all the way to 4,980 Bells. How does that sound?”

Ignoring Redd’s sales pitch, you cut to the chase and explain that a stranded seagull is in need of a ride off the island. The sketchy fox finally agrees to help but only if you buy his art at double the price. You reluctantly agree and return to the seagull to inform him of the good news. Soon, Redd and Gulliver depart on the Treasure Trawler together, leaving you alone on the dock with an overpriced painting. You head back into town and swing by Blathers' museum to see if he would like to add the painting to his art exhibit.

“Oh no! I believe you’ve been sold a fake. I am sorry, but I can’t do anything with this painting. I don’t think the Nooklings will buy it off of you either,” the owl explains. On your way back home, you beat yourself up for not considering that the painting could have been forged, but then you convince yourself not to be too sad since you at least saved that seagull.

Later that night, you make the rounds and visit the villagers to say goodnight. You can vaguely make out two shadows quickly making their way to Residential Services in the dark. Tom Nook did not take appointments at night so this was extremely unusual. You hide behind a bush to see who the two figures could be and you soon realize that they are two foxes. You sneak across the Plaza and peek into the window of Tom’s office, immediately recognizing the apron on one of the foxes and realizing it is none other than Redd. He hands over a bag of Bells to Tom and you can hear their muffled conversation through the glass.

“It wasn’t easy, but I’m glad Gulliver over here has perfected his shapeshifting.” Redd gestures to the other fox who then morphs into the seagull you met earlier.

Tom chuckles, “Wow, that new villager is quite gullible. Well, pleasure doing business with you boys. We’ve got to do this again soon.” They shake hands and the foxes leave.

You return to your home, fuming after the new revelation. You had been tricked too many times. It was time to find a way off the island.