Chapter 47

Sway, sway.

Aisha’s chubby little legs swung beneath the arm of the man walking through the secluded forest.

Behind him, the kitten followed, its tail swishing in the shape of a question mark.

The ones the cat had been waiting for were not the king and Duke Pose.

Its target was the narrow-eyed man who had been watching Aisha the entire time.

That should be enough, right?

Behind eyes disguised as muddy brown by a potion, the cat stared fixedly at the man as if evaluating an object.

Originally, the cat knew very little about humans.

But while imprisoned at Ahili’s Circus, it had learned one thing.

Most humans lived in groups.

That man, however.

That narrow-eyed man.

The one who had followed them ever since Aisha carried it into the carriage.

He carried no scent of other people.

As though he had been born to die silently one day.

That’s why I followed him. He seemed suitable.

But why was he acting familiar with Aisha?

The truth was, ever since Aisha had brought it into the garden, the cat had been waiting for an opportunity.

The moment Aisha let her guard down even slightly—bam! It had planned to rush straight at him.

But Aisha ruined everything.

The cat shot Aisha a displeased glance.

She suddenly started chasing after me, so now he knows everything.

Hmph.

The cat suddenly found itself annoyed with Aisha.

If she had not followed it, this would have been over much sooner.

Still, was that man acquainted with Aisha?

Where exactly was he taking her?

If he truly had some connection to Aisha, then unfortunately the cat would have to observe a little longer.

Humans were social creatures.

It had heard that they became sad when someone connected to them died.

So I'll wait a little.

The cat felt somewhat impatient, but for the record, it was a generous cat.

If I don't kill him and wait, maybe he'll give me something nice later. Like that physician did.

Flop.

The cat quietly folded its legs beneath itself and settled into a loaf position.

I'm a good cat.

Then—

“This should be far enough. Nobody's around.”

After checking his surroundings, the man set Aisha down and began tying her hands.

The rough rope scraped against the child’s delicate wrists.

Aisha, who had been pretending to be unconscious, frowned slightly.

“!”

The cat’s eyes widened.

The man paid no attention and proceeded to tie her feet as well.

That rope... I saw it at Ahili’s Circus too.

The cat remembered how it stung even at the slightest touch and stripped skin raw when it rubbed against flesh.

Those ropes had often been used at Ahili’s Circus to bind the mouths of disobedient monsters.

Isn't that something used to punish monsters?

The cat tilted its head.

If he knows Aisha, why is he hurting her? If she dies, who's supposed to answer my questions?

“Hey—”

And on top of that—

“Wake up, little spy. Hey!”

The man slapped Aisha’s cheek with a huge, brutish hand.

Smack. Smack.

“Why is someone who should be in the north in the central region? And after I sent a secret message, you ignored it and eavesdropped on the duke's conversation?”

Smack. Smack.

The cheeks that looked like soft white flour gradually turned red.

Watching that, the cat’s eyes slowly narrowed.

Then it rose to its feet.

Now it was certain.

This man was not the same kind of person as the one Aisha called a physician.

No.

He was more like the workers at Ahili’s Circus who had thrown the powerless cat into cages and left it starving.

In that case—

“Are you really asleep?”

The man clenched his teeth and raised his hand again.

Just as he was about to bring it crashing down—

“Ghk.”

Something white suddenly shot upward and sank its teeth into his neck.

“Khhk—! Aah...!”

The man tried to scream as a numb agony spread through him like poison.

Instead, his mouth froze open.

His entire body stiffened like stone.

Then he toppled backward.

“Myaaa—”

The cat’s satisfied cry drifted through the air like a song.

The forest fell silent.

The man, now a corpse, was dragged away through the vines and disappeared.

***

At that same time.

“...Mmn.”

My entire body stung.

It felt like sharp leaves were brushing against skin scraped raw and exposed.

As consciousness returned, sensation followed.

Then my right cheek began burning as if it were on fire.

It felt like someone had yanked out a wisdom tooth.

What happened? I chased after the baby. Then I overheard the king and Duke Pose talking...

After that.

After that part was gone?!

Don't tell me I got kidnapped?

Startled, I opened my eyes.

“...?”

At first, I didn't even realize they were eyes.

An amethyst?

Why was there a jewel in front of me?

The thought flashed through my mind for only a moment.

“Why did you save me?”

“...Huh?”

The calm question slipped into my ears.

“I asked why you saved me.”

It talks.

The jewel talks.

Flustered, I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again.

Then I found myself staring into a pair of vivid purple eyes set beneath deep, clear features.

They were studying me with open curiosity.

...Who is this?

White hair draped across his forehead.

Pale, flawless skin.

If someone asked an artist to paint purity untouched by a single stain, this boy might appear on the canvas.

Or at least—

That was what I would have thought if not for the blood smeared around his mouth.

“...Blood?!”

Startled, I tried to back away.

My body wouldn't move.

My hands and feet were still bound.

Don't tell me he did this?

“...You.”

I raised my triangle-eyes and glared at him, preparing to question him.

“Oh, this?”

How exactly had he interpreted my expression?

With obvious annoyance, the boy wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

“I ate a little because I needed enough energy to turn into a human. Tastes awful.”

Then he muttered to himself.

Ate a little.

Meaning blood.

“...You drank blood?”

“Otherwise I couldn't talk to you.”

He answered with complete indifference, as though I had asked an absurd question.

What a weird kid.

My mouth trembled into a little triangle.

...Were there vampires in the original novel?

No.

If there were, even a minor one should have appeared.

My eyes spun with confusion.

“Anyway, hurry up and answer. Why did you save me?”

“...Huh?”

“Why did you save me?”

The boy, still diligently wiping away blood, suddenly stepped closer.

“Why did you save me?”

Was that really the sort of question someone with blood all over their face should be asking?

I blinked stupidly.

“Why would I save you?”

“You rescued me. At Ahili’s Circus.”

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

The answer came without hesitation.

“...No, I didn't.”

Shake, shake.

I shook my head.

...I thought he might just be a little slow, but if he knows about Ahili’s Circus, he must have been there.

Still, I had never seen him before.

“You've got the wrong person. This is my first time seeing you.”

The mysterious purple eyes narrowed sharply.

“I went to all the trouble of saving you so I could get an answer.”

Judging from his tone, he clearly did not believe me.

After glaring at me for quite some time with his hands on his hips, he finally nodded as if reaching a decision.

“If you aren't going to answer, then there's no reason to keep you alive.”

Then he opened his mouth wide.

Without the slightest emotion.

“I'll just eat you. Aaah—”

“AAAAAH!”

As his neat little mouth opened, rows of sharp teeth appeared.

Pointed fangs gleamed among them.

He's insane.

He's completely insane!

I wriggled like a caterpillar in my restraints and blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“O-Okay! I'll answer! I'll answer!”

The wide-open mouth snapped shut.

Alright.

I had no idea who this kid was.

But I definitely knew he was a lunatic.

So—

“I'll answer if you untie me.”

First, I needed my freedom.

“You'll answer if I untie you?”

“Yeah. The ropes hurt, so it's hard to answer.”

I squirmed around and pretended to be in pain.

The indifferent purple eyes suddenly twitched.

“...If you're hurting, it would be hard to answer.”

Then, unexpectedly obedient, he dropped to one knee and began untying the ropes.

This idiot.

Thank goodness he's stupid.

“Hehe. Thanks.”

The moment these ropes come off, you're dead.

Grin.

A sinister smile curled across my lips.

I kept a relentless stare fixed on him as he untied the ropes...