Aven, sitting in the carriage on the way back to the Rabian estate, closed her eyes slowly.
‘The wind has become quite chilly.’
The day she abandoned Vivi had been just as cold.
Even though the joy of their reunion hadn’t yet faded, something sticky clung to her feet, as if ensnaring her.
‘I’ll make sure to convey this to my grandson.’
More than anything, it was Alain Amon’s nonchalant response that bothered her.
She had testified under the condition that she wouldn’t be questioned, but it would have been natural for Alain to express some doubt. Despite having prepared answers for any inquiries, Alain Amon hadn’t added anything to his initial questions.
Tap, tap. Aven knocked lightly on the window frame and shook her head. It wasn’t too late to think about the minor details later.
There would be no worse outcome than Vivi being taken to the Black Panther Territory. If that happened, everything would be over.
Most beastfolk are registered at the time they gain their human form.
But Vivi had never been added to the official register, so if she crossed the territorial border, there would be no legal basis to retrieve her. It meant she might never be seen again.
‘I must…’
Even if it required reckless actions, she had to bring her back. Aven’s violet eyes shimmered as she stared out the window.
* * *
Given the situation, I couldn’t just leave the guest room carelessly.
Standing on tiptoe, I peeked out the window to see the main gate. Another carriage, bearing the emblem of a different family, was leaving through the gate.
‘That’s strange.’
A fire breaking out at the estate of the head of the family, especially during a banquet where one must go through a second entrance procedure, was not something to be taken lightly. Though the fire was small, it could still be seen as a potential rebellion.
Moreover, I had felt the presence of pheromones at the scene, so I had informed Ahin that it wasn’t a simple case of spontaneous combustion.
Yet, they were sending the nobles away without any investigation. Although there were limits to how long they could detain the nobles, it seemed far too hasty.
I sat down on the plush sofa, burying my forehead in my interlaced fingers.
‘Something… is off. Definitely.’
The instincts of a herbivore told me so.
‘But what?’
No matter how much I thought about it in this guest room, I couldn’t come up with an answer. I tossed and turned restlessly, then let my body go limp in frustration.
‘Vivi, my dear.’
The image of my mother turning her back in the smoke lingered in my mind, tormenting me.
I felt resentful. I wanted to shake her, demanding to know why she had done it, and if it had really been necessary to go that far.
But perhaps I wouldn’t be able to completely hate her. That small whisper of love from my childhood—it was frustrating how, even though I understood it in my head, my heart couldn’t follow suit.
But I didn’t want to see my mother again. I would just have to live with the lump of unresolved emotions lodged in my heart.
‘Just know that all I have left is you.’
Still, there were many subtle things that nagged at me.
The words my mother had left behind, and more importantly, the fact that despite my untrained herbivore body, I was able to sense pheromones. My mother had seemed genuinely confused at the time, as if she hadn’t noticed anything.
It made sense that my heightened sense of pheromones would make my senses more acute, but my weak sense of smell and poor stamina remained unchanged.
“…I’m no better than an empty husk.”
What a joke. I muttered to myself, shifting my body irritably.
“Who dares to call our dear rabbit an empty husk? The rabbit I know is full of substance.”
At that moment, a frustrating response came from across the sofa where Everine was sitting.
“By the way, when exactly do you plan to release me?”
His hands and feet were bound by his cravat and handkerchief, but his expression remained as perfectly composed as ever.
He had briefly tried to appear pitiful, but after a growl from Ash, who was keeping watch, he quickly straightened his posture again.
“…If you wanted to be let go, why did you let yourself be tied up so easily?”
“You were so passionate about binding me, dear rabbit. Besides, I’m currently serving you, so there’s nowhere for me to run.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask, but can’t you change the way you address me when we’re in human form?”
“Are you telling me to discard all the memories we’ve shared until now? That would truly break my heart.”
“Who said anything about discarding memories? I’m just asking you to use proper titles.”
“I refuse.”
I hadn’t expected him to correct his way of addressing me, so I glared at him sharply. Now was the time for questioning.
Though there were many issues to address, everything seemed to circle back to Ahin’s pheromones.
It was possible to reduce the pain of transforming into human form, and when I used pheromones, they became easier to control. Even last night, when Ahin had fallen into a pheromone-induced frenzy.
‘How can I get Everine to talk…’
How could I extract the information I wanted? Despite knowing Everine had a loose tongue, his serious demeanor made him feel like an impenetrable fortress.
As I pondered, a small child suddenly rushed into my arms. It was Russell, who was still staying at the estate with Professor Jisnana.
“You’ve gained another close companion, I see.”
I ignored Everine’s mutterings and placed Russell on my lap.
Two hours earlier, Ahin had called for Professor Jisnana to check on the bruise on my hand before heading to the meeting. Russell, who had come along, had clung to Ash’s tail, refusing to leave my side.
‘Why is this child acting like this?’
Professor Jisnana, still needing to work on her research, had reluctantly asked me to watch over Russell for a few hours before leaving the room. She had joked about his surprising attachment as she left.
‘Hero.’
Russell, snuggling into my arms, glanced at Everine and whispered.
‘That black panther is strange.’
“I’m an exceedingly normal black panther.”
Before I could even interpret Russell’s poorly pronounced words, Everine swiftly countered. He had sharp ears. Cupping my hands, I whispered back to Russell.
‘Yes, it is a strange black panther. Doesn’t it have a bad aura?’
‘No.’
‘Then what?’
‘I can’t feel any aura at all. This is the first time that’s happened.’
No aura? But Professor Jisnana had told me Russell could read the aura of beastfolk.
Could it be that Everine wasn’t actually a person…? Now that I thought about it, Everine did have an uncanny speed for someone who could escape so quickly, as if he didn’t have legs.
“…So, it’s finally been discovered.”
“……!”
A low, ominous voice came from across the room.
Chills ran down my spine as I slowly turned to look at Everine. His expressionless face, which had been unreadable before, only heightened the sense of suspicion.
Russell, a little frightened, burrowed deeper into my arms. Just as I held him tightly, his soft whisper reached my ear again.
‘Is he a ghost?’
Don’t confirm it like that… I couldn’t let a child see my fear, so I whispered back.
‘There’s no such thing as ghosts… If something happens, I’ll take care of it.’
The air grew heavier and more oppressive. The time for playful banter had passed, but Everine continued staring blankly into space, his eyes devoid of focus.
“Dear rabbit, behind you.”
“What?”
“Look behind you.”
“…Enough. It’s time to stop playing jokes.”
I tried to sound unaffected, but my voice came out dry and cracked.
Russell, who had curiously checked behind us, began trembling, and the shaking was transmitted directly to my body. It was unmistakable fear.
‘Very bad.’
Russell urgently tugged at my ear and whispered.
‘Pitch black.’
His desperate explanation left no room for doubt.
What is this nonsense? My breath quickened as if someone had forced my head to stay still, my gaze locked onto Everine. Even Everine’s eyes widened in fear, his red pupils dilating.
Then, in the ear opposite to the one Russell held, an eerily low voice whispered.
“You couldn’t sense the aura because it’s a counteracting pheromone. A beastfolk with weaker pheromones than Everine wouldn’t register to him.”
I felt a faint breath near my ear.
“Because it’s neutralized.”
So that was it—counteracting pheromones, a perfect match for someone like Everine whose emotions seemed neutralized as well. A surprising discovery.
* * *
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