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Could there be a worse combination? Seeing Everine boarding the carriage with Ash, I immediately frowned.
As if dealing with Quinn, who seemed ready to peck my eyes out, wasn’t enough, now Everine had joined. This was turning into a nightmare of a journey home.
I couldn’t even complain, so I rested my chin on the window sill, sulking, when suddenly a chest appeared in front of me.
“You look like a wet dog.”
Ahin threw out a comment that I couldn’t even tell if it was an insult or a compliment, his eyes curving in a bright smile. Too exhausted to argue, I straightened my posture hurriedly.
“Ahin, you’re coming with us.”
Are you crazy? How could you subject me to such cruelty, sending these two with me?
“I already told you, I’ve got work left to do. I’ll be a little late.”
“How late?”
Maybe it was my persistence, but Ahin’s smile stiffened into a flat line. Had I pushed too hard? This was a rare sight, and even I felt tense seeing it.
His voice emerged, heavy, as if weighed down by an invisible burden.
“Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow…?”
“Yeah, I’ll try to come back by dawn if I can.”
“You don’t have to go through all that trouble. I just wanted you to come now.”
At my reply, his crimson eyes wavered slightly. For a moment, he displayed an unfamiliar expression, then shifted his gaze behind me. Looking at Quinn and Everine sitting together in the carriage, Ahin asked with a mix of disbelief.
“…Wait, the reason you wanted to come with me was because you didn’t want to be with those two?”
My hand, which had been resting on the window sill, twitched in surprise. The truth was that more than half of my reason for wanting to come with him was exactly that, and my true feelings accidentally surfaced for a split second.
“If that’s really why, I’ll be heartbrok—,”
Everine, in the middle of voicing his disappointment, was abruptly silenced by a flick of Ash’s tail.
When I turned back to face Ahin after glancing at the commotion behind me, his smile had shifted into something colder, almost chilling.
“Vivi, there are rabbit ears poking out of your head.”
“What?!”
But half-beast transformation wasn’t supposed to be possible for beastfolk. Could it be because of my incomplete humanization?
“There’s no way that’s true.”
In shock, I patted the top of my head. However, only my hair tangled around my fingers—there were no ridges or folds suggesting rabbit ears.
Even after rubbing my head a few more times to confirm, I glared at Ahin with disgust.
‘Liar.’
Feigning innocence, he leaned in again, whispering conspiratorially.
“Who knows? You might even have a tail.”
“Why are you suddenly being so mean?”
Swearing I wouldn’t fall for his teasing again, I scoffed at him. But despite my resolve, my hand, acting against my better judgment, stealthily slid behind me to check my lower back.
Perceptive as ever, Ahin noticed even that slight motion and buried his face in the carriage wall, shaking with laughter.
The incorrigible black panther. Huffing in frustration, I decided I didn’t need Ahin’s send-off and reached out to close the carriage window.
Just as the sliding window was halfway shut, a large hand stopped it, pushing it back open.
“Did you pack the perineum oil?”
Already set on sulking, I didn’t bother answering and instead showed him the pocket watch wrapped around my wrist like a bracelet. He had personally tightened it for me once more, ensuring it wouldn’t fall off.
“I’m sorry I can’t come back with you.”
Suddenly, there was a sound of something falling behind us. It was the sound of Everine dropping all the documents he was holding, and Quinn’s mouth had dropped so wide in shock that I worried his jaw might dislocate as he stared at Ahin.
“I’m so sorry, my hand slipped.”
Everine bent down to hurriedly gather the scattered papers, trying to explain himself.
“Are the documents damaged or—?”
“Ignore it. Don’t you have something else to say?”
How could I ignore that scene?
I opened my mouth, then suddenly remembered what the Rabbit Territory chief had said. My eyes shifted as I subtly touched the hidden scar on my neck under my cloak.
“This.”
Ahin leaned closer as if trying to catch my barely whispered words. Feeling burdened by the clear, blinking red eyes so close to mine, I lowered my gaze and murmured quietly.
“That wound, it was made to properly infuse your pheromones, right?”
“Why bring that up now?”
“…I just wanted to know if it had any other meaning.”
“Wait, you bit my neck twice without knowing what it meant?”
“……?”
My expression twisted into one of utter confusion at his cryptic response.
Biting his neck twice? As far as I could remember, the only time I bit Ahin’s neck was when he was suffering from a pheromone surge.
To prove his point, Ahin began loosening his cravat.
“I probably bit lightly enough that the marks would have faded by n—”
“Wait!”
Mindful of Everine and Quinn’s presence, I reflexively slapped Ahin’s mouth to stop him.
The sharp sound of the slap rang out, and Ahin blinked wide-eyed as he rubbed his lips. I, too, stared at my hand, trembling from the audacity of what I had just done.
The sound of papers hitting the floor again signaled Everine’s shock. Everyone around, from the passing knights to the servants and even the coachman tending to the horses, turned to stare at us.
No matter how impulsive I had been, slapping the future ruler’s mouth in front of so many witnesses was a serious offense.
“I-I’m so—”
Recognizing that I had committed a crime that could easily be considered treason, I awkwardly reached out in an attempt to apologize. Ahin, grasping my trembling wrist, parted his reddened lips.
“Hit me again.”
His deep voice, slow and deliberate, had the power to instantly pull me back from my spiraling thoughts. Regaining control over my shattered composure, I calmly pried my wrist from his grasp.
With a snap, I fully closed the window, then sat upright in my seat.
“It looks like he’s fine. Let’s get going.”
“To think you commanded Ahin with just a gesture, that’s truly impressive. I knew from the moment I saw you rolling in the training grounds that you were destined to become the captain of the Black Panther Territory’s knights.”
“…Everine, I dislike you just as much as I dislike Ahin.”
“That’s harsh, but I’m honored nonetheless. Although, it would’ve been wonderful if you’d given him three more slaps while you were at it.”
With a jolt, the carriage began to rumble, passing through the front gates of the estate.
Thanks to Ash’s assistance, I managed to slap Everine three times, then stuck my head out of the window to look back. My gaze lingered on Ahin, still standing in place, before shifting toward the domed estate.
The wind whipped through my hair, scattering my view of the mansion into multiple fragments. It had been an unusually exhausting few days, filled with frequent farewells and reunions.
* * *
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