Episode 14
‘Greed, huh.’
He had rarely thought about wanting something for himself.
The idea made him feel selfish. He was slightly afraid of getting used to being this close to her.
After all, he was well aware that this warmth was meant for “Golden Bunny,” not for him as Cassium.
***
‘We’ll arrange a match for you. Someone who’s perfect for you.’
His father’s words flashed through Cassium’s mind.
He should have stopped them from sending the match proposal, no matter what it took.
“Beep.”
“Yes, Golden Bunny.”
At that moment, a basket caught Cassium’s eye. It was the one Lize had carried into the room earlier.
“Oh, that’s some grass and vegetables.”
“Beep.”
“Don’t worry, it’s not for you. I’m just going to make a salad for myself.”
“Beep?”
“Huh? Who gave it to me?”
By now, Lize was fluent in the language of rabbits.
“Mars, my cousin, gave it to me. He said he felt sorry for troubling you. I don’t know if he’s sincere, but at least he’s pretending to try to get along.”
Lize shrugged.
Cassium, still staring at the basket, felt a twinge of suspicion. He slipped out of her arms and darted toward the basket.
‘Something’s off.’
The edges of the vegetables inside the basket had a strange tint.
At first glance, it looked like discoloration from exposure to air, but there was a certain unsettling familiarity to it.
Cassium brought one of the vegetables closer to his mouth.
“Golden Bunny?”
…As expected.
“Beep.”
Poison.
If Lize had eaten this…
A bitter smile tugged at the corner of Cassium’s lips. His eyes turned cold.
‘I’ve stayed quiet for too long…’
***
“Mars? What’s on your mind?”
Mars, a member of the private Visel Knights, was in the middle of training. His fellow knight, Gale, noticed him chuckling to himself and asked.
“Oh, nothing.”
Mars swung his practice sword recklessly, as if attacking someone.
“What… what are you doing?”
“I landed a hit like this.”
“On whom?”
“The riffraff.”
N/ “Riffraff” means a group of people considered low-class or unimportant.
“Don’t tell me you’ve done something to Sir Artiel of the Erne Knights? Or to his younger sibling?”
“Don’t just throw the Artiel name around. And how did you know who I was talking about?”
Mars gave Gale a suspicious look, but Gale returned it with an even more puzzled expression.
“You talk about them all the time. Riffraff this, riffraff that. Speaking of which, as a fellow knight, I think you should stop calling them that.”
“What do you mean, Gale?”
“A lot of people probably think it’s inappropriate to call members of your own family that way. You’ve got a reputation to uphold.”
“I think it’s you who should watch your words, Gale. I can clearly see your intent to tarnish the honor of the Artiel name.”
“Me?”
“Yes. If you keep this up…”
Mars stared directly at Gale, swinging his wooden sword once more.
Gale, at a loss for how to handle the situation, took a step back with a confused look.
“I won’t stay quiet, Gale.”
“Uh… yeah. Sure.”
Mars chuckled as he watched Gale hurriedly leave.
He wasn’t someone meant to linger in such an insignificant knights’ order.
This was just temporary. Mars was convinced that his rightful place was with the royal knights, the most prestigious honor.
“See? With swordsmanship like this, soon I’ll even master aura techniques…”
“Mars Artiel!”
Just as he extended his sword again, his superior called his name sharply.
Mars froze in shock, quickly turning toward the voice and standing at attention.
“You’re in charge of the water distribution for the captain today, aren’t you?”
“Yes, sir! I’ve selected the finest water from deep mountain springs—”
“Cut the chatter and get moving! The event is almost here, and you’re still not ready?”
“I was training to ensure better performance during the event…”
“Training should’ve been done ages ago! Why are you doing it now? Get moving! You’ve prepared the water properly, haven’t you?”
“Of course!”
Mars confidently sprinted toward his superior.
***
The rabbit sat by the window, gazing at the distant capital square.
Wasn’t that where the Visel Knights’ base was?
Earlier that morning, he had circled around the mansion’s main building.
‘Ceremonial water bottles?’
He had spotted several water bottles bearing the emblem of the Visel Knights’ captain.
In private knight orders, it was common for regular knights to handle the captain’s water distribution on event days.
He had sprinkled a bit of dirt inside the bottles.
Well, not a bit—about half the bottle.
Honestly, he didn’t think this would cause any serious trouble.
‘No one would deliver something to their superior without double-checking it.’
At worst, it would delay the schedule a bit while they prepared new water.
Compared to what that man had done, this was nothing—smaller than a single grain of sand in a desert.
“Golden Bunny, shall we go?”
Lize approached, lifting him into her arms.
“Our knights will be thrilled to see you coming along.”
“Beep.”
“Oh, you’re so good at responding! If only everyone in the world were as kind and lovely as you.”
The rabbit let out a nonchalant “beep” and nestled into Lize’s bag.
***
“Milia… what are you thinking?”
“I’m definitely not thinking about how Commander Cassium’s disappearance is weakening the power of the Black Leopard, or how we might end up as nobodies after years of searching for him, or how I might resign from the Erne Knights and become a lonely knight wandering the countryside, or maybe retire to the far south where my great-grandmother lives to start farming…”
“Okay, I get it…”
“I definitely wasn’t thinking about any of that.”
Milia, who had been rambling at breakneck speed, abruptly fell silent.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier that the commander had disappeared?”
Nervan, one of Cassium’s three deputies, pouted and muttered.
“If I’d known sooner, I wouldn’t have been wasting time on leisurely dates!”
“Really, Nervan? Then stop dating immediately and focus on finding the commander—”
“I didn’t say I’d stop dating; I said I wouldn’t do it leisurely! Oh, Commander…”
Nervan and Milia dried their brimming tears in the sunlight.
Meanwhile, Hedel pressed his temples and glanced into the distance.
Peek.
‘Peek?’
A rabbit peeked out from behind a column in the corridor, looking in their direction.
‘That rabbit…!’
Instinctively, Hedel turned his back to the window, leaning against the column next to it, his eyes wide.
“What’s wrong, Sir Hedel?”
“Ah, nothing.”
It was undoubtedly the rabbit that had been with Commander Artiel.
Has Commander Artiel brought the rabbit along again?
But why is it on the Black Leopard’s side instead of the Golden Lion’s?
Hedel turned back to look out the window.
‘It’s gone.’
However, the rabbit was nowhere to be seen.
‘Did it leave? Or was I just seeing things?’
Why would I even hallucinate a rabbit?
Could it be because I thought that rabbit looked similar to Commander Cassium…?
At that moment, a tiny, fluffy paw peeked out from the corridor.
It was the foot of a rabbit, its jet-black fur soft and plush.
The paw gave a single signal—a slight flick.
As soon as Hedel saw it, he stood up from his seat.
“Where are you going?”
“I have no idea!”
“Pardon?”
Leaving Milia and Nervan behind, Hedell hurried toward where the rabbit had appeared.
***
‘Golden Bunny, just stay put for a moment. Feel free to explore the knights’ base.’
Lize had gone out on an inspection with the knights.
Meanwhile, he had intended to take a moment to himself, but he was quickly surrounded by the remaining members of the Golden Lion unit left at the base.
“Beep.”
Finally left alone, Cassium tugged off the small ribbon tied around his neck.
He had tagged along to see how the knights’ base operated, but…
‘I can’t gather much just by staying on the Golden Lion side.’
Would it be better to let the Black Leopard knights know about my current state?
‘If Lize doesn’t know, it seems my disappearance hasn’t been officially reported yet.’
Judging by the fact that even his family assumed he was only gone for a few days, they seemed to be handling the matter discreetly, at least publicly, from the knights’ perspective.
Those who had accompanied him on the mission to retrieve the heart of Lagon, or Commander Denver, would likely know.
Considering the time that had passed, his deputies must be growing increasingly anxious.
He could tell just by looking at Hedel and Milia’d expressions last time.
How long would it take for him to return to his original form?
It shouldn’t take long, but it was hard to pinpoint an exact timeline.
In case something happened, it might not be a bad idea to confide in at least one trustworthy person.
If he had to choose just one…
“R-Rabbit…”
“Beep.”
Cassium swiftly pulled Hedel into the shadows as soon as he spotted him rushing toward the corridor.
Though the rabbit’s front paws were small, they were so sturdy and muscular that Hedel was easily dragged along.
‘This is no ordinary rabbit…!’
And in the next moment, Hedel was so stunned that he couldn’t close his gaping mouth.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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