As Lachik suddenly stood up, Hamil pressed down on her shoulder.
“Stay here.”
“But…”
“It might be dangerous. Don’t leave the room.”
Hamil drew her twin swords and dashed out, running toward the direction of the scream.
She wasn’t the only one who had heard it—footsteps echoed as people rushed in from different directions.
“There! On the third floor!”
Pinpointing the location from someone’s shout, Hamil leaped onto an open window frame. Using it as leverage, she propelled herself upward, grabbed the edge, and swung into the room before sprinting forward.
At the source of the scream, knights and soldiers had already surrounded someone, weapons drawn.
A maid—likely the one who had screamed—had collapsed on the floor, trembling.
As Hamil approached, the knights recognized her and stepped aside.
She quickly examined the maid.
It seemed she had screamed out of fear—she didn’t appear to be injured.
“Are you alright?”
Still shaking, the maid nodded.
Hamil helped her up and guided her out of the area before turning her gaze toward the man the knights and soldiers had surrounded.
He had faded gray ears and a matching bushy tail. Despite the tense standoff, he grinned and raised his hands in surrender.
“Wow. What a warm welcome from the duke’s estate.”
A beastfolk?
Just then, a loud voice echoed from the end of the hallway.
“NAPHAROA! YOU BASTARD!”
Napharoa smirked.
“My wife sure has a strong voice.”
In a blur, Kura sprinted past the soldiers and knights, leaping over them with ease.
She grabbed Napharoa by the collar and growled.
“You bastard! What the hell are you doing here? What about your kingdom?!”
Napharoa casually reached out and stroked her cheek.
“What else? I abandoned it. I wanted to see you.”
“You crazy bastard!”
Kura threw a punch.
Napharoa smoothly dodged, pressed on her pressure point to loosen her grip on his collar, and swiftly moved aside.
Her fist, missing its target, twisted in midair and struck at him again, but Napharoa effortlessly evaded it.
Then, her right foot flew toward his face.
— CRASH!
With quick reflexes, Napharoa dodged once more, causing an innocent vase to shatter into pieces instead.
“My love, you must be exhausted. You’re slower than usual.”
“You bastard!”
Seeing her attacks repeatedly fail, Kura’s frustration grew.
Meanwhile, Napharoa put on a sulky expression.
“That’s harsh. I may be a wolf, but calling me a ‘son of a dog’ is just rude.”*
“Shut your mouth!”
This time, instead of using her fists, Kura extended her hand—sharp, beast-like claws emerging from her fingertips.
“My love, don’t you think it’s unfair to hide your ears and tail while still trying to fight me on equal terms?”
— Rip.
“Didn’t you miss me? Every single day without you was filled with tears.”
— Crash.
“You really must be getting old. You’re not as fast as you used to be. Poor Roa is so disappointed.”
— Rip. Crash.
“Poor Roa doesn’t want to fight anymore!”
Still dodging playfully, Napharoa suddenly leaped into the air.
All eyes followed as he landed gracefully behind Kura.
Before she could react, he wrapped his arms around her neck and pressed a kiss to her earlobe.
“I really missed you, my love.”
A vein bulged on Kura’s forehead.
The moment she grabbed him, she executed a powerful throw.
— BAM!!
Napharoa slammed into the marble floor with such force that cracks spread beneath him.
Coughing up blood, he still managed to lift a thumbs-up.
“As expected… from my love… that throw was… amaz—”
Before he could finish, he passed out.
Just as Kura was about to grab his collar again, a cold voice interrupted.
“Let’s end this couple’s quarrel here.”
At some point, Ian had arrived, watching the scene with icy eyes.
Realizing the situation, Kura quickly straightened up.
“I-I’m sorry.”
“Apologies won’t do. Compensation will.”
Following Ian’s gaze, Kura assessed the damage around them.
A once-beautiful painting was torn, a porcelain vase lay shattered, and an expensive suit of armor had a hole in it.
“Well… okay. I’ll pay for it.”
Unable to argue, she reluctantly agreed. Ian then signaled the knights and soldiers to disperse.
He turned his gaze to Napharoa, who was still sprawled on the ground.
“How long do you plan to pretend to be unconscious? Get up.”
A sly grin spread across Napharoa’s lips.
“You’re colder than I expected.”
“Enough with the jokes.”
Napharoa abruptly sat up, wiping the blood from his lips.
“I put quite a bit of effort into that act. Was it really that obvious?”
“Yes. The scent is strong.”
“You have the nose of a hound. Even my wife didn’t notice.”
Napharoa clicked his tongue in annoyance, while Ian remained indifferent.
“Well, that’s because the Queen is a lioness.”
Both Kura and Napharoa flinched, then turned to glare at Ian.
Ian pointed to Kura’s hair.
“If you want to keep it a secret, you should hide your hair color as well.”
Telling someone to feign ignorance when they so obviously bore the color of a lion was absurd.
“Oh.”
“That’s true.”
Ian shook his head and spoke.
“I will escort you to the drawing room.”
“Alright.”
Napharoa pulled Kura close by the waist with one hand.
She responded by pinching his side—hard—before huffing and walking ahead.
***
Fenrex must have laid the child down in their room because only Bernaba was in the drawing room.
While Napharoa greeted Bernaba, Ian, who had already ordered tea, sat down and asked,
“What brings you here?”
Napharoa grinned.
“My wife and son—ouch!”
Before he could finish his playful response, Kura pinched his side.
“Hey. Is this the time for jokes? Why are you even here? Do you know the state of the kingdom right now? How can the king just leave his post?”
At Kura’s scolding, Napharoa sighed.
“That’s exactly why I came. The situation has gotten worse.”
“What?”
Ian raised an eyebrow at Napharoa’s words.
Just then, a knock at the door interrupted them.
“Come in.”
Sebastian entered, placing the tea on the table. The room fell silent as he set down the last teacup and left.
Ian stood up.
“I feel like this is something I shouldn’t hear, so I’ll excuse myself.”
“No. I’d like you to listen as well.”
“What?”
“What?! Are you crazy? You want to discuss the Beastfolk Kingdom’s affairs with a duke of the Empire?!”
Kura shouted, but Napharoa gently took her hand.
“Kura. My dear. My queen. This is a decision I made as king. No more arguing.”
Kura bit her lip, frustration evident in her expression.
Napharoa continued, “Please, have a seat.”
As Ian sat back down, Napharoa began.
“Have you heard, Dragon?”
“Yes.”
“But the Duke hasn’t?”
Ian nodded.
Napharoa let out a deep sigh before explaining.
“To start from the beginning—about three months ago, a strange disease began spreading in the Beastfolk Kingdom. At first, we thought people were just getting bitten or eating something bad, since the only symptom was black spots appearing on the skin.”
Black spots? That sounds oddly familiar…
Ian raised an eyebrow.
“But then, more and more people started showing these black spots. That’s when the local administrator sensed something was wrong and reported it to the royal family. But by then, it was already too late. The first person to develop the spots ended up coughing up blood and dying. After that, more beastfolk started dying one after another. It only took seven days for an entire village to be wiped out.”
“You’re asking me about a cure, aren’t you?”
Napharoa nodded.
“Yes. Three days ago, in a village near the one that was wiped out, the beastfolk there also started coughing up blood and dying. Moreover, more and more beastfolk are developing black spots. Right now, about one-fifth of the Beastfolk Kingdom’s population is infected. At this rate, all the beastfolk in the kingdom might die. That’s why I came to ask for help.”
Bernaba clicked his tongue.
“I already told Kura—I’ve never heard of such a disease before.”
“Could it be magic?”
“No. Magic can’t create diseases.”
While they spoke, Ian was lost in thought.
Black spots.
No other symptoms.
Coughing up blood and dying.
Wasn’t this the same disease that appeared in the duchy after the great cold wave?
In the <flow>, it was described as a frostbite-like illness caused by extreme cold.
But that should be impossible in the Beastfolk Kingdom, where it’s warm all year round.
Could it be that the dark mages deliberately spread this disease?
Ian furrowed his brows and asked,
“Wait a moment. Before the disease appeared, had any outsiders entered the Beastfolk Kingdom?”
Kura responded,
“There are always outsiders coming and going. As long as they get entry approval, we don’t restrict them.”
“………”
Napharoa stared at Ian, sensing something odd about his question.
“Do you know something?”
Ian nodded.
“I do know about the disease you mentioned. However…”
“However?”
“What I know is that this disease is caused by cold weather.”
“Cold? But the Beastfolk Kingdom has a warm climate all year round.”
Ian nodded again.
“Yes, I’m aware. That’s exactly why it’s strange. The disease I know is linked to cold weather, yet the Beastfolk Kingdom is warm.”
“…Are you saying this isn’t just a natural illness?”
Napharoa’s expression hardened.
“Yes. It’s very likely that this disease was deliberately spread by an outsider.”
Kura slammed the table.
“How dare they! Who did this?!”
“Kura, calm down,” Napharoa soothed her before turning to Ian.
“Do you know a cure?”
Ian nodded.
“But magic is required.”
“…Magic.”
For a brief moment, Kura and Napharoa’s faces lit up—only to darken again.
Although beastfolk could transform into human form, they could only use the abilities of their original species. That meant they couldn’t wield magic, which was exclusive to humans and dragons.
To use magic, they would need the Mage Tower’s help—but the Beastfolk Kingdom had long been at odds with them.
Years ago, for reasons unknown, the beastfolk had attacked the Mage Tower, seeing it as their greatest threat.
At the time, only novice mages—young children who had just begun learning magic—were present, as the senior mages were away at a gathering. The children were slaughtered before they could even cast a spell.
The real issue? Most of those children were the offspring of powerful mages.
Enraged, the mages demanded revenge, but the Tower Master opposed it.
If the mages annihilated the Beastfolk Kingdom, it would give the Empire—who already saw the Mage Tower as a threat—an excuse to invade.
However, they couldn’t simply ignore the massacre.
As a result, the Mage Tower publicly declared that they would sever all ties with the Beastfolk Kingdom and provide no magical aid whatsoever.
This was why, despite magical gates existing throughout the Empire and various kingdoms, the Beastfolk Kingdom remained the only place without one.
But if magic was the only cure… then for the beastfolk, there might as well be no cure at all.
Napharoa turned to Bernaba, but Bernaba shook his head.
“It’s not possible.”
“Even when the survival of the beastfolk is at stake? This is still just about maintaining balance?”
“Yes. If it weren’t, I would have sought you out first.”
Napharoa bit his lip before turning to Ian.
“Duke, this magic you mentioned—can you perform it?”
“Yes, I can.”
Without hesitation, Napharoa grasped Ian’s hand.
“Please help us. If this continues, everyone will die.”
Ian hesitated.
The spell to cure the black spots wasn’t difficult.
He had more than enough mana, and in the <flow>, even Rose had been able to cast it as soon as she became a dark mage.
“Duke, please. Save us.”
Napharoa clung to Ian’s hand, desperation in his grip.
Just then, the door burst open.
“You mustn’t.”
🍓; *Napharoa’s reply plays on both the literal and figurative meanings of the insult “개새끼” (translated as “bastard” or “son of a dog/bitch”). Since Napharoa is from the wolf tribe—a species related to dogs—he humorously pretends to take the insult literally. By acting offended, he uses irony to defuse the tension while subtly teasing his wife for cursing at him.
