#102

I successfully landed a hit square on his jaw and, keeping a safe distance, growled at him. Even as I did so, I didn’t lose sight of Ella in my arms.

“If you say that disgusting thing again, you’ll lose your third leg next time!”

“Oh ho, you’re tough.”

Despite bleeding from his nose, he gave me a thumbs up. If he weren’t some deranged beastman, that reaction would’ve been completely absurd.

It was unbelievable—no matter how many times I hit him, nothing seemed to work.

Feeling somewhat deflated, I spoke with disgust.

“Plus, I’m already married!”

And even if I weren’t married, there’s no way I’d ever marry a kidnapper!

I glared at him with narrowed eyes, and he shrugged, continuing his nonsense.

“I don’t care. Remarriage is pretty common, right?”

“Uh… to remarry, you need to get a divorce first. That’s basic common sense.”

“Huh?”

Are you seriously that dumb?

Huh, what?

I grabbed the back of my neck in frustration. I couldn’t believe there was someone in this world who would ask a married woman to marry him again.

Ella seemed just as bewildered, her expression one of complete disbelief. A moment later, she bared her teeth and growled.

“Grrr!”

Though she looked like she was trying to protect me, unfortunately, the tiny rabbit in my arms wasn’t very intimidating.

Look at those harmless herbivore teeth without a single fang.

If I had a carrot on hand, I’d want to feed her immediately; her little teeth were too cute for words.

Still, with Ella by my side, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of courage, even in enemy territory.

At that moment, the leader, who had been wearing a rather serious expression, finally spoke.

“Then, how about we divorce and get together?”

“Seriously, you just keep spouting nonsense.”

“Well, I’m a dog beastman, so it’s only natural for me to say stuff like that.”

He scratched beneath his nose with a shy expression, which was making things more awkward for me.

“You’re telling me you’re actually a dog…?”

If a dog beastman is talking nonsense, does that mean it’s actually nonsense, or is it just nonsense? Just a small difference in spacing, and the meaning changes completely.

This was bad. The guy was even more ignorant and clueless than I had imagined.

This was the first time since Ivan that I felt like no attack was going to work.

At least Ivan had some awareness, but this guy? None whatsoever!

What do I do? At this rate, I might really end up in some sort of polygamous marriage!

And when Zerakiel finds out about this, the entire region might just disappear.

I hugged Ella tightly, trembling at the thought.

Just then, one of the beastmen, who had been fidgeting next to the leader, spoke up.

“Mr. Ke, Keinhrih. I-I have something to report.”

“What is it? Can’t you see I’m proposing here?”

Keinhrih snapped back irritably, and the pale-faced subordinate bowed deeply, almost putting his face to the ground, before speaking in a trembling voice.

“Th, th, that person… I think she’s the white weasel from that rumor.”

“Hmm?”

Finally, someone recognized me.

I looked at the subordinate with a bit of hope, but searching for hope in enemy territory was as foolish as looking for pearls in a sandstorm.

The subordinate whispered loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“You know, the miraculous white weasel who stopped Jabis’s madness!”

Does he even know what a whisper is for?

The diction was so clear, it was almost like he was shouting into my ear. What was even funnier was that he himself looked shocked as he spoke.

‘This is weird…’

It seemed my reputation had spread across the continent. In just a few days, I had been elevated to the status of a miraculous white weasel, and I couldn’t help but shrug in response.

Well, now that they knew who I was, they’d better beg for mercy and let me go, or it’d be better for their health. My husband might be charging in like a mad lion with his mane flaring at any moment.

“No wonder you’re extraordinary.”

Keinhrih muttered, then jumped back onto the carriage with incredible ease. For a dog beastman, his jumping ability was quite impressive.

“Well, this works out. I’ve been wanting to meet the little master of Jabis.”

“But, Lord Keinhrih! Zerakiel Rune Jabis is notorious for being ruthless… eek!”

The subordinate froze mid-sentence and collapsed in a faint. Keinhrih had sprayed pheromones at him.

“Is there any beastman left who dares to defy my orders?”

At his words, the entire area grew quiet. I watched Keinhrih closely, noticing the odd change in his demeanor.

‘Every time Jabis is mentioned, the mood shifts like this.’

It seemed like Keinhrih really hated Jabis, but just then…

Poof.

With a soft popping sound, a fluffy tail suddenly sprouted from Keinhrih’s backside.

I watched in silence as the beige tail, reminiscent of a large dog’s, wagged furiously like a propeller.

A moment later, one of his subordinates finally gathered the courage to point it out.

“Mr. K-Keinhrih! Y-Your tail… it’s, uh…”

“Huh?”

Only then did Keinhrih seem to realize his tail had made an appearance, his eyes going round in surprise. But even so, the tail showed no signs of stopping.

Wait, could this be…?

Just as I was about to diagnose Keinhrih’s strange behavior—

He suddenly sprang to his feet, nostrils flaring as he bellowed,

“Hey! Do I look like someone who would pass up the chance to see Lord Zerakiel again with my own two eyes?! Do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting for this day?!”

“Aaack! M-My apologies, sir!”

His subordinate practically shrieked, stumbling backward before collapsing into a deep bow, groveling on the ground.

I tilted my head in curiosity, unable to hold back my question.

“Wait a minute. Why exactly are you so eager to meet my husband?”

“T-That’s because—!”

Keinhrih started speaking but then trailed off, suddenly writhing shyly. His already bulky, muscular frame twisted awkwardly, making it look like his muscles were about to burst out of his skin.

I barely had time to grimace at the bizarre sight before he finally blurted out,

“Lord Zerakiel is my savior! My hero!”

…And yet, you’re the one who just kidnapped his wife?

This ridiculous plot development was too much for me to process, so I let out a hollow laugh.

“Haha.”

I thought that leaving Jabis territory would mean meeting some normal people, but…

Every beastman I encountered was like this.

This world was definitely beyond saving.

Still, it was refreshing to meet a beastman who actually liked Jabis for once.

“Aren’t you afraid of Jabis?” I asked.

“Why would I be?”

“Well, most people treat them like ticking time bombs, never knowing when they’ll go crazy. Not that I think that way, of course.”

“Hah! That’s just weaklings trying to cover up their own fear with bravado.”

Keinhrih slammed his fist onto the carriage, his strength so overwhelming that the sturdy frame buckled under the impact.

At that moment, our gazes locked.

For a moment, we silently sized each other up—

Then I grinned and stretched my hand out in front of the carriage.

“Now that I get it, you’re actually a reasonable dog.”

“And you—sitting beside Lord Zerakiel—you’re quite the extraordinary white weasel.”

“I am pretty amazing.”

“And I must be amazing too, since I caught someone as amazing as you.”

As we shamelessly praised ourselves and shook hands, the surrounding beastmen began whispering among themselves.

Well, it was understandable.

Just moments ago, we had been fighting over marriage proposals, and now we were acting like old friends.

Still, it’s my first time meeting a beastman who actually favors Jabis.

I had always fought a lonely battle trying to defend my household’s name, so having an ally—even an odd one—felt unexpectedly nice.

Forgetting for a moment that I was technically still kidnapped, my fondness for Keinhrih grew slightly.

I gave his shoulder a casual pat and said,

“By the way, sorry for hitting you earlier. It’s just, you were spouting such ridiculous dog—ah, I mean, dog beastman talk, that I lost my temper.”

To an outsider, that might have sounded like I was calling him a dog-like bastard, but since he was literally a dog beastman, the insult didn’t quite land.

Keinhrih laughed and pounded me on the back.

“No worries, no worries! Your punches were as soft as a feather!”

“…Then maybe cover up that lump on your chin before saying that.”

“Cough.”

Keinhrih quickly raised a hand to his bruised chin, grinning sheepishly.

For a while, we continued chatting like old friends who had reunited after years apart.

Then, I finally got to the point.

“Alright, so now that we’re cool… I can go, right?”

I had assumed the answer would be yes.

But instead, Keinhrih suddenly went dead serious.

“Nope.”

“…?”

Wait, weren’t we just getting along?!