#31

This was Hebel. Moreover, it was quite far from the forest where I had lived. The thought of running into Bianco here was bewildering.

‘What’s Bianco doing here? And dressed like that…’

He was wearing the priestly robes of Hebel’s servants and seemed to be rushing somewhere.

Did he manage to get a job in Hebel after disappearing?

Well, it would be odd for him to stay in the forest forever when he could transform into a human.

Bianco, the only one in the forest who could humanize, often took care of the abandoned beastmen there. He treated me well, like a friend, probably because I was the most understanding of his words.

Of course, it might have been a one-sided friendship. Considering he abandoned me at the crucial moment and ran away.

As I stared blankly at Bianco, Ivan followed my gaze and asked quietly.

“Do you know that beastman?”

“Yeah. He helped me a few times when we were in the wild.”

“In the wild?”

“He was an abandoned beastman too. He managed to humanize, so now he’s probably living like this.”

Why he decided to raid the Zabyssia storage if he was planning to come to Hebel, I didn’t understand. Given that I got caught by Zerakiel because of it, I couldn’t look at him kindly.

I muttered as if recalling something.

“Oh, he was an accomplice too. He persuaded me to raid the storage.”

Ivan’s eyes flashed at the word “accomplice.” I frowned, still feeling resentful.

“He told me to keep watch while he ran off. I was stupid enough to wait for him.”

In my past life, I was deceived and died. Now, I’d been fooled again.

Even though the promised time had long passed, Bianco didn’t come out of the storage. Worried something had happened, I went looking and found the storage empty.

He had taken the food and run off, leaving me behind.

Realizing too late, I tried to escape but ran into Zerakiel on my way out. That’s how I was captured and became his pet, now on the path to becoming his partner.

Sighing deeply, I muttered.

“I was going to bite him if I caught him.”

No matter his intentions, using a friend as bait and running away was infuriating.

‘What should I do about him?’

In the past, I might have tried to understand his situation, but not anymore.

‘I’ll make him pay back a hundredfold!’

As I was grinding my teeth, thinking about how to deal with him, Ivan shrugged.

“Shall I let you bite him now?”

“What?”

“Wait here.”

Before I could stop him, Ivan darted out the window. Moments later, he returned, holding a terrified Bianco by the scruff of his neck.

“Why are you doing this to me?”

Bianco stammered, his voice shaking with fear. Ivan answered smugly, flashing his fangs menacingly like a street thug.

“Our lady has some business with you.”

Bianco’s face turned pale as he looked at me, trying to understand what was going on. I stepped forward, crossing my arms and glaring at him.

“You left me behind, Bianco. You made me the lookout and then ran away with everything. Do you remember that?”

“I-I can explain! I didn’t mean to leave you—”

“Save it. I don’t want to hear excuses.”

The sight of him trembling only made my anger burn hotter. I had no patience for his explanations.

“You have no idea what happened to me because of you.”

“I swear, I didn’t—”

“Shut up.”

Bianco flinched and fell silent. Ivan watched with a smirk, clearly enjoying the show.

“Now, you’re going to pay for what you did.”

Bianco’s eyes widened in fear. He had no idea what I had gone through since he abandoned me, but he was about to find out just how serious I was about making him pay.

“Ivan, make sure he understands that this isn’t just a friendly chat.”

“With pleasure.”

Ivan’s grin widened as he stepped closer to Bianco, who looked like he was about to pass out from fear. I watched with satisfaction, ready to finally get my revenge.

“Business? What business?”

“Don’t worry, it’s just to harm you.”

“W-What are you talking about?!”

Bianco’s face turned ashen as his voice rose in panic, feeling as if his throat was being squeezed.

Hey, you crazy lion!

I couldn’t help but jump at Ivan’s shameless threat. It wasn’t enough to kidnap a passing beastman, but now he was outright saying he intended to harm him.

I began to wonder if staying in this household was really the best choice. Rubbing my throbbing forehead, I said.

“Put him down, Ivan.”

“Yes, miss.”

Ivan obediently set Bianco down on his knees before me. The title “miss” was something he didn’t usually use, and it felt strange, but the situation in front of me was even more awkward.

“Please, spare me.”

Bianco cowered on the floor, trembling. Being caught by someone who looked like a lion must have been terrifying.

“Look up.”

At my command, Bianco raised his eyes to look at me. His pitiful expression made it clear he didn’t recognize me.

Of course, he only knew me in my ferret form. There was no way he could recognize me now.

Seeing Bianco in front of me brought back a flood of memories.

‘If someone smart like you could humanize, it would have been great.’

‘Chi?’

‘The gods are really indifferent.’

Bianco had often secretly shared food with me. He taught me how to hunt when I struggled, which helped me survive the winter. Alone, I might have starved or been eaten by predators.

Thinking about this made my desire for revenge fade. Maybe it was because my life had become relatively smooth, fostering a bit of unexpected mercy.

Even though I felt betrayed, I couldn’t ignore the kindness he had shown me.

Turning my back on Bianco, I said.

“Just let him go.”

“Just let him go?”

“Yes.”

With a calm voice, Ivan glanced between me and Bianco. After a moment, he bowed slightly.

“If that’s your wish.”

Ivan was reaching out to Bianco, who looked as if he had narrowly escaped a death sentence.

“What’s all this commotion?”

Just then, Zerakiel entered, his gaze settling on the kneeling Bianco.

“And who’s this ferret?”

“Well, um…”

Ivan started to explain, but Bianco crawled forward on his knees and grabbed Zerakiel’s pant leg.

“Please, spare me!”

Bianco had quickly deduced that Zerakiel was in charge and was trying to plead for his life. Unfortunately, that was a mistake.

Zerakiel’s golden eyes flashed.

“Guh? Erk.”

Before Bianco could fully react, he collapsed with a shallow gasp, foam forming at his mouth. Zerakiel had knocked him out with his pheromones.

“Who said you could touch me?”

Zerakiel brushed off his pants in disgust. I stared in shock.

His demeanor was drastically different from how he treated me. In the original story, Zerakiel had a severe aversion to physical contact, always wearing gloves to avoid touching others.

Grabbing his pant leg was a surefire way to get attacked.

‘I really was reckless around him.’

Remembering how I had bitten his fingers and even slapped his face, I realized how much he had treated me differently.

He knocked out a ferret in the blink of an eye.

Ivan placed a handkerchief on Bianco’s head and clasped his hands together.

“Rest in peace.”

“He’s not dead yet.”

Zerakiel’s irritated voice made Ivan widen his eyes.

“Really? I thought for sure…”

He double-checked by placing a finger under Bianco’s nose and finally believed it.

“It’s true. He’s still alive.”

“You know killing is forbidden in Hebel.”

“But you usually don’t think about such things, do you? Remember what happened last time.”

Ivan, it seemed, was the boldest beastman of all. He was talking about the incident with Heathcliff. On the day I entered the well, Ivan had complained endlessly to me, worried that the treaty would be broken and a war might start.

He had also spoken ill of Zerakiel to the point my ears nearly bled.

I had been quite surprised to hear that Zerakiel had tried to attack Heathcliff.

I expected it from the crazy Zerakiel, but not Heathcliff.

‘I haven’t seen him since then.’

Technically, I hadn’t left my room since then. Lord Zachary had punished me for unauthorized outings, forbidding me from leaving.

Today would be the last day of that punishment. I was allowed to attend the banquet, and I hoped to say goodbye to Heathcliff there. As I pondered this, Zerakiel smirked darkly.

“When you say things like that, Ivan, it makes me not want to think at all.”

Ivan just shrugged, unfazed.

“All the more reason to let me handle it, my lord.”

Zerakiel glanced at me, then at the unconscious Bianco.

“Fine. Get rid of him quietly. And make sure he never comes back.”

Ivan nodded, taking Bianco away. As they left, Zerakiel turned his attention back to me, his expression softening slightly.

“You should be more careful who you associate with, Chichi.”

I nodded, still processing the day’s events. Zerakiel’s protectiveness was becoming increasingly clear, even if it came with a possessive edge.