Chapter 52

Has the eye-color transformation potion already worn off?

The beast gazing up at Aisha had eyes flickering with the ominous violet that symbolized monsters.

So it really is the leader of the monsters. It seems Empress Grace was telling the truth.

From a distance, it had looked as though the monsters were reacting to Aisha.

But Knox knew better.

The one they had all been watching was not Aisha, but the cat pacing quietly beside her.

“We can talk later. For now, shouldn’t we escort Lady Aisha back to the castle and get the situation under control first?”

“...Agreed.”

“Your Grace, this still isn’t over.”

This time Knox lowered his voice as much as possible.

“I don’t believe the monsters will return for the time being, but perhaps you should leave the cleanup to the captain of the knights. There’s something urgent I need to discuss with you.”

“...?”

Calypse’s brow furrowed faintly. Knox continued looking at him with the same calm expression as ever.

“...Very well.”

After several seconds of silence, Calypse seemed to understand.

There was something more important than even the current situation.

Still refusing to let Aisha out of his arms, he finally shouted orders to the surrounding knights.

“The situation is [N O V E L I G H T] over. We’ll repair the ice barrier once cleanup begins, so move the injured first. Have the corpse detail dispose of the dead monsters.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

“Understood!”

The instant his gaze left Aisha, Calypse became the cold, composed ruler they all knew.

Once the knights saluting nervously had departed—

“Let’s go home already. What happened to your face? Your hair’s a mess too.”

Calypse relaxed his expression again and gently tapped the tip of Aisha’s nose.

“But I came back safely, didn’t I?”

“If you hadn’t caused trouble in the first place, there wouldn’t have been anything to ruin.”

“Hmph.”

Pouting, Aisha collapsed against his chest, and only then did Calypse finally look satisfied as he stroked her hair.

Of course, the moment his eyes met Knox’s, his expression turned icy again.

***

A short while later—

“Lady Aisha!”

The moment they returned to the castle, Brad—who had clearly been anxiously waiting by the entrance the entire time—ran toward them with tears in his eyes.

“Where in the world did you go? Assistant Knox was worried sick!”

“That’s right. I happened to see him in the corridor earlier, and his face was covered in cold sweat.”

One by one, the servants gathering nearby each added a word while staring at me tucked in Father’s arms.

“I’m sorry...”

Well. This was awkward.

To be fair, I had gone running toward the end of the world carrying nothing but a poison needle.

I just didn’t think it would become this huge of an incident.

Feeling increasingly self-conscious, I tightened my grip around Calypse’s neck, trying to escape the situation.

But—

“Scold her properly. She absolutely did something wrong.”

So Father was the strict type when it mattered.

“Father?”

“What, brat?”

He snorted a laugh and flicked the tip of my nose.

Then he set me down in front of the terrifying butler and servants before disappearing.

“...Father? Father!”

Step. Step.

He didn’t even look back.

“Lady Aisha?”

“...Lady Aisha?”

The servants, now armed with orders, immediately surrounded me with blazing determination in their eyes.

Flinch—

I backed away nervously while glancing around in alarm.

So much for the cliché about fathers in romance fantasies becoming hopelessly doting over their daughters.

Calypse. Just you wait...

“Oh my goodness, Lady Aisha. Where in the world did your hair tie disappear to? Let me carry you for now.”

“Ah!”

“Lady Aisha, where have you been wandering around to get this filthy? Honestly, today we’ll have to scrub you clean from head to toe—”

“And why are you wearing practically rags—”

“Eek! Lin! Put that robe back on her! In weather like this, she’s only wearing pajamas underneath!”

Dozens of hands lifted me into the air and carried me into the estate.

“Ghk— gahk—!”

After enduring a bath intense enough to peel skin off a person, I was finally stuffed into warm fleece pajamas.

And by the time I regained my senses—

“......”

I was sprawled across the bed like a collapsed starfish.

I’m definitely cleaner than before, so why does my body feel like it’s been destroyed?

Then—

“Myaaa.”

“Baby?”

At the familiar cry, I shot upright.

“Mya.”

As if it had been waiting for exactly that moment, the baby leaped lightly onto the bed, stretched lazily, and crawled into my arms.

“Baby, where were you?”

When had it gotten into the bedroom?

Maybe Knox had brought it back from the royal palace. When I reunited with Calypse earlier, the baby had already been nearby too.

I’d been worried someone would notice its violet eyes, but apparently it had avoided people on its own and made its way back to the bedroom.

“Good baby...”

“Uung.”

At my soft voice, the baby blinked its purple eyes and burrowed deeper into my arms.

So cute...

My lips softened automatically. How could anyone possibly sleep without cuddling something this adorable?

“Let’s sleep together under the blanket again tonight.”

I pulled the blanket over us while holding the baby close.

Then—

“Baby, are you asleep?”

Suddenly curious, I lifted the blanket slightly to peek inside—

“Purr...”

The tiny fluffball had curled itself into a perfect circle, already asleep with satisfied slit-shaped eyes.

Looks like the baby had an exhausting day too.

Thinking back over everything that had happened today, I drifted into thought.

A lot had happened, but the thing I remembered most clearly was obviously that boy.

“...Did he make it home safely?”

As I stared up at the dark ceiling, the face of the boy standing among the shadows in the forest surfaced in my mind.

White as an angel.

With violet eyes like a monster’s.

“Mmm...”

I lifted the blanket slightly and looked down at the baby.

“You kind of look a little like hi—”

Gasp. What an awful thing to say.

I quickly covered my mouth and shook my head hard.

No matter how pretty that boy had been, he still wasn’t comparable to the baby.

Saying that to a baby this cute and sweet was practically insulting.

“His personality was kind of... weird.”

Still, he didn’t seem like a bad kid.

Mmph.

The warm, fluffy body heat nestled in my arms slowly lulled my eyes shut.

***

Much later, deep into the night after everyone had fallen asleep—

Rustle.

The blanket shifted faintly before a white-furred cat poked its head out.

Aisha was completely asleep.

Apparently she’d been exhausted enough to snore lightly while sprawled on her back with both arms raised overhead.

My home. Your arms. I was right.

The cat licked one of its paws while staring at Aisha.

Honestly, it was still annoyed about earlier.

After saying she hated him that much, she’d gone right back to letting him sleep in her bed the second he returned to being a cat.

Dummy Aisha.

He swore to himself that he would never transform into a human again.

Human blood tasted awful anyway, and now he’d learned that killing people meant having to run away afterward.

“......”

As always, the cat settled beside the sleeping Aisha in a perfect loaf position and watched over her until dawn approached.

For the record, cats were nocturnal creatures.

There was a reason cats slept so deeply during the day.

***

And while the cat sat there admiring the sleeping Aisha—

A conversation was taking place inside Calypse’s office.

“You’re saying the reason the monsters stopped moving was because of the kitten beside Aisha?”

“Yes.”

Calypse stared at Knox in disbelief, but his aide looked more serious than ever.

In the end, Calypse let out a hollow laugh.

But moments later, he rubbed a hand over his face with a frown.

Could this really be true?

Communicating with monsters?

Calypse disliked the premise from the very beginning.

Monsters could not communicate.

They possessed no intellect, no reason, and followed only their instincts like beasts. If they were hungry, they devoured humans and animals alike without distinction.

No—monsters normally charged at anything living the moment they saw movement.

And now someone was saying communication with them was possible?

This was no longer a matter the Kreutz family could handle alone.

He needed to speak with Empress Grace.

“You’ve done well. I’ll send a message to Her Majesty the Royal Consort regarding this matter—”

“Your Grace. There’s something else I need to tell you.”

Calypse, who had been about to end the conversation, looked up.

“What is it?”

“As I mentioned earlier, they called it a demon because it’s a lifeform capable of communicating with humans as well.”

“That’s right.”

“But there’s one particular detail about their ability to become human that concerns me.”

“Go on.”

“Apparently, before reaching adulthood, they must drink human blood in order to achieve humanization.”

Silence fell.

Calypse pressed his lips into a flat line and tapped a finger once against the desk before looking back at Knox.

“Where is that cat right now?”

“...In Lady Aisha’s bedroom...”

“What?”

The red eyes fixed on his aide turned ice-cold in an instant.