A strong intuition flashed through my mind. This was definitely not a roar from moving furniture. Multiple branching points of possibility converged into a single line. Deus—this was definitely Deus.
‘Even so, to lock someone up alone just because they’re afflicted with madness.’
Anyway, right now I had to make Death my ally in order not to die. The problem was exactly how to make Death my ally.
‘Let’s trace the original work. Deus’s weaknesses or something. Something Deus particularly likes or something.’
I tried hard to recall by racking my not-so-good brain, but no matter how much I thought, nothing came to mind. In the original work, Death pulls Kiss into a subspace called ‘Void’ that he created and fiercely attacks him. There was one way to escape from that maze-like space. It was to defeat Death.
‘He’s someone even Kiss used dozens of attempts to subjugate. It’s impossible for Ash, who has no particular talent in combat, to defeat Death.’
The worst opponent without even a weakness—subduing such an existence by force was close to impossible. I crossed my arms and leaned my body against the sofa backrest. One funny thought passed through my mind.
“But… aren’t tigers ultimately part of the cat family too?”
A conversation I’d had with Kiss in the past without much thought came to mind.
<Getting to the point. Ash, have you heard the story that black tigers are ominous?>
<No, though I think I may have heard that black cats are ominous.>
<Really? Well… they’re both felines, so I guess the legends are roughly similar.>
Actually, true to my nature of really loving animals, I’d had connections with all sorts of animals since childhood. Picking up endangered species of birds on the street was basic, and wild boars that came down from the back mountain would visit me. A zebra that escaped from the zoo and made the news was suddenly waiting for me in front of school.
The reason I didn’t think it was strange at the time was simple. For me, who had neither family nor friends, animals were no different from my only refuge. It was okay to be ignored, it was okay if no answer came back. I wouldn’t be hated even if I honestly poured out what was inside. The only ones who accepted me as I was—someone with a few screws loose even by my own assessment—were my animal friends.
‘Among them, the one that particularly remains in my memory is of course Black Tiger though.’
One bitter memory crossed my mind. Just recalling it made my heart feel like it was crumbling, so I deliberately shook my head. Anyway, the important thing was that I had quite a bit of knowledge related to cats. Tigers and cats—aren’t they genetically closer than chimpanzees and humans? This was definitely not an opinion to be dismissed.
“What do cats like…?”
There’s a saying that when you’re standing you want to sit, and when you’re sitting you want to lie down. Certainly, I who had been standing and pondering sat on the sofa because my back hurt. And once I sat down, I ended up lying down on the sofa that was fluffier than expected. The drowsiness that rushed in as the tension from Kiss in the carriage completely released was a bonus. Just as I was yawning languidly without caring about the threatening thumping sounds, I discovered Ash’s only advantage that wasn’t quite an advantage.
It was that I could fall into deep sleep in 3 seconds.
* * *
Ash.
…….
Ash!
I opened my eyes wide at the feeling of someone pulling my hair. Only after my blurry vision became clear did what I see become visible—an unbelievably small and cute white tiger cub.
I lifted the tiger cub up with trembling hands. As soon as I saw the expression staring blankly at me, unable to continue speaking in emotion, I knew. This was definitely Kiss’s original form (feat. cub version).
How, how did you end up like this?
I was cursed.
Cursed?
Yeah, a curse where I can’t return to my original form unless I receive a passionate kiss where tongues mingle from a princess. I’ll die in this state.
That’s quite a specifically lewd curse. But anyway, so cute. My heart swelled at the front paws that were unusually large compared to the body, the moist pink nose, and the long tail that drooped and swayed from side to side. Barely suppressing the desire to hug tightly, I spoke in a deliberately calm voice.
Shall I find you a princess?
A prince is fine too.
Pardon?
I told you, I’m possible with both men and women.
With a ‘poof’ sound, a large white tiger appeared and pressed down on my body. The low growling, tiger-specific howling sound seemed to permeate to the bones. Just as I was freezing at the thick tongue licking my cheek, my gaze stopped at the unbelievably sized thing visible between the legs. Before I could even be shocked by the terrifying size incomparable to a human’s thing, a heavy paw pressed down below my navel.
Am I on your mind?
“Huk.”
I caught my breath with my eyes wide open. My whole body was drenched with how much cold sweat I’d shed. Just as I was relieved it was a dream, I screamed without realizing at the pitch-black silhouette faintly visible in the darkness.
“Sorry, I didn’t want to eat alone……”
When my eyes became accustomed to the darkness, what I saw was Kiss eating with the table fully set. As soon as I saw Kiss naturally cutting raw meat, I was dumbfounded. No matter how much he didn’t want to eat alone, would anyone normally have a meal in silence with a sleeping person in front of them?
“You, you weren’t angry?”
“Hm? Why would I be angry?”
“Because I swatted Kiss-nim’s hand……”
“Ah, that.”
Kiss, who had been cutting meat while holding a knife, smiled brightly.
“I suddenly remembered I left an oil lamp lit in my bedroom. I was anxious thinking I had to hurry back to the estate.”
I thought it was because he was angry, but he was anxious thinking he might have left the gas on at home? Thinking about it that way, it made sense that he disappeared without looking back as soon as he got off the carriage. I stroked my startled chest and muttered.
“Wake me next time. Having a meal in front of a sleeping person.”
“A friend I met at the Academy runs a human breeding farm.”
Kiss, who had finished his meal, met my gaze while sipping wine.
“He said he treats humans as if he’ll raise them for life until he slaughters them. Because frightened humans have stiff muscles and the meat tastes bad.”
My gaze was fixed on the meat with blood dripping from it. Come to think of it, in this worldview, humans were not only slaves but also edible livestock. Just as it wasn’t strange for humans to slaughter and eat livestock, in this worldview it wasn’t strange for beastmen to slaughter and eat humans. Of course, from my standpoint it was a horrifying thing that made me want to retch. I asked back in a deliberately calm voice.
“……Is the point of those words that you’ll eat me too if it comes to it?”
“I’m considering it.”
“……”
“Whether to raise you or eat you.”
Kiss, who had put down his knife, spoke with both hands clasped together.
“Come here. You must be hungry.”
“I’m fine.”
“Did that sound like a suggestion?”
The voice was soft but the intention was clearly sharp. I silently got up. The table already had my portion of the meal prepared so I couldn’t refuse. A raw state human meat steak with blood dripping from it, that is. Kiss, who had been staring at me barely suppressing the feeling of wanting to vomit, spoke.
“You know, Ash.”
“……”
“From now on, don’t refuse any of the favors I give you. I hate that kind of thing.”
Kiss’s knife very easily cut through the flesh. Kiss, who stabbed the cut meat with a fork, held it out toward me. My hand below the table trembled. Kiss, who had been sitting, smiled dazzlingly.
“Hurry, eat it. It’s a favor. Yeah?”
I’d forgotten for a moment. What kind of character Kiss was. Kiss wasn’t simply an easygoing and gentle character. He was close to a madman who survived as a revenge demon through all sorts of conspiracies and assassinations. I opened my mouth with a face pale as a sheet. The smell of blood from the meat squeezing between my lips stimulated my sense of smell.
“Urk.”
In the end, I vomited everything I’d eaten before I could even swallow. My throat was cold and tears welled up in my eyes. At my appearance struggling while coughing, Kiss’s shoulders shook. I froze at the following laughter.
“Kuk, too funny. Hahaha……”
Kiss laughed like a child. One thing became certain. Kiss absolutely did not think of Ash as a friend. Unless he thought of him as about a toy that was fun to play with. I looked at Kiss while catching my breath raggedly. Kiss, who had been grinning with his chin propped up, spoke in a considerably brightened voice.
“I feel good because Ash accepted my favor.”
“……Then that’s fortunate.”
“Shall we go see?”
I paused while wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. Kiss, who threw down the knife, stood up. Then he approached and stood beside me, trampling over the meat I’d vomited. Kiss, who roughly grabbed my trembling hand, forcibly made me stand up. My heart sank at the following words.
“I’ll show you. The monster the imperial family hid here.”
