Meanwhile, Serdin, who had gone to his office, summoned Kert and examined the outside with a serious expression. The bold long-tailed tit that had been flying around brazenly in the predators’ territory making crying sounds was nowhere to be seen. Well, of course. It was so obvious he didn’t even need to look. Since it had shouted loud enough to shake the villa, it would have fled even out of fear of being hunted by predators.
Kert tilted his head at his superior’s unfamiliar appearance and asked.
“What’s wrong? Since when have you cared about outside gazes…? Don’t tell me Pipi-nim gave you some wise advice to care about others’ gazes?”
“Nonsense.”
Serdin curtly snapped and immediately continued.
“Kert, you said you saw a search party.”
“Y-yes?”
Kert’s eyes widened as he asked back at the topic Serdin suddenly brought up. Even though he knew Serdin hated being asked to repeat himself, he couldn’t help but reflexively do so. After all, when he’d first brought up the search party story, hadn’t Serdin passed over it indifferently?
He was curious about why Serdin had suddenly become interested in the long-tailed tit search party, but he didn’t commit the foolish act of actually asking.
“Ah, yes. I told you I saw several long-tailed tits moving like a search party. I think there were about five of them.”
“Have you seen those long-tailed tits recently?”
“Uh… I haven’t seen them recently. I was actually wondering if I’d been barking up the wrong tree since they hadn’t appeared for a while… Was that not the case? Was it really a search party?”
Kert’s eyes sparkled brightly as he asked back whether his hunch had been correct. He felt like he’d returned to his childhood reading mystery novels and deducing the culprit. Unaware of Kert’s excitement, Serdin asked indifferently in a low voice.
“The village or kingdom where those long-tailed tits live that I told you to investigate.”
“…Ah! I’m still looking into it. It’s a closed-off place, so finding information isn’t easy.”
“How much longer do I have to wait?”
“Please wait just a little longer…! A beastman who says they know about long-tailed tits has appeared, so I was just about to meet them.”
At Kert’s answer, Serdin nodded slightly. Serdin’s eyes as he stared out the window sank coldly.
“But just in case, I’m asking… Your Highness, by any chance… are you ordering me to investigate for Pipi-nim’s sake?”
At Kert’s question, Serdin sharply turned his head to look at him. His face clearly showed his annoyance.
“Is that even necessary for conducting an investigation?”
“…N-no. It’s not necessary at all.”
“Then go.”
“Yes!”
Kert, who had vigorously answered the familiar order to leave, hurried to exit the office but hesitated. He called out to Serdin in a cautious voice.
“Um, Your Highness.”
“What.”
“Have you considered Pipi-nim’s beastification?”
Serdin’s index finger, which had been slowly tapping the desk, twitched and stopped. Formo’s beastification was a problem he’d always been pondering. And inwardly, he’d hoped that Formo, who possessed exceptional cleverness, might have the qualifications to become a beastman. But hope and reality were strictly different. That’s why his worries had dragged on.
Serdin was silent for a moment before responding quietly.
“…Not yet.”
“What? Still not? Why for so long…”
“Stop and get out.”
When Serdin waved his hand dismissively as if annoyed, Kert scratched the back of his head and left the office. Serdin stood quietly gazing out the window in the office that had become quiet after the chatterbox Kert disappeared. In truth, more than anything else, he was irritated that the important moment when Formo’s beak had been about to touch his cheek had been interrupted again.
Probably such an opportunity wouldn’t come three more times. Today was surely the last time. Thinking that made him feel bad.
Serdin, who had been about to habitually spew curses, swallowed the profanity along with a sigh. For the sake of innocent Formo, it seemed better to purify his language. If he wasn’t careful, Formo might learn profanity. Of course, Formo spouting curses with that cute face wouldn’t be bad either, but there was no need to deliberately teach him.
“…Pipi.”
Instead, Serdin murmured the name with its cute sound and closed his eyes. Then an image of Formo with his white, round body like a snowball appeared before his eyes. Formo was excessively adorable even in Serdin’s imagination.
“Fuck.”
However, sometimes excessive cuteness could be poison. Serdin, who had lifted his eyelids, forgot his resolution from just moments ago to purify his language and ended up spewing profanity at the excessive cuteness of the imaginary Formo. The fact that the corners of his mouth twitched and then helplessly crumbled was a bonus.
Even after that, Serdin couldn’t hide his smile before running his hand through his hair and standing up from his seat. He walked somewhat hurriedly to the bedroom where Formo was waiting. When he flung open the bedroom door, a very cute scene was waiting for Serdin.
The sight of the long-tailed tit sitting on the bed with eyes wide open was too adorable. Moreover, whether he’d made some kind of resolution while Serdin was gone, Formo’s round eyes were shining spiritedly. Serdin disciplined his lips that were about to crumble again as he thought alone about the adorable resolution Formo might have made.
If he showed a smiling face to Formo, who still hadn’t calmed down, the prim long-tailed tit might sulk completely.
“Pipi, have you been well?”
Formo, who nodded his head a couple of times at Serdin’s shameless question, narrowed his eyes and circled around him with quick steps. It looked like he was thoroughly searching to see if he’d really kept his promise and hadn’t lied.
Serdin offered his body so Formo could check to his heart’s content and said kindly.
“Pipi, you can do as you please. If pecking me until I bleed would make you feel better, then do that.”
It was an interesting proposal enough to move his heart, but Formo wasn’t as vicious as Serdin. Pecking until blood was drawn was an attack reserved for intruders or mortal enemies. Serdin had somewhat cruel aspects and was absurd and ridiculous to boot—truly a comprehensively wretched human—but still, he wasn’t bad enough of a human to deserve being pecked until he bled.
And if Serdin had really been a bad human, Formo would have taken the initiative to punish him before he made such a proposal. What on earth does this wretched human think I am? Formo scanned Serdin with a prickly gaze while jutting out his beak.
Having roughly scanned Serdin with his eyes, Formo quietly lowered his gaze and only sniffed. He couldn’t help it because Serdin’s gaze toward him was excessively burdensome. Very fortunately, no particular scent came from Serdin. Only Serdin’s distinctive body scent was strongly present.
Formo was sniffing Serdin’s body scent when his eyes met with Serdin, who had been staring at him, and he made an embarrassed face. He’d felt this before, but Serdin’s body scent was as unique as his personality. As he quietly sniffed it, should he say it gave him chills while also making him tremble with fear? Anyway, it wasn’t the kind of body scent an ordinary human would have.
He thought about what if Serdin was a predator wearing a human’s skin, then shook his head. What a ridiculous notion. There was no way a terrifying and threatening life form like a predator would spout frivolous jokes or nonsense. Most predators liked to maintain their dignity, after all. Moreover, didn’t Serdin spout lots of strange sweet nothings?
There was no way such a Serdin could be a predator.
“Pipi, I’m sorry.”
Formo, who had been lost in his own thoughts, turned his head at Serdin’s apology to look at him. Thinking he might be apologizing for what happened earlier, he unconsciously perked up his ears.
“Let’s go for a walk next time.”
“…Pi? Pit? Piiik?”
Formo asked back if that was really all. The question of whether he shouldn’t apologize more sincerely with a more genuine attitude rose to his throat, but he swallowed it down. It seemed that humans and long-tailed tits had very different sensibilities.
Formo, who still had some lingering resentment from earlier, pouted his beak alone before lying down on the bed. And as soon as his head touched the bed, he fell asleep, snoring softly. He must have been quite tired from thinking about various things by himself.
Serdin, who had expected Formo to get angrier or throw more of a tantrum, ended up bursting into the laughter he’d been holding back at the unexpected situation. Formo was a long-tailed tit who was too soft, far too soft.
Serdin slowly approached the bed where Formo was lying and bent his upper body. Serdin brought his face right up to Formo’s beak and admired his sleeping form. Then he extended his finger and carefully touched Formo’s cheek.
“Piii…”
Formo, who murmured faintly in his sleep, rubbed his cheek against Serdin’s finger. He even hugged it a little with his wing. Though it was an action done in his sleep so Formo’s will wasn’t reflected, Serdin still couldn’t hide his delighted expression.
“…Pipi.”
The name murmured in an affectionate voice was full of unconcealed affection. Formo was the first being to make Serdin feel emotions of any kind. Serdin became thoroughly absorbed in Formo without even having time to adapt by naming the emotions he was experiencing for the first time.
