If things went wrong, Serdin might try to kill that small long-tailed tit. His personality was so bad to begin with, and right now he was witnessing the long-tailed tit who had taken away Formo, whom he cherished. Kert looked back and forth between Serdin and Armo with tense eyes. Sara also sensed the unusual atmosphere and gripped the bag strap tightly.
Neither of the two jaguars dared to think of stopping the angry Serdin. Then, Serdin, who had been standing idly below the tree, reached out his hand and caressed the tree trunk. He stroked the bumpy surface of the trunk with his palm several times, then raised his head and made eye contact with Armo.
It was a chilling and threatening gaze, as if he would rush at her at any moment and cut off her breath. She could even feel the intimidation. However, Armo didn’t back down even as she swallowed dry saliva.
“You really won’t bring him?”
Serdin, who had raised one corner of his mouth crookedly, asked in a voice mixed with laughter. Though the tone seemed to toss it out lightly, the displeasure seeping into it hadn’t yet disappeared.
“Cheeeeep, cheeeeeep!”
[Do you think I’d send Formo to a vicious jaguar like you?]
Armo puffed out her chest and narrowed her brow as much as possible. Her tail feathers trembled so much that she was extremely displeased. Though innocent Formo might have been deceived by that vicious jaguar all this time and manipulated this way and that, she was different.
“I have no idea what you’re chattering about. Ah. So you have no intention of bringing Pipi?”
At Serdin’s question, Armo nodded slightly to clearly convey her intention. Armo had not the slightest thought of sending back Formo, whom she had barely brought home. Formo would continue to live happily with his family in Arancha from now on. He would meet a good mate and form a harmonious, peaceful family too. There was no room for that detestable, vicious, and atrocious jaguar to interfere.
Serdin’s eyes narrowed as he confirmed Armo’s nod. When his already fierce eyes opened even more sharply, the long-tailed tits except for Armo trembled. They had been frightened by Serdin’s fierce momentum.
Strength entered Serdin’s fist placed by his thigh. Before Kert, who discovered this, could hurriedly run over to stop him, Serdin climbed up the tree in an instant. Since it was so fleeting, even Armo, who had been watching him closely, could only notice this when Serdin had come right beside her. A belated wind whooshed.
Serdin, who had stepped onto the thick branch, crouched down and grabbed the small long-tailed tit in one go with his large hand, not giving Armo any chance to escape. Armo’s eyes widened at the unexpected flow.
“Cheep, cheeep!”
“Cheeeep!”
The long-tailed tits watching the situation from branches higher up made a fuss in utter panic as soon as they realized Armo had been caught in Serdin’s hand. Kert also showed a reaction not much different from the long-tailed tits. Then, only after Sara, who was standing beside him, gave him a look suggesting he try to stop Serdin, did he collect himself and open his mouth stammering.
“Y-Your Highness!”
A chilling gaze reached him.
“If Pipi-nim finds out, it will be a disaster……! How about leaving that long-tailed tit alone and resolving this as pe-peacefully as possible?”
“I was going to do that, but we can’t communicate.”
“That is…… I agree with that too but…….”
At the same time Kert trailed off, Serdin, who had lost interest, lowered his gaze to his grasp. Kert swallowed and looked at Serdin and Armo with anxious eyes. Armo was squirming while tightly caught in Serdin’s grasp, and Serdin was looking down at Armo with a face clearly showing annoyance.
Kert, who had assisted Serdin for twenty-some years, immediately realized what he was thinking. He was definitely pondering whether to kill Armo or not.
“Um, Your Highness…….”
Kert mustered courage again. This was because Sara had tapped Kert’s arm, giving him another hint.
“Speak.”
Serdin replied in a listless voice without giving his attention to Kert’s direction. His nerves were entirely directed at Armo.
“In my opinion, rather than doing this here…….”
“Were long-tailed tits originally like this?”
Kert, who had been about to ramble on with his thoughts, asked back stupidly at Serdin’s sudden remark.
“……Pardon?”
“They look so different from our Pipi.”
“Tha…… that’s true. Pipi-nim looks completely different from other long-tailed tits. I’ve never heard of a long-tailed tit who looks as special as Pipi-nim either.”
Kert hastily agreed.
“What if these guys were trying to kidnap our Pipi?”
“……Ki-kidnap?”
“They don’t look like the same species as Pipi.”
Serdin’s eyes, mentioning ‘kidnap’, sank. Armo, who heard those words to her face, felt like scoffing. The one who kidnapped Formo wasn’t her, his sister, but that vicious jaguar. Moreover, whether his feet were itchy, hadn’t he been hiding the fact that he was Tersium’s Crown Prince from her innocent younger brother all this time?
Armo, who felt a sense of déjà vu at the name ‘Serdin’ that Formo had mentioned, had pondered for several days and nights. In the process, she had recalled that the Serdin Formo spoke of was the name of Serdin Belius, the Crown Prince of Tersium Empire. Therefore, Armo could absolutely not forgive that atrocious jaguar Serdin even more.
“First, Your Highness, please come down and speak. Please?”
Kert earnestly begged Serdin, who had no intention of coming down from the tree. At least if Serdin caused trouble on the ground, it would be easier to stop him and clean up. If he caused trouble on the branch like that, he would have to just watch blankly without any chance to intervene.
Since he was someone who had lost a considerable amount of stamina as the price for humanization, he had no choice but to be servile when situations like this arose.
“Didn’t the long-tailed tit in Your Highness’s hand have spirit as good as Pipi-nim’s? She surely must have considerable influence within the group. How about using that long-tailed tit as a hostage to make a deal with them?”
Serdin, who had been about to brush off Kert’s plea as usual, showed quite some interest in the following words.
“A deal?”
“Yes. Tell them to bring Pipi-nim or to reveal Pipi-nim’s location…… Anyway, you’ll be able to make a good deal that will satisfy Your Highness.”
Kert pulled up the corners of his mouth and smiled awkwardly. Sara, who heard his remarks, looked Kert over with disgusted eyes. Really, that aide was just like his superior. They were equally black-hearted and vicious. How could he conceive of using that small, pitiful long-tailed tit as a hostage to make a deal?
“Sara, please don’t look at me with those eyes……! If we don’t want to extinguish that poor long-tailed tit’s life like this, this is the only method.”
“Yes. I’m sure you would.”
Sara roughly nodded to Kert, who was watching her reaction and explaining with a wronged face. Meanwhile, Serdin, who had lightly jumped down from the tree, walked toward where Kert and Sara were. He glanced at the three long-tailed tits still passed out on the ground before soon turning his gaze away.
Then he stood opposite the tree where the long-tailed tits were gathered together and spoke indifferently.
“Bring Pipi.”
When the command given to Armo turned toward them, the long-tailed tits exchanged glances with trembling pupils. Armo struggled to escape from within Serdin’s grasp, but it was close to impossible.
“Cheeeep, cheep!”
[Let go, you vicious jaguar bastard!]
Armo shouted in an angry voice, and Serdin, without giving Armo even a speck of attention, commanded the long-tailed tits again.
“If you want to keep this one alive, bring Pipi.”
Serdin, who had referred to Armo as ‘this one’, quietly watched the long-tailed tits with confused expressions.
“……Cheep? Cheeeeep?”
“Cheeep? Cheeeep?”
“Cheep, cheeeeep?”
[……Pipi? The jaguar just said ‘Pipi’, right?]
[Pipi? Is Pipi a name?]
[Pipi? Was there a bird named Pipi among us?]
They, who didn’t know the common language, only understood the pronunciation ‘Pipi’. The long-tailed tits speculated that this ‘Pipi’ that had been continuously mentioned since Serdin and Armo were conversing must be someone’s name. Most of the long-tailed tits, who didn’t know Formo was called ‘Pipi’, whispered while watching Serdin’s mood.
“Cheep? Cheep, cheeeep…….”
[Pipi? Now that you mention it, I think that vicious jaguar called Formo-nim with a similar pronunciation…….]
Then, Peno stepped forward with an uncertain voice.
“Cheep……. Cheeeep!”
[Then……. that jaguar is looking for Formo-nim?]
At Peno’s remark, a long-tailed tit widened his eyes and asked back. Armo’s eyes that heard this flashed open. She’d thought the long-tailed tits who didn’t know the common language wouldn’t understand Serdin’s words to the end, but things went wrong. Armo lamented inwardly. At this rate, those timid long-tailed tits, while thoroughly frightened, might gather their opinions toward bringing Formo.
Serdin observed the scene of the long-tailed tits conversing while chirping with a bored face. Looking at how things were going, it seemed a conclusion would come soon, so he didn’t bother stepping forward to frighten them. Instead, Serdin decided to scan the trees that formed Arancha one by one.
Amazingly, the large trees had quite several gaps that looked like windows. The gaps were large enough that if one concentrated, the inside could be seen. Serdin carefully examined the trees while holding Armo in his hand. While examining the trees one by one like that, the corners of Serdin’s mouth rose slightly as he gave his attention to the tree that had grown in the farthest corner.
Through the narrow gap, a long-tailed tit of a familiar color could be seen. Serdin moved his steps in long strides toward that tree. Armo, held in his hand, flailed about while opening and closing her beak at the unbelievable situation.
“Cheeeeep!”
[No!]
Soon, Serdin, who stood in front of the tree, pushed his finger into the small gap. Then he lightly crushed the thick tree as if breaking a cookie.
“……Found you.”
Formo filled Serdin’s eyes as he looked at the fully exposed tree interior.
