Fortunately, thanks to the bandage Serdin had wrapped excessively tight yesterday, he had avoided the misfortune of getting another wound. Serdin let out a low sigh while examining Formo, who had almost gotten another injury in that brief moment they were separated.
“Pipi, are you okay?”
“Pi, piik. Pit……”
Formo threw a tantrum before feeling his forehead with his uninjured wing. His eyes were quite serious, as if worried whether he’d been injured by the protruding stone. Then he let out a deep sigh in relief at the strong presence of the bandage he felt on his forehead. He blinked his eyes brimming with tears before looking at Serdin.
“Were you very startled?”
When Serdin asked in a worried voice while making eye contact, Formo nodded his head slightly. Though he looked fine on the outside thanks to the bandage, the inside could be different. Thinking that Formo might show symptoms of a concussion like last time, Serdin asked Sara.
“Sara, what’s the possibility of a concussion?”
“The impact you received while falling seems quite significant, so we’ll need to observe a bit more…… Pipi-nim, are you dizzy or nauseous by any chance?”
“……Pi.”
Formo shook his head, conveying that he was fine. After that, Sara carefully asked whether his ears felt blocked or his vision was blurry. Each time, Formo waved his wing to substitute for answering that he was fine.
“Pipi, it’s okay even if you’re exaggerating, so tell me right away if anything feels uncomfortable. Okay?”
What on earth must he think of me to be able to say the word ‘exaggerating’? Did he think I looked like a long-tailed tit who would exaggerate like that? Formo muttered about the wicked jaguar’s memory distortion and turned his head sharply.
Who was the one who really exaggerated? It seemed Serdin had completely forgotten who had pretended to be scared by his not-really-a-threat threat, and who had said it hurt when his wing just barely grazed his cheek. That’s why he could ask so shamelessly like that.
While grumbling, Formo glanced at Serdin with slightly different eyes. It seemed like he’d been unintentionally seeing Serdin’s surprisingly different aspects since yesterday. Wasn’t this wicked jaguar treating him with quite devoted care?
Yesterday, he hadn’t thought deeply about it because he was distracted by the pain and whether he could become a beastman, but when he recalled Serdin treating the wound on his forehead very carefully, he felt grateful.
Formo became curious about why Serdin was taking such care of him, who was nothing more than a bite-sized snack for beasts. Could it be he was fattening him up to eat him? ……No, this was a nonsensical conclusion. If that were the case, he should have been eaten already. After all, Formo had already reached his life’s maximum weight at the detached palace.
Though he’d lost all that weight due to being ill for a while.
‘I really don’t understand what beasts think about.’
The only beasts Formo had met were those before his eyes, but it was an undeniable fact that he didn’t understand their thoughts. Formo, who shook his head from side to side, yawned widely. Thanks to taking medicine that improved his stamina, his body wasn’t tired, but perhaps because it was after crying profusely, drowsiness came over him.
“It’s okay to sleep, Pipi.”
Serdin, who lifted up the yawning and blinking Formo, spoke softly. He gave orders to Kert at the same time as Formo’s eyelids closed firmly and the sound of gentle breathing began.
“Dig it out.”
“……Pardon? What should I dig out……”
“The stone that tripped Pipi’s foot.”
“Ah, should I dig out this despicable stone that caused Pipi-nim to fall and smash it to pieces?”
“No. Bring it intact.”
“Pardon? This wicked stone intact…… I understand for now.”
Kert responded with a somewhat reluctant expression.
“Then what should we do with this wicked protruding stone that almost injured Pipi-nim’s forehead? I think it would be good to grind it finely into powder as well.”
“Bring that intact too.”
“Without grinding it finely? I…… understand.”
Kert’s face became even more reluctant. While scratching the back of his head, he saw off Serdin heading toward the tree with Formo. Then, looking at Serdin’s back, he muttered.
“Is His Highness planning to personally turn this stone into powder……”
“That’s unlikely.”
Sara added in a voice tinged with laughter.
“He’s probably planning to keep them.”
“Pardon? Why would he keep such common stones? There’s no use for them, and they don’t hold any great value as decorations either. They’re just stones and a protruding stone that Pipi-nim’s foot tripped on and forehead touched……”
Kert, who had been continuing his words up to there, let out a hollow laugh as if he’d realized something.
“Don’t tell me……”
“That ‘don’t tell me’ is probably correct.”
Sara shrugged his shoulders and moved away. Kert, left alone, stared alternately at the two stones and the tree where Serdin was standing with dazed eyes. His superior was definitely completely insane over the long-tailed tit.
“These crazy royals……”
Kert truly couldn’t understand the bizarre acts they committed.
* * *
The next day, Serdin unwrapped the bandage he’d wound around Formo’s head, fanned the small wound with his hand, then wrapped new bandages again. It was truly a manner as if dealing with a critically ill patient.
The long-tailed tits looked at that devoted scene with bewildered eyes. That vicious jaguar cherished Formo and wouldn’t let him out of his sight. The fact that his eyes had a completely different temperature when looking at them was also very sinister.
Even while sending cold gazes at them, the moment his eyes met Formo’s even briefly, he would immediately change and look at him with affectionate and warm eyes. As if they were in a relationship where they harbored affection. It was a truly exasperating sight.
They hadn’t expected kindness in the first place, but now it was becoming absurd that he wouldn’t even show small courtesies as a formality. They even worried about what would happen if he left with Formo and then harmed them secretly without Formo knowing.
“Pipi, how many do you see?”
The long-tailed tits watched Serdin, who was kindly asking while waving two long fingers in front of Formo, with incredulous glances before shaking their heads.
“Pit.”
[Two.]
While watching Formo, Arancha’s proud guardian and prince, answering promptly as if it were obvious, they were so dumbfounded they staggered and almost fell from the tree branch. Even if the jaguar acted as he pleased because he had sufficient power and danger, what was Formo doing playing along with him?
“Good job, Pipi.”
Serdin stroked Formo’s head with a pleased expression, and Formo also accepted that touch with quite satisfied eyes.
“Piii……”
“……Piiiiii.”
[Formo-nim……]
[……has become strange since associating with the jaguar.]
The long-tailed tits looked at each other with wavering gazes and sighed.
“Pipi, we’re going back to the detached palace this evening.”
“Pi, pit?”
When Formo widened his eyes and asked back, Serdin replied affectionately.
“Since we’ve confirmed that Formo has aptitude, we need to follow the procedures at the detached palace for beastman transformation.”
“……Piit?”
“It’s not a lie, really.”
At Serdin’s answer, Formo opened his beak wide. Though he’d hoped there was a possibility of beastman transformation, he’d thought the possibility was remarkably low…… Did it really mean he could become a beastman? Formo swallowed dry saliva at the unbelievable story and looked at Armo, who was with the long-tailed tits.
If he left like this, what about the barrier protecting them? What would happen to the barrier surrounding Arancha? Formo looked at Serdin and asked.
“Piiiit?”
[What about the barrier?]
Serdin answered with a smile, curling up the corners of his mouth as if he knew what Formo was worried about.
“Don’t worry about the kingdom, Pipi. I’ll help. I’ll help fix the barrier too.”
“Pi? Pit.”
At Serdin’s words, Formo burst into loud laughter and wiped away the tears hanging from the corners of his eyes. It felt like he’d heard a funny joke after a long time, so he laughed heartily. How could a jaguar help with matters related to the barrier? It was the funniest thing he’d heard so far. No, did he even understand what he was saying in the first place?
“Pipi, were you that happy that I said I’d help? Hm? So happy you even shed tears?”
Formo’s beak twitched. ……Right. He’d forgotten for a moment. This wicked jaguar only understood things the way he wanted to. Formo, who became tired in an instant, waved his wing roughly to drive him away. However, Serdin wasn’t someone who would easily fall away.
Rather, just as he was about to caress Formo’s cheek, a resounding chirp was heard from somewhere.
“Piik!”
It was Armo. Armo watched Serdin with wide eyes and fluttered her wings threateningly. It was probably her own way of threatening, but to Serdin, it was nothing but laughable. Serdin looked at Armo with eyes tinged with laughter before raising the corners of his mouth sharply.
“You came at a good time.”
At the words that seemed to welcome her appearance, Armo narrowed her brow with puzzled eyes.
“We need to return to the detached palace.”
At the continued words, Armo’s brow returned to normal. She thought he might be planning to return alone leaving Formo behind, so her tension relaxed slightly.
“Together with Pipi.”
“……Pik?”
[……What?]
Armo opened her round eyes wide.
“That’s what needs to be done to fix the barrier.”
“Piik!”
[Don’t lie!]
When Armo argued with an angry chirp, Serdin’s eyes sank. As a strange tension began to flow between the two, the long-tailed tits became cautious. They felt fear that Serdin would try to harm Armo at any moment. Formo also watched the two with anxious eyes. However, contrary to their worries, Serdin didn’t seem to have any intention of harming Armo as he gave his gaze to Kert with an annoyed expression.
“Ah, yes.”
Kert, who understood what Serdin wanted, hurriedly stepped forward. Then he explained to the angry Armo why Formo needed to return to the detached palace. At Kert’s calm explanation, Armo’s angry expression gradually relaxed.
However, after hearing the entire story, Armo had no choice but to open her beak wide with a dumbfounded face.
“Pi, piiiik?”
[Fo, Formo is becoming a beastman?]
It was truly an unbelievable story.
