<Chapter 24>
#3. The Only Ones Who Don’t Know (4)
“From now on, the master you’ll serve is quite timid. True to his hamster clan heritage, his courage is as small as a mouse dropping. So you need to be attentive and make sure he doesn’t get scared.”
Naru, quietly flickering its tongue while wrapped around Melty’s wrist, recalled the repeated instructions from its previous owner. Being particularly intelligent among the Ollua clan, it wasn’t difficult for Naru to understand the situation unfolding before its eyes.
Through Melty’s wrist, it could clearly feel his pulse pounding anxiously. Based on this, Naru easily classified the three large men threatening its master as enemies. However, it hadn’t moved first because, as its previous owner had repeatedly instructed, it wanted to prevent frightening its current vulnerable master. After confirming that Melty had his eyes tightly shut, Naru moved swiftly.
“Ugh!”
The man who had raised his hand as if about to strike became rigidly frozen in that very position. Melty, who had closed his eyes and even stopped breathing, slowly opened his eyes when the expected pain never came. Then he looked up at the man who had stiffened with his mouth slightly open and one hand raised. Due to his head being tilted upward, he couldn’t clearly see the man’s facial expression.
“Boss?”
Melty wasn’t the only one who noticed something strange about the man who had frozen while standing. The man who had been standing triumphantly to his right approached with a puzzled expression. Along with a cautious call, he gently shook the frozen man’s arm.
Naru, who had been alternately looking at its master, still pale with fright and not understanding the situation, and the man approaching, made a small threatening “hiss.” Naru didn’t miss that brief moment. Naru’s venomous fangs flashed, and the approaching person ended up in the same predicament as the frozen man.
“H-hey… What’s wrong with you?”
As even the person who had moved to check on the frozen one became rigid, the man standing on the left let out a frightened voice. Unlike when he had been threatening people, his voice was now trembling with fear. The man alternately looked at the two who had become stiff while standing. His wavering gaze fell on Melty, who was standing in a daze.
Blinking blankly at the gaze that had fallen on him, Melty barely squeezed out some courage.
“U-um…?”
With a cautious call, Melty’s frightened hand carefully extended. It was when Melty’s finger tapped the hand of the man who was holding his arm. Like well-stacked dominoes falling, the men standing there toppled backward. With a thud, the two who fell had their eyeballs rolled back, showing only the whites.
Melty, who hadn’t properly seen Naru’s movements, was just bewildered by the situation unfolding before him. The man, seeing his companions suddenly fall with their eyes rolled back, screamed at the top of his lungs with a terrified expression.
“A-AAAAHH!”
“Eep.”
Melty blankly stared at the back of the person who disappeared, frantically running away with a scream. On Melty’s wrist, which was blinking with round eyes that had been wet with tears, was Naru, hissing triumphantly as if declaring victory.
“…What just happened…?”
As if his shocked heart had not yet calmed down, his heartbeat was still pounding rapidly.
“What’s going on there?”
At the familiar voice, Melty’s stiffened head turned sideways. Peering into the alley from outside was Johaim, with his familiar white hair. He also recognized Melty, who was frozen against the wall with his back pressed firmly against it.
“Melty-ssi? What are you doing there? And these people…”
Perhaps because a familiar person had appeared, the strength suddenly drained from his legs, which had been standing rigidly. Melty’s body slid down the wall and collapsed onto the ground.
“Melty-ssi?”
Johaim, calling his name with a bewildered voice, quickly approached Melty, who had slumped to the ground. Melty’s body, which clung to Johaim’s extended arm for support, was trembling finely.
“What happened?”
“I-I just… I was about to go back after finishing my business. But suddenly these people…!”
Melty whimpered, expressing his belated outrage. Though he now had someone to talk to, Melty rambled incoherently, having experienced something frightening and bewildering. Johaim stroked his back with his hand to help him calm down. After barely interpreting Melty’s scattered story, Johaim nodded lightly.
“Did you do this to these people, Melty-ssi?”
At his question, Melty shook his head vigorously from side to side. People who had been threatening him with menacing expressions just moments ago had suddenly frozen without making a sound. All Melty had done was lightly touch them with his fingertips. Johaim, who gave Melty’s now calmer back a final circular rub, stood up.
“W-where are you going?”
“I should check on their condition too.”
Johaim gently patted the back of Melty’s hand, which urgently grabbed his clothes, and gave a light smile. The strength drained from Melty’s hand that had been clutching Johaim’s clothes. Only then, free to move around, Johaim first placed his hand on their necks.
It was Naru who comforted Melty, who was watching Johaim’s actions with his body huddled up. Wriggling slightly, Naru flickered its tongue a couple of times briefly. Then it pressed its head against Melty’s nose.
“Naru was scared too…”
In response to Melty’s words, which trailed off in a whisper, Naru obediently surrendered its body to his hand. Looking at the clear, moist eyes, Naru rubbed its face against his cheek like an innocent snake that knew nothing.
Leaving Naru and Melty behind, Johaim, who had been examining the fallen men, straightened his back with a low sigh.
“A-are they dead…?”
“They’re still breathing.”
Johaim readily answered Melty’s question. Seemingly relieved at his statement, Melty covered his heart area with his hand and exhaled a deep sigh of relief.
“Then is it a disease? I was so startled when they suddenly collapsed.”
Having apparently overcome his fear somewhat, Melty, who had risen to his feet, stuck close behind Johaim. Glancing sideways at such a Melty, Johaim said with a smile.
“I don’t think that’s the case.”
While diagnosing their bodies, Johaim also briefly searched their belongings and was able to identify who these men were. Empty pockets, a small knife, and the alcohol smell emanating from their clothes supported Melty’s story.
‘They seem like thugs who were trying to extort money after drinking…’
According to Melty’s story, these men had suddenly collapsed. He too had heard much about the Crosel family’s combat abilities. Though it didn’t quite connect in his mind, there was certainly the assumption that Melty, from the Crosel family, had knocked them down.
Looking at Melty to understand the situation, Johaim easily discarded his assumption at the sight of Melty’s fluttering eyelashes, wet with moisture. He was a man who appeared visibly delicate even to the naked eye.
Looking for another cause, Johaim discovered two tiny holes commonly left on the hands of the fallen men. He couldn’t tell where or how they had formed, or whether they were moles or scabs, but Johaim was convinced that this was the cause.
“I think we should hand them over to the security force. I’ll contact them, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
“Th-thank you.”
As if not knowing what to do with the collapsed people anyway, Melty’s head nodded greatly up and down at Johaim’s words. After watching him for a moment, lost in thought, Johaim suggested with a cautious tone.
“You might get caught by such unruly people again. If you don’t mind, I’d like to escort you to where you’re staying.”
At the polite suggestion, Melty’s eyes sparkled even more brightly. The voices of his older brothers warning not to follow strangers briefly echoed in his mind, but Johaim Kun Sarvie was already someone he had greeted before. Moreover, in the current situation, there was no one else he could rely on.
“If you would do that… I would be really grateful. Thank you for your kindness…”
Johaim had a small smile on his lips at the consecutive words of gratitude from Melty’s mouth.
“The carriage is nearby. Can you get up?”
Melty smiled shyly at the extended hand and reached out. Grasping his hand and rising to his feet, Melty took a deep breath. Enough strength had returned to his drained legs to walk.
“By the way, where are you staying?”
“Ah… I don’t know if you’ll know. The Padrian family mansion.”
“Padrian? What business do you have there…?”
“I work there.”
Melty answered with a bright smile to his face, which clearly showed signs of surprise. However, despite Melty’s response, Johaim couldn’t readily accept it. Melty’s current statement sounded like saying a mouse lived in a tiger’s mouth.
Hiss.
The sharp animal warning sound made Johaim’s mind snap back to alertness. Startled by Naru’s sudden sharp sound, Melty let go of Johaim’s hand. Fearing that Naru might attack Johaim, Melty hurriedly covered Naru’s eyes with his other hand.
“No, Naru.”
As if losing strength at Melty’s gentle whisper, Naru relaxed its body on his arm again. Melty stroked its back several times for being so well-behaved. With Melty’s movement, Johaim belatedly discovered Naru wrapped around his wrist.
“…Is that a snake?”
“Yes. Its name is Naru. Isn’t it pretty?”
At Melty’s words, Johaim had to feel the same bewilderment as before. No matter the relationship between beast-people and animals, beast-people typically didn’t keep predators from the food chain as their pets.
“It is… pretty indeed.”
Johaim let out a faint laugh at the situation where he couldn’t help but be surprised with each deeper conversation, unlike their brief earlier chat. Fortunately, his mouth, trained through numerous social activities, selected the right answer before his brain could think. It was only after climbing onto the carriage that Johaim had brought in advance, leaving the alley, that Melty realized there was something he needed to ask Johaim.
“By the way, Johaim.”
“Yes. Please go ahead.”
“Have you finished your business in this village? I would feel terrible if you’re wasting time because of me…”
“No, it’s fine.”
Looking at the hesitant Melty, Johaim smiled broadly and opened his mouth, looking out the window.
“My destination is the same as yours, Melty-ssi.”
