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Chapter 02
The sudden appearance of a predator made the wolves bristle, lowering their bodies defensively.
—Hey.
The alpha wolf called out to the bear.
—Hey, Mr. Bear.
—…
—Come on, answer me.
—…
The bear didn’t respond.
In the heavy silence that followed, the wolf clicked his tongue awkwardly.
That bear… isn’t a beastman?
In Tame Us, beastmen could communicate even while in their animal forms.
It felt like telepathy, as if the other person’s voice echoed directly inside your head.
The novel never described it in detail, but Nabom knew from experience. Though she still had no idea exactly how one was supposed to initiate a conversation.
I tried it, but it never worked.
She had tried speaking to her parents in this world while they were transformed, but nothing happened. She didn’t know why. No matter how hard she wished for it or repeated the words in her mind, her voice never reached them.
Of course, now wasn’t the time to be thinking about that.
The alpha wolf began closing the distance, one step at a time. His yellow eyes glared menacingly at the bear.
—This little thing is our prey, you see. So unless you’re willing to hand it over—
“Aaaaaaaaagh!”
The alpha never finished his sentence.
Because the brown bear swung its paw with all its might and sent him flying into the distance.
—Boss!
The wolves howled toward where their leader had disappeared before turning back toward the bear.
Grrrrrr…
Baring their fangs, more than a dozen wolves charged all at once.
But—
Yelp! Whine! Awoooo!
Every time the brown bear swung a paw, threw a punch, or kicked out a foot, two or three wolves were launched into the air.
Even the massive White Wolves, rulers of the Arctic, were nothing more than puppies before the bear.
Within moments, every wolf had either vanished into the forest or been tossed across the snowy field.
To think it reduced the White Wolves, rulers of the Arctic, to that…
Seriously, who invented teddy bears?
How was that monster supposed to be cute?
And why had a bear suddenly shown up in the first place?
Did it come to eat the wolves?
That hopeful thought lasted only a moment.
Whoooosh.
Amid the raging snowstorm, the brown bear abruptly turned its head.
Even through the blizzard, its golden eyes gleamed as they locked directly onto her.
Why are you looking at me…?
Dear God.
Couldn’t you leave this insignificant creature alone? I’m trying my best to accept my new life as a rabbit here.
The momentary resentment toward the heavens faded as Nabom desperately searched for a way to survive.
She distinctly remembered seeing a video about it on YouTube.
How to survive an encounter with a bear.
Step One: Play dead!
Fortunately, she was already buried under a pile of snow and unable to move much.
If she stayed perfectly still, she’d look like a corpse.
Maybe, with her white fur, she’d even blend into the snow entirely.
Thinking that, she squeezed her eyes shut.
The ground trembled with every step the bear took.
There was no doubt.
It was coming toward her.
Please. Please just walk past me.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
But contrary to her desperate prayers, the footsteps stopped directly in front of her.
Flinch!
The moment she felt its gaze overhead, her body instinctively shrank.
Then—
Hic.
Once.
Hic.
Again.
She got the hiccups.
Each hiccup made her body jerk violently, sending the snow covering her tumbling away.
Plan One: Failed.
Then there was Step Two: Slowly back away.
According to the professor in that YouTube video, this was the most effective method.
Putting all her weight on her uninjured left hind leg, Nabom struggled to stand.
Don’t make eye contact.
But keep watching the bear.
Don’t turn around and run.
That would be even worse.
So if she just backed away—
However, the bear simply took a step forward.
The distance Nabom had painstakingly created by retreating ten steps vanished in a single stride.
I’m doomed.
That left only the final option.
Nabom spread her front paws wide.
Standing on tiptoe, arching her back, and puffing up her fur, she finally glared directly into the bear’s eyes.
It was the universal animal expression for:
“Attack me and you’ll regret it.”
But—
Shake, shake, shake…
Watching the trembling rabbit who looked ready to collapse from fear, the bear merely tilted its head.
It doesn’t even realize I’m threatening it.
Despair made the world spin around her.
Then, at that very moment—
The brown bear extended one of its thick arms toward her.
Nabom saw it clearly.
God, you bastard.
And then she blacked out.
*
“I’m sorry, honey.”
A voice drifted into her ears.
It was soft as freshly changed bedsheets, yet filled with the melancholy of a hospital room on a rainy day.
A voice she knew all too well.
“Please take good care of Na-eul.”
Na-eul.
Right.
Come to think of it, today was that day.
The day Mom, Dad, and her younger sibling were supposed to go to the amusement park together.
Naturally, she could never have gone.
She had spent her entire life trapped in a hospital room.
That’s why she’d insisted they go without her.
So why was Mom here…?
Ah.
Because of me.
A weak breath escaped beneath the oxygen mask covering her mouth.
Through her blurred vision, she thought she could see her mother’s back.
Slowly, she reached out.
Her arm stretched toward her mother.
Strange.
Why could her body move now, when it had never obeyed her wishes before?
Her fingertips touched her mother’s wrist.
Mom.
She tried to call out.
No sound came.
Yet her mother turned around anyway.
And then—
“Ha…”
A long sigh escaped her lips.
Nabom remembered her final moments.
The exhausted look on her mother’s face as she gazed down at her.
The deep sigh of relief that escaped from her chapped lips.
Yeah.
That’s a relief.
You don’t have to suffer anymore, Mom.
You can relax now.
Because I’m dead.
A faint touch made him look down at the rabbit.
Lying on her side atop the bed, the rabbit had placed a tiny paw on his wrist.
Her mouth moved slightly, but only a weak breath emerged.
Her eyelids lifted just enough to reveal a sliver of her round eyes.
She’s awake.
“Ha…”
The man let out a sigh as he stared at the white rabbit.
The rabbit closed her eyes again.
Her tiny nose twitched beneath its soft fur.
Then something trickled down beneath her eye.
Tears.
“…”
The man silently watched the rabbit cry.
*
It’s hot.
A moment ago it had been winter.
Now it felt like summer.
She could even feel sweat forming beneath her fur.
Was this heaven?
Or hell?
After squirming around miserably for some time, Nabom finally opened her eyes.
An unfamiliar ceiling greeted her.
Following the luxurious canopy overhead with her gaze, she looked down and saw the bed she was lying on.
Only then did she realize why she had been so hot.
How many blankets are on me?!
At a glance, at least five thick blankets covered everything except her face.
She tried pushing them off with both front and back paws.
Nothing budged.
Eventually, she wriggled and twisted until she finally escaped from beneath them.
I almost died.
Phew.
A sigh slipped from her tiny triangular mouth.
But her relief was short-lived.
She hurriedly examined her surroundings.
The bed alone was nearly half the size of her old house.
A fireplace burned beyond a sofa.
An exotic tapestry hung from the wall, obviously expensive.
And then—
My hind leg.
The right hind leg that had been shredded by wolf claws and dripping blood was now neatly wrapped in bandages.
As though someone had treated it.
…What happened?
She had been certain the bear’s one-hit kill had ended her.
So why was she alive?
And where was this place?
Whatever the answers were, she couldn’t stay here.
More importantly, her rabbit instincts were screaming at her to leave.
The room was saturated with a dangerous scent.
A predator’s scent.
The same primal terror she’d felt when facing the wolves.
Her nose recognized it instantly.
Carnivore.
Limping on her injured leg, she hurried toward the door.
After struggling with the bedsheets and tumbling onto the floor, she finally reached it.
Scratch scratch scratch scratch!
She clawed frantically at the door.
It didn’t open.
Calm down.
Panicking wouldn’t help.
Taking a deep breath, Nabom prepared to jump.
Her injured leg throbbed, but she couldn’t give up now.
Boing!
She leapt straight upward.
The jump was a success.
Her front paws hooked onto the doorknob, and—
Creeeak.
The door slowly opened.
Thud.
She fell backward and landed on her butt.
But she barely noticed.
I need to get out of here.
She might be a pathetic rabbit, but she was still a rabbit.
Leaving a rabbit’s prison unlocked?
What a careless mistake.
Chuckling inwardly, Nabom hurried forward.
Wherever this place was, she’d escape at top rabbit speed!
But after wandering through the hallways for some time—
She was already panting heavily.
Why is this house so huge?!
Stomping her front paws in frustration while sparing her injured hind leg, she finally looked around.
And froze.
She had somehow ended up right back in front of the room she’d started from.
A maze?!
Then—
Footsteps.
Several sets of them.
Voices mixed with the sound.
And they were heading this way.
This is bad!
Panicking, Nabom squeezed her eyes shut and dashed back into the room.
The moment she pressed herself flat behind the door—
Creeeak.
The door opened.
