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Chapter 03
“Kyuu! Kyukkyu! (No! Don’t do it!)”
I tried with all my strength to stop Tabian oppa, but at best all I could do was wriggle like a tiny, soft rice cake that squeaked when pressed, creating nothing more than a small disturbance.
And in the end, Tabian oppa said exactly what I expected him to say.
“Systia is insanely cute!”
Uwaaa……
Why is the embarrassment my share……
The huge Tabian oppa covered his face with both hands and stomped his feet, while Tigris oppa narrowed his brows and looked at him with an exasperated expression.
“…Tabian. I think you’re misunderstanding something.”
“Huh?”
“There has never been a single moment when Systia wasn’t insanely cute.”
Even Tigris oppa is like this?
Even if I look like this on the outside, on the inside I’m quite old, you know?
I tried to glare at Tigris oppa in disbelief, but unfortunately my weak eyelids only fluttered helplessly.
Watching me like that, my twin oppa nodded vigorously.
“That’s true. But this is a different kind of cute! Systia as a tiger would’ve been cute too, but Systia as a hamster is seriously, really even cuter!”
“Hyung probably won’t be able to keep his composure either.”
Thankfully, unlike my twin oppa who was making a big fuss, Tigris oppa quietly sat down on the chair beside the table.
He carefully held out a finger toward me. I twitched my nose and sniffed, then placed my front paw on his finger.
A deep forest scent came from Tigris oppa.
“Systia. You’re a smart child, so you must understand what it means that you became a hamster.”
After thinking for a moment, I nodded.
“With Gladwin’s power weakened right now, if someone finds out that you became a hamster instead of a tiger, not only you but Gladwin—and even the beastmen that Gladwin protects—will all be in danger.”
“Ung.”
“So for the time being, let’s be careful not to let the other beastmen find out that you’re a hamster. It will feel stifling, but until the situation is sorted out, please stay in your room. I’ll find a solution as quickly as possible—at the very least, the cause of how this happened.”
Even though I knew that right now no solution or cause could be found, I bobbed my head.
In a situation like this, where I couldn’t reveal everything about the original story, it was better to say nothing at all.
If I wasn’t careful, it could cause enormous confusion.
Tigris oppa lifted the finger he had held out to me and gently stroked under my chin.
“Congratulations on reaching your growth period, Systia. Truly.”
“Hehehe. Goseunda. (Thank you.)”
“Well then, shall we learn how to return to your human form?”
Following the method he explained in his gentle voice, I returned to my human form.
Transforming for the first time was difficult, but it was okay.
Until I completely changed back into my human form, my three oppas stayed by my side.
[Green Moon 16th, Today’s To-Do List]
☐ What should I do today?
☐ First, roll around
☐ Maybe try drawing a picture?
“Done! Finished!”
I lifted the drawing I had made into the air and admired it.
When I leaned back against the chair, my short legs lifted straight out in front of me.
The picture I drew today was a fruit basket.
I filled the basket with strawberries, apples, peaches, bananas, kiwi and pineapple, mango and pomegranate, tangerines and oranges, and even drew a watermelon in the back.
Since I was ten years old, it was just barely at a level people could call cute. Otherwise, it wasn’t a drawing anyone could honestly call excellent.
But even if it was clumsy, it was more than enough to stimulate my craving for fruit.
“Mmm, it looks delicious! I suddenly want to eat fruit. I didn’t even like fruit that much before. Is this because I became a hamster?”
In my previous life, even when I had them, I rarely ate fruit and nuts—but after possessing this body, I kept craving them.
At least nuts could be picked up in the garden, like sunflower seeds or chestnuts. But fruit—I couldn’t even smell it.
It was only natural.
To carnivorous feline beastmen, fruit was nothing but something smelly and mushy.
Razban oppa and Tabian oppa had once even argued about which they hated more—fruit or bird droppings.
I stared blankly at the drawing I had made, then flopped onto the table and swung my legs back and forth.
“I want to eat strawberries.”
In my previous life, I think this was around the time strawberries were at the end of their season.
If I bit into something fragrant and soft, the flesh would gently collapse, and the sweet-and-sour strawberry flavor would burst in my mouth, right?
Ah, how fantastic would that be?
I opened my mouth wide, imagining eating strawberries, when someone knocked on the door.
Knock, knock.
“Systia. Are you inside?”
It was Tigris oppa’s voice.
Tsk! I was just about to imagine eating bananas after strawberries. What a shame.
I quickly wiped the drool that had dripped down, got up, and tidied up my drawing and tools.
“Yeah! I’m inside! Come in!”
Tigris oppa opened the door and, seeing me bustling about, narrowed one eye.
“I thought you’d be feeling down, but you’re not.”
“Hey, what are you talking about? Why would I feel down?”
Of course, the original Systia had been very, very depressed.
At my answer, Tigris oppa let out a deep sigh.
“Systia. For an ordinary beastman, this is something that would make them very depressed.”
“But I’m really fine. I’m not feeling down, so I can’t pretend that I am.”
“You really are something.”
It wasn’t a joke or a lie—it was the truth.
Right now, I was very happy. There was no reason not to be.
My oppas came to play with me whenever I might get bored or brought me snacks as gifts, and I rolled around as much as I wanted, rolled logs, read books, or drew pictures.
‘A beastman who was supposed to become a tiger became a hamster.’
Even though something unprecedented and enormous had happened, I was this relaxed because I knew the original story.
And I also knew what happened when the original Systia fell into panic.
If I wanted to avoid the same fate, I needed to keep my peace of mind.
Tigris oppa lightly brushed my cheek with the back of his hand and said,
“I brought Andrei. Just in case there’s something wrong with your body that prevented you from turning into a tiger, we’re going to do a health check. Is that alright?”
“Yeah! Of course!”
Andrei, the Gladwin family’s personal physician, examined me with a serious face.
“You seem nervous.”
“Mm. A little.”
Tigris oppa, who was sitting a short distance away watching us, let out a brief sigh and pressed his lips together.
Even when I went to perform the Growth Day ritual, and even after finding out I was a hamster, I hadn’t been nervous—so hearing that I was nervous now must worry him.
But this was something I couldn’t help.
I knew that in the original story Andrei examined Systia, but I didn’t know what the results were.
I only knew that after hearing the results and prescription, the original Systia had suffered greatly.
Worried that they might discover some serious illness, I anxiously waited for Andrei’s examination to end.
After a while, Andrei gave the following diagnosis about my condition.
“You are underweight.”
Tigris oppa’s face turned pale.
“Underweight? How can that be…!”
“In the past year, your weight has increased by only 3 kilograms. For a beastman in their growth period, that is excessively critical.”
“Ha… Could that be the reason? Because she’s too thin?”
Too thin……
I’m ten years old—if I weigh 30 kilograms, isn’t that appropriate? In my previous life, I don’t think I even weighed 25 kilograms at ten.
Andrei nodded at Tigris oppa’s words.
“If Systia-nim collapsed during the Growth Day ritual, her weight was likely the problem. There are no abnormalities anywhere else.”
“Then what should we do now? We can’t tell Systia to eat like the twins, can we?”
Of course not.
My twin oppas were such enormous gluttons that they could easily eat an entire cow every day and still want more!
No matter how much I like meat, I can’t eat like that.
After thinking for a moment, Andrei whispered something to oppa.
“In my opinion…”
After hearing Andrei’s words, Tigris oppa looked as if he had just received a death sentence and wiped his face with his large hand.
I realized that the measure Andrei had just conveyed was related to the suffering the original Systia experienced.
Suddenly, my chest felt cold.
Why? What is it?
They’re not going to use some forbidden spell, are they?
I looked up at oppa with pitiful eyes.
“O-oppaa. Why are you suddenly like that? I’m scared.”
“…I’m sorry, Systia. I didn’t want to go this far.”
Tigris oppa closed his eyes tightly as if in pain and spoke quietly.
“Andrei. Please step outside for a moment.”
“Understood.”
After Andrei left, Tigris oppa kept his eyes closed for a while, steadying himself, before slowly walking toward me.
He lowered himself, placing one knee on the floor, and met my eyes while I sat in the chair.
“I’m sorry. I was born as the Great Tiger of Gladwin and thought I could do anything I set my mind to, but in this situation, all I can say to you is to ask for your understanding. I feel truly pathetic.”
What on earth is it? This is making it scarier!
“What did Andrei say? I’m fine with anything, so don’t apologize and just tell me quickly.”
“Systia, for the time being, your……”
Tigris oppa’s voice choked, and he couldn’t finish his sentence, closing his mouth for a moment.
Gripping my hand tightly, he swallowed hard and finally forced out the rest of his words.
“…For the time being, we need to adjust your diet. Andrei thinks it would be good for you to try eating fruit.”
“…Huh?”
“Since it might really be because of your weight that you couldn’t become a tiger. It will be painful, but please endure it for a few days.”
“…!”
I sprang to my feet, and Tigris oppa bit his lip and lowered his head as if he were a sinner.
Fruit!
This is amazing! I love it!
