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chapter 26
“Please stop fighting. It’s dangerous to do this here. And I… I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”
At my words, Teansis looked unconvinced and objected.
“That monster didn’t hurt you, Lady?”
“This isn’t the monster’s doing. I did it myself.”
The cat monster, who had been listening, also spoke as if unwilling to back down.
『Queen, that guy is the one who trapped me here!』
“Just now, I heard from the Duke that you broke the oath, that’s why this happened.”
『Ugh… that’s…』
“I don’t know the circumstances, but the first one at fault was you. You know that, right?”
『Tch.』
The cat monster turned its head in displeasure, but just by looking at it, I could tell it no longer had the will to fight.
Teansis looked at the monster with a curious expression and spoke to me.
“It’s astonishing to see the Lady and the monster conversing directly like this.”
“Duke, I’ll handle the monster. It doesn’t seem inherently bad. Let me hear its story and explain it to you—just give me one chance.”
Teansis, after pondering for a moment, nodded.
“Understood. And…”
As he spoke, Teansis took a white handkerchief from his pocket and tightly wrapped it around my palm, which was still bleeding.
“Ouch.”
I couldn’t help but groan, and Teansis’ expression turned concerned.
“I think we should treat this first.”
He stared at me quietly for a moment and then touched my cheek. Surprised, I looked at him, noticing that his fingertips were blackened—likely smudged with soot from passing through flames.
“Grrr!”
At that moment, the cat monster cried out angrily at Teansis. It seemed displeased that he had touched me.
In response, Teansis’ gaze instantly became icy.
“Unaware of who saved your life, you dare to cry so boldly.”
Feeling the tense atmosphere, I instinctively grabbed Teansis with my injured hand. His violet eyes looked at me, puzzled.
It seemed this was the only way to leave.
“Oh… having acted for so long, I feel suffocated. My injured palm hurts, and my head feels dizzy too.”
Feigning weakness and dizziness, Teansis immediately scooped me up in a princess carry without hesitation.
I was so startled that I could only look up at him.
“Duke?”
“Understood. Let’s get out of here first.”
Blinking in surprise, I turned to look at the cat. By now, it had transformed back into a small cat and quietly followed us.
I was stunned at how well this plan had worked.
I arrived at Teansis’ residence with the cat. I marveled again at how often, in such situations, I ended up in his room.
As I appeared in Teansis’ arms, his maid, Emily, came out, startled.
“Duke is here? Oh my! And… this person is…”
“Bring some ointment for the Lady to my room.”
“Oh! Yes, sir!”
Emily hurriedly ran off. From the few times I had seen her, her diligent nature suggested she’d return with a first-aid kit soon.
Thus, I arrived in Teansis’ room, still in his arms. The room was luxurious yet strangely neat. I found myself surveying it unconsciously but quickly focused again.
“You… you didn’t need to bring me into your room…”
“I do not wish to alert anyone outside that the Lady is with me. Moreover, I don’t want our conversation to leak outside.”
“Oh…”
“To ensure that, the safest place is my room. Security is the tightest here at Kamar Academy.”
Teansis pulled the curtain near his bed.
Clang!
Suddenly, iron clashed as all visible windows were covered with iron doors. I imagined even unseen areas were secured.
“Wow.”
It was my first time witnessing such a scene, and I couldn’t help but exclaim.
Teansis gave a faint smile and set me down on the sofa. The cat quickly sat beside me, baring its teeth.
“Meow!”
In cat form, its cry sounded like a normal cat, yet it was still threatening.
Teansis glanced at the cat.
“Tell it that if it bares its teeth at me again, it will be thrown out.”
『How dare you! A mere human!』
I quickly covered the cat’s mouth with my uninjured hand and forced a smile.
“Yes, I will.”
『What?』
The cat looked at me, incredulous, but I turned my head and whispered firmly.
“If you cause trouble here, I won’t protect you anymore.”
『Are you serious?』
“Of course.”
『…Damn.』
Despite its cute appearance, the cat had a rough mouth. It turned away in displeasure but seemed to have calmed down.
At that moment, a knock came at the door.
Teansis looked at it and said softly, “Just a moment.”
He opened the door, probably receiving the first-aid kit from Emily, and returned with it.
When he opened the kit, it revealed the most expensive ointment in the Valkanus Empire, renowned for its healing properties.
As he picked it up without hesitation, I said,
“I… I’ll apply it.”
Though grateful for his care, I couldn’t ask him to apply the ointment too. But Teansis ignored my words.
“It’s your palm, Lady. One-handed application would be difficult.”
“I’m fine…”
“If untreated properly, it may scar.”
Before I could protest further, he held my injured palm and applied the ointment meticulously. My heart fluttered, and I couldn’t look away, though it made me feel oddly giddy.
The cat merely watched us with a bewildered expression.
Once he finished and bandaged my palm, Teansis withdrew his hand. I felt a small void where his warmth had been.
“Does it hurt?”
“Not now.”
“If you feel dizzy or unwell again, even if not directly from the wound, tell me.”
“Y-yes.”
Though I had faked it, I could only nod.
Teansis then turned his attention back to the cat.
“The Lady asked me for a chance, didn’t she?”
“Yes.”
“But I can’t leave the Lady alone with a dangerous monster. You can listen to it or leave it for now.”
『No! Why should I stay by your side!』
The cat protested, and Teansis’ eyes turned icy.
“And tell it that this is the best I can compromise.”
『This guy…!』
I didn’t think the cat would endanger me, but Teansis’ concern was understandable. I nodded in agreement.
“Now, let’s hear what the monster has to say.”
The cat looked at me, and I asked again.
“Why did you leave Taran Forest?”
『…The oath has lost its meaning now.』
“What do you mean? Explain.”
『The oath existed because the Queen was there! With the Queen gone, who would keep such an oath in Taran Forest?!』
“What does the Queen have to do with the oath?”
Teansis’ eyes flickered with curiosity, but he said nothing.
『It matters. The Queen wanted us to coexist with humans, so we swore not to invade each other’s territory. But the Queen has been gone for decades. Who would honor that oath?』
“That means…”
『We are naturally predators. We want to hunt the weak, expand our territory. Some still remember the Queen and restrain themselves, but many can’t control their instincts and try to leave Taran Forest.』
The cat glanced at Teansis with displeasure.
『If it weren’t for that guy and the Arcruze family, many monsters would have already left Taran Forest. That despicable fellow.』
Hearing this, I froze. More monsters escaping could mean war with humans again.
Teansis watched me quietly.
“What did the monster say?”
I explained, “The Queen has been gone for a long time. The oath existed because the Queen wished it. Now, many no longer feel compelled to honor it.”
“I see. It was because of the Queen.”
“You knew?”
“Not exactly, but I suspected. Their Queen has been absent for a long time.”
“Then I’ll ask what to do.”
Teansis nodded, curious.
The cat, listening closely, spoke first.
『There’s a way? Just return things to how they were.』
“Return things to how they were? How?”
『The Queen gives a command. Not to invade the human world.』
“What?”
I couldn’t believe what I heard. I instinctively sat up. The cat said, smirking,
『To be exact, you must go to Taran Forest.』
I froze. Me, go to Taran Forest? How?
Teansis, curious, asked, “Is there a way?”
“Yes… apparently.”
“What is it?”
“The Queen must be in Taran Forest.”
Teansis frowned. The idea seemed hopeless to him.
“That’s beyond our power. The Queen would be dead by now.”
“But… the Queen exists.”
“What do you mean?”
“…It’s me.”
Teansis looked at me, baffled. I could no longer hide it; many lives were at stake, and war might come to the Valkanus Empire.
“I think… I might be that Queen.”
The cat rubbed its head against me, showing affection. Teansis’ violet eyes widened in shock.
Zer noticed something strange during an experiment.
Weak, mutant-like creatures only circulated Velia’s blood, but the cat monster was different.
Mixing the cat monster’s blood with Velia’s caused an enormous explosion.
Investigating the remnants revealed the cat monster’s blood reacted strangely.
Zer felt uneasy and went to his secret lab in the house of Marquis Fredov.
A place too secret to send others, but the results were invaluable.
‘Velia’s blood strengthens monsters.’
Special medicine prevented explosions, and observing the mixture showed the monster was much stronger.
This was the Queen Monster’s unique ability.
Few knew this, but Zer, as Marquis Fredov of the Valkanus Empire, did.
‘The Queen’s blood strengthens high-level monsters; its sweet scent lets monsters recognize the Queen.’
Zer recalled the monster that Teansis brought attacking Velia. Perhaps it had been drawn by her scent.
A chill ran through him as the pieces of the puzzle fit.
‘I suspected, but to think a human could possess the Queen Monster’s power…’
He didn’t know how similar Velia was to the Queen, but if he could harness her to access Taran Forest’s immense resources…
It would fulfill his lifelong ambition.
‘…Velia!’
He felt a mental jolt. If his assumption was correct, no further research was needed; the girl he thought to be a side effect of his experiments was the key to everything.
Now was not the time to hesitate.
‘I must make Velia mine…’
Before anyone else finds out.
As soon as possible.
