IJEBPSCLB 4

“Alright. I’ll let you live.”

‘Thank you.’

I survived! I succeeded. I actually succeeded in surviving the male lead!

I silently raised a toast in my head.

‘Bye! It was terrifying meeting you, let’s never meet again!’

I waved my front paw in farewell. I couldn’t hide the oddly twitching corners of my mouth or the tail trembling with happiness.

Then I turned around without looking back and tried to escape through the dog hole—but my escape ended at the attempt.

Before even half my body could slip through the hole, I was grabbed by a large hand.

A big hand held my body—loosely, but firmly.

I struggled inside it, trying to get free.

But no matter how much I flailed my front and back paws, only my limbs moved uselessly while my body stayed completely trapped.

Was this what a fish felt like, caught in a net, flapping helplessly?

In the end, I gave up escaping and looked back.

And I couldn’t hide my absurd expression.

‘What…? What is this?’

Why are you here…?

I looked back and forth between the man’s hand and his face several times.

His hand was holding me so I couldn’t slip out through the dog hole.

Seeing my stunned expression, the male lead lifted me up until my eyes met his.

Those strange, beautiful blue eyes that would normally have made me admire them only filled me with betrayal.

‘Hey! You said you’d let me live!’

My whiskers trembled with injustice.

‘You said you’d let me go!’

I protested fiercely with my tiny arms and legs. You said you’d spare me—so why are you stopping me? Wasn’t I supposed to be allowed to leave?

You said I could live.

Was that just false hope?

The more I thought about it, the more unfair it felt.

‘I worked so hard…’

Dying like this was too unfair and too sad.

If anything, I couldn’t die like this out of sheer injustice.

My vision blurred and tears began to well up.

It felt like one touch would make the tears spill out.

The male lead, who had been staring at me, slightly curved his eyes.

“I said I’d let you live. I never said I’d let you escape.”

He wiped away the tears gathering in my eyes.

For some reason, I thought I saw mischief in those cold eyes. I hoped I was wrong. I really did. Because it felt like something dangerous was about to happen. It had to be my imagination. Yes. Just my imagination.

There’s no way I could handle someone like him.

Even the heroine couldn’t handle him.

I lifted my chin and looked up at him.

‘Then what are you going to do?’

Green eyes still clung with tears.

The male lead looked at me, then spoke to the people behind him—who seemed to be his subordinates.

“Take this one too.”

…This… crazy…

‘HEY!! WHY ARE YOU TAKING ME TOO?!’

Has he completely lost it? What is wrong with him?

I was too stunned to even close my mouth. The tears that had been forming vanished instantly. Honestly, there was no better tear-stopper than this kind of shock.

‘Don’t just pick up random things!’

My green eyes shot daggers.

‘Didn’t anyone teach you not to pick up random stuff?!’

But the opponent was a tiger, and I was a kitten smaller than his palm, dangling from his hand.

If this terrifying tiger even slightly tightened his grip, my life would be over in an instant. I could say that without even a second of doubt.

And worse—he wasn’t just any tiger. He was the same insane tiger who had just casually killed a beastman right in front of me.

A very, very insane tiger.

And now he was holding a sword dripping with blood.

A small kitten like me, who understood fear well, couldn’t even speak properly in front of a tiger holding a bloody sword.

He gently closed my open mouth for me. It seemed he had firmly decided to take me with him, placing me on his palm.

‘He doesn’t look like he’s going to let me escape…’

With no other choice, I quickly accepted reality.

Then I sat on his palm and found the most comfortable position I could.

Unfortunately, my frustrated inner screaming reached no one.

*****

To summarize the result: fortunately, I did not die and I am still alive.

Yes. I didn’t die yesterday.

The problem is that I slept like a rock.

‘How can I fall asleep on someone who tried to kill me?’

Well, he did say he would let me live.

‘And I didn’t wake up even once—I slept deeply the entire time. Am I insane?’

After the male lead placed me on his palm, whether it was the warmth I felt for the first time or my tension finally releasing, I slowly nodded off like a sick chicken and collapsed into sleep.

No, I’m not usually like this.

‘Maybe I’ve been walking around trembling all the time like my heart is covered in frost.’

The warmth I felt in this world for the first time completely weakened me.

“…I should hit my head.”

I don’t even know when I fell asleep.

I think I heard a faint chuckle above me, but at that time, my half-closed eyelids mattered more than anything else.

So I focused on dozing… and eventually fell asleep.

And now, when I opened my eyes, I was looking at an unfamiliar ceiling.

‘Ah… I thought I’d wake up and see something familiar…’

I hoped this was all a dream.

Half-asleep, I lay there staring blankly at the ceiling.

Stretching out flat, I twitched my paws slightly.

‘What exactly about me triggered Ian Kadelion’s curiosity?’

This situation didn’t exist in the original story, nor in anything I had predicted.

And I never once thought my actions could be seen as “strange enough to attract curiosity.”

…Well, at least I slept warmly. Maybe that’s good. Whatever. I don’t know anymore. My brain isn’t working.

I lay still and looked around with my eyes.

‘Why is this room so big and fancy? Even the bed is huge.’

The room was unexpectedly spacious.

I stretched.

“Yaaawn—”

Even after sleeping that much, I was still sleepy.

No matter how much I sleep, I’m still sleepy. Is this the mystery of a cat body?

Knock knock.

A knock sounded, followed by a slightly excited voice from outside.

“Lady Cat. I am Marie, your assigned maid. May I come in?”

“Nyaa…?”

Still half-asleep, I responded vaguely.

A young woman in a maid uniform entered and opened the curtains.

“Did you just wake up, Lady Cat?”

“Nyaa…”

Ugh. I hate sunlight…

As she opened the curtains, bright sunlight flooded the room and stabbed my eyes.

Judging by the brightness, it was probably already past lunchtime for the beastfolk.

‘Sleeping instead of eating… not a bad choice.’

Back at the Simond household, I often chose sleep over food that was barely better than garbage.

I frowned and shifted to avoid the sunlight.

Something sounded like it was tearing—rrriiip—but it must’ve been my imagination.

I crawled under the pillow, and the sunlight became slightly dimmer.

Ah… I can breathe again.

As expected, mornings are better when it’s dark.

But that happiness lasted only ten seconds.

“Lady Cat, you’ve been asleep for a day and an hour. Are you going back to sleep?”

Marie lifted the pillow carefully and asked worriedly.

No, I’m not sleeping again. The sunlight is just too bright.

To express my intention, I slowly sat up from lying down and covered my eyes with my paw.

The moment the tiny kitten covered its eyes, someone nearby gasped.

Marie seemed to understand me and blocked the sunlight with her hand. Feeling relieved, I lowered my paw.

Then I saw Marie’s face clearly.

Her blue-violet hair was tied up high, and she looked less like a maid and more like a knight—one of those calm, emotionless knights who eliminate enemies without hesitation.

When our eyes met, she blushed slightly.

She lowered her head and spoke softly.

“Lady Cat… would you like to take a bath?”

Wait. Why are you suddenly speaking like a shy girl in love?

Was my first impression of her completely wrong?

Startled, I instinctively stepped back, my pupils shaking wildly.

“Y-You don’t want to bathe? Sir Ian said you went out through the dog hole to pick flowers the other day. You fell asleep and couldn’t even wash properly…”

Her voice sounded strangely gloomy.

No, let’s go. Sorry. I was just surprised because you suddenly turned into a shy romance protagonist.

I cautiously stepped toward her again.

Her mood brightened instantly, and she picked me up.

“Then let’s go take a bath.”

‘Waaah!’

She stood up with me in her arms.

Hey! I didn’t say to carry me like that! I can walk! I have legs! I can walk myself!

I struggled in her grip.

That unpleasant feeling of being lifted—once was enough.

While struggling, I looked down.

Wait. Isn’t this too high? If I fall from here, I could die.

‘If I fall, it’s definitely death.’

For a fluffy little creature like me, the height was terrifying.

I stopped struggling and placed my tiny paw carefully on her hand, trembling.

All I could hope was that she wouldn’t suddenly let go.

‘I never want to experience this again. Never.’

And so, I was carried all the way to the bathroom in Marie’s arms.