Chapter 17

A while after Yehokin escaped from the prison, this time Lisa came to visit Kokorosa.

Seeing Kokorosa crouched in a corner of the prison, Lisa spoke in an exaggerated tone.

“Kokorosa, what on earth did you do to Gladwin’s heir? Because of you, the reputation of the snake beastmen has been tarnished. Sisthia was so shocked that she couldn’t even have dinner.”

“Ungg! Uhuuhu…!”

“Oh my, look at that. Seems like you can’t speak anymoe. How pitiful.”

Lisa’s face was full of delight as she spoke.

Was it the Gladwin beastmen who did so?

In any case, the fact that Kokorosa’s mouth was sealed shut without her having to intervene was quite satisfying. Kokorosa couldn’t speak now. The fact that Kokorosa couldn’t speak meant that the information about the nut had no chance of being revealed as coming from Evanoyl.

Never, forever.

It was a great conclusion.

“Because of what you did, Sisthia will receive consolation and compensation. It will be quite a sum.”

“Uhuuhu…”

“Isn’t it ridiculous? Why should I suffer losses because of something you did? So I thought, let you pay for the consequences of your actions.”

“Hmm?”

“We’ll deduct from the Peanut Snake family’s property and send compensation to Sisthia.”

“Uhu! Uhuuhu!”

Kokorosa crawled to the prison floor and clung to the iron bars. It was the same iron bars that Yehokin had bent earlier. However, no matter how hard she shook them, the iron bars only made a clanging sound and didn’t budge.

“Uhu! Uhuuhu! Uhuuhu, uhuuhu!”

“Willing to give it up? Thank you very much. It was good to let me know in advance.”

“Uhu… Huhuu.”

Lisa lightly waved her hand towards the sobbing Kokorosa.

“Well then. I won’t forget your sacrifice.”

With a tap-tap of her heels, Lisa’s footsteps sounded light as she left the prison.

Due to Kokorosa’s nature, she hadn’t achieved her original goal of making her hunt mice. However, the loss could be compensated with the Peanut Snake family’s property, and besides, her tongue had been neatly cut, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

Moreover, it wasn’t like she hadn’t gained anything from this.

As Modest waited for Lisa the entrance of the prison, he bowed politely to her when she came back.

“Welcome back. You didn’t need to inform such a lowly creature about the situation. You are indeed excessively merciful, Madam Lisa.”

“It’s nothing much.”

Modest smiled and said, “Bringing the Peanut Snake was a truly excellent judgment. I never expected that it would lead to discovering Sisthia’s true identity.”

That was true.

For the snake to lose her sanity meant that she had smelled a delicious mouse scent from Sisthia.

Even though she couldn’t directly confirm her transformation into a hamster or completely eliminate her presence, she indirectly confirmed the success of the magic.

It was expected. Lisa smiled elegantly.

“Is everything prepared?”

“Yes. We can return to Evanoyl right away.”

“Let’s depart as soon as dawn breaks tomorrow. If we rush back too quickly, it might look suspicious.”

“I understand. I want to get out of this disgusting Gladwin as soon as possible, but I have no choice.”

Lisa also didn’t want to spend a second longer in Gladwin than necessary.

However, she was willing to endure this level of discomfort.

Maintaining composure and dignity until the very end was the true attitude of a ruler, and Lisa was going to become a true ruler of the beastmen realm.

* * *

[Flower Moon 5th, Today’s To-Do List]

☑ Prepare a gift for Yehokin
☐ Escort Imoogi
☐ Eat sunflower seeds! Yay!

٩(๑>◊<๑)۶ Yay!

As soon as breakfast was over, the Imoogi began to prepare to leave.

Although Lisa said that she was leaving quickly because the servant she brought was causing trouble, it looked like they were running away from the consequences of their own actions to me.

Black carriages lined up at the entrance of Gladwin’s mansion, and the Imoogi from Evanoyl greeted us.

“We apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced because of us. We will send compensation as soon as we arrive in Evanoyl.”

Tigris bowed his body towards us.

“It’s regrettable that the meeting concludes like this after you’ve come such a long way. Please be careful on your way back.”

“Goodbye, then.”

After both families’ formal greetings concluded and the Imoogi got into the carriages, Yehokin stood still, tightly closing his lips.

As I approached, Yehokin opened his mouth with a trembling voice, “If we go back now, when will we be able to meet again? Probably… not soon, right?”

He probably wouldn’t want to return.

Leaving Gladwin was like walking back into endless torment.

“It’s alright. It might not be soon, but we’ll meet again.”

“Yeah…”

His face looked like he was about to shed tears of regret.

Although he was usually tall, strong, and seemed mature like an adult, seeing him like this, he definitely looked like a boy.

And I had to send such a kid to the Imoogi’s den. It hurt my heart.

I let out a deep sigh and handed him the gift I had brought. It was a large, hefty pouch that she had to support with both hands.

“Ugh! Yehokin, take this. It’s a gift.”

“A gift?”

Yehokin’s black eyes quivered.

It seemed like he hadn’t expected that I would prepare a gift.

“I kept this for you to take when you go back. I even wrote it at the top of the ‘Today’s To-Do List’ in case I forgot. Wasn’t that clever of me?”

“Ah…”

There was no need to say what gift I had prepared. The scent of jerky emanating from the pouch was enough to convey it.

Yehokin’s voice, as he held the pouch to his chest, trembled even more.

“Thank you, Sisthia. Really. I never dreamed I’d receive something like this. I’ll save it.”

“What are you saying? Don’t save it! Just eat it up!”

“But this jerky is from you. It’s so precious that I don’t know how to eat it.”

“Why are you saying that? Don’t eat it sparingly! I prepared a lot because I thought you’d say that, so don’t you dare eat it sparingly!”

“You prepared a lot?”

“Yeah! I prepared a whole lot!”

I stretched my arm out and pointed to the opposite side where Evanoyl’s carriages were lined up.

The stablekeeper, who had been waiting, approached us with horses and wagons.

The wagon was stacked high with various types of meat and jerky pouches that had been pre-packed.

Considering the amount of food Yehokin would need to eat until he became a mature Imoogi and left Evanoyl, it would be far from enough. But at least it would last for a few months.

“How is it? With this amount, you don’t have to be sparing with your eating, right? You have to eat it all so it doesn’t go to waste. Understand…”

My voice, which was giving strict instructions, abruptly stopped.

It was because of Yehokin, who had quietly come closer, was hugging me with the pouch set down on the ground.

My face felt hot, as if someone had brought a hot coal near it.

“Y-Y-Y-Yehokin…?”

“Thank you.”

My heart pounded.

It was different from Tigris hugging me affectionately, or the twins hugging me tightly as if they would die from cuteness, or Karin hugging me warmly.

It was soft like spring, warm like sunlight, and tickling like the scent of flowers.

From behind, the twins screamed.

“Ah! Sisthia!”

“That brat is trying to assassinate our Sisthy!”

But whether the twins shouted or not, Yehokin remained completely unperturbed.

It was because of the way he hugged me.

His heart, which he held against me, beat rhythmically.

“Sisthia, you always give me more than I expect.”

“Al-always? I gave something other than jerky?”

“Yeah.”

“Uh…”

What did I give? Me? When?

…Could it be talking about the grilled pork belly?

Without understanding him, I blinked stiffly, my body rigid.

Yehokin, who gently let go of me, looked into my eyes and smiled softly. His cool hand wiped away the blush that had risen on my cheek.

“Sisthia’s blush is pretty.”

“…! I-I-I’m not blushing…!”

I knew it wasn’t true; I tried to deny it anyway, but of course, I was ignored.

“You look small, cute, and red, just like the plums you were eating yesterday.”

Plums.

Plums!

…Do I really look that delicious?

Unlike earlier, Yehokin stood up straight with a much lighter expression and politely bowed.

“My fiancée, Sisthia Gladwin. Thank you very much for the gift. Every time I see the gift you gave me, I’ll think of you. I’ll miss you and look forward to the day I can meet you again.”

“Really? Thank you, Yehokin!”

This time, I ran at Yehokin and hugged him tightly.

Getting rid of Evanoyl’s punishment tools, filling Yehokin’s plate with meat, taking daily walks together, and preparing a wagon full of gifts—all of it felt worth it.

What I wanted was for Yehokin to remember me and patiently wait for me without forgetting or breaking off our engagement until the day he became a mature Imoogi and could move freely outside of Gladwin.

I didn’t hide my joy after achieving my goal.

I tightly hugged Yehokin’s waist, hopped around, and pressed my blushing cheek against his firm chest.

The large tiger ear decorations on my head swayed back and forth.

“Yehokin, you’re the best! That’s the exact thing I wanted to hear the most. Thank you so much!”

“You wanted to hear something like this?”

“Yeah!”

“I’ll say it as much as you want. I’ll wait for you, and I’ll miss you. I won’t promise a future with any other Imoogi.”

“Wow!”

Great! Keep going! The best! Thrilling!

As I grinned and laughed in excitement, Yehokin, as if casting a spell on me, asked, “Don’t you want to hear something else? Anything that I can do, I’ll do it.”

“Yeah! One more thing!”

“What is it?”

Yehokin looked up at me with glittering eyes.

“For Yehokin not to get hurt!”

“….”

Don’t get hurt.

Don’t die.

Waiting and not breaking the engagement were meaningless if Yehokin couldn’t survive healthily.

While it would be best if he could completely escape Evanoyl’s torment, even if it was just a little bit, I hoped he would value himself more than before.

Looking down at me, who had hugged him in silence for a moment, Yehokin whispered softly. It was a very low voice, almost too quiet for other Imoogi to hear.

“….Alright. I’ll live without getting hurt and stay healthy. Promise.”

“Okay! It’s a promise!”

Yehokin, who had been gazing at me with eyes that sparkled like a shimmering night sea, suddenly burst into laughter.

“But, Sisthia.”

“Yeah?”

“I might die before I reach Evanoyl.”

“Huh? Why all of a sudden? Are you feeling sick?”

“Your older brothers might kill me.”

“….Huh?”

Wondering what he was talking about, I turned around, only to find the three brothers glaring at us, emitting a golden mist from their entire bodies.

Read up to [12] advanced chapters on my ko-fi page. 1 release per week. Thank you for reading! If you enjoy it, consider supporting the author by buying the raws or opening up the chapters, also rate it well on NU. (ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ.ﾟ