Chapter 4
“Do you want to live?”
To her, the massive iron cage seemed too overwhelming. To him, it was nothing at all.
Even though the heat consumed her, making it hard to move even a single finger, she did her best to move like someone who wanted to live.
Watching Solitaria’s desperate struggle, his golden eyes flickered for a moment.
“Well, I’m bored anyway. I’ll take you with me.”
Just then, the moon, hidden behind the clouds, revealed its face.
Black hair as dark as the night and golden eyes that looked as if they could devour a rabbit at any moment. At a glance, it was clear he was a beastkin of the predator lineage.
Solitaria muttered inwardly.
So what? He’s the only beastkin who can get me out of this hell. As that thought crossed her mind, fireworks lit up the sky.
Boom.
The sound of a great bell, announcing the new year, echoed.
“It’s the new year.”
With a loud bang, the fireworks once again adorned the sky, their light blending seamlessly into his jet-black hair.
Watching the scene, Solitaria thought it suited him well. And with that, she let go of the fragile thread of consciousness she had been holding onto.
The prince had arrived.
—
“What the? Did she faint?”
The rabbit collapsed in his hands, and the boy tilted his head.
“She’s so weak.”
Her green eyes, on the verge of tears, made the boy do something he would never normally do.
The soft fur under his fingertips was proof enough of that.
Struggle as much as you want.
He had found her by chance. He fled the noisy banquet hall, not wanting to be there, and stumbled upon a scene he wished he hadn’t witnessed.
Closing his eyes, he hoped the situation would end quickly. But even after the vile Secrus left, the rabbit continued to struggle. Then, as if giving up, the sparkle in her eyes dimmed in an instant.
Witnessing that, the boy blurted out unnecessary words.
Do you want to live?
The moment he realized his slip, the rabbit’s eyes met his, shining once again with life. Seeing that, an unpleasant sensation took root in the boy’s heart. For the first time in his life.
Watching the wheezing rabbit made his teeth grind on their own. It was anger.
Anger toward the head of the Repus family, who had tried to kill this creature.
He felt like finding that man immediately, locking him in a cage, and making his eyes lose their light in the same way. Thinking that far, the boy started to move as if to act on it.
But at that moment, a searing heat from his palm pierced into his brain.
The warmth should have stayed in his palm, but for some reason, an unknown heat swirled in his heart as well. When the rabbit whimpered and rubbed her head against his hand, the boy froze in place as if his strength had left him.
“Does he know? That he’s alive because of you.”
Though she had already fainted long ago and couldn’t hear him, he muttered while stroking the silver rabbit with a clumsy hand.
How much time had passed? A group of large men came rushing in, kneeling before the boy.
“Young master! How could you ignore the head’s command to stay in the banquet hall?!”
The rough breathing of the knights and the clinking sounds of their movements stirred up the surroundings. But the boy seemed unfazed as his gaze remained fixed on his hand. Only when a knight spoke to him again did he turn to look at them.
Noticing their exhausted expressions, the boy casually shrugged his shoulders and said:
“This time, it only took you an hour. Isn’t that a bit late? You’d probably show up after all the trouble if something serious happened.”
“Surely you didn’t cause trouble again, did you?”
The faces of the burly knights began to pale. One of them clung to the boy’s pants, crying.
Annoyed, the boy shook them off and replied nonchalantly:
“I only cause trouble that Sir Raon can handle.”
Hearing the boy’s sly response, Raon’s face went from pale to a ghastly blue.
Then, as he noticed what was in the boy’s hands, he yelled. The piercing noise made the boy frown.
“Did you… kill it? No matter what, that’s just… !”
The horrifying assumption instantly darkened the boy’s mood, and his face hardened further. Raon, oblivious to this, continued rambling.
“What part of this looks dead to you?”
“Well, just look at it…”
When they looked again, the small creature in his hand was barely breathing. Only then did Raon relax and sigh in relief before asking:
“Then why are you carrying it?”
“I just picked up an abandoned creature.”
“What…?”
Raon’s face turned darker at those words. The boy, watching Raon’s varied reactions, kept his gaze fixed on him.
Raon, whose expressions changed rapidly, finally trembled as if he’d heard something he shouldn’t have. He shook his ears violently, as if they were about to fall off.
“That’s nonsense. I’d sooner believe you kidnapped it than believe it was abandoned.”
“Raon.”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to die?”
At the boy’s sharp words, Raon stopped shaking his ears and tidied his clothes awkwardly. When he fell silent, calm returned.
Satisfied with the quiet, the boy answered Raon’s unspoken question.
“The Repus family head.”
“What?”
“Do I have to say it twice?”
Irritated, the boy muttered as if Raon were a nuisance. Raon, frozen in place, came to his senses and shouted:
“That’s absurd! The head of the Repus family is a kind man who’s good to his family. Besides, he knows better than anyone what happens if you abandon a pet. He wouldn’t do such a thing.”
The boy nodded at Raon’s words.
After all, the head of Repus, Secrus, was someone who maintained a reputation for kindness by using laws that distinguished pets from livestock.
“If you abandon a pet, it’s punishable by death. No one would be foolish enough to do that…”
“At least he won’t face death. It’s a beastkin.”
“What…?”
Raon stammered in confusion. As his jaw dropped in disbelief, the boy tapped his chin and declared:
“From the moment it came into my hands, it became mine.”
Raon looked even more baffled than when he first heard about the Repus head abandoning the rabbit. Watching his dazed expression, the boy waved his hand dismissively.
“Now, Raon. What should you do next?”
“…I should report this to the head.”
“Exactly. You’re not entirely stupid. I’ll head back to Hirupus first, so make sure to deliver the message.”
The boy smirked mischievously, flashed a casual wave, and disappeared into the darkness.
Even after the boy vanished, Raon and the knights struggled to collect themselves. Some even slapped each other’s cheeks out of disbelief.
As the sharp sound echoed, Raon finally came to his senses and organized the situation.
“Stop acting ridiculous and follow the young master. I’ll report this to the head.”
The knights, rubbing their reddened faces, hurriedly chased after the boy. After confirming they had gone, Raon turned and walked away.
It had been less than 30 minutes since Secrus had left Solitaria there.
—
After shaking off the knights, the boy headed straight to the teleportation point at the Repus estate. Upon spotting the boy, the guard stationed there hurriedly bowed.
“I present to you Heinrich Deo Hirupus, the heir of Hirupus.”
Seeing the guard stand at attention, the boy, or Heinrich, smiled with satisfaction. It seemed he appreciated
No one could object to Heinrich’s actions. The boy standing right there was the heir of the Hirupus family and the undisputed top name on land.
“Open the teleporter.”
“Are you going alone, Sir Heinrich?”
At the knight’s question, Heinrich gave a slight nod.
Teleportation cost an absurd amount. That’s why people usually traveled with family when they used it. It just made sense.
But he was saying he’d go alone, out of the blue. Even for a prestigious family like Hirupus, using teleportation back and forth for some other noble’s birthday party was wasteful.
Heinrich surely knew that. But he was firm. The knight broke out in a cold sweat, unsure what to do with that stubborn attitude.
“Are you saying you don’t want to?”
The rabbit in his palm was breathing more and more heavily. Its body was burning hot, like it could die any second. Heinrich noticed and frowned.
The knight, misunderstanding Heinrich’s expression, panicked and frantically waved his hands.
