Cat, Human Hybrid
I said it before: I didn"t mind feeding one more person because it wouldn"t break the bank. Furthermore, there was enough food in the city, so I didn"t need to be petty about that small amount of food. What I was truly worried about, though, was that the kid was shady. Last time, the dwarves used a victimised pupil to as wool for my eyes. I, therefore, was more worried that the catman was going to try and con me again.
I folded the standard letter of recommendation from Achilles. I couldn"t discern any issues with it. Essentially, it was a bunch of meaningless text. It was precisely because I couldn"t identify any issues that my concerned felt more justified. I was going to scare myself if I kept being paranoid. The catman sat properly opposite me and nervously watched me. Veirya sat next to him and scanned him; she appeared to be eager to do something. Angelina also looked as though she had something to say but hesitated.
I handed him the letter: "You want to be my pupil, did you say? You might have lots of work, then. Before anything, you need to be mentally prepared. If you make a mistake, you"re getting the boot, understood?"
"I understand! I will do anything! And, I will be obedient! As long as you can allow me to stay with you, then anything is fine with me. I will do anything!"
"Honestly, I"ve always had something I wanted to ask you. Why do you insist on joining me? Logically speaking, you could choose anyone superior to me in the imperial capital. Why me of all people?"
He looked at me as though he was waiting for me to ask that question the entire time. He clamped his fingers into fists and explained, "That would be because I want to become a real man just as you are! I know lots of things about you! You exposed and won against the chapel"s scheme. After that, you saved Her Majesty from the elven lands. You went to her rescue when n.o.body dared to! I… I have been bullied ever since I was a kid. I have always feared others. I want to be a courageous and loyal man under your tutelage! I want to become a real man!"
I couldn"t point out any problems with his explanation… In fact, his reason was quite appropriate. After all, it"s perfectly normal for a kid whose always been bullied to want to put an end to it. Nonetheless, I was puzzled about one thing. Since when did I become considered a real man? I was always despised as a contemptible individual. I had never been a.s.sociated with the term "real man", nor had anyone considered me an upright man. I reckoned that the kid would soon realise I wasn"t as great as he imagined.
Veirya pinched her chin and suddenly pulled the catman over with one hand. She lifted him up by his neck. Suddenly, she pulled his pants down…
"Whoa!" The catman and I both exclaimed at the same time. He struggled with all his might due to embarra.s.sment.
"I never thought you were seriously a boy. I always suspected your gender. Oh! It"s small, but it"s there. Hey, it"s pretty cute, too, huh?!" Angelina flicked the poor kid"s manhood.
The catman cried as he struggled with all he had. I believe that any man would be humiliated by that…
Veirya put him back down then explained, "I was just. Confirming. That he"s a male. I was suspicious."
"I also had my suspicions about that…"
The catman quickly pulled his pants up and shed tears, curling up in fear. I suddenly realised something. Creeps had once done that to him, so Veirya must"ve reminded him of the times he was violated. I pulled him over and warned Veirya., "Don"t do that again. It"s an odious memory for him, after all."
"Uhm."
The catman grabbed my clothes and, "I knew it. I was right. You are the man I am looking for. You are an upright man! n.o.body has ever said that to me before! Only you… are fair and nice! You are a true man as I thought!"
"I don"t know what"s in your brain, but I might let you down," I replied, lips curved upwards smugly. "I"m not remotely as brilliant as you think. I"m a sly man. I used someone"s wife and daughter to destroy him, went back on my word, sold him out without any consideration for his feelings and walked off with other people"s money. The reason I went to save Queen Sisi was merely because Veirya wanted to save her. I"ve done lots of bad things behind Sisi"s back. Lots of people consider me to just be a sly man. I have no bottom line or shame. I"m nowhere near as you think I am."
"Modesty! I know that you are being modest! I have heard many things about you, but I know that they are lies from those who were defeated by you. I know, so please allow me to follow you!"
I couldn"t argue with the kid. It seemed that he wouldn"t believe anything I said. I queried, "What"s your name?"
"Name…? Humans call me Ross… So, so, have I… really become your pupil? Can I follow you now?!"
"Yes, but you will have lots of work. Get changed when we reach the North. If you want, follow me from now. With that said, you might end up disappointed. I want to get some sleep tonight. You stay by the fire and ensure it doesn"t go out for now. Prepare breakfast tomorrow. You can cook, right?"
"I can!"
I told him where our food was and then yawned: "I"m going to turn in now. Angelina."
Understanding what I was thinking, Angelina responded with a nod. I pulled Veirya down to lie with me. The catman"s footsteps were basically inaudible. He sat by the fire and watched over it earnestly. Angelina looked asleep. In truth, she was going to monitoring Ross. We weren"t going to drop our guard. We were going to keep him under surveillance while giving him a chance to see what he does.
I slept without any qualms for the reason that I knew Angelina would definitely keep tabs on him, not to mention that I had Veirya beside me. I was sure that he wouldn"t be able to harm me. Plus, if Leah"s transformation was exposed, I could use that as an excuse to do away with him.
I still didn"t trust the kid. He approached me out of the blue and randomly worshipped me without rhyme or reason. There was nothing about him that was trustworthy. As a consequence, I wouldn"t drop my guard around him. Perhaps this test wouldn"t produce any results. Nonetheless, I had more tests and then more. As long as he was up to something, there"d definitely be clues left behind even if he was a cat.
An enticing aroma woke me from my slumber. Ross was standing by a pot and diligently stirring the burling sticky milk. Leah poked her head out from the carriage and cast her gaze around before finally setting her sight on Ross.
Beaming, Leah inquired, "Papa, are you taking him in?"
"Yeah. Needless to say, it"s just for the meantime. I don"t plan to keep him just yet. Having said that, why did you let him tag along and not tell Papa?"
"Because if Leah told Papa, Papa wouldn"t have let him follow us. Leah feels sorry for him, however," sulked Leah, pouting. "Leah is sorry for lying to Papa, but Leah believes that Papa won"t leave someone so pitiful to die! Papa won"t admonish Leah for it!"
"Well, it"s not that serious that Papa would admonish you… It"s just, you should discuss it with Papa if you want to do something from now, Leah. Papa isn"t a dictator. As long as you voice your suggestion, Papa will promise to put serious thought into it."
I went to the carriage and carried Leah off. Happy, she kissed my cheek. Ross was particularly surprised when he saw Leah. Puzzled, she t.i.tled her head. I made a hush hand gesture to signal not to mention Leah"s transformation. He nodded after his ears twitched to indicate he wouldn"t mention it. I prayed he knew what I signalled for him not to mention.
Angelina and Veirya came over. Angelina gently shook her head, and I nodded in response. By the looks of it, the kid was either fine or he hid his intentions well. Whatever, though. Angelina and Veirya were in the North. If he harboured ill-will and was exposed there, he wouldn"t be able to escape. I wasn"t worried, but he"d be.