Chapter 1
Cats need toys.
Since Seria was a cat beastkin, she never said no to a fun toy.
In that sense, Yuel Rickard was the perfect toy.
Of course, Yuel was also a cat beastkin, so calling him a toy was a bit of a stretch, but still—he was just so much fun to tease.
“Yuel!”
“…Hiiik!”
Seria leapt out of the bushes and pounced on Yuel in one go.
Startled, Yuel couldn’t even scream before collapsing onto the ground with a thud. Immediately, he felt Seria’s weight pressing down on him.
“S-Seria!”
Perched atop Yuel’s pitch-black hair, a pair of twitching cat ears popped up.
For beastkin who had only gone through their first growth, it was common for their ears or tail to show when startled.
“Hi, Yuel. Surprised, right?”
Seria grinned mischievously and grabbed Yuel’s ears.
Rub rub. As her small fingers brushed over the sensitive ears, they twitched reflexively.
Yuel’s blue eyes trembled as if on the verge of tears, his pale face flushed red.
His skin was so fair that every reaction stood out vividly.
“G-get off me!”
With his face crimson, Yuel shouted sharply. Seria only giggled and pulled herself up.
Seeing him react so amusingly made all the hiding in the bushes worth it.
“Come on, get up.”
Seria held out a small, pale hand, her golden eyes curving into a smile. With her pupils stretched vertically, she looked every bit the cat.
But the sight of her pink bob fluttering in the breeze didn’t quite match her mischievous grin.
Yuel stared blankly for a moment before snapping out of it and jerking his head away.
“Forget it. I don’t like you.”
“But I like you.”
The reply came without a moment’s hesitation, and Yuel’s body shivered.
The cat friend he had somehow gained one day threw out cheerful lines like that without a second thought.
Whenever that happened, Yuel never knew how to respond and would end up acting like something inside him had short-circuited.
“I still don’t like you!”
He declared stubbornly and got up on his own without taking her hand. Though his breathing was a little rough, he didn’t actually seem all that angry.
Curiously enough, he often said he disliked her, but it never really felt like he did.
So Seria took another step closer and said,
“Tch, but I kept waiting just so I could play with you.”
“Who asked you to wait?”
“But you were waiting for me too, weren’t you?”
Yuel’s eyes widened at the hit, his long lashes trembling over the tiny beauty mark under his eye.
So pretty.
That thought crossed Seria’s mind just as Yuel stumbled back and shouted out of nowhere,
“M-me? For you?!”
“Of course, you. You kept looking around like you were searching for someone. Who else would you be looking for here at my house, if not me?”
Her words hit like arrows, one after the other, leaving Yuel’s face red as if it would burst. He could only fumble with his lips, unable to form a reply.
His plump lips, like a ripe apple, looked especially pretty.
And with the corners of his lips slightly upturned, it was as if he was always smiling, which made others feel cheerful just looking at him.
Though he is a little prickly.
Still, Seria liked Yuel that way. He was nice to look at, and teasing him always earned instant reactions.
Even when her words were sharp, his nature was gentle. And on days she pushed him too far, Yuel had never once lashed out violently.
Of course, if he had, my brothers wouldn’t have let it slide.
Just the thought of her five overreacting brothers was enough to give her a headache.
With a sigh, Seria noticed that Yuel had already slipped a good distance away again.
When did he sneak off that far?
Smiling faintly, Seria lifted her arms high and waved.
“Let’s play again tomorrow!”
“I’m not playing with you anymore!”
His sharp reply made Seria burst out laughing.
He said that every time they parted, so by now, it sounded like a farewell greeting.
“Okay, so you’ll come out tomorrow too?”
“…No!”
His faint voice drifted away on the wind.
Why so desperate about it?
There was no way Seria would let Yuel go so easily.
After all, he was not only her best toy, but also her very first real friend.
Seria had reached the age of ten without making a single friend, for two main reasons.
First, she had been born frail, so her first growth had been delayed.
Second, she had five older brothers who overprotected her.
To explain this, one had to first acknowledge the trials of the duke and duchess who ended up raising five sons.
From their children’s names alone, you could tell how badly they had wished for a daughter.
From the first to the fifth son, all their names ended with “-ri” and began with consonants in alphabetical order. For example:
Gari, Najeri, Danori, Raryuri, Marongri.
Maybe when they named the second son it was half a joke, but after five sons in a row, they simply settled on the naming system.
Thanks to that, even strangers could immediately tell which son was which just by hearing their names.
In that sense, Seria was special.
If she had been born a boy, her name would have started with “Ba-” and ended with “-ri.” But since she was their precious daughter, they simply gave her a pretty name instead.
Naturally, all the family’s attention was centered on her.
And since she was both precious and weak, it only made sense.
Still, sometimes that excessive attention left Seria feeling suffocated.
“Yuel, where are you?”
That was why Yuel, who gave her no attention—or rather, outright ran away from her—was such a refreshing and oddly comfortable presence.
Even if all he did was try to avoid her.
It’s not like he actually dislikes me.
If anything, he probably leaned more toward liking her.
Seria had a knack for sensing when someone disliked her—she could always tell, even if they tried to hide it.
It was a child’s pure intuition, but also something she was naturally sensitive to.
So this was just a kind of game to her.
Well… except for the fact that Yuel was really good at hiding.
He’s hiding again.
Was he serious yesterday when he said he wouldn’t play anymore?
Wiping the sweat from her brow, Seria looked around the garden.
The bigger problem with her frailty wasn’t just that her body was weak—it was that her health often declined suddenly.
Even when she was playing happily, she might collapse without warning. Just a little overexertion was enough to worry her.
Maybe if I told him I was sick, Yuel would play with me.
The thought made her shake her head.
No way—if that happened, the fun would vanish instantly.
If Yuel fussed over her like her brothers did, it wouldn’t feel like playing anymore.
I’m getting tired…
She exhaled deeply, her legs heavy, her face hot as if fever was setting in.
Maybe I should just go back inside and rest.
That was probably best, but her feet refused to turn back.
The Rickard marquis, Yuel’s father, was staying at the ducal estate while he attended to business in the capital. But once his work was done, it would be unreasonable to hold them here for months.
Seria wasn’t childish enough to throw a tantrum to keep Yuel from leaving.
So I have to play with him as much as I can while he’s here.
Even their usual hide-and-seek, normally so fun, felt exhausting today.
Just as she decided she should head back, Seria spotted Yuel hiding not too far away.
“Found you!”
At her triumphant shout, Yuel’s ears twitched up again.
He turned, wearing a strange look—part sulky, part as if he were about to cry.
“Why do you keep chasing me?”
“I’m not chasing, I’m finding you.”
Same thing, really. Though she didn’t say it, Yuel’s frustration was obvious.
Maybe it was that reaction that made her forget her poor condition and start running hard again.
She only managed about ten steps. Then Seria pitched forward and collapsed.
“S-Seria?!”
Yuel’s eyes widened in an instant, all his grumbling forgotten.
With a pop, not just his ears but his tail also appeared, his body moving with feline agility as he darted toward her.
“What’s wrong?! Don’t joke around!”
If this is a prank, I really won’t play with you anymore!
His desperate little threat hung in the air, but Seria didn’t get back up.
Is she… really hurt?
Yuel hurried to her side, hoping desperately it was just a trick.
Tears welled in his blue eyes, about to spill when—
“Gwaaargh—! (Seria—!)”
A strange roar cut through the air, startling him out of it.
He looked up in shock.
A dragon.
An illusion?
He blinked rapidly, rubbed his eyes with his fists, but it didn’t vanish.
Worse, it was coming straight toward them.
“Seria!”
“Seria!” “Seria!”
Her name rang out from every direction, like echoes bouncing around him.
But each voice sounded subtly different.
“Seria fainted again!”
“Damn it, I told her not to play with that brat.”
“Gari! Turn into your human form already.”
“What’s her condition?”
“Get that kid out of the way first.”
Five young men appeared out of nowhere. Each was different, yet strikingly similar at the same time.
Their heights, their temperaments, even their animal forms varied—but all five were Seria’s brothers.
Five in total. Yes, five.
The realization made Yuel hiccup involuntarily.
His face drained pale, his pupils trembling uncontrollably.
“I-I’m sorry.”
So the first thing he did was apologize.
Thinking that maybe it’d be better to just collapse next to Seria and get it over with.
