Chapter : 15
At the shout—so transparent in its intent—everyone burst into giggles. Only Soya flinched and asked in alarm,
“G-gh-ghost?”
“Y-yeah! A ghost! They say there’s a terrifying ghost in Baekho Palace that only snatches up tiny kids like you!”
Gayul’s heart pounded wildly. He had almost blurted out, “Because you’re cute!”
In truth, his mind was still filled with the image he had briefly seen that day—Soya in her beast form.
It was his first time seeing a bird beast.
The baby bird, small enough to fit in his palm, was whiter than a rabbit and smaller than a mouse.
The fluffy wings in place of forelegs were adorable, and the tiny, slender legs were fascinating.
How does she walk on such little legs?
The little tail feathers sticking up were just as dainty as Suri had said.
And that down—white as snowflakes!
Of course, he too, as a White Tiger, had white fur. But unlike his own long, glossy coat, the baby bird’s down was short and soft, like dandelion fluff.
When he had carefully lifted her, she had felt so small and precious—like something that absolutely had to be protected. It had made him feel ticklish inside.
She was incredibly, unbelievably cute!
But saying that out loud felt embarrassing. After all, he was a shy baby tiger.
So instead, he had made up a lie about a nonexistent ghost.
Meanwhile, Soya—completely unaware of his true thoughts—looked terribly anxious.
She had never seen a ghost before, but it sounded terrifying. And more than anything…
“Th-then Young Master would be in danger too, wouldn’t he?”
“Huh?”
What if a ghost appeared and carried him off?
Soya’s face crumpled.
“N-no! I’m fine! I’m the third son of the great White Tiger clan! I’m not afraid of some ghost!”
“But…”
“You know what a tiger is, right?”
“Yes…”
“Well, I’m a White Tiger who hunts ghosts!”
“….”
Yet Soya’s gloomy expression didn’t ease.
When she had been very young—back when she was the beloved youngest daughter of the Vermilion Bird clan—
Her father and brothers used to read her picture books every night before bed.
[The arrogant tiger was blown far away with a single majestic flap of the firebird’s wings.]
[Big Brother, look at this picture! This must be a tiger! It has four legs!]
[That’s right, Soya. That’s a tiger. The White Tiger clan that rules the West.]
[Hmph… They call it the king of beasts, but it seems much weaker than a bird. It got blown away with one flap of wings.]
[Haha, that’s why they say a young tiger doesn’t know to fear a bird.]
The problem was that the picture book had been slightly distorted—the tiger was drawn very small and weak. And Soya had believed it wholeheartedly.
In fact, what she had seen in the picture wasn’t even a tiger. It was a cat.
Of course, Saeon, who had saved her from an assassin, was very strong… but assassins and ghosts were different things.
“Have you ever seen a tiger?” Gayul suddenly asked.
“I’ve seen one in a picture book.”
“Not that. A real tiger.”
“No.”
Soya shook her head.
“Tigers are really strong! Their teeth are sharp, and their claws are as hard as steel!”
“….”
Seeing that her worry hadn’t faded, Gayul tried explaining just how strong tigers were.
But Soya’s face clearly showed she didn’t believe him at all.
“Fine! I’ll personally show you the dignified form of a tiger!”
Unable to bear it any longer, Gayul attempted to transform in front of her.
Poof!
“Rooaaaar! (Well? Impressive, right?)”
“…!”
Soya’s eyes widened.
Among beastfolk, the period from awakening one’s core at six years old until just before the first growth spurt around ten was called childhood.
Unlike humans, beastfolk didn’t grow gradually. They experienced explosive growth during specific phases.
And since Gayul had only just turned ten, he was still in childhood—an unawakened baby tiger awaiting his first growth.
A very small baby tiger. Small enough for Soya to lift with both hands.
The baby tiger opened his tiny mouth wide and let out a fierce “Rooaaar!”
Soya’s once gloomy eyes sparkled, and a rosy blush spread across her face.
He’s… unbelievably cute!
The tiger was just as small and adorable as she had imagined.
Two round, pointy ears standing upright. A moist pale-pink nose. Soft fur and a gently swaying tail.
It looked like it would purr if you stroked its head.
“Roar! (Well, fluffball? Isn’t my majestic form amazing?)”
Gayul proudly raised his fluffy white forepaw.
The thick paw, hiding its sharp claws, was one of his proudest features.
“…!”
Soya gasped.
H-his paw pads are pink! And they look so squishy!
She clapped her hands in admiration.
Baby tiger Gayul was even cuter than the cloth dolls in Lady Liri’s room.
“Amazing!”
Completely unaware that she was admiring his cuteness, Gayul assumed she was awed by his bravery.
“Grrr! (I’ll generously allow you to touch my glossy fur, fluffball!)”
“Is that really okay?”
“Grrr! (Go ahead.)”
Soya bent down and very carefully stroked his fur.
Tiger fur felt different from bird feathers—warm and soft.
Feeling pleased, Gayul purred and swished his tail.
Tigers are really small and cute animals.
As she watched his swaying tail, Soya wondered,
Do Lord Saeon and the Second Young Master also have pink noses and pink paw pads? But the Head of the Clan is so big… It’s strange to imagine him as such a small, cute tiger beast.
It was odd imagining the cold and sharp-looking Saeon with pink paws.
“Roar! (Now you show me!)”
“Pardon?”
“Grrr! (Your beast form, fluffball!)”
“….”
Soya’s face turned pale.
“N-no! I’m not cool at all, a-anyway, no!”
She shook her head vigorously.
“Grrr? (So what if you’re not cool?)”
But Soya bit her lower lip and turned away stubbornly.
It was a firm refusal unlike anything she had shown before.
Though not the most perceptive, Gayul instinctively realized he shouldn’t push further.
More than anything, her trembling fingertips caught his attention.
Uh-oh… at this rate, I’m going to make her cry.
He looked around for help—but Yeonjeong and Sanho had just stepped away to fetch drinks.
Then, his eyes landed on an abandoned leather ball.
His eyes lit up.
“Roar! (Fluffball! Want to play ball?)”
“…?”
Blinking at the sudden suggestion, Soya watched as Gayul quickly carried the ball over and dropped it before her.
It rolled right to her feet.
She looked down.
A ball…
She couldn’t remember the last time she had held one.
In the Vermilion Bird clan, such things hadn’t been permitted for her.
Once, while cleaning Lady Liri’s room, she had touched Liri’s leather ball—and had been severely scolded.
It turned out their father had brought it from the Western Regions just for Lady Liri.
But Lady Liri isn’t here… and Young Master asked me first…
After hesitating, Soya carefully picked up the ball with both hands.
Thump, thump.
Her heart pounded.
Seeing that, Gayul stepped back a little and wagged his tail.
“Grrr! (Go on, throw it, fluffball!)”
Gathering her courage, Soya threw the ball toward him.
Thud, thud, roll—
The ball didn’t even reach his paws and simply rolled across the ground. But watching it, a shy smile spread across Soya’s face.
Meanwhile, Baek Gahyeon, who had been watching from the window above, frowned in exasperation.
What on earth is he doing?
In the garden below, Gayul—in his baby tiger form—was running around playing with Soya.
For a tiger on the verge of his first growth, it was an utterly pathetic sight.
