Chapter : 27
Soya’s face turned pale—so pale it was almost ashen.
Because before her stood a tiny creature, soft and fluffy like a cotton ball, with a small pointed beak, short little legs, and an adorable tail feather that reminded her of…
“Is that… me?”
Except for its black color, it looked exactly like her.
“Pyaa!”
The little black bird flapped its tiny wings. It let out a squeaky chirp, as if trying to be cute, but Soya’s tense expression didn’t soften at all.
“Piya?”
The black baby bird tilted its head curiously, then, in a bizarre twist, began melting and oozing like black mud.
Soya shivered at the strange sight.
The black goo pooled together, and now it reformed into a small black quadruped—a baby beast.
“Kyuung, kyuung!”
Its cry sounded slightly different from any she knew, but in appearance, it resembled a familiar creature.
Rounded, perky ears; shiny fur; a swishing tail; a cute little body that seemed like it would purr if you stroked its head.
And most importantly…
“Kyuwaang!”
The black creature raised its fluffy little paws, revealing soft, squishy paw pads.
Soya’s mind clicked. She realized what this black creature was mimicking. Even though it was completely black…
“A tiger…?”
As Soya swallowed hard, the black baby tiger carefully approached her and nibbled at her shoe tip.
Startled, Soya recoiled slightly.
The little tiger looked up at her with big, round eyes and wagged its tail gently from side to side.
“Kiiing?”
“….”
Still, Soya didn’t relax her guard. The tiger whimpered, then flopped onto its back in front of her, exposing its belly. It wriggled as if to say, “Go ahead, touch my tummy.”
The sight reminded Soya of something the youngest master had said to her not long ago:
“I’ll let you touch the belly, Fluffy! A tiger only shows its belly to someone it truly trusts!”
Carefully, Soya spoke to the little black tiger, whose eyes sparkled up at her.
“…Are you trying to say you won’t hurt me?”
The black tiger leapt up on all fours and nodded vigorously.
“Kyuung! Kyuung!”
“Ah… I’m sorry. I thought you were going to hurt me.”
The little tiger shook its head, then pointed behind Soya.
“Ah…!”
Following the tiger’s gesture, Soya turned and let out a short gasp.
“You were trying to protect me from the wild animals!”
“Kyuwaang!”
The black tiger nodded vigorously again.
Feeling much more at ease, Soya gazed at the tiger’s eyes. At first, its grayish eyes had seemed frightening, but now they felt strangely familiar.
“Hmm?”
A memory suddenly flashed in her mind—she remembered the gaze she had felt earlier while playing with the youngest master.
“Could it have been you spying on me earlier?”
“Kyuung!”
The black tiger’s eyes curved like crescent moons as it nodded.
“Ah, that explains it…”
Soya recalled how this black creature had transformed from a baby bird into a baby tiger moments ago. It had been imitating her and the youngest master.
But if it could mimic the youngest master, why hadn’t it revealed her own baby bird form?
“Does it have special powers because it’s a magical beast?”
Magical beasts.
Eight years ago, the traitorous Hyunmu clan allied with the “Ancient Evil” and unleashed monsters in the corrupted northern lands.
Hyunmu clan leader Hyun Ra-baek sent these magical beasts to attack the empire, plunging the continent into chaos. In response, the empire mobilized skilled warriors from various noble families to wage war against them.
Three years ago, Soya’s older brother from the Jujak family, San-yu, had been deployed to the front, as had the eldest son of the Baekho family—both summoned for the war against the magical beasts.
Soya had only heard stories of magical beasts as a child. This was the first time she had seen one in person.
But why was a beast from the northern lands here?
“I was told magical beasts are very dangerous… I need to be careful…”
The black tiger nuzzled her shoe again, squeaking softly.
“But it doesn’t seem dangerous.”
Her instincts told her the beast posed no threat. It had even protected her from wild animals earlier.
Soya crouched down and stroked the black tiger’s head. Its shiny black fur, unlike the youngest master’s, felt slightly rough and coarse.
The tiger purred contentedly, a perfectly innocent, childlike demeanor.
Still, Soya felt a pang of sadness thinking that such a gentle creature would be shunned just for being a magical beast.
“Hello, I’m Soya.”
“Kiiing!”
“How did you end up here?”
“Kiiing?”
The little tiger made soft whimpering sounds, but unfortunately, Soya couldn’t understand its words.
“You shouldn’t stay here. People might see you as a dangerous beast…”
Soya wanted to warn it that being seen by humans could be dangerous, but for some reason, the words wouldn’t come out.
Her own memories as a despised “naughty little bird” who had fled south to survive made her hesitate.
Perhaps sensing her sadness, the black tiger lifted a paw and gently patted her hand, just as she had petted its head earlier.
“Are you trying to comfort me?”
“Kyu, kyu!”
Its touch was rough and cold, a reminder of the northern lands, yet Soya felt warmth spreading through her heart. She smiled softly.
“Thank you… for protecting me and cheering me up.”
The black tiger used its paw to scribble something in the dirt.
Watching the squiggly lines, Soya realized they were letters.
“Seolyo (雪曜)…?”
“Kiiing!”
The little tiger tapped its chest with its paw.
“Could… that be your name?”
It nodded eagerly.
Soya’s eyes widened in surprise.
“It can even write its name! What a clever magical beast!”
“Kyu, kyu!”
Seolyo wagged its tail proudly.
Thanks to Seolyo driving away the wild animals, the forest was now as peaceful as when Soya first entered.
But a problem remained: in avoiding the wild animals, she had wandered deep into the forest and lost her way.
Looking up, the sun was starting to set.
“Oh no… I promised Yeonjeong-nim I’d return before dark.”
Soya didn’t want to be remembered as the child who broke her promise, and her brows drooped.
“Seolyo, do you know the way down the mountain?”
Seolyo tilted its head in confusion.
“Ah… you don’t know either. What should I do?”
Soya sighed and lowered her head. The scent of flowers tickled her nose. She rubbed it absentmindedly, and suddenly, an idea came to her.
“Oh! The youngest master…!”
“Baekho humanoids can smell you from a thousand ri away!”
The voice of the youngest master bragging arrogantly came to mind.
“Yes. He’ll definitely smell me out and come find me.”
Meanwhile, Gahyeon sat in front of a tea table, waiting for his guests.
He had accepted the meeting, thinking he might personally meet the tigers of the branch family who could become the new owners of the western end room.
Yet his mind was preoccupied with someone else entirely: Soya.
Just yesterday, he had overheard her conversation with an enemy, and had been so surprised that his eyes had gone wide before he dashed off. That tiny, delicate little “cotton ball” of a child.
