CHAPTER~13
Nothing in This World is Free (2)
The cat climbed onto my chest, swishing its tail lightly.
‘Wait, is this really a cat?’
The swishing tail, the pointed ears, the graceful body—all were those of a cat.
But there was something unusual about this cat.
“You, your body is made of paper?”
Indeed, the cat’s entire body was wrapped in parchment.
The strange paper cat quickly jumped down from my body.
It walked a few steps on the bed, then said…
“I am a Symbolic Being born from the Awakening Stone, meow.”
The cat… could talk.
Well, cats can talk… I guess.
With magic existing in this world, who couldn’t do something extraordinary?
Confusion lasted only a moment, and I quickly accepted it and organized the situation.
‘If it’s a “Symbolic Being”…’
I groaned and racked my brain, desperately searching through the settings of my debut work in my head.
The Symbolic Being… I had set it up as a familiar-like entity appearing for someone with extremely high magical power, right?
And now such a being was in front of me.
‘Oh, maybe I’m a bit strong.’
I doubted its efficacy for a moment, but it seemed getting the Awakening Stone had been a good decision.
It even confirmed that my ability was better than expected.
While I was patting myself on the back, the paper cat lightly tapped my chin with its paw.
“I’m hungry. Feed me already.”
“Feed you? What do you mean?”
“Stories, meow.”
Even as a paper cat, it acted like a real cat, already commanding me as if I were a bell because it was hungry.
This cheeky cat.
When I tried to grab its body, the paper cat slipped through my hands like water.
Then it stretched its waist and spoke again.
“So treat me well. If I starve, your brain will be sucked out.”
And it even threatened me brutally.
Wait, what did that cheeky cat just say?
My brain… sucked out?
“Eek!”
I panicked and covered my head with both hands.
The cat watched me with half-lidded eyes and snorted.
“So you thought you could use such great power without a price? Where in this world is anything free, meow?”
Well, it couldn’t be…
After all, this world was the one I had designed.
In the story world I had made, I didn’t care if characters were severely challenged, as long as the ending was happy.
And I… was a writer who gave penalties corresponding to how strong the characters became.
But I never imagined the penalty would become either the cat’s food courier or its emergency ration.
Whether I was upset or not, the cat remained haughty like a true cat.
“Originally, since you used your abilities twice, I should be fed two new stories…”
“I used my abilities twice? When did I do that?”
“Once when stopping the white-haired man, and once when creating an escape for the golden-haired man.”
“T-That’s true.”
If I had known, I would’ve just told Kyrus to leave on his own! That guy!
“To be clear, my food is ‘stories,’ meow.”
“…”
“You must present me with very high-quality stories.”
The cat, trailing off, revealed its claws and teeth.
“If you don’t give me stories, I may even have to eat the brain containing your stories…”
So that’s what it meant by sucking the brain?
Despite its small appearance, this cat was a magical cat.
It was born from magic so powerful it could place thorn rings around the neck of the strongest emperor of the world.
Considering that, the threat of eating my brain was not a lie.
Shivering, I watched as the cat raised one side of its mouth in a crooked grin.
“Of course! I am a generous Symbolic Being, meow.”
“…Huh?”
The aggressive paper cat delivered a thunderous message.
“What? A month? W-What do you mean? I have a deadline? Impossible…!”
I died from overwork during deadlines in my past life!
“…What happens if I don’t meet the deadline?”
Despairing at the thought of suffering through deadlines again, I saw the cat twitch its whiskers slyly.
“Well, if the deadline passes, your brain will be sucked out by me, of course.”
Damn it, when will that brain ever be safe?!
Cute in appearance, but as nasty as Kallio in temper.
So, summarizing the cat’s words?
‘If I don’t provide a new story as food for the cat within a month, I die.’
Another trial had come to me.
“Ugh!”
In the motif world, the protagonist in <Scheherazade> serialized a story every day for 1001 days. My situation was slightly better, but…
Still, now I had to work again?
I made a mistake.
In my debut work, I only described the heroine using the Awakening Stone and magic freely, never imagining such behind-the-scenes.
But I couldn’t just despair like this.
I groaned and then jumped to my feet.
“S-So, after using magic, I just have to come up with a story each month, write it on paper, and feed it to you?”
“It depends on the story you give me.”
The cat licked its lips.
“By the way, the last story you gave me, ‘The Empress Who Defied the Emperor with Fire,’ was spicy and delicious. The narrative was sloppy, though.”
It tapped its tail on the floor in dissatisfaction at the mention of narrative, but.
So as long as it’s a ‘story,’ whether I mutter it or write it on paper, this Symbolic Being will recognize it as food.
But to satisfy this cat, I have to present a properly structured story?
“You don’t have specific conditions for the stories you prefer?”
“It doesn’t matter what the ingredients are. As long as it’s unique and fun, I like it all.”
“…I see. Anything interesting, you eat.”
“Ah, but don’t feed me existing stories. That’s like giving me spoiled food.”
In other words, I must work hard to create original content without plagiarism.
‘This damned cat.’
However, it wasn’t entirely hopeless. If I had to escape this palace, I would inevitably do extraordinary things.
Surely, some of these stories would please the cat.
Sighing, I saw the cat lift its chin cautiously and leap upward.
Then it turned back into paper and disappeared into the air.
Suddenly, someone approached outside the door.
Tap, tap.
Kallio entered through the open door.
I unconsciously tensed and bit my lips.
Kallio straightened his bent posture, having ducked to pass through the smaller door, and smiled lightly. Below his fox-like curved eyes, a small tear mark showed.
As usual, Kallio wore a black robe, but underneath it, his sturdy body was visible through a thin linen shirt.
He was so tall that standing over me gave off an intimidating presence.
Behind Kallio, a line of servants carrying bedding followed.
‘What is all that?’
I tilted my head in confusion.
Kallio delivered the absurd news personally.
“Today, the Empress will share the same bedroom as me.”
“W-What? But your bedroom is not here, it’s in the outer palace—”
“Well, today is the night of the union, isn’t it?”
It was the announcement of the union night.
“I decided that.”
***
Kallio had decreed that I would sleep in the same room as him.
The maids helping with the bath and bedding spoke absurd things about how much the Emperor cared for the Empress, that the next emperor’s star would come from her, and so on.
But he was not obsessed with me.
While the servants brought the bedding into the room, Kallio fidgeted with his neck but glanced at me repeatedly.
‘He must be concerned about the magical ring.’
This wasn’t truly a union night for leisure.
Most likely, it was to monitor me.
To measure when and under what conditions the ring around his neck would activate.
Kallio’s sly intentions were infuriating.
…
The crescent moon, hook-shaped, hung in the sky.
I lay on the bed first, tightening my pajamas, never letting my guard down.
Kallio couldn’t kill me because of the story’s magic.
But I still couldn’t use my magic properly, and the spell was mostly a way to buy time.
It was the last protection to prevent Kallio from threatening me until I obtained money and a false identity.
Originally, I planned to act cold and distant to make him feel a sense of danger.
Who would approach someone who had cursed them so easily?
‘But even after all that, he sleeps in the same room as me? Isn’t he insane?’
My heart pounded with anxiety.
Then, a large figure slipped under the ornate geometric-patterned blanket.
I desperately turned my body to avoid seeing the intruder’s face, but his large hand grabbed my waist and turned me around.
