Chapter 3
I stared at him with my round eyes, which naturally became sharp and hostile.
“Why? Do you have something to say?”
“…What?”
“You’ve been staring at me since earlier.”
I wasnāt just staring; I was glaring! But since my gaze is insignificant to carnivorous animals, I just lowered my head.
“…Nothing.”
“Alright.”
“…No, thatās not it. Youāre not thinking of giving me to your son as a snack, are you?”
“I donāt feed dirty things.”
“…Dirty?”
Shouldnāt he just say, “Itās not going to happen”? Iām clean, I washed up this morning!
“Right. Itās better not to feed anything strange than to have it make you sick.”
“…That’s a bit harsh, donāt you think?”
I was just about to say something when his steps stopped.
“We’re here.”
This person, or rather this beast-man, didnāt seem interested in hearing anything I had to say. He looked good, but aside from his handsome face, there was nothing else to look at. He was like a black panther.
Luckily, our uncomfortable walk ended there.
‘The real problem is here.’
The strong black panther scent in the mansion wasnāt coming from the leader, Asius Asix. It was coming from this room. It was the scent of the black pantherās presence, strong and intimidating.
The door opened, and I instinctively hid behind Asius, not trusting him at all, fearing the child might suddenly jump out and try to eat me.
But the room was silent, and no one was there.
“Is… the young master out?”
“The child never leaves the room. He doesnāt want to meet anyone.”
“Oh…?”
“You may enter.”
“…”
At that moment, I felt it. The raw, dangerous energy that only carnivorous animals give off.
“He’s very shy.”
“……”
I saw it at that moment. The black panther, hidden in the shadows, was staring at me.
“I think you donāt like me. Being a tutor must be tough, huh?”
Despite the fact that my instincts were screaming for me to run, I thought about giving up…
“No, I like you.”
“…In what way?”
I noticed the bright yellow eyes staring at me from the dark corner. It was a fierce and intense gaze.
I awkwardly pointed in that direction.
“No matter how I see it…”
Just then, the baby black panther, its bottom wiggling like a cat, quickly ran toward me and bit my neck.
“Ah!”
“He really likes you.”
“No! Wait, Master? Your child just ran up and bit my neck!”
Unlike me, who was flustered, Asius Asix looked very proud, watching the child. The little panther, or rather the young child, was so heavy that it was making me stumble.
Asius picked up the child.
“Louis, donāt eat it.”
“It looks delicious.”
Finally, the child pointed at his lips with his chubby fingers.
“…Even after all this, youāre sure Iām not food?”
“No. Louis, donāt eat anything random. Itāll make you sick.”
“Hmm… it smells so good. Can I at least take one bite?”
“So much for being shy. My neck is covered in drool now.”
“Louis Asix, show some decorum. You have to listen to your father.”
“Ch.”
At last, the master continued.
“This is your new tutorā¦ Ah.”
Asius Asix was staring at me, his eyes darting around.
“Small bird.”
I thought he might not know my name, so I waited, but it seemed like he had indeed forgotten. Small bird?
“Swallow!”
“Oh, right. Swallow. The species is swallow.”
“Is swallow meat tasty?”
“No, itās not.”
“Pfft…”
“Listen to your father.”
“Okay! I wonāt eat the swallow.”
“You canāt eat the tutor either.”
“…”
I couldnāt believe it. Was he seriously planning to eat me?
Looking down at the disappointed Louis, Asius Asix met my eyes.
“My sonās name is Louis Asix.”
“I heard the childās name before the employerās.”
“Ah.”
“Itās fine. I figured you were a black panther, so I already had a guess. Nice to meet you, young master. Iām Swallow, your new tutor.”
Asius cleared his throat and awkwardly continued. At this point, he didnāt seem interested in explaining who he was, probably thinking I already knew. Since I wasnāt here to be friendly with the employer, I decided to shift the conversation to Louis.
“Anyway, Louis is five years old. He succeeded in human transformation in three years.”
“Three years? He succeeded in human transformation in three years?”
I had heard that carnivorous beast-people usually take longer than herbivores to transform, so I was surprised.
āCompared to me, who took ten years, heās a genius.ā
There wasnāt much clarity on the human transformation of beast-people. I had heard it had to do with controlling the power inside them or the oppositeābecoming more beastly.
“Yes.”
“Thatās fast…”
“Louis. Do you like your new tutor?”
“Yes! It smells delicious!”
“…That delicious smell… Does your son really think Iām a snack?”
“Donāt worry. Heās a smart boy and listens well.”
Asiusās son, the one I would be tutoring, smiled at me, showing his sharp teeth.
“…I can trust this, right?”
“Of course.”
“By the way… Can I ask what happened to the previous tutors before I start?”
Of course, I wasnāt just asking out of curiosity. If the previous tutors had quit due to accidents, this was my last chance to back out.
“Youāre the first.”
“…What?”
“Most of them were eliminated during the screening process. And since youāre a carnivorous beast-person, even those who passed the screening ran away. Youāre the first to reach the child, and the child actually likes you. Swallow…”
“Swallow.”
“Right.”
Asius seemed too lazy to even say my name properly. Was this even okay?
“Is that… good?”
“Yeah. The tutor isnāt like a nanny or maid, so you donāt need to stay with the child all day. You only need to spend an hour twice a day for simple lessons. Heās still young, so you donāt need to teach much yet. Heās just learning how to study before learning anything else.”
So basically, itās just fourteen hours a week? Thatās a lot of money for that little work.
“…Is there a life insurance bonus for this job?”
“If youāre scared my child might hurt you, Iāll add another guarantee. If my child harms you, Iāll pay 100 times your salary in compensation. Is that good?”
I wouldnāt just accept that!
“Fine. Is there anything else you want from me, Master?”
He was right. I had no pride when it came to money.
