Chapter 6
‘Anyway, I’m so glad the knight sister didn’t refuse my request!’
It was a good start.
Riding the momentum, Ibi decided to properly express her gratitude.
It wasn’t much, but she chose the best thing she owned and shyly held it out.
It was a sunflower seed she had stored in her cheek pouch.
“Is this… for us?”
“Chyu.”
Ibi nodded bashfully.
‘Ah. If I just give it like this, they might think it’s a lazy gift.’
Before the three knights could take the seed, Ibi snatched it back, held it in her little hands, and began gnawing at it with her front teeth.
She carefully peeled away the shell so only the pretty, clean kernel remained.
‘There! Perfect!’
The shiny kernel looked plump and delicious.
“……”
For a moment, Ibi was tempted to eat it herself, but then she shook her head and held it out to the three humans.
Olga tried hard not to laugh as she brought the seed closer to Ibi’s mouth.
“You can just eat it, you know.”
“Chyu, tch!”
No, I don’t want to!
Ibi turned her head away determinedly to show her resolve.
But the three could see it—the tiny droplet of drool hanging at the corner of her mouth betrayed her.
“…Am I crazy? Why do I feel this desperate urge to give something up? I’ve never felt this before…”
“…It’s too precious to eat…”
The knights and Baird clutched at their chests dramatically as they gazed down at the little sunflower kernel.
Baird, who had carefully stored the seed Ibi gave him, turned to the plump female knight, Lisa.
“By the way… has the device our lord mentioned been prepared?”
Device? Ibi’s ears perked up.
‘D-Don’t tell me they’re talking about the interrogation!’
Lisa replied matter-of-factly,
“Yes. It’s ready to use. And the specialist is already waiting.”
“They say even the hardest people crumble after just one session.”
The more Ibi listened, the more ominous it sounded.
Her face grew pale.
“Good. Let’s take the little squirrel now.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lisa opened the door, and Baird reached out his hand toward Ibi.
Sensing danger, Ibi bit down on Baird’s hand as hard as she could.
“Gah!”
Then she seized the chance to leap off the bed and dash into the hallway.
“Oh my! Squirrel patient!”
“Please come back!”
Yeah, right! Like I’d go back!
Even though her stamina was terrible, Ibi was confident in short sprints.
Unfortunately, Baird was unexpectedly skilled.
In no time, he caught up and grabbed her tail.
He was quick—snatching her neatly without hurting her.
But Ibi didn’t care about his gentleness.
Chomp! Chomp!
‘Give back my sunflower seed, you villain!’
Dangling from his hand, Ibi bit at his fingers wildly.
“Ow! Ow! That hurts—ah, my lord!”
What?
That word—lord—made Ibi’s heart drop.
She turned her head to follow Baird’s gaze and saw the Duke of Noctis standing there with his retainers, watching them.
The cold golden eyes met hers, freezing Ibi on the spot.
At the same time, frustration welled up in her chest.
‘Why on earth are you trying to interrogate me?!’
Could he think I’m secretly working with the slave traders?
‘Come to think of it, he did suspect I was one of their pets at first…’
Then she made up her mind—she had to make it clear she was on his side!
But how could she convey that when all she could say was “chyu chyu”?
‘Oh! That’s right! The Duke is a black wolf beastman…!’
Ibi stretched her neck and howled.
“Piiichuuuuuuu—!”
It was her attempt at imitating a wolf’s howl.
“Chyuuuuu— Achyuuuuu—!”
Her howling echoed down the quiet castle corridor.
Everyone froze—Baird, the retainers, even the passing servants.
They clamped their hands over their mouths, shoulders trembling.
“…Truly a brave battle cry.”
“She must be trying to show the lord her courage. Heh.”
But Ibi didn’t care about their reactions.
‘This should get my feelings across!’
Panting, she looked up at the Duke.
He stared back, speechless.
“…Baird.”
“Yes, my lord—snrk.”
“You didn’t feed it something strange, did you?”
“Of course not!”
“Then it must be a physical issue. Take it and begin the procedure.”
“Yes, my lord. Come along now, brave little squirrel.”
Baird turned to carry Ibi away, but she didn’t give up appealing to the Duke.
“Chyu-chuuu! Achyuuu!”
“……”
No response.
Eventually, she drooped sadly. The Duke watched her go with an indescribable look.
The Duke’s interrogations were rumored to be horrifying.
Ibi trembled, pale and exhausted.
But as soon as she entered what she thought was the “torture room,” a warm, fragrant scent filled her nose.
And when she saw the room itself—
‘T-This… This is…?’
Just like the maid had said, various professional-looking tools were laid out. Perhaps brought by the “expert” they had summoned.
Bottles of herbs and medicinal plants.
A steaming bath filled with hot water.
A soft bed, fragrant oils, fluffy towels—
‘A luxury spa course?!’
It was unmistakable.
Something she could never have dreamed of in her previous life!
Baird handed her to the specialist.
“She’s especially delicate, so please take extra care.”
“T-This is the patient I’ll be working on today…?”
“Yes.”
The masseur couldn’t hide his surprise at the tiny flying squirrel.
But he was a professional—so skilled that even beastman nobles requested him by name.
He quickly regained his composure and bowed.
“I’ll do my utmost.”
And thus began the sky-squirrel massage session.
“First, let’s relax your body in a warm bath.”
But since the regular tub was too large for her small size, they replaced it with a foot bath. Ibi sniffed around and chose her favorite herbs to mix in.
Fresh, fragrant steam filled the air, melting away her tension.
“Chyu~uuuuu…”
“Next, we’ll move on to the oil massage.”
But since oil would mat her soft fur, the masseur instead kneaded her tiny hands and feet.
“Chyung chyu~.”
Heehee, it tickles.
Squish, squish, squish.
‘Hmm… his touch feels kind of… weirdly intense?’
She glanced up—and saw the masseur’s face going slack.
“Haa… it’s too adorable…” he mumbled, his tongue lisping strangely.
‘…Let’s pretend I didn’t see that.’
Ibi calmly placed two cucumber slices over her eyes.
Despite the awkwardness, the man’s skill was undeniable. Her body quickly relaxed into a soft, doughy state.
‘This feels amazing… so this is what pampering feels like.’
But something felt off.
Was this… the “interrogation”?
Were they trying to loosen her up so she’d spill everything?
While she pondered, a maid nearby stifled a giggle.
“Are you comfortable, patient?”
“Chyuung.”
“That’s a relief. We weren’t sure how to care for a small herbivore beastman like you.”
“Chyu?”
Care for me?
Ibi tilted her head, and the cucumbers slipped off her eyes.
The maid smiled gently.
“I heard you got hurt while trying to save our lord. So the Duke is compensating you for it.”
“Chyut? (Really?)”
Come to think of it—!
She vaguely remembered seeing the Duke talking to an elderly high priest through the communication orb earlier.
“The personal physician was called to diagnose you because our lord felt responsible for the shock your body suffered.”
The maid continued explaining kindly.
Ibi’s eyes widened in surprise.
So it was all a misunderstanding!
‘So that means I have to stay here for a while… in the terrifying black wolf Duke’s castle…’
This couldn’t be real.
It was too good to be true!
‘If I stay here, no one can mess with me. There’s nowhere safer than this!’
A huge smile spread across Ibi’s face.
‘And since I’m a patient, they’ll feed me too, right? Maybe once a day—or even twice!’
Warm happiness bubbled inside her.
‘Two meals a day… every day… that’s paradise!’
‘Okay! I’ll count this medical care as my payment for giving him information!’
Maybe if she kept coughing up fake blood occasionally, they’d feel too guilty to send her away.
‘Ah, wait.’
Then she recalled something from before her regression—
Rumors about Duke Noctis adopting an orphan.
“Did you hear? The Duke adopted a common orphan!”
“Just another act of charity for show. He really does care about his reputation, huh?”
“It’s just for appearances. The poor kid will be treated like the ugly duckling.”
‘That’s right! That’s what the maids at the count’s estate used to gossip about!’
An orphan with food, shelter, and safety provided.
‘That’s exactly the life I want!’
But it wouldn’t last forever.
Because years later, the Duke was said to adopt another child—
A girl personally recommended by the temple, right after he received a sacred relic from them.
‘If he already got what he wanted, why listen to the temple after that?’
Hmm… she didn’t really care.
What mattered was that once the temple’s child appeared, a common orphan like her would become unnecessary.
‘…They even said another orphan went missing right before that adoption happened.’
So she’d just have to disappear on her own before that.
‘Perfect. My new goal—get adopted by the villainous Duke!’
For her health!
For her safety!
“Chyupipit!”
Ibi threw a tiny determined fist into the air.
Startled, the masseur accidentally knocked over the bowl of cucumber slices, sending them cascading down onto Ibi.
Under a small mountain of cucumbers, her fluffy tail twitched weakly.
“…Pik.”
Save me.
