BSPC 07

The next morning I woke with that clear, airy feeling you get after a good, deep sleep.

“Myaaah.” (Yawn.)

After rubbing my eyes with my forepaws—by now a fairly familiar motion—I looked around.

I was lying on a plush sofa that was clearly made to cat-size. It was finished in soft velvet, and the fabric felt wonderful against my skin. Right in front of me, a bowl of clean water and some treat that looked like churu were neatly arranged.

“…What happened yesterday feels like a dream.”

Well, this situation itself was dreamlike. Who would’ve thought that only two days ago I was rolling around the market, and now I was getting treated like this?

Sunlight poured into the warm room, which smelled peaceful. I snarfed the water and treats as fast as I could and finished my cat-style face wash. After grooming, I sat on the sofa and replayed yesterday’s events in my head—when the door creaked and opened.

Standing in the doorway was the person who, overnight, had climbed to the top of my personal blacklist.

“Aziz…!!”

You jerk. I had a thousand things I wanted to say!

I darted to him and puffed out my cheeks, giving his leg a series of light kicks. It wouldn’t actually hurt him, of course, but it was the smallest protest I could manage.

“Good morning, Cat. Did you sleep well last night?” he said.

“Haaack!” (I don’t know, you idiot!)

“Yesterday someone attempted to infiltrate the prince’s chambers by setting off a smoke screen. Did you happen to see anyone suspicious?”

Anyone suspicious?

I rolled my eyes and tried to recall whether there’d been any intruders besides me. But no matter how I thought about it, no one else came to mind.

When I shook my head, he belatedly apologized to me.

“I’m sorry about what happened yesterday. You must’ve been quite startled.”

Yeah—startled isn’t the word. I’d been treated like a lunatic and threatened, among other things. If the prince’s that scary, he could’ve given fair warning!

“Honestly, it surprised me too. You do tolerate sleeping pills, but at that dosage you should only wake by morning. I think the intruder must’ve roused you. The prince is very sensitive, after all.”

…Uh, I think that was because of my kiss.

Before I changed forms, Prince Suleiman seemed to sleep so deeply no one would notice if he were carried away. ‘Could it be… he doesn’t know I turned human?’ It looked like he’d misunderstood—thinking I’d fled the room out of fright because of the break-in. It wasn’t unreasonable: the incident happened shortly after Aziz left, and when he saw me again I was a cat. The guards had come in after I had already completed the transformation, so no one had seen my human form.

While I fretted over that, Aziz—wearing a friendly smile—asked another question.

“By the way, did you try kissing him yesterday? If there was even a small reaction, please tell me.”

Should I tell the truth? But something felt off under his smiling face, so after a moment’s hesitation I shook my head.

“Myaaong.” (No. Nothing happened.)

He didn’t come across as a villain exactly, but I still felt I needed more time before I could trust him. ‘Let’s observe the situation and talk later.’

I was nervous at the thought of seeing Suleiman again so soon, and I needed to get used to the palace anyway.

Sighing as if disappointed, Aziz gently stroked my head.

“That’s fine. You can’t expect everything at once. We’ll take it slow. I’ll try harder to help you regain your human form.”

His kind words made me tilt my head. Aziz was a strange fellow—impossible to tell whether he was good or bad.

“We should get going before tea time.”

“Miyaaong…?” (Tea time…?)

“Yes. There’s someone who’s been eager to see the Cat.”

Tea time with a cat. The thought of sitting across from someone, sipping milk instead of tea, made me snort a laugh.

“Nyaaang. Nyaoong?” (Who invited me?)

“She’s a beautiful and noble person. She can be a bit troublesome, but I’m sure you’ll like her.”

“Nyah.” (Hmm.)

I glared at him and thought it over. ‘What should I do…?’ I wasn’t thrilled about being taken somewhere again after last night, but I did need more information about this place.

“Nyaong.” (Okay, I’ll go.)

When I summoned the courage to answer, he smiled broadly.

“It’s a bit of a walk to the tea place, so I’ll escort you myself.”

“Nyaa.” (Do as you like.)

Aziz picked me up with careful hands, cradling me, and we walked slowly toward the place where the mysterious person was waiting.

Through long halls and up staircases, past tight security, we arrived at the tea-time location: an open garden.

“Nya-ha….” (Wow….)

I was stunned—this place was far more beautiful than I’d expected. The garden, surrounded by dense woods, felt abundant and alive. A variety of birds chirped and fluttered, making it feel like we were in a forest. The air was fresh, mixed with the scent of grass, and the temperature felt cool, like someone had switched on the air conditioning the instant we stepped in. It was so natural and lovely that it was hard to believe we were still in the palace.

While I stood there, mesmerized by the view, Aziz grinned.

“A wonderful place, isn’t it? I like it here, too.”

I nodded—on that point I strongly agreed. I strolled along the path, enjoying the scenery. A little later, I saw a tea table set beside a small pond where water trickled.

‘…Who’s that?’

Frowning, I looked closely. On a long, comfortable lounger a woman lay stretched out, taking a leisurely nap. When she raised her body, yawning, I was taken aback by how startlingly beautiful she was. Her curly red hair, tanned healthy skin, and a dress that hugged a sensual figure made her attractiveness undeniable.

‘She’s surrounded by so many cats.’

Around her, about ten cats had gathered in a circle around the lounger. Anyone could tell at a glance who the cats belonged to.

“I’ll put her down here.”

“Yaong.” (Okay.)

Aziz set me down on the ground and made a point of announcing our arrival, and the woman—who’d woken late—stretched and rose.

“You’re late, Aziz.”

“Your Excellency Hurem Sultan,” Aziz said, kneeling on one knee before kissing Hurem’s hand and touching his forehead to it—a formal greeting of a retainer to their lady.

‘If she’s the Sultan… then she must be the ruler here,’ I thought, frozen.

Aziz introduced me.

“Hurem, this is the incarnation of Ishtar I found—the prophesied cat.”

“Hm.”

Hurem made a small gesture, as if she wanted a closer look. Aziz lifted me and placed me on the tea table. Meeting her gaze at table level, I felt the full force of her charisma and swallowed hard.

‘She’s a little intimidating… but what a person.’

Even another woman might find Hurem’s presence fluttering the heart. I looked down to hide my flushed face, and Hurem’s lips slowly moved.

“White fur and heterochromia. Small and cute.”

A mischievous curiosity flickered in her eyes.

“But Aziz, is this one male or female?”

Her blunt question completely broke my train of thought. “You raise tens of cats and can’t tell the sex of one?” I thought to myself.

“Careful how you speak to the Sultan, Aziz—do you not know she could have you beheaded in an instant?”

“I’m not afraid of things like that. Why would you say that, when you know so well?” Aziz replied.

“Hm, I’m not sure… Should I test by cutting off one of its arms?” she teased.

“Do as you please,” Aziz said.

It was a fearsome threat, but Aziz, who seemed fearless, snorted at the Sultan. Hurem’s eyes folded into crescent-moon smiles.

“If you ever want to die, tell me. For old times’ sake, I’ll make it as easy on you as I can.”

She giggled as if she was having a pleasant time. ‘This is terrifying…’ A Sultan who enjoys threatening her own retainer—what an aberration. I felt like one of the only normal people around.

“Enough joking. The cat can understand speech—fine creatures do—and you’re trembling right now.”

“Stop nagging. But this one is too good to give away. Maybe I’ll just gobble it up myself.”

…What does she mean gobble up?

I briefly wondered whether this world had some bizarre culinary custom of eating cats. “I’m not tasty!! I won’t give much meat!!” I thought, and struck a dramatic pose: crossing my forepaws into an X and sucking in my pink belly to appear as unappetizing as possible.

My serious acting made Aziz and Hurem’s expressions change, and suddenly they burst into laughter.

“Puh, puh-hut!”

“Ha ha ha!”

They laughed until the garden seemed to shake.

“Oh. This cat is really adorable.”

“A rare charm. Even Aziz says he’s never seen such a lovely creature.”

No—I’m the ugly one!

Panicked, I put my paws to my cheeks and drooped my face into the ugliest expression I could manage. But that had the exact opposite effect.

“Hmm, could I just keep it? I want to put it in my cat-exclusive harem. With your ability, you can find more cats, right?”

What’s a cat-only harem? Like a cat hotel?!

As I let my imagination run wild, Aziz sighed and scolded.

“There’s no other cat, obviously. Please have some decorum. Isn’t this a gift from God prepared for Your Highness’s son?”

“A gift, huh—yet I still want it. He’s my son, but I’d hate to give him something so stiff.”

His son? What?

I widened my eyes and recalled what I’d heard in Prince Suleiman’s room yesterday.

“This mark says it’s the Sultan’s property…perhaps Mother’s prank.”

Ah—so that must mean that the Sultan is his mother.

With the situation finally clicking into place, I examined Hurem’s face out of the corner of my eye. She and Suleiman had many outward similarities from my brief but intense encounter yesterday—sharp features, a dark smooth healthy complexion, and a beauty that, if stared at too long, made your eyes twitch.

“If he doesn’t change back from the prince’s kiss… what then?”

“We’ll need to run more tests, I suppose. For now, weakening Prince Suleiman’s curse is the priority.”

“That might be better—put out the urgent fire first.”

“At this morning’s checkup, the prince’s energy seemed fairly stable. If we increase contact time and frequency, there should be improvement.”

I perked up my ears and focused on their conversation. ‘Something’s off.’

Specifically, the phrase “increase contact time and frequency” bothered me. ‘Do I have to meet that scary prince again…?’ But there didn’t seem to be any alternative—Suleiman was the only apparent way for me to become human.

“Nyaa.” (Sigh. I guess I have no choice.)

Where else would I find a chance to stop living as a cat for good? Maybe someday I’d become fully human.

‘I’ll ask them to raise the sleeping pill strength while he sleeps. That way he’ll be less scary.’

Just as I was about to say that to Aziz, I saw a man walking straight toward us from a distance.

‘Who’s that?’

As the familiar silhouette came closer, I drew in a shaky breath. A well-built man with smooth, satin-like black hair and glowing red eyes, dressed in austere black formal wear—the man was—

“You’re here, Mother.”

Oh my goodness.

It was Prince Suleiman, the man who’d held a knife to my throat yesterday.