Chapter 38
“…That beast, you mean?”
At my words, Luan’s movements halted for a moment.
Just as I was about to explain everything, Lunatis — who had been watching Luan warily — suddenly turned her sharp gaze toward me.
“Sophia is looking for me? What are you talking about, Zoe?”
Lunatis’s beautiful mismatched eyes trembled uncontrollably.
“Answer me. How do you know Sophia? And what do you mean she’s looking for me?”
…Could it be that Lunatis missed Sophia, too?
If so, maybe this could be resolved peacefully.
“Well, I’m Sophia’s friend… She said she wanted to find you, so I’ve been helping her.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Why would someone who abandoned me want to find me now?”
“…What are you talking about? Sophia said she asked to meet you the day she moved, but you never showed up.”
“It’s true, I promised Sophia to meet that day, just like you said.
But no matter how long I waited through the night, she never came. Sophia left me here! Ha… if she was going to throw me away that easily, she shouldn’t have been kind to me in the first place…”
Anger and sorrow appeared on Lunatis’s face at once.
Like an animal trapped in false memories, she looked deeply wounded — and only then did I realize something strange.
Sophia and Lunatis’s memories didn’t match.
Could it be… Sophia lied to me?
I thought back to Sophia’s face when she had told me about Lunatis, suspicion creeping in.
But then I shook my head. That gentle gaze couldn’t have been fake.
Just as I was convincing myself it must be a misunderstanding, one person flashed through my mind.
“Gerald. That watermelon-seed-spitting bastard, don’t tell me…”
“Zoe, have you realized something?”
At my sharp curse, Luan sheathed his sword and asked curiously.
“Yes. I’m not completely sure, but I think Gerald schemed something between Sophia and Lunatis. Lunatis believes Sophia abandoned her.”
“Gerald… you mean the eldest son of House Rasben? The one we met in the alley?”
I nodded.
“Wait—Gerald? You mean that jerk who used to torment me and Sophia endlessly? Sophia even got hit by rocks because of him! I should have bitten his arm off back then!”
Lunatis shouted, trembling with rage.
So he really was a piece of trash through and through.
That confirmed my theory.
I looked at Lunatis with determined eyes.
“Lunatis. What do you say we meet Sophia again and talk it out? I think there’s been a misunderstanding between you two.”
“What if… it’s not a misunderstanding? Then I’ll be abandoned by her twice. I… I don’t want to be disappointed in Sophia again. After all, she was the first human who ever saved me.”
“No. Sophia would never do that.”
“How can you be so sure? I know Sophia better than you do!”
“Exactly. You know her better than I do — so tell me. Do you really think she’s the kind of person who’d do that?”
“T-that’s…”
Lunatis’s head drooped.
She probably suspected the truth herself, deep down.
She’d just been too afraid to confirm it — too afraid of what she might find.
I walked up to her, ears drooping, and gently said:
“Stop being stubborn. Come with us, okay? Sophia really wants to see you.”
“…Okay.”
Lunatis, now in a crouch, nodded and wrapped her tiny arms tightly around my neck.
Good. First, I’ll get them reunited and clear up the misunderstanding… and then I’ll deal with that bastard Ge— no, Jerald.
A simple, elegant plan.
I looked to Luan.
“Luan, where’s Sophia now?”
“She should be waiting in the village. I told her not to follow since it might be dangerous.”
“Damn it… what the hell was that guy?”
Jerald was furious. Being knocked flat in front of Sophia by some unknown man, and then even passing out — it was beyond humiliating.
“Ha! So she’s got a new man now, huh? That slick-looking pretty boy… damn it!”
Thinking of that annoying man’s smug face, Jerald’s expression twisted.
And Sophia’s eyes — still full of contempt and scorn, just like always — burned in his mind.
He wanted to storm over to her right now and demand an explanation, but he couldn’t.
“Damn it! She had me thrown into custody and ran off?!”
When he finally regained consciousness, Jerald found himself sprawled on the cold, hard floor of a security post — apparently someone had reported him.
Grinding his teeth, he fumed.
He wasn’t supposed to be treated like this! He wasn’t some filthy, worthless commoner — he was a noble!
But the moment he woke, he caused his usual scene — shouting, flailing, throwing a tantrum — which unfortunately drew the attention of royal knights visiting for an inspection.
As a result, not only was he fined for disorderly conduct, but his father, Viscount Rasben, was summoned to the station.
After apologizing profusely to the knights, the viscount returned home and erupted in fury — confiscating Jerald’s business funds and placing him under strict house arrest.
“Ha… Sophia. I tried to be nice to you because you were decent-looking for a commoner, and this is how you repay me?”
Jerald’s dull brown eyes sharpened with malice.
“Damn it. I can’t stand it. There’s no way I’ll let that bitch cozy up to that guy.”
He muttered irritably, opened the second drawer of his bedside table, and took out a small key, stuffing it into his pocket before stepping toward the window.
“Sophia! Sophia!”
I’d been pounding on her door for ages, but there was no response from inside.
“Where could she have gone?”
“Maybe… she didn’t want to see me and left…”
“I told you, that’s not it.”
“Kiing…”
Lunatis — now in the form of a tiny kitten — whimpered sadly, her ears drooping.
Ah, damn it… even her crying is adorable.
She said Sophia probably wouldn’t recognize her like this, so she’d turned back into the form from when they first met —
a small kitten with half-white, half-black fur.
“That’s strange. She definitely said she’d wait at home until we got back.”
“Could she have gone to the mountain again?”
“If she had, we would’ve met her on the way. There’s only one path from the mountain to the village.”
Lunatis’s dungeon was deep in the mountain, and since we’d come straight down the trail, there was no way we’d missed her.
“Then should we check the guild? Maybe she went in early.”
That actually made sense.
We’d stayed in the dungeon longer than expected, and by the time we came out, dawn had already broken.
The bell in the small temple rang six times as we descended into the village, signaling the start of the workday —
so by now, most people would already be heading to work.
“That sounds right. We need to pick up our registration cards anyway. Let’s go to the guild.”
As I finished speaking, Luan extended his arms toward me naturally, as if saying come here.
“Hehe, Zoe! Ride on my back!”
That was Ruby — crouching down with a cheerful whinny.
I hesitated between Luan and Ruby for a moment, then climbed onto Ruby’s back.
“…Zoe.”
Luan’s voice sounded oddly forlorn as he watched me ride off.
“You’ve been up all night, haven’t you? Ruby got plenty of rest at the inn.”
“If that’s the case, it’s fine. I can still carry you.”
“Oh, stop it. The dark circles under your eyes are halfway down your face. Let’s get this done and go home.”
Ignoring his still-outstretched hands, I set off toward the guild with Ruby.
“Wow. Poor guy. Zoe, why didn’t you just let him carry you? Are you embarrassed?”
Lunatis, perched on Ruby’s back with me, glanced at the dejected-looking Luan trudging behind us.
“…Shut up.”
I was so done with being treated like his pet pony.
