JEBPC 05

The bathtub, seen from above, was extremely large and deep. Without exaggeration, it looked big enough to fit not only a tiger but even a hippopotamus.

Well, if a tiger were to bathe comfortably, a tub that size would make sense. A tiger might even splash around and play in it.

‘If the tub were cramped, it wouldn’t be comfortable to wash in.’

Marie carefully lowered me—dangling from her hand—onto the bottom of the tub.

I wandered around inside it.

The tub was so wide that being alone inside it made me feel like a person stranded on a deserted island.

After setting me down, Marie skillfully turned on the water.

Shaaah—

Water began filling the large bathtub.

Even after it rose past my ankles and reached my waist, Marie didn’t turn it off.

At this rate, if it filled completely, I’d drown.

My eyelids trembled.

Surely she wasn’t accidentally filling it all the way… right? No, that couldn’t be it. Ever since coming to this mansion, I’ve been facing way too many unintended life-threatening situations.

‘Marie, Marie. Please turn off the water.’

I’m not the same species as you.

I splashed the water with my front paws and looked at her urgently.

Splash, splash.

It was an SOS signal for survival.

Marie smiled softly and said,

“Are you enjoying playing in the water?”

‘This isn’t playing! That’s not it!’

Despair filled me.

How did a life-or-death distress signal turn into “playing”?

‘Turn the water off!’

I kept splashing desperately, staring at her with pleading eyes.

But Marie simply looked at me with a satisfied smile.

Was this how I was going to die after 19 years of life? So meaninglessly?

Would my tombstone read: Cause of death – drowned while bathing?

Fortunately, it seemed she had no intention of killing me. Marie soon turned off the water and began washing me.

Normally, cats hate water and would struggle wildly, but I wasn’t an ordinary cat. I simply left my body in her hands and sank into thought.

To be honest, after everything that happened yesterday and today, I was too exhausted to struggle anyway.

‘How did I end up at the Cadellion mansion…?’

Cadellion of the North.

Serdihan of the South.

Ashila of the West.

Marcos of the East.

And the central free city.

Broadly speaking, the continent was divided into these five regions.

After the Age of Chaos ended, the beastmen, tired of fighting, allowed representatives of each region to rule.

Thus, the strongest family in each region became its ruling house. Except for the central region, which had no single ruler and was governed freely by the consensus of four leaders, the continent was divided into four main regions: East, West, South, and North.

The criteria for determining a ruling family were simple.

A ruling family governed its region for generations, but if someone didn’t like it, they could kill the current ruler and take their place—like a rebellion against an emperor.

However, such events were extremely rare, even since the first rulers were chosen.

‘Recently, though, the rulers have changed quite a bit. Twice in just over a decade…’

Until now, except for the West’s Ashila and the East’s Marcos, the ruling families of the North and South had never changed.

The Cadellion family, where I currently was, was known as both the Shield and Spear of Ice.

Their official title was Guardians of Ice.

They earned that title for protecting against monsters from the northern mountain ranges.

But people tended to think it was because “the Cadellion family is absurdly strong and, above all, has terrible tempers,” which is why they were called Guardians of Ice instead of something like Guardians of Snow.

“Are you okay?”

Lost in thought, I felt Marie gently kneading the back of my neck as she asked. The way she pressed the tight spots was no ordinary skill—this was talent.

‘Yes, yes. This is amazing.’

I purred happily and nodded.

If I ever became human again and earned money, I should repay her by opening a massage shop for her.

Anyway, Ian Cadellion—the current heir of the Cadellion family—was among the strongest of all its heads.

Those who had seen him on the battlefield all agreed: he didn’t seem like a beastman.

The book described him like this:

“Wrapped in golden healing pheromones, he slaughtered enemies with radiant brilliance, exuding a pressure that could not be found in beastmen.

Like ants swept away by a massive wave, countless enemies were cut down at the tip of his blade. His wounds healed the moment they appeared, and both allies and enemies marveled at the sight.

As he annihilated his foes, he resembled a god of war who had descended to the mortal world out of fleeting boredom.”

But as they say, skill and personality are often inversely proportional.

Ian Cadellion was the perfect example.

The male lead of this book was insane. And not just insane—ridiculously strong as well. The book even said he was one of the most unhinged among all the Cadellion heads.

When smart and powerful people go mad, there’s no saving it. I mean, who in their right mind would imprison the owner of one of the continent’s largest merchant guilds?

‘A little higher… yes, right there. Perfect.’

Enjoying the massage, I continued thinking.

The female lead of this grim novel, Chloe, was the head of a merchant guild.

Not just any guild—it was one of the most famous on the continent.

Top ten? Or was it top seven?

Either way, the important thing was that her guild was enormous.

That’s why she could even attempt to escape the Cadellion mansion. At one point, she even came close to succeeding.

That alone was incredible.

In the original story, she tried escaping many times with the help of various beastmen—but every attempt failed.

‘Especially when she tried escaping with the help of a snake… that one almost worked.’

After each failed attempt, Ian would kindly explain to her exactly how it failed—and what happened to those who helped her.

Cruelly, he would even say, “If you had done it this way, you might have succeeded.”

As if mocking her to try again.

‘He really didn’t need to be that “kind.”’

As her escape attempts increased, one day he destroyed her entire merchant guild without even lifting a finger.

Then, when Chloe was waiting for her allies, he tossed their severed heads before her and smiled brightly.

He told her the guild was gone.

In despair, Chloe begged him, crying, to spare her people. But he only excitedly described how the guild had been annihilated—

Even explaining how each person would be dealt with.

In the book, he looked like an innocent child excited about Christmas presents as he told her all this.

And the guild’s end was brutal and horrifying.

A chill ran down my spine, and I shook my body, scattering water droplets everywhere.

“Are you done with your bath, little kitty?”

Marie, now soaked by the droplets I shook off, calmly wiped me down with a towel. Seeing her wet clothes made me feel a little guilty.

But she didn’t seem to care at all, continuing to dry me thoroughly.

‘Wow… that feels amazing.’

Even the way she dried my fur was exceptional. Seriously, she should open a massage shop.

Once she had dried me enough, Marie picked me up.

‘Ah… I don’t like this…’

I swear, after today, I’m never being carried like this again.

I made that same resolution for what felt like the tenth time since arriving here and squeezed my eyes shut, preparing myself.

Then suddenly—

Whoosh.

I was lifted up.

Hey, at least give me time to prepare!

That’s just cruel.

‘Aaaah… it’s so high…’

Every time I was lifted, it felt like being on a roller coaster slowly climbing before the drop.

From a kitten’s perspective, the height felt terrifyingly far from the ground. I placed my trembling paws tightly on Marie’s hand, clinging for dear life.

‘I’m going to develop a fear of heights at this rate…’

Well, I already had a bit of one.

I shut my eyes tightly.

‘Think of something else… something else…’

I tried desperately to distract myself.

One sheep… two sheep… five sheep… no, not that.

Chirp chirp sparrow, peep peep chick, quack quack duck… wait, ducks don’t bark. Barking is dogs. Am I losing it? Why does thinking of barking remind me of Ian Cadellion? He’s not a mad dog—he’s a tiger.

‘Wow. And I’m in that tiger’s mansion.’

My situation hit me anew.

A baby kitten in a tiger’s mansion.

I had never expected this, nor wished for it.

‘What am I supposed to do now…?’

The question had no answer. My thoughts grew hazy, like fog filling my mind. Maybe it was because I had just bathed, but my body felt heavy and warm. As soon as I relaxed, drowsiness rushed back in.

With my eyes closed, everything was pitch black—like my future.

‘I slept for 25 hours… didn’t I…?’

Yet somehow, I was sleepy again.

My limp body hung from Marie’s grasp as I drifted back to sleep.

Contrary to my worries, life in Cadellion for the past week had been peaceful.

Forget imprisonment—the male lead who brought me here was always too busy working to even show his face.

And that was honestly great.

So I ended up living a typical lazy life—sleeping early and waking up late. Marie even commented that I seemed to spend more time asleep than awake.

‘Ah, the blissful unemployed life…’

The pale pink cushion sank softly as I climbed onto it.

At some point, things started appearing in my room one by one. Before I knew it, it had turned into an irresistibly cozy, almost addictive space.

It started with this incredibly fluffy cushion.

Then came a ridiculously luxurious food bowl, a cat house that felt too grand to even step into, and even a towering structure reaching the ceiling—like something out of The Wizard of Oz.

At this point, it felt like I could film a story about a kitten hero going on adventures inside this room.

“Kitty.”

As I lay sprawled out, someone called me