Chapter 6
“What snake?”
Din’s low, sunken red eyes gave off a chilling aura.
His sharp, questioning gaze lingered on me without letting up.
“Ah, just… I happened to run into it somehow. I was out of it, so I don’t really remember the details…”
I trailed off vaguely, turning my head with an awkward look.
There was no way I could say I met it in the imperial garden. No matter how it was Din, I doubted he’d believe there was a snake in the imperial palace. If anything, he’d probably laugh and say I mistook it for a rope.
Even I, who experienced it firsthand, could hardly believe it was real—so how could anyone else?
“Did you fight that ‘chance encounter’ snake or something? Tsk, it bit you pretty deep.”
After giving me a meaningful glance, Din examined my wrist again and frowned.
“Well… actually, it was badly injured, so I helped it. This happened while I was treating it.”
“What? Helped it? A snake?!”
At my careful explanation, Din’s red pupils widened in disbelief. He looked utterly baffled, as if he couldn’t comprehend what he’d just heard.
“But I saw it dying right in front of me. I couldn’t just ignore it.”
I added lightly, joking that it was because I was too kind—but Din’s expression only turned colder.
Letting out a long, deep sigh, he looked at me again with complicated eyes.
“This shouldn’t be the case, but I’ll ask just in case. It wasn’t a beastman, right?”
“No. I didn’t feel any beastman pheromones. It seemed like an ordinary wild snake.”
When I nodded, Din’s stiff expression finally relaxed a little.
At least that was one small relief among all this misfortune.
“Miss, you shouldn’t just go around saving snakes. They’re cunning creatures. That snake probably doesn’t even know you saved it.”
“Well… I didn’t save it expecting anything in return. You can’t expect that from an animal.”
Unlike beastmen, animals couldn’t speak. They couldn’t express their intentions, and without a master, they simply followed their instincts—making them difficult to handle.
So there was no way they’d understand the concept of repaying kindness.
Still… Mangdeok was quite a clever snake…
“Miss, what does this look like to you?”
After staring intently at my wrist for a while, Din finally pointed at the wound and asked.
“Huh? A scar. More importantly, Din, is there a way to make it heal faster? I’ll have to wear long sleeves for a while because of this—it’s so annoying.”
Snake fangs were thinner and sharper than most, so the bite marks were especially noticeable.
If it were just ordinary teeth marks, I could brush it off as a scratch—but unfortunately, Mangdeok’s mark was far too distinct for that excuse.
For some reason, though, Din’s expression darkened.
He slowly shook his head and lifted my wrist again, urging me to look closer.
“I wish it were just a scar… but this is an ‘imprint,’ you ignorant girl.”
That damn snake.
His muttered curse carried absolute certainty.
“An imprint? But snakes….”
I had heard of it once before.
A primal act where predator species leave a mark on their chosen lifelong partner as a sign of love—an “imprint.”
But were snakes even considered predators?
I thought they had long since gone extinct and lost that status…
“Snakes are predators. Especially to rabbits like you. Just because they’re nearly extinct doesn’t mean that fact disappears.”
Noticing my confusion, Din calmly explained.
“So… Mangdeok loves me?! We only met yesterday!”
“Mangdeok? What’s that? You even named the snake?! You really…!”
Din looked genuinely speechless this time.
Letting out a hollow laugh, he grabbed my hand again.
“…Ha. Rucelin, it might not seem like much now, but imprinting is dangerous. It can become harmful to both of you.”
As he said, imprinting was the only way to express feelings beyond words—
But it was also a flawed bond that could cost lives.
Those bound by an imprint had to maintain regular contact. If they failed to do so, they could die.
“Yeah, I know, but…”
“Whatever. Where is that snake now?”
Cutting me off bluntly, Din began scanning the surroundings.
His sharp eyes gleamed dangerously, as if he intended to find it immediately.
“Huh? Ah, well… that is…”
There was no way I could admit it had been bathing with me and suddenly ran off.
If I told him that, I’d never survive what came next.
Saving a snake was one thing—but bathing with it? He might cut ties with me on the spot…
“…It was here last night, but when I woke up this morning, it was gone. I think it ran away. It’s a wild snake, after all—being with me must’ve been uncomfortable.”
I smiled gently as I answered, but Din looked at me suspiciously. He had probably already noticed I was lying.
Still, judging by his dangerous mood, I felt relieved Mangdeok wasn’t here.
“It didn’t run away. It went to recover its strength.”
Fortunately, Din seemed calmer now that the snake wasn’t around.
“Recover its strength? But it seemed mostly healed…”
“Imprinting takes a lot of energy, regardless of injuries. And you said it was nearly dead when you found it, right? It must’ve used up the last of its strength to imprint on you. It needed time to recover—especially since it couldn’t rest properly here.”
Din’s explanation shocked me.
I knew how critical Mangdeok’s condition had been when I found it.
Even if I treated it quickly, it hadn’t fully recovered.
And yet… it risked its life to imprint on me?
…Why?
“Then shouldn’t it stay by my side even more? How is a wild snake supposed to treat itself out there?”
“…Unless you’re willing to hunt mice for it.”
“…I thought snail meat would work.”
At my mutter, Din clicked his tongue.
“You even fed it meat? Seriously…”
“Idiot. Of course that wouldn’t work.”
His lazy chuckle echoed faintly in my ears.
While Rucelin wrestled with confusion, Din slowly spoke again, irritation flickering across his face.
“Snakes don’t trust easily. They don’t stay with strangers. Even if it hadn’t imprinted on you, it would’ve left anyway.”
So don’t be so upset over a single snake disappearing.
He didn’t finish the thought. He realized he was already more irritated than necessary.
He had been in a good mood when he entered her room—but at some point, everything began to annoy him.
Probably from the moment he saw that unwelcome mark on her wrist.
That lowly creature dared to leave its filthy mark on someone it had no right to touch.
As her friend, it was natural to feel upset.
…At least, that’s what he told himself.
But something still felt stuck in his throat, like a thorn he couldn’t swallow.
“What? No way, it was try—”
Rucelin stopped herself mid-sentence. For some reason, she felt that finishing that sentence would be a terrible mistake.
“And yet it stayed by your side all night…”
Din hesitated.
It must have chosen you as its partner from the beginning…
He swallowed the rest.
Saying it out loud would only worsen his mood.
“…It must’ve liked you. What did you even do to it? Don’t tell me you stroked its head?”
Instead, he changed the subject with a joke.
But strangely, Rucelin’s face turned pale.
“Why…? Why would stroking its head be…?”
Her trembling voice was filled with unease.
“Why? That’s a courtship behavior. During mating season, snakes rub their heads together to seduce each other. You didn’t know?”
Din asked back casually.
Rucelin’s face went completely white.
Her watery eyes trembled as she slowly opened her mouth.
“Uh… I didn’t know….”
