A Baby Cat Who Commands the Dog Clan - Chapter 262

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Side Story, Episode 8
Yet outwardly composed, he accepted the gourd flask that Nam Goong Baek offered.
“Haha, you certainly are a cautious one, Servant.”
Gyeon Young Hoo lifted the flask and brought it slowly to his lips.
Gulp.
Nam Goong Baek watched intently as his throat bobbed, swallowing the liquor.
“To go through such verification—you really are thorough, aren’t you?”
Gyeon Young Hoo grumbled, wiping away a drop of alcohol from his mouth with the back of his hand.
Nam Goong Baek paid no heed to his complaint.
Instead, he took back the flask, shook it to confirm the liquid had diminished, and only then brought it to his own lips.
Thus the night deepened.
* * *
Plink, plink.
A dewdrop clinging to a leaf fell. At that sound, Nam Goong Baek jolted awake with a start.
Dawn was already breaking in the distance.
‘…Did I fall asleep without realizing it?’
It seemed the fatigue from last night had accumulated after all.
It was hardly surprising, having pursued those shadows without even recovering from the journey.
‘What about Seol? Is she all right?’
Fortunately, Hong Seol lay sleeping peacefully, her outer robe draped over her.
The way her small body rose and fell with each breath was utterly endearing.
Yet not everything was proceeding as it should.
Gyeon Young Hoo, who had kept watch beside me through the night, was nowhere to be seen.
‘Where on earth has that scoundrel gone?’
The campfire had long since died out.
Concerned that something might have befallen him, Nam Goong Baek turned his head to call out to Hong Seol.
“Awoo!”
Yelp.
In that instant, Nam Goong Baek was so startled that he clapped his own hand over his mouth.
‘What—what is this?’
The sound that had come from his mouth was not human. The sensation of his hand felt strange as well.
‘Surely not, surely not….’
Nam Goong Baek desperately hoped it was not what he feared, and slowly lowered his gaze to examine his hand.
It was no longer a hand.
A soft, pink fleshy pad covered in downy white fur—nothing but the paw of a beast.
I’m ruined!
“Awoooo…!”
Nam Goong Baek let out a pitiful cry despite himself.
It was certain now—that scoundrel Gyeon Young Hoo must have mixed ‘Confusion Elixir’ into the liquor he’d offered last night.
‘I’ll deal with that wretch immediately!’
But that wasn’t the problem.
My ears, now far more sensitive as a wolf, perked up sharply.
I heard Hong Seol’s drowsy voice.
“…Elder Brother?”
My betrothed had clearly awakened from sleep.
My heart sank with a heavy thud.
‘It’s over. Now Seol Ah will inevitably discover that I’m a wolf!’
I heard Hong Seol stirring and walking toward me.
I couldn’t bear to face her disappointed expression.
I simply squeezed my eyes shut.
But what reached my ears was an unexpectedly sweet voice.
“My goodness, how adorable!”
I opened my round eyes and looked up at Hong Seol.
Her face had drawn close without my noticing.
My luxuriant white tail then began swaying gently, entirely of its own accord.
“Elder Brother? Baek Elder Brother, isn’t it? Was there really a sedative in the liquor you drank at the Tavern yesterday?”
At her tender question, I remained frozen, only blinking.
‘This is strange. Why isn’t Seol Ah surprised to see me as a wolf?’
I tilted my head repeatedly in confusion. Even that gesture seemed endearing to her, as Hong Seol’s eyes melted into a warm smile.
“They said when you were young, you were an even cuter puppy than Xiong Miao, and it’s really true!”
‘A… a puppy?’
My eyes widened at those words.
‘Wait. A puppy, not a wolf? And a baby puppy at that?’
Now that I thought about it, Hong Seol’s face, as she crouched down, was far above mine.
I had to raise my chin considerably just to see her.
‘Wait. Could I have reverted to my juvenile form?’
If that were the case, appearing as a puppy wouldn’t be unreasonable.
“Where are you going, Elder Brother?”
Ignoring Hong Seol’s question, I bolted toward the stream on all fours.
My white fur, fluffy as cotton batting.
My two ears, soft as dumpling skin.
My eyes still gleaming with brilliant blue, and my nose moist and dark as a black bean pressed into flesh.
And my thick front paws, showing promise of great growth to come.
My reflection in the clear water was unmistakably that of a baby wolf.
In other words, at first glance, I resembled a puppy.
‘I’m saved…!’
I spun around gleefully, chasing my own tail several times.
‘Seol Ah didn’t discover me!’
The thought of having escaped danger filled me with the urge to dance with joy.
“Be honest with me, brother. That’s best.”
At that moment, I recalled what my younger brother Nam Goong Heuk had said, but I shook my head vigorously.
‘Seol Ah adores me because I’m a cute puppy. Not a repulsive wolf with sharp claws and fangs.’
Even now, wasn’t she gazing at me from afar with those bright, sparkling eyes?
Whoosh.
As Hong Seol drew near, my tail wagged uncontrollably of its own accord.
Hong Seol extended her trembling hand toward me.
“Ah, may I hold you?”
‘Why does Seol Ah ask such things? She should just embrace me.’
I felt oddly embarrassed and began pawing at the dirt with my plump front legs, scraping away at the ground.
Then, shyly, I gave a slight nod.
“…Woof.”
Perhaps because my body had reverted to childhood, my thoughts seemed to have regressed as well.
Because of this, I found myself wanting to act spoiled toward Hong Seol.
Whoosh!
The moment permission was granted, Hong Seol embraced me—the young wolf I had become.
Her soft cheek pressed against my moist nose, and she held me even tighter with affection.
Wherever our skin touched, we shared each other’s warm body heat.
The delicate, sweet scent of her skin wafting near my nose left me utterly entranced.
‘Ah, so warm and cozy…. Seol Ah truly is the best.’
If I could only remain by Hong Seol’s side, I would be content to live my entire life in this form.
My tail now thrashed about fiercely, like wild grass caught in a gale.
That was when it happened.
“Yelp….”
‘The cry of a young beast!’
At the distant sound, my dumpling-shaped ears perked up immediately.
But I had no desire to end this moment in Hong Seol’s embrace.
Upon hearing the sound, I deliberately burrowed deeper into Hong Seol’s arms.
But my master—or rather, my beloved—unfortunately possessed the keen ears of a martial artist.
“Hm, what was that sound…?”
Hong Seol set me down on the ground.
Finding myself back on all fours in the dirt, I wore an aggrieved expression.
“Woof!”
Despite my resentful cry, Hong Seol was already moving toward the direction of the sound.
“Yelp, yelp….”
As the sound grew louder, Hong Seol quickened her pace.
Soon, kneeling among the Wooded Thicket, Hong Seol carefully lifted something into her arms with both hands.
“My goodness, little one!”
“Yelp….”
The creature crying pitifully was a small puppy.
Its four paws were white as if shod in silk slippers, and above its eyes were round white spots like eyebrows on a brown-furred pup.
The creature was barely half the size of Nam Goong Baek.
“My goodness?”
A brown puppy wriggled and burrowed into Hong Seol’s arms.
In that instant.
“Arrrrrgh….”
Nam Goong Baek, his entire small frame bristling with fur, began to growl menacingly.
* * *
‘It’s Gyeon Young Hoo!’
The moment I saw the brown puppy, I recognized him.
‘That bastard really was a dog-human after all!’
From the moment he’d been boasting about his keen sense of smell, something had felt off.
But what Gyeon Young Hoo had been hiding wasn’t merely the fact that he was a dog-human.
The way he’d insisted on bringing liquor from the Tavern last night. The reluctant expression even as he took a sip.
And how he’d quickly hidden himself the moment I opened my eyes.
All of it pointed to a single answer.
‘That bastard Gyeon Young Hoo definitely approached me intending to feed me the stupor serum.’
And in the process, he’d inadvertently drunk it himself, reverting to a small puppy.
‘But why on earth?’
Before I could even find an answer, my eyes widened in shock.
Gyeon Young Hoo, now transformed into a dog, was nestling repeatedly into Hong Seol’s embrace.
‘The shameless bastard!’
It felt like watching my own nose being cut off right before my eyes.
Nam Goong Baek planted all four paws firmly on the ground and barked sharply. Woof!
‘Seol Ah, that creature is no mere puppy!’
But Hong Seol no longer seemed to be on my side.
“Oh, Elder Brother. The baby will be frightened.”
Instead, she even shooed me away with one hand, waving dismissively.
‘Wait, Seol Ah! It’s me, I’m Baek Elder Brother….’
Tears threatened to spill from my eyes.
I lifted one front paw and rubbed my eyes hard. Perhaps because my body had grown smaller, my spirit felt weakened as well.
Meanwhile, the brown puppy remained cradled in Hong Seol’s arms like an infant.
He even extended his paper-thin tongue and licked Hong Seol’s cheek.
‘This cannot be!’
I paced anxiously back and forth beside Hong Seol.
Was there any way to convey my intentions to her?
What would Father or Grandfather have done in such a situation?
‘Ah, that’s right—telepathic transmission!’
The thought flashed through my mind like lightning.
I immediately drew upon my inner energy and moved my lips.
But what emerged from my mouth was merely an undignified sound.
“…Ugh.”
It was a shock.
Nam Goong Baek froze mid-stride, one foreleg raised in the air.
‘Internal transmission… it won’t work?’
It seemed I had reverted to a child’s body from before I’d cultivated my inner strength.
Indeed, my meridians felt completely blocked, as though something had sealed them shut.
Meanwhile, the brown puppy continued licking Hong Seol’s cheek eagerly.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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