Black Killer Whale Baby - Chapter 144

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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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Chapter 144
‘What’s with him?’
I blinked my eyes open. Atlant was still gazing at me with desperate intensity.
It was unexpected.
He was the type who wouldn’t hesitate to toss something at me and ask why I was being like this, but here he was…
Ah, could it be he’s worried I might blame him?
If only Second Brother had been in the carriage, but Levai was there too—what suspicion could he possibly harbor?
I offered my assessment plainly.
“Wow, how adorable.”
“N-now’s not the time to say that!”
I tilted my head curiously.
“Why? It’s cute. Cute is cute.”
“Huh? Look properly. It’s all shriveled up.”
“Yeah yeah, it’s infinitely cuter than you.”
“That’s…!”
The playful banter paused, and I stared intently at the Baby Squirrel.
“It didn’t wake up even while you were bringing it here?”
“Huh? Y-yeah.”
It didn’t wake even with all this jostling. Was it in deep sleep, or was there something else wrong?
I’d always thought I’d eventually meet the original heroine again someday.
But I never expected to encounter her this quickly, and not even in the Black Panther family’s territory.
Even knowing in my heart that a good meeting would be difficult, I’d still hoped to make it as pleasant as possible…
‘But I didn’t want to meet her like this.’
No matter how I looked at it, she appeared to have endured severe hardship.
‘What could anyone possibly want to torment something this small for?’
I wrinkled the bridge of my nose.
“The fact that it won’t wake even after you brought it so roughly means something’s definitely seriously wrong.”
“I didn’t bring it roughly…!”
“Yeah, at least you did well wrapping it in cloth.”
Atlant grumbled.
Actually, seeing those large hands hold the Baby Squirrel so carefully and awkwardly made me want to laugh again.
“Hey, it actually suits you though?”
“I know you’re teasing.”
That’s when Father approached from the side. The commotion must have drawn him over.
I briefly explained the situation to Father and showed him.
“Father, have you ever seen a beastkin who’s transformed this completely?”
“No. Well, if anyone, it would be the current Emperor.”
“Right? It’s usually known that only the imperial family has this ability…
The official setting states that only the imperial family can achieve complete beastkin transformation.
But in the novel, the Black Panther brothers also turned into animals, so the heroine’s role was to say “Brothers, come back!” and restore them to their human forms.
I too had witnessed my former fiancé, the Black Panther’s Eldest Brother, transform into a black panther.
“Don’t come close. You smell.”
“Tsk.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just an unpleasant thought crossed my mind for a moment.”
I shook my head and carefully cradled the Baby Squirrel that Atlant had given me.
“I suppose it likes warm places.”
They say maintaining body temperature is crucial for young animals. It was as I approached near the campfire.
“I’ll hold it.”
I stared at Father at those words. Watching his face flicker in the firelight, a playful impulse suddenly struck me.
“No. Father shouldn’t hold it.”
“…?”
“Because I think it’ll get jealous if you do?”
Only after speaking did I suddenly realize this was a prank I used to pull on ‘Father’ back on Earth.
In that moment of hesitation, a small laugh escaped.
“Right. That would be the case.”
Father was smiling comfortably.
“So I should only ever hold my one daughter for my entire life?”
“…Once I become an adult, you can stop.”
“What a shame.”
Father stared at me intently, then gazed at the campfire and murmured.
“This is the first time I’ve felt regret about time passing…”
I’d heard similar words back on Earth.
…Are parents’ hearts the same in every world?
Just as I was about to sink into sentimentality.
“Hey, what about me?”
Atlant voiced his complaint.
When he held it, I said nothing and even told him to go ahead—so was I indifferent to him?
I answered nonchalantly.
“You’re not really my type?”
“What?!”
Despite all this noise, the Baby Squirrel never woke.
“Hey, so what are we going to do about this?”
“What do you mean…”
Not far away, I could see Whale and Levai sitting side by side eating.
Ekion was probably sleeping soundly in the carriage.
Looking at the Young Boys in turn, I made up my mind.
“We’ll just have to keep it. What else can we do?”
“Huh. We’re leaving again tomorrow though? You’re really taking this along?”
“Should I throw it on the street instead?”
Atlant flinched but couldn’t bring himself to respond.
It wasn’t out of pity or sympathy for this child, nor was it a matter of his nature.
It was because of the aura he sensed from me.
“I don’t abandon those who are weak and need protection.”
Because I refuse to become like them.
“Especially not if they’ve caught my eye.”
Whether Atlant understood the unspoken words or not, he quietly turned his head away.
‘Of course, I know I can’t save every beastkin.’
But if I don’t rescue the weak who appear before my eyes, how am I any different from those who abandoned me?
Of course, it remains a mystery why the female protagonist could achieve complete beastkin transformation when only the male lead Crown Prince and the Black Panther beastkin could do so.
I’ve never heard any explanation for such a setting.
My actions couldn’t possibly have reached all the way to the distant imperial lands.
What went wrong, and where did it start?
I felt a small unease creeping in.
‘Could something be happening in the City of Dragons?’
I looked at the carriage where Ekion was sleeping.
“What’s wrong?”
“Just wondering if it’s the right call to take him to the City of Dragons.”
I didn’t say who, but Atlant and Father understood.
A thin barrier of water naturally formed around us.
“I’m second-guessing whether I should send Ekion back even now.”
It was something I’d been wrestling with from the start.
I brought him along because he refused to be separated from me.
But if something is happening in the City of Dragons…
‘What if Ekion’s disappearance has already been discovered?’
Taking him there would be the worst possible choice.
“Well, sending that mutt—or whatever you call him, Yongyang—doesn’t seem like a good idea anyway.”
“…How dare you compare him to a land animal? Apologize, you bastard.”
“…Does that really matter? Fine, fine. I’m sorry. Happy now?”
“Yeah. Keep going.”
“Ahem, anyway, it’s just not a good choice. Think about it. Say you send him back and he safely reaches Pierre’s residence. Then what? Who’s going to manage him?”
“…”
“If he acts up when you’re not there? Can you guarantee the same thing won’t happen as in front of the basement?”
“…”
He had a point.
“Besides, with Pierre here right now, who would even handle him? Surely not the Matriarch?”
I hadn’t seen what Ekion was like in front of the basement, but Atlant had explained it in detail.
If Second Brother was right and Ekion could unleash dragon power…
‘The Matriarch would spot him in an instant.’
“What do you think will happen if the Matriarch finds out?”
“That’s the end of it.”
As I answered firmly, Second Brother nodded with a hardened expression.
True, Agenor remained in Aquasiadel, but it wasn’t enough.
“Right. I understand.”
Once we reached the conclusion that we had no choice but to take him with us, my mind actually felt lighter.
“For now, just eat and rest easy.”
Father added a word as if wrapping things up.
“The City of Dragons isn’t far off now.”
* * *
The next morning.
“Mmgh….”
Why was it so noisy? I was stretching in the carriage when I was momentarily startled by those bright, alert eyes.
“Oh, Ekion? Did you sleep well?”
“Yeah.”
“You were sleeping soundly from early last night. Huh, Father must have gone out.”
There were only Ekion and me inside the carriage. It seemed to be early morning….
Outside was extremely chaotic.
When I put on my coat and stepped outside, I was met with a situation that was utterly disorganized.
‘What’s going on?’
I approached Levai, who was closest to me.
“What’s happened, exactly?”
“Ah, Noble Lady…. Did you sleep well? The thing is….”
Levai answered with a troubled expression, adjusting his glasses.
“The squirrel has disappeared.”
“…What?”
I was startled.
“It woke up?”
“It seems so. It apparently ran away this morning. Several knights even saw the squirrel dash off.”
At first they didn’t think much of it, but when Atlant appeared shortly after, the knights were alarmed and quickly began searching for the original heroine.
“So where did it go?”
“Um, it seems to have gone that way. Atlant is already following… Huh, Noble Lady? Noble Lady!”
What Levai pointed to was a small forest with dense undergrowth.
I didn’t hesitate and immediately ran in.
‘That one was quite fast even as a beast-human!’
How much faster would a complete animal be?
If this were a city she knew well or the Black Panther clan’s territory, it wouldn’t matter where she went.
But this place was surrounded by wastelands and wild forests.
‘Ugh, I wish I could use water magic….’
I stopped running and searched for any traces. With wild animals scattered about, it wasn’t easy to find.
“Is it over there?”
I ran in one direction without hesitation. Atlant had already gone after him, so he might have found him first.
But I had a strong intuition that he would be this way.
And just as I emerged from the forest.
“Ah….”
A vast meadow stretched out before me.
Flowers bloomed across the field in full seasonal splendor.
There I found the Young Boy sitting collapsed on the grass, trembling uncontrollably.
His fluffy ears and hair swayed gently in the breeze.
The moment he saw me, his large eyes widened in surprise.
They were filled with tears.
“…Sister?”

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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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