Of All
Things, I Became a Crow: Chapter #125
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
*Rainelle’s POV
I landed on the nearby wall of the Imperial Palace while
keeping an eye on him. Then Karmeut’s eyebrows raised.
"...Rainelle."
"I'll tell you if you promise not to get
angry."
I
have to win this no matter what, so I said this in advance to reduce as much
damage as possible...
"If you didn't do anything to make me angry, I
wouldn't be angry."
---I broke out in a cold sweat at Karmeut's reply.
I
can even feel cold sweat dripping down my feathers!
"Will, will you listen to my explanation?"
Karmeut nodded his head without saying anything.
Thank
God! He’ll listen---!!
Believing that he would listen, I transformed into a
human and landed in front of him. ---Still, I shrank my shoulders as I opened
my mouth under the golden eyes that still looked at me with stern eyes.
"Um, well..."
"It’s related to the scene where all the crows in
the Capital suddenly flew away to the west, right?"
"Uh, yes."
I took a look around. Of
course, it was natural, but there were so many people around, from
Karmeut's aides, servants, maidservants, royal guards, and even nobles. It was
very crowded.
“---It’s a bit difficult to talk here. Can we talk with
just the two of us?”
"...Okay."
With a deep sigh, Karmeut held out his hand. Holding that
hand, we entered a room nearby.
The persistent gaze disappeared as the door closed. That alone made me feel like the pressure was gone,
so I let out a breath. Karmeut then said.
"...So, what happened?"
"Umm... well, you know I'm the Queen of crows,
right? Hempel-nim said that before."
"Yes, I remember."
"Since I’m the Queen, I did it because I wanted to
know exactly what I could do..."
Should
I continue?
I peeked at Karmeut's expression. I was troubled by his appearance
that looked as if he was silently waiting for my next words.
If I
say, “I send the crows because I’m curious about Namuel’s current situation,” I
get the feeling that somehow it won’t end well. Then I have to come up with a
plausible excuse... Ugh, what can say?!
What
should I say to make sure Karmeut doesn't get angry?!!
The longer I kept silent while rotating the gear in my
head, the darker his golden eyes became.
Aghhh!
Think, think!!! …Oh, yeah!!
"You said that there is a large mountain range in
the west. A large mountain range that divides the continent."
“The Qubelian Mountains?”
"Yeah. I wondered if there was Crovanlock there, so
I asked the crows to pass on the message to others in the west if they found
it. Since it's winter, I can't ask them to do
anything hard..."
This
is somewhat lacking credibility. ...will Karmeut believe this? I don't think he
will!!
I was frustrated at the words that were not convincing
even after I said so much, but Karmeut quietly nodded his head.
"I see."
"...yes?"
"If you say so, then so be it."
Seeing Karmeut smiling while saying that, I was stabbed
painfully inside. My mouth trembled at the feeling of being pricked by my
conscience.
Was it fun to see me like that? Karmeut laughed quietly.
Then he hugged me lightly. Even at moments like this, his embrace was familiar
and cozy.
"If you feel like talking later, tell me properly
then."
...As
expected, not even the seed was eaten1. At that thought, I took a
deep breath. Then came a small giggling sound that tickled my ears.
“Is there a reason?”
"---yes."
"Is it dangerous?"
"It's not dangerous."
I was not in danger, but Karmeut was the one in danger,
so I was able to answer confidently. Then he replied with a small nod of his
head,
"Then that’s fine."
He whispered in my ear after kissing my cheek briefly,
"But since you made me worry, I can't just let it
go."
"Ugh... sorry..."
"So see you later at night. Sleep... I'll put you to
sleep."
The blatant remarks made my cheeks hot. When I raised my
head to protest, my mouth was blocked.
"---!!"
The reckless but gentle kiss made my body feel weak. His
eyes were shining with heat as if I’m going to be eaten, so I closed my eyes.
My body trembled automatically at the gentle touch on my
waist and the deepening kiss.
Karmeut's kiss was always like this.
Should I say I was affectionately preyed on? I knew these
were contradictory terms, but there was no other way to express it.
He didn't treat me carelessly and he was careful as if I
was precious. But on the other hand, he was persistent like he would not be
satisfied until he had tasted everything I had.
Like now.
"Haa..."
"I'll let you go now, because if I do more here,
I'll forget the situation and just be with you."
He smiled lightly as his eyes were burning with monopoly
desire and enthusiasm.
It was chilling because I thought I'll be eaten, but at
the same time, I also thought that being eaten wasn't too bad.
"I want to be with you a little longer... but we
don't have enough time to meet during the day."
"Haa, Rainelle... don't say that."
He said “I don't like it either,” and licked the nape of
my neck. It felt like he was pouting.
"Mmm..."
"Because I'm holding it in right
now."
His gaze as he said that was like that of a wolf facing
his prey, so I was naturally nervous. While
swallowing my saliva, I thought I was crazy because I once more thought that it
was alright to be eaten.
Oh
really. A zookeeper who wants to be eaten by a wolf has not qualified as a
zookeeper anymore!
Still,
if it's Karmeut, I'd think it's okay if he did as he wants.
"Oh, okay, I'll be waiting for you."
"...so don't tempt me."
Karmeut was smiling as if he was in a good mood even
though he also sighed like he couldn't help it.
He kissed me one more time, but he quickly let go.
...To
be honest, it was fortunate. It would be very difficult to make him understand
by talking about Namuel and the future.
I began to think about what lesson was left for today,
but then I shook my head.
Is
class important right now? There are other things which are much more important!
I remembered Namuel. The wizard who was said to have gone
to Milburn territory. Aria said that this action was unexpected. She even
cursed and got angry while saying that it hadn't happened in the original game.
Is
it because I’m here?
The reason why he did something that
deviated from the original game was most likely because of me. It
was natural to think that. Everyone except me was the same as the original.
But that doesn't mean I can’t fight for my existence...
Since
the crows have set off, I should get the news soon, right? However, I did not
expect that they would rush westwards at once.
I
just told them to pass it on because I was in a situation where I had to hold
on to something... but everyone will come back in time, right? It's winter, so
I hope they don't overdo it.
I was glad that this was a time when they have no chicks.
If there was an accident while there were chicks, they would starve.
Of
course, when it rains, birds may have no choice but to starve... But the baby
is fragile, so they have to be taken care of.
Ah,
by the way, that male crow is gone.
I
didn’t get any sign that he was present earlier, so that guy must have left...
Moving in the middle of winter? That's actually a very strange thing for a crow. Is that guy crazy? Of course,
since it's been a few weeks since I last saw the crow, maybe it has moved in
autumn...
But,
it's still strange even in autumn. I'd understand if crows are the type to spend the winter in a warmer
place like migratory birds who then come back later, but...
Oh,
I don't know. What I should focus on isn’t that male crow.
The
important thing is Karmeut. Of course, the thing with that male crow bothers
me, but I have my priorities.
I
hope I get the news about Namuel soon.
Aria’s figure popped up in my head. I felt a bitter taste
in my mouth as I remembered how she cried while expressing her insecurities.
Namuel
is also a mean man.
I
didn’t expect him to do such a thing to a girl’s heart.
The temptation of wanting to smack Namuel when the
opportunity arises crept up inside me.
Hmph,
you seem smart, but you're causing so much trouble!
Groaning inwardly, I was about to head for my room, but
then I turned my gaze to the garden.
---Should
I go for a walk after a long time? It seems like it's been a while since I went
to the garden after I have to take empress lessons.
When I thought that it would be good to find a little
leisure, I found a walk in the garden to be more tempting. It was not that I've never had tea in the garden,
but I don't think I've been there since winter began.
I headed for the garden with the maids in tow. The
Imperial Palace had places where the season was always spring even in winter by
using temperature maintenance magic. I deliberately went to the garden where
the magic circle was not installed.
And at the scenery I saw, a satisfied smile appeared on
my face.
In winter, it is good to see the winter-like scenery. I'd
seen it from the sky before, but seeing it in human form was nice in its own
way.
The snow-covered garden was all white. The snowflakes,
shining in the pale winter sun, were white and smooth.
The sight of snow was not unfamiliar. When I was a
zookeeper, I always pray “Please stop snowing,” But...
Seeing
snow in the garden feels different.
It was a different feeling from seeing soggy, half-melted
snow on an asphalt road, or snow falling on animal excrement in their
enclosure. Even though it was snow all the same, now it was cleaner, and it
felt like an ornament.
Except for the promenade, no one touched the snow, so I had a strong desire to step on it at least once.
The contrast between the dark tree branches and the white snow was sharp.
It even made me feel like it was a luxury to look at the
snow so leisurely. It was all the more so when I remembered the
ladies-in-waiting who came with me.
"Rainelle-nim, the wind is cold. It’s better to go
inside..."
"I'm sorry, but I'll look around a bit more. The air
is clear and fresh, so I feel really good."
I took a deep breath in the cold but clean air. It felt like the fresh air which filled my lungs was
incomparably cleaner than when I was a zookeeper.
It was when I smiled because I thought
that the air of my previous life was really smoke-stained air.
*flap, flap*
In the distance, over the blue sky, I saw a black dot.
...What
is that?
I wondered what it was, so I narrowed my eyes and looked
at the black dot.
Is a
crow back?
I thought like that.
But
isn’t it too soon to get some news?
How
long has it been since the crows left for the west? Besides, I thought it would
take a few more days because of the message relay.
Then
why does that black dot fly straight at me? Is that a crow?
I tilted my head in wonder, but that dot was still
getting closer and closer.
...a
crow?
The black dot was, as expected, a crow. It was far away,
so I couldn't be sure, but it was a crow that looked familiar somehow.
Is
it Hempel-nim?
I was staring blankly while thinking so, but it wasn't
until the crow flew almost over my head that I realized it wasn't Hempel-nim.
That
crow...
The,
the male crow?!
It was the male crow that hadn't been seen for weeks.
When the crow suddenly appeared, I wondered who it was, and I got taken aback.
No,
it's nice to see this guy again, but why doesn’t it go to its territory and
come to me instead? If it has been away for a few weeks, its territory might be
taken over by other crows! This guy should go to take care of it!!
...The male crow, who had no way of knowing what I was
thinking, flew towards me at a speed close to a rush. Then its appearance
changed. Huh?
My mouth fell open automatically. When the male crow was
at my eye level, its appearance changed. And even the process of changing was
one which I know very well.
As the crow changed into a man before my eyes, I could
sense the maids stirred up behind me. The reason they don't scream in shock was
because they had seen me change so many times...
---This is not the time to say this nonchalant thing! How
can he turn into a human being?!!
---Huh?! No way, no way---!!
***
Notes:
1 Not even the seed was eaten: Even the small, trivial thing wasn’t believed↩
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