82 Monologue of A Certain Capture Target －Black－
===
“I’ve never expected that cats are such a selfish creature,” Shelly muttered while she observed the atrium from the second floor of the store. On the other hand, it would indeed be better if they also attached rope to the collar to prevent the cat from escaping so easily.
“This place’s purpose is to fluff with cat as much as you want without disturbing their freedom after all.”
“But they have too much freedom. That might lead to them spoiling the beverage and snacks we ordered.”
“The shop assistant had told us that the cats has received the necessary training to prevent that incident from happening. In fact, this fat cat and the tortoise-shelled cat are the only adult ones in the store, hence they’re fully obedient and would not do such a thing.”
I brushed the fat cat who was sprawled in front of me, causing his tail to move around non-stop in a show of pleasure.
“Perhaps so, but still…,” Shelly trailed off, brushing the tortoise-shelled cat’s head with a gentle smile on her face.
“Anyhow, if something happen, Theodore will deal with it. We don’t have to worry about such thing.”
“Ah, you’re right….”
Nevertheless, despite her acknowledgement of my statement, I noticed that she couldn’t help her anxiety judging from the restless way she was looking around at the other guests. Well, Shelly WAS the kind of girl who would be worrying non-stop once she saw or notice something to fret about. I suppose that was why she kept blathering non-stop due to the unpredictable nature of the cats.
“Aah, aren’t that child scared of walking on the beam like that?”
“Don’t worry, it’s a cat, right? That kind of height is a childs play for them.”
“Geez, Rex-sama! It’s still a kitten! That child might be injured after falling from such height.”
“I agree with Young Lady, Young Master. I’m going to be worried too if Young Master is standing at such beam. In my opinion, we should prepare a net for catching bug below for safety reasons if you do such things,” My attendant, Sadias, cut in while puffing his chest proudly.
Why in the world wasn’t he sitting in the table beside the stairs obediently just like the other attendant? I did not know. Really, even though he was older than me by three years, he tended to do a lot of silly things. He lacked the self-awareness of an adult too!
“Be quiet, Sadias. And don’t call me Young Master. Call my name properly.”
“As you wish, Young Master.”
Yet, he still blatantly called me ‘Young Master’ again. Did this guy ever listen to what others said properly I wonder?
“― In the first place, I have no reason to walk on a beam, do I? So, whether I need safety net or not is a moot point. Anyhow, why a safety net? It’s not like you can catch a human with those….”
“Yes, Sadias. Bug-catching net might be big enough to catch the kitten, but it’s definitely way too small for Rex-sama. Oh, it might be too small for the bigger cat as well. We should lay a net instead,” Shelly pointed out an improvement for the store.
And while it sounded like a good idea, please don’t forget that this is Theodore’s store, will you? Furthermore, why use me as an example?!
“Ooh, what a blunder… even though it was my long held dream to catch Young Master with net-catching bug since the aloof infant Young Master is just too adorable.” Sadias sighed sorrowfully, complete with a regretful expression on his face. Wait, did he just say something incredibly rude to me?!
“Stop coming and going as you please! Go back to your seat!”
“How cruel… eventhough I’m always thinking about Young Master’s well being everyday!”
While the guy was being dramatic, a big hand suddenly grabbed Sadias’ head from behind. It was a tall man, the peacemaker of the attendants, Abel.
“That’s enough, Sadias. My apologies, Rex-sama. I’ll tell this guy to wait outside this store.”
“Eh? No, Abel-san, don’t! For me, Young Master is….”
“Shut up.”
“A~H! PLEASE, AT LEAST LET YOUNG MASTER SCOLD ME BEFORE YOU FORCE ME OUT! CHANGE, CHANGE ABEL-SAN WITH YO- A~H!”
Despite Sadias’ entreaty, Abel who was dragging him by his head exemplary ignored the guy and dragged him out of the store without mercy.
“A-Abel-san! ARGH! STOP, STOP! MY HEAD FEEL LIKE IT’S ABOUT TO POPOUT! CHANGE, PLEASE! CHANGE ABEL-SAN WITH YOUNG MA- A~RGH!”
There was a sound akin to that of something was tumbling down the stairs, but I suppose it was just in my head. Surely it was nothing, right?
Yeah, it was nothing. I sighed, knowing that the storm had at last passed for now. And the cats, who had been standing still due to Sadias’ eccentricities, started to move again, secure in the knowledge that the danger had passed. I mean, even this cheeky fat cat looked at Sadias as if he was a rare creature, plus the other cats also looked scared of Sadias… which made me feel as if I had to apologize to them for my attendant’s antics.
“Sadias really like Rex-sama, doesn’t he?”
""
Although Shelly looked just as dumbfounded as the cats, the conclusion she came to was a complete misunderstanding.
“That one is just an idiot.”
“Is that so? He does try his best to cheer you up, though, Rex-sama.”
“I wish he does it in an easier way to understand than this.”
Hearing my complain, Shelly chuckled lightly as if she agreed with my point in this matter.
◇
“― So, what do you think?” Shelly asked out of nowhere after we enjoyed our lunch.
“About what?”
“Theodore-sama’s miracle. Especially the second one― I heard from hearsay that the spirits appeared too. As such, I want to know what Blackcurrant House… to be more specific, Rex-sama’s opinion in this regard.”
“The spirits, huh… there are rumors about that, but what you actually really wanted to hear is the story of our distant ancestor, right? About how they communicate with the spirit.”
Shelly nodded, then spoke with voice so soft it was almost inaudible. “Yes, as well as the fact that one of the house is related to the Demon King.”
“My ancestor, one of the Six Gods, Vlad, betrayed the demon king for the saint.”
This matter was something that was never revealed to the public, but not for me, since this was something that was told to me in my childhood. Although, this was a secret only known to our own family.
According to the legend passed down in my family, Vlad was originally part of the same race as the Demon King himself, but there was a different in opinion between Demon King and his ancestor long before Vlad’s era that led to their separation. So, properly speaking, it wasn’t actually a betrayal since it was actually his ancestor’s deed.
In any case, in the legend, Saint Selendia invited Vlad, who was spending his life quietly in the village his clan build to avoid the Demon King’s attention, to become her comrade.
“It’s really shocking to know that the Demon King… is actually older than Vlad himself.”
True, well, but that was not the point. Initially, the Demon King’s race could also communicate with the spirits, but then their race almost got annihilated after they tried to use the spirit’s power for their purposes. And there was only one clan who survived the calamity in the end. However, they split into two because one side wished to spend their life quietly, while the other side wished to get their revenge.
The people who wished for revenge soon lost their ability to communicate with the spirit, though in exchange, they gained longevity with their secret art. So, they waited patiently for their chance while strengthening their body and amassing more power to exact their vengeance.
It was these people who was later known as the demon race.
Only Blackcurrant House, Obsius House, and a small part of the temple’s upper brass that knew about this secret. Shelly’s house, the Obsius House, knew about this matter since one of their family’s member was married to Vlad’s daughter. Meanwhile, the upper brass of the temple had to learn about the truth behind the ‘Saint’s Great War’. As for the royal family… well, neither of our houses had any idea whether this secret was told to them or not.
“Our ancestor’s blood is supposed to flow in Theodore-sama’s and our vein, right?”
“If you say it that way, then you can actually say that almost all nobles in Serendia Kingdom are their descendant as well. Political marriage already happened a lot during the Saint’s era, so the Six God’s bloodline was also spread all over. Furthermore, there’s already a lot of cases where fellow descendant of Six Gods tied the knot with each other (got married). So, I don’t think that the bloodline is related to this case.”
“Why did the spirits appear then?”
“I don’t know. I mean, spirit and such are supposed to be things from legend.”
There was an anecdote that said that when the spirit destroyed the Demon King’s race, all they did was change the clan’s magical power and made them lose their power to communicate with the spirit.
“Yes, even in the Saint’s Legend, there’s nothing that explain about the spirit. Not a single thing.”
“It may be intentionally excluded from the story. I mean, look, Vlad in that story is only mentioned as a sage from hidden village.”
Oi, if it was revealed that he actually came from the same race as the Demon King, Vlad wouldn’t be granted with Duke title even if he married Serendiaz’s little sister, you know? In fact, he might be banished from the kingdom, or worse, assassinated.
“But, the story mentioned that the Saint can communicate with the spirit. The Six Gods seems to have the ability to feel the spirit’s will too. Then again, it does sound too good to be true.”
“… Nevertheless, that’s also one of the clues, right?”
“What do you think? This mean, we have no choice but to ask Theodore about this… and I’d rather not do that, thank you.”
I had gone and talked to my father about this matter, but he didn’t tell me to do something like that, so I’d rather not do it.
Although, it seemed that nowadays my father was investigating this matter till late at night. Perhaps, his focus was on the Six Gods― especially Vlad. After all, as the most mysterious figure among the Six Gods, Vlad had left many mysteries behind. Or, that might be only from our house, Blackcurrant House’s perspective.
My father seemed to be more mysterious than usual though. Really, if we could communicate with the spirits, that ability should have appeared in one of the members of our house. Just like how it appeared in Theodore― though I almost couldn’t believe my ears when I heard that he, the one with the most carefree soul and didn’t seem to understand our noblesse oblige, was the first one to communicate with the spirit.
“It’ll be okay.” Shelly wrapped my hand. “It’ll be okay. I know that Rex-sama will definitely awaken your power as the Six Gods. I mean, Saint-sama in the legend is also a normal girl until the God of Creation bless her when she was sixteen years old. That’s why, it’ll be alright.”
“― Yeah, you’re right. Thanks.”
“Bumya~.”
For some reason, the fat cat also placed his paw on top of our connected hands.
“Fufufu, thank you very much. You’re saying that you want to help Rex-sama too, right?”
“Bumya~.”
The heck? Rather than helping, it felt more like this cat was pouring cold water into this situation….
82 Monologue of A Certain Capture Target －Black－
===
“I’ve never expected that cats are such a selfish creature,” Shelly muttered while she observed the atrium from the second floor of the store. On the other hand, it would indeed be better if they also attached rope to the collar to prevent the cat from escaping so easily.
“This place’s purpose is to fluff with cat as much as you want without disturbing their freedom after all.”
“But they have too much freedom. That might lead to them spoiling the beverage and snacks we ordered.”
“The shop assistant had told us that the cats has received the necessary training to prevent that incident from happening. In fact, this fat cat and the tortoise-shelled cat are the only adult ones in the store, hence they’re fully obedient and would not do such a thing.”
I brushed the fat cat who was sprawled in front of me, causing his tail to move around non-stop in a show of pleasure.
“Perhaps so, but still…,” Shelly trailed off, brushing the tortoise-shelled cat’s head with a gentle smile on her face.
“Anyhow, if something happen, Theodore will deal with it. We don’t have to worry about such thing.”
“Ah, you’re right….”
Nevertheless, despite her acknowledgement of my statement, I noticed that she couldn’t help her anxiety judging from the restless way she was looking around at the other guests. Well, Shelly WAS the kind of girl who would be worrying non-stop once she saw or notice something to fret about. I suppose that was why she kept blathering non-stop due to the unpredictable nature of the cats.
“Aah, aren’t that child scared of walking on the beam like that?”
“Don’t worry, it’s a cat, right? That kind of height is a childs play for them.”
“Geez, Rex-sama! It’s still a kitten! That child might be injured after falling from such height.”
“I agree with Young Lady, Young Master. I’m going to be worried too if Young Master is standing at such beam. In my opinion, we should prepare a net for catching bug below for safety reasons if you do such things,” My attendant, Sadias, cut in while puffing his chest proudly.
Why in the world wasn’t he sitting in the table beside the stairs obediently just like the other attendant? I did not know. Really, even though he was older than me by three years, he tended to do a lot of silly things. He lacked the self-awareness of an adult too!
“Be quiet, Sadias. And don’t call me Young Master. Call my name properly.”
“As you wish, Young Master.”
Yet, he still blatantly called me ‘Young Master’ again. Did this guy ever listen to what others said properly I wonder?
“― In the first place, I have no reason to walk on a beam, do I? So, whether I need safety net or not is a moot point. Anyhow, why a safety net? It’s not like you can catch a human with those….”
“Yes, Sadias. Bug-catching net might be big enough to catch the kitten, but it’s definitely way too small for Rex-sama. Oh, it might be too small for the bigger cat as well. We should lay a net instead,” Shelly pointed out an improvement for the store.
And while it sounded like a good idea, please don’t forget that this is Theodore’s store, will you? Furthermore, why use me as an example?!
“Ooh, what a blunder… even though it was my long held dream to catch Young Master with net-catching bug since the aloof infant Young Master is just too adorable.” Sadias sighed sorrowfully, complete with a regretful expression on his face. Wait, did he just say something incredibly rude to me?!
“Stop coming and going as you please! Go back to your seat!”
“How cruel… eventhough I’m always thinking about Young Master’s well being everyday!”
While the guy was being dramatic, a big hand suddenly grabbed Sadias’ head from behind. It was a tall man, the peacemaker of the attendants, Abel.
“That’s enough, Sadias. My apologies, Rex-sama. I’ll tell this guy to wait outside this store.”
“Eh? No, Abel-san, don’t! For me, Young Master is….”
“Shut up.”
“A~H! PLEASE, AT LEAST LET YOUNG MASTER SCOLD ME BEFORE YOU FORCE ME OUT! CHANGE, CHANGE ABEL-SAN WITH YO- A~H!”
Despite Sadias’ entreaty, Abel who was dragging him by his head exemplary ignored the guy and dragged him out of the store without mercy.
“A-Abel-san! ARGH! STOP, STOP! MY HEAD FEEL LIKE IT’S ABOUT TO POPOUT! CHANGE, PLEASE! CHANGE ABEL-SAN WITH YOUNG MA- A~RGH!”
There was a sound akin to that of something was tumbling down the stairs, but I suppose it was just in my head. Surely it was nothing, right?
Yeah, it was nothing. I sighed, knowing that the storm had at last passed for now. And the cats, who had been standing still due to Sadias’ eccentricities, started to move again, secure in the knowledge that the danger had passed. I mean, even this cheeky fat cat looked at Sadias as if he was a rare creature, plus the other cats also looked scared of Sadias… which made me feel as if I had to apologize to them for my attendant’s antics.
“Sadias really like Rex-sama, doesn’t he?”
""
Although Shelly looked just as dumbfounded as the cats, the conclusion she came to was a complete misunderstanding.
“That one is just an idiot.”
“Is that so? He does try his best to cheer you up, though, Rex-sama.”
“I wish he does it in an easier way to understand than this.”
Hearing my complain, Shelly chuckled lightly as if she agreed with my point in this matter.
◇
“― So, what do you think?” Shelly asked out of nowhere after we enjoyed our lunch.
“About what?”
“Theodore-sama’s miracle. Especially the second one― I heard from hearsay that the spirits appeared too. As such, I want to know what Blackcurrant House… to be more specific, Rex-sama’s opinion in this regard.”
“The spirits, huh… there are rumors about that, but what you actually really wanted to hear is the story of our distant ancestor, right? About how they communicate with the spirit.”
Shelly nodded, then spoke with voice so soft it was almost inaudible. “Yes, as well as the fact that one of the house is related to the Demon King.”
“My ancestor, one of the Six Gods, Vlad, betrayed the demon king for the saint.”
This matter was something that was never revealed to the public, but not for me, since this was something that was told to me in my childhood. Although, this was a secret only known to our own family.
According to the legend passed down in my family, Vlad was originally part of the same race as the Demon King himself, but there was a different in opinion between Demon King and his ancestor long before Vlad’s era that led to their separation. So, properly speaking, it wasn’t actually a betrayal since it was actually his ancestor’s deed.
In any case, in the legend, Saint Selendia invited Vlad, who was spending his life quietly in the village his clan build to avoid the Demon King’s attention, to become her comrade.
“It’s really shocking to know that the Demon King… is actually older than Vlad himself.”
True, well, but that was not the point. Initially, the Demon King’s race could also communicate with the spirits, but then their race almost got annihilated after they tried to use the spirit’s power for their purposes. And there was only one clan who survived the calamity in the end. However, they split into two because one side wished to spend their life quietly, while the other side wished to get their revenge.
The people who wished for revenge soon lost their ability to communicate with the spirit, though in exchange, they gained longevity with their secret art. So, they waited patiently for their chance while strengthening their body and amassing more power to exact their vengeance.
It was these people who was later known as the demon race.
Only Blackcurrant House, Obsius House, and a small part of the temple’s upper brass that knew about this secret. Shelly’s house, the Obsius House, knew about this matter since one of their family’s member was married to Vlad’s daughter. Meanwhile, the upper brass of the temple had to learn about the truth behind the ‘Saint’s Great War’. As for the royal family… well, neither of our houses had any idea whether this secret was told to them or not.
“Our ancestor’s blood is supposed to flow in Theodore-sama’s and our vein, right?”
“If you say it that way, then you can actually say that almost all nobles in Serendia Kingdom are their descendant as well. Political marriage already happened a lot during the Saint’s era, so the Six God’s bloodline was also spread all over. Furthermore, there’s already a lot of cases where fellow descendant of Six Gods tied the knot with each other (got married). So, I don’t think that the bloodline is related to this case.”
“Why did the spirits appear then?”
“I don’t know. I mean, spirit and such are supposed to be things from legend.”
There was an anecdote that said that when the spirit destroyed the Demon King’s race, all they did was change the clan’s magical power and made them lose their power to communicate with the spirit.
“Yes, even in the Saint’s Legend, there’s nothing that explain about the spirit. Not a single thing.”
“It may be intentionally excluded from the story. I mean, look, Vlad in that story is only mentioned as a sage from hidden village.”
Oi, if it was revealed that he actually came from the same race as the Demon King, Vlad wouldn’t be granted with Duke title even if he married Serendiaz’s little sister, you know? In fact, he might be banished from the kingdom, or worse, assassinated.
“But, the story mentioned that the Saint can communicate with the spirit. The Six Gods seems to have the ability to feel the spirit’s will too. Then again, it does sound too good to be true.”
“… Nevertheless, that’s also one of the clues, right?”
“What do you think? This mean, we have no choice but to ask Theodore about this… and I’d rather not do that, thank you.”
I had gone and talked to my father about this matter, but he didn’t tell me to do something like that, so I’d rather not do it.
Although, it seemed that nowadays my father was investigating this matter till late at night. Perhaps, his focus was on the Six Gods― especially Vlad. After all, as the most mysterious figure among the Six Gods, Vlad had left many mysteries behind. Or, that might be only from our house, Blackcurrant House’s perspective.
My father seemed to be more mysterious than usual though. Really, if we could communicate with the spirits, that ability should have appeared in one of the members of our house. Just like how it appeared in Theodore― though I almost couldn’t believe my ears when I heard that he, the one with the most carefree soul and didn’t seem to understand our noblesse oblige, was the first one to communicate with the spirit.
“It’ll be okay.” Shelly wrapped my hand. “It’ll be okay. I know that Rex-sama will definitely awaken your power as the Six Gods. I mean, Saint-sama in the legend is also a normal girl until the God of Creation bless her when she was sixteen years old. That’s why, it’ll be alright.”
“― Yeah, you’re right. Thanks.”
“Bumya~.”
For some reason, the fat cat also placed his paw on top of our connected hands.
“Fufufu, thank you very much. You’re saying that you want to help Rex-sama too, right?”
“Bumya~.”
The heck? Rather than helping, it felt more like this cat was pouring cold water into this situation….
