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It was hard to control his killer instinct once he saw blood.

He’d just come to the forest for a fight with the other leopards. It wasn’t tough, but as soon as Shanti surrendered to him, he heard a voice.

“Aymon!”

Belinda’s voice.

Neither Shanti, who he was pinning down, nor Halla, nor the rest of the Shinsu had heard it, but Aymon did – Belinda’s desperate call.

He didn’t remember much of what had happened since then. He just wildly charged through the forest, following her scent and the sounds. His mind, calm even during the duel, was now overtaken with anxiety and fear.

Breedee. Breedee!

When he eventually reached Belinda, instinct took over reason.

He grabbed the bear that was about to attack her and tore it away by its skin. He was about to kill it in one blow, but…

“Don’t kill it, Aymon….”

The faint whisper brought him to his senses. All those explosive emotions disappeared with the indefinable fear in her tone. Aymon drew in his claws.

「It tried to kill you, but you’re telling me…」

His deep tone was calm now.

Belinda cowered upon hearing the abyss-like voice. Faced with his chilly gaze, for a moment, she forgot that it was Aymon. The leopard’s huge body awoke her instinctual fear of the unknown.

Belinda slowly nodded with a scared expression.

“You said you didn’t want to get blood on your hands for no reason.”

Unlike humans, animals didn’t kill for fun. Aymon had always said he hated human hunting, and she didn’t want him to kill a bear that was only there because of her stupidity.

Aymon slowly approached her.

The moonlight revealed shimmering, smooth black fur covering an elegant body and two beautiful eyes with a dangerous twinkle.

He was no longer a tiny leopard rubbing his face against her.

He’d become unfamiliar.

The dark shadow stopped in front of her.

「You’re hurt, Breedee.」

He lowered his head to lick her wounds. Belinda took a breath. Her fear was starting to subside, but her body was completely stiff, even though she knew it was just Aymon.

She never got this feeling from the rest of the Shinsu she met at the ceremony.

Aymon smelled faintly of blood – the results of his fight with Halla and Shanti. He forced himself to hide his fangs as the droplets of Belinda’s blood on his tongue drove him closer to madness.

It had only been hours since the fight, and Aymon was having a hard time just controlling his urges and the force that was violently tearing him up.

「If I hadn’t come, you wouldn’t have got away with just a scratch.」

His hot breath clung to her skin, and he bit her shoulder.

Belinda flinched, and Aymon quickly went back to licking her wound.

「That thing was going to kill you, Breedee.」

He said in a heavy tone, rubbing against her with closed eyes.

Belinda hardened again at the feeling of his soft fur tickling her skin. The silent tension didn’t even let her move.

The moon was nowhere in sight through the dark forest. She had an unconscious fear of Aymon attacking her if she moved.

But that couldn’t happen.

Belinda gulped.

Aymon slowly pulled away, his warmth replaced with the cool night air.

She looked up at him in a daze, his eyes like flickering flames.

Belinda’s lips trembled as if she was under a spell.

“Lucy… I needed… To protect Lucy…”

A breath caught in her throat. Lucy came to mind, probably somewhere in the dark, in danger.

The intimidating presence in front of her worried her even more.

Aymon looked away from her, glancing in the direction of the wind.

「My good Breedee, always worried about me.」

Aymon’s calm and gentle voice hid a trace of exasperation, easily noticeable to Belinda.

He looked up again, purring. A sharp claw dug into the ground.

「If I hadn’t noticed, this place would be covered in human blood by now.」

He quickly hid his exposed fangs again.

「Why the hell did you come all the way here? This is a dangerous forest, especially in the middle of the night full of wild animals.」

He made a conscious effort to calm himself, to see whether he could control his emotions. However, he wasn’t able to keep his flaring anger out of his exasperated voice.

「Even a seven-year-old wouldn’t do such a dangerous thing!」

The beast’s anger filled the forest.

The unfamiliar figure frightened her, his dry gaze paralyzing and the sharp air crushing her body.

Belinda just barely opened her mouth.

“I’m sorry, Aymon. We came too far.”

「……」

Aymon stared at her piercingly and eventually turned around, approaching Belinda.

「Let’s go.」

He leaned down onto the ground and nodded at his back. Quickly understanding the command, Belinda carefully climbed onto his back. Aymon’s body slightly hardened as she clung on.

She buried her face in his fur. The muscles of the beast under her were firm and hot.

Belinda’s nervous heartbeat began to settle down. His warmth alone was comforting.

Aymon took off through the forest. Belinda pulled him closer to stop herself from slipping off as the cold breeze swept past.

What happened at the duel, Aymon? Did you get hurt? I’m so sorry for making you worry. You look so handsome grown-up…

There were many things she wanted to say, but she couldn’t do anything. Her mind was occupied with the thought of his dry voice and frosty gaze.

Soon, Aymon caught onto Lucy’s trace.

Lucy and Lart were hiding behind a small boulder, stiff with fear and hugging each other tightly.

Aymon approached them silently. The two looked up, and their faces hardened. Perhaps because of Aymon’s unfamiliarity, they were terrified.

After Belinda got off, he walked towards them with an angry growl and roughly separated them.

“Aaaahhhh!”

He threw Prince Lart away like a broken doll.

「Why are you two together?」

He asked, grinding his teeth.

Lart could barely raise himself up. The fear in his eyes was visible through his messy hair.

He’d gone out hunting with arrows countless times and had many experiences with massive bears and lions chasing him down, but by God, this was the first time he’d felt this afraid.

Aymon stared at him with burning eyes, murmuring to himself.

Why the heck did you leave Breedee alone…

No one could hear his soft whispers.

Aymon soon drifted his threatening eyes away from Lart and slowly walked up to Lucy after regaining his composure.

「Lucy, are you okay?」

He asked sternly, though without the anger that he’d taken out on Belinda.

“You’re Aymon?”

「Yes.」

Only then did Lucy’s fear let up slightly.

“I… Well, I’m fine.”

「That’s a relief.」

Lucy smiled at him faintly.

Watching their interaction suddenly made Belinda want to cry. She looked up at the clouds covering the dark sky, vision obscured by her bleary eyes.

Aymon is here. We’re safe now.

She should have been relieved, but her eyes kept on burning. She’d shed tears of fear, but now, other emotions were getting involved.

She felt like her heart was being ripped to pieces. Unfamiliar jealousy was arising.

Aymon, why are you mad at me but sweet to Lucy?

He was even angry when he saw Lart and Lucy together. He shouted at him for being near her, then asked her if she was okay…

The meaning of Aymon’s actions seemed clear.

Maybe Aymon likes Lucy.

Was that the reason he wanted Lucy to come with them on their trip? Was that the reason why he was so surprised to hear about her bridal preparation classes?

Belinda tightly squeezed the hem of her dress.

Leaves brushed against her body as the two girls left the forest on Aymon’s back. The terrifying forest seemed peaceful again with his presence.

Prince Lart was right behind them, trying to match Aymon’s pace.

“Um, sir Shinsu, could you maybe go a little slower…”

Aymon didn’t care to slow down for the boy chasing after him. Although he was walking at a slow pace, the difference in size made it very hard for Lart to keep up.

After some more strained walking, he reached the border of the Shinsu forest. They could see the lights surrounding it from a distance.

It’s the imperial knights.

The light flashed on a knight’s armor. They were all pacing around, not daring to go into the forest itself.

Aymon stopped as soon as he saw their identifying armor and nudged Lart.

「Lead those humans away and beat it.」

There was still hostility in his voice.

Lart gave Belinda and Lucy a wink before walking away towards the forest boundary.

“Your Highness!”

“Are you hurt?!”

“The Princess… Where…”

The group of knights swarmed around him.

After he explained the situation, his voice soon died out, and the knights’ clanking weapons faded as they started to return to the palace. The Prince and Princess were safe, and some Shinsu might still be hanging around, so they decided to wrap up the situation.

As soon as they disappeared from sight, Aymon slowly continued towards the guest palace with Belinda on his back.

Belinda breathed a sigh of relief. Her surroundings were finally familiar again: the flower beds and the green leaves, the narrow gravel roads she used to walk on with Aymon…

She felt like she’d been pulled back to the peaceful reality from a chilling dream.

They soon arrived at Lucy’s quarters right outside the palace, and the two girls got off.

“Good night, Lucy.”

Lucy bowed.

“Thank you, my lady.”

Then she straightened up again and bowed to Aymon.

“Thank you for saving me today.”

「Yeah, you have plenty to thank me for. We didn’t even finish the duel properly.」

He gave a vague reply. Since Belinda saw them talking again, she’d kept her eyes glued to the ground.

“May you receive the infinite glory of the Empire.”

With a final greeting, Lucy disappeared behind a door.

Aymon continued walking towards the palace. There was dead silence between them. Belinda wanted to say something, but she didn’t dare open her mouth.

After they finally arrived, Belinda stood in the doorway, looking at Aymon.

She could finally see him properly. Except for the sparkling purple eyes, there was no resemblance to his previous self.

“Thanks for the ride. Goodbye.”

「…….」

Aymon didn’t answer.

Belinda started to take a step towards him but quickly backed away. Even though she knew the beast wouldn’t hurt her, the thought of his expression in the forest, cold as ice, made her hesitate.

Aymon stared at her.

「Are you afraid of me?」

“….No, no. It’s not that, Aymon.”

Belinda smiled awkwardly. She was afraid but getting used to the idea of a new Aymon.

Aymon’s face, in contrast, was serious.

「It doesn’t matter if you are. I have no intention of ever separating from you.」

“…..”

「Even if you get scared and run away, I’ll catch you. Because you’re my Breedee.」

Is this threatening or reassuring?

Belinda smiled at the mysterious words. Hearing them made Aymon become familiar again.

Yeah, that was the usual blunt Aymon.