"Me? I'm…"
Just then.
A large bird—hawk-like in appearance—shot through the open window and landed squarely on the man's arm.
I flinched in fear, startled by the sheer size of the bird, which was even bigger than my whole body.
Was it going to attack me or something?
"You're here, Tete."
The man's expression grew serious as he untied a red ribbon from the hawk's leg.
Attached to the ribbon was a small folded paper, tied like a knot.
He read it silently, his face still solemn, then gently patted the hawk on the head and looked over at me.
Thankfully, the bird paid me no attention whatsoever.
Was it just my imagination, or did his eyes look even redder than before?
"I'd like to talk more, but it seems I have to go.
Ah, before that—"
"Yes?"
"Don't tell anyone about what happened between us."
He was going to send me back.
"Then…"
"Just say you were kidnapped by beastlings and lost consciousness. You don't remember anything."
"Why? Why can't I say anything?"
"See you next time, little one."
His last words echoed faintly in my mind.
Just like being hit with anesthesia, I tried to respond—"Uh… uh…"—but my fading consciousness swallowed me whole.
Where… is this…
When I opened my eyes, I was back in the place I always was: Kayton's laboratory.
It was astonishing. I couldn't believe it.
How did that man manage to teleport me so freely?
"Half demon," he'd said.
I guess he was telling the truth. Demons must have powers like that. I'm kind of jealous…
I looked out the window—the sun was still blazing in the sky.
Wait a minute. How much time had passed?
Had Kahel and Kayton returned? Or were they still searching the river for me?
My chest tightened with anxiety.
Ugh, if only I could grab a phone and call them right now—just say "I'm here!"
But I couldn't move on my own, so all I could do was sit here and wait.
I decided to wait it out for now.
I'd learned plenty of magic, but none of it seemed useful in this situation.
I closed my eyes.
Come to think of it, my whole body ached from everything that had happened today.
It felt like I'd just flown twelve hours in economy class and then hiked five more on foot.
I'm so tired… so sleepy… I'll just sleep for now.
I hadn't even begun to recover when a loud noise jerked me back awake.
The first voice that hit my ears was Beckey's—sharp and shrill.
"Whaaaaaaaaaaat!!!!!!! You—you're here?!"
Still wearing her daytime outing clothes, Beckey stared at me in shock.
Before I could even respond, she dashed off, her footsteps pounding across the floor.
"Kahel!! Sir Kayton!! Come quick!!! Pani's here!!!"
Now that I looked, the sky outside had already turned dark. Stars twinkled in the night sky.
The room, usually bright with lamps, now glowed only with moonlight and starlight.
"Pani!!! How in the world—!!"
Kahel and Kayton rushed in, both visibly stunned to see me.
Beckey and the male servants hurriedly brought in lamps, lighting up the entire room.
I hesitated.
According to Mr. Demon Guy, I had to lie about what happened.
But not knowing the reason made it incredibly frustrating.
My tongue itched with the urge to spill everything.
I wanted to tell them the truth.
But after seeing that man's combat abilities, I figured I should probably shut up and do as I was told—if I wanted to stay alive.
"I… I was suddenly kidnapped by beastlings."
"What?! Beastlings??? Why? How? Where? Tell us more—everything you can remember!"
Kayton leaned in so close I could see his nose hairs, practically spitting in my face with every word.
Kahel, meanwhile, was checking over me and the equipment, inspecting the flask carefully with a concerned look.
Only then did I realize—
the man hadn't given me any kind of detailed cover story.
I was going to have to improvise the rest.
"Um… After the three of you left, a bunch of beastlings started making weird noises and surrounded the area…Then the carriage started moving all on its own. It ran for a long time, and…"
"And??? What happened next?!"
"Well… then… I passed through some pitch-dark place…I couldn't see anything…And eventually, I arrived in a strange land."
He only told me not to mention anything about him.
So as long as I left that part out, I should be fine… right?
"A strange land?!"
Now Kayton and Kahel were both shouting in unison.
Beckey had finished lighting the lamps and leaned in close, her ears practically glued to the glass.
"I think… I think it was the Fellborn Dominion."
"The Fellborn Dominion, you say…Then what happened after that? Tell us!"
"Well…"
I paused. Should I talk about what happened with the black dragon, Reko?
But if I mentioned that trial, I'd have to mention the man. Yeah… probably better not to say anything.
"After that… I passed out. I don't really remember much."
"Huh? You don't remember?"
"Yes. I think something hit me really hard…
There was a lot of noise outside, and… when I woke up, I was back here."
Kahel and Kayton looked blank. Even to me, this sounded like a terrible, thrown-together lie.
They both stared at me with "Are you kidding me?" faces.
Only Beckey gasped in awe, her eyes wide with wonder.
"…This makes no sense at all."
Kayton finally let out a groaning sigh. Kahel tilted his head, puzzled—but then he quickly returned to his usual expression and forced a cheerful tone.
"Well, no matter what happened, the important thing is that Pani is back safe."
"No. What's more important is—why did the beastlings kidnap her in the first place?"
"…(gulp)"
The man specifically told me not to say that.
I'd reached the limit of what I could make up, so please, please don't press any further.
"Maybe it was just a prank?"
Beckey, surprisingly, came to my rescue. Kayton narrowed his white eyebrows.
"A prank?"
"There were rumors in the marketplace, remember? Beastlings have been popping up everywhere lately, pranking or kidnapping humans. Maybe it was something like that?"
"Hmmm."
"That does make sense. I think she might be right," Kahel said, nodding.
"Either way, we'll need a new coachman. We told him specifically to guard Pani, and he disobeyed our instructions."
"I agree. We'll hire a new one tomorrow."
"Pani, are you really okay? You're not hurt anywhere?"
Kahel looked at me with worried eyes, and I nodded.
"Just a little tired, but that's all. I'm really okay."
"I'm relieved. But from now on, we'll have to be extra cautious. Let's avoid going outside altogether."
"…Okay…"
I nodded sulkily.
I thought Kayton would launch into a long speech like, "See? I told you not to go out," and so on…
But surprisingly, he just left the room with a weary, deflated expression.
"Master was pushing himself hard looking for you today. He searched every inch of the riverside."
Kahel ran a hand through his hair and gave a tired smile.
"I see. He must be really exhausted."
"You must've been scared too. Tomorrow, instead of lessons, let's just read some picture books or do whatever you want."
Kahel said gently, and Beckey raised her eyebrows.
"You never think about me, do you, Sir Kahel? I had a rough time too, you know—because of her!"
"Of course you did, Beckey. That's why you can take the day off tomorrow too.
I'll take care of Pani."
"That's fine, I'll play with her tomorrow. You're too busy anyway, Sir Kahel."
Kahel didn't reply. He just smiled and, with a gentle gesture, turned off the lamp.
"Good night. See you tomorrow."
Beckey didn't even say goodbye to me.
She just followed Kahel out of the room like a shadow.
I was left alone in a room bathed in moonlight and starlight streaming through the window.
I closed my eyes again, but for some reason, I couldn't sleep.
The next day.
I was reading books with Kahel and Beckey when Kayton came in, holding a piece of paper.
He looked tense.
"These were posted all over the marketplace."
"What is it?" Kahel asked.
Kayton slapped the paper down on the desk with emphasis.
At the top, in large bold letters, it read:
Public Notice
Beneath that was a hand-drawn image…A girl curled up inside a glass bottle.
Wait—hold on. Isn't that… me?!?
No matter how wide I opened my eyes, it was undeniably me.
The flyer read:
– The Grand Homunculus Competition –
Come vote for the Empire's finest homunculus!
📍 Location: Helion Forest
📆 Date: May 5th, Imperial Year 1672, morning
🎁 All participants will receive a quill pen.
🥘 Lunch included.
🏆 Special prizes for citizens who correctly guess the winning homunculus.
Event will proceed even in case of rain.
Hosted by: The Academy of Magic and Alchemy
In the center of the flyer was the black-and-white drawing of the homunculus girl—me.
Beckey scrunched her nose.
"Whoever drew this… I could've done better in my sleep."
"Do you think they were posting these all day yesterday?" Kahel asked.
Kayton nodded.
"Seems like it. It's time we start preparing for the competition."
A strange feeling washed over me. This was starting to feel like American Idol.
"So… what do I get if I win this thing?"
I asked, and Kayton stroked his beard thoughtfully.
"If you win, the Imperial Family will reward us and our students with tremendous honors and prize money. As for the homunculus… you'll probably be granted a place in the Imperial Palace. They might provide specialized training, too."
"Hmm…"
But is that really a good thing? Living in the palace?
I suddenly thought of the demon man.
Come to think of it, that black dragon had said something about the palace when he spoke to him.
Does that mean… that man is from the palace too?
Wait—is he the emperor???
Ugh, my tongue's itching again. I hate keeping secrets!
"So, what do I have to do to win this Homunculus Contest?"
I asked, and Kahel answered.
"They'll be judging a lot of things. Appearance, health, stamina, and skills.
For the skills portion, they'll test magic, alchemy, and summoning."
"Did the last winner… end up living at the palace?"
"Oh, that one…"
Suddenly, Kahel's expression darkened. Kayton's face turned serious too.
"…What happened?"
"Well, He won and lived at the palace for a while, but there's a rumor that he ran away. No one's heard from him since."
"Ran away? Why?"
"Who knows? Maybe life at the palace was too stifling."
"Did they… like, lock him up or something?"
Honestly, I wasn't planning on winning anyway, but just in case I did… I had to ask.
Kahel shrugged.
"Who knows. He was treated like royalty, so whatever the problem was…"
"So, Pani—are you afraid of living in the palace?"
Kayton glanced at me sideways as he asked.
If that demon man's room was part of the palace… well, I'd already been there.
Didn't seem like anything special.
But I ended up saying the opposite of what I felt.
"Well… I don't know. I've never seen it, so I can't really say."
Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the door—then it burst open.
It was one of the errand boys. Kayton scowled.
"What is it? I didn't say you could enter."
"S-sorry! Urgent message!
The Imperial Palace has summoned Homunculus Pani to appear immediately!"
"…WHAT?!"