Instead of the hand holding my ankle, he awkwardly placed the other hand on my palm.

Our bodies were gradually transforming into a peculiar shape.
“If you sleep like this, you might suddenly feel unwell tomorrow. Then, you’ll have to sleep alone, right?”

“Are you daring to threaten me now?”

“It’s compromising.”

“Ah, I see. Compromising. You want to hold hands while sleeping, right?”

I nodded firmly.

“Then let’s compromise fairly by holding each other’s hands.”

“Sure.”

Ah, now we’re finally on the same page.

Lionel finally released my ankle and held my hand.

“Since I held your hand as you wanted, would it be a proper compromise if I also hold where I want?”

His gaze lingered briefly on my chest.

“Fairness… was that the meaning?”

I asked with a sidelong glance.

He raised the corner of his mouth, slowly reached out his hand, and said, “The place I want is… here.”

I closed my eyes and prepared myself.

“Heut!”

“Empress, sleep well.”

Unexpectedly, Lionel closed his eyes while pinching my nose.
For me, it was a suffocating night like never before.

“Thank you for escorting me. It’s better to part ways here. There are guards at the palace entrance…”

Approaching my residence, Roji bowed and greeted Prince Norton.

“Oh, right. It might lead to unnecessary misunderstandings. I’ll head back from here.”

“Thank you very much, earlier…”

“Don’t mention it. Even if it wasn’t at the request of Empress, I would have escorted you for safety.”

Interrupting her, Prince Norton extended his hand and humbly spoke.

“Other than that… I wanted to thank you for protecting Empress earlier.”

“…Ah, I see.”

With a slightly awkward expression, Prince Norton patted the head of the kitten in Roji’s arms, saying, “You should keep a closer eye on the cat. It seemed quite rebellious earlier.”
The kitten, which had been dozing off with a nodding motion, suddenly opened its eyes. It launched a feeble punch with its small, white front paw, as if trying to scratch Prince Norton. Roji, with a determined expression, seized the kitten’s four legs, holding the front and hind paws separately, restraining its struggling. “You, let’s see what happens when we get inside!” Roji shouted inwardly while giving a stern gaze to the wyvern transformed into a kitten. “Well then, I’ll take my leave. If the opportunity arises, I hope to see you again with Empress.” After Prince Norton bid farewell once again, Roji bowed her head once more and turned away.

Upon returning to the bedroom, Roji dealt with all the commotion, locked the bedroom door, and placed the kitten in the farthest corner from the door. “I thought you were going to cause trouble! Escaping without fear while I briefly went for a bath?” Roji, now visibly angry, huffed hot breath as she scolded the fearless kitten.
“You should have quickly called the owner.” The wyvern transformed back into its original form and confronted Roji with crossed arms. At the same time, the white cat, trembling all over, wandered around Roji’s room with a puzzled expression. “Hey, don’t be scared. I’m taking this kid, so it’s my room.” The wyvern went to the corner and spoke to the trembling white cat. In response, the cat, now with a somewhat relieved expression, swayed its tail and stared at Roji. “What’s this? Who’s taking whom? What, you think that cat understands what you’re saying?” “Isn’t it strange that it can’t understand? You shouldn’t compare this great wyvern to a mere human, Orange Head.” “This wyvern kid is a real piece of work! Because of you, even Empress was almost in trouble. Fool!” “I’m reflecting on that too…”
The baby wyvern couldn’t bring itself to confess that its previous owner was killed by a Teasler Prince’s knight because of it. If it told Roji the truth, a second murder could have occurred tonight. The wyvern, as a sign of remorse, lowered its head deeply for a moment, then raised its head again, its red eyes gleaming. “Hey, from now on, call me by my name! If not, I’ll mess up that orange hair of yours.” “You’re amusing. Where’s your name?” Roji snorted. “I’ve got one! As soon as my owner saw me, they decided on a name for me!” “So, what’s your name?” Despite finding the wyvern’s words absurd, Roji was curious. “Moiya.” “What?” “My name is now ‘Moiya.'” “Did the Empress call you that, so your name became like that?” Roji asked, puzzled, while sitting cross-legged on the bedroom floor.