The heat emanating from Hadel’s body was so intense that it was extremely difficult for the others to carry Hadel to his room.

After laying Hadel on the bed and covering his entire body with ice packs, they could finally take a breather.

The knight who helped carry Hadel wiped the sweat from his forehead and sighed.

“We didn’t expect the monsters to suddenly swarm like that. It was the worst situation this year.”

“It would have been dangerous if His Majesty hadn’t been there.”

Listening to the knight’s story, it seemed that as soon as Hadel went outside the castle with the knights, they encountered a horde of monsters. In order to melt the monsters’ ice, Hadel ignited flames larger than usual.

The problem was that afterward, the flames that started burning from Hadel did not go out.

“But if this fever continues…”

“It would be better to evacuate the castle in case of a rampage.”

Rampage.

At that frightening word, my fur stood on end.

‘Is the situation that serious?’

Mana rampage is not a common occurrence. Yet, that word was being tossed around regarding Hadel.

Of course, evacuating the castle would be the right thing to do in case of a rampage. What’s a castle anyway? The flames may not be extinguished even after burning down the entire northern region.

However.

‘Isn’t it too heartless to say that you’re abandoning Hadel alone in the castle and running away, even though he saved your lives?’

Their words sounded too cruel to me.

‘Carrying the unconscious Hadel to the castle was also to confine him in case he causes a mana rampage.’

Once a rampage begins, one loses their reason, so they won’t be able to open the locked door and come out. They will just burn and burn this castle until their heart stops.

‘What is this? This entire castle is like a prison.’

A prison made of huge stones.

As a fellow fire elemental, this situation didn’t feel like someone else’s problem to me.

“I will stay by His Majesty’s side.”

The one who showed unexpected determination in this situation was the butler I usually disliked. I looked at the butler with a surprised expression and hurriedly crawled into Hadel’s room before the door closed.

‘Hadel.’

The area around the bed seemed to be shimmering with the heat radiating from Hadel’s body. If he had truly gone on a rampage, it would have caught fire, so this meant Hadel was controlling it himself.

But there was something strange.

‘Shouldn’t you feel more at ease after expelling mana? Why does the fever persist?’

If overproduction of mana was the problem, Hadel’s body should have felt more comfortable than usual after encountering the monsters and igniting the flames. However, Hadel was emitting even more mana than usual.

‘He looks like he’s in pain. As if his heart doesn’t belong to him…’

I hopped over and sat down, curling up next to Hadel’s neck. I wanted to absorb even a little bit of mana to ease Hadel’s suffering.

“…Mew mew?”

As I got closer, perhaps sensing my presence, Hadel slightly opened his eyes and gazed at me. A corner of my heart ached at the sight of those hazy, reddened eyes.

“Mew.”

“It’s okay. This happens often… Ugh.”

Hadel, who habitually tried to pet me, closed his eyes tightly again with a groan. I looked at him with sympathetic eyes as he profusely sweated.

‘It doesn’t make sense to be in pain because of mana overproduction without being injured, does it?’

“Mew.”

I felt so sorry for Hadel who was suffering alone that I teared up. Since all I could do was stay by his side, I snuggled even closer to his body.

‘Huh? His breathing seems to have eased a bit?’

As my body became warm, Hadel’s breathing seemed to become more relaxed. I looked at Hadel with wide eyes.

‘Wait a minute. If I absorb the excess mana, will Hadel be okay too?’

There’s nothing to lose anyway. I immediately licked Hadel’s cheek.

Slurp.

‘Ugh, it’s hot.’

As soon as my tongue touched his cheek, a terrible heat surged into my body. However, it wasn’t painful for me, who originally kept even more flames trapped inside my body. I licked his cheek for a long time and stared blankly at Hadel.

‘Is this not enough?’

Slurp. Slurp.

I licked a little more, but Hadel’s condition didn’t noticeably improve. Still, his slightly relaxed face told me that absorbing the mana was having an effect.

‘I guess it’s time to finally make up my mind. Attempt more intimate contact!’

How could I not try when I knew it would be effective? Especially in front of someone who might go on a mana rampage at any moment.

‘Ugh.’

I may look like I’ve been through life and death and experienced everything, but I haven’t even had my first kiss yet!

‘No. This is not a kiss, it’s a rescue operation.’

No one calls CPR a kiss, right? It’s in that context.

Even after rationally accepting it, it took a lot of courage to bring my mouth to Hadel’s lips. I took several deep breaths.

‘I am a beast. I am a beast… No, not that kind of beast. I’m literally an animal. What’s the big deal about a pet kissing its owner a little?’

I closed my eyes tightly and pressed my lips against his. Unlike the endlessly long preparation time, the actual kiss ended in an instant.

Smooch.

And soon my eyes widened.

‘Huh?’

From the moment our lips touched, it was as if a channel opened and his mana rushed into my heart.

I should have pulled away, but I became limp like a drunk person and just blankly kept our lips pressed together. How much time passed like that?

“Huh?”

My limbs sitting by his side grew longer and longer, and my short, stiff fur became soft and flowy. After a while, I came to my senses and looked down at my two hands, my mouth agape.

“I, I’m a, a person… Eek?”

But before I could be surprised, my lips were pressed against Hadel’s lips again. Unlike earlier, it was a real ‘kiss’ where his breath intertwined with mine.

“Ha, Hadel, wait a moment… Mmph!”

The arms that firmly held my head and waist were too strong to push away. He sloppily intertwined with me through our tightly locked lips, leaving no room for air to pass through.

‘What is this?!’

The scorching mana rushed through the blood vessels all over my body. My entire body trembled at the sensation of the flames enveloping me after so long.

‘I can’t resist.’

Come to think of it, aren’t I the one who melted like cheese just from Hadel pressing down on me with his palm? So there was no way I could resist such intense contact.

After greedily feeding me mana like that, Hadel finally released his arms that were holding me and let out a comfortable sigh.

“…It’s refreshing.”

Leaving behind these words.

“…?!”

I blinked my eyes with a perplexed expression for a moment, then soon turned my face bright red and covered my lips with both palms.

‘This jerk! That was my first kiss!’

Hurry up and say it wasn’t a kiss but a rescue operation!

I wanted to grab his collar and shake him vigorously, but Hadel had already fallen into a deep sleep. In the end, only I, with a clear mind, was left biting my nails and making a sorrowful face.

‘You make my heart race like this and you just fall asleep?!’

Being timid, I only voiced my protest internally, afraid that Hadel might wake up. It was right at that moment.

“Your Majesty?”

‘Eek!’

The butler I disliked called for Hadel from outside the door.

‘Right! Didn’t the butler say he would stay in this castle!?’

Right now, I wasn’t in my usual weasel form but in human form. There was no way the butler would just laugh it off if he saw me suddenly turned into a human.

‘I need to hide somewhere quickly!’

The sound of footsteps got closer. I hurriedly got down on the floor. And I put my arms through the shirt Hadel had hung up.

The door opened almost simultaneously as I fastened the buttons.

“Oh, the window was open?”

The butler, who entered through the door, immediately closed the open window. Then, after calling my name a few times, he clicked his tongue and grumbled.

“That weasel! Where did it go when His Majesty is unwell?”

‘Why are you looking for me too!’

Why are you looking for me now when you always treat me badly?

I, who had escaped through the open window, was pressing down on my pounding heart.

‘Hurry up and go away.’

No matter how tightly I stuck to the wall, there was a high possibility of getting caught if the butler kept coming and going nearby.

I was biting my lips hard, and it was when the butler turned to look at the window again.

“…Butler?”

A deeply sunk voice called for the butler. It was Hadel. The butler approached Hadel with a bright smile.

“Your Majesty? Have you regained consciousness?”

“I think I’m fine now…”

“What? That’s really fortunate!”

I also let out a sigh of relief. It’s alright now. The resolve to do a lip-lock was worth it.

‘Right. It’s really fortunate. Not for me though.’

A young lady hanging on the window frame wearing only a shirt without underwear.

‘If someone sees, it’s a big incident.’

I moved my feet little by little. It was fortunate that people caused a commotion saying they would evacuate the castle. There was no one to witness Hadel’s room window facing the inside of the castle.

Carefully stepping on the window frame like that, I was able to barely enter through the window of the next room. But it was too early to be relieved.

‘But how long will I stay transformed into a human?’

The news of Hadel regaining consciousness would quickly spread throughout the castle, so I needed to hide my body where no one would approach.

‘For now, I should hide in Hadel’s study.’

Having decided on a destination, I hastily moved my steps.

And about three hours later, I was able to return to being a weasel again.