MTFBMP Chapter 19

 

As Adelaine finished speaking, he raised one hand suddenly and grabbed mine, lifting it above his head. 

 

It was as if he wanted me to touch him, as if he were in his animal form.

 

With great care, using only my wrist, I touched the hair on his head. It was different from an animal’s fur, but soft all the same. His hair, which hadn’t been washed in a while, felt so silky.

 

As I stroked him gently, Adelaine pulled my hand away again and placed it gently down.

 

Afterward, I realized that everything about him was a cheat.  He looked like a sleeping angel.

 

“It’s really cheating.”

 

“What does that mean?”

 

“I mean, it’s not fair.”

 

I had boarded this ship to get away from Adelaine. I had to leave my home behind, and I had to leave the arms of the adults who protected me. 

 

Now, with threats lurking around every corner, the only thing I could count on was to catch a ride on one of the flying beasts around here somewhere.

 

Even that goal had been shaken to its core by Adelaine.

 

‘Griffin, king of the beasts. It shouldn’t be a problem for him to call the beasts to his side.’

 

It’s not that I didn’t know of the power, but Adelaine didn’t know it existed in the first place.

 

In the desperation to avoid the beast’s form, Adelaine had to forget the ability that had been etched into his instincts.

 

‘So it’s the opposite now. You’ve forgotten what it was like to be human, and you’ve been living with your animal instincts.’

 

As twisted as my fate had been, it seemed Adelaine’s fate had been equally twisted.

 

There are no beasts that could defeat Adelaine now. 

 

It also meant that the most obvious mount was… the griffin here.

 

‘The best pet, assuming it’s not Adelaine.’

 

Which was a ridiculous thought. Not anyone else but the final boss as a pet.

 

‘But what if it is?’

 

There would be nothing to fear on this ship anymore.

 

“Do you remember how you ended up here?”

 

Why would a being so powerful be held captive like this?

 

“I thought you were familiar with this body.”

 

“Hmm. I don’t remember that either, I wonder why.”

 

“I doubt I would know if you asked me.”

 

The words didn’t sound particularly regretful.

 

“I can guess. It was probably close to a breakdown.”

 

“What do you mean, close to?”

 

“Because if it had been, it would have been nowhere near this body.”

 

The gruesome words were spoken casually.

 

“It was wise of them to grab it by the wings and break it. Now that its source of power is severed and cut off, it might be possible to subdue it.”

 

“Are you sure it’s okay to tell me that?”

 

“That’s also a foolish question, since you’re the person I’m telling.”

 

Somehow, I felt like I was being treated special. It was dangerous. But the answer tickled my fancy.

 

“I am no different from any other human being.”

 

“There is no other human being in the world who shines like you.”

 

Was the man in front of me really the Adelaine I’d heard about who wanted to kill me? The questions piled on top of each other.

 

“Ah.”

 

At that moment, it dawned on me.

 

Adelaine, noticing my change, turned slightly, examining my expression.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

Adelaine was looking at me with a bewildered expression on his face, and the look said it all.

 

‘Did you by any chance share the vision I had last dawn?’

 

Adelaine had called me radiant because we had shared the vision on board the ship, so why not the vision in the cabin?

 

I couldn’t ask directly, so I turned the question around. 

 

“Did you have any strange dreams last night, by any chance?”

 

Adelaine’s eyes narrowed. It was an all-too-human expression, like he was trying to figure something out. 

 

It was also a look that seemed to enliven him a little.

 

“That’s a difficult question. I don’t remember many dreams from when I was human.”

 

“You mean you keep forgetting the dreams you had when you were human?”

 

“I suppose you could say that. Since I’ve been trying to stay human since the moment you arrived here, I don’t remember them, even if I did dream them.”

 

“But you were an animal when I came here today.”

 

“I was exhausted from waiting for you without sleep. If you’d been any later, I might have gotten agitated and eaten you in one bite.”

 

The words were hot and cold.

 

Adelaine, as he was now, seemed oblivious to the second vision I had. There was no way in hell he could have acted the way he did if he had seen himself killing me in the full regalia of the Emperor.

 

‘Does that mean, then, that I should keep Adelaine as human as possible?’

 

A difficult task. For one thing, I had no idea what I could do.

 

“I want you to be there for me so that I can stay human.”

 

Adelaine said that he also wanted to remain human. It was an odd moment of mutual desire.

 

“Maybe you can make me completely human.”

 

By completely human, I guess he meant he wanted to be Adelaine, complete with all his memories.

 

Up to that point, it was a wish I couldn’t grant. There was no reason to strangle myself, let alone whether I had the ability to do so. 

 

It was a tug-of-war, and I had to see how long I could hold out.

 

I decided not to puke on his words, for now, and continued the conversation.

 

“If you want to be human…”

 

Answering his proposition right away was difficult. 

 

But I could say one other thing.

 

“Put some clothes on first.”

 

I draped the clothes I’d packed over his body like a blanket. I didn’t have any underwear for him, but I’d brought the loosest top and bottoms I could find. 

 

As I held them up to his body, I realized they might be a little short on his limbs, but at least they were wearable.

 

“So, you don’t really like human bodies…”

 

“Aha! It’s not like that.”

 

Without realizing it, I interrupted Adelaine.

 

Moreover, the first words that came out of my mouth sounded like I was talking to a beast. I wondered to myself if I was really treating Adelaine like an animal.

 

“…Let’s see.”

 

Adelaine raised himself to his feet, and the covering fell away from his body like fine silk falling from a fine cloth.

 

Soon he was bare, and I quickly averted for a moment. 

 

‘What a shabby sailor’s outfit I brought to Adelaine.’

 

As much as I regretted it, I had no choice. I couldn’t ask Dion to give me something bigger than my body.

 

While I was looking away, something fluttered a few times, either wings or fabric, and then everything went silent again.

 

“Is this how it’s supposed to be?”

 

I turned my head again, but Adelaine was nowhere to be seen. 

 

Instead, he looked down at his thighs, where the weight of his pants was once again.

 

“…Why are you only wearing pants?”

 

Putting the other facts aside for the moment, I wondered why he had thrown the top away. 

 

There he was, lying across my lap again, wearing only his pants.

 

“I couldn’t wear them because of my wings.”

 

“Wings?”

 

I lifted my head and looked at his back.

 

“You mean they grabbed your wings and broke them…”

 

“I see you’re finally realizing.”

 

Both wings were bent at an odd angle from their roots. Moreover, the sticks had been intertwined horizontally at the roots, and then held together with feathers, making it difficult to open them, let alone fly. 

 

It was clearly malevolent.

 

When I examined the wing on the wounded side, the feathers had been plucked out, especially near the root. 

 

There was not a single intact feather on that side. Was this why there were feathers in the hallway? 

 

My heart began to ache. That wasn’t the only problem.

 

“For some reason, it kept using only one wing.”

 

The other wing, the one that could move freely, was staked to the floor.

 

‘If you think about it, it’s like a human arm, with spikes everywhere…’ 

 

Nothing could be more cruel.

 

“That must have hurt.”

 

Unconsciously, my voice dripped with bitterness.

 

“You can’t fold in wings when you’re this injured and not healing.”

 

Wings, after all, but didn’t they just break his bones and then tie him up so he couldn’t heal?

 

“Is it okay if I pull this out?”

 

I hovered over the stick that held the wing in place, not daring to touch it.

 

“You mean you’re going to heal it?”

 

Adelaine pulled himself up again. Turning to face me, he looked me in the eye and smiled, one corner of his mouth twitching upward.

 

‘Oh, he just smiled.’

 

Now that I remember, this was the first time I’d ever seen him make such an expression.

 

‘You’re bewitching me again!’

 

Everything that had just been so serious was forgotten, and I focused on his face.

 

“Well, you can try.”

 

He gestured his back toward me.

 

“Ah…”

 

Sitting up and facing him, his back looked even worse than I thought it would. I hadn’t realized it from the glimpse I’d gotten.

 

“Don’t be scared. Once we get you back in shape, you’ll heal.”

 

Although it might be slow. 

 

Though Adelaine added that, there was no sense of urgency in the words.

 

“In that case, I’ll start by removing the stick I’ve secured here.”

 

“As you wish.”

 

“Let me know if it hurts.”

 

I couldn’t believe the situation, that Adelaine was defenseless with his back against me. 

 

On the other hand, I also felt an odd sense of obligation that if I didn’t do it, no one else would.

 

“I will do it.”

 

Continuing to warn him, I placed my hand on his back near the root of his wing, just in case he wriggled in pain.

 

And then the next…

 

“One, two.”

 

Three.

 

I pulled out the stick on the free wing first.