MTFBMP Chapter 36

“Hah~”

 

The breath that had been stifled escaped like a chuckle.

 

“Now get out of the way now for real.”

 

I pounded Adelaine’s chest with all my might. 

 

My palm brushed against his bare skin, and a fairly naked sound echoed through the basement, but I tried to ignore it. 

 

If I paid attention to such things, I would never be able to be the master of the beast.

 

Adelaine moved away from me at my command, and he stood there for a moment, glaring down at me.

 

“I’ll try to come every day from now on if I can, but I may not be able to, because I have other people to worry about.”

 

“I see.”

 

“But I’ll do my best to be here at the same time as today, so just wait patiently.”

 

Despite his words, I was going to come for him anyway. Punctuality was an important part of taming the beast.

 

“I’ll be off, then.”

 

The words had become familiar in my mouth by now. I was beginning to think I could get through the day without incident.

 

“Well, then, master.”

 

As if he still had something left, he called me back as I turned to walk away. Somehow, I turned back to him without resistance. 

 

Adelaine was leaning against the very wall I’d been imprisoned against, staring at me.

 

“Now give me your name.”

 

“Ah, a name.”

 

Suddenly, I realized that we had come this far without even exchanging a simple common name. 

 

Besides, in the original game, the pet was given a name after the pet contract was signed.

 

“Why didn’t I think of that.”

 

It wasn’t a big deal, but it was also something that made me hesitate.

 

‘I can’t even give him my real name.’ 

 

Partly I was deliberately not giving him my name, and I was careful not to call him by his name, because I didn’t want to embarrass myself by giving Adelaine’s name and remembering it quickly.

 

So now that she’d decided to take him in as a pet, they needed to know each other’s names.

 

“Your original name…, do you remember any?”

 

I asked cautiously, and Adelaine immediately shook his head.

 

“It’s only right that the one who becomes the master should give me a name, so it doesn’t matter if I had one before.”

 

Despite the rambling, it was clear from the looks on his face that Adele didn’t remember his original name at all.

 

‘I guess I could just give him an alias.’ 

 

It was strangely hard to think of one. 

 

Something inside me was warning me that I shouldn’t. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve remembered him as Adelaine all my life, or because it’s the name I gave him in a past life.

 

To me, he was only Adelaine.

 

‘Well, there’s a risk that one day I might get distracted and accidentally call him by his real name.’ 

 

While I pondered, Adelaine stood still, looking at me, waiting for a name. 

 

Looking into his eyes, I couldn’t think of any other name.

 

‘Well, then…’

 

I suddenly remembered when I had chosen my nickname. It was a random choice, but in retrospect, it wasn’t a bad one.

 

“…Adele, let’s call you Adele.”

 

“Adele.”

 

He rolled the name I’d given him in his mouth a few times, the new Adele on his lips sounding strangely familiar and yet somehow oddly fitting.

 

“So I guess my name is Adele now.” 

 

“Do you like it? Like…, like it was always your name?”

 

I asked, hoping to trigger some nostalgia, and he glanced at me with a slight tilt of his head.

 

“It’s my name because my master gave it to me, and I don’t need any other reason for it.”

 

Fortunately, my fears were unfounded. 

 

A mere name wasn’t enough to bring back his memory.

 

‘Perhaps his animal instincts are blocking his memory.’ 

 

The odds were in my favor, and I hoped I was right.

 

“Now that I’ve gotten my name, I’d like to get the name of the one who will be my Master now.”

 

“Ah…”

 

This question puzzled me more than the request for a name.

 

“I thought you had heard all that already.”

 

Most of the crew called me kid or brat, but Dion and Jade insisted on calling me by my full name. 

 

Even I was getting used to my alias by now.

 

Was he trying to pretend he didn’t know until he heard it from my mouth? 

 

Adele shook his head as if he had read my thoughts.

 

“No, my body did not react to that name.”

 

Whatever Adele was saying in front of me sounded meaningful and erotic in a way that was both odd and reassuring, as although fitting for a beast, it was also so different from the Adelaine I knew.

 

“It must not be your real name. Tell me my master’s real name.”

 

Was it the animal’s instincts, so sharp in places like this? 

 

If, as he said, we were bound somewhere in our souls, this was a hassle not only for me.

 

“Can’t you just call me Anthele, like I gave you the name Adele?”

 

“No. I don’t like it. Besides, I don’t want my name to be so similar to my master’s.”

 

What a demanding pet.

 

It seemed like it was more of a burden to give him my name than it was to name him Adele.

 

‘I rarely call him by his name, but he won’t stop calling me by mine.’

 

A never-ending list of excuses was generated in my mind. 

 

But Adelaine was just as insistent.

 

“The name. Our contract is not complete without a name.”

 

‘Why all that biting and sucking a moment ago, when I’ve been so patient and accepting!’

 

It was a snotty remark, but there was nothing else to say. 

 

It was my game, and I was the one who had to ask permission from the beast before I could take full ownership.

 

In retrospect, the name was the final seal on the deal.

 

I grimaced and winced.

 

“Come on.”

 

How naive of me to try to placate him with a few apples. I had no idea bringing in a pet would be such a hassle.

 

“Mmm…”

 

I pursed my lips a few times. 

 

For a moment, it felt awkward to say my name, to the point where I couldn’t even remember that it was Antheia.

 

“…Theia.”

 

I finally managed to spit out the name, blurring the first letters.

 

“Theia?”

 

“It’s not Theia…”

 

Adele’s reflexive retort stopped me in my tracks. An intense sense of déjà vu hit me.

 

— ‘I’m really sorry, Thea.’

 

Adelaine’s voice echoed in my head from the vision.

 

“Theia.”

 

Adel called to me once more.

 

Turning to face him, I braced myself for the faltering gaze.

 

Our eyes met, and I was all in them.

 

“Theia, yes, that’s your name.”

 

Adele’s lips drew a soft arc. The corners of his eyes crinkled into a very human smile.

 

“Theia.”

 

There it was again, my name. It felt so right, as if it had been my name since the beginning of time.

 

“Yes, Adele.”

 

I didn’t know what else to say, so I called him by his first name.

 

“My master, Theia.”

 

Adele bent down a little, reached out, and took my hand.

 

Turning my hand-over, he stared at my palm, so small in his large hand. His grip was like a trap, one I couldn’t escape.

 

After slowly pulling my hand away, Adele buried his lips in my palm. 

 

Normally, he’d kiss the back of my hand, but this was a different kind of kiss.

 

This time, it wasn’t a simple touch like the one earlier, when he’d snatched the apple away from me.

 

Opening his lips slightly, he traced the thin flesh with his lips, then darted his tongue out to trace over the knuckles. 

 

When I flinched from the tickle, he bared his teeth and nibbled at the flesh.

 

“Ah, Adele.”

 

No matter how many times I called out his name, he didn’t stop.

 

Only after one final, deeper press of his lips and a biting motion as if to carve the mark into my hand did he stop. 

 

Only then did Adele’s eyes lift to look directly at me.

 

The pupils within the glistening irises were still circled in human form.

 

“From now on, Theia, you are my master.”

 

As Adele spoke into my palm, a light flashed above it, as if a light switch had been turned on.

 

“Ah.”

 

I blinked rapidly, several times.

 

‘A name.’ 

 

Adele’s name floated above his head.

 

Clean, pure white, two syllables, ‘Adele.’