The Symbiotic Relationship Between The Rabbit And The Black Panther [EN]: Chapter 8

The Symbiotic Relationship Between a Rabbit and a Black Panther 8

As expected, Ahin’s family seemed to hold a rather high position within the Black Panther territory.

I remembered the Rabian family’s maids gossiping about frequent conflicts between the Black Panther clan and the Wolf clan, and their worries about a potential war breaking out.

As the night deepened, I carefully rose and examined Ahin, who was lying with his back to me.

Perhaps due to his injury, he wasn’t wearing a gown, revealing his broad back.

‘Could he have been attacked by a wolf beastman?’ My gaze drifted to the bandage stained with fresh blood.

‘That must hurt.’

Ahin acted as if it were a common occurrence, but there was no way a laceration and stitches wouldn’t hurt.

His back was covered in small scars, in addition to the injury he sustained today.

‘Was it the work of a wolf beastman?’

‘Those bastards even used a scent that paralyzes the body.’

The lingering image from earlier continued to float in my mind. As I stared blankly at the bloodstained bandage, my vision suddenly began to shake.

‘What, what is it!’

It was because Ahin, who had suddenly turned, abruptly pulled me close to his nose. Startled by the warm breath on my back, I struggled.

‘He’s not going to eat me without warning, is he!’ I thrashed my hind legs frantically, but Ahin’s hand showed no sign of loosening.

After holding his nose against my neck for several seconds, a low voice rumbled from him.

“From your neck,”

Startled, I turned my head, and Ahin’s red eyes were right in front of me. His drowsy, blurry crimson eyes grew darker with each passing moment.

“I smell pheromones.”

The breath on my neck was enough to make me feel faint.

I thought he was really going to swallow me whole. Barely calming my pounding heart, I shook my head.

‘Pheromones…’

That couldn’t be. Pheromones were a characteristic scent that only appeared in beastmen who had undergone humanization [the process of a beastman developing human-like qualities and abilities].

It could also be a kind of ability, and sometimes it was used for sexual interaction.

Moreover, the pheromones of predators mainly exhibited aggression and had a strong scent, whereas the scent of herbivorous beastmen was often faint.

So, it was absurd for me, a herbivorous beastman who hadn’t even undergone humanization, to possess pheromones.

I was already upset, so I didn’t want such a misunderstanding. I shook my head repeatedly.

Perhaps reaching a similar conclusion, Ahin’s grip on my neck loosened.

“…Are you a variant?”

A variant, that’s harsh. But I couldn’t really argue. I was abandoned for being a variant, according to the priest’s claim of a curse.

“Suspicious.”

He stared at me with ambiguous eyes, then curved his red eyes into crescents.

“I should just eat you tomorrow.”

Why does it always come back to that? I gave him the most pitiful look I could muster and brought my front paw to the back of Ahin’s hand.

“Are you asking me to spare you?”

Nod, nod. We’ve been sleeping in the same bed for two days now, can’t you show me that much mercy? Right?

He met my timid plea for life and gave another inscrutable smile.

“I told you, if you cry, I’ll spare you tomorrow too.”

His voice was gentle yet playful. Dumbfounded, I opened my mouth slightly, and Ahin propped his chin up as if admiring the sight.

“It feels exhilarating.”

Ah. He’s hopeless. I thought he was just a crazy black panther, but he seemed to be an extraordinary pervert.

Horrified, I tried to escape, but it ended in failure. Because Ahin, who didn’t let go, pulled my hind legs back.

‘Let go!’

There was no way I could escape by struggling. I grabbed the bedding with my front paws, but I was helplessly dragged along.

‘That seductive beast…!’

Reflexively glaring at him, he seemed satisfied and gently stroked my back.

If you think I’ll crumble with just this kind of touch, you’re greatly mistaken. With that thought, I tensed up, but somehow I felt sleepier and sleepier.

Eventually, the smile disappeared from Ahin’s eyes as he looked down at me, who was drooping with my hind legs held.

He tapped the bed with his finger as if thinking something and muttered.

“I shouldn’t have killed those guys in one move yesterday.”

I turned pale, recalling the gruesome corpses again. It seemed to be because he could have questioned the beastmen who were moving the basket about my identity.

If he found out that I was cursed and abandoned, how would this black panther react?

From the beginning, it was strange that he suspected me but didn’t take any special measures.

Was it for the amusement of a predator? As I continued to think about this and that, my eyelids grew heavier, and I fell asleep.

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