The Symbiotic Relationship Between The Rabbit And The Black Panther [EN]: Chapter 2

Afterward, the man shoved me into his pocket, cramming me in roughly, and then moved on.

The rough handling caused me to faint.

When I regained consciousness, I found myself in a dazzling bedroom, unlike anything I’d ever seen, even in the Lavian mansion.

‘…Where am I?’

I hopped around on the fluffy bedding, then despaired.

I didn’t dare jump off the bed, but I had to escape from here, no matter what.

Before losing consciousness, just before being shoved into the man’s pocket, I saw something I shouldn’t have.

It was a head rolling on the ground. And in the man’s other hand was a sword stained with bright red blood.

Anyone could tell he was the one who killed the two beast-men who were transporting me.

The Lavian family’s maids had warned me that the black panthers from the neighboring territory were impatient and violent.

True to their words, the man *should* have killed me on the spot, so why did he bring me to a place like this?

Turning my small head, a terrible conclusion dawned on me. In the form of a baby rabbit, I might be used as an emergency snack—not even emergency rations.

‘No way!’

I cried out and pounded the bed with my front paws.

No, absolutely not. I refused to end up on a plate in this strange place, far from my homeland.

‘If I’m going to escape, it’s now or never.’

My eyes flashed, and I began to bounce on my hind legs. Even if I broke a bone, I had to jump down.

‘…Here I go!’

I’m really jumping, I’m really jumping!

With a determined expression, I leaped, and at that moment, someone’s hand grabbed me.

Surely it wasn’t the black panther I saw in the forest earlier. Stiffly turning my gaze, I saw a man with dark black hair looking at me with concern.

“You almost got into big trouble. Why would you do something so reckless?”

Fortunately, or unfortunately, the hand that caught me didn’t belong to the rude black panther from before.

The strange thing was that, despite his neat appearance and polite tone, his expression and voice were utterly devoid of emotion.

Just as my tension began to ease at the odd irony, I swallowed a wary breath again.

Caution was necessary. Every time the man spoke, the occasional glimpse of his fangs made the fur on my body stand on end.

Besides, it was true that most black panthers had red eyes; his eyes were also tinged with red.

“Ahin-nim, really, leaving such a small rabbit on the bed… By the way, it’s nice to meet you, but where are you from?”

There was no way I could answer, even if he asked.

*Rabbit territory, rabbit territory!* Unfortunately, my inner cry didn’t reach the man.

“I see. You can’t speak…!”

*That’s* something to say with such surprise? Are you stupid? Let go! I cursed him harshly in my mind, but the man didn’t seem to have any intention of putting me down.

“The floor is safer than the bed.”

Soon, he walked to the sofa in the room and picked up a fluffy-looking cushion, placing it on the floor.

“Now that you’re here, you mustn’t get hurt carelessly, because you are Ahin-nim’s possession.”

The man carefully placed me on the cushion and explained very seriously, even gesturing with his fingers.

*‘Explain in detail.’*

What’s with the strange title of ‘Rabbit-nim’ [a polite suffix, similar to ‘Mr.’ or ‘Ms.’], and what’s with the ‘possession’ thing? Frustrated, I tapped the cushion with my front paws.

As if he understood, the man gently stroked my head with his index finger.

“Also, you must always maintain a clean appearance.”

‘Cleanliness?’

Puzzled, I stared up at him.

Still, I was able to glean some information from the man’s words and actions so far.

The man in front of me was a subordinate of the black panther who put me in his pocket, and judging from the repeated title of ‘Ahin-nim,’ that seemed to be the black panther’s name.

‘Tell me more.’

The more information, the better.

At my urging gaze, the man, who once again stroked my head with a kind touch, opened his lips.

“Seeing Ahin-nim bring Rabbit-nim directly into the bedroom like this, it seems… special!”

‘Special?’

“Like emergency rations.”

…Indeed, those were wise words. I foamed at the mouth again and fainted.