Leonard’s expression hardened as he noticed the guards standing in front of his room.
“What’s going on?”
“Butler Thomas ordered that no one is to enter the room until my lord arrives!”
“Thomas……? Alright, I understand. Step aside.”
Thomas was someone who knew how to keep boundaries. Unlike the sometimes emotional Elton, he moved with precise clarity, as if measured by a ruler.
There was no way such a man would do something meaningless. Leonard’s anxiety doubled. He urgently flung the door open.
The first sight that greeted him was Yellian approaching. But something was off about their steps. They were staggering, clearly indicating a problem.
“Yellian!”
The moment Leonard called Yellian’s name, sensing something wrong, Yellian’s body tilted and collapsed to the side with a thud.
Leonard rushed to Yellian and checked their condition. Fortunately, there seemed to be no visible injuries.
“Call a veterinarian immediately! Right now!”
“Yes! As you command.”
Leonard shouted at the top of his lungs so those outside the door could hear. Even after hearing the response, he couldn’t relax. He didn’t know whether to touch Yellian or leave them be, not knowing what to do.
[Kyuuung…….]
At that moment, Geumdong approached Leonard. But his cry sounded strange. It wasn’t the usual short, affectionate tone. The long, drawn-out sound felt weak and lifeless.
“What is this…….”
Only then did Leonard start to notice things beyond Yellian.
The first thing that caught his eye was a large sack. He couldn’t understand why a sack as big as his torso was here.
Looking around with uneasy eyes, he saw the bedside table knocked over and the curtain half-torn, dangling loosely.
Not only that, the vase that had been on the table was rolling on the floor. The painting that had been neatly hung on the wall was precariously tilted, as if about to fall.
It was clear that something major had happened. And it seemed that incident was connected to Yellian’s safety. Leonard gritted his teeth.
“Call Thomas!”
“Yes, understood!”
Since Thomas had stationed the guards, he must know something.
Leonard anxiously waited for Thomas. The waiting time felt like an eternity. In the meantime, he laid Yellian on the bed and paced around them.
“My lord, it’s Thomas.”
“Come in.”
A familiar voice accompanied the sound of a knock. Leonard quickly headed to the door. Soon, the door opened, and Thomas appeared. Unlike the visibly anxious Leonard, he looked calm.
“What happened?”
Leonard asked urgently, barely taking a breath. Thomas, as if he had expected this reaction, showed no sign of agitation.
“Exactly 57 minutes ago, I was walking down the corridor with the servant Edin. Then, I heard a cat’s cry that sounded like a scream, so I rushed over.”
Thomas paused briefly to catch his breath before continuing in a steady tone.
“When I got there, that large sack was just lying in the corridor. I ordered Edin to open it, and inside were my lord’s cat and dragon. I determined that someone had clearly attempted to abduct my lord’s animals, so I instructed Edin to bring them to my lord’s room and personally called for guards to stand watch.”
“So, you don’t know who did this.”
“That’s correct. However, as my lord knows, the security of the estate is as tight as that of the imperial palace. I don’t believe an outsider could have infiltrated under these circumstances.”
“I agree with that assessment. From now on, seal off the duke’s estate so no one can leave. Also, since the culprit might have already fled, check on anyone who is absent. And find out how far the veterinarian has come.”
“Yes, understood.”
With a short reply and a bow, Thomas left the room. Only after he was gone did Leonard slump onto the bed, as if drained of strength.
Though he didn’t know exactly what had happened to Yellian, he could tell they had nearly been abducted and had fought fiercely beforehand. The disarrayed room testified to that fact.
How scared must they have been? How desperate? How much must they have searched for him, who wasn’t there?
Just thinking about it made his breath catch. He felt guilty and angry for not being there to share Yellian’s pain.
Of course, the reason he had been away was also for Yellian’s sake. He had gone to the imperial palace for Yellian, but the result was that he wasn’t there during their moment of danger, which drove him nearly mad.
Lost in guilt and anger, he didn’t even notice time passing. Leonard was like a powder keg, ready to explode at the slightest touch.
With a hardened expression, he looked down at Yellian, who seemed to be asleep, unconscious. How much time had passed like that?
“My lord, I will bring in the veterinarian.”
“Understood.”
Hearing the voice from beyond the door, Leonard belatedly snapped back to reality. He had been preoccupied with imagining tearing apart the unknown culprit over and over in his mind.
“Ah, hel-hello…….”
“Skip the formalities and check this cat’s condition immediately. Then, check the dragon’s condition as well.”
“Ah, understood.”
The trembling veterinarian looked familiar. Leonard narrowed his eyes. He didn’t often have reason to see a veterinarian.
“Have you been here before?”
“Yes, that’s correct……. It was about half a year ago.”
Half a year ago would be around the time he first met Yellian. Though he hadn’t directly seen Yellian being treated back then, he vaguely remembered passing by the veterinarian. Therefore, this veterinarian knew that Yellian was a feline humanoid.
“You must already know this, but today’s events must never leak outside.”
“Yes, yes! Understood.”
“Good. Hurry and start the examination.”
“Yes, understood!”
The veterinarian used a stethoscope on Yellian, opened their eyes to shine a flashlight, and felt various parts of their body. After focusing on the examination for a while, he removed the stethoscope and spoke politely.
“There don’t seem to be any major injuries. However, whether they hit something, or…….”
“Or?”
He hesitated, unable to continue immediately. Leonard wasn’t the type to wait patiently.
“W-Well, whether they were hit…… their body is swollen. Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to be fractured.”
“Hit, you say…….”
Leonard muttered in a voice laced with menace. The veterinarian, not knowing what to do, shrank his shoulders.
The thought of Yellian being hit made Leonard, whose eyes were already half-crazed, unable to even notice the veterinarian’s presence.
“And one more thing…… I’m not certain, but…….”
“What is it?”
“I’ll say again, I’m not certain. It’s just a speculation.”
“Report everything without omission. If a problem arises later because you left something out, your life will be the first to go.”
“Yes, yes! W-Well…… I mentioned before that my lord’s cat might be a feline humanoid. The reason I said that was because I heard two heartbeats.”
“……Two heartbeats mean two hearts, is that what you’re saying?”
“That’s correct! According to ancient texts, feline humanoids have two hearts, but one heart usually doesn’t beat. It starts beating when the body needs to recover. This is for faster recovery. When the heart beats, it circulates blood, and when blood flows well, the body functions smoothly. That’s why feline humanoids are said to have quick recovery abilities. In other words, when a feline humanoid is injured, both hearts beat together.”
“……I see. Then what is it that you’re not certain about?”
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