I Raised the Beast Well

Translator/editor: ruby

This was exactly why Belinda didn’t teach him to dance. She couldn’t stop Aymon from sticking to her and hugging her all the time.

But now, it was just the two of them. Belinda nodded.

“It starts with my hand on your waist like this.

His hand lightly crept up onto her waist. Belinda looked down and relaxed her shoulders.

Ah. She wants to dance.

“Did Lart teach you well?”

“Uh, yeah, sure.”

After the vague answer, he grabbed her hand, slowly rubbing her palms in a tight, affectionate hold.

Belinda gulped and began to move as he led. It was her hand that he was squeezing, so why did her heart feel so tight?

They stepped through the cold night air. As the hem of her chemise moved, it made a whooshing sound.

Belinda couldn’t stop herself laughing as they shifted smoothly.

It all felt like a dream, him in a gown and her in a chemise in the dark palace.

The scent of grass came in through the window and the soft moonlight seeped in along with the sound of leaves swaying in the gentle wind.

They moved quietly, stepping through the shadows on the floor. Their shadows faced each other, melted into the darkness, then overlapped again.

Though there was no music, Belinda’s occasional laughter filled the space.

The scent of flowers permeated the room. Belinda took a step back, and then turned around to hold Aymon’s hand again.

Aymon’s gaze sunk dangerously low.

As Belinda’s waist moved away and came back, Aymon pulled her to himself forcefully.

“Umh.”

Belinda stopped due to the suffocatingly tight grip. When she hesitantly looked up at him, a strange heat rose in his eyes before disappearing.

She licked her dry lips. Soon, a firm finger touched them.

Slowly rubbing her red lips with his thumb, Aymon asked her a question.

“Are you thirsty?”

“Y-yeah.”

She didn’t know why the casual question made her so nervous.

Aymon’s eyes crinkled up as he smiled.

“I’m always thirsty. I don’t know why, but seeing you makes me feel dry on the inside.”

In contrast with the earlier friendly smile, Aymon’s gaze was dark. It was hard to guess what he was feeling.

Belinda nervously lowered her eyes, and Aymon brought his face closer.

His body felt warm across her thin chemise, his breath coming in from near.

She just stood still and looked at him, but her breath was racing.

“It’s been like that since the day we met. When I’m with you, I don’t know what to do. All my impatience and nervousness makes me thirsty.”

His hand moved from her lips to slowly sweep her cheek.

Although his hands were big enough to crack her thin neck with one hand, his touch was soft and affectionate.

Although he was supposed to be the nervous and thirsty ones, Belinda’s stomach was in knots. She hesitated whenever his hands and eyes met her. Her shoulders slouched.

Aymon smiled lightly, grabbed her arm and pulled her into a hug.

Belinda hugged him back like a baby bird, wrapping her stiff arms around his neck.

Aymon let out a long sigh.

“For you, I can wear a heat with a ribbon on my chin and dance in front of humans in clown clothes. I’ll do everything you tell me to.”

Aymon laid his face on the back of her neck.

“You were the one who took me in.”

Aymon’s lips gently fell onto her skin.

“You were the one who kept me by your side.”

Perhaps because of the unexplainable tension – in spite of his sweet, soft whisper – Belinda’s arms were trembling.

Heat rose in Aymon’s eyes whenever his lips touched the back of her neck. A thin layer of excitement wrapped around his whole body.

Only the moist sound of his falling lips was audible in the moonlit space.

Belinda closed her eyes and took a weak breath.

Aymon rubbed his nose on her neck, as if he was trying to smell her.

“So… You have to take care of me till the end, Breedee.”

After the sweet whisper, he finally bit her skin.

“Ugh…”

Belinda uttered a weak moan.

Aymon managed to suppress his urge to bite again. He clung to what rational thought he had left and pulled away.

The small body shaking under his shoulders, her pulsing veins and the sweet smell of her blood always fueled his urges.

Aymon moved away to put her down on the bed and immediately covered her up.

He relaxed his hands, hiding the urge to bite her.

Instead of releasing his instincts, Aymon held her gently.

“Please keep on loving me, Breedee.”

After his whispered confession, Belinda looked up at him. The moonlight pouring down onto his back made him look dark.

She wasn’t afraid of him at all. He might have been a mighty Shinsu, but he was always lovely with her.

Aymon spoke again.

“If you nod, I’ll never let you go.”

Of course, he wouldn’t let go whatever the answer was. There was a deep sincerity in the sentence.

Belinda raised her hand to his cheek.

When had her cat grown this big?

However big, he was still her cat. The most beautiful beast in the world.

How could she refuse?

Belinda nodded without hesitation.

I’ll always be by your side, Aymon. That’s my job.

When he saw her small gesture, Aymon collapsed into a hug, pressing her down into him.

“You’re heavy , Aymon. You’re too strong…”

Despite Belinda’s struggling, he didn’t loosen his hold.

“Breedee. Breedee.”

His voice was drenched in joy.

Belinda smiled softly. On second thought, this was new. They had always been together.

The spot next to Aymon was hers, and the spot next to her was his. That would never change.

Belinda hugged him. She could feel his hot breath on her face and his tension.

“Don’t worry, Aymon. I took you in, so I’ll take responsibility and care for you forever.”

“….Yeah.”

Aymon rubbed his cheek against her neck and silently laughed.

His lips swept across the back of her neck, down her collarbone and onto her chemise’s neckline.

Then, without even leaving her time to be surprised, he bit the strap to release it and buried his face.

“Ah…!”

Belinda struggled against him, surprised by the sudden contact.

Aymon’s arm under her waist pulled her closer. His lower body, which he’d intentionally separated, was now in contact with the bare mass of heat, rubbing slowly.

Belinda felt a prickling sensation through the fabric and blushed.

Aymon’s low voice came from her lower chest.

“What can I do? I like this.”

After having raised him so well, he turned out to be this kind of a beast.

In a dream, Belinda was walking through a spring.

With its subtly rising fog and cloudy white sunlight, the scenery was unfamiliar and familiar at the same time. It was like she’d been sucked into the distant past, but also like she was here just yesterday.

She savored the scent of the grass. As she reached out, she felt the fur of the leopard following her.

[Why are you so angry?]

The black leopard scrunched up his nose.

[Because he’s coming.]

[Do you really hate him that much?]

[I don’t hate him. He’s just…]

A gentle wind passed by.

When she caressed the leopard’s neck, his anger melted away.

It closed its eyes and rubbed its face into her palm. Her smile softened.

[Come here instead of being angry, cat.]

[I told you I’m not a cat.]

The leopard answered bluntly but didn’t oppose more.

It tackled her into the grass, burying its face in her neck. Knowing it wasn’t a threat, the girl affectionately swept down its fur.

Belinda smiled as she felt it against her hand.

It was a piece of a warm, gentle memory. She felt the leopard vividly, as if it was real.

Struggling under the weight of the leopard embracing her, Belinda left her dream.

By the morning, she had forgotten all of it.