Ch. 14 - Children’s Code
From the room next door, where Zoë and the others were, screams erupted. A heavy thud shook the entire house.
I tensed, ready for anything. But Abby, still lounging in the bath as if nothing had happened, clapped her hands together and laughed.
“They did it! They finally did it. Who do you think it was? My bet’s on Ashita.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Eva, of course. That one’s been hating you from the start.”
“…”
Sharp as ever. Abby had noticed and deliberately let it be.
“See, cat beastkin have this nasty little habit.”
“Bad habit?”
“What a surprise. You’re smart, but sometimes you act like you don’t know a thing.”
“…”
Harsh words—but she was right. I wasn’t of this world. Its culture still slipped through my fingers.
Abby softened, like speaking to a child.
“Cat beastkin… they tend to ‘stick together.’”
It clicked.
“…I see. Strong kinship, but turned inward, it becomes exclusion. Outsiders are shunned.”
At last, I understood why Cat-girl loathed me. I was the newcomer who, in just three days, had risen to second rank. To someone with such tribal loyalty, I was an intruder to be expelled.
“Well, cats are clever, and they’ve got magic. Plenty of talent, really.”
Abby’s tone hardened.
“But you’re right. We’re still a small, weak pack. If we don’t stick together, we won’t survive. It was time to remind them of that.”
“I see. Though honestly, I wouldn’t have minded letting it slide…”
She rose from the bath, water dripping from her body, planted her hands on her hips, and faced me.
“It is a problem. You hate Eva and Ashita, don’t you?”
It wasn’t something I’d hidden, but she proved herself a true leader—watching closely even while pretending not to.
I nodded.
“I have my likes and dislikes. Sometimes I feel joy. Sometimes I feel disgust. And when I do, it helps to have a trash bin to throw the filth into.”
That’s why—I always prepare several bins. Somewhere to discard rotten feelings.
Abby’s eyes softened, almost with pity.
“Those two are old-timers. They’ve got pride in front of the others. Especially Ashita—her strength is her only worth. So when a newcomer, male at that, outranked her, of course, she bristled.”
That explained Oni-girl’s awkward, half-hearted hostility. Still—
“It doesn’t matter. I don’t mind being hated. In fact, I’d rather they stay that way.”
Abby’s eyes drooped further, almost teary. I expected a threat, but she pleaded instead.
“…Please. Forgive them, just this once.”
“No. I need those trash bins.”
I was just a man. Flaws and virtues alike. To cherish what I truly valued, I needed somewhere to dump the rot.
“Anyone who hates no one, who despises no one, cannot love anyone, either.”
I’d lived for thirty years. Not once had this philosophy inconvenienced me.
“I want to remain someone who can love.”
Even Mother Asclepia has said, Fairness does not mean impartiality.
My way of life had divine sanction.
“So tell me, Abby. What do you take me for? Some clown who smiles while being kicked around?”
Her face froze, voice trembling.
“B-but… you’re close to a god, so I thought—”
“Don’t be foolish. Perfection belongs to the divine law. Not to a man.”
So that was it. She’d mistaken me for some god’s envoy.
But one who neither hates nor loves belongs only in a coffin.
This talk had been worthwhile—at least I’d broken her illusion.