Caenian could feel it. He felt like he had found a soulmate. It was more about sharing sincerity than words. His gaze towards the duck was deep. On the other hand, Bestia was dumbfounded. She pouted her cute duck bill. She even rolled her eyes.

You can’t understand a word I’m saying, so what do you mean ‘tell me’? Geez!

If he could understand her, he shouldn’t have brought her to the imperial palace. If he could understand and still brought her, then he really would be a tyrant!

─ Quack! (Tyrant!)

“What? What are you saying?”

─ Quaack! (You’re the one who said you’d imprison a weak woman!)

“Ah, yes. You mean you’re happy to be alone with me now?”

─ Quack? (No, I don’t?)

The young emperor had a talent for lifting and dropping people, or rather, ducks. Bestia stroked her chest with the tip of her wing.

“By the way. Suddenly too many people touched you. The palace priest, the veterinarian, and even the Chancellor…”

Caenian talked to himself and convinced himself. He nodded while stroking the tip of the duck’s small wing. Since he couldn’t understand the duck’s words, it was that much easier to get lost in his own thoughts. He felt he lacked intimate time with the duck he had met as if by fate.

─ Quack. Quaack! Quack! (No. That’s not it, release me! Send me back to the village!)

Bestia’s quacking wasn’t even heard. She thought there would be more leisure time in the palace, but that wasn’t the case. The hectic events of the day flashed before her eyes.

“Your Majesty! We must take the duck to the temple!”

“Are you saying the inspection is more important than the duck’s life right now!”

“B-but… what if it has an unidentified disease or is a beastman hiding its identity…!”

“Beastman! That damned beastman! I welcome any beastman that enters the imperial palace! There will be no more rejection of them like the former emperor did! So never say such things again!”

As soon as they arrived at the palace, he called for a veterinarian. But the priests beside him kept pestering to hand over the duck. He was angry. An inspection for a sick duck? It was ridiculous.

“Your Majesty, we must do it, even if briefly.”

“We can’t completely skip what’s been established, Your Majesty…”

“There are many onlookers, and for the future…”

The courtiers bowed their heads. They reached out their hands, asking to take the duck for a moment. Caenian opened his eyes fiercely. He knew it too. That the emperor should set an example.

One of the long-standing laws tripped him up. All beings entering the imperial palace must have their identity confirmed at the palace temple.

“Make it quick. This duck is clearly a pure duck. You all know well that there are no duck beastmen in the Delta Empire!”

In the end, Bestia was handed over to the palace priests, and the priests, afraid of incurring the emperor’s displeasure, performed the inspection hastily.

“L-let’s just do this much.”

“It wasn’t even 10 seconds.”

“Let’s just say it’s a duck.”

They roughly exposed the duck to the temple’s incense and called it done. It was far too short a time to reveal the identity of a duck beastman who had lived as a human for a long time.

Thus, now, only Duke knew Bestia’s true identity.

“Duck, I understand your thoughts well enough.”

Caenian, finishing his reminiscence, opened his mouth.

─ Quaack! (What, suddenly!)

“You want to enjoy peace by the side of the benefactor who saved your life.”

─ Quaack! (Sigh… No, I don’t!)

“Experiencing luxury by the emperor’s side would also be an honor in a duck’s life.”

─ Quack! Quaaack! (What are you saying! He’s really gone mad!)

Bestia shook her head vigorously, firmly expressing her will. Her dream was to live peacefully with her adoptive parents in a small cottage.

Quack quack quack quack quack.

The problem was that to Caenian, it was just the sound of a duck quacking.

“Yes. You like it that much? Well, I guess you’d prefer it here than struggling to survive in the wild.”

─ Quack! Quaack! (No, that’s not it! Oh, this is frustrating!)

She was bursting with frustration. Bestia pounded her chest with the tips of her wings. Why were duck wings so short? Not being able to hit her chest properly doubled her irritation. Unable to calm her anger, she even kicked with her duck feet. It was violence that didn’t even register as a shock to Caenian.

“How cute. Is this why people draw portraits of the animals they raise?”

─ Quaack! (What’s cute about this!)

Bestia shook her head. She couldn’t understand Caenian’s points of excitement at all. Her continued frustration quickly led to fatigue.

─ Quaaack! (I need Grandfather Chancellor!)

She needed someone who could understand her words. Bestia blinked slowly. She was tired and hungry too.

─ Quack. (Sigh.)

Come to think of it, she hadn’t eaten anything since lunch. She sat down weakly and tucked her head into her side. It was instinct.

“Ha! What an insanely cute sight! It’s like a ball of white fluff! I want to carry you around in my pocket.”

Caenian’s eyes sparkled at the adorable pose. He even brought his lips close to Bestia.

─ Quack. (Go away.)

Bestia opened her mouth weakly. She glared at Caenian as he kissed her body, cheeks, and crown. And at that moment, their eyes met.

Growl.

─ Quack! (Eek!)

“Oh my!”

Her empty stomach made a loud noise. The timing was perfect. Only then did Caenian look surprised. He realized he hadn’t fed the duck anything until now.

“I’ve been so heartless!”

─ Quack? (Heartless?)

The man, shocked by his own mistake, clicked his tongue. His ears turned red with embarrassment. They were almost the same color as his hair.

“Claiming to cherish and love animals, yet not feeding a baby duck!”

─ Quaaack. (Just release me already.)

“I’m a failure as an owner! Hey there!”

─ Quack quaack? (Who’s my owner?)

“Hey there. Come in right now!”

Bestia felt like crying again, and Caenian called for someone again. He resented himself for being so absorbed in how cute the duck was.

He felt even more sorry hearing his duck quacking as if it was dying. His expression fluctuated between anger at himself and apology to the duck.

“You called, Your Majesty?”

“Bring cool water for the duck to drink and food… what do they eat? Anyway, bring all the food a duck can eat!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Sensing the unusual atmosphere, the servant quickly disappeared. Caenian called for someone else.

“Your Majesty, it’s Muala.”

The being that appeared in less than a second after being called was the palace’s biology teacher. The old man with thick glasses looked at Bestia with interest. Rumors about the white duck had already spread throughout the palace.

─ Quack….. (This is crazy…..)

“Teacher! What do ducks like? Do you know?”

“What ducks like… do you mean places? I suppose somewhere with water…”

“No, I’ll raise it in my room so the place doesn’t matter. Not that. I mean things like toys or accessories.”

─ Quaaack? (Why are you raising me in your room?)

Bestia let out a sigh. She could feel sympathy in Muala’s gaze towards her. She felt sorry for herself too. How did she end up catching the eye of such an overzealous person? At this rate, it would have been better to just get beaten with a stick.

─ Quack quack. (You mentioned an animal called Bonobono. I feel sorry for it too.)

She felt a sense of kinship with a being whose species she didn’t even know. She respected this senior animal who must have gone through what she was experiencing now. She felt sorry for it too. But thinking coldly, the most pitiful and unfortunate person was herself.

─ Quaaack! (I don’t even know when I’ll turn back into a human!)

She might never be able to change back to human form for her entire life!

“Duck! I’m sorry! Are you hungry? Wait. Food will come soon.”

─ Quaaack! (I’m hungry, but that’s not the important thing!)

Caenian stopped talking at Bestia’s sudden outburst. He had been asking Muala about the duck’s life cycle.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I believe you know that ducks are oviparous… There are ducks that migrate seasonally and ducks that live in one area for their entire lives. This duck is probably a resident duck of the Delta Empire.”

“Oh! That’s fortunate! I would have been very sad if the duck had to migrate! Yes, what else is there?”

“Yes, ducks usually rest in safe places during the day and start looking for food after sunset.”

“Ha! So that’s why I heard the growling sound! The sun had already set, if only I had known earlier!”

Caenian slapped his knee. He looked as if he had just had an incredible revelation. Bestia clicked her tongue. She was at a loss for words now. Muala, who had been quietly observing, deepened his wrinkles.