Chapter 1. To Think That I’m a Duck!

Two days before Bestia became the mascot of the Imperial Palace. The origin of all events stemmed from the New Year’s Parade.

“Grandma Garnet! Grandpa Aesop!”

“Why all this commotion so early in the morning, Betty.”

“It’s finally today! The Emperor’s Peace New Year’s Parade! They say it’s passing through our village today!”

The cabin in the woods, far removed from even the outskirts of the village, was lively from the morning. Sixteen-year-old Bestia circled around Garnet and Aesop. Her light movements made her golden hair shine dazzlingly. Her clear and transparent blue eyes, like topaz, sparkled in the sunlight. It was an appearance that matched well with her white dress.

“Betty, such crowded places are dangerous.”

“Yes, listen to your grandmother, Betty. It’s not like you’re going with us, you’re going there alone.”

“You should only go to the village when you go to the academy, or when you go with us.”

At Aesop’s words, the beautiful girl with a bright expression pouted. She was a child that Aesop, the owner of the cabin, had taken in from the thorn bushes. For the elderly couple who had been living alone for a long time without having children, Bestia was a blessing.

Bestia also grew up hearing the story that she was found in the forest, so she knew it well. Although she didn’t know that she was a duck beastman.

“But still. I want to go see the New Year’s Parade!”

“Betty, it’s dangerous alone. Your grandfather and I can’t go with you. We have a lot of work to do, dear.”

“I’m not alone! I’m going to see it with Shushu! So won’t it be safe? Shushu is a lady from the Count of Mayla family, people from the Count’s family will be with her!”

“Betty, Count Mayla said to stay quiet in exchange for sponsoring your academy admission. You know that, don’t you?”

The girl, who had a purer mind than her peers, made a sad face. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand Garnet. Commoners couldn’t go to the academy. If it weren’t for Count Mayla’s generosity, she wouldn’t have even dreamed of the academy.

“But… seeing the New Year’s Parade isn’t a bad thing, is it? And I want to stay overnight at Shushu’s place for just one night! Since Shushu said it’s okay, wouldn’t Count Mayla allow it too?”

“Betty, didn’t they say no overnight stays before graduating from the academy? Your graduation is soon, so wait.”

“Grandma! What do you mean ‘soon’! Graduation is next year! And the New Year’s Parade is today! Please? Just this once.”

Anyway, Bestia didn’t give up easily even though she knew everything. The elderly couple with graying hair looked displeased.

“Betty……”

Aesop especially had a more bitter expression. It was 16 years ago that he had adopted Bestia. While returning home after catching fish in the forest lake, he heard a baby crying. Aesop briefly recalled that moment.

* * *

“Oh my! How did such a young baby end up here!”

When Aesop parted the bushes with his wrinkled hands, a baby wrapped in a blanket appeared. She must have been alone for a long time, as her body was cold.

“What on earth could be the reason for leaving a baby here……”

The man who had never raised a child awkwardly held the baby. Bestia burst into tears in the arms of the stranger.

“Waaah! Waaah!”

“Oh dear……”

Deep wrinkles formed around Aesop’s eyes as he looked at the young Bestia. He had been trying to have a child with his wife for over a decade.

‘Honey, let’s give up on having children and live well together, just the two of us.’

Before going out fishing, Aesop had said such things to his wife, Garnet. But then, as if by fate, he met an abandoned baby. He had no choice but to believe it was God’s will.

“Waaah! Huaaah!”

“There’s a name on the necklace. That’s right. Good girl, Bestia. Let’s go home.”

Aesop started walking, holding Bestia. He prayed all the way home that he would raise this gift from God well. That’s how a human and a duck beastman became family. Aesop and Garnet found out about Bestia’s true identity a week later.

─ Quack! (Waaah!)

“Oh my goodness! Honey!”

“I thought duck beastmen no longer existed!”

Bestia turned into an animal whenever she was startled. The couple was shocked and scared. It would be a big problem if the villagers found out there was a beastman in the house.

“Let’s move.”

In the end, Aesop built a cabin in a sparsely populated area. That became their current residence.

* * *

“Betty, it would be better to stay at home.”

Aesop spoke heavily after finishing his reminiscence.

“Grandpa!”

Although Bestia no longer changed into an animal now, they couldn’t be sure. The future is unpredictable, after all. He wanted to raise the daughter he unexpectedly gained well.

He hoped she would enjoy happiness as a human without knowing she was a beastman. There were several reasons why Aesop and Garnet were so cautious. All were related to beastmen.

“Betty, grandmother thinks the same as grandfather. New Year’s Parade… it’s dangerous.”

“What? Why? It’s an event that passes through the main road of the village! I’ll just watch it for a moment……”

“No. Sweetie. You don’t know what the palace people are thinking as they tour the country.”

“That’s right, Betty. We can’t trust the new emperor yet.”

“Why? Because the previous emperor rejected beastmen? But we’re humans, aren’t we? It doesn’t affect us.”

A year ago, the emperor changed. Ruvan III, who was growing weaker day by day, died and his son, Caenian Ruvan, became emperor. He was seventeen years old, not even of age yet.

「As of today, the Delta Empire declares a stance of full acceptance towards beastmen.」
「As part of its beastman-friendly policy, the Delta Empire will actively recruit beastman talents and spare no support for them to become proud members of the empire.」

Caenian immediately abolished the policies implemented by Ruvan III. That was the anti-beastman policy that had rapidly reduced the number of beastmen in the empire from 30% to 5% in just 16 years. However, the new emperor who inherited the blood of the previous emperor did the opposite.

「Beastmen have the right to live a life equal to humans. From now on, those who discriminate against beastmen will be severely punished.」

He even enacted new laws regarding those who harass beastmen. The citizens of the empire were suspicious of Caenian’s true intentions. The elderly couple thought the same.

“Grandma.”

“Dear.”

Bestia, unaware that she was a beastman, clung to Garnet’s arm. The pleas of the child they loved so much continued. Garnet, whose heart had softened, glanced at Aesop.

“No.”

Aesop shook his head with a stern face. From the second year after moving to the uninhabited cabin, Bestia stopped changing. As her reason grew stronger than her instincts, she first learned to live like a human among humans.

But what if she changed in front of Caenian while watching the New Year’s Parade? No matter how much the new emperor promoted beastman-friendly policies, everyone’s view of beastmen was still not good. Someone who came to watch the New Year’s Parade could do something bad. They didn’t know how the people participating in the parade would react.

In the worst case, she could be captured and tortured under their influence. Even if the emperor overlooked it on the spot, what about Count Mayla?

Count Mayla disliked beastmen. And if he found out that the child he sponsored was a beastman?

He could expel her from the academy. He had that much influence in the village. That’s why they were worried. Bestia’s lack of understanding of the ways of the world was a secondary issue.

“Just once. Just once. Please? Grandpa, Grandma.”

“Anyway, Bestia, no. I can’t allow it.”

“Focus on your studies. Shouldn’t you maintain the honor of being the top student in the academy until the end?”

“Oh, Grandma! Grandpa!”

When her grandfather and grandmother called her full name, it meant only one thing: non-negotiable.

Bestia called out loudly to Garnet, who was entering the house with laundry. She also looked at Aesop, who was heading into the forest with an axe.

“That’s too much! I said I’d just stay for one night!”

Soon, Bestia was left alone in the yard. She even felt tears welling up from frustration. Aesop and Garnet were too strict. She was already sixteen years old, but they treated her like a six-year-old child.

“Hmph. That’s too much.”

Bestia frowned, stomping her feet. Then a sneaky idea came to her mind.

“Hmm… Wouldn’t it be okay if I went secretly?”

The place Aesop and Garnet had left was quiet. They would surely be busy with their accumulated work until evening. So they wouldn’t know if she went down to the village for a moment. If she came back before dinner, she wouldn’t get caught.