* * *

“Grrr.”

(It’s fine.)

Jibeom quickly withdrew his paw when he saw Saewoo’s face, which looked as though he might burst into tears at any moment.

“What… What do you mean it’s fine? You’re hurt…!”

Overwhelmed, Saewoo shouted, his voice trembling with frustration.

Then, startled by his own outburst, his eyes widened before he finally broke down, crying pitifully on the spot.

“It… It hurts… Hic… It hurts so much, ah… Hic, hic…”

“Grrrr.”

(Why are you crying?)

Saewoo’s gray, tear-soaked eyes became blurry, completely clouded with sorrow.

Every time he sobbed, crystal-clear tears rolled ceaselessly down his cheeks, glistening like glass beads.

His face flushed bright red from crying so hard, and his slender shoulders quivered uncontrollably.

“Sniff… It… It must hurt a lot, right? Hic… W-What should I do…?”

Even as he cried his heart out, Saewoo bit his lip, trying desperately to hold back his tears.

“B-because it hurts… Hic… Sob… I… I’ll…”

With his whole body trembling, Saewoo awkwardly wrapped the grooming cape he had on around Jibeom’s bleeding paw.

The blood quickly soaked through the fabric, rendering his first-aid efforts useless.

Realizing this, Saewoo cried even harder.

‘…What a crybaby sparrow.’

Jibeom muttered to himself before using his uninjured paw to pull Saewoo into a protective embrace.

He held the bare, trembling Saewoo tightly to shield him from the cold and gently licked his tear-streaked cheeks.

This time, Saewoo didn’t panic or try to pull away. Instead, he burrowed deeper into Jibeom’s warm embrace.

The black fur that pressed directly against his bare skin was soft and warm.

At first, Saewoo thought it was stiff, like an ordinary animal’s coat, but it felt surprisingly cozy—almost like being wrapped in a down comforter.

Now, he understood why Jibeom was so proud of his fur.

“S-sorry. I’m so sorry… It’s all because of me… I’m so sorry…”

Saewoo apologized repeatedly as he nestled deeper into Jibeom’s arms.

“……”

Jibeom was baffled.

Why was Saewoo apologizing so much?

The injury had been caused by Jibeom’s own lapse in vigilance, not Saewoo’s fault at all.

He wanted to explain this to Saewoo but figured holding this crying little sparrow tightly would be better for now.

…Grrrr…

‘Huh…?’

How long had they stayed like that?

Saewoo suddenly heard a deep vibrating sound near his ear.

Surprised, he abruptly stopped crying and lifted his head.

Was something happening that he hadn’t noticed?

“Jibeom… Are you in pain?”

“……”

Jibeom glanced at Saewoo, his eyes heavy with worry, then closed them again.

“……?”

…Grrr, grrrr.

This time, the sound grew louder, resonating like a phone vibrating across Jibeom’s entire body.

“Uh… This sound…”

As Saewoo listened, he realized it wasn’t an unfamiliar noise.

His wide eyes blinked as recognition dawned on him.

“No way…”

“Grrr.”

(Stop being noisy.)

“……?”

As soon as Saewoo caught on, Jibeom glared at him as if to say, ‘Don’t you dare mention it.’

But wasn’t Jibeom the noisy one?

Saewoo was dumbfounded, yet he couldn’t bring himself to leave the warmth of Jibeom’s embrace.

Instead, he closed his eyes tightly and surrendered to the comfort enveloping him.

❀❀❀

“Good grief… There are so many of them.”

Jibeom’s subordinate clicked his tongue as he watched the battered leopard shifters being handed over to the police.

In a one-on-one fight, these guys wouldn’t have even been able to stand.

“The area is secure. You can return home safely now.”

A police officer, who had been overseeing the situation with a somber expression, approached and spoke quietly to the subordinate.

“Yes, thank you for your work.”

After a curt reply, the subordinate adjusted his rimless glasses and made his way to the rooftop, where Jibeom was waiting.

On the rooftop, Jibeom, still in his black panther form, was curled up like a coiled snake in one corner.

“Uh… Sir…?”

The subordinate cautiously approached him.

“……”

Jibeom didn’t respond.

He was tightly cradling Saewoo, who had cried himself to sleep, as though he was the most precious thing in the world.

“The situation has been dealt with, and the police have left. Shouldn’t we move now…?”

The subordinate hesitated, setting down a bag containing clothes and a first-aid kit.

The scent of blood lingered from Jibeom’s injured paw.

At that moment, one of Jibeom’s eyes opened, gleaming with sharp focus.

The unspoken command to report immediately made the subordinate gulp nervously as he pulled out a tablet.

“It seems… those two ringleaders were indeed acting on someone’s orders. The rest of the group were hired thugs, likely summoned by those two.”

The subordinate summarized his findings, explaining that the two leopards had orchestrated the attack but likely weren’t the masterminds.

“And the smoke bombs? They were theatrical props from their time working in theater.”

The subordinate accepted this detail quickly, as it explained the relentless barrage of smoke bombs during the fight.

“I’ve made arrangements with the police to handle this quietly. It’s… for the best, considering your position.”

“……”

Jibeom scanned the aftermath of the fight.

Bloodstains, torn tents, and the remains of smoke bombs painted the scene of chaos.

“And about the ringleaders… they claim they don’t know who hired them. They say it was a high-paying job they found online, which might actually be true…”

The subordinate trailed off, feeling like an unwilling spokesperson for the thugs.

Jibeom, however, remained silent, deep in thought.

“Sir…?”

“……”

Jibeom was lost in his own reflections.

Shortly after Saewoo had fallen asleep in his arms, he had sensed someone watching from a distance.

Though the observer had fled before Jibeom could react, he had clearly seen the distinctive spotted white tail.

“Haa…”

Jibeom let out a long sigh. Taking it as a reprimand, the subordinate nervously continued.

“So… should we pursue the one behind this?”

“Grrr.”

(No, leave it alone.)

“Pardon?”

The subordinate blinked in surprise.

He had assumed Jibeom would want to track down the mastermind.

“Grrr.”

(I’ll handle it myself.)

“But…”

When the subordinate tried to argue, Jibeom tightened his hold on the sleeping Saewoo, silently warning him not to wake the boy.

“…Understood. I’ll wait downstairs.”

Realizing further protest would only aggravate Jibeom, the subordinate reluctantly left.

‘Overprotective much? He’s not a kid… And ever since that sparrow shifter showed up, his behavior’s been all over the place.’

As he descended, the subordinate grumbled to himself about how difficult reporting this would be.

Jibeom’s recent actions were far from typical, and Saewoo seemed to be at the center of it all.

Peeking back, he saw Jibeom still cradling Saewoo with a rare tenderness, completely ignoring his own injuries.

Sooha didn’t like Saewoo at all.

Ever since that sparrow beastman had gotten involved, Jibeom’s behavior had become strange.

It was already odd that he was meeting with a bird-type beastman so often, but now he was following him around as if he were courting a female…

Well… it’s his private life, so I can let it slide, but the biggest problem now was how to report this to the higher-ups.

For almost six months, Sooha had followed Jibeom around, dealing with many incidents and taking care of things.

He’d also looked into the ferocious beasts Jibeom had been getting closer to, but this was the first time something like this had happened.

At first, Sooha thought it was just curiosity.

Even among the ferocious beasts, there were occasionally those who felt fascinated or sympathetic toward such types, so he could understand to some extent.

That’s why, when reporting, he hadn’t specifically mentioned the sparrow beastman as a key person of concern.

He believed that Jibeom would soon lose interest.

But after today’s events, Sooha realized that Jibeom definitely had feelings for Saewoo.

Now, he couldn’t avoid reporting it.

Hmm… This kind of thing should definitely be reported, but somehow, my conscience is pricking me…

With a complicated expression, Sooha glanced back.

Jibeom wasn’t even thinking about tending to his own wound; he was still lovingly cradling Saewoo in his arms.

* * *