Lilia often brought home stray animals.
When she carried an injured, pitifully trembling animal into the mansion, all the servants would praise her kind heart.
She would faithfully wash and feed the creature, treating its wounds. Whenever the recovered dog or cat wandered through the mansion, breaking ornaments or soiling clean rooms and corridors, she would simply laugh, saying it was just a mischievous rascal and nothing could be done.
Once, a puppy she had brought in entered my bedroom. The puppy made a mess of the room, and I screamed to have the beast thrown out immediately.
Seiri, my youngest sibling who particularly loved the animals Lilia brought home, tried to stop me but ended up frightened instead, hiding behind our mother's skirts.
When Lilia discovered Seiri crying and tried to comfort her, Seiri only wailed louder.
"Lilia, you said people who hate animals are bad people! Then Little Sister is a bad person?"
I don't know how Lilia soothed the tearful Seiri. I had grown weary of all the noise and locked my bedroom door.
I had no interest in things that could not communicate, could not accurately convey their intentions, and were therefore not perfectly controlled.
When Lilia brought home puppies and offered all sorts of sentimental comments about how pitiful or cute they were, I alone showed no interest.
It would be more accurate to say I wasn't interested rather than that I hated animals. However, that doesn't mean I find them uncute. Especially the cuteness of little ones—I acknowledge that.
In truth, I am not as cold toward baby beasts as Seiri cried out. I simply want appropriate control and management suited to the environment.
And the current environment is clearly the wild. So even in uncontrolled situations, I wasn't particularly annoyed.
[You little ones, you must behave politely toward your father's friend!]
Despite the father eagle's stern admonition, the baby eagles with gray down feathers sprouting here and there kept chirping at me. They made unidentified onomatopoeic sounds like 'Wah,' 'Uah,' and 'Kiya.'
Perhaps their language development was incomplete because they were babies. They didn't seem capable of conversation, so I just nodded appropriately. Even that made the baby eagles flap their wings in excitement.
[To think I'd see Anelli again! If I'd known you were coming, I would have caught some plump foxes!]
"……Even if you had them, you probably wouldn't have been able to eat."
I laughed awkwardly and slowly looked around. Where I stood was a rock mountain slope—an eagle's nest built on stone hollowed inward.
This rock mountain's steep slopes had raptor nests in various places, and the wyvern was said to live in a cave at the very bottom of this mountain. He, who had dropped me here, had just returned to his cave.
Who would have thought monster habitats and raptor nests would all gather on a single rock mountain?
The wyvern I met at the cliff was very happy to see me, and also told me news of the father eagle who lived nearby.
He even kindly offered to convey my news to the eagle if I wished. It seemed he had been quite pleased with the small monster habitat I had taught him about before.
I decided to tell him about a new small monster habitat, and the wyvern readily accepted my proposal and brought me here.
Of course, I didn't incur the wyvern's debt to come all this way just to see the father eagle. But having met again, it was certainly welcome.
[ I wondered who the bold human who invaded my brother's territory was, but to think it was Anelli!]
"If I'd known you were here, I should have brought some meat."
With this many children too. It must be hard work feeding and raising them.
[Ah, my wife has arrived! Dear! This is the friend I mentioned!]
The father eagle flapped his wings and called out to someone. Following that, an eagle with a massive build and fierce eyes flew beside the father eagle.
[Ah, that human friend?]
[Yes! Isn't my wife beautiful?]
I corrected my earlier thought. The father eagle didn't seem like he would struggle much.
The mother eagle, with a much more imposing and massive build than the father eagle, looked like she could catch four or five rabbits right this moment. Such magnificent presence.
[Thank you for playing with my foolish husband, human friend.]
"No, I received a lot of help. But……."
The nest was large and wide. It was messy with eagle feathers and strongly smelled of beast, which wasn't great, but there was enough room left even with me sitting, so I had to admit it was wide in size.
But no matter how much I looked, what I was looking for wasn't there.
"I heard from the wyvern earlier that you recently discovered something and are caring for it?"
It was the mother eagle who reacted to my careful question.
[Ah, you must mean the one in the cave. The headless one!]
Yes, this was exactly what the wyvern had talked about.
The forest near the cliff was his territory, so normally most monsters didn't approach, but a few days ago, an injured Dullahan suddenly appeared in the forest.
He said he was going to eat it, but the father eagle said he would care for it, so he left it alive—and then he heard another Dullahan had appeared, so he came to check.
When he said he thought the Dullahans were coming to steal the habitat and intended to nip it in the bud, I secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, the wyvern had good memory. I might have been attacked right away by the wyvern trying to protect his habitat.
[Ah, that one? I'm caring for it thinking of our babies too. The young one was badly injured.]
[That's right, that small monster. If we'd left it in the forest, it would have become food for the crow flock.]
[The crow flock can't come to this rock mountain out of fear, so I brought it here.]
But small monster? Food for the crow flock?
"The monster I mentioned is a Dullahan, though?"
[Yes, that's right! It was a Dullahan at first!]
"……At first?"
[Yes!]
"Then what is it now?"
[Now it's a baby!]
……Dullahans have babies too?
I was about to ask what that meant, but just stood up. Seeing it directly would be faster than hearing about it. That was the quick decision-making born from that thought.
And immediately regretted it. Ah right, this was a rock mountain.
"Sorry, but could you ask the wyvern to transport me to where that monster is?"
It couldn't be helped. I'd have to give away one more small monster habitat information.
On the mountainside of the rock mountain, there was a short cave that a person could walk into. Since it was said to be injured, this small cave seemed to have been chosen to block dangerous intruders in advance.
However, one puzzling thing was how a Dullahan could fit into such a cave.
[The injured one is fierce! Be careful, Anelli!]
With the father eagle's encouragement, I carefully entered inside.
"Are you there?"
Because I stood at the entrance, light didn't reach inside. In the dark interior, no presence could be felt. I strained my eyes as much as possible.
No matter how much my vision had improved, there were limits to distinguishing something in darkness. The interior didn't seem very deep, but nothing appeared to be there.
"Hello?"
The cave remained silent. I held my breath completely and focused on sound. In the somewhat dry air, I heard something's short, rough breathing.
"Knight of the Round Table? A Dullahan who lost his head? Is that you?"
Recalling the expressions Nadav had used toward me, I spoke aimlessly, and something moved from straight ahead.
I stopped my advancing body and gazed forward with tension-filled eyes.
[You are…….]
A weak, trailing voice echoed inside the cave. I turned my body to create a gap for light to continue inside.
At the end of the long-stretched light, black claws appeared. Black fur above them. And black eyes too.
[……Captain?]
Tearfulness soaked the voice. The one who recognized me revealed itself before the light. Black, very black.
[Captain…….]
It was a great tit. A great tit looking up at me with moist eyes, appearing smaller than my palm.
……Since when did great tits grow up to become Dullahans?
I stood there dumbfounded, speechless, when the great tit came trotting toward me. It tried to flap its wings but flinched and folded them—it seemed the injured part was the wings.
Since standing and talking would leave too much distance between me and the great tit on the ground, I bent my waist first. When I held out both palms together, the great tit, alternating looking at my face and palm, trotted again.
Both palms weren't even needed. This small great tit fit sufficiently in one of my hands.
[I am Zigor, the twelfth knight who wandered seeking his lost head.]
"Hmm……."
[I apologize for not showing you my proper appearance as a knight. I cannot fly because my wings are injured…….]
"What……."
[Since I've met the Captain, my recovery speed will quicken. I'll quickly recover my body and fly on my own!]
"Sorry for interrupting while you're talking."
I finally interjected into Zigor's words. The chattering black beak closed obediently.
A great tit curled up roundly on my palm, lifting its head and staring straight up at me.
Even though I didn't particularly live with affection for animals ordinarily, it was a scene that made my heart unnecessarily flutter.
Truly unexpectedly fatal cuteness. What is this.
"……You're a Dullahan, right?"
[That is correct! I am one of the proud Twelve Knights of the Round Table! I knew the Captain had awakened, but I couldn't come find you because I didn't have a head!]
Right, I see. So this great tit on my palm with injured wings is a Dullahan.
"Then this form is also a transformation, right?"
[Yes. That is correct! With this small, nimble body, I can scout enemies faster than anyone! Of course, I can do all other tasks well too!]
No, giving you any task feels like bullying a child, so I don't really want to.
[But is there another knight besides me? Did you meet another knight? Is there a knight who met the Captain before me?]
The black great tit's eyes grew moist again. This was truly unbearable. If I had met him in Dullahan form first and then saw him transform, it wouldn't have been this much!