IPBD CHAPTER 8

However, the child hesitated again and didn’t open his lips.

‘Does he not have a name?’

Emily tilted her head in curiosity but quickly dismissed the idea, recalling how reluctant he seemed about being called “Yang.”

Perhaps he simply didn’t want to share it.

Reaching that conclusion, Emily decided to call him what she had been calling him.

“Then I’ll just call you Yang, okay?”

Shake, shake!

The child shook his head vehemently, clearly expressing his disapproval.

After fidgeting for a while, he finally opened his mouth in a timid voice.

“…Kir.”

“Huh?”

“You can call me Kir…”

It was a sweet, delicate voice, untouched by puberty.

But rather than focusing on his voice, Emily found herself fixated on his name.

The name he gave was far too similar to the male protagonist she had been trying to avoid.

‘It’s… it’s just a coincidence, right?’

Swallowing hard, Emily looked at Kir.

A name could resemble another by pure chance.

However, a vague uneasiness started to fuel her suspicions.

And that suspicion brought back the image of a man she had been trying to forget.

‘Oh, no. How could I have forgotten this?’

Black hair and golden eyes.

The exact features of Kirzen, which Emily hadn’t immediately recalled.

Her eyelids fluttered rapidly as she processed her thoughts.

Come to think of it, Kir had been unusual from the very beginning.

A wounded cat found deep in the northern forest.

The creature had hidden its body in a pile of leaves, its frame marked with signs of sword wounds.

She had assumed it was just an unfortunate victim of some horrible encounter.

But, thinking about it more deeply, the situation had been undeniably suspicious.

And then the cat’s true form turned out to be a young boy.

If this boy was, in fact, the male protagonist caught up in some incident…

‘It’s entirely possible.’

Otherwise, how could such an improbable coincidence fit so perfectly?

Emily nodded slowly, her face marked by dismay.

The protagonists were people she had vowed never to meet—or wanted to meet.

Let alone Kirzen, the male protagonist who might one day turn against me.

She wanted to avoid getting involved with him at all costs.

Even the slightest possibility was unbearable.

And yet…

‘It’s over. It’s all over!’

It seemed she had already met him.

A wave of frustration swept over her.

Who would suspect that Yang could be Kirzen?

She hadn’t even considered the possibility that he might be human.

She had simply thought of him as a peculiar cat who understood words.

If she’d had even the slightest suspicion, she wouldn’t have taken him in.

‘…Wait a second.’

A cat?

Now that she thought about it, was there any mention of Kirzen being a cat?

Emily tilted her head to the side.

She rummaged through her memories but couldn’t recall any such detail.

At that moment, Kir hesitated and tugged at Emily’s sleeve.

His fingers fidgeted nervously, as if he had something to say.

“Uh, Kir? Do you want to tell me something?”

“…Are you?”

“Huh?”

“Are you going to abandon me?”

“What? Wh-what?”

Emily was taken aback.

She had just been mulling over how to distance herself from him if he really was Kirzen.

But abandon him?

The way Kir phrased it unsettled her deeply.

Choosing her words carefully, Emily forced an awkward smile.

“Why would you think that?”

“Well…”

Kir lowered his gaze and murmured.

“Because I’m a monster.”

“Huh?”

A monster? Emily couldn’t understand and asked again.

“Why?”

“Huh?”

“Why do you think you’re a monster?”

At Emily’s puzzled question, Kir hesitated, his lips trembling slightly.

He was struggling to find the right words. After a brief moment of hesitation, Kir finally made up his mind. He tightened his grip on her sleeve and spoke.

“Because I’m different from everyone else.”

His voice was fragile, as if it might break at any moment.

Emily fell silent for a moment, wondering why Kir would say such a thing.

And the answer came soon enough.

“People told me. They said a black beast is a monster.”

“……”

“They said I bring misfortune.”

His voice was tight with tension, and his face was clouded with shadows.

“They said bad things happen when people are around me.”

Kir’s golden eyes, darkened with unease, stared straight at Emily.

His tone was calm, but she could sense the deep insecurity hidden beneath his words.

Emily said nothing.

No, she couldn’t think of anything to say.

People, huh? To be honest, it wasn’t like she hadn’t been startled by him at first.

But that was all it was—surprise. She had never once thought of him as a monster.

‘Has Kir been treated like a monster all this time?’

The thought struck her suddenly.

How many hurtful words must he have endured for him to start calling himself a monster and constantly watch others for signs of rejection?

He hadn’t chosen to be born this way, and yet, here he was—terrified of being abandoned.

Emily felt a sharp ache in her chest.

For the first time, she could guess how Kir might have lived up until now.

People often had narrow-minded views of those who were even slightly different from them.

She had seen it in her previous life. Being an orphan was enough for her to be ostracized, ignored, and subjected to prejudice.

People judged her entire existence based on a single detail.

‘Maybe Kir… is no different.’

Emily’s green eyes darkened.

He was at an age where he should be basking in love and hearing nothing but kind words.

But the people who had made Kir feel so small and fearful? She found herself deeply angry at them.
Especially in this world, where a strict hierarchical society prevails, it must have been even more difficult for him.

Emily came to a decision regarding the dilemma that had been troubling her just moments ago.

She didn’t want to turn her back on Kir.

‘That’s right. There’s no way this boy could be Kirzen.’

After all, Kirzen wasn’t someone you could easily run into.

Let alone someone who could transform into a cat. That was utterly absurd.

She was just an insignificant extra in the grand story.

There was no way she would so easily cross paths with the male protagonist.

However, Emily had no way of knowing at the time.

Her casual, half-hearted reading of the novel had left her unaware of the details she had missed.

And she couldn’t have imagined what kind of changes the bond formed in the forest would bring.

Unaware of this, Emily broke the heavy silence and spoke.

“Kir.”

At her call, Kir flinched, his shoulders trembling slightly.

His uneasy gaze wavered as their eyes met.

Emily softened her expression and continued with a gentle smile.

“I don’t believe those words. They’re all nonsense.”

“Nonsense…?”

“Yeah. You’re not a monster.”

“……”

“You’re just you.”

Kir repeated her words, almost in a daze.

“I’m just me…”

“Exactly.”

“Then… you’re not going to abandon me?”

“Of course not. Why would you even think that in the first place?”

“Because if I do something wrong… you might change your mind.”

“Well, if that happens, I’ll probably scold you instead.”