Tamed or Captured

Sosa leaped into the water and pulled Jackal’s body out, and both of them collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath.

Exhausted, Jackal looked at Sosa.

His eyes were blurry, and he looked like he was about to pass out.

Sosa shouted.

“Why did you go into the water alone? What would have happened if I hadn’t come?!”

“I thought it would work…”

“What are you saying?”

“I spoke with the water spirit. Well, I can’t really call it a conversation… It was at a level that couldn’t be a conversation, but… I felt like I couldn’t miss it.”

Sosa was surprised and looked back into the water, but there was nothing there.

Jackal shook his wet head and growled.

“If you start talking to someone, you should follow through to the end, you rude spirit.”

“Chief! What if the spirit hears it and gets angry?!”

Sosa was shocked and looked around anxiously.

Jackal looked at him incredulously.

“Sometimes, even though you’re a wild horse, you can be as timid as a sparrow.”

Sosa opened his eyes wide and looked at him.

“Did you not know? I am a sparrow.”

“…… Let’s stop talking.”

The two exchanged words casually, but no one knew what would happen in the future in the palace…

* * * * *

After a long and busy day, Asha was finally ready to sleep.

She changed into her nightgown and settled into bed, feeling tired.

Soon, she drifted off into a deep sleep.

Not knowing when she fell asleep, she suddenly felt her body heavy.

As she tried to turn her body around, frowning slightly as if she had sleep paralysis, she heard a man’s voice right in front of her.

“This is strange… It’s definitely a man’s voice…”

Asha opened her eyes slowly and saw the blurry figure of a man sitting on top of her. 

At first, she thought it was Karaf who had come to visit her in the middle of the night.

“Your Majesty……?”

But as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, Asha looked closely at the man’s appearance and her eyes widened in surprise.

Before she was a man with long hair, dressed in a steel-colored uniform, with his hair tied up high like an Eastern assassin. 

His black hair had a bluish tone as it went down, and towards the tips, it had a frozen silver color.

The man smiled slightly.

“I am not Your Majesty. My name is Nek.”

“……?”

The man said, causing Asha to freeze in place with a bewildered expression on her face. His wolf-like blue eyes gazed calmly at her as he took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Your skin is quite stiff. But your hands are good.”

Only then did Asha regain her senses and let out a high-pitched scream.

The servants outside asked anxiously.

“Lady Vanessa! Is something wrong?”

But Asha was unable to answer, as the man had blocked her mouth with his hand.

Trembling with fear, Asha looked at the man with fearful eyes, and he smirked.

“I finally found you. We won’t be apart again, master.”

“Master……?”

As Asha muttered, he removed his hand.

She couldn’t grasp the situation at all.

In a trembling voice, Asha asked.

“W-w-who are you…?”

“Me? Your dagger.”

“Dagger……?”

Asha looked bewildered. 

Not only had he entered the empress’s bedroom without permission, but now he was touching her body and introducing himself as a dagger…

Asha squeezed her eyes shut and screamed.

“A madman! A madman has appeared!”

Sonya and the servants outside rushed in.

“Lady Vanessa……! What’s wrong!”

“Th-that crazy guy over there……!”

Asha pointed her hand at the man, then stopped.

Before she noticed, a dagger was lying on the bed.

It was the dagger that Jackal had given her before.

Asha rubbed her eyes and muttered to herself.

“There was definitely a man here, no, a man was standing here…”

“Could it have been a nightmare?”

When her maids worriedly asked her, Asha was so nervous that she wondered if she had really had a nightmare.

“Just to be safe, I will ask the guards to search the palace.”

“I’ll bring you some warm honey water, please wait!”

Sonya offered, quickly bringing the drink.

As Asha sipped on the honey water, she couldn’t take her eyes off the dagger, still on guard.

Although the dagger remained motionless, the blue eyes on the dagger’s hilt, similar to Sheppy’s, seemed to be alive.

The dagger didn’t move at all, but for some reason, it seemed like the blue eyes, which resembled Sheppy’s, were alive.

As soon as Sonya left the room, Asha sat on the edge of the bed, holding her head.

     What is happening to me……

But that thought was immediately shattered by a voice.

“……There was no need to call the guards.”

Asha was taken aback as she looked back and found the dagger had vanished, only to discover the man from before sitting on her windowsill, staring at her.

“Who are you…… !”

“Who are you? Do I need to introduce myself again?”

As he walked toward her, Asha pulled the blanket up defensively.

“Hmm, I didn’t expect my master to be such a scaredy-cat.”

Asha stared blankly at him before finally managing to ask.

“So, are you really… a dagger…?”

“Don’t believe me?”

He hopped onto the bed again.

“What is this…!”

Asha was speechless as the man disappeared, leaving a dagger quietly on the bed.

Asha looked at him as if she were possessed by a ghost and then, with a kick of her foot, she kicked him lightly.

“…… What! Why would you kick a perfectly fine person with your foot!”

“You said you weren’t human.”

“…….”

“A dagger can speak, and many strange things happen in my life…….”

Asha muttered absently, but she wasn’t as surprised as she had been the day Jackal turned into a horse.

Now she felt a strange sense of understanding.

But at that moment, a curious curiosity flickered in Asha’s purple eyes.

“Maybe if I hit it, he will feel the pain…?”

“…….”

The tables had turned.

Asha tapped the sword with her hand, muttering to herself.

“This is strange, why did it suddenly go silent…?”

“…… I am a dagger.”

Nek’s attitude suddenly changed to being polite.

Asha tried to pull the dagger out of its scabbard, but unlike before, she couldn’t get it out no matter how hard she tried. Asha’s eyes narrowed.

“Let go of your strength while I’m being nice. You naughty, insolent dagger.”

“But the scabbard is like my clothing….!”

Asha squinted her eyes.

“Then if I draw you out, will you be naked? You are a really nasty dagger, pervert!”

She grabbed the handle and scabbard with both hands and pulled with all her might.

“Ouch! My hair is being pulled out!”

At that, Asha glanced at the dagger handle.

Now she noticed that the blue string hanging from the end of the handle looked similar in color to the hair tie that had been tying his hair like a ponytail.

“Oh, so this is really like clothing?”

Asha finally managed to draw the dagger with all her strength.

“You, you drew me out…? This is the first time I’ve seen an evil master….!”

“Master?”

“Yes! But you are not my master yet! The test isn’t over! You can use me only when I truly serve you as my master….”

Before he could finish his sentence, Asha threw the scabbard far away onto the floor.

“Oh, my clothes…!”

“If I can’t use you anyway, you won’t even need clothes, right?”

Asha smiled mischievously.

“…….”

Unbeknownst to her, her abilities to imitate a villainess were on the rise.

Meanwhile, Sonya entered the room.

“Lady Vanessa, the guards thoroughly searched the palace, but couldn’t find any traces of the intruder.”

“I see. I must have had a nightmare. Lately, I’ve been preoccupied with many things.”

Asha replied and glared at the dagger.

Sonya looked at her with pitiful eyes as Asha held a dagger in her hand, thinking that she must have had a really scary nightmare.

It was clear that the memory of being kidnapped remained a trauma.

“Sonya, do you see that scabbard on the floor over there?”

“What? Yes!”

“Where would you hide it if you don’t want anybody to find it?”

“Yeah?”

In an instant, the dagger in Asha’s hand trembled.

“I think someone might come looking for the scabbard.”

Sonya tilted her head as she saw Asha speak incoherently.

“Who’s going to get the scabbard?”

“Yes, among some minorities, it is believed that placing a dagger without its scabbard near the head can ward off nightmares. The superstition suggests that the nightmare will leave the room in search of the scabbard.”

“I see! Then, I’ll keep this scabbard to ensure Lady Vanessa’s peaceful sleep!”

Sonya responded eagerly, taking the scabbard in both hands with a serious expression, as if she had been entrusted with an important mission, and left the room.

As soon as the door closed, Nek’s voice could be heard.

“Where is she taking my clothes?”

Asha shrugged.

“I’m not sure. Sonya will do a good job of hiding it. Even if we search this vast palace, it will be hard to find it.”

“You…!”

“You? You should listen to your master’s words carefully if you don’t want to lose your clothes forever.”

At those words, the dagger’s mouth snapped shut.

Asha fell into deep thought.

     Does Jackal know that this dagger is alive?

     No, he wouldn’t have known.

Despite being a keepsake from his parents, Jackal disliked the dagger and kept it only because he didn’t want to throw it away.

Jackal may never have used the dagger.

     I have to tell Jackal about this… Or should I send the dagger back? How could I possibly use a dagger that transforms into a person….

Asha let out a deep sigh. 

She felt sorry for Jackal if he finds out that the dagger he had given her was actually a pervert dagger, hoping that it would protect her.

But she also considered telling Karaft, only to shake her head immediately.

He had already returned all the belongings he had taken from her.

Although he would have guessed that the dagger was a gift from Jackal, returning the dagger to her meant that Karaf trusted her a lot.

If she told him about this incident, he would probably consider the dagger vulgar and tell her to throw it away without hesitation.

While Asha was lost in thought, she heard a sob.

“Sob…… Why do I only get weird masters? Sob ….”

Irritated by those words, Asha narrowed her brows and asked.

“Weird masters?”

“Yes! My previous master was also very strange. He made a contract with me but didn’t want to use my power. He said his name was Cylon or something…”

Asha’s eyes widened in an instant.

“Your previous master’s name… was Cylon?”