I’m the Youngest Daughter of the Serpent Family
Chapter 39
Chapter 39
“Are you giving this to us?”
“Yup.”
“Thank you, milady. I’ll enjoy it.”
Mesis readily accepted the snack.
Paymon, who had been agonizing over whether to take it, quickly accepted the treat after seeing him.
As Mesis tossed a cracker into his mouth in one bite, the piercings glinted between strands of his hair.
I decided to ask about something I had been curious about all along.
“Mesis.”
“Hm?”
“Why do you have so many of those?”
When I pointed to his ear and asked, Mesis replied casually, as if it were nothing special.
“Ah, these? They’re pheromone raw stones.”
“Pheromone raw stones?”
I didn’t know things like that existed.
I had never heard of such a thing before.
Seeing the clueless look on my face, Mesis seemed to ponder how to explain it before speaking up.
“They have various uses, but they’re mostly used as control devices.”
“Control devices?”
“They’re mainly used by beastfolk who have trouble regulating their pheromones.”
I guess some beastfolk can’t control their own pheromones. My curiosity was piqued by this new fact I was hearing for the first time today.
“Then Mesis can’t control his pheromones?”
“It’s not that.”
“Then what?”
Mesis fell silent.
When I looked at him quizzically, his deep purple eyes slyly averted my gaze.
Huh? What is it? What are they used for?
The most frustrating thing in the world was someone stopping midway through a sentence.
When I grabbed his arm and shook it, demanding a quick answer, Mesis flinched.
Paymon, who was watching from the side, chuckled and chimed in.
“Why did you go and dig your own grave?”
“What is it? Do you know, Paymon?”
“He uses them to maximize his pheromones.”
Maximize them? But wouldn’t that make them uncontrollable?
If he wore that many raw stones, it must be immense.
“If you look, most of them are shades of purple, right?”
I looked at the piercings hanging from Mesis’s ear.
Every single one was a deep shade of purple. Just like the color of his eyes.
Paymon whispered with an exasperated look.
“The closer a raw stone is to purple, the higher its purity and power.”
“An’ then?”
“Usually, when someone wears multiple stones like that, people think it’s for control—not for some insane purpose like detonating their pheromones.”
In short, it meant it was an insane thing to do.
Mesis spoke in an aggrieved voice.
“It’s not like I use it all the time. It’s only a tactic for when there are a lot of enemies.”
“That’s right. And if things get dangerous, he can just use them to rein the pheromones back in. He insists it isn’t completely crazy, so let’s just humor him.”
Paymon beamed, though his tone made it clear he didn’t agree at all.
Feeling worried for no good reason, I looked at Mesis.
“I don’t want Mesis to do dangerous things.”
“Ah.”
“It’s dangerous.”
No matter how I looked at it, it was a reckless method.
When I scrunched up my face with all my might and spoke firmly, Mesis, his lips twitching with a suppressed smile, nodded.
“I won’t do it.”
“Then promise me?”
“Yes.”
“Then it’s all good!”
At his docile compliance, I beamed. Feeling that it was about time to head back, I began packing my bag just as Rosaria’s calling voice rang out.
“Lady Irene!”
“Wosaria?”
“It is time for your lesson. Please give the bag to me.”
“Yup!”
I packed everything I had brought into my bag and slipped on the sandals I had taken off.
I can’t be late for class, so I have to hurry!
Holding Rosaria’s hand, I paused for a moment before heading back to the room.
“Bye-bye! Iwin is going now.”
After saying goodbye to the two of them, I turned back forward.
Rosaria, who had paused and waited alongside me, smiled warmly and asked.
“Did you have fun playing together?”
“Yup.”
Rosaria glanced sideways at the gouged-out lawn.
“As long as Lady Irene enjoyed herself, that is all that matters.”
Watching Irene’s retreating figure as they waved side by side, the two escort knights stood up with wistful expressions.
“I wondered why Rosaria hadn’t returned, and it turns out you were hogging the young lady all to yourself out here.”
“Indeed.”
Mesis nodded in agreement. He looked at the spot where Irene had been sitting until just a moment ago.
Soft, puffy traces of pheromones lingered throughout the garden.
Paymon curled the corners of his lips and murmured,
“I really would have regretted it if I hadn’t come.”
On my way back to the room with Rosaria, I ran into Casana waiting in front of the door.
“Casa!”
When I greeted him cheerfully, Casana turned his gaze toward me and bowed respectfully.
Why did he come so early today? There should still be time left before the lesson starts.
I knew this because every time I was in the garden, Rosaria always came to fetch me with plenty of time to spare.
“Casa, why did you come so early today?”
When I walked inside and asked, Casana smiled faintly.
“I shall tell you once the lesson is finished.”
“Okay. Then Iwin will wash her hands and be right back!”
I hurried into the bathroom and stepped onto the small step stool in front of the sink.
After I washed my hands with soap and came out, Rosaria dried them with a towel.
“All clean!”
“Well done. Shall we get ready for the lesson now?”
“Yup!”
I sat across from Casana.
Casana, sitting with proper posture, was already checking my homework.
“You have done well today as well, Lady Irene. I shall give you a sticker.”
“Yay!”
Casana opened a clear box.
Inside were square-cut stickers.
I eagerly took the caterpillar sticker and pulled out the grape sheet I had kept carefully tucked away in my treasure box.
It was nearly halfway full now, so with just a little more effort, I could receive a present.
“You have gathered quite a few. You will be able to receive a gift soon.”
“Yup. Iwin likes presents.”
I didn’t know what kind of gift it would be, but anything was fine.
Proudly checking the sheet a few times, I placed it back inside the box.
“Do you remember all the words you have learned so far?”
“O’ course. Iwin is so smawt she knows dem all.”
“Then this is a personal gift from me.”
“A present?”
I haven’t even collected all the praise stickers yet?
My eyes sparkled. As if he had been hiding it all along, a wrapped gift emerged from beneath the table.
“Can I open it now?”
“You may.”
With an excited heart, I tore off the wrapping paper.
Inside was a picture book I had never seen before.
“Baby… Sprout?”
“That is correct.”
“I just learned this word!”
I turned the first page. From the very first line, I could read smoothly without any difficulty.
It seemed the words he had been teaching me so far were based on this book.
I imagined Casana carefully deliberating to choose this picture book.
A warm feeling swelled within me, bringing an involuntary smile to my face.
“Thank you, Casa. Iwin thinks this will be fun!”
“That is a relief. Then let us move on to the next words.”
Casana took out a notebook filled with short words listed in rows.
I looked at the notebook with keen interest.
I wondered what picture book he had selected those words from this time.
Wanting to see closer, I leaned tightly against the table.
Realizing that Casana, who had always seemed so stern and blunt about everything, was actually putting so much thought into every lesson behind the scenes, my motivation surged.
“Huh? I think I can wead this one.”
“Is that so?”
“Yup. Sand. It’s sand.”
“That is correct. You learn remarkably fast.”
I beamed at Casana’s praise.
Truthfully, once you grasped how to read and write the letters, applying them was very easy.
The continent used a common language, and as such, it was designed so that all beastfolk could learn it easily.
Casana explained the meanings of the words written in the notebook one by one.
When I progressed all the way to the final word without faltering, Casana closed the notebook.
“It seems my worries were unfounded.”
“Worries?”
“Yes. I had intended to decide on our future schedule based on today’s progress, but that will not be necessary.”
“What are you deciding?”
Casana pulled out a document that had been sitting before him.
It was similar in format to the lesson plan he had shown me when we first met.
This time, various things had been added in a more intricate arrangement.
“A new subject will be added.”
“What else am I learning?”
Having perhaps overheard our conversation, Rosaria, who had stepped away, approached.
“It seems the curriculum is changing?”
“Indeed.”
“Could the new addition be pheromone lessons?”
“It has been quite some time since Lady Irene succeeded in humanization, after all.”
“It is an appropriate time, indeed.”
Pheromone lessons?
My eyes widened in surprise.
If I learn how to handle pheromones, will I be able to transform freely, too?
Sitting beside me, Rosaria read through the plan.
“Lessons in the room have been reduced to once every two days?”
“That is correct, Lady Rosaria. The pheromone lessons will be conducted in the forest.”
“Can I go into the forest now?”