ORCA 53

“Haha, let’s stop with the childish wordplay. In any case, think it over carefully. You’re not a child anymore, so you should work for the sake of the family.”

Orca immediately turned and headed for the door. His strides were fast and wide. During the year he served as a regular soldier in the Border Guard, and during the three years after that when he was appointed and served as captain, there had never been a time when he was not a member of the Ware family. But now they were telling him to work for the family. He became extremely displeased, wondering what on earth the work he had done in the military for the past four years was, if not for the family. He felt nauseous, as if even being born was just him being played with in his mother’s hands.

He calmly opened the door. He did not want to reveal his agitation. The voice he heard just before the door closed sounded not just cheerful, but amused. It felt as if he were being mocked.

“Orca. Don’t worry, the remaining pieces won’t be idle either. Chess is a game of protecting the king, after all.”

How amusing, he thought. It’s a game of eating before you get eaten.

He was just one of his mother’s chess pieces, anyway. He had a plausible name, but in reality, there was nothing he could do as he pleased. He could have anything and achieve anything, but to do so, he had to pay a corresponding price and receive permission.

Sometimes, the surname ‘Ware’ became the price, but sometimes, permission was not granted because of the surname ‘Ware.’ The family name had always bound and restrained him, a shackle and a constraint wherever he went.

The reason it was natural for him to eat fine meals, wear expensive clothes, and have people he didn’t even know bow to him was because of the surname he possessed. But the reason he was rolled around on the chessboard, regardless of his intentions, was also because of the surname he possessed.

Even he, who lived this life, could not move recklessly. The one who decided the direction of even the single step he was barely allowed to take was not him. He was sick and tired of it.

Orca set out to find his goldfish as if he were being chased by something. The door closed quietly.

Niah was going around the guest rooms in the central building, doing the final tidying up. He had to hurry, as the guests who would be guided to their rooms as soon as they arrived at the mansion were scheduled to relieve their travel fatigue before lunch.

First, he meticulously checked if there was any foreign matter on the bedding or curtains and closed the windows that had been left open since last night for ventilation. While one person wiped the furniture with a damp cloth, another person wiped away the moisture with a dry cloth. They lit scented candles by the window near the bed and on the table, and after confirming that the bathroom drawers were well-stocked with bath bombs and towels, the work was finally done.

The guest rooms were very small compared to the rooms of the mansion’s owners, so the work was finished quickly. The only problem was that the sheer number of rooms made it an ordeal.

Niah, paired with Bailey, ran around diligently, checking every nook and cranny. For the first few times, he only moved as Bailey instructed, but once he got a little used to it, he managed quite well on his own. Of course, he did occasionally gag, retch, retch, behind Bailey’s back.

Lunch was still a long way off, but he was already hungry. Even though he had scraped his plate clean of the generously portioned food, his stomach emptied quickly, perhaps because he was working without rest. He pressed down the urge to lie down flat and rest.

As he scrubbed the bedpost vigorously, he tried to guess when he would be able to see the Young Master. Since it was an incredibly large party with many guests, he might not be able to meet him today. He had a lot of work to do, and the Young Master would be busy as well.

At that thought, he immediately became gloomy. He thought he could endure it during the day, but at night, he wanted to go and see him for a little while. If they were to remain far apart like this and he could only see him the next morning, it would be too, too cruel to him. However, he didn’t want to bother the Young Master, so he couldn’t decide readily. It seemed better to ask later if they happened to run into each other.

Niah was about to pray to be granted permission but stopped himself abruptly. He felt that if he made another wish now, the angel would give him an even more difficult punishment than last time. So he decided to save it for later when he was really in a pinch.

“Niah. When you’re done, let’s go to the next—… oh… Ah, hello.”

Bailey, coming out of the bathroom, stopped mid-sentence while talking to Niah and bowed his waist in a flurry. Niah looked toward the door. A radiant look instantly spread across his face, which had been visibly dejected. His wish, granted early, was standing by the wide-open door. He thought he had done well to save this wish, since it was granted even without praying.

“Young Master.”

At Niah’s cheerful reaction of breaking into a smile the moment he saw him, Orca let go of the tension he had been carrying since his parents’ room. The unpleasant feelings that had clung to him uncomfortably scattered, and his stiffly hardened muscles relaxed in an instant, allowing blood to circulate. The uncomfortable air that had filled his lungs escaped, and he felt relieved. Hiding his tired expression, he tilted his head and deliberately asked in a low voice.

“Are you busy?”

“Ye-es.”

“No!”

It was Bailey who was flustered by the cluelessly bright “Ye-es.” He shot up straight and followed with a sharp denial. Niah, who had been fiddling with the cloth in his hand, looked to the side with a startled expression. The corners of his smiling mouth drooped downwards.

Bailey awkwardly laughed, ha, ha, while sneaking glances at Orca’s frowning face. He laughed with each syllable distinctly cut off, then approached Niah and quickly snatched the cloth away. He covered his forehead, from which antennae had almost popped out, and spoke in a barely audible voice.

“I’ll be doing this by myself, so go on.”

“But there’s still a lot left….”

“Of course you have to come back! Just stay for a little while and then come back, just for a moment.”

“Is it really okay to go…?”

“Yeah. But you have to come back, you hear? As quickly as possible.”

“Ummm… okay, I understand. Thank you!”

Niah, who had hesitated, unable to tell if the permission to go was genuine or not, finally turned his body. He decided to think about it then if Bailey got angry later. Bailey felt anew that Niah was peculiar. In this mansion, Niah was the only one who would grin foolishly, happy to see the Young Master. His utterly thrilled back quickly receded. His hair bounced up and down like ears. He looked like a goldfish going for a walk, no, a puppy going for a walk.

Does that make the Young Master his master?

It was correct, but the nuance felt very strange.

In truth, all the servants served the Young Master as their master. But somehow, it seemed only Niah followed the Young Master as a master in a different sense. For a moment, he was curious if Niah had decided to become the Young Master’s dog, but he shook his head before he could become more curious.

No matter how much he professed to be the mansion’s source of news, stirring up trouble with the Young Master required great courage, and now he didn’t really want to be courageous anymore. Risking his life for something based purely on interest was out of the question.

Suddenly remembering the mistress of the house, Bailey clutched his chest. He didn’t want to die and leave his ‘queen ant’ behind. After waiting for a while, he came out of the room and hurried with his work alone. He felt a sense of awkwardness in his situation, having no choice but to blindly trust Niah, who had promised to come back quickly.

Niah pushed Orca into the room at the end of the hall first. It was a guest bedroom in the opposite direction from the room Bailey had entered. No one would come here for a while, so it was the perfect place for the two of them to be alone. Orca, who had meekly followed as his wrist was pulled, called for Niah as soon as the door closed.

“Niah.”

Turning swiftly at the gentle voice calling his name, Niah fumbled for the doorknob behind his back and locked it. A light sound of metal clashing arose. Forgetting his hunger, he beamed and lifted his eyelids.

“Come here. I want to hold you.”

He slipped into the outstretched arms and hugged him tightly. He was now somewhat used to the Young Master, who for some reason had started speaking this way a few days ago. The words, which were closer to a request than a command, made him feel warm and fuzzy inside. It also sounded like he was pleading or whining, which was cute.

Sometimes, difficult questions would fly his way, making him flush, but he had learned to handle them quite well in his own way. It was embarrassing and shameful, but he didn’t dislike it. If anything, the problem was that he had to keep his wits about him to stop himself from pestering for more.

As if just holding him wasn’t enough, Orca lifted Niah’s waist up high and buried his face in his neck. Even when he giggled that it tickled, he only replied with, “Mhm,” showing no sign of letting go. On the contrary, he buried his nose deeper and pulled him in tighter.

Forcibly wiggling his way out of the hold that wouldn’t let him go, Niah pulled his arms up and wrapped them around his shoulders and the nape of his neck. Then, to make up for their height difference, he slightly lifted his heels. Even if his Young Master bent his posture, he also had to become taller to press their bodies together completely. This way, their curved and straight lines fit together without any gaps.

Niah patted and gently stroked his back, then asked in a familiar tone.

“Young Master. Did something happen?”

“No. Why.”

“It just, seems like it….”

“Nothing happened.”

Niah didn’t ask any further and just held Orca for a while. Then, around the time standing on his tiptoes became difficult, he tapped him gently and asked to be let go. His legs kicked weakly. Instead of complying with the request, Orca lifted the wriggling body and set him down on top of his own feet. Niah, who had lightly stepped on each of the neatly placed dress shoes, was flustered and pushed at his shoulders.

“Uh oh, Young Master’s shoes, your shoes will get dirty.”

“It’s fine.”

His body became comfortable, but his heart became twice as uncomfortable. Niah, who stood on top of his Young Master, not knowing what to do, suddenly seemed to remember something and urgently patted Orca, thump, thump. His fluttering wrists made a loud noise but had no substance. No matter how much he hit him, the impact was less than Orca flicking his finger. However, Niah earnestly explained something while continuing to pat him, thump, thump, thump.

“Young Master. Not like this, do it like this for me. Like this. Okay? Like this.”

Having no choice, Orca detached himself and observed Niah flailing his arms about, then supported him under his bottom and lifted him up. Only then did Niah flash a satisfied smile. Their heights became mismatched by a handspan again, and this time, Orca’s eyes looked up.

The reflections of each other in their crossed gazes were not unfamiliar. The familiar and comfortable moment brought peace. The tedium he used to loathe had, at some point, begun to make him feel at ease. Niah, hiding his fatigue-ridden face in his chest, slowly stroked the nape of his neck. Orca, who suddenly found himself held in Niah’s chest, took a deep breath.

“Yes. Pamper me a little.”

Niah ducked his head down close. The small whisper rolled around the shell of his ear and settled softly. The formless, dead word shimmered like the scales of water on a summer lake.

“The Young Master is always pretty.”

A soft laugh followed, like a flower bud bursting open. Orca, supporting his goldfish with only one arm, reached out with an impatient hand and grabbed his chin. The moment their eyes met, he devoured his lips without any warning or words. It was only a few days ago that he had resolved to always ask if he was okay. Niah, who had squeezed his eyes shut, hesitantly cupped his two cheeks and opened his mouth. Orca’s habits were getting worse by the day.