ORCA 57

That emotionless face, which had said he had to become a soldier because he wanted to kill anything, be it beast or human, and because enduring it was painful, was still clearly etched in his memory. At the time, he had acted nonchalant and retorted that he had to become the best merchant because he wanted to devour the empire’s trade market whole, but in truth, he had been a little creeped out by Orca’s bizarre logic.

After that day, he came to understand his parents, who treated Orca in a way that seemed to suppress him, to some extent. As Orca had said, he also thought that if he became a soldier, he should never leave the battlefield. To be honest, he was a complete lunatic.

No matter how much humanoids lived with the instincts of beasts, they were still half human. Wanting to commit slaughter could not be a normal way of thinking. He did not know the detailed circumstances, but if his parents had not kept him in check, he would probably have lived as an immense hooligan.

However, the orange-haired servant, Niah, seemed to have no idea what kind of guy he had gotten himself involved with now.

There’s no guarantee he won’t just grab you and kill you right now….

“Really, it’s true…. Our young master is a good person….”

Hilda looked down intently at Niah, who was defending Orca once again, and then answered cheerfully. It was not as if she could just outright advise him that he would die if he kept this up.

“Really? He must be good to you, then.”

At her ready agreement, Niah’s cheeks turned red. It sounded as if the young master was only good to him, and his chest swelled with a fluffy feeling. He felt excited, as if he had become someone special. The muscles that had been frozen with tension melted and became soft.

The churning in his stomach had somehow turned into a ticklish feeling, and he had to forcefully pull down the corners of his mouth, which kept trying to go up. He wished for the night to come quickly so he could hear the young master’s voice a lot, see his face up close, and hold him tight. Niah, who had plunged headfirst into his own world, chuckled, “Hehe,” without realizing it.

Hilda, who had just answered moderately with no particular meaning, found Niah’s shy behavior slightly amusing, and then soon felt sorry for him. She felt pity, thinking, He’s acting this way because he doesn’t know anything about that guy. The sight of him, who had been trembling just a moment ago, easily relaxing and grinning foolishly at a single word was somehow captivating. She thought that being this simple was a skill in itself. However, his gentle nature and his loyalty to his master seemed quite decent. His personality, which was to be loyal to his master and do whatever he was told, was perfect for keeping him by her side as an attendant.

A desire for collection began to creep up. It was a sensation like discovering an item that she absolutely loved in a shop found after winding through alley after alley. Merchants were generally collectors, and once they had their eyes on something, they were not satisfied until they had it. She thought it would not be bad to become his savior.

As it happened, she needed an attendant to accompany her on her travels, and she was getting bored of wandering around alone. She thought it would be nice to take him along for a change of pace. Besides, for him too, following a new master would be a much better choice than being killed by his current one.

Hilda, in a suggestive tone unlike before, asked as she caressed his flushed cheek. Niah, who was in high spirits, readily offered his cheek and grinned, as if his earlier trembling had been a lie.

“Are you a humanoid?”

“Yees.”

“What kind? A duck? Oh, a parrot?”

The movement of his wiggling toes, which had been slightly excited, came to a halt. The “Heehee” laughter that had been escaping also died down. The sudden change in atmosphere spurred Hilda’s curiosity. She repeatedly asked, as if urging him, and listed various animals that came to mind, one by one.

The names of the animals being listed were all small and fluffy types. Ducks and parrots were like that, but animals like squirrels and rabbits were especially small and fluffy. Niah, who thought of his own appearance, which was covered in scales instead of fur, hesitated and denied it.

“No. I…, I am, a goldfish….”

He quickly became dejected and trailed off. Hilda tousled Niah’s hair, who spoke as if he had committed a crime. At that, Niah shrank his neck and shut his eyelids tight. But not long after, his eyes, which had been wide open, turned to Hilda at once.

“So that’s why your hair is orange?”

Niah, who nodded slowly, unconsciously shifted his posture and looked up at her. He could not quite meet her gaze directly, and his eyes fluttered here and there. He had often heard people ask if he was stupid because he was a goldfish, but this was the first time he had heard someone ask if his hair was orange for that reason, and he was just amazed. He started to wonder if the young master knew too, and at the same time, questions that he had never been able to ask anyone until now floated up.

“Ex-excuse me, have you, by any chance, met other goldfish, met goldfish before…?”

“Yeah. A couple of times?”

“Really?”

Wow. A sincere exclamation of admiration was uttered. Niah, for some reason, hunched over his pounding chest as if nervous and fluttered his eyelashes. After taking a small, deep breath, he slowly began with the question he wanted to ask the most.

“Then, in that case. Are all goldfish, all…. Uh…. Well, are all goldfish,”

Stupid like me?

The question, which had not quite reached the question mark, was cut off by Hilda.

“Aren’t you curious what I am?”

It was the first time she had properly introduced herself to a servant, but she thought it would be better to tell him her name herself before trying to persuade him to go with her. If she told him this and that about Orca, he would immediately beg her to take him, but it seemed it would be easier to handle him if he followed her of his own accord. It would be troublesome if he became scared of her too, and apart from liking his submissiveness, a journey with an attendant steeped in fear seemed like it would be annoying in many ways. If that happened, there would be no particular reason to take him.

“Pardon? Oh, no. I am curious….”

Niah quickly shook his head. In truth, he was not curious at all, but he felt he would not get an answer to his own question if he told the truth. Hilda was about to say something, then rolled her eyes upwards. At that, a large palm cast a shadow over Niah’s face as he tilted his head in confusion. A hand that had appeared out of nowhere covered his mouth and pulled him into an embrace. He felt a solid wall against the back of his head.

“What are you curious about.”

At the familiar touch and scent, and the nice, low voice that came with it like a bonus, Niah grinned. His round eyes, peeking out over the side of her hand, were completely folded into lines. His surprise at the sudden situation lasted only a fleeting moment. His voice, calling out ‘Young Master,’ was muffled in Orca’s palm. Niah, who had become completely soft, his nervousness gone without a trace, was pitied by Hilda with a sympathetic gaze as she looked up at Orca.

“You got away?”

“My head hurts from the champagne. Just like someone.”

At those words, Niah’s body stirred and he moved his pressed lips. The words he mumbled with a muffled pronunciation were completely incomprehensible, but what he had to say right now was obvious. Orca gently stroked the cheek that was pressed against the tip of his index finger. His pouting lips were repeatedly rubbed against his palm.

Niah, who had mistakenly thought Orca was really sick, quickly brought him to his room and sat him on the bed. He stood facing him and looked into his face. His mournful expression was filled with concern. For some reason, his young master had seemed very listless since they had come up to the room, so his worries had piled up to form a mountain. The corners of his mouth, laden with anxiety, drooped down. He placed the back of his hand on Orca’s forehead. His head tilted in confusion as he checked his temperature, which was the same as usual, for a long time.

“Young master. Are you in a lot of pain? I don’t think you have a fever, but I don’t know for sure…. The head butler, oh.”

Orca, who had been quietly receiving his care, pulled Niah to him and leaned limply against his lean stomach. He pressed the small of his back, which he had wrapped his arms around as if in an embrace, into him. Niah, who had ended up between his thighs, began to carefully pat the body that was pressed against him. He had never been sick from drinking alcohol, so he did not know what to do in a situation like this. In the first place, he was not even sure if he had ever drunk alcohol before, so he was just at a loss. Niah patted him diligently, pat, pat.

Orca was irritated in many ways. It was not just because of his parents or Hilda; he was angry at himself as well. In fact, at this very moment, he was the most displeased with himself. He was in a terrible mood.

The image of the goldfish, crouching on the grassy ground and cleaning up after others, kept coming to mind. The sound of his light footsteps as he grinned and walked away kept ringing in his ears. The feeling of sharing what was his with others clung to his whole body and would not go away. He felt nauseous.

But the only person to blame was none other than himself. He could only scold himself for not having taken any action other than just watching. Even so, the short time the goldfish had spent with Hilda pressed on his solar plexus. His nerves were on edge, as if a sharp blade were passing through his veins. He could not guess what Hilda might have blabbered on about.

Orca let out a low, deep sigh. The sigh seeped into Niah’s stomach. Niah, looking even more mournful, pouted his lips and looked down at the hair he had arranged for him this morning. The wrist of the hand patting his neck and the area around his shoulder fluttered diligently.

“Niah. What did you talk about with her?”

“Pardon? Who… oh, that noble lady from earlier?”

His pupils darted around at the sudden change in topic. His words trailed off meaninglessly. His eyebrows slanted, wondering what his sick young master had to do with that noble lady. No matter how hard he tried to find a connection, he could not think of one.

However, Niah faithfully recalled his conversation with Hilda. The more he thought about it step by step, the more he felt out of breath in retrospect. It was because all he could remember was hastily answering a barrage of questions that could hardly be called a conversation, as it was so one-sided.

“She just, asked me some things, so I answered her. Like my name.”

Niah, who had pondered for quite a while, answered simply as if it were no big deal, and then fiddled with the back of Orca’s head. He decided to pretend he had not heard the insults Hilda had spewed, in case his young master got hurt. He was angry again that she had spoken ill of him while claiming to be his friend. He regretted that he had stammered like a fool when he should have said no more clearly. Niah, vowing that if something similar happened again in the future, he would speak clearly, let out a huff through his nose. Then he hugged the back of the head he had been fiddling with tightly.

“Is that all? You said you were curious about something from her.”

Orca, who had buried his face and then lifted his head, looked up at Niah. His angular chin poked Niah in the stomach. His own behavior of prying felt quite shabby, but he could not help it. He was already annoyed when the goldfish bantered with Harriet, who usually took care of him, so there was no way he would be pleased that he had talked to Hilda. She might have scared him by saying something harsh, or she might have gossiped about him.

When he was young, he had relieved his pent-up feelings by arguing with Hilda, so he had said a lot of strange things. He had spat out whatever came to mind. It was a shameful part of himself that he did not want the goldfish to find out about. He knew he would say he liked whatever he was, but he did not want to show even a slight gap.

At his interrogation, which was not quite an interrogation, Niah once again carefully searched his memory. Then he suddenly remembered the most interesting thing he had heard from Hilda earlier. The corners of his lips, which had been drooping, turned up in a grin. The fingers that had been fiddling with Orca’s hair excitedly wrapped around his neck.

“Oh! My hair color. This, she said it’s because I’m a goldfish. I learned that for the first time.”

A voice mixed with a “hehe” laugh slipped through his lips like a violin melody. The notes came out with feathers and tickled Orca. His rather sharp eyes immediately softened. He was annoyed that he had exchanged such a cute story with that bear cub first instead of him, but he did not show it.

“You have an orange pattern.”

Orange…. Niah repeated after him in a small voice. His smiling lips gradually flattened. He blinked slowly with a slightly bewildered expression. Orca pulled Niah onto him and sat him down. One thigh supported the light weight. He wrapped an arm around his waist to prevent him from falling, broadly enveloping his flat stomach. The fingers that were gently placed on the forearm that held his body firmly in place squeezed his sleeve.

The corners of Niah’s mouth, who had been looking at him after being naturally embraced as if sliding into his arms, twitched. He felt like he was floating on air, remembering that he had shown him his humanoid form only once, but that he remembered it. Two shiny eggs appeared on his dimpled cheeks. Orange? Orange. Orange! As he repeated it to himself several times, he quickly became cheerful.

“Because you’re an orange-patterned goldfish. Your skin is white like this, and your hair is orange….”

Niah, held obediently in his arms, took in every word he whispered. Orca’s palm caressed his puffy cheeks and combed through his hair. The soft skin and fluffy curly hair wound around his fingertips. The goldfish rubbed his forehead against him and let out a “hehe” laugh. At that small sound, his constantly displeased heart calmed down.

He was still unfamiliar with himself, who was so flustered by such trivial things, but he did not dislike the feeling of being swayed. Rather, he wanted him to mess him up even more. It seemed it would be good if he shook him up even more, so that his annoying anguish would become trivial.

Orca removed one of the hands that was holding his forearm. He caressed the awkwardly opened palm, then slowly kissed it from the fingertips to the knuckles, as if eating it up. He rubbed his lips over the delicate skin, which was lined with a crisscross pattern.

“But why is it coral-colored here?”

With each letter that was slowly rubbed, Niah laughed, “hehe,” again. It was not his palm that was ticklish, but his chest.

“Hmm?”

At Niah, who just grinned instead of answering, Orca asked again. He rolled his lips inward, bit the tip of his finger, and tapped the stomach he was holding, unnecessarily rushing him. Niah quickly shook his head, flutter, flutter. Whether he was orange or coral-colored now, that was no longer what was important.

“I don’t know. I don’t know for sure. Young master, not there. Not there….”

He straightened his back and moved closer to the gaze that was looking at him. A frank desire was reflected in his pupils. His lips parted thinly as if pleading, moving up and down. Young master, the call, which was both a request for permission and a plea, came out in a whisper.

Orca wanted to tease his goldfish a little, but his body reacted before his mind. There was no way he could ignore the tongue that was already sticking out slightly, waiting. The overlapping body heat quickly rose. The sound of wet flesh colliding, entangling, and being sucked was moist.

Niah shrank back more and more as Orca shifted his weight onto him. His neck was bent and his bones were numb. Every time their lips parted, he let out a ragged breath. The breath he had not been able to swallow was hot and scattered roughly. It was Niah who had instigated it, but it was Orca who had rushed in recklessly this time as well. He, who had been focused only on watching with his eyes wide open, belatedly came to his senses. He pulled away with a smacking sound.

“Niah. Breathe.”

“Yees….”

As his mouth became empty, Niah’s vision brightened, and his chest heaved. The pupils revealed beneath his half-lidded eyes were glistening. After panting a few times, he leaned his body in pursuit of the heat that had escaped from him. If it escaped again, he would chase it again, and if it escaped again, he would chase it again.

Orca pressed down on Niah, who was repeatedly lifting and lowering his bottom. It would be a big problem if he passed out. Thinking that his short breaths were inconvenient in many ways, he pulled his head back. It was quite difficult to maintain his sanity even with him patting his forearm and pulling at his hand.

“Young masteer….”

“Keep breathing.”

“I’m done.”

“Breathe more.”

Niah, who had become sullen, struggled and whined before suddenly standing up. He sprang down from his thigh as if bouncing off and grabbed Orca’s cheeks. This time, his neck was thrown back. Niah, who stood close so he could not be pushed away, shoved his lips against his without warning. He forced his tongue in, pressing it against his teeth.