Claude

I regained consciousness. Creak-rattle. I was on a moving cart.

I was being carried somewhere. After years of slavery, I was used to being transported.

The scent of grass tickled my nose. This wasn't the cage filled with that awful stench.

There was a horse up front. And…ugh, I held my breath.

I opened my eyes and rolled them around.

The first thing I saw was the blue sky. A few white clouds drifted by.

I stared blankly at the sky, then looked at the straw bales piled around me.

If anything was strange, it was that there was no cage. No blindfold, either.

My hands and feet felt light. I wasn't in pain or dizzy.

They hadn't injected me.

Rustle-

At the small movement, I heard the straw whisper against me.

Oh no.

I stopped moving and quieted myself as much as possible. There was no point in drawing attention to myself for no reason.

“Are you awake?”

Then a man's voice came from the front. Thump, thump. My heart suddenly began pounding hard.

It came back to me. A man had entered the cage I was bound in.

As always, I assumed he was some poor soul taking a chance on buying me.

The result was….

“My name is Claude. Starting today, I’ll be with Aris.”

I let out the breath I'd been holding. Be careful. The scent wafting from the driver's seat made me feel groggy.

Thump, thump. My heart was pounding violently.

“You’re listening, right? Your ears are perked up, and you’re looking this way.”

The man named Claude. The one who had overpowered me. He was the reason my heart was pounding now.

His scent was pricking my nose.

I was searching for only his scent so intently that I couldn't use my sense of smell—one of my ways of perceiving the world—for anything else.

Creak-

Snort. The cart came to a stop with the horse's snort.

“Are you all right, Aris?”

He climbed down from the driver's seat.

I heard his footsteps coming this way. His scent grew closer and closer.

Thump, thump, thump, thump. My heart was beating so violently it was frightening, as if it might burst.

I didn't know what to do. This was the first man who had ever subdued me.

My mother had told me.

‘Find a man who will protect Aris. Then rely on his embrace.’

It was obvious advice from a female wolf-beast's instincts, but I had always hesitated.

I had once been a human male. I had been born a female wolf-beast, but could being subdued by sheer strength really be love?

I could live in submission as a woman, but the human identity left in me would not allow it.

I hated surrendering to strength. That's why I had fought all the more desperately.

If he could move my heart, that would be different, but mere strength couldn't bind me.

Claude stood at the front of the cart. I remained buried in the straw, not moving.

If he touched me, I intended to smash him to pieces right then and there.

“Aris? We… Oh? S-sorry!”

He backed away in a hurry. He didn't come any closer. Why?

Wasn't he going to pounce on me?

The empty space he'd left behind felt strangely hollow. I followed after him, breathing in his scent.

Creak-creak.

“Ugh.”

Wait a second?

What was I doing just now? I stopped the hand that had been moving.

I slowly brought my hand up and looked at it.

My fingers were covered in a sticky, slick fluid. This was….

“Huh…?”

What was I doing?

My underwear was soaked through. All because I'd merely smelled his scent.

Worst of all, Claude had seen me like this.

I stopped what I was doing and hurriedly sat up.

How embarrassing. So embarrassing. I wanted to run away, but there was a slave brand on my wrist.

Escape meant death.

“U-Ugh…sniff….”

I was embarrassed, miserable, and frightened; tears began to fall.

I hadn't cried when I was captured as a slave, or when I left the tribe and became a wanderer….

I leaned against the wall of the cart and wiped my tears with my hand. Ugh, the sticky fluid felt disgusting, so I wiped it off on the straw.

Creak-

Then Claude, whom I had thought had gone somewhere, came back.

He wasn't looking this way. He stood with his back against the cart, arms folded, saying nothing.

How embarrassing—to do this in front of a man I didn't know at all, just from smelling his scent?

Thanks to the memories of my previous life, I at least knew that what I'd just done was masturbation.

It was something I'd never done with this body before. I had been curious, but I hadn't wanted to do it.

Because I thought doing so would change something about me as a man….

Of course, I'd actually done it, but nothing had changed.

I am me.

Woman or man, I'm simply Aris.

“Have you calmed down?”

After about five minutes, he spoke to me. He was right.

Let's calm down.

Think rationally, like a person, Aris. My status is merely that of a slave.

Besides, he's human. He won't become aroused like a wolf-beast just because he subdued me by force.

I closed my eyes and spoke.

“I’m sorry, Master. I ended up showing you such an embarrassing side of me.”

Let's act as I was taught, at least until I can remove this brand someday.

Hold on. I have to hold on.

Creak-

The cart tilted slightly to one side. He had turned around and leaned his weight against the cart.

Black hair and gray-tinged eyes. Tall, with a not-unpleasant…face.

“I’m glad you’re all right, Aris.”

His unshaven beard and scruffy clothes took points off, but his smile was….

Thump, thump.

It was dangerous to look into his eyes. I tilted my head to the right and said,

“Please don’t smile.”

“Huh? Oh. Sorry.”

Those words slipped out before I knew it. Yet he merely nodded, as if nothing had happened.

Was he really going to let a slave who had been rude to him get away with it? He only scratched his head.

A brief silence.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“I’m all…right.”

I was hungry, but a slave shouldn't show greed right from the start.

Although this was my first time being sold directly, I'd passed through the hands of many slave traders, so I knew how things worked.

“I’m hungry. I feel like eating something.”

“Understood. I’ll make you something….”

Claude said with a slight smile.

“So you are hungry after all? I’ll make some stew.”

“I-I….”

“Look at that tail—it won’t stop wagging. I’ll make it delicious.”

I realized my mistake. I seized the tail wagging freely at my side.

I wanted to act like a human, like a cultured person of the modern age. But was I only half a beast?

It was terribly difficult to restrain my instincts.

Ah, this wasn't the time for that.

I got to my feet, stepped on the cart's railing, and jumped down. A slave's duty was to help the master.

Wait. Was I not supposed to get down without an order?

This was my first time living as a slave. Until now, I had always been locked in a cage as merchandise, waiting to be sold.

I discreetly gauged Claude's reaction. He was taking cooking utensils from a bag at the front of the cart.

“Master. I’ll make it.”

“Huh? Why did you get down? I’ll make it for you, so stay up there.”

Was that an order? What should I do? Since he'd given an instruction, obeying it took priority.

I obediently climbed back onto the cart and knelt on the straw. Leaning against the railing, I looked down.

There was dried meat and fairly fresh vegetables. Was he using magic to preserve their freshness?

Claude's expression was serious as he skillfully prepared the meal.

Sniff, sniff. The appetizing aroma began to waft over.

Slice, slice. Chop, chop. Bubble, bubble. Clatter.

It was the smell of proper food, something I hadn't smelled in a very long time. My mouth began to water.

“Aris. It’s ready. Come down.”

At his call, I hurried down to his side. But I couldn't let my eagerness show.

“I tried making some stew. What do you think? Looks tasty, right?”

I first assessed how much food there was. If he was short on money, it would be better for me not to eat.

Claude was a shabby-looking adventurer. His clothes were threadbare, and even the cart creaked.

For some reason, he even had a whole load of straw bales.

“I’m fine, Master.”

“Why… Hmm, come on~ Aris. Take this.”

“But….”

The portion he'd made was far too small. Could it really fill a mercenary's stomach?

“I’m really fine, Master. You should eat it.”

But he shook his head.

“Aris’s tail is wagging so hard it looks like it might break. And what are you going to do about the drool at the corner of your mouth?”

I raised my chin and clamped my mouth shut. I swallowed, then wiped the corner of my mouth with my hand.

I tensed my tail and avoided his eyes. Then Claude came walking toward me.

“Hand.”

I held out my hand at his command and received a bowl of stew.

“Do you like it that much? Your gently swaying tail is so pretty.”

“I’ll…eat well, Master.”

I waited until he returned to his place and picked up his spoon.

I held back. Now I could see the stew in the bowl. I slurped down a mouthful.

“Uh…Aris?”

Gulp. It still wasn't enough, but whatever remained was Master's share.

Endure it. I'm hungry, but I have to endure.

He was a man, so if he shared even a little from that small pot with me, he wouldn't have enough.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it, but if you eat that quickly, you’ll get sick. Wasn’t it hot?”

“Thank you very much, Master. It was delicious.”

“Thanks. Give me the bowl.”

I handed the bowl back to him. Then he set his own bowl down.

I wondered why, then saw him pick up the ladle and serve stew into my bowl.

“Here, have another bowlful.”

“Ah, you don’t need to go hungry because of me.”

Claude tilted his head. I watched him cautiously, wondering if I'd done something wrong.

“Ah… Did it look like there wasn’t enough?”

I nodded at his question. At that, he laughed. “Pfft… Ah~ I see.”

“Don’t worry. One bowl would be enough for me. No, I’ll have two. I was planning to eat the rest for dinner….”

He stood up, came over to me, and…took my hand, pulling me along.

“M-Master?”

“Sit here. Everything in the pot is yours, Aris.”

“What? I-I… Then what will you eat for dinner? Because of me….”

He gazed steadily at me. No, he was looking at the tail swaying behind me.

“I can make more for dinner. It’s not as if I’m short on ingredients. What matters is that everyone has enough to eat.”

Claude picked up his own bowl again. I started eating too, following his lead.

I served myself a bowl of stew. I could empty the pot by myself, but I held back.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Master.”

I ate exactly two bowls as well, following his example.