"... What?"
What did I hear?
I felt like my whole body was running cold.
I stared at Sen, bewildered, trying hard to interpret the meaning of those simple words: "Cashew Nuts are gone."
Cashew Nuts. In other words, I disappeared.
From where?
Where was he? He must be in the hamster house!
The corners of my mouth twitched. The problem was that I had only kept an eye on Kyle, wondering who would dare to enter the Grand Duke's room.
I don't know why Sen entered the room, but the fact that Cashew Nuts wasn't in the hamster's house was already irreversible.
Stay calm. Stay calm.
He said that even if he was bitten in a tiger's den, he would live if he kept his mind.
I quickly opened my inventory and scanned the list of items. Fortunately, there was still a replica hamster that I had bought the other day and hadn't used.
I'll put this around for now, and if Sen is relieved, I'll turn off "load" and change it.
"Cashew Nuts! Stay with me!"
"... With you? When did you take him? Didn't you go with His Highness Belial?"
"Then I heard it for a while because the story was over. They play with me and give me some snacks. It seems that Cashew Nuts wanted to get some air."
I cheerfully replied and put my hand in my pants pocket. I turned around to block Sen's view and pulled out a replica hamster.
'System, squeak! Cry! Now!'
—Squeak.
The replica hamster let out its first cry. It was the same as my usual voice.
I held the hamster with both hands and smiled brightly at Sen.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't know who would find him."
"Oh... That's a good thing. I was really surprised. I thought Cashew Nuts was gone..."
She sighed, brushing her chest.
…Were you surprised?
Speaking of which, her face was pale and tired.
I felt sorry for myself and showed her more of the hamster. Look. He looks just like Cashew Nuts, right? It's Cashew Nuts, isn't it?
"Did you call me?"
"Ah, Mage."
Wizard?
I frowned reflexively. He was the one who wanted to do research and nabalini against me the other day.
It was only natural that a mage directly under the imperial family was in the castle, but I didn't want to face him as much as possible. Should I call it physiological rejection? He has eyes that seem to see through the essence of the other person, which is a burden.
"I'm fine now. His Highness Kyle's demon beast is gone, so I thought I'd ask for help. He said he couldn't find Cashew Nuts anyway due to the flow of magical power... I thought there might be another way."
"His Highness Kyle's demon beast?"
"Yes, this is him. Isn't he very cute?"
Sen laughed and stroked the hamster in my palm. The sound of crying was really similar to the sound I made as Cashew Nuts.
Yes, you shouldn't notice this. I don't see any other corners. Kyle is unique, Kyle.
"Hmm."
However, it seemed that another unusual person appeared in front of him.
The wizard narrowed his brows and looked at the hamster quietly. With that strange and unsettling feeling, I covered the hamster with my palm.
But it was quicker for the wizard to open his mouth than for me to cover up the replica hamster.
"This is not real."
"... What do you mean?"
"It's called a counterfeit."
The wizard's gaze was on me. My heart sank for a moment at the sight of his piercing eyes. Did you know I was trying to deceive him?
"Among the forbidden magic, there is this kind of magic. Cloning a living organism and making it seem like it is alive. This is probably how it was made."
"... Yes? ...."
"Where is the demon beast?"
Sen and the wizard looked at me at the same time. A word passed through my mind more clearly than ever.
'It's over.'
Okay. I really was.
*
After the definitive death sentence, I asked Sen to leave the wizard and make room for the two of us.
In conclusion, there was no way out. No matter how much I racked my brain, I could only speak frankly and beg for my secret to be kept.
Trying to get him away from me would only amplify his useless suspicions, and if Kyle was brought in, it would be truly irreversible.
That much must be prevented.
As long as Kyle finds out the truth, it is inevitable.
I washed my face dry and sighed. It was just crying and eating mustard.
This is why people shouldn't live in sin. Technically, I didn't do anything wrong, but I kept getting nervous because I was going to say something so ridiculous and shocking.
"What's wrong, Shu? Now is not the time! I need to find Cashew Nuts quickly! I don't know who got the fake Cashew Nuts and how, but we need to find out who made them as soon as possible...!"
All kinds of worries appeared on Sen's face.
As she glanced at the door as if she was about to run away, I looked up with a determined face.
"... It's me."
"What?"
"I was the one who used counterfeit products, and I was the one who is Cashew Nuts."
"... What do you mean?"
Sen looked at me like he was looking at a madman, or rather, a crazy person.
Correct. I think it was the same for me. He would have called a doctor right away and ejaculated that my child was wrong.
In that sense, Sen's attitude of wanting to listen to it even with trembling eyes is like... Really. I made a good friend.
I wiped away tears and told them about my condition as concisely and clearly as I could. Of course, this world is in a book, and I was hit by a car, and I have a comatose body in the real world.
"I mean... You became a hamster because of a curse?"
"That's right."
"Besides, you can only be a human for four hours a day, and when you're not, you're Cashew Nuts?"
"That's it."
"If you save the world, you can become a human..."
"I didn't commit any crimes, but that's just how it happened."
"...."
There was an awkward silence. Sen just stared at me with his mouth open in bewilderment.
"Well, how do you believe that?"
"That's it...."
Finally, a system window appeared in front of me as I was worried.
['Load' will be lifted after 1 minute.]
'System. Unloading. The location is where I am standing now.'
[٩( ᐛ )و]
I sighed heavily and asked.
"When I go back to the demon beast, please take care of me, and I will do it to Your Highness... I'll tell you directly."
"...."
"Please."
Sen couldn't answer right away. He just stared at me with a distraught expression for the remaining minute.
And when the appointed time passed and the 'load' was lifted, my body was surrounded by white light...
—Squeak. (Look, it's real.)
I jumped out of my clothes and put my hands on my waist.
"Wow...."
Sen stretched my cheeks. The cheeks, which stretched out like glutinous rice cakes, returned to their place when her fingers fell off.
"It hurts. It's true...."
—Squeak. (Then it hurts, doesn't it?)
"You can't talk to people?"
—Squeak. (Of course.)
Sen looked at me with blinking eyes and let out a small laugh.
"How do I understand if I say that?"
—Squeak, squeak. (Listen to it.)
"Okay. Then answer 'yes' or 'no.'"
I nodded.
—Squeak. (Yes.)
Then I shook my head again.
—Squeak. (Nope.)
Sen laughed at this strange situation and held out her palm to me.
"Are you really Shu?"
—Squeak. (Yes.)
"You came up like this in my hand back then. Did you come to find me on purpose?"
—Squeak. (Yes.)
"I thought it was a real hamster, so I tried to feed it to mealworms..."
Yes, mealworms like those enemies!
I nudged Sen, and she laughed out loud.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. But who would look at a hamster and think it might be a human! I won't bring it to you again."
—... (Yes.)
Sen said she'd take me anyway and took me back to Kyle's room.
"His Highness Kyle spoke with me and went out of the castle for a while. Maybe it's time for him to come back... I'll take care of you. You can say that we took a walk together."
Sen, who was walking with her hands carefully wrapped around me, sighed softly.
"Come to think of it, I didn't even ask because I wasn't panicking. You were injured earlier. Did you get hurt a lot?"
—Squeak. (Nope.)
If you apply medicine, you will get better quickly. It's a little throbbing for a few days, but it's still a hamster that takes a break all the time.
"Your Highness was very worried. He asked me to look after you."