The Snow Leopard Baby of the Black Leopard Family

Ian’s prediction was correct. The sun had set before they could cross the mountain, and darkness quickly fell over the landscape. The knights, unable to continue, began setting up camp on the mountainside.

"Stay alert. Make sure there are no gaps in the watch."

"Yes, sir."

The knight captain bowed his head before returning to his post. Ian watched as the knights busied themselves with setting up the camp. They moved efficiently, pitching tents and unloading thick, plush blankets from the carriages, laying them over the cots inside the tents.

The blankets, of course, belonged to Tiel. Ferdie, Ludian, and Olivia had made sure to bring plenty for her. There were so many layers that once spread out, the bedding was nearly as high as a proper mattress.

"Ugh, I feel so stiff..."

Ludian stretched as he stepped out of the carriage. Ian, watching him, gave a small nod toward the horses behind them.

"I anticipated this, so we brought extra steeds. You should ride tomorrow."

"If I ride, I won’t be able to see Tiel."

Ludian yawned and responded half-heartedly. Ian suddenly realized something.

So that’s why he chose the carriage over horseback.

Ludian loved riding, so it had been odd that he’d opted for the carriage. But now it made sense—he simply wanted to stay close to his little sister.

The problem was that Ian completely understood his reasoning. He shook his head at his own absurdity.

Just then, Ferdie stepped out of the carriage, carrying a small, sleeping snow leopard in his arms. Olivia followed behind, holding a blanket, and upon noticing the chill in the air, gently draped it over Tiel.

"Is she asleep?"

Ian approached and peered at the tiny snow leopard. Ferdie, lowering his voice to a whisper, responded curtly.

"Ian... Move your face away."

"......"

Without a word, Ian backed off. He had no intention of waking Tiel, and besides, he had done something wrong to Asterian...

Ferdie clicked his tongue before turning toward the tent. Ian, watching silently, gestured toward a different tent with a slight nod.

"Let her sleep there."

The tent he pointed to was the largest and most well-furnished one—originally meant for the crown prince himself.

Ferdie, Ludian, and Olivia all turned to look at the tent, then back at Ian, their expressions wrinkling in suspicion.

"Ian... you can’t be serious."

"You wouldn’t, Your Highness...?"

"Oh, come on. You do have a conscience, don’t you?"

One after another, Ludian, Ferdie, and Olivia voiced their doubts. Ian immediately understood what they were thinking.

Now that he was offering the best tent to Tiel, it felt embarrassing.

Tiel’s brothers had clearly expected him to take it for himself.

Ian, his pride slightly wounded, pressed his lips together before finally muttering.

"...I’ll sleep in a different tent. Just let Tiel sleep there. And if it’s that much of a problem, you can all sleep there too."

At those words, the three siblings’ gazes softened.

Ian had simply made a statement, yet somehow, he felt like he’d been torn apart by wild beasts.

"If Your Highness insists, we won’t refuse," Ferdie responded with a polite smile, dipping his head slightly.

Ian completely ignored him and instead turned his attention back to the little snow leopard in Ferdie’s arms.

Without thinking, he stepped forward and gently prodded the soft pink pads of her paw.

"...!"

Ferdie’s eyes instantly sharpened. But thankfully, Tiel remained asleep.

"Mm..."

She merely shifted slightly in Ferdie’s embrace, stretching out her small paw before tucking it neatly over her stomach again.

"You seriously have a habit of waking up sleeping kids now?"

Olivia whispered with clear disapproval. Ian, realizing how ridiculous he must look, hastily covered his mouth with the back of his hand, his ears turning red.

"No, that’s not it..."

"Then what exactly is it? Why did you poke her after I explicitly told you not to?"

"......"

"Forget it. Let’s just put her to bed before you poke her again!" 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

I didn’t poke her!

Ian held back the urge to defend himself. It was pointless—no matter what he said, these siblings wouldn’t believe him.

After Ferdie, Ludian, and Olivia carried Tiel into Ian’s tent, Ian remained outside, tilting his head in thought.

Why did I do that?

He hadn’t meant to wake her up... He had simply seen her in her beast form for the first time in so long.

The first time Ian had seen Tiel in her snow leopard form was back at the Nestian estate.

"Please... help me."

"You know how to transform?"

A frightened little girl had slipped into his room in the dead of night.

Moments later, she had transformed into a snow leopard. That image of her—thin, frail, and terrified—was still seared into Ian’s memory.

Her fur had been dull and brittle, her tail and body emaciated, her golden eyes filled with fear.

She had been so small that one could have mistaken her for a house cat rather than a snow leopard.

But now, the little leopard in Ferdie’s arms...

She’s grown.

She had grown so much that there was no comparison. Her fur now gleamed with health, her tail had filled out, and—most importantly—her soft pink paw pads...

They were so... soft.

And so incredibly squishy.

Only now did Ian realize why he had been compelled to touch them.

It wasn’t simply because the sleeping snow leopard had looked adorable.

It was because, in that moment, he had recalled the stark difference between the past and present Tiel.

He had witnessed firsthand how much a child could change when surrounded by love.

And Ian... had never experienced such love himself.

But somehow, that fact no longer felt sad.

Ian had grown up too quickly to waste time feeling sorry for himself.

Instead of sadness, he decided to feel grateful.

Grateful that he had met Tiel.

That he, of all people, had been the one in that estate that night.

It felt like an act of fate.

***

["The village won’t do. There’s too much unnecessary light there..."]

At the voice’s command, Chender ensured that the children would never reach the village.

Blocking the road was easy. The Nestian knights, who had arrived in advance, had collapsed the path, making it seem as though the road had never existed in the first place.

By completely sealing off the shortcut that led directly to the village, the children would have no choice but to camp in the mountains.

That was exactly what Chender wanted.

Upon receiving confirmation that the road had been destroyed, Chender grinned in satisfaction.

"There’s no way to take them all head-on."

After all, their procession included imperial knights personally assigned by the emperor.

Even the slightest misstep could bring devastating consequences—not just retaliation, but the complete annihilation of their house under the charge of attempting to assassinate a royal.

But...

As long as they don’t touch the crown prince, isn’t that enough?

As long as neither Nestian’s ice nor Iker’s lightning was involved, no matter what misfortune befell them in the mountains, no one would be able to pin the blame on them.

["Something very dark is needed..."]

The eerie voice whispered into Chender’s ears once more.

That voice—one that had faintly whispered to him for years—had suddenly become clear in recent days.

As if someone were standing right beside him...

Chender, his eyes hazy and unfocused, let out a deranged laugh.

"Yes... The mountains will be plenty dark..."

The knights, of course, weren’t fools. They would carry torches and campfires to illuminate their surroundings.

But compared to the lights of a village, those flickering flames were nothing more than fireflies in the night.

Campfires and torches wouldn’t be enough to banish the darkness. They would be forced to endure the night, wrapped in shadows.

And the darkness... would consume them.

They would be left helpless, blind to the moment when their precious little snow leopard vanished.

How unexpectedly easy this turned out to be.

The moment Tiel left Alpheus and Karsus’s protection, everything had started falling into place.

In a pitch-black room, with not even a single candle lit, Chender curled into himself and laughed like a man gone mad.

***

Inside the tent, warm blankets layered thickly beneath them, Olivia, Ferdie, and Ludian sat in a circle around the sleeping snow leopard.

The atmosphere was oddly serious.

All three of them held their breath.

Then—

Ludian pointed cautiously at the small, curled-up figure in the center.

"...She’s glowing."