Chapter 1: Encounter with the Holy Beast

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Encounter with the Holy Beast

Noticing the cold, I looked outside my window. Large crystals of bright white snow were floating down from above.

Snow crystals? Where had I picked up that term at three years old?

Such thoughts had become a frequent occurrence recently. Tilting my head in confusion, I approached the window, stretched up to grip the frame with both my hands, and looked outside.

In front of the outdoor scenery, I saw myself reflected in the window, looking as I usually did. My straight, shoulder-length hair was jet black, matching my black eyes. I thought I looked rather plain.

I gazed further out at the vast lawn of the mansion courtyard being covered in white. It was the first time in my life I had seen snow on the ground. It would probably be up to my knees by tomorrow morning, and I’d be able to make a snowman. Would father be mad at me? Say, what was a “snowman” anyway?

Ah...there I went thinking of an unusual word again... I looked up at the sky and frowned pensively.

Just then, I heard the crunch of footsteps in the snow and looked back down.

The ground that had been pure white until just a moment ago was now dotted with a trail of red spots. At the end of the trail, something small, white, and fluffy writhed. Its front paw was covered in red.

Oh, no! Is it hurt?!

I grabbed the blanket from my bed and dashed outside. Leaving tiny footprints in the snow behind me, I ran toward it, breathing heavily. There I found...a tiger?

“Ah... Ahhh!”

High-rise buildings that shone silver, roads that intersected in multilevel crossings with cars driving down them at breakneck speed, a city that was brightly lit even at night; a series of images beyond my understanding sped through my mind.

Finally, a book came to the forefront of my memories. Dumbfounded, I cautiously took the sacred tiger in my arms.

I carefully wiped the blood off the baby tiger—who I now realized was the Holy Guardian White Tiger—using a damp towel. I disinfected the wound on its front right paw, applied medicine to it, and tore off a piece of the towel to wrap it with in place of a bandage.

I was a little too good at this for a three-year-old, don’t you think? I would agree. It wasn’t until just recently that I had been able to do this, but I could now that I had been remembering so much. It did take more time and effort on account of my smaller body, though.

“I was reincarnated in another world...” I muttered in my past self’s language as I wrapped the White Tiger in a pink blanket, laid it on my lap, and stroked its head.

I hadn’t been special in my past life, but I had been a self-sufficient member of society. I was around thirty, I think. My responsibilities at work had been increasing, and I had mentored a number of newer employees, except they soon quit after either finding other jobs or getting married. I’d had more and more work to do, and no time to meet anyone new, so the last thing I remembered was feeling totally worn down from everything I was doing on my own. I didn’t even remember how I died. Overwork?

My one joy in that rough life had been reading. I’d escaped reality through fantasy novels, one of which had been I Love You, My Wild Rose. The heroine, Maribelle, was born in a working-class neighborhood—a “wild rose”—but she got into the best magic academy in the kingdom, where she not only developed her magical talent but was recognized by the holy guardian beasts. Her humble, earnest attitude won her the friendship of one top student after another, culminating in a happy ending where she married a prince. It was as conventional as stories get.

The villainess of the story was named Serephione Granzeus. She was the prince’s fiancée, a powerful magician who acted as the heroine’s rival.

“That’s me...”

Not only was Serephione skilled in all kinds of magic, but she had even forced the White Tiger to serve her, using its power to stand in Maribelle’s way. After defeating Serephione, Maribelle released the White Tiger from its servitude, and she established an official master-servant relationship with it.

I petted the beautiful, exhausted creature lying on my lap.

This was probably the point in the story where I was supposed to make it drink my blood and turn it into my servant while its mind was dazed. That scene had been cut from the novel since it wasn’t part of the main plot, though.

I didn’t think the idea itself was necessarily mistaken. It was a good idea for a three-year-old; if the tiger drank my magic-infused blood, its wounds would heal immediately. I doubted that Serephione had intended to make it serve her at the time.

However, I was a woman of around thirty in a three-year-old’s body, and I knew how the story went. I couldn’t take the risk. The last thing I wanted to be was the villainess. Her fate was to be locked away in a tower, bled dry of all her magic, and left to languish. I couldn’t let that happen to me.

By the way, my past life wasn’t the only thing I remembered the moment I met this tiger. Many of Serephione Granzeus’s memories also came back to me, including things that hadn’t been written in Wild Rose: her true feelings, her suffering, the despair of being betrayed by her loved ones... It was like a cry of utter grief...

And I was meant to go through all that again? No way!

But the tiger’s condition was worsening by the minute. I couldn’t just let one of the few holy guardian beasts in the world die on my lap! It would only open another bad route. What was I supposed to do?!

“Does it hurt?”

I gently embraced the shivering tiger. It opened its eyes with a pained expression, as if reacting to my voice. Large teardrops spilled from its eyes; without thinking, I did as my father would do and sucked them up with kisses.

I was enveloped in a brief bright flash. It wasn’t a good sign, but I couldn’t let it bother me just then.

I looked into the tiger’s big, round, sky blue eyes. They reminded me of my little brother’s from my past life, although his were a different color. I remembered how I had always watched over him. Whenever he would take a sudden fall while toddling around and begin to wail, I would say...

“Pain, pain, go away! Come again another day!”

I rubbed the tiger’s wounded front paw and then mimed taking the pain and throwing it out the window.

“There, now it’s all better! Good boy!”

I rubbed its cheek up against mine and gave it a smooch. I was happy it was being calm, but I was at a loss for what to do.

Just then, the little tiger in my arms suddenly regained its strength. It didn’t feel limp anymore, so I stretched my arms out and set it down on my lap. Its eyes blinked open.

“What’s your name?”

It talked?! Holy guardian beasts can talk? And its voice is adorable!

“I’m Serephione...!”

“Sere? Your magic is great! I’m all better now! Thanks!”

I unwrapped the towel I’d used for a bandage, and the deep wound I’d just taken care of was...gone.

Huh...? It couldn’t be... But there’s no other way. It actually worked? Did my magic words work like some sort of video game cheat code?

“Your magic feels really good. I’ve decided I’m gonna stay with you! Okay?”

Can I even say no? I can’t, right? Would I get the death penalty for defying a guardian beast? Does this count as him serving me? It doesn’t, right? I’m not forcing him, am I? What am I supposed to do?!

“Um... Can we start as friends?”

“Friends!”

“Eek!”

The tiger leapt onto me with gusto and started licking my face. Its claw dug into the back of my hand, drawing blood. It licked the spot as if to apologize.

Suddenly, a ring of light appeared above my head, surrounded me and the tiger, and quickly closed in around us before vanishing.

We ingested each other’s bodily fluids... Uh oh.

A drop of cold sweat rolled down my temple, like in the so-called “manga” I used to read. The tiger innocently licked that up as well.

Flash!

Th-There’s the light again! It circled around us again! This is not good!

I set the tiger on the floor and leaned forward onto my hands, crestfallen.

“Sere? What’s wrong?”

The tiger tilted its head to the side, gave me a pat on the head with its little pink paw pad, and flashed me a smile.

All right, let’s give my current situation a little once-over! Let’s set aside the white fluffball that was bouncing around on my king-size bed for now—it was a good thing that he was feeling better, at least. Crisis averted!

I’m Serephione Granzeus. I’m the daughter of the Earl of Granzeus in the Kingdom of Judore. I live with my father, who is the kingdom’s Minister of Finance, and my older brother. Sadly, my mother passed away after giving birth to me. Childbirth still entailed risking your life in this world.

Our family has an estate in the mountains to the north, but because of my father’s important position, we spend most of our time in our mansion in the royal capital with our family of three and a few servants. Apparently, we had almost been betrayed by a servant in the past, so we each took care of our own needs individually, which was unusual compared to other noble families. This was why I could act freely as long as I was on the premises. That said, I was probably still being guarded to some extent or another.

“Um...”

“What’s up, Sere?”

“Could you tell me your name?”

I didn’t know anything about the tiger, so I had to have him introduce himself. He was the size of a puppy, and his snow-white fur had black stripes throughout. His eyes were as clear and blue as the sky on a sunny winter day.

“I’m Loudarylphena. I’m one of the four heavenly beasts born of the moon goddess. My predecessor passed away recently, so I took up the post.” He giggled.

“Lou... Daring? Little? Fluffy?”

“...”

“Can I call you Lou?”

“I guess... You’re little, after all.”

So are you!

At any rate, I now knew that he wasn’t the White Tiger from Chinese mythology. The White Tiger myth was only a concept I’d brought over from my past life in the first place.

“Is it okay for you to be here, Lou? Won’t your family be worried?”

“My father who came before me died, so I don’t have any family.”

“Um... What do you eat? What should I do for you?”

“I’ll stay with you and absorb your pretty magic! Okay?”

“Of course! We’re friends, after all!”

Lou jumped off the bed and onto my chest. I couldn’t blame him, since he was just a baby.

“Lou, how old are you?”

“Hmm, I stopped counting after a hundred.”

He’s my elder by far...

While I was stunned by that revelation, I heard a knock come from my door.

“Dinner is ready, Lady Serephione.”

My butler, Enrique, called to me. Apart from Enrique, my other main servant was the head maid, Martha, who acted as my mother figure. We also had skilled cooks and gardeners, but I spent most of my time with those two.

“I’ll be right there!” I replied. Then I asked Lou, who was dozing on my lap, “What will you do? Do you want to come eat with me? Or would you rather stay here and sleep?”

“I’ll come with you!”

Lou then climbed on top of my head for some reason. He didn’t feel heavy, though, so I didn’t mind.

Our family ate at a small, round table, contrary to what would be expected of nobility; we sat close enough together that I could reach out and touch them. The dining table truly exemplified the earnest effort my papa put in.

My father, who sat next to me on my right, was a handsome man with black hair and emerald green eyes. He had a model-like build. Although he was busy with his work almost every day, the grown woman I was on the inside could tell that he doted on me enough to make up for my mom being gone. He wasn’t that far away from my own mental age, but it still made me emotional to see him working so hard as a single father.

My brother, Larouza, sat to my left. He was a bit far from me in age; he would turn ten this year. He was a pretty boy with identical hair and eyes to our father. I was pleased that we all had matching straight black hair.

All noble children underwent a magic exam when they turned six that classified them into one of three magic levels: Magicless, Normal, or Advanced. Our family possessed immense magical power, enough that we could have been descended from spirits. Naturally, my brother’s magic level was high enough to break the measuring scale. It was customary for children with Normal to Advanced magic levels to attend the national magic academy, so he was busy from morning to night with school, tutoring, studying, and martial arts training as a way to refine his sensibilities. We were in the same mansion, but we only saw each other at mealtimes.

Now that I had regained my memories, I realized that my brother might have resented me. Our mother died giving birth to me, after all. He was seven at the time and a bright kid, so he must have understood. I couldn’t blame him for avoiding his younger sister who had his beloved mother’s eyes.

But that actually may have been more convenient for me. In the novel, Larouza met the heroine, fell in love, and ended up opposing me. I was going to try my best not to become the villainess, but if things ended up going as they did in the novel and I was very fond of my brother... Well, it would be awful. The feeling of being killed by my brother would be unbearable.

“Father, brother, sorry to keep you waiting.”

I took my seat as usual. Everything was as normal as could be, although I had a fluffball on my head.

When there was no reply to my greeting, I looked up quizzically. Papa and Larouza were both staring at the top of my head, their mouths agape.

Huh? Aren’t holy beasts supposed to only be visible to main characters and people they’re contracted with? Like in the book?

“S-Serephione, uh, you have something fluffy on your head...?”

So they can see him...

It wasn’t like I was doing anything to warrant feeling guilty, so I figured there was no need to lie. “Father, this is Lou. I found him hurt in the yard. We’re friends now.”

“But, Serephi... Isn’t that one of the holy guardian beasts?”

Hm, so the term “holy guardian beast” carries over to this world... I turned my gaze directly upward.

“Lou? Is it okay if I tell my father and brother about you?”

“I don’t sense any ill will, so I don’t mind. But only your family. My dad hammered it into me not to appear in front of people too much. He said they’d use me. Oh! And don’t tell my full name to anyone else either.”

I didn’t like this feeling of getting special treatment. I turned back to papa.

“Lou is one of the ‘heavenly beasts.’ He’s going to be my friend and stay with me. But we have to keep the secret to just our family. It’s a rule.”

Papa opened his eyes wide, stood up out of his seat, and knelt at my feet. No way?!

“Lou? Lou, what do I do?”

“Hm? Tell him he can sit down?”

“Father, Lou says to sit normally!”

Papa slowly lifted his face and hesitantly sat back down in his seat. Wait, huh?

“Father, can you not hear Lou talk?”

“Hah... No, I can’t hear him. I can see him, though. You must be communicating with him telepathically.”

“Lou, is that true?”

Lou moved to my shoulder. Our eyes met, and he gave me a nod.

“From what I can tell, you’re a very powerful magic user. By the way, I might reveal myself to other people who I trust. People can only hear me if our wavelengths match perfectly or if we’ve made a contract. My voice goes directly to your mind and is transformed based on how you imagine it.”

I heard him say “contract,” but I pretended I didn’t hear that.

“By the way, why were you hurt in our yard?” papa asked.

“I was running around because I was happy that it was snowing, and then some random weapon came flying at me. What a pain!”

He’s just a lost child, this one... I told my father and brother what Lou said.

“He was attacked in our yard?” father asked.

“I don’t know. Apparently, there was poison on it. I’m not sure.”

Papa’s expression was more severe than I had ever seen it. This really wasn’t something we could overlook. Had that assassin been aiming for our family, or for Lou? Who would hurt a holy beast, and with what weapon?

Lou was happily eating fruit, indifferent to papa’s concern. He sure ate a lot...

“Father, is it okay if Lou stays here with me?”

“Of course. I would like the holy beasts to be in good health. For Lou to live here would be a recognition of our family’s integrity; it would be an honor. Of course, nobody else will hear of this. I will see to it that the servants follow this policy as well, starting with Enrique. Do you agree, Larouza?”

“Of course.”

My brother made a deep bow to Lou. Lou wagged his white tail as a signal of recognition. But when I turned back to my family, my brother was glaring at me... It’s scary to see an angry face on such a pretty boy.

I went back to my room and got in the bath with Lou. Both the toilet and bath were mostly the same as in my past life, and I was glad that they were sanitary. It didn’t seem likely that there was a plumbing system, so it was probably cleaned using magic. Lou wasn’t at all upset to take a bath; he happily let me shampoo him, and then he soaked in the bathtub up to his neck.

After Lou shook the water off himself, I rubbed him dry with a towel, but his fur was too long and didn’t dry all the way.

“I wish I had a hair dryer...”

It was snowing outside. If I didn’t get his skin dry soon, he would catch a cold.

“Dry faster!” I said while ruffling his silver-white fur with both of my hands.

Suddenly, there was a red heat at my fingertips, and wind started to swirl around me.

“Wow, that feels great! I’m all dry now. Thanks, Sere!”

I was dumbfounded. In the novel, Serephione was highly skilled in all kinds of magic. I hadn’t taken my magic exam yet, so I had never used magic before, yet somehow I was using it without even intending to.

“Lou, do you think I can use magic?”

“You already are.”

“Do you think I have talent for it?”

“That’s why I chose you.”

“I thought it was because my magic feels good.”

“That’s where your talent lies. You have a lot of magical power. You have plenty left even after I absorb a bunch of it. You’re still fine right now, but most people would have passed out, you know? I’m glad I have you around.”

Not only was this the same as in the book, but it had come to fruition before it did in the book... I had no choice but to develop this talent at this point. If things went down the same route, I would need the strength to protect myself.

“Lou, could you teach me magic?”

“Huh? Me, your teacher?! S-Sure thing!”

Now I had a way to do magic training before I turned six! But at this rate, I would master magic, get Advanced on my magic exam, go to the magic academy, and meet the heroine—a route straight to doom.

“I don’t want to go to magic school...”

“Hm? Then just don’t go. I’m teaching you magic, aren’t I?”

“Thanks, Lou, but it’s not that simple...”

“Okay, so come on a journey with me when you get old enough. If I have an oracle suggest it, nobody can complain. We can just say you’ll do other training, right? It’ll be fun!”

So, Lou can control what oracles predict... That’s my hundred-plus-year-old super-fluffball!

It was a tempting idea to go on a journey with Lou. We could become adventurers, join a guild, complete quests, raise our ranks... It sounded great! I wanted a future like that... Just picturing it made me feel warm and fuzzy.

But Lou using the oracle was the last resort. It would cause way too big a fuss.

Thinking realistically, couldn’t I just study with a different organization? There’s one other option with similar benefits apart from the magic school.

“Lou, do you think I can go to knight school?”

“Hmm, I don’t know.”

Of course he didn’t. But for the meantime, I had no choice but to do my best to get into knight school. If I got lucky and made it in, I wouldn’t cross paths with the heroine, the prince, or any of the other characters who entered the magic academy at the same time.

“I’ll practice magic in private with you, and then I’ll try to get into knight school. Then I’ll become a knight who can use magic and go on a big adventure with you when I grow up! Woo!”

“Zzz...”

I gently lowered Lou onto the bed and got ready to sleep myself. Giving my room another look around, I noticed it was mostly pink. It made the grown woman I was on the inside cringe. I should change it to another color... Hmm, the clubroom is made of wood, and it has a natural feel to it... Maybe I should get clothes and accessories that are sky blue to match Lou’s eyes? That’s the color that’s resonated with my heart the most so far. I’ve only been alive for three years, though...

As I was making plans in my head, somebody knocked on my door. It was probably Enrique or Martha, but what would they want at this hour?

“Come in!”

The door opened, and in came...Larouza, dressed in white pajamas. He was still pretty, even with freshly-washed hair and messy clothes!

“Wait, huh?!”

This was the first time I remembered my brother ever coming into my room. My eyes opened wide in surprise.

“So, you’re awake... What about the holy beast?” asked Larouza.

I pointed to the bed without saying anything.

“So, he’s already asleep...”

Larouza looked at me with a sharp glare. What has him so angry that he came here at night? I’ve had enough of seeing his pretty face with that scary look. I’ve had a long enough day already!

Lou woke up, as if he’d sensed my nerves, and jumped onto my shoulder. Then he silently looked at my brother. They were glaring at each other—the atmosphere was oppressive.

“Brother! Lou! What’s going on?!”

I couldn’t stand to stay silent. My brother turned toward me in response...then his facial expression contorted and he started to sob, as though he had reached his limit.

“Brother?!”

He fell onto his knees and lowered his head.

“I’m sorry, Holy Tiger... I’m really sorry I hurt you...” he cried.

It was Larouza?! So he was behind Lou’s injury! Lou’s eyes grew large in surprise as well.

“I wasn’t able to practice today because of the snow, so I made myself a new weapon... I practiced throwing it into the snow, but then I heard a scream... I rushed outside and there was blood everywhere...”

Lou and I listened quietly.

“There aren’t many burglars who can get onto our premises. That meant I had to have hurt someone who worked here...” Larouza sobbed. “I followed the trail of blood, and it led to your room, Serephione... I thought I’d killed my precious little sister...!”

Larouza covered his face with his hands and wailed. Lou and I sat down on the floor next to my sobbing brother.

“I was on edge waiting to hear a scream coming from your room. I was a coward... I was too scared to open your door. When I thought about you lying there cold like our mother, I just...”

That’s right... However cool and put-together he seems, Larouza is only ten. He would have been an elementary schooler in my past life’s terms. He’s making that frightening scowl because of how afraid and panicked he is.

“I was so scared to go to dinner, but then you were perfectly fine, and you had the Holy Tiger with you... And then when I heard that he got hurt in your place...”

It wasn’t in my place, though? It was only Lou that was running around and frolicking in the snow...

“The Holy Tiger was looking at me as if to say he knew everything... But he didn’t tell father about what I did... I thought he must be testing my courage.”

I looked at Lou through slit eyes. He was looking back and forth suspiciously.

“And I wasn’t able to apologize until now... I... I...”

His pretty emerald eyes looked like they were about to fall out along with his tears. What am I doing, letting a child keep crying for so long? I ran to my brother, removed his hands from his face, and gently wiped away his tears with the sleeve of my pajamas.

“Don’t cry, brother. Your eyes will fall out.”

“Serephione...”

“You were making a scary face, so I thought you didn’t like me anymore.”

“I could never stop liking you! You’re my adorable little sister!”

So he doesn’t resent me... That’s a relief. He just isn’t good at controlling his expression. But is it really true that he could never stop liking me? If things go according to the plot... Well, I don’t have to think about that right now.

“I love you too, brother.”

“Serephione...”

“You’re not mad, right, Lou? You love him too?”

Lou was fidgeting uncomfortably. I gave him a glare, and he hastily nodded.

Larouza bit his lower lip, and then gave me and Lou a big hug.

“I love you too, Serephione and Lou!”

I squeezed him back. Lou poked his face out from between us and licked my brother’s cheek.

“He he he. That tickles, Lou.” Larouza laughed through his tears in a way befitting his age.

“Larouza.”

We two humans and one fluffball lifted our heads to the voice. Our father was standing just above us. He spread his arms and embraced all of us.

It’s only natural he noticed the huge fuss we were making.

He gently stroked both my and my brother’s heads.

“F-Father...I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you the truth earlier!”

My brother started crying again, flustering me and Lou. Papa gave him a warm smile.

“If Lou forgives you, then all is well. But take this as a lesson to be more careful from now on. Think through what you’re doing before you do it. All right?”

“Y-Yes!”

That day, we all slept together in my father’s bed for the first time. I was in the middle, my father was on my right, my brother was on my left, and the fluffball was on top of me.

This must be what it means to have a beauty on each arm. I have no regrets in life!

But...now I’ve met Lou. I hadn’t forced him to do it, but we’d made a contract. This was no different from the story of Wild Rose. The first happiness I found in this world is like a skyscraper built on sand. My father, my brother, and Lou, who’ve found a place in my heart in such a short time... Will they all turn against me in the future? Will they abandon me and say bad things about me?

Tears came to my eyes. I pretended to yawn to hide them.

“F-Father! I want to ask you for something.”

“That’s unusual. What is it, Serephi?”

“I want to go to knight school in the future, so I want to start studying the basics now.”

“Serephione! Why?” My brother’s voice was high from surprise.

“We can’t go to magic school together because you’re too old. And mostly, I want to become a knight and be one of the two wheels carrying the Granzeus family.”

“But Serephi, didn’t Lou recognize your magical power?”

“Lou will teach me magic, and that’s why I’ll study fighting. I promised Lou I’d go on a journey with him in the future. Right, Lou?”

Lou opened one eye and then went straight back to sleep.

“So, the Holy Tiger would like you to attend him... Well, we can start by building up your stamina once the weather warms up.”

“Yes, Father. Brother, please be my mentor.”

“Hey, I’m supposed to be the one who protects you!”

Thank you, Brother! I appreciated the sentiment. They were understanding for now, at least! I could do my best to become a knight, and then an adventurer! I didn’t have any other path at the moment, after all.

With a fluffy tail curled around my neck while wrapped in both of their arms, I felt like the snowstorm outside was too warm to be true.

“Good night,” I said through a yawn.

“Good night, Serephione.”

“Good night, my Serephi.”

“Sere! Good night!”

What bliss! Please, don’t ever stop liking me!