Chapter 33: Breakfast with Yor

The next morning.

Before leaving my room, I took a moment to talk with the baby dragon.

“Yor, do you remember everything I said to you while you were inside the egg?”

“LF!”

Yor gave a lively sound and nodded in response to my question.

That was good.

It meant I didn’t have to waste time or characters with a long explanation and could jump straight into the conversation.

“I’m planning to go have breakfast now, but when we get to the dining hall, you’ll have to meet Liolikin and Tridrick.”

Usually, Tridrick didn’t eat breakfast.

But today was the birthday of this vessel’s spirit as well as the birth of the Familiar, wasn’t it?

So to check the Familiar’s form before anyone else, Tridrick would most likely appear in the cafeteria early this morning.

Since he’s claiming to be Karvald’s closest aide, he wouldn’t be satisfied otherwise.

Liolikin, on the other hand, was the type who never missed breakfast.

“Anyway, today’s morning lecture is on Ether Comprehension and Application, so we won’t be physically exerting ourselves. Skipping breakfast wouldn’t be a problem.”

“Calm down, I’m just mentioning it. I’m saying this to explain to anyone who might wonder why I’m going somewhere I might want to avoid—because there are people I’d rather not meet.”

“Meow, meow~!”

Yor pouted as if to insist he never thought that way.

I quickly added some explanation and flattery so as not to upset the baby dragon further.

“I’m not trying to avoid them. If I didn’t show up for breakfast, others would misunderstand and think I’m embarrassed to show you off. I truly care about you and am very proud of you.”

“Meow meow, nyaong~”

Yor nodded with a very satisfied expression, as if saying, “Well, of course, that’s how it should be!”

“Anyway, we have to eat lunch, so avoiding Tridrick and Liolikin is impossible. If it were possible, I would have separated them already. And above all, I can’t let you starve, so we’re definitely going to eat breakfast.”

“Meow meow~!”

“Now, here’s the real point. The reason I brought this up is because I plan to keep a very arrogant attitude and use an annoying tone in front of those two.”

“Mya?”

Yor kept nodding, indicating he understood me well, but when it came to the main point, he tilted his head in confusion.

“I want to keep my distance from those two and act irritable, but even if I wasn’t like that, I have to play the personality of this vessel. So don’t be surprised if I act unfamiliar.”

“Ltōt!”

‘Was that a ‘Aha!’ I just heard from Yor?’

Either way, it seemed my baby dragon had grasped the intention behind my words properly.

So let’s not sweat the small stuff.

“And in front of others, I won’t be able to speak to you in this tone either. I’ll be ordering you around in a bossy and selfish way. So if it seems like I’m treating you badly, don’t feel hurt—because my true feelings aren’t like that. If you ever feel too upset to bear it, tell me later when it’s just the two of us…”

“Nyang!”

“You can’t speak, huh..?”

“LFOF.”

Even if Yor tries to meow later, I can’t translate those sounds into human words, so it’s hard to know which of my actions upset him.

“Then don’t wait, just get angry right away. I’ll try my best to calm you down on the spot. If that’s not possible, I promise to apologize and make it up to you as soon as we get back to the room. And I won’t do the same thing again.”

I didn’t want to use my current situation as an excuse to treat Yor badly.

Even though I’m asking for his understanding, I’m not going to demand unconditional acceptance.

In this world, the only being I can meet as my true self without pretending is Yor.

That’s why maintaining our relationship was even more important than maintaining Karvald’s character.

“Do you understand everything I said?”

“Meow!”

“Good. Now, shall we go?”

“LFLF!”

We left the room and headed to the cafeteria.

Sure enough, Liolikin and Tridrick were already occupying a seat without even ordering food.

“Karvald! Please come sit here!”

Tridrick waved his arms vigorously to catch my attention.

Ignoring him, I glanced at Yor.

“Choose what you want to eat.”

“Meow.”

Despite my expressionless face and arrogant posture with arms crossed, Yor didn’t seem upset.

I was genuinely relieved to see him focused on the menu without any sign of surprise.

“Mya-mya-mya.”

***

Before long, Yor’s tail lightly touched the words ‘Sanche Bibimbap’ on the menu.

He ordered two servings of the same dish—one for himself and one for me—then sat down.

No one would probably be curious, but for the sake of the story, I’ll explain: while Yor was choosing, Tridrick and Liolikin ordered their food.

“Karvald, happy birthday. We wanted to get a gift for your Familiar, too, but since we don’t know exactly what form it would take, we only prepared a gift for you.”

While Liolikin left his seat to bring the food, Tridrick took the opportunity to greet me first and hand over his gift.

I wasn’t the least bit interested in what he gave me, so instead of opening it, I set it aside and watched his expression carefully.

‘Is that shock? Or disdain?’

He tried to control his expression, but it was very awkward.

Tridrick’s gaze was fixed on Yor’s eyes, and his mouth twitched.

He didn’t notice I was closely observing the subtle movements of his facial muscles to guess what he was thinking.

“Ka-Karvald. Uh, uh… Happy birthday. I, I brought you a gift, too.”

Liolikin came back with four trays and placed them on the table.

Then, though it wasn’t urgent, he hurriedly rummaged through his pocket and handed me a small gift box.

I also didn’t open it and placed it on top of the box Tridrick had given me.

“Uh, um… your Familiar’s eye color..?!!”

Only after sitting down did Liolikin notice Yor’s eye color and voiced his surprise.

He then stiffened and blatantly glanced at me, trying to read my reaction.

Unlike Tridrick, who tried to control his expression poorly, Liolikin didn’t even attempt to hide his thoughts and feelings.

‘But why are they reacting only now? You can’t tell eye color without looking directly into them, but the shape is plainly visible, isn’t it?’

Since many had skipped breakfast to get more sleep, the cafeteria was rather quiet at this hour.

Still, it wasn’t empty.

Naturally, I expected a buzz of whispers the moment Yor and I appeared.

‘But it’s been quiet…?’

Most had already guessed Karvald’s Ether ability had flaws.

Yet when I revealed that I couldn’t use Poison Attribute Ether, the crowd had become agitated and restless.

For a member of the Austri Ducal Family’s Familiar not to resemble a cat was even more surprising.

But strangely, there was barely any reaction.

Only when Liolikin mentioned Yor’s eye color did everyone turn to us and start whispering.

I frowned, not understanding why.

“Gah…! He’s using a spoon to eat…! Even though he’s a cat!”

“How is that possible…? Ah! That’s the Familiar of Karvald, right? He’s truly elegant, just like Karvald!”

Liolikin was shocked to see Yor mixing Sanche Bibimbap with a spoon.

Tridrick looked equally surprised but didn’t miss the chance to flatter me.

Some people craned their necks to see Yor’s eye color and gasped.

I was dumbfounded, but not for the same reasons.

I’d already seen Yor eat cake with a fork.

If he could hold a Yeouiju, there was no reason he couldn’t hold a fork or spoon.

So I took it lightly.

‘What did Liolikin just say? “Even though he’s a cat”? Is he really seeing Yor as a cat??’

I glanced at my Familiar, who looked nothing but a dragon.

Then Yor, who was eating heartily, caught my eye and tilted his head.

His pupils weren’t vertically slit but round.

That was similar to tigers and other large diurnal felines, so I let it slide.

But he had no eyelids.

He couldn’t blink, so no eye kisses either.

‘Where on earth is there a feline that looks like this?’

Yor didn’t resemble a cat in any way.

Even Hard Austri’s Familiar, aside from its pure white fur and purple eyes, was generally lion-like in appearance.

No cat in this world could look like a dragon.

‘Could it be that Sky-Blue Aether has mind manipulation or illusion attributes? So Yor is using his abilities now to deceive people’s attention?’

I focused on the flow of Aether, but since Yor is my Familiar, I would have sensed if he used his abilities.

Yet I felt nothing.

That meant Yor wasn’t doing anything.

“What’s all the fuss about? My Familiar’s eyes are sky-blue because I possess not only Purple Aether but also Sky-Blue Aether. Using a spoon is just basic dining etiquette.”

“Myaa~, mya mya mya, delicious.”

‘Was it just me who saw Yor as a dragon?’

I thought this quietly but didn’t show it, maintaining a calm attitude while scolding Liolikin and Tridrick.

I wanted to ask them how Yor appeared to them, but…

‘Everyone’s attention is on us. Better to avoid anything strange.’

‘How others see Yor will become clear with time.’

‘Or after tomorrow’s class, when I get a special lesson from Professor Radvisin, I could subtly ask him.’

With that thought settled, I scooped a neat spoonful of Sanche Bibimbap and put it in my mouth.

‘It tastes good, but with so many eyes watching, it feels a bit suffocating.’

In the end, I barely ate, standing up only after confirming Yor had finished his bowl.

I was just glad Yor ate properly.