Chapter 84: A Bath Full of Dilemmas

“Bora, are they gone?”

“Yeah, they left.”

At Yoon Bora’s words, I lifted my head.

Looking around, I saw that the researchers had truly left.

For some reason, I could feel the overflowing energy and excitement radiating from their departing figures.

“Sigh.”

Why did they all swarm at me like that all of a sudden?

Because of them, my dormant defensive instincts nearly lashed out, and I almost hurt them.

I barely managed to hold myself back with extreme mental discipline.

‘Thank you, Master.’

This was all thanks to Silver’s teachings.

Giggling to myself, I approached the cage where Silver was confined.

“Bora, why is Silver locked up?”

“Well… they need to study Silver.”

“Study?”

At my question, Yoon Bora flashed an awkward smile.

“Well… Harang, you’re a tiger, right?”

“Yeah! I’m a really scary tiger.”

Satisfied with my response, Yoon Bora rubbed her cheek against mine.

Since Silver’s saliva was still on me, both our cheeks stuck together in a sticky mess.

“I was thinking about what kind of tiger you might be, and I realized you’re probably a Silver Tiger.”

“…Huh?”

A Silver Tiger?

The apex predator of the beast world?

I locked eyes with Yoon Bora for a long moment, then turned to look at Silver.

‘Well, we do have a lot in common…’

We’re both incredibly strong.

Our roars are powerful enough to shake the earth.

We have sharp claws and fangs.

Plus, we can move our tails freely, and our fur colors are similar.

‘So that’s it.’

I really am a Silver Tiger.

A tiger among tigers the strongest and most ferocious of them all.

Coming to terms with my identity, my tail wagged non-stop from side to side.

‘No wonder I could communicate with Silver so easily.’

It must have been because we were the same species.

From now on, I should get even closer to Silver.

There were surely things only fellow Silver Tigers could understand.

“Bora.”

“Yeah?”

“So why is Silver locked up?”

“Oh, right. The hospital staff said that studying Silver might help them treat your condition more easily.”

Yoon Bora glanced at Silver as she spoke.

Her eyes were filled with warmth and affection for him.

I had no idea when they’d gotten so close, but I didn’t mind.

It was a good thing they were getting along.

“Bora, how does studying Silver help treat me?”

“Well, since Silver is really sturdy, it’s easier to experiment on him.”

“Ohh.”

I understood what she meant.

Since my body was still immature, they probably needed an adult’s help.

‘How thoughtful.’

I should buy Silver a hundred packets of Churu* as thanks.

Though, with his huge size, he might swallow them all in one gulp.

“Bora, does that mean Silver has to stay here?”

“Probably. Silver Tigers are really dangerous, after all.”

“That must be so frustrating for him…”

Silver came all this way to help me, and now he was stuck in a cage?

I couldn’t even look him in the eye out of guilt.

“Harang, should we ask the researchers to let Silver out?”

“Would that even work?”

“Yeah. The researchers really like Silver.”

“Huh? They do?”

At my question, Yoon Bora nodded.

“This is the first time in the world that anyone has been able to study a living Silver Tiger. And on top of that, Silver is incredibly docile.”

“Ohh.”

That made sense.

Silver Tigers were infamous for their uncontrollable rage.

If captured, they would die of stress rather than accept captivity.

Silver must be a rare case.

“Silver, I’m sorry. You must feel so confined.”

I reached my hand toward him, and Silver stuck out his tongue again.

Slurp—

His enormous tongue swept over my entire body.

Still, it didn’t feel as strange as before.

Maybe because I was already covered in Silver’s saliva, or perhaps it gave me a sense of security.

To describe it, it felt like being wrapped in a parent’s embrace.

A warm, protective feeling that made me giggle without realizing it.

“Silver, when you get out, you have to listen to the researchers, okay? You must never get angry or hurt anyone.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Delphine chimed in beside me.

“Silver, you mustn’t eat the researchers, alright?”

“Grrr.”

Silver responded with a low growl.

“Harang, what did he say?”

“He said it depends on how they behave.”

“…?”

Hiccup.

Delphine hiccupped, quickly distancing herself from the cage and hiding behind Raxy Boora.

‘It was just a joke.’

Delphine would never know.

Silver had actually nodded his tail in agreement.

After chatting with Silver for a while, we returned to the hospital room.

“Aww, I wanted to play with Silver more.”

“You can play with him as much as you want once you recover.”

Yoon Bora, saying so, tried to tuck me into bed but then stopped when she realized I was covered in Silver’s saliva.

“Harang, we’re drenched in drool. We should wash up.”

“Hmm…”

Contrary to her concerns, Silver’s saliva was clean.

There was no odor, and my skin actually felt refreshed.

With my heightened senses, I could prove it.

‘What should I do?’

I had no confidence in explaining that despite being covered in drool, I didn’t need a bath.

While I was trying to think of a way to explain it—

“Harang, should we wash up together?”

Yoon Bora casually suggested, walking toward the bathroom.

“B-Bora…?”

I looked up at her in shock.

Bathing together meant exposing ourselves completely.

Of course, Yoon Bora had seen me naked before, so showing her again wouldn’t be difficult.

The problem was that I would see her body.

That was something I absolutely couldn’t allow.

Inside, I was still a man.

‘This is strange.’

Bora knew I was originally a guy.

So why was she suddenly suggesting we bathe together?

My mind raced, unable to comprehend the situation.

“B-Bora, wait.”

Once inside the bathroom, there would be no turning back.

I had to stop this while we were still in the hospital room.

“Harang, what’s wrong?”

“Well, I don’t think we need to wash up.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Silver’s saliva is like soap. It actually cleans us.”

It was an excuse not to bathe, but it was a valid one.

After being licked by Silver, I felt as refreshed as if I had showered.

Even the researchers had suspected his saliva had whitening effects.

“Now that I think about it, Harang’s fur always looks oddly clean after licking herself…”

“Yeah, our saliva has a cleansing effect.”

“Really? That’s a thing?”

Yoon Bora looked at me curiously, and I quickly nodded.

“Hmm… still, just in case, we should wash up.”

As she mumbled to herself, I hurriedly spoke.

“Bora, did you immediately wash up whenever I licked you?”

“Huh? No? It felt too good to wash off.”

“S-See? I feel the same way about Silver.”

“Hmm…”

Yoon Bora stroked her chin, deep in thought.

If I pushed a little further, victory would be mine.

“Ugh, um. Silver made me feel so clean that I suddenly feel sleepy.”

Yawn.

I forced myself to yawn while observing Yoon Bora’s reaction.

If I pretended to be sleepy, she wouldn’t force me to take a bath, right?

“Harang.”

“Mm?”

“Well, even so—”

“But…!”

“Let’s wash up. You’re still a patient, so we don’t know what could happen.”

Bora.

Please, just remember who I used to be.

I pouted with teary eyes, but Yoon Bora simply stepped into the bathroom at a steady pace.

“It’s okay. Just stay still. I’ll wash you myself.”

“……”

Faced with her gentle smile, I had no choice but to nod.

It couldn’t be helped.

I had already expected that this day might come sooner or later.

It just arrived a little earlier than I thought.

‘I’ll just keep my eyes closed as much as possible.’

Thump, thump—

My heart pounded.

Maybe even harder than when I was entering a dungeon.

But the water had already been spilled.

Now, as a beast, I could only accept it with dignity.

The hospital’s bathroom was incredibly spacious.

The bathtub was so large that it could be called a hot spring, big enough for someone to swim in.

And I was using swimming as an excuse to escape from Yoon Bora.

Since my body could float effortlessly on the water without much effort, it didn’t even consume my stamina.

“Harang, are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Why don’t you sit on my lap? It looks dangerous.”

“N-No way! I want to play.”

Sit on her lap?

That was absolutely out of the question.

Even as someone who loved physical affection, there was no way I could handle clinging to her while we were both completely bare.

I had to avoid physical contact as much as possible and keep my gaze away.

With that in mind, I swam to the other side, away from Yoon Bora.

But then—

Grab—

“Ahh!”

Something suddenly grabbed my waist.

I was so startled that even my damp fur stood on end.

“Harang, you can swim all you want after you’ve fully recovered, okay?”

Saying that, Yoon Bora effortlessly lifted me into her arms.

My long resistance had ended in vain.

“Ugh…”

I couldn’t even describe the areas where we were making contact.

I didn’t want to act like a pervert in this situation.

Of course, I wasn’t looking at Yoon Bora with impure thoughts.

I didn’t even have those feelings to begin with.

I was just… a little embarrassed.

It felt like I had two different selves inside me.

The male side of my consciousness was probably the one reacting so strongly.

Blushing, I submerged my mouth and nose into the bathwater.

Bubbles rose to the surface as I gazed at them, while my tail instinctively wrapped around Yoon Bora’s waist.