Chapter 13 - Beastkin

Chapter 13 - Beastkin

T he interior was bright, warm, and distinctly lively.

Near the far window to my left, two children slightly older than me were sitting on a woven rug, intensely focused on a wooden board game that looked remarkably like...

Is that shogi...? No, wait—it’s chess.

I could clearly spot the distinct shapes of the pieces: knights, bishops, rooks, a queen, and a line of pawns set up across the grid.

I started to let my gaze linger on the board, but the moment my eyes caught the soft, brown dog ears poking out through their hair, I flinched and jerked my eyes back down to the floor.

They both had identical brown hair and piercing blue eyes; one was a boy, the other a girl. The big wooden door closed with a click behind us, and the wood stopped with a clinking sound. They stopped playing and turned their heads toward me.

Captain Jyroh carried me and placed me gently on a wooden seat that was well-polished. The flooring of this room was paved with very smooth stones, which were in stark contrast to those found at our place, which were rough and uneven. The room looked very homely, decorated with landscape paintings, shelves for books, clay decorations, and a small table near the kitchen.

"Papa," the girl asked, leaning back on her hands, "who's that?"

"He's the son of one of our local farmers," Jyroh replied as he walked over to the counter to pour a cup of water.

The boy tilted his head, inspecting me with quiet curiosity. "Which one?"

"Thorskil's boy. Lyra's little brother," Jyroh said with a warm smile, bringing the cup over.

"Oh..." The boy’s eyebrows shot up. "The weird, quiet kid."

"I heard he was mute," the girl added flatly, staring right at me.

I kept my head down, staring intently at my dusty gray shoes. Behind me, I felt a pair of hands gently gather the hem of my shirt and lift it up. Before I could process what was happening, the Beastkin woman poured a drop of cool herbal oil onto my spine and began massaging my upper back.

"How are you feeling, Kyro?" her gentle voice rasped near my ear.

I didn't lift my head. My shoulders remained stiff as a board. "I'm fine, ma'am..."

Her thumb dug squarely into a knot near my shoulder blade. "Rgh..." a muffled, instinctive groan escaped my throat before I could stop it.

"Oh," the girl remarked to her brother. "Turns out he's not mute after all."

The boy nodded sagely. "So it seems."

Captain Jyroh stepped up and offered me the cup of water. I forced myself to look up into his weathered face, accepting the cup without resistance.

"T-thank you, Captain Jyroh..."

"Eh, just Jyroh is fine, kiddo," he chuckled, pulling up a sturdy wooden chair. He reached into his belt pouch and pulled out the small sack of seeds I’d delivered. "Appreciate you bringing over these golden apple seeds."

My eyes widened slightly. "Golden apples...?"

The woman behind me applied another firm press against my lower back, eliciting another involuntary grumble from my mouth, but my attention stayed locked on Jyroh. "A-are those... what are they?"

"Hmm?" Jyroh shifted in his seat, resting his thick forearms on his knees. "Golden Apples? They taste pretty incredible, I'll give 'em that." He pushed himself up, ambled into the kitchen, and returned a moment later tossing a smooth, yellow-gold fruit into the air. "Here. Catch."

I awkwardly clutched the fruit against my chest with both hands.

"I gave your mother some golden apple seeds about a year back," Jyroh explained, leaning back. "I asked her recently if she had any leftover seeds from her batch, since I'm planning to cultivate a small orchard to sell. Naturally, your family gets a cut of the profits."

"D-do Golden Apples do anything special?" I asked, looking down at the shimmering skin. "Like... bestow magical properties?"

"They're not mystical, Kyro," the woman behind me offered warmly, her dog ears twitching slightly as her hands maintained a steady, soothing rhythm across my back. "They're just sweet fruits."

"Oh..." I let out a quiet sigh of disappointment, keeping my eyes fixed on the fruit in my lap.

"Mom, why does he get a massage?" the girl whined, crossing her arms in a dramatic pout. "You barely massage us anymore!"

Kathei let out a soft, melodious laugh. "You two grew up big and strong. The herbal oil is just to help settle his nerves—he looked like he’d seen a spirit when he walked through the gate."

Truthfully, the oil didn't do anything spiritual for me. There was no sensation of mana shifting, nor any magical resonance in my veins. It was almost certainly just rural folklore.

Although... I have to admit, her hands are ridiculously good at working out muscle tension...

"Not fair! We want a massage too!" the boy piped up, abandoning the chessboard.

"Later, I promise," Kathei replied warmly. She finished rubbing the oil in, pulled my shirt back down, and patted my shoulder gently. "My name is Kathei Jyroh, dear. But I take it you already know my husband."

Jyroh laughed, "My full name is Phil Jyroh, but please, you may call me Jyroh."

By then, the twin siblings had scampered over. I lowered my head even further, focusing stubbornly on my hands resting in my lap. Through my peripheral vision, I could see two pairs of little brown shoes stopping right in front of the bench.

"My name's Nathalie Jyroh!" the girl announced proudly.

"And I'm Nathan Jyroh!" the boy added.

I stared down at my knuckles, my heart hammering against my ribs. In an awkward knee-jerk reaction, I extended a stiff right hand out toward them, the habit of corporate formality from my past life slipping out before I could check myself.

"R-rgh... I'm Kyro Samstwo—" I felt another squeeze. "—Oorth."

Both twins blinked, looking at my outstretched palm in complete confusion. "What are you doing?"

"A-A hand... shake?" I mumbled, pulling my arm back fast. My neck burned with embarrassment, and I glued my gaze straight back to the floorboards. "S-sorry. Forget it..."

"Lyra told us you're totally obsessed with reading," Nathalie said, her voice brightening as she brushed off my weird behavior. "We love books too!"

"Yep, yep!" Nathan chimed in, nodding in eager agreement. "Lyra thinks we're nerds, but from what she tells us, you're even weirder. She says you never cry. Like, ever."

I let out a strained, nervous chuckle. "She... said that...?"

Of course she did. I remembered seeing the twins around the house before when I was still an infant, but I had always deliberately turned my head away whenever those dog ears came into view. They looked to be right around Lyra's age—maybe a year younger.

"What kind of books do you read?" Nathalie asked eagerly.

Before I could answer, both siblings squeezed onto the wooden bench on either side of me, sandwiching me between them.

"You see, it's—"

"Do you play chess?" Nathan interrupted from the right.

"Well, actually—"

"Why is your hair so white?" Nathalie chimed in from the left, reaching out a finger as if to touch a strand before pulling back. "Is it sickness?"

"I—"

"Children..." Kathei's voice cut in, mild but firm, as she wiped her hands on a cloth towel. "You're suffocating the poor boy. Let him breathe."

The warning went entirely in one ear and out the other. Before I could gather my thoughts, Nathalie grabbed my wrist and tugged me up off the bench.

"Come on! I'll teach you how to play chess!"

I kept my head tilted downward, carefully ensuring my eyes didn't make direct contact with her face or her ears. I didn't say a word, allowing myself to be dragged across the stone floor toward the small wooden table by the sunlit window.

She pushed me gently into the chair opposite hers, positioning me so my back faced the rest of the room. Nathan immediately hovered beside my chair.

"Let me set up your pieces," he offered generously. "Nathalie's gonna break down the rules for you."

"I... I already know how to play chess," I murmured, resting my hands on the edge of the table. "You don't need to explain it."

"Oh really?" Both twins smirked simultaneously, clearly taking that as a challenge.

I sighed inwardly, finding myself cornered into playing a board game with two Beastkin kids. I didn't hold any active malice toward them—they were just children being nice to a neighbor—but the instinctual urge to keep my distance made every second feel uncomfortably tense.

"All set!" Nathalie announced, tapping her fingernails impatiently against the edge of the table. Her black pieces were neatly aligned, gleaming under the morning light filtering through the windowpane.

I looked down at the grid. My white pieces were set up in their standard opening positions.

Without hesitation, I reached out and moved my king’s pawn straight to e4 .

"Your move," I said quietly, my eyes remaining fixed firmly on the wooden board.

She didn't hesitate for a second, thrusting her pawn forward to c6 with an overconfident grin.

I responded with a casual d4 , taking control of the center. She immediately followed up, driving her pawn to d5 .

"Hmm..." I hummed under my breath, instantly recognizing the setup.

A Caro-Kann Defense. I thought.

Suppressing a small sigh, I slid my knight out to c3 .

"Hah! I got your pawn!" Nathalie chimed in, snatching my e4 pawn off the board with a triumphant clink.

I responded methodically, advancing my knight from c3 to capture her pawn right back at e4 . "Got yours too."

She paused, humming thoughtfully before sliding her knight out to d7 .

I picked up my queen and set her down gently on e2 .

Nathalie's brow raised in utter confusion as she stared at my move.

That’s a terrible play... she was clearly thinking, a tiny smirk tugging at the corner of her lips. He just blocked his own bishop. What is he even doing? Whatever, this win is already mine.

Driven by the urge to overwhelm me, she pushed her second knight out to f6 .

I'll just smother him with my pieces, her proud stance practically radiated. Just you wait—

Before she could finish the thought, I picked up my knight from e4 and set it down squarely on d6 .

"...Checkmate."

"Huh...?"

Nathalie blinked, her smirk instantly faltering as she stared at me. "What do you mean, checkmate? My pawn on e7 can still capture your—"

"No, it can't," I interrupted softly, pointing a finger toward my queen resting on e2. "If you take my knight with that pawn, you leave your king completely exposed on the open line. And the rules of chess forbid making any move that leaves your king in direct check."

Her blue eyes darted down to her back rank. Her king was completely suffocated by its own pieces—the pawn on e7 was pinned to the king by my queen, unable to move, while my knight on d6 delivered a lethal strike straight towards the black king. If my queen hadn't been waiting on e2 to pin that pawn, my knight move would have been nothing more than a temporary nuisance. But together, they formed a complete trap.

"W-what...?" Her voice trembled slightly, fading to a whisper. "I... I lost?!"

Nathalie practically shot out of her chair, the wooden legs scraping violently against the stone floor.

I kept my chin down, watching her small hands clutch at her head in utter disbelief as her eyes frantically scanned the board, searching in vain for an escape that didn't exist.

Before she could even utter another word of protest, a swift foot lashed out from behind my chair.

Thwack!

Nathan kicked his sister squarely in the chest, sending her tumbling backward onto the woven rug with a heavy thud.

Oof...! I winced internally, my chest tightening just watching it. That looked brutal... I almost felt that blow in my own ribs.

I blinked. "Was that really necessary...?"

"MY TURN!" Nathan declared, shoving his sister out of the way as he stepped into her place. He cracked his knuckles loudly, flexing his fingers with an arrogant grin. "I don't even need to sit down to beat a quiet shrimp like you!"

"Well... suit yourself," I murmured with a faint shrug, keeping my hands resting calmly on the edge of the table. My eyes never left the board.

I picked up my white queen and set her down smoothly on h5 .

"...Checkmate."

"WHAT?!"

Nathan froze mid-stride, his jaw dropping in sheer disbelief as he stared down at the board. My queen was sitting on h5, staring down his king across an undefended diagonal path. I checkmated him with only three moves.

CLANG!

"OW!" Nathan shrieked, grabbing the back of his skull.

Nathalie stood over him, breathing heavily, holding a heavy copper frying pan she had somehow retrieved from the kitchen counter in under four seconds.

Where did she even get that...?!

"YOU IDIOT!" Nathalie screamed, her face red. "You left the diagonal completely wide open! You didn't even look!"

"I... I..." Nathan stammered, his face flushing crimson as he slowly turned his head to stare down at me, his eyes wide with absolute, terrifying awe. "HOW?!"

I simply leaned back in the chair, closing my eyes, and did not explain. Even now, throughout the entire game, I hadn't looked at their faces once. Before a full-blown brawl could ignite between the twins, a rich, savory aroma drifted in from the kitchen, accompanied by a warm, melodic call.

"Lunch is ready, children!" Kathei announced.

I stood up, stepping around the arguing twins as I took a deep, steadying breath to calm my fluttering nerves. Their eyes tracked me, wide and bewildered, before they exchanged a glance, rolled their eyes in unison, and fell in behind me.

"He doesn't even look at us," Nathan grumbled under his breath, clearly irritated.

"Whatever. I'm hungry," Nathalie muttered back, her dog ears twitched

The dining table was laden with an astounding spread: a steaming bowl of sweet-smelling fish stew, a platter of golden roasted chicken, and a large bowl of whipped, buttered potatoes.

"Don't be shy, Kyro," Captain Jyroh said, waving a thick hand from his seat at the head of the table. "Eat as much as you like."

I nodded respectfully to Jyroh. He sat to my right, while I took a seat at the far end. Aside from me, he was the only human in the household—and I couldn't deny that I felt an innate, almost magnetic sense of relief sitting near him compared to the others.

Nathan and Nathalie scrambled into the seats on the left, while Kathei sat across from her husband.

"Before we touch the food," Kathei said softly, clapping her hands together. "Let us give thanks."

The family bowed their heads in unison.

"May the Demon God and the Shield God hear our humble prayers," Kathei recited softly. "May you grant us blessings and prosperity, and grant us the blessing of nourishment from this food. Be here with us always. In the name of the Demon God, Hindra, and the Shield God, Hatangsoun—amen."

I kept my eyes open, watching them. The names of foreign deities washed over me, passing in through my right ear and out my left. I offered a generic, polite nod as they finished and reached for their wooden utensils.

Kathei noticed that the platter of chicken was positioned a bit too far for my four-year-old arms to reach comfortably. Without a word, she reached across, gently slid the heavy platter closer to my plate, and ensured the serving spoon was turned toward me before resuming her own meal.

I stared at the platter.

It was a tiny, subconscious gesture of maternal care. And yet, for some infuriating reason, it stung.

While the family broke into lively conversation—Jyroh talking about timber prices and the twins bickering over board game rules—I muted the noise around me. I closed my eyes, pressing the heel of my palm against my forehead with a soft slap.

Get a grip, Kyro.

I opened my eyes. Voluntarily, deliberately, I raised my head and forced myself to look directly at Kathei’s face. I looked at her dark blue eyes, her soft features, and finally, the brown, furred dog ears resting atop her hair. Then, I shifted my gaze to Nathalie and Nathan, taking in their animated, laughing expressions as they gestured wildly at their father.

I leaned forward, picked up a roasted chicken thigh with my tongs, and set it on my wooden plate.

I took a small bite of the roasted meat. The skin was crispy, seasoned with wild herbs, and the meat melted instantly on my tongue. My eyes widened.

"D-delicious...!"

Kathei’s ears twitched sharply toward me. She paused, turning her head with a soft, radiant smile. "How is it, dear? Do you like it?"

I looked directly into her eyes, my throat tightening, and gave a slow, rigid nod. I couldn't bring myself to speak.

Her smile widened just a fraction, warm and entirely devoid of deceit. "I'm glad. Eat as much as you want—you're still a growing boy."

Ten minutes later, the platter was bare. I drained my cup of water, leaning back against my chair and rubbing my rounded stomach with a small, contented sigh.

Ah... I'm completely stuffed.

Kathei leaned across the table toward me, reaching out with a damp cloth to gently dab away a speck of roasted meat stuck near the corner of my mouth.

There it was again—that sharp, uncomfortable string pulling tight inside my chest.

What is this feeling...? I thought, staring at her soft hand as she pulled back. Guilt? Shame?

I couldn't grasp it.

She gathered the stack of empty plates and stood up from the bench.

"Ah~ That was a fine meal, dear," Jyroh patted his belly, letting out a satisfied rumble.

"Yeah! I wish we could eat chicken every single day!" Nathan declared, slumping back in his chair, completely food-comatose.

"Me too..." Nathalie groaned softly beside him, rubbing her stomach.

Kathei paused near the doorway to the kitchen, letting out a melodic laugh. "If you want chicken every day, then you two can do the house chores. Whoever finishes their work fastest gets chicken tomorrow. The loser gets boiled vegetables."

Both twins snapped upright like iron springs. "REALLY?!"

"Yes, really~!" Kathei chuckled, turning to take my plate.

Before she could step away, my throat hitched. The words squeezed out of me before my conscious mind could stop them.

"T-thank you... for the food."

Kathei froze for a fraction of a second. She turned back, looking down at me, and offered a gentle, affectionate nod. "You're very welcome, Kyro."

She disappeared into the washing room with the dishes. A heartbeat later, Nathan and Nathalie bolted out of their chairs, sprinting after her in a frantic blur of limbs.

"Mom! Let me do the dishes!"

"No! I'm doing the dishes! Get out of the way!"

I let out a soft, involuntary burp, immediately clapping both hands over my mouth.

Jyroh caught my eye and burst into a warm, booming laugh. "Full, are we?"

"I... I am very full, yes," I muttered, my cheeks burning with embarrassment as I rubbed my stomach.

Jyroh leaned his heavy elbows on the table, his expression softening as he looked down at me. "You know, Kyro... you really don't need to be so tense around us."

I turned my head slightly, looking at him.

"Kathei and I," Jyroh continued softly, "we'll always treat you like one of our own. You're always welcome in this house."

I observed the deep, honest lines around his eyes. "W-why?"

Jyroh tilted his head. "Why what?"

"I... I don't mean to be rude, Captain," I said, my voice dropping low as I stared down at my tightly folded hands. "But... this is practically the first time we've ever spoken. Why are you... why is your family being so kind to me?"

Jyroh blinked, leaning back slightly as if I’d asked him why the sky was blue. "What are you talking about, kiddo? You're speaking like being kind isn't natural. Besides, you're four years old—and Thorskil told me you'll be turning five tomorrow."

"I guess... that makes sense," I murmured softly. A five-year-old overthinking simple hospitality. I forced a faint, awkward breath. "Still, though... honestly, I was taken aback earlier. The warm welcome... it was just unexpected."

Jyroh’s broad smile gradually lowered as his gaze drifted away from me, resting blankly on the polished grain of the wooden table as a faint, distant look settled over his eyes—as though an old, cherished memory had just surfaced from the depths of his mind.

"Well... in a way," he spoke, his voice dropping an octave, "I guess you could say this is an act of gratitude."

I tilted my head, looking up at him. "Gratitude...? What do you mean...?"

Jyroh brought his eyes back to mine, a warm, genuine smile returning to his face. "Nine years ago, your father and mother saved this entire village from a massive band of raiders. Back then, I wasn't a captain—I was merely a low-ranking guard trying to protect this humble little town. They saved my home. And..." He paused, his chest heaving with a slow, heavy breath. He looked up at the ceiling. "...they saved my firstborn child from being abducted."

He exhaled softly through his nose, his weathered hands clasping together on the table.

"Now that very same boy is a student at Ganghum Korona University."

He turned to me again.

"Without Thorskil and Reyna, everything I’ve built here would have been reduced to ash. When the dust settled, the baron himself was so moved that he offered your father a massive swath of territory in the valley. But Thorskil being Thorskil... he refused almost all of it. He only took an eighth of the offer—and that small plot of land is where your family farm stands today."

"Oh..."

I looked at Jyroh's weathered face, then toward the kitchen where Kathei’s soft laughter echoed alongside the chaotic clatter of her children fighting over the dish basin.

Gratitude...

"I see..." I said softly, my voice steadier than before. "Thank you for telling me, Captain Jyroh."

The captain grinned as he walked up to me and ruffled my messy hair.

***

I raised a hand, giving a stiff, awkward wave over my shoulder as I stepped back onto the dry, packed dirt path leading out toward our farm.

Kathei and Jyroh waved their hands as the Jyroh family stood at the gate and watched me leave.

"WE'LL BEAT YOU NEXT TIME!" Nathan's voice echoed across the courtyard, loud enough to startle a flock of sparrows from the nearby eaves.

"YEAH! THAT'S A PROMISE!" Nathalie bellowed right beside him, her small fist raised triumphantly toward the sky.

I let out a strained, nervous chuckle, my face flushing slightly as I called back over my shoulder. "O-OKAY! W-WORK HARD ON YOUR OPENINGS!"

I didn't turn back around until their noisy shouts faded into the background, replaced by the gentle rustle of wind sweeping through the tall fences bordering the trail. The wheat earlier was already harvested, as farmers were tying a batch of wheat, then placing it on carts.

The afternoon sun hung low in the western sky, painting the surrounding hills in sweeping strokes of amber and molten gold. The air had cooled, carrying the sharp, sweet scent of damp earth and wild thyme.

As my small, four-year-old shoes kicked up tiny puffs of dust along the familiar trail, the weight of the day began to settle into my joints. My mind, however, was far from quiet.

Gratitude.

The word echoed in my chest, warm and oddly heavy. A faint, self-deprecating smile tugged at the corner of my lips.

Four years of paranoia, and I was the only one holding a stupid grudge.

In the end, I made it to my house and explained to my mom why I came home pretty late.

[End]