The dining hall was quiet that morning.
Too quiet.
Rudy sat at the long table, nervously poking his fork into a slice of bread. Across from him, his mother, Rose Avara, sat still, her hands folded neatly on the table, her expression unreadable.
Beside her stood Cassandra, the maid from earlier, the same one who had walked in on that scene. She was doing her best to keep a neutral face, though the faint blush on her cheeks betrayed that she remembered everything.
Rudy glanced between them. The silence was suffocating.
Finally, he said, "...Mom?"
Rose didn't answer. She just looked at him, no, through him, her lips pressed tight, her eyes shimmering strangely.
Then, to Rudy's utter horror, she started to cry.
"W-Wait, what?!" Rudy nearly jumped up from his chair. "Mom, why are you crying? Did I do something wrong?"
Rose sniffled, grabbing a napkin and dabbing at her eyes. Cassandra blinked in confusion, glancing between them, clearly as lost as Rudy was.
"You don't love me anymore…" Rose whispered.
Rudy froze. "...Huh?"
Rose's shoulders shook. "You don't love your mother anymore… so you went and found someone else!"
For a moment, Rudy just sat there blinking, trying to understand what language she was speaking.
"Mom, what are you even talking about?" he said finally, looking utterly lost. "Of course I love you!"
She sniffled again, her voice trembling. "Then why did you do that with a stranger? If you wanted to… to do that, you could've told me!"
"W–What?!" Rudy's voice cracked. "Mom! What are you talking about?!"
Cassandra's face turned even redder, her eyes wide as she stared at her shoes.
Rudy's thoughts were spiraling. What does she mean by 'that'? Tell her what? Wait, does she think I...?!
"Mom, it's not what you think!" Rudy said, waving his hands frantically. "She's not...I didn't...She's a beast I contracted!"
Rose blinked, her tears stopping instantly. "...A beast?"
"Yes!" Rudy said, relieved she'd stopped crying. "I was training yesterday. Miya gave me a cat to try contracting with, but it didn't work. Then last night, I tried one more time before going to bed, and it suddenly worked! When I woke up this morning… she was on my bed. Naked. But it's not what you think!"
Rose just stared at him for a long, silent moment.
Cassandra looked like she wanted to disappear into the floor.
Finally, Rose sighed, wiping the last tear from her cheek. "So… you didn't cheat on me?"
Rudy blinked. "...Cheat on you?!"
He stared at her in disbelief. Why does she sound like I'm her husband?!
But he quickly nodded, not wanting to make things worse. "No, Mom. I didn't cheat on you."
Rose let out a breath of relief, her shoulders relaxing. "Then I'm glad…" she said softly. "But that demi-human shouldn't be here. You know the laws of the Flame Kingdom, they're not welcome within the capital."
Rudy nodded seriously. "I already thought about that. I have a solution."
He stood up from his chair and took a step back. Cassandra gasped as a faint blue magic circle appeared beneath him. A soft hum filled the air, and then, in a shimmer of light,
Layla appeared.
The demi-human girl stood quietly beside Rudy, her white hair falling gracefully over her shoulders. She was wearing the oversized shirt Rudy had given her, its hem brushing just above her knees. Her cat ears twitched slightly as her green eyes scanned the room.
Rose's eyes widened. "She's… beautiful."
Cassandra's face turned scarlet again.
Rudy cleared his throat. "Layla, can you hide your ears and tail?"
Layla nodded. "Yes, Master."
With a blink, her cat ears faded away, and her tail disappeared, leaving behind the image of an ordinary human girl.
Rose blinked again, clearly impressed despite herself. "That… will make things easier. As long as no one realizes she's a demi-human, there shouldn't be any trouble."
She turned to Cassandra. "Cassandra, you saw nothing today. No one must ever hear of this."
Cassandra nodded immediately. "Y-Yes, Madam Rose."
Rudy couldn't resist, he gave Cassandra a playful wink.
Her cheeks turned pink again, and she quickly looked away.
Rose noticed but said nothing, only narrowing her eyes slightly at her son. "Honestly, Rudy… you're too much like your father sometimes."
Rudy scratched the back of his head, smiling awkwardly. "Uh… thanks?"
Just then, the door opened, and another maid entered, bowing politely. "Madam Rose, Miss Miya has arrived."
Rose nodded. "Send her to the courtyard. Rudy, go meet your tutor."
"Yes, Mom."
But as Rudy turned to leave, Rose added sharply, "And Rudy, don't tell her about the beast."
Rudy froze mid-step, then turned back with a grin. "Got it."
Rose crossed her arms. "I mean it."
"I know, I know," Rudy said, hands up in surrender. "No mentioning my totally normal, definitely-not-a-demi-human cat girl."
"Rudy!"
"Right, sorry!"
He laughed nervously, waving as he hurried toward the door. "See you later, Mom!"
As he disappeared down the hall, Rose sighed deeply, pressing a hand to her forehead. "That boy is going to give me gray hair."
Cassandra giggled softly. "He's… unique, Madam."
Rose smiled faintly despite herself. "He gets that from his father."
They both turned to glance at the door Layla had disappeared through, the air still faintly humming with residual mana.
Rose's expression hardened slightly. "Still… a demi-human transformation through a contract? That's not possible for a anyone…"
Cassandra looked at her in surprise. "Do you think something's wrong, Madam?"
Rose didn't answer immediately. She just stared out the tall dining room window, lost in thought.
Finally, she murmured, "No… not wrong. But unusual. Very unusual."