Collector’s Cage - Chapter 38

He’s being incredibly dramatic. Who knew Froy was like this. Jobern watched Froy’s state with fascination.

Then he looked back at the fairy who had been passed off as a hamster. She was cute. If she’s a fairy, she must be rare too.

But was she worth Froy becoming such an obsessive guardian? He couldn’t quite tell.

“First, since she has a fever, let’s give her some animal antipyretic.”

Jobern gave Hermie the animal antipyretic he had brought.

“But why is she dressed in rags? Is that your taste?”

For a fairy supposedly raised by Froy, she was wearing something like a potato sack. When Jobern tried to touch Hermie’s clothes, Froy smacked the back of his hand.

“Where do you think you’re touching?”

“Will it wear out if I touch it? It’s okay to touch a little.”

“Get your dirty hands off!”

A mischievous smile appeared on Jobern’s face. Froy’s reaction was amusing. Look at him panicking. Anyone would think he was pathologically jealous.

“Hey now, what’s this? What are you misunderstanding? I’m examining a patient.”

Jobern glanced at Hermie repeatedly with a sly expression. He was teasing Froy on purpose, and it was working very well.

“You, get out now. I’ll call someone else.”

“I want to look after her until she comes to. I’m curious what she looks like awake. She must be really cute.”

“You’re not even a real doctor. You quack. That’s enough now, get out. Don’t look at Hermie!”

Jobern laughed heartily, clearly finding immense satisfaction in Froy’s reaction. To think Froy had become so overprotective—the world was truly going mad.

Already seething with worry, Froy’s eyebrows shot up like mountains. Fuming with anger, Froy shoved Jobern out of the room.

Jobern tried to resist, but as he was pushed all the way to the door, he hurriedly added, “Seeing that bump on her forehead, it might be a concussion. Even if the fever goes down, pay attention to her condition…!”

BANG-!

Froy roughly expelled Jobern outside and locked the door.

He glared at the empty space as if staring through the door, then raised a hand to his forehead. He realized his own behavior had been childish. Even so, his boiling insides wouldn’t calm down quickly.

After rolling his tongue in his mouth and collecting himself, he wet a handkerchief with water and returned to Hermie.

First, he removed her sweat-soaked clothes. A body exactly like a human’s was laid bare. It was no different from a human’s, only smaller. There were no wings or sparkling dust like fairies in storybooks.

She wasn’t like an imaginary fairy, but the lack of wings was fortunate for Froy. At least she couldn’t escape into the sky.

He then wiped down her sweaty body. The parts Jobern’s hands had touched were wiped with extra care.

While cleaning Hermie, Froy discovered various things. Hermie had two small moles on the back of her neck and one on her wrist. There were spots near her hips and waist. A small scar above her eye, and her front teeth were adorably protruding.

Only after taking her out of the cage could he examine Hermie’s face and body in such detail.

Froy’s true nature—persistent and obsessive to the point of analyzing every brushstroke on a deeply admired artwork—revealed itself fully.

After finishing his thorough inspection, Froy placed the damp handkerchief on Hermie’s forehead to let the fever cool. He covered her body with a cloth so she wouldn’t get too cold.

Hermie was so small and frail. Her breathing was shallow, so weak it wouldn’t be strange if it stopped any moment, and her body was so slender it seemed it might break in a light breeze.

To have left such a fragile being inside a cage…

When he recalled Hermie reaching her hand out of the cage every time they went for a walk, his chest tingled with pain.

He realized how thoughtless he had been. He had mistakenly believed it was enough just to admire her.

Regret washed over him—he should have understood Hermie’s feelings sooner and opened the cage door. He was willing to give up a piece of his own life if it meant saving this little fairy.