One bite became two. Two became three. Three became everything.

A few minutes later, the whole tray was empty.

Crumbs everywhere, my cheeks were full, and Gawain was now crouched beside me wiping crumbs off my face with a handkerchief.

"Seriously, My Lady," he muttered under his breath, brushing sugar off my fur, "you’ve somehow matured... but you still act like a kid."

I ignored him and chewed the last piece.

Agatha quietly cleaned the table nearby, occasionally glancing at the empty tray with a faintly amused expression.

Once my stomach was satisfied, I hopped back onto the table and strapped on the mechanical arm again.

Gawain leaned against the table, arms crossed, watching curiously while Agatha stepped aside but remained nearby.

I began working.

The room slowly grew quiet except for the soft scrape... scrape... scrape of carving tools against stone.

The shape was nearly complete. Gunmetal grey body, curved, elegant coils, and pale underbelly flowing perfectly beneath the sculpture.

’Just a little more polishing and I’m do—’

Behind me, I suddenly heard a strained groan.

"...ngh..."

At first I ignored it, thinking that he was just being crazy but he groaned again, this time louder then I heard him laugh weakly.

"Heh... of course this happens now..."

I glanced over briefly.

He was leaning against the wall, sweating a lot. Even his breathing was uneven. "Hey... My Lady..." he said between breaths.

"Nyang nya nya? Gawang?"

Translation: What’s happening to you, Gawain?

But even while asking, I did not stop carving.

"My—My Lady..." he said, voice rough. "I’m sorry but you need to quicken up..."

His breathing grew ragged which made my ears twitch.

’Quick...en up?’ I finally paused and looked at him properly.

Sure enough, dark scales were beginning to appear along his neck, his pupils were thinning as his body trembled as if he was holding something back.

My ears perked up. ’Is he going through Hysteria right now?’

I immediately turned at the other side. "Agatha."

She straightened instantly and approached me. "Yes, My Lady?"

I quickly typed on my OmniSync and turned the screen toward her.

"Restrict Gawain’s movements but please not to the point of killing him."

Agatha read the first three words.

Restrict Gawain’s movements.

Her lips curved into a bright smile then she continued reading.

...but please not to the point of killing him.

That’s when her smile faltered. She inhaled slowly, clearly disappointed. "...Understood, My Lady."

She gave a polite nod and stepped forward, her eyes locking onto Gawain like a professional executioner who had unfortunately been asked to show mercy.

Gawain noticed it immediately and looked at me with tears in his eyes. "...Why do I suddenly feel like my life is in danger?" he muttered weakly.

Agatha said nothing, she simply watched his movements carefully.

I forced myself to look away from him and focused back on the energy stone.

The sculpture was almost complete. Only the final details remained.

Behind me, Gawain groaned again. His breathing had grown rougher. The sound of scales scraping faintly against the floor made my ears twitch.

I spoke without looking back. "Gawang nya nyang nya nya nyang."

Translation: Gawain, please stay strong or else we will become your meal for today if you fully black out from Hysteria.

Gawain chuckled weakly. "Are you cheering me on right now, My Lady?"

Another groan followed immediately after.

"...Because that sounded less like encouragement and more like a threat."

Agatha, who had positioned herself nearby with several daggers ready, did not look amused.

I ignored both of them.

My mind had already sunk completely into the carving.

Occasionally I could hear Agatha shifting her stance, ready to restrain him if he completely lost control.

But I didn’t turn around again.

He needs this right now and as much as I hated to admit it, this was partially my fault. I had thrown away his old energy stone without thinking. If I had waited and carved him a replacement first, he wouldn’t be struggling like this.

The thought made my tail flick in irritation. "...Tch."

I was on the final detail along the eyes, the tool hovered over the stone as I carefully traced the line that would finally shape the grey-brown iris.

Behind me, Gawain suddenly groaned, a chair scraping across the floor and Agatha’s voice ringing out sharply.

"My Lady look out! He’s too fast!"

So he finally snapped.

I could hear the rapid sliding sound of scales across the floor.

A heavy hiss filled the room as something massive moved behind me. against the table leg.

Agatha cursed under her breath as she tried to intercept him. "My Lady please move away!"

But I didn’t move. My paws stayed steady, even though I was sweating. I just need a second to finish this.

The carving tool finished tracing the last delicate line across the snake’s eyes.

One more second.

Just—

One—

That’s when I could feel the heat of Gawain’s breath, the snap of his jaws opening as Agatha lunged towards me.

"My Lady!"

sscrk! 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Done.

I grabbed the finished energy stone then shoved it straight into Gawain’s open mouth.

Clack.

For a split second, everything froze.

Gawain’s fangs stopped just inches away from my face. His jaws remained open as the carved energy stone sat lodged between his fangs. His hazy, feral eyes flickered then the madness inside them shattered like glass.

Agatha stood frozen mid-attack, daggers raised, staring at the scene in disbelief.

Gawain carefully pulled his head back, the carved stone still resting in his mouth. "...My Lady," he said slowly.

And then he shifted back to his human form as he immediately grabbed me.

"My Lady!!!"

Before I could react, I was trapped in another bone-crushing hug as he started dramatically crying again.

"Did I hurt you? My Lady?!"

He held me up, anxiously inspecting me from every angle.

"My Lady are you injured?! Did I bite you?! Did I poison you?! Did I traumatize you?!"

His hands checked my head.

My paws.

My tail.

My ears.

My dignity.

I shoved his face away with both paws. "F-Fine... S-Stop it!"

He sniffed loudly, still holding me.

"I’m sorry you had to see that, My Lady," he said with exaggerated remorse. "Losing control like that... how embarrassing..."

Behind us, Agatha slowly lowered her daggers but continued watching him like she was still considering stabbing him just in case.

Meanwhile, Gawain refused to release me and instead continued cuddling me like a stuffed animal.

I sighed.

Since he clearly wasn’t letting go anytime soon, I raised one paw and awkwardly patted his head.

"...Fine... Now..."

He and Agatha both froze.

I glared at him. "D-Don’t get u-used to it." But my paw still rested on his head.

Gawain looked down at the small carved stone in his hand again, turning it slowly under the light. The gunmetal grey scales shimmered faintly, and the tiny carved snake looked almost alive.

"But My Lady," he said, brows furrowing, "how did you manage to carve this?"

He tapped the stone lightly.

"And my Hysteria... it somehow vanished despite this being a low-grade energy stone."

I opened my OmniSync and typed. "That’s because I’m the best carver this world has."

Gawain stared at the screen then back at me. "...Did spoiling you too much also make you arrogant?" he said flatly.

I rolled my eyes so hard my entire head moved.

Honestly, this man.

"Move," I wrote again, shoving his shoulder slightly. "I also need to carve my own next."

Gawain obediently stepped aside, still studying the stone with obvious curiosity, occasionally glancing at the mechanical arm attached to my foreleg.

Meanwhile, Agatha had been quietly observing the entire exchange but distracted by the thoughts running on her mind. A moment later, she finally stepped forward.

"My Lady," she said softly as her eyes flicked briefly toward Gawain.

"My Lady, what should we do with him?" Her tone was polite but the meaning was very clear.

"Clearly letting him stay here is obviously a bad idea..." She paused slightly before finishing. "...Not unless you inform Master."

Gawain slowly raised a hand. "Before anyone decides to throw me out of another window," he said carefully, "may I remind everyone that I am technically her legal manny."

Agatha immediately looked unimpressed. "You broke into a floating island residence belonging to our Master."

"...Details."

She folded her arms and raised a brow at him. "You also nearly ate the one you’re serving?"

"...Temporary misunderstanding."

Her eye twitched. "And you are currently a wanted criminal according to your own story."

"...Allegedly," Gawain paused. "Besides I already erased both of our identities."

Agatha slowly looked at me.

I typed on my OmniSync and turned the screen toward them.

"I’ll soon tell Soren about Gawain but I need a plausible explanation on how we coincidentally met and pray that he won’t kill him."

Agatha clearly wanted to say more.

Her lips pressed together, and for a moment it looked like she was about to list at least ten reasons why allowing Gawain to stay was a terrible idea.

But in the end she simply bowed her head.

"...Understood, My Lady."