Little Pink Starfish

King Augustin’s unexpected words rang out, followed by the cheers of the people, their voices filled with joy.

Asher and Theodore could only stare at each other in stunned silence, bewildered by the reaction around them.

Was this real? Or just a dream?

They had never imagined that Queen Angela and King Augustin would so readily acknowledge their relationship.

Slowly turning back, Asher saw that Theodore, too, was frozen in shock, his eyes wide with disbelief.

His beastman form had been revealed before a massive audience, leaving no room for denial. Under normal circumstances, Theodore—who had hidden his true lineage—would have been stripped of his knighthood and possibly even executed.

After all, Samuel had used Notovis to force Theodore into beast transformation. Wasn’t that meant to expose his hidden heritage to the entire nation?

Still wearing an expression of confusion, Theodore shifted his gaze to Samuel.

Samuel, however, stood motionless, his expression blank as he stared at the audience.

The people in the stands—his intended audience—were now raising their voices in celebration.

──── Fated mates.

Among the beastmen, there was no one who did not understand the significance of those words. Even humans, who had been unfamiliar with the concept, had been swayed by the sight of Asher’s actions, joining the beastmen in their jubilant cries.

“…It seems this is no longer just an exchange match.”

King Augustin murmured softly, placing a hand on Asher’s shoulder.

Asher flinched at the unexpected touch, still frozen in shock from the scene before him. Looking up, he saw the king giving him a wry smile before gently pushing him forward.

Ahead of him stood Theodore, his expression mirroring Asher’s, still staring at him in disbelief.

“……”

“……”

They gazed at each other in silence, neither able to speak.

Asher blinked rapidly, struggling to process what was happening. It all felt so unreal. Theodore seemed just as overwhelmed.

But in the next instant, Asher bolted forward and threw himself into Theodore’s arms.

Theodore caught him and held him tightly.

“……”

Tears welled up in Asher’s eyes—whether from relief or joy, he didn’t know.

He buried his face in Theodore’s chest, and Theodore gently stroked his back.

“…When you started convulsing, I… I didn’t know what would happen…”

“…I’m sorry to have worried you.”

Theodore’s apologetic voice made Asher’s heart tighten.

He had stepped forward with determination, without fear or hesitation. But now, Asher was trembling.

It had all worked out in the end—the people had accepted them, and neither King Augustin nor Queen Angela had rejected Theodore.

But what if they hadn’t?

He had distinctly heard someone call Theodore a “monster” during the chaos. While most were now celebrating them, there were surely still those who harbored doubts.

Indeed, many of the nobles’ faces remained clouded with disapproval.

Even so, the people raised their voices in unison, showering Asher and Theodore with cheers and applause.

Among them, only Reachalf noticed Samuel slipping out of the arena.

Their eyes met for a brief moment, and Samuel shot him a resentful glare before quickly disappearing.

“…Oh dear, I’m probably going to get yelled at later.”

Reachalf muttered, half amused, half exasperated.

──────

As Samuel walked through the dimly lit corridor, he saw Morjin standing there, pale-faced. Beside him, Hugo wore an apologetic expression.

“…Sam, I’m sorry… You told me to keep an eye on Asher, but… he suddenly ran off.”

Hugo scratched his head, looking genuinely remorseful. Samuel let out a sigh.

“I never expected Asher to act like that either…”

Ignoring Hugo, Samuel turned his cold gaze toward Morjin.

Under that sharp stare, Morjin’s face twitched, but he forced a smile.

“…If only we had revealed Theodore’s beastman blood and followed through with the plan, then… Prince Asher wouldn’t have misunderstood you… This was unexpected, but in some ways, the people’s reaction has made things easier! Despite being a beastman, he is also the Third Prince’s fated mate… and now, he has become the hero of this kingdom…”

“…So you’re saying this worked out even better than planned? That despite my best efforts to keep Asher out of this, I ended up getting hated by him in the worst possible way?”

“……”

Samuel’s piercing words made Morjin shrink back.

From beneath his hood, Hugo glanced at Samuel cautiously.

“…What about Ward’s report?”

“Ah, things are progressing as expected. As soon as they made their move, Ward and the others started tracking them.”

“If it was going to go this smoothly, maybe we didn’t need that bastard from Fana’ara after all.”

Hugo grumbled under his breath, earning a slight smirk from Samuel.

“The only reason foreign royalty gathered here was because this was a rare exchange match with the Temple Knights. If it hadn’t been such a major event, our enemies might not have taken action.”

“Then why not just borrow the Temple Knights without involving him?”

“We originally planned to take things more slowly. The idea was to have the High Priest summon Asher to Fana’ara first. You agreed to that, didn’t you?”

“…Yeah, I did… But it was you who sped up the plan without telling me! You suddenly decided to use Theodore… You said yourself that we had to ensure Asher’s safety first, but then you just started using whatever was convenient! Admit it, you just wanted to mess with Theodore—”

“What are you trying to say?”

At Samuel’s low voice, filled with quiet anger, Hugo grimaced and quickly backed down.

“Nah… Nothing. My bad.”

“…Since we moved up the plan, we need to finish this quickly. We’ve been chasing this target for years without success. My men need to return to the castle soon, or they’ll get too comfortable with their cover identities—one of them is already acting like a full-time tavern owner.”

“Yeah, Fold’s been raving about how well business is going… even put it in his report.”

Hugo let out a strained laugh.

“…But seriously, even you weren’t expecting Father to say something like that, were you?”

“……”

“Anyway, the nobles’ assembly will be convened soon. There’s no way they’ll accept a commoner—let alone a beastman—marrying into the royal family without a fight.”

Samuel recalled the look on King Augustin’s face earlier.

He hadn’t scolded Asher for his declaration, nor had he lashed out at Theodore. Instead, his gaze had been gentle.

That was not the King Augustin they had known.

But Samuel and Hugo both remembered the warm smile the king had worn during that royal dinner.

Something must have happened between them.

──── Something had changed in King Augustin’s feelings toward Asher.

“…Still, Asher and Theodore being fated mates, huh…? I was shocked enough when it happened with Fold and Lilian, but…”

Before he could finish, Samuel shot him a glare so terrifying that Hugo immediately clamped his mouth shut.

“Oh? So you knew about fated mates, Hugo? I only learned about it from Morjin. But tell me… does it not bother you that your dear little brother—barely of age, after suffering years of abuse—has suddenly become ‘claimed’ by some man? If you leave this alone, you might as well have skipped that banquet the other day. You remember what I promised, don’t you?”

“W-Wait, hold on, Sam! Calm down! I get it, I get it! Just don’t do anything crazy! I’m your beloved little brother, aren’t I?”

“You’re my useless little brother.”

“Sam! That’s favoritism!”

“I should tie you up—”

“……!”

Tearing up, Hugo frantically apologized.

But Samuel ignored him and walked off, his steps quick and determined.

“…Poor Hugo. He just got caught in the crossfire.”

With a sigh, Morjin watched the two disappear down the corridor, a troubled expression on his face.

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Pinky says: Who is this Morjin fellow?