—I’m human, you idiot! How the hell would I know?!
“…….”
His mouth moved, lips parting in silence.
Think. There are Myo tribe members who can’t transform into humans. Outwardly? Well, what’s there to say? They’d just look like ordinary cats.
So then… what is the difference between a Myo who can’t transform and a regular cat?
The tiny flicker of hope that had momentarily sparked fizzled out with a hiss. His ears drooped, tail sagging pitifully.
Whatever Sefiut thought he saw in that reaction, he quickly jumped in to reassure him.
—But I still need your help, and that hasn’t changed. Just hear me out, will you? Don’t you want to live happily ever after with your master—my descendant? You’ve got what it takes!
“Uwaaeng…….”
Fine, I’ll listen for now… he mumbled in defeat. Sefiut cleared his throat a couple of times before diving in.
—Let’s start with how the curse came to be.
Right. That’s true.
Sefiut had introduced himself as “the one responsible for branding that damned curse into the Laufe bloodline.”
So… does that mean he knows how to break it? Ries immediately sat up straighter.
“The House of Laufe has served as the gatekeeper for the seal of a certain being ever since the founding of the empire. If we were to compare it to a human’s life cycle, the being was already dead—but the traces of its will were stubborn, twisted, and dangerous enough to need containment.”
?
A question mark practically hovered over Ries’s head.
Forget how suddenly massive this whole thing sounded—was this even something he should be saying out loud? Ries stared in a daze, but Sefiut’s mouth didn’t stop once it started.
—It didn’t have a name, but if we had to call it something, I’d say ‘demon’ fits—like the kind that once stood in endless opposition to the gods in ancient times.
Sefiut paused mid-sentence and narrowed his eyes with a warning glint.
—If you go spreading this around, I’ll haunt you till you die. So zip it.
The threat was cold and brutal, but… Ries didn’t even flinch. What was he supposed to do now, freak out? He was already dead, wasn’t he?
Sefiut continued, unbothered by whatever protests Ries might’ve had in his head.
—Anyway, according to the records, that demon fed on the suffering of living things—misery, pain, despair. And the most potent source of that was intelligent life, the kind crafted lovingly by the gods. In other words, humans.
His expression gradually darkened. His eyes, staring far into the past, brimmed with an aching regret.
—The demon was destroyed, but the souls it had tormented didn’t just disappear. They became too corrupted to return anywhere and ended up lingering in this world. The seal that the Laufe family protects… it was built to contain those remnants of malice.
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
—And I… needed that power.
No way. Ries stared at him, stunned, biting back the urge to look in Justyn’s direction again.
—I know how it sounds. But back then, borrowing that power was the only option I had. The emperor at the time was weak. Centuries of peace had made the empire’s defenses soft. The people were ignorant. And Thalassa…
Sefiut’s voice turned bitter.
—Thalassa didn’t answer the desperate prayers of her priests.
He slowly turned his head. All that lay in sight was a dark, curtain-drawn room—but his gaze was distant, as if he were staring out across the entire world.
—I weighed my options. Thousands of lives swept away by catastrophe, or my own. I chose the former. I borrowed that cursed power and used it. In the end, the empire survived. And I paid the price.
He stretched both arms out wide, as if to say, Look at me now. But it didn’t last. Like a balloon losing air, Sefiut slumped forward, deflated.
—……I never imagined my descendants would keep paying for it. I guess just one soul wasn’t enough.
So this is why people say never to make a deal lightly. He gave a sorrowful chuckle.
Ries, who had been listening in silence, was starting to piece things together. Those dark veins now crawling over half of Justyn’s face…
They were the price. His ancestor—Sefiut—had reached for a power he never should have touched, and this was the consequence.
—But those bastards.
While Ries was processing, Sefiut suddenly spat the words like poison. His eyes, twisted with fury, flared with black fire.
—They called me a hero back then, and now they treat my descendants like they’re some kind of plague? Those cowardly rats hiding in their holes—how dare they?
The tension, thought to have faded long ago, flared back to life. Ries’s tail shot straight up at the sharp edge in Sefiut’s voice.
—Ugh…
Fortunately, he seemed to calm down quickly. But the regret in his eyes lingered—dark, deep, and unmoving.
—That’s the long and short of it. I couldn’t completely shake off the curse either…….
And just like that, he smiled brightly, as if trying to laugh it all off. With that face of his, it was impossible not to get drawn in.
—So? Do you hate me now?
“……Myaak?”
Ries tilted his head. What the hell was this guy suddenly going on about? Seeing his lukewarm reaction, Sefiut eagerly pressed on, as if trying to stir things up.
—That curse your master’s under? I’m the one who put it on him. And judging by how devoted you are to my descendant…
Ah. So that’s what he meant.
Ries got it now, but his expression soured even more. He’d seen this type of setup before.
Yup. Just like every other Laufe I’ve met.
Did they all have a script or something? Why were these Laufe men so hellbent on being hated?
He scratched behind one ear with his hind leg, dripping with annoyance—Cut the crap and just get to the point already.
The damage was done, and Sefiut had clearly acted with good intentions at the time. He’d had no idea the curse would pass down through his bloodline. Ries had no interest in dumping resentment on someone who already regretted it. His mind drifted back to what Sefiut had said earlier.
He did say he wanted the curse broken.
Which meant there had to be a way. That was good enough for him.
—Kuhahahaha!
Sefiut let out a wild, giddy laugh, like the whole thing was hilarious. Ries waited. He didn’t interrupt. He just stared until the laughter finally died down and the room began to settle.
That’s when he asked the question he’d been holding back.
“Myaak. Myaaang. Waeoong?”
You said you’d lift the curse. So how do we break it?
And the answer?
—I have no idea.
…was that.
Ries couldn’t take it anymore. He shut his eyes tight in frustration. Should he just walk it back right now? His dislike for this ghost was skyrocketing.
Sefiut scratched his head, eyes darting around in panic. It was almost funny seeing someone like him flustered in front of a cat that could fit in a laundry basket—but he did look a little guilty.
Not that he didn’t have a point.
—Hey, how was I supposed to know you were a Myo who didn’t even know you were Myo? I thought you were just some eccentric little furball with a thing for pretending to be a pet.
A thing? What kind of nonsense…? Ries glared at him, eyes narrowing dangerously.
—I figured you were too lazy to shift into human form, so you just decided to play lap-cat for your master. Myo tribe folks are famous for hating work and loving naps, you know…
Come to think of it… that actually kinda tracked.
—I read it in a book.
“…….”
And just like that, the flicker of agreement died. His head started to throb. He actually felt bad for comparing this guy to Justyn earlier.
—The Myo tribe naturally has powers to guide souls, repel curses, and draw in good fortune. The curse clinging to my descendant—it’s spiritual, the kind that reacts to that sort of thing. So I thought… maybe you could purify it.
“…Waeok?”
You got that from a book too? Ries asked dryly.
But this time, Sefiut shook his head.
—No. That part… I experienced myself.
His voice turned firm—serious in a way that cut through his usual laid-back attitude. Even his smile cracked for a moment, giving way to something heavy, something personal.
It clearly wasn’t a pleasant memory.
Still, for Ries—who barely knew anything about his own tribe—it was exactly the kind of story he needed to hear. He opened his mouth to dig deeper—
—Agh, time’s up.
“Myaak?!”
One of Sefiut’s arms vanished entirely.
His already translucent body was now fading fast, barely hanging on to form. And yet, the ghost looked completely unfazed—like he’d expected this all along.
Now his leg was starting to go too. An arm gone, a leg disappearing, and somehow he was still standing upright.
It was… grotesque. There was no other word for it. That ghostly body, perfectly calm despite falling apart limb by limb—it was the kind of image that could haunt someone.
Ries shut his eyes without a second thought.
—Oho? Look at you. Playing dead already?
