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『Senator, it's lunchtime.』

『Just leave it there.』

『You don't put your hands on your food these days... Do you not like the taste, sir?』

『No, I just don't feel like eating.』

The Jackal waves his hand to signal his secretary to stop bothering him. And with that, the woman thelma, with the head of a mountain goat, strides out of the council chamber.

Soon the large room is silent again. Asterios leans back in his chair, raises his head, and lets out a small sigh.

『Haah...』

He doesn't need food anyway. He just blends into thelma's society and plays along. Asterios closes his eyes, lost in thought, not even bothering to look at the meat the goat has prepared.

Jeremy Rogers.

How the hell he's been thinking about that damn man for more than half a day now. No, not half, more like most of it.

He hasn't been on the island since that day, but he will find himself closing his eyes and focusing his mind to see how the little man is doing. It's not because he's interested in the human, or wondering if the human is looking for him. Jeremy Rogers is more or less a sacrifice to the Jackal, he is only interested in him because it would be a shame if something went wrong and he died.

『Let's see how much longer he can hold out.』

The damn human is a slut anyway.

But...what's the point of betting on him?

Nobody wants to know the whereabouts of a small, smelly human. Even the fact that Asterios took a human as a sacrifice has long been forgotten. Besides, he's not the kind of person who likes to talk about his possessions, so in other words, the existence of this human is almost a secret.

It is nice to be able to observe the human without anyone else noticing, but sometimes it is quite boring to have no one to discuss it with. Asterios has a pretty loyal secretary, and he wonders if he should bet her a gold bar.

Leaning back loosely in his chair, the Jackal straightens his back and focuses on a distant, faint sound.

It is Jeremy's voice.

『I see you have finally decided to surrender.』

The Jackal lowers his eyes and lets out a small laugh, certain of his victory.

『I don't even have to bet...』

As he focuses a little more inward to see where Jeremy is, Asterios begins to see a clear image before him. He had expected to see the human with tears streaming down his face, regretting his actions, but the scene before him is not what he expected.

Jeremy Rogers is curled up on the floor of his knick-knack shop, sleeping under a thin blanket.

『......』

Asterios keeps peeking in to see if he can wake him, but the middle-aged man is fast asleep, barely making a sound. Last night Asterios saw him crawl back to this shop at dawn after struggling with his heat, and somehow he had done something about it on his own.

How stubborn, the jackal mutters.

It is pathetic to see the human sleeping on the floor without a bed. Asterios is tempted to go over and intervene, but he can't bring himself to do it.

The sleeping man's back rises and falls in a regular, shallow motion. His well-defined muscles twitch gently in time with his breathing.

Somehow there is something pitiful about him sleeping so peacefully, all alone, not in a frenzy or a rage. His unshaven chin is streaked with stubble, and his eyes are shadowed.

『......』

Asterios forgets what he is doing and watches Jeremy sleep. He's not literally standing next to the guy, he's just using his ability to watch him from a distance, but it still feels as real as if he's right next to him.

The plump human lies on his side, panting. The Jackal hadn't noticed how tall Jeremy is because the man is smaller and always makes him look down. But now, looking at the chair and the carving knife beside him, Asterios is reminded that Jeremy is indeed tall for a human.

He sleeps with a slight frown, looking tired. His eyebrows are thick and dark, his eyelashes are long, and his face is angular with a sharp jawline.

His pecs are bulging with muscle and fat. The man had squeezed himself the night before, leaving crimson handprints on the smooth, pale flesh.

As Asterios admires the outline of the plump body under the thin sheets, he wonders if he should forgive him now. He is ready to materialize before him with a single call in his sleep.

Clack—

But an annoying sound pierces his ears. His concentration is shattered, his clear vision of Jeremy's image suddenly disrupted.

『Who is it?』

He asks in a sharp, growling voice.

『Uh... it's almost time for the meeting, sir. You're always ten minutes early, but for some reason you're not there yet today, so I thought I should check on you...』

It's the secretary. Her voice trembles with panic as she notices the angry tone of her boss.

Asterios opens his closed eyes and stares directly at the thelma, the herbivore standing beside him.

『It's not like I'm late. I'm getting ready now, so stay back.』

『Yes, sir... You... you've been looking very tired lately.』

『No, I'm not. I just have a lot on my mind, don't worry about it.』

The Jackal replies as he stands and gathers the things he needs for the meeting. He was so focused on Jeremy that he seems to have fallen asleep in front of his secretary.

Asterios is not surprised. Rather, he is surprised at how quickly his irritation at being interrupted fades.

After dismissing his secretary, Asterios turns on his heel. One step and he is standing in front of the elevator for the senators. In this building, he can go anywhere, and he can read the minds of anyone who wanders in, so being late is out of the question.

He was always the first to arrive at the meeting, checking to see if anyone dared to be disloyal to him. Lateness will get anyone fired, even if they are in a position of power.

Asterios enters the room on time. He takes his seat with a sullen expression and calls the meeting to order, thinking to himself, No one gets two chances against me, but I've lost count of how many times I've given Jeremy Rogers a chance. If he wasn't my offering, I might have killed him long ago. Dismember and reattach his torso and neck.

『Last time we talked about citywide distribution...』

The pig-headed aide begins to chatter excitedly, pointing to the prepared materials. This is so unimportant.

If he wants, Asterios can keep an eye on the human during the meeting, but he refuses to give him his energy. How annoying to feel a little too human-oriented lately. Asterios thinks he should be more careful.

Maybe it was just his imagination that the human called him in the first place. When he checked, Jeremy Rogers was fast asleep.

Have I been so wrapped up in him that I'm hearing visions?

Asterios' eyes narrow and the corners of his mouth begin to curl into a wry smile.




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