After that, I had several conversations with the Gryphon.
And I found out a few things.
In various subcultures, four-legged beings that can communicate with humans usually shied away from carrying humans on their backs.
Thinking about it, it’s only natural. Creatures that carry humans are typically treated as ‘livestock’ like horses or donkeys. It wouldn’t be surprising if they thought carrying a human on their backs was lowering themselves to livestock levels.
Most of the humans in those stories would nod in agreement when they heard this. It’s just plain odd to picture another human riding on someone who is already face down on the ground.
But you know…
It seemed that the Gryphon was not like that.
When I asked, “Is it okay if I ride on your back?” the Gryphon knelt down before me, spreading its wings to make it easier for me to climb on.
Could it be that the Gryphon’s culture is different from humans, and it has no particular aversion to kneeling?
I didn’t think so. Every time the Gryphon greeted me, it bowed its knees politely. While it could totally kneel completely… well, if needed, but showing that in front of people seemed a bit awkward.
No, more than that—didn’t the first Fanggriffon struggle like crazy to become a leader among the Gryphons? I doubt it was all that easy to fly around while carrying a human on its back.
…Thinking back, I don’t think there were any detailed expressions about that process.
After briefly pondering how the Gryphon so willingly offered its back, I carefully climbed onto it.
The Gryphon’s feathers looked tough at first glance, but they felt really soft when I touched them. However, it seemed they were coated for waterproofing, as a white powder came off on my hands after a few touches. Not just on my hands either; that powder got all over my clothes, which wasn’t exactly great.
I had heard that those who manage Gryphons collect fallen feathers afterward.
Since there wasn’t really anything to collect the Gryphon’s feathers for, I didn’t care much. I wasn’t overly concerned about whether they took them to sell or not. Honestly, compared to managing a beast like a Gryphon, that was just a minor benefit to me.
Confirming that I was indeed on its back, the Gryphon gave a gentle shake and then stood up. It swayed a bit but held its ground with its feathers.
Is it in pain?
Well, if my pulling on it like this doesn’t make it lose a feather, then maybe it’s not in pain. The structure must be different from human hair. The feathers coming out weren’t because of my pulling. Even a Gryphon would have to molt at some point.
“Alright then—”
I was just getting ready to say something while sitting on its back when the Gryphon jumped straight up into the sky.
flap A huge sound of wings flapping filled the air. It felt like I was in a supercar that goes from zero to a hundred in less than five seconds; the Gryphon soared into the sky in the blink of an eye.
I gripped the feathers tightly. My butt shot backwards due to the steep angle of the Gryphon’s rise, and I was terrified. Thankfully, my knees got caught on its wing joint, so I didn’t fall off.
Of course, the way it flapped its wings continued to lift me up and made me shiver.
As I finally focused and looked around, I was startled again. The Gryphon was already soaring way above the Imperial Capital. It was cold down here, but up this high, the temperature felt even colder.
I was worried that if I looked around too much, my knees might buckle, so I turned my gaze straight ahead, and the Gryphon glanced back at me.
It was a bit funny trying to read expressions on an eagle’s face, but it seemed like it was thinking, “So, how do I look?”
“…”
Ah, I get it.
The reason it so willingly let me ride was either to tease me or to show off its abilities. Or maybe it was both.
In this situation, making a scared face would probably be a losing battle.
I inhaled quietly.
Since I don’t have the ability to turn back time, I couldn’t maintain a perfect expressionless face, but I had at least learned to manage my expressions to some extent. I could manage to look casual.
“Is there somewhere you want to go?”
At my question, the Gryphon tilted its head.
It seemed like it didn’t quite understand what I meant.
“If you have a place you want to go, it’s okay to go there. I’ll come along too.”
Well, it was obvious that if I got off here, I’d just fall straight down and die, so I had to go along.
However, my pride wouldn’t allow me to just ask to be taken somewhere.
“…”
The Gryphon stared at me in silence for a while before it turned its head and started flying forward. It took off faster than it had been climbing.
Some scholars wrote that Gryphons don’t actually have a specific territory but rather travel the world, and it really felt like that was true at this moment because of how fast we were going.
I bit my lip to avoid screaming.
*
…And the place we arrived at was the Imperial Palace.
To be precise, it was one of the courtyards in the Imperial Palace occupied by the Gryphon.
After hearing my words, the Gryphon flew around the capital at full speed. I was too busy hanging on to grasp the exact location, but by the context, it seemed we made several big loops around the Imperial Capital. Since we didn’t fly for too long, it probably wasn’t a complete tour of the entire capital.
And then, we landed in no other place than the inner courtyard of the Imperial Palace.
I tightened my quivering legs and stood up again, looking up at the Gryphon.
It seemed hard to believe that we had just been flying at full speed; the Gryphon sat there in a relaxed bread-baking posture, looking down at me.
But how to put it… its attitude seemed a bit different this time?
I’m not exactly a person who can read emotions by just looking into someone’s eyes, but I could still pick up on the vibe to some extent.
And judging by that vibe, the expression on the Gryphon’s face looked like ‘embarrassment.’
Earlier, when that Gryphon was flying up in the sky, my words had been to “just go wherever you want.”
And then it circled the capital a few times as if it was deep in thought before landing where it lived.
“Is this place the best?”
At my question, the Gryphon tilted its head.
I thought its tilt wasn’t because it didn’t understand what I was saying, but rather that it didn’t know why it had chosen to land here.
“…”
After resting my chin on my hand and pondering for a moment, I spoke up.
“Have you not been to many places?”
“…”
At my words, the Gryphon froze for a brief moment before proudly lifting its head and looking down at me with a hmph sound.
Looks like that might be the case.
It did sound strange when I thought about it.
The Gryphon, called the apex creature in the world, being casually caught and raised by the Papal State.
If they had done that, where on earth did they capture this Gryphon? Were they using magic to capture it alive without killing it and controlling it as they pleased?
If the Gryphon had been fully grown, it would have been impossible for them to think of such a thing.
“How old are you?”
“…”
The Gryphon turned its head away as if refusing to answer.
Is this Gryphon younger than I thought? Like, not even ten years old.
It might have been caught when it was still a fledgling, or perhaps someone found an egg and stole it. In either case, a lot of people must have died in the process, but if one could control a Gryphon, that would become trivial.
Of course, even then, it seemed they couldn’t fully control the Gryphon, leaving it in a state of suffering.
“Where were you born?”
“…”
Silence.
I was beginning to understand why it was just sitting here.
So, it actually wanted to go somewhere else, but there was nowhere to go. It probably didn’t know any better.
There are quite a few places known to be Gryphon habitats. Of course, almost no humans come back alive after going there, which leads many to question, “Is there really a Gryphon there?” It’s not just baseless speculation; there are decent pieces of evidence too.
However, if this Gryphon grew up under human control in the first place, it would make sense that it wouldn’t know those places.
Moreover, even if it did know them, it probably wouldn’t feel any urge to go back. There was nothing to attach to in the first place.
By the time I thought this through, I felt a bit sorry for the Gryphon.
“Is that so?”
“…”
I went closer to the Gryphon and tried to touch its body gently—
thud
I stumbled as it kicked me away with its foot.
Definitely not very receptive; what is this, a teenager?
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