Melon

Melon (-) is an antagonist and minor character in Beastars. He is first introduced in chapter 124 as a faux elephant therapist, killing them and using their tusks/ivory for quick money.

Appearance
Melon is a half-breed, gaining characteristics from both parents. He is a gazelle with a long, slender leopard's body, cat eyes, leopard jaw and leopard's tail.

He wears a surgical mask in public to hide his leopard features.

Because of his life as a half-breed, Melon develops leopard spots on his body gradually. He chooses to hide them with tattoos of melon leaves. Every so often he gains leopard spots somewhere on his body and covers them up with melon leaf tattoos.

Personality
Melon is a cunning, psychotic individual who can easily manipulate others using his false sense of charm and empathy to achieve his objective. His deceptive nature has led others to be seriously injured or killed, from murdering an elephant with a large syringe to almost killing Legosi with a bullet to the stomach. As a new boss of the Shishigumi, Melon is cruel and harsh towards the members, unlike Louis, who is firm, yet kind with them. He also has no remorse what he has done, making him ultimately sociopathic or psychopathic in nature. He seems to be a masochist too, since getting a tattoo from a sloth excited him immensely, making him blush and stick his tongue out in pure bliss. Melon claims that getting inflicted with pain is the only way for him to feel alive since he can't taste anything due to his hybrid nature.

Backstory
Born from a female leopard and male gazelle couple, Meron's hybrid attributes were visible very early in childhood. At the age of nine, he was targetted by carnivore kids for being both a herbivore and carnivore. Exhausted, he proceeded to lean against a set of bars just off the edge of a building. Despite his depressing state, the carnivore kids encouraged him to jump. It was at this moment that Meron felt his first urge to kill, fury filled his eyes and seconds later he disposed of them by throwing them off collectively.

Introduction
Meron is first seen as a fake Herbivore therapist, wearing a cough mask to hide his hybrid identity while squinting his eyes to hide his feline irises. He comforts a confused, trouble Elephant who lacks support in his life. After receiving Meron's support he feels closer to him. Unknown to the patient a number of skulls are hidden underneath the floorboards. Meron further pushes his fake therapist identity by pretending his care for elephant patients by providing Elephant sized objects including a teacup and needle in which Meron prepares to use before being hauled by Yafya.

Unfortunately, his patient puts himself first, encouraging Yafya to stop in which Meron takes the opportunity to hug him before stabbing him with the needle. Enraged, Yafya shots Meron with a tranquilizer dart but fails to neutralize him as the needle was intended for pure herbivores. Before escaping, he removes his mask revealing his hybrid identity. Warning Yafya of his presence before leaping out of the window.

Investigation and Mask Party
Yafya has all official search teams to look for Meron. Unfortunately, the three crews are unable to find him due to his hybrid background such as a unique scent, perfect blending in gGazellecrowds, etc. Frustrated, he disconnects from the team before glancing at his wounded leg and later on Legosi's teeth. Remembering his strong characteristics and bloodline, he heads out and finds Legosi while working. To convince him to work, he offers to remove his criminal record.

Later that day, Yafya and Legosi meet outside of a VIP club famously known by carnivores for the Mask Party. The Dio use the dress code to their advantage by blending in the crowd to find Meron. It isn't until the two discover three gazelles attendees, Meron is the gazelle u stairs smoking alone. The two blend their blood together to get a response from Meron, Yafya peaks into his mask to confirm his identity before chaining him to his table.

He's left alone with Legosi. He starts sweet-talking to Legosi by using his hybrid identity to make him sympathetic, Legosi, unfortunately, falls for his manipulation tactics due to his past experience with his mother. Burning with curiosity, he releases him and takes a walk with him outside on the sidewalk. Meron talks about hybrids yet again, furthermore adding the notion that he and most other hybrids are freaks of nature. Legosi wants to know him more and better but Meron insists on having fun or hearing a good joke, after Legosi looks away he quickly withdraws his gun after taking it back from Legosi's pockets and shots him in the chest.

Shishgumi
Legosi is hospitalized while Louis finds himself reuniting with the Lion Mafia. He's brought over to the hideout before being hidden by Free. Their new boss happens to be Meron. Free later explains his role in the Mafia as a purpose to fight while also bringing the diversity and positivity Louis did unfortunately Meron has no respect for his henchmen. This is shown by enforcing a meat rule, despite ruling over the market Meron forces all the lions to eat non-meat products such as Melons for most of the months except for one day.

Meron sits down, Mishi mentions his early return which he simply adds that the job had to end earlier than expected before shooting the 'guy'. He reveals his package, a delicious plate of medium-rare steak pieces. After a single bite he struggles to ingest it, he dismisses his reaction by adding cream and other food content on the streak making it bearable to eat. While stuffing himself, he mutters about not knowing what he's eating.

The youngest lion, Agate calls him out for being unethical about the Market's morals. Meron stands before kicking away his dish before mocking him for his morals, to further push it in he stabs the lion's hand before kicking his heel into the fork's end. He asks Free to bring out the stranger, threatening Agates life for a meal. Miguel sacrifices his dignity by presenting Louis' horns, faking a story about eating a male deer while praising Meron. He lets him off the hook to give him one last chance before leaving the hideout.

Tattoo Parlour + Beach
He orders himself a herbivore and carnivore dish before eating by himself in a food restaurant. While eating he watches the local herbivores talk happily about the food, mentioning how tasty it is causing Meron to feel internally frustrated to point of momentary bloodlust. His frustration comes from his lack of taste from both herbivore and carnivore dishes, simply put as "everything tastes like sand." After leaving, he glares at random citizens remembering his desire to kill herbivores while also feeling internal terror from carnivores. Meron eventually stops by a Tattoo parlour as a way to 'contain himself.' After entering he asks one of the tattooists for a particular artist which causes the monkey to yell due to his violent treatment of customers furthermore he was fired. Melon stays silent until he confronts the artist, Holger a silent sloth.

He first asks about leaving then proceeds to threaten the sloth with a gun, laughing about his status as a serial killer. Melon begins to strip down to his boxers, revealing his melon leaf-covered body. All previously done by Holger to hide his mother's spots. Since Melon is a regular customer, Holger has his equipment ready and prepares his tools. Melon lies down and starts mumbling to himself about his hybrid identity until Holger's pen saws into his thigh causing blood to spill everywhere. Melon finds pleasure through pain as it allows him to feel intense emotions compared to his walking life. After finishing his tattoo, he causes Holger to whisper poetic lines about his fabricated emotions. This was done to trick Legosi into going to the beach after catching his scent in the area.

He appears next to Legosi as a figure of imagination, embracing his chest while repeating a much more detailed line from Hogler "Living like me is like living without a dick or stomach." Melon makes a physical appearance at night to shot Legosi's left ear at the beach. He's accompanied by his fellow lions and has them restrict Legosi's movement. Now face to face with his enemy, he mocks him for having empathy for him. He simply leaves and lets the Shishgumi have Legosi for eating. Although they ended up throwing him into the ocean out of hatred.

Trivia

 * Melon displays several symptoms of Antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) including a lack of remorse for his past actions, a façade of empathy and kindness, manipulation, condensation, arrogance, and deceitfulness.
 * Meron was changed to Melon in CH 139

Meron