Chapter 35

Nine eyes curved into a smile and shook his head.

[Your face was even more surprised.]

I let out a chuckle when I read what Nine had written down.

“Well, that can’t be helped. After all what I saw was a wolf covered in blood and collapsed in the gardens.”

I shrugged my shoulders and recalled the incidents from a month ago.

On the day that rain was falling weakly, I was walking Melissa’s pet dog, Lieff. The guy who appeared to notice by some animalistic instinct that I wasn’t the real Melissa hadn’t dared to come to my side — though we are now incredibly friendly with each other — but Lieff had oddly whimpered constantly for a walk, and I found it strange so I had walked out into the rain.

Suddenly, Lieff started to sniff here and there, began to bark and ran into the bushes. And I shouted “you little bastard” as I rushed after him. When I followed after Lieff, what I found at its end was a small, blue wolf who was covered in blood.

How many people could pass such a sight by? In the end, I brought him back as part of our family.

In reality, he was Nine. Before I heard his circumstances from Jack, I had already heard it all from Nine’s mouth, so I had beat up Jack a little harder than I would have otherwise. After all, it appeared the reason Nine had been chased was all that guy, Jack’s fault.

“I’ve suffered a lot because of you. You know I’ve treated you personally as well, right?”

At my joke, Nine immediately made a puppy face and I hurriedly shook my hand.

“No, it’s a fact to treat people who are hurt. It’s alright. If you want to pay the debt of your treatment and your free board, work hard.”

I smiled and walked inside with Nine. Only then the force with which I gritted my teeth finally unraveled.

“…… Nine. Lock the door.”

At my lowered voice, Nine hurriedly locked the door.

Though he approached with a questioning face, my vision was already blurring. I lost my balance and collapsed and something hot dripped out of my mouth.

Blood. The smell of iron spread across the room.

“Damn…… it.”

The last thing I saw was Nine’s surprised face. What is this? The person who was most surprised is you.

I felt my eyes roll backwards, and I lost my consciousness soon afterwards.

I began to dream.

“Sob, sob…”

In front of my eyes, a young girl who was barely seven was crying. The child, who had long black hair, cried pitifullying with tears dropping from her yellow colored eyes.

I naturally approached her and asked,

[Why are you crying?]

“B… Because no one, sob, will hug me…”

The child hiccupped as she responded in a voice filled with sorrow.

[Then I’ll hug you.]

I spread my arms wide open and smiled slightly. Then, the child looked at me with a cold gaze and replied,

“…I don’t like girls.”

Hey, you—? No, I gotta calm down. The person opposing me is only a child.

I calmed my trembling cheeks and spoke in a sweet tone.

[Child, don’t cry. What am I supposed to do after you say that you don’t want to hug me even after I offer it to you … No, what should I do to make you stop crying?]

The child responded immediately with a stream of words as if she’d been waiting.

“Bring me Ian!”

Ian? It was a name I’d heard a lot before from somewhere… But for some reason, I couldn’t remember it very well. I tilted my head to the side in confusion and asked again,

[Who is that?]

“My husband!”

Though I was certain that the figure of this child, who smiled brightly, was only that of a dream, I choked and started coughing. I hurriedly brought my coughing under control, barely taking a breath.

[Is that so…? A husband… Why do you need one?]

“Because I really really like Ian. But Ian can’t come see me. Ian’s going to become the Crown Prince so he’s really really busy. So bring Ian to me! Because you’re an adult, you won’t get scolded by Martha.”