BCD 10

chapter 10

“Milady, what are you saying? I saw it with my own eyes! The moment your hands touched the prince and princess, I could see their faces clearly. If anyone doubts it, I will stake my honor as a knight to prove it!”

Spittle flew—literally.

Fortunately, the captain seemed so moved that he hadn’t forgotten the moment even after waking up.

“Sir Winter wouldn’t lie. It’s just… such an astonishing thing that it’s hard to grasp.”

Anna, careful yet unable to hide her anticipation, looked hopeful. And Hans, usually the most meticulous and skeptical, said…

“Milady, coming to the Seifried estate was fate.”

A fatalist, huh?

“Th-then what I was going to say…”

I cleared my throat, avoiding Hans’ piercing gaze.

“I mean, we should go and see for ourselves.”

Damn it.

My ambitious plan to visit the annex with both Hans and Anna had spectacularly failed.

‘Going in directly… absolutely impossible! Access to the annex is strictly forbidden. The Duke is absent; how could we…’

I tried to coax them, mentioning that I wanted to see the children who resembled Killian, but it had no effect.

Even in a den without a tiger, the fox isn’t truly king.

Apparently, even a fox isn’t as frightening as a tiger left alone in the house.

When I insisted I would go alone, the captain followed me.

“Milady, these are the pastries baked this morning. You wanted to bring them to the little ones, correct?”

Hesitant, Anna handed over the heavy basket.

Inside were pastries with toppings of figs, cranberries, almonds, and even mint chocolate chips developed under my careful instruction of the kitchen staff.

‘Surely at least one or two of these will please the children.’

I gave a reassuring smile.

“Thanks.”

The path to the annex was overgrown with weeds.

It was clear that no one had walked this path in years.

With every step, I brushed grass off my dress, and the captain, embarrassed, spoke up.

“I’ll tell Sir Kramer to clear a new path immediately.”

I waved him off.

“They probably left it on purpose to avoid being noticed by the gardener.”

I was anxious enough already with all these unfamiliar details from the story. I wanted to avoid changing anything unnecessarily.

“Do you think Killian received the messenger?” I asked, changing the topic.

The captain spoke uncertainly:

“The snowy plains are vast. We don’t know how far His Highness has gone… But he said he’d be gone for a week, so within a day or two, he should be within reach.”

Messages sent via falcons only conveyed short instructions in code. Likely, the content was simply urging him to return promptly since I had safely returned.

He would have no idea that I had uncovered the carefully hidden family secret.

“I hope he returns safely soon.”

I muttered the words mechanically, like reading from a script.

Meanwhile, my mind raced in a different direction.

‘Before Killian, I must figure out the true nature of this strange ability.’

Planning a second run at a safe life was proving far from easy.

Finally, we arrived at the annex fence.

I chose a large tree nearby and pointed at it.

“Rest in the shade over there. The children get scared.”

He looked glum, as if still remembering how I had wielded a sword at the children yesterday, yet he obediently handed over the key.

“If any suspicious magic is detected, we’ll go in immediately.”
“Don’t worry. You saw the children yourself yesterday.”

I put on a confident front and entered the yard alone.

‘Surely this ability won’t vanish like a mirage in a single day.’

Trying to calm myself, I focused.

“Really, you’re here!”
“Finally!”

The earth mound in the corner of the yard suddenly crumbled, and round heads popped out from the ground.

Do you guys transform into moles too…?

“Why are you so late?”
“I thought you weren’t coming.”

The children, covered in dirt, ran over.

Even if they were carrying a basket each, they looked like they had come begging from a poor district.

“Achoo!”
“Achoo!”

The flying dust made my nose itch too.

“Good heavens, what is all this?”

I put down the basket and brushed off the dirt from the children as best I could.

“Why don’t you come out the door instead of going underground?”

Their reply was astonishing.

“We were told not to go out the door.”
“They said it would be dangerous if we went out the door.”

It didn’t seem to mean we should dig tunnels instead… but that wasn’t even the strangest part.

‘They’re treated like caged beasts, even though they’re not leashed.’

Are the beasts really that threatening? Is this truly the best solution?

While simmering with suppressed anger, Irene tugged my sleeve.

“Cielina, what’s this?”
“It smells weird.”

Erhi glared at the basket with a serious expression.

‘Not the time to lose my temper in front of the children.’

I calmed myself and lifted the basket cover.

“Ah, I baked some pastries to share. There’s a mint chocolate flavor too—you’ve never tried it, right?”

A heavenly taste from the world beyond the book.

“…….”
“…….”

The children exchanged puzzled glances and, as if in unison, asked:

“What’s a pastry?”
“What’s that?”

I was momentarily stunned but quickly composed myself.

“You… never had a pastry?”

The children nodded innocently.

A terrifying thought crossed my mind.

‘Could it be that, as beasts, they eat something different from humans?’

Beasts don’t seem like they’d be vegetarian… maybe squirrels… rabbits… or… humans?

“Ahem. Well, then… want to try some?”

I hurriedly handed each child a buttery cookie.

“…….”
“…….”

After observing the cookies for a long moment, they almost simultaneously took a bite.

Crisp-

I couldn’t bear to watch and squeezed my eyes shut.

Crack- crunch-

A cold sweat ran down my spine.

The basket of pastries disappeared in an instant.

The children rubbed their round, full bellies and rolled on the grass.

“Delicious!”
“Sweet!”

I breathed a sigh of relief, watching them without a worry in the world.

‘So they eat pastries just like ordinary children.’

While they ate, I internally filmed a few gore movies of blood and screams.

‘But what do they usually eat?’

Both children were plump and healthy. At least in terms of food, I could tell they were well taken care of.

‘Curious, but… better not to know yet.’

“Erhi, Irene.”

The children, previously absorbed in catching butterflies, turned toward me like meerkats.

“Where’s Royena?”

I recalled the nanny’s name from the children’s conversation.

‘Hans didn’t even introduce her name, just called her a member of the Gillot clan.’

She couldn’t be an ordinary nanny if she was entrusted with beast-like children.

“Royena…”

The children paused meaningfully before answering:

“She’s praying.”
“She’s praying.”

Praying when it’s time to take care of the children…?

“It’s a secret for Royena, Cielina,” whispered Irene, clinging to my knee.

“What’s a secret?”
Erhi asked.

“That we came outside.”

Apparently, they had sneaked out while Royena was praying.

“Would she scold you if she found out?”

The children tilted their heads in confusion.

“Scold us?”
“No.”

I stroked their heads.

“Then why shouldn’t she see?”

The children suddenly looked downcast.

“Royena cries if we’re naughty.”
“Royena cries because she’s scary.”

Ah… confusing, so confusing.

‘The more I learn, the deeper I sink into the mire.’

I anxiously stared at the firmly closed annex door.

On the way back to the main house, Remfrey’s excitement hadn’t subsided.

“The moment you touched the prince’s cheek, a sacred light emanated from your noble fingertips…!”

Yes, here comes the next exaggeration.

‘Sacred light… really.’

My hands, which had been playing with the children and building a toad house, were covered in dirt even under the nails.

‘If Lily sees this, she’ll have a fit.’

Despite my complete disregard, Remfrey seemed determined to keep talking.

Was it really appropriate for the captain of the Duke’s knights to act so frivolously?

I suspected he might be preparing for a career as a street performer.

“Every time I see it, it’s incredible. As the beast’s form gradually fades and the true, dignified prince is revealed…”

Arriving in the main house garden, Lily waved at me.

“Mi-milady!”

Meeting my family in my previous life probably wouldn’t have felt this welcoming.

“Oh, my maid came to greet me. You’ve worked hard today, Sir Winter.”

I quickly freed Remfrey and ran to Lily.

“Milady! Where have you gone without telling me? You promised to always inform me before leaving, and now this?”

Seeing me close, Lily suddenly started to choke up.

“The head maid said I didn’t need to worry since the captain escorted you… but I did worry!”

Her gaze naturally fell on the empty basket in my hand.

“What’s with that huge basket? What are all these crumbs…?”

Her wide eyes demanded an explanation.

“Ah… just a little outing.”

The vague excuse only piqued Lily’s curiosity.

“An outing? All this time, just with the captain?”

Lily gave me a suspicious look.

“Milady, surely you didn’t…”