BGDBP 17

Chapter 17

“Good afternoon, Lord Johannes.”

It was Deon, the elderly gentleman who had long served as butler to the Grand Duchy of Hespia.

“Ah, Deon. Do you know where Lady Chris is?”

“She bathed earlier, so I believe she’s in her bedroom now.”

“…What?”

Deon smiled faintly at Johannes’s look of shock, his mouth hanging open. He understood perfectly. After all, Chris was not the type to lounge around in her bedroom at this hour.

She’s never once slept properly since childhood.

Chris always had trouble falling asleep. She would push her body to exhaustion, pass out for a short moment, then spring awake again. That was her routine.

Someone like that went into her bedroom at this hour?

That’s not like her at all.

Johannes frowned and shook his head as if he couldn’t believe it.

Chuckling, Deon said, “Who knows. Perhaps she might sleep well today.”

“Hah. Just because she found a doll? If that’s possible, that would be nothing short of a miracle.”

Johannes dismissed it, yet he didn’t feel at ease.

Something feels off.

The doll she lost 18 years ago returned as if nothing had happened. And Chris was acting unlike her usual self…

Come to think of it, that story I once read about a cursed doll turning an entire household into a bloodbath started the exact same way…

Johannes stiffened.

S-surely that doll isn’t something dangerous like that, right?

He shivered, then let out a forced laugh.

No, that was just a novel. As if something like that could exist.

He tried to brush it off, but his complexion was pale as a ghost and goosebumps crawled up his arms.

Watching Johannes, whose face had suddenly gone ghastly, Deon smiled faintly.

He’s such a peculiar man.

Which was probably why he kept speaking his mind despite Chris frequently threatening his life.

Meanwhile, Chris’s bedroom was noisy.

Oh my goodness. The Grand Duke is asleep?!

This is a miracle!

Meow-meow!

Chris rarely came into her bedroom except to change clothes. For someone like that to lie down and fall asleep instantly with such an angelic face—no wonder the three dolls were shocked.

Hey! Idiot!

The rabbit doll called out to Pianie, who was tucked in Chris’s arms.

They expected Pianie to snap back with her usual sharp voice—but there was no answer.

Hey. You mad?

Even at that annoying question, Pianie didn’t respond. The dolls exchanged glances.

Looks like she’s seriously sulking.

Or maybe she’s scared because of the frightening things the Grand Duke mumbled earlier?

Meow-meow.

And then—

Snorrrre…

What was that sound?

The rabbit doll asked, and the sound came again, clearer this time.

Snorrrre…

Realizing what it was, the rabbit doll gasped.

Don’t tell me… she’s snoring?!

Seems like it.

Impossible. How long has it been since she lay down?

The cat doll mewed in agreement: Meow-meow!

By the way… what is she, exactly?
the rabbit doll murmured.

Who knows.

The three dolls examined the mana inside Pianie again. Compared to their own, her mana glowed faintly—almost weak—but its size was enormous.

Is that even possible?

After thinking for a while, the bear doll spoke sharply.

One thing’s for sure—there’s something wrong with that kid’s memory.

What are you talking about?
asked the rabbit doll.

The bear doll chuckled darkly.

She’s clearly the doll the Grand Duke lost. And he lost her 18 years ago.

Right.

That means she must’ve become a doll at least 18 years ago. Even I, who endured several centuries, think 18 years is long. Yet she claims she became a doll only recently. What does that tell you? She’s completely out of her mind.

“Oooh~,” the rabbit doll nodded.

Showing off, the bear doll soon smiled gently.

In the end, the Grand Duke really found her.

Yeah.

The three dolls knew better than anyone just how hard Chris had searched for her doll, again and again.

She even complained to us sometimes.

The rabbit doll remembered a weary Chris once looking at them and saying:

—I came back empty-handed again today. But I’ll find her, no matter what. When I bring her back, you three have to be good friends to her.

Chris had said that while gently patting them.

The dolls had always thought: If she finds her, we’ll be good to her. Even if she’s not a special doll like us, we’ll treat her kindly—because it’s what Chris wants.

But now that Chris truly brought the doll back… they felt strange.

It’s like the Grand Duke doesn’t see us anymore,
the rabbit doll said gloomily.

Normally, Chris would glance at them immediately. But today, she only cared about Pianie in her arms.

Seeing the rabbit doll sulk, the bear doll chuckled.

Don’t be like that. If that kid helps the Grand Duke sleep, that’s a good thing, isn’t it?

…Well, that’s true.

The rabbit doll steadied himself.

Chris was their savior. He rescued them from a terrible place and put them somewhere warm, where sunlight reached. Without Chris, the three of them would never have met.

If that sharp-tongued Pianie could help Chris…

Ahem. When she wakes up, we shouldn’t tease her. We should talk nicely.

Yeah. I think we went too far earlier.

Meow-meow.

And while the three kindhearted dolls chatted, Pianie slept deeply.

Snooore—snorrrre…

She was so deeply asleep that she didn’t notice the warm light flowing from Chris’s crest and seeping into her body.

In the bluish dawn where even the dolls slept soundly, Chris opened her eyes. The faint darkness that would soon vanish under sunrise surrounded her.

“…?”

She blinked rapidly, looking startled—as if she had woken up on a strange roadside.

What? What time is it?

She sat up, checked the clock, and widened her eyes.

No way.

She couldn’t believe she’d gone to bed at twilight and woken at dawn.

I didn’t even lie down to sleep.

She had only wanted to rest while holding the hard-to-find doll she finally recovered—not to sleep.

Was it all a dream?

Suddenly anxious, Chris quickly checked her arms. Relief washed over her when she found Pianie still nestled against her, and she smiled softly.

“How adorable…”

People say memories become sugar-coated, but her beloved doll—seen for the first time in years—looked even cuter than she remembered. Not that its appearance had changed; Chris would stake her name on it—this was unmistakably her attachment doll.

Did I fall asleep because of her?

Ever since losing the doll, Chris had never slept properly. But she had never assumed the cause was the doll. She blamed her awakened ability instead.

Since the time I lost her and the time my abilities started acting up overlap…

She stroked the doll gently.

Either way, you’re helping me again.

Chris adored the little doll looking at her so disdainfully. She would give the entire world for her without hesitation.

Thank you for returning safely to me.

Chris placed a firm kiss on her beloved doll’s face. It was her first time ever kissing the doll.

Perhaps because of that, her heart trembled.

No, I’m not some kind of pervert.

To think she’d get this flustered just from kissing a doll… Embarrassed, Chris cleared her throat and placed the doll back onto her chest.

But something felt wrong. Soft. Squishy. Warm—like human body heat, not a doll…

“Mmm…”

A lovely woman’s voice sounded from somewhere.

…?

Alarmed, Chris looked down at her broad chest.

Where her precious doll should have been lay a beautiful, unknown young woman, her cheek squished against his chest as she slept comfortably.

Was this a dream?

Was she still half-asleep?

Chris stared blankly as the woman rubbed her cheek against him.

“Mmmmh…”

Chris screamed silently.