BTTD 07

“We’ve entered the castle grounds.”

At the coachman’s voice, Valentin drew back the curtain that had been covering the window.

For the entire long journey, I had done nothing but stare at Valentin’s face. Now, at last, I could look outside at the fresh green leaves spreading vibrantly beyond the glass.

“Wow.”

The carriage had already passed through the main gates and was moving along the approach road. The boulevard was so wide it rivaled an airport runway.

Unlike the extravagant and charming Rafelia Castle, this grand ducal residence exuded restrained elegance. Seeing it, I finally felt the reality of having truly followed Valentin here.

‘The rabbits…’

When I left the estate, the two rabbits had only seen me off; they hadn’t followed. I’d thought that was safer too.

“Ppiii, ppi!”

Nathan, come back as a human.

I mean, inside I am human…

Remembering the way they’d waved their short forepaws at me, my ears drooped on their own.

“Nathan.”

At the still-unfamiliar sound of my name in that voice, I straightened my slumped shoulders. Valentin had already stepped out of the carriage and was holding out his hand to me.

“….”

When I just stared at it, he wiggled his fingers impatiently, like playing the piano.

After hesitating, I placed my beastly paw in his hand. Smiling in satisfaction, he helped me down from the carriage.

“Your Grace, welcome ba—”

The white-haired man bit his tongue mid-sentence.

He bowed smoothly as if nothing had happened, but I knew.

‘He bit his tongue because of me!’

Still, it was a fairly good reaction. Maybe because he served Valentin, he had strong nerves.

“And this person… may I ask who they are?”

He composed his expression and asked calmly. The experience showed. Definitely the duke’s butler.

“A puppy.”

“Pardon?”

“What?”

The atmosphere turned strange in an instant.

He kept calling me a puppy, so I’d assumed he was just softening the word “beast.” But he was actually introducing me as a puppy?

Even the seasoned butler’s pupils trembled slightly now.

As if determined to tease him, Valentin drove the nail in further.

“Didn’t I mention I was bringing a puppy? Show him to the room I spoke of last time.”

“Y-Yes, of course.”

It sounded curt to me, but the butler understood perfectly and nodded.

“See you later, Nathan.”

Valentin gave me a sweet smile and simply walked off.

Excuse me, Valentin? Where exactly will I be seeing you later? In this massive castle, I feel like I could get lost with one wrong step.

As I glared at his retreating back, the butler guided me toward the entrance.

“This way, Lord Nathan.”

The long corridor stretching endlessly ahead was intricately engraved with the family’s rose emblem.

I had no idea why they’d embedded black into a flower motif, but the delicate design caught the eye even from afar.

While I was distracted, the butler spoke.

“I am Levi Halbrecht, butler of House Berenice. I have served Lord Valentin for many years. If you have any questions about the ducal house, you may ask me.”

As expected.

“I look forward to your guidance.”

Even though I was planning to steal Lord Valentin’s lips someday. Still, I greeted him sincerely.

After crossing a vast lobby and climbing the stairs for quite some time, we arrived at an enormous room.

No—was this even a room?

‘Isn’t this just an entire house?’

“The adjoining room is Lord Valentin’s bedroom. If you require anything, pull the bell cord. The maid assigned to you, Ayla, will assist you.”

Levi pointed to a yellow cord by the bed, bowed politely, and left.

‘As expected of Valentin. He keeps everyone in line.’

Even if the future where he killed me had changed, the man who could smile brightly while wielding a sword hadn’t fundamentally changed.

‘He went through hard times, after all.’

With a sigh, I sat on the massive bed—big enough for ten people. Even under my weight, the springs were firm. Definitely high quality.

‘As expected of a ducal house.’

Surprisingly, House Berenice had only been established two years ago. Valentin received the ducal title at twenty when he left the imperial palace.

Yet through his battlefield achievements, the wealth he’d amassed, and his extraordinary charisma, he had rapidly developed the North.

The hero who pioneered the North—land everyone once avoided because it bordered the Black Swamp.

Though only two years old and still lacking in some areas, Berenice would surely grow even faster from here.

After sketching out the storyline in my head, I stopped and wandered toward the bathroom.

Being confined in a narrow carriage with Valentin all day had made me sweat more than usual. I wanted to wash.

Of course, beast fur didn’t get oily in a day or two like human hair. It didn’t smell easily either.

Technically, if I groomed like an animal, I wouldn’t need to bathe daily…

But I’m human!

Drying would be hard, but I’d bathe today.

“I don’t need to call someone, right?”

If this maid Ayla fainted at the sight of me, that would be bad.

“It’s just washing. How hard could it be?”

Hot water, cold water, soap—this was a place where people lived. How different could it be?

I strode into the bathroom.

…It was very different.

“Ah! Cold! Why is only cold water coming out?”

Rafelia Castle’s design had been intuitive. Adjusting water temperature had been easy.

But the ducal residence interior was different. Everything was simplified to the point of removing even what should have been there.

Fine. Cold water, whatever. The real problem came afterward.

I had to dry my fur.

‘I’m an indoor beast! If I don’t dry properly, I’ll drip water all over the house like some kind of ghost.’

Like right now.

“Where’s the heater? Don’t they have a dryer?”

I searched the huge bathroom thoroughly. Nothing obvious.

Meanwhile, water dripped steadily from my entire body.

“This won’t do.”

I pulled armfuls of fluffy towels from a drawer and began laying them outside the bathroom.

One step, one towel.

My own countermeasure to avoid soaking the floor.

And surely, in a place this cold, there had to be a heater somewhere.

“Ah, I ran out.”

I needed more towels to reach what looked like a heater.

Just as I debated returning to the bathroom—

Knock, knock.

Someone rapped on the door.

Startled, I looked around at the disaster. Whoever saw this would be mortified.

The door opened mercilessly.

“…”

“…”

Calm green eyes slowly swept me from bottom to top.

My soaked, shrunken body. Damp fur. Puddles pooled on the floor.

His gaze dropped to the floor behind me—following the trail of white towels scattered like stepping stones.

Click.

Valentin pulled the door shut behind him and stepped in. The sound seemed oddly loud.

Of course, I couldn’t say a word.

“…So what I brought home really is a puppy.”

It’s not!!

I screamed internally, but it didn’t reach him.

Shaking his head at how impressively chaotic the room had become, Valentin fetched fresh towels from the bathroom.

In his right hand, he carried something the size of a forearm—a diamond-shaped object.

“Come here.”

He tapped it twice. It floated slightly into the air and began emitting intense heat.

Silently, I sat in front of it.

‘How was I supposed to recognize that as a heater?’

Grumbling inwardly, I let him pull up a chair and begin drying my hair in earnest.

‘This feels unexpectedly nice.’

His hands gently worked through my fur, scratching lightly from the scalp down. It felt good.

Maybe because I’d been tense all day in that unfamiliar carriage, the warm air and soft touch loosened me. My eyes drifted shut.

Through fading consciousness, I thought I heard his voice.

“They say dogs act like kings.”

I’m not a dog…

Mmm.

Sunlight streaming through the window tickled my eyelids.

“Rabbit, what’s for breakfast today—”

My eyes snapped open.

I sat up straight and looked around.

Unfamiliar air. Unfamiliar sounds. Unfamiliar room.

‘Right. I came to the ducal residence with Valentin yesterday.’

Adjusting to yet another new place left a bitter taste in my mouth. I wished the rabbits had come too.

As I smacked my lips regretfully, someone knocked and entered.

I turned, thinking it might be Valentin—but it wasn’t.

“Good morning, Lord Nathan. I am Ayla, assigned to attend you starting today.”

A young woman in a navy dress bowed. Her voice was bright; her face youthful. She looked very young.

Perhaps Levi had warned her, because she didn’t seem overly startled at my appearance.

‘Or maybe everyone in this household just has nerves of steel.’

“These are your clothes for today. I will assist you in changing.”

Her voice trembled slightly.

Curious, I glanced at her before turning to the outfit she indicated.

My mouth fell open.

What… is this?

“What’s the problem?”

Valentin, elegantly slicing meat at breakfast, asked.

I followed the motion of his fork as he lifted a piece to his mouth before replying sulkily.

“The ribbon.”

What is this, Black Cat Nero or something?

The clothes prepared for me were a navy vest with a bright yellow ribbon. The ribbon fluttered conspicuously at the neck.

“Why? It matches your eye color.”

I wrinkled my nose at his shameless response.

It didn’t look bad, exactly. But I felt ridiculously dressed up—like some fashionable beast.

‘I only wore the vest to maintain a shred of human dignity!’

If Ayla hadn’t looked so distressed when I declared I wouldn’t wear the ribbon, I wouldn’t be seeing that mischievous grin on his face.

I chewed my food pointedly.

He didn’t care. Calmly, he cut more meat and placed it on my plate.

“Today’s special. You should dress nicely.”

“…Special?”

I narrowed my eyes.

While I felt uneasy, Valentin casually lifted his wine glass, smiling with his eyes.

“I’m introducing you to the Knights of Berenice.”

“What?!”