HRTC 04

Chapter 4

A knock came, and Jane appeared.

“Miss. It’s Jane.”

In her hands was a cookie specially made for Kali.

Kali, who had been moving around with nothing better to do, trying to get used to controlling her body, looked up. The moment she spotted what Jane was holding, she bounced excitedly in place.

“Waaah. Thank you.”

She hurried toward Jane, only to pitch forward onto the floor. She still wasn’t used to her new body.

‘Damn it. My original body was already on the small side, but now I’m even smaller, so everything requires so much precision!’

Frustrated that her body refused to move the way she wanted, she clenched her tiny fists and pounded the bed.

Watching the little squirrel throw a tantrum with her miniature body, Jane couldn’t help but chuckle.

Kali immediately looked up and puffed out her cheeks.

“Don’t laugh.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. You were just so adorable, Miss…”

“Ugh…”

She finally managed to sit up.

As if she had been waiting for that, Jane set a tiny plate down in front of her.

At first, everything had seemed enormous.

The food, the plates, the furniture—everything.

But after Jane’s request, more and more things had gradually been made smaller.

Like the cookies and the plates.

Now the chef prepared meals in portions suitable for Kali, and accordingly, child-sized dishes were brought out for her.

‘At least they stopped serving me acorns.’

On the first day, they had actually brought her real acorns.

She had nearly starved.

Just because her body was a squirrel didn’t mean her diet had become one too.

Holding the cookie with both hands, she took as big a bite as she could.

Even so, it only shrank by about the size of an ant.

“Oh, right. The mansion may be rather noisy today. I hope you’ll understand.”

“Hm? Why? Is someone coming? Come to think of it, everyone seems really busy.”

“The wedding will be held in three weeks.”

“A wedding? Oh… whose? Someone in the mansion is getting married?”

Jane smiled quietly.

“You will be, Miss.”

“Ah…”

I see.

She nodded instinctively before realizing that wasn’t the proper reaction.

Kali jerked her head up and dropped the cookie with a soft thud.

A wedding? To who?

Then she suddenly remembered the fact she had forgotten.

I’m the cursed bride.

If the Grand Duke didn’t marry the cursed bride, he would die.

To survive, he had no choice but to marry her.

It was practically a forced marriage.

“Heh… hehehe…”

Laughing as though she’d lost her mind, Kali’s body trembled before she let out a long sigh.

Her squirrel ears and fluffy tail seemed to droop.

Jane knelt in front of her and gently stroked her back with a finger.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner. It was only decided yesterday…”

“N-no. It’s okay. Really. Then you’ll be busy too, won’t you, Jane?”

“Yes. But if you call for me, I’ll come immediately.”

“Okaaay… a month from now…”

With those final words, Jane left the bedroom.

Kali simply blinked blankly before letting out another sigh.

Then she flopped onto her stomach on the bed.

“I’m really getting married? Wow…”

Life sure was fantastical and spectacular.

She was only twenty years old, yet she’d already gone through enough bizarre experiences for several lifetimes.

‘Do I have any luck at all?’

She rolled over until she was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling.

‘No luck with parents, either. My lifespan wasn’t long, and…’

Her parents divorced.

She got hit by a car because she died young.

She woke up alive again, only to become a squirrel.

A squirrel.

Still, she had no intention of sinking into endless self-pity.

Kali suddenly jumped to her feet and looked toward the door.

For now, the most important thing was getting used to this squirrel body.

“Yeah. Who knows when I’ll become human again.”

What had already happened couldn’t be changed.

She wasn’t living in the past anymore.

She was living in the present.

There was no point dwelling on what had already happened.

All she could do was focus on reality.

In front of the bedroom door stood an elegant table with a decorative flowerpot on top.

If she climbed onto it and jumped, she could reach the doorknob.

“All right. Challenge accepted…”

First, Kali jumped down from the bed.

So far, so good.

But she landed poorly and rolled across the floor five times.

She tumbled like a little ball until she finally smacked into the wall.

‘Ow, ow, ow! I’m dying! I’m seriously dying!’

Clutching her head, she curled up in pain before springing back to her feet.

Still, for a first attempt, she’d done pretty well.

She scampered over to the table and began climbing.

Like I’d lose to something this easy.

Fueled by pure stubbornness, she spent every ounce of effort she had before finally reaching the top.

“Whew… humanity triumphs. Humanity triumphs.”

This time she took a deep breath.

One final obstacle remained.

Narrowing her eyes, Kali carefully judged the distance.

She shifted her body from side to side before settling into what looked like the perfect position.

“This angle… this distance… and the wind. Perfect.”

She inhaled sharply.

Closing her eyes tightly, Kali opened them again.

One…

Two…

“…Three.”

Go!

She threw herself forward.

Though she was an ordinary squirrel—not a flying squirrel—she soared through the air and grabbed the doorknob exactly as she’d intended.

Tensing her stomach muscles, she pushed the handle downward.

Click.

The door opened.

“Hah… hahaha! Success! I did it!”

Her celebration lasted only a moment.

All the strength left her body, and she slowly slid down.

She landed with a flop.

Spread across the floor like melted ice cream, Kali remained motionless for quite some time before finally wriggling.

“See? Humanity triumphs. Humanity triumphs.”

Pushing herself back up, Kali proudly walked out of the room.

Come to think of it, this was her first time leaving the bedroom.

Ever since becoming a squirrel, she’d been cooped up inside.

Feeling stifled, she carefully began walking, intending to take a stroll and explore the mansion.

As expected, everything looked enormous from a squirrel’s perspective.

Actually, the already gigantic mansion now seemed absolutely colossal.

“Come to think of it, in the novel, the squirrel bride was confined to a corner room on the fifth floor.”

Which meant…

She was already on the top floor.

Realizing she needed to go downstairs, Kali headed toward the staircase in the distance.

It felt as though she had wandered into a giant’s house.

Everything fascinated her, and she couldn’t stop looking around.

With the wedding preparations beginning today, the mansion itself buzzed with activity.

‘Seriously, though… what is there to prepare?’

Hop.

Hop.

She was happily making her way down the stairs when—

‘Huh…? That’s strange.’

She was supposed to be going downward.

Instead, she suddenly felt herself being lifted into the air.

What?

She looked up.

A little boy with large, round eyes was staring at her.

“A squirrel is wandering around…?”

Holding Kali gently around the middle, the boy examined her curiously from every angle.

Kali stared back before speaking flatly.

“That’s rude. Put me down.”

“Eek! The squirrel talks!”

“What? Never seen a talking squirrel before?”

Even though he jumped in surprise, he showed no sign of putting her down.

What was with this kid?

Kali seriously considered biting his plump little fingers.

A moment later, however, his black eyes sparkled.

“Ah! I know who you are. You’re the new young lady, aren’t you?”

“Probably. And I told you, put me down.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Where were you going?”

Despite apologizing, the boy still didn’t set her down.

Instead, he placed her on his palm and began petting her however he pleased.

Who was this rude little brat?

Still…

His touch was surprisingly gentle.

He didn’t seem like the type to bully her just because she was a talking squirrel.

“Me? I’m touring the mansion.”

“With such a tiny body?”

“Don’t underestimate me just because I’m small. You’re small too.”

“But I’m still bigger than you.”

“You rude little brat.”

“Hehe. Sorry. But you’re just so cute. I’ve never seen such a tiny animal before. You’re even smaller than a kitten or a puppy.”

“…”

Left speechless, Kali stared into his eyes.

If he didn’t put her down soon, she really might bite him.

Just then, perhaps understanding the warning in her eyes, the boy suddenly placed her on top of his head.

With her viewpoint suddenly much higher, Kali simply blinked in confusion.

“Miss, my name is Levi. I work here.”

“You’re a little kid who works here?”

“Yes. Oh, and if you’re touring the mansion, leave it to me! They don’t give me much work yet because I’m still young…”

“You’re bored?”

The top of Levi’s head was warm and surprisingly comfortable.

It was even nice and flat, making it easy to lie down.

Without realizing it, her tail swayed gently as she found a comfortable position.

Her tiny pink hands tightly grabbed his bright red hair.

“Yeees. Honestly, I am. Hehe.”

“How old are you?”

“I turned seven this year.”

“Hmm… I see.”

“Miss, may I ask your name?”

“Mine?”

For a moment, Kali wondered whether she should tell him.

Then she smiled.

There wasn’t really any reason to hide it.

She spoke the name of this squirrel body—a name that still felt unfamiliar coming from her own mouth.

“Kali. Kali Hereis. Just call me Kali.”

“Yes, Miss Kali.”

“So what do you normally do?”

Thanks to Levi, Kali wasn’t nearly as bored anymore.

She busily looked around while riding on his head.

The servants they passed greeted Levi warmly, and he cheerfully greeted them back.

“I’m actually still learning.”

“Learning what?”

“To be an errand boy.”

“Huh… But you’re so young. How did you end up working here?”

As Levi wandered through each floor, he carefully explained everything.

Thanks to him, Kali quickly memorized the mansion’s layout.

“Me?”

Levi tilted his head upward.

Startled, Kali smacked his shiny forehead.

“Watch where you’re going, kid. If you drop me, I’m dead.”

“What a violent squirrel…”

“What was that?”

“N-nothing! I just said you’re cute, Miss.”

“Keep your eyes forward.”

Kali tugged at his hair this way and that, as though she were operating a joystick.

Chuckling, Levi continued.

“The Grand Duke brought me here.”

“What…? Really?”

That was unexpected.

An arrogant, self-centered, utterly unpredictable man who was as impossible to grasp as the wind.

That was exactly how the original novel described Leonhardt Spencer.