HRTC 07

Chapter 07

The shocking wedding was over in the blink of an eye.

The Grand Duke, whom she had thought might never come, arrived at last, impeccably dressed and wearing a mischievous smile.

‘That man… I think he came late on purpose.’

Narrowing her eyes, Kali waited for the man who still hadn’t shown up.

‘Now that I think about it, he’s not even that skinny.’

He had a lean frame, but up close, he was unmistakably a man. The firm muscles hidden beneath his clothes made that abundantly clear.

And that wasn’t all. Beneath his beautiful face, his half-lidded, languid eyes gave him a dangerously decadent charm.

He was the kind of man who naturally stole people’s attention.

‘Ack! What am I doing? Get a grip. This isn’t the time to admire a man.’

Eventually, she entered the bedroom that had been prepared for the newlyweds’ first night together.

She sat alone on the enormous bed.

Leonhardt was nowhere to be seen.

“Wow… I’m bored. I’m tired. Sleepy. Ugh… I want to sleep…”

A moment later, she flopped onto her side before rolling onto her back to stare at the ceiling.

The ceiling seemed impossibly high, even higher than the one in her own room. No matter how far she stretched her tiny arms, she couldn’t reach it.

‘Well, obviously. What am I supposed to accomplish with these short little arms?’

The room was silent.

It felt incredibly strange to be a bride waiting for her groom.

It wasn’t that she felt neglected.

Rather…

‘How does he feel?’

How did it feel to be forced by a curse to marry an unknown woman?

Especially…

…if that bride wasn’t even a person, but a squirrel.

‘Ah, whatever. That’s none of my business.’

Trying to understand someone else was the least of her concerns. She couldn’t remain an adorable squirrel forever.

She had no intention of waiting any longer for Leonhardt.

She decided to simply go to sleep.

“Come if you want. Don’t if you don’t.”

Yawning, she slowly closed her eyes.

She couldn’t resist the drowsiness overtaking her.

A little while later.

The bedroom door quietly opened.

Having changed into more comfortable clothes, Leonhardt stepped inside and spotted a little white ball sitting on the bed.

A single squirrel, curled into a tiny ball, sleeping soundly without a care in the world.

“…You’ve got to be kidding me. She fell asleep?”

He watched the tiny body rise and fall with each breath.

Crossing his arms, Leonhardt looked down at Kali before one eyebrow arched slightly.

As he leaned over, the four buttons he had left undone revealed a glimpse of his chest.

“Hey. Cursed bride.”

The sleeping squirrel showed absolutely no sign of waking.

Straightening back up, he fell into thought.

Should I just leave?

I only came out of courtesy, anyway.

Instead, he chose to sit beside her.

The mattress bounced as he settled onto the bed next to Kali.

Even then, she remained fast asleep.

He poked her back with his left index finger.

“Wake up.”

“…”

“Hey. Cursed bride.”

“…”

She lazily waved one tiny paw as though telling him to stop bothering her.

The sight made him chuckle.

He poked her back again.

This time she wriggled like an earthworm.

The corners of Leonhardt’s lips curved upward.

‘This is… kind of fun.’

He hadn’t intended to bully her.

After all, teasing someone required having at least a little interest in them.

Leonhardt had none.

He had planned to fulfill the witch’s demand by going through the formalities of marriage and then never seeing her again.

He could simply leave her somewhere in the mansion and wait for the day she eventually died.

But…

…here he was.

‘I even put on my formal clothes. Have I finally lost my mind?’

When he had seen the little white squirrel lying on the ground…

…he had become curious.

What had this woman done to end up transformed into a squirrel and sent to become his bride?

Nothing more than simple curiosity.

“So how long are you planning to sleep?”

The squirrel squirmed before rolling onto her back.

The pale blue fur on her belly became visible against her otherwise white coat.

White with a sky-blue belly.

Leonhardt narrowed his eyes.

Even something this tiny is alive.

This time, he poked her belly with his finger.

Again, she weakly waved her tiny arms in protest.

“…Ha.”

She was ridiculously insignificant.

So why…

…did he keep wanting to tease her?

The sadistic side hidden deep inside him was just about to awaken.

“Ugh… don’t…”

At that moment, Leonhardt’s eyes widened.

‘She can speak?’

Soon, his golden eyes curved into amused crescents.

Click.

The switch inside his inner sadist had been firmly flipped.

So she really was a squirrel cursed by magic.

She looked like a squirrel, yet she spoke like a person.

And her voice was that of a pleasant young woman.

On a whim, Leonhardt decided to play along with this absurd married life for a while.

He would humor Kali for the time being.

“Wake up.”

“…No… more…”

“I said wake up.”

“…Can’t… eat… anymore…”

Kali frowned in her sleep, smacking her lips as though chewing something.

Completely ignoring her dream, Leonhardt grabbed her little body between his index and middle fingers and shook her vigorously.

“Wake up, you little glutton.”

“Ugh…?”

At last, Kali opened her eyes.

…A mini doughnut covered with delicious toppings floated before her.

As though she were inside a game, she hopped from doughnut to doughnut before running over and taking a huge bite.

At first, the doughnuts had run away from her.

Then suddenly, they began flying toward her instead.

She happily devoured them.

But once she was full and sat down because she couldn’t eat another bite…

…the doughnuts started chasing her relentlessly.

‘No! Stop! Stop! I can’t eat anymore! I don’t want any more!’

She had eaten enough doughnuts to last a lifetime.

She wanted them to stop.

But they kept charging at her.

“…Me.”

“…Can’t… anymore… mmm… can’t eat anymore…”

“I said wake up.”

“Ugh…”

Her body kept shaking.

Slowly, she opened her eyes.

The shaking stopped.

Rubbing her sleepy eyes, Kali found herself staring into a pair of golden eyes watching her from only inches away.

Blink.

Blink.

The moment she realized who those eyes belonged to…

“Aah!”

It was Leonhardt Spencer.

Startled out of her wits, she launched herself backward like a bullet.

She rolled straight off the bed and crashed onto the floor.

“Ow… that hurts… ugh…”

“What are you doing?”

Sighing as though she were hopeless, the man stood up.

With one large hand, he picked her up and placed her back on the bed.

Lying flat on her stomach, Kali simply stared blankly at the pristine white blanket.

‘What is going on? Why is Leonhardt here when I woke up?’

She cautiously lifted her head.

He was watching her with the detached gaze of an observer.

“You couldn’t even wait for me before falling asleep?”

“I-I’m sorry. Once I relaxed, I just… fell asleep.”

“So the cursed bride can speak.”

“Well, of course. Just because I look like a squirrel, did you think I’d speak squirrel?”

“Yes.”

He answered without the slightest hesitation.

Shooting him an incredulous glare, Kali sat up properly and looked up at him.

She was already miserable enough for being so tiny.

Sitting down only made the height difference between them feel even worse.

Only then did Kali finally have the chance to look at Leonhardt properly.

Earlier, everything had happened so quickly that she hadn’t been able to.

‘As expected… handsome men are the best. Whether they’re the hero or a supporting character, they have to be handsome.’

Her gaze slowly drifted downward from his face.

Four buttons of his shirt were still undone.

Her eyes widened at the firm chest visible through the opening.

‘See? I knew he had muscles hiding under there. But why does he keep leaving his shirt hanging open like that? Is he some kind of exhibitionist?’

Tilting her head from side to side, she suddenly toppled backward when his finger lightly pushed her forehead.

“What are you doing?”

“What are you staring at, you perverted squirrel?”

“The nerve…! Aren’t you leaving it open because you want people to look?”

“Not at all. More importantly, our cursed bride is surprisingly dirty-minded. Who would’ve guessed?”

“When was I ever?! Even if you begged me to look, I wouldn’t! There’s not even anything worth seeing!”

Grumbling under her breath, she sharply turned her head away.

Who does he think he’s calling a pervert?

She crossed both her arms and legs and turned her back to him.

Looking at the tiny, round back, he let out another quiet laugh.

His index finger gently tickled her back.

Instantly, Kali’s little body twisted like a pretzel.

“W-What are you doing? That tickles! Ahaha!”

“Want me to show you?”

“I-I told you I don’t need to see anything!”

“If my cursed bride wants to see, I should show her, shouldn’t I? Hmm? I’m perfectly willing.”

“L-Let go! Ahaha! Stop it!”

His long fingers invaded not only her back but her belly as well.

His tickling skills were terrifying.

As she desperately squirmed, she stole a glance toward Leonhardt.

He caught her looking while casually grabbing the hem of his own shirt and flashed a grin.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t look even if I begged you. Yet your eyes are glued right here.”

“No…!”

She bit his finger before springing to her feet.

Panting heavily, Kali glared up at him.

“Seriously! That tickles! And what’s with ‘cursed bride’? That’s not my name!”

“You never told me your name. Tell me, and I’ll use it.”

“It’s Kali. Kali Hereis.”

The moment he heard her name, Leonhardt’s expression stiffened for just an instant.

It sounded strangely familiar.

But only for a moment.

His usual smile returned as he looked down at her.

“I see. Kali.”

“Isn’t this a little much for a first meeting? I nearly died from laughing!”

“But you didn’t die, so it’s fine.”

“…”

“You look like you’ve got something to say.”

There were countless questions she wanted to ask.

She couldn’t ask all of them.

So she chose the one that bothered her the most.

“This marriage… Is it really okay for it to be carried out so simply? I thought noble weddings were supposed to be much grander.”

“That’s an excellent question, cursed bride… no, Kali.”

Hearing her own name spoken in his voice felt oddly unfamiliar.

She had expected him to call her something else.

Like squirrel.

Or maybe cursed squirrel.

“Actually, this is how it’s originally supposed to be. It was the previous Grand Duke who changed the tradition.”

Kali quietly studied the profile of the man who had become her husband only today.

“What? Already thinking about divorce? That’s awfully bold of you.”