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Chapter 25
“No! I’m not going!”
Laura spun her head sharply.
Ruby flustered, tried to calm her down.
Since Clémen had asked, they needed to take her along—but Laura was far more stubborn than expected.
“B-but the fireplace said it would tell a real secret!”
“No! It’s not my fireplace anymore!”
A monster is prettier than Laura?
Laura stomped her feet and tensed her whole body, resisting.
Roo, sucking his finger and watching Laura, slowly walked over.
“Fireplace. Let’s be friends.”
“But!”
“Fireplace. Let’s be friends, really.”
“You didn’t come. You didn’t chase Laura. You stayed there.”
Roo’s damp little hands gently grabbed Laura’s cheeks.
“Roo wants to be friends.”
“…Really?”
“Yeah.”
Laura sighed, “Hawu,” and lowered Roo’s hands by taking hold of them.
“Ew! You touched me with those hands? Didn’t we agree that now we’re all grown up, you shouldn’t be using snotty fingers on me?”
Laura wiped Roo’s hands on her skirt, scolding him.
“Mom.”
“Mm, yes?”
“Hug me.”
“All right.”
Ruby scooped the twins up, one in each arm.
They were heavy.
When had the children grown so much? Listening to their conversation, she couldn’t help but laugh.
She had worried a little because Roo was younger and slower than Laura, but his heart seemed to be growing just fine.
“Mom.”
“Speak.”
“Fireplace… what did it say?”
“Huh?”
“Laura got mad… did it get mad?”
Laura murmured, timid at the thought of meeting it.
“Hmm. Shall we ask it when we meet?”
Clémen nodded with satisfaction as she watched Zephyrus, ready for the plan.
“Perfect.”
“…Will this work?”
“Showing your face would be best, but the master doesn’t want that, right?”
“If it doesn’t work, be prepared.”
“If the children like it, we’ll do that. I promise.”
It was almost time to call Ruby over. Clémen took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves.
The effort to calm someone else’s anger, the effort to clear up a misunderstanding.
It was unfamiliar and unnerving, but not unpleasant.
Compared to those who got angry at her simply for existing, Laura’s anger was based on love.
Honestly… her angry face was kind of cute too…
Thinking back, it really was.
Just then, Ruby arrived on the third floor, carrying the two children.
Clémen had a fleeting thought—if she stripped the clothes covering Ruby’s arms, the muscles underneath must be solid.
“Ahem. Welcome to the castle of the frozen snowman.”
Clémen lifted the hem of her jet-black dress in a theatrical greeting.
“My friends, would you like to come this way?”
Dressed in black, with her fiery orange hair hidden under a black hood, Clémen looked unfamiliar to the children.
Even when Ruby set them down, they hesitated, unsure of moving.
Clémen smiled gently, took a step forward, and knelt on one knee.
“Now, let me show you something.”
From a short distance, Clémen revealed a portrait of Zephyrus as a child.
She had obtained it through Laecina.
A quiet space, filled with muted, grayish tones.
Only Zephyrus’ portrait shimmered faintly within.
“In this place lived a young master, beautiful, clever, kind, and admirable.”
“In a place with a monster?”
As expected, Laura and Roo started showing interest.
Laura, immersed without realizing it, asked. Clémen clasped her chest, feigning distress.
“Ah, the poor young master! A life misunderstood as a monster.”
Pretending to wipe tears, she made Laura stomp her feet.
“W-what? Are you crying, Fireplace?”
Seeing Laura frown, Clémen hurriedly continued.
“Someone jealous of the perfect young master turned him into a monster. So he had no choice but to be trapped in this room.”
“So he can’t leave here?”
“No. The young master can only look outside through the window.”
Laura furrowed her brows, concern spreading across her face.
He… can’t go outside…
Such a pitiful monster.
“B-but he’s not pretty! He’s scary!”
“Yes, that thought! Completely wrong.”
Annoyed, Laura clenched her tiny fists.
“No! I’m not wrong! Fireplace’s eyes are weird!”
“But if you see him, you’ll definitely like him.”
“I won’t look at scary things!”
“Really?”
“Yes!”
“Hmm… then what should we do? The poor monster young master must be waiting to clear up the misunderstanding.”
If Laura and Roo continued to see him as a frightening monster, he might never return to normal.
Clémen pretended to give up, stood up, and turned away. Hesitant Laura called out to her.
“What if he’s scary when we see him?”
“Laura.”
“Why?”
Perhaps having nothing else to say, Laura raised her chin proudly. A familiar pose she often did.
“Snowman. You like it, right?”
“…Snowman castle!”
At that moment, Roo, who had been observing quietly, clapped his hands and brightened.
“Snowman!”
“Snowman…?”
“Want to see him?”
“B-but… snowman isn’t a monster…”
“Do you want to see him?”
Prompted again, Laura nodded.
Clémen smiled widely and knocked on the door.
Soon, there was a sound of glass sliding—white glass, filled completely.
The twins looked at the glass, curious.
“Umm… there he is.”
The white figure slowly moved closer.
From a distance, it was the snowman. A round body and a large round face.
Cute snowman with button eyes and a nose.
Laura stopped Roo, who tried to approach, and inspected the large snowman suspiciously.
Was this really the monster they had seen from outside?
Thick body? Check.
Oddly large head? Check.
That’s it! The snowman monster! Snowman!
“Waaah!”
Eyes shining, Laura rushed to the door. Clémen gently held her.
“There’s another sad fact about the snowman young master.”
“What is it? Let me go first!”
“Roo, hold on!”
“He freezes anyone who gets too close.”
Being twins, they both stopped simultaneously.
“Fr…eeze…?”
This was the important part.
Clémen silently swallowed, then pointed to the snowman, hands clasped together, round and white.
“That’s why he’s always cold. There’s no one to hug him.”
Clémen held Laura tighter in her arms.
“It’s not that Laura and Roo dislike him. They really like him. Truly. But…”
“We need a fireplace.”
“Huh?”
Laura interrupted Clémen mid-sentence.
Her eyes glistened as she turned backward.
“I like the cold. When it’s cold, mom hugs me. Dad’s there. Roo too. But the snowman… no one is there, right?”
“Y-yes…”
“It’s always cold. He must hate the cold so much…”
Laura hugged Clémen from behind.
“What about the fireplace? Isn’t it freezing?”
“…It’s a fireplace.”
“Then I’ll lend it to him. From me.”
“Huh?”
“So come often. If you hug the snowman ten times, Laura has to come hug him once too.”
Understanding the meaning, Clémen covered her mouth. So cute, so admirable. What should she do?
What kind of luck do I have to meet such adorable children?
Her throat tightened. She closed her eyes and nodded. Laura, noticing, whispered softly into her ear.
“Sorry for getting mad. I was upset.”
“No, I should be more sorry for leaving without saying anything.”
While they were lost in each other’s world, Roo suddenly burst into laughter.
Zephyrus, unable to bear the weight of the snowman’s head, toppled sideways.
Seeing that, Laura couldn’t help but laugh too.
“Huh… heheh…!”
Clémen held back her laughter, wagging a finger to urge them forward.
Seeing the signal from afar, Zephyrus bit his lip inside the snowman mask.
Watching the children greet him with wide smiles… it was time to keep her promise.
Zephyrus awkwardly stood up.
And then…
“Hah… huh!”
Ruby’s shock echoed silently.
His Highness…!
Thump, thump.
Spinning round and round, the snowman started dancing.
The dancing snowman monster.
The beginning of a fairy tale that every child in the North would one day know.
