TSVD 08

Chapter 08 …

Emergency.

This was a full-blown emergency, Blake!

While I was letting my guard down, an unexpected crisis suddenly appeared, and I bit my lip tightly.

“Hyung?”

‘What do I do!’

The moment I heard the door opening, I immediately flopped down behind the desk in the study.

Just as I barely managed to hide my body, the door opened.

Peeking out slightly with one eye, I saw a round silver head cautiously poking in through the door.

“Hyung! I came to say hello….”

The child muttered in a small voice, then, as if gathering courage, pushed the door open a little wider and slipped inside.

“Is he not here…?”

The silver hair of the child looking around reflected the light from the slightly opened door.

And the moment I saw that shimmering silver hair, I immediately realized who the child was.

‘Aaron Leblanc!’

Before long, I could see Aaron’s face as he approached near the desk.

Small, round violet eyes and chubby cheeks.

A boy who looked exactly like what Blake would have looked like in his childhood.

He was the younger brother of the original novel’s second male lead, someone who pitied his older brother as he slowly descended into ruin.

‘Wasn’t it mentioned that after Blake died, he became the next head of the Leblanc family?’

He was also a character with a very tragic story.

A child who suffered from a curse and lost his beloved brother, eventually becoming head of the family alone.

‘Children should really grow up living their age… that’s the happiest way.’

Fortunately, Aaron didn’t see me and sat down on the sofa with a sigh.

“Hyung seems busy again….”

Muttering while fidgeting with his fingers, the child’s lament filled the room with silence.

Tick-tock, tick-tock.

Only the sound of the clock’s hand moving could be heard, and it was a long while before Aaron spoke again.

“…I’m going to the monastery to pray tomorrow… I came to say goodbye before I go.”

Of course, there was no reply.

Because Blake wasn’t in this room.

But Aaron, unbothered, continued speaking in a small voice.

“But that’s actually an excuse. I just… haven’t seen your face in so long, I wanted to check if you were healthy.”

‘…….’

No way.

Is it really okay for a child to be this pitiful?

Even though he knew Blake wasn’t here, the child’s monologue didn’t stop.

‘Haaah, look at those drooping shoulders.’

Looking at his small shoulders, I swallowed my pity.

I have to hold back… hold back…

“No matter how hard it is to sleep, when I’m with hyung… the long nights aren’t scary….”

I can’t hold back anymore.

As a kind bear, no, as the Great Witch of the West, I can’t just walk away after seeing a child like this.

Sorry, Blake.

This is your fault for not saying I must stay still—and Aaron is just too cute.

I carefully stood on tiptoe so I wouldn’t be noticed and crawled under the bed.

Then, in the deepest and most dignified voice I could muster, I called out to the child.

“Aaron Leblanc.”

Startled by the sudden call of his name, Aaron jumped up from his seat.

“…W-who is it?”

Looking at the startled child, I grinned mischievously and shouted loudly.

Ah, I used to do this sometimes when teasing Max.

“I am your guardian angel!”

“…….”

A heavy silence fell.

Hmm, maybe he’s too old to believe in guardian angels?

‘…If I remember correctly, Aaron is about 13 when the story starts.’

So the Aaron in front of me is thirteen?

That’s basically a baby.

Of course, I had no idea what a child that age was thinking.

But still.

Everything depends on momentum.

I shouted again.

“I am your guardian angel!”

“…Liar.”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t lie! I don’t know who you are, but I’ll call the butler immediately. Reveal yourself!”

“Ahh. I told you, I’m your guardian angel. I know everything about you.”

“That’s impossible! Angels don’t exist!”

“What’s impossible? Let’s see. You care deeply about your brother. And oh-ho, you have trouble sleeping. In other words, you haven’t properly slept since childhood.”

“…Hmph, that’s something all the stupid noble kids know.”

Smart kid.

As expected of Blake’s younger brother.

Impressive.

I clicked my tongue slightly and thought of something else.

Something from the original story.

‘Ah, it said he missed the times before his curse manifested, when Blake used to read him to sleep.’

That was a flashback near the end of the novel.

I cleared my throat and said,

“You miss the times when your brother used to read to you until you fell asleep, don’t you, Aaron.”

At that, Aaron’s eyes widened in shock.

“…W-what? A-are you really an angel?”

“I told you, I am.”

After hesitating for a moment, Aaron checked to make sure no one else was around.

Then he clenched his fists and straightened his posture.

“Then… please grant my wish!”

He suddenly dropped to his knees.

“Wish?”

“Yes! If you’re really a guardian angel, you can grant at least one wish, right?”

“Uh… well, of course!”

I hadn’t expected a wish so suddenly.

But I answered confidently, and Aaron quickly stated his wish.

“Please help my brother sleep peacefully even for just one day!”

“…Huh?”

An awkward sound slipped out of me.

Seeing that, Aaron looked a bit dejected and asked,

“Is… that not possible? Honestly, I’m more worried about my brother than anything else. At this rate… he might never smile again.”

“He barely shows any expression except for the rare times he smiles at me.”

Aaron closed his eyes tightly and made his wish earnestly.

“So please, make my brother sleep! That’s all I want.”

“…Such a good kid.”

How could he love his brother so much?

Even while suffering from his own curse.

And yet, his priority is Blake.

“It won’t work?”

“It won’t not work! I am a guardian angel born from Blake’s affection for you.”

Of course it will!

I was already destined to make your brother sleep anyway.

“An angel born from hyung’s affection for me….”

Aaron murmured as if deeply moved.

He stood up from the sofa and walked toward the window.

Then he shouted loudly.

“Alright, guardian angel! Then I’ll trust you! And I, Aaron Leblanc, second son of the Leblanc family, swear I will never forget this kindness.”

His firm voice echoed through the room.

“So please keep your promise. Otherwise… I won’t even have anything left to rely on.”

After saying that, Aaron left.

And I couldn’t help but replay his last words over and over again.

Even though he stood straight and spoke firmly, his eyes couldn’t hide his desperation.

“Damn it… why are all the kids in this house like old men!”

His fragile feelings, worrying more about his brother than himself, kept stabbing at my heart.

A Day Later

After Aaron left, an entire day passed.

“…So you’re telling me I’ve already been abandoned for a full day?”

Still, I had made some progress during my alone time.

There was one thing I discovered the previous night when my motivation had flared up.

When inside this bear doll, unlike my true body, my power wasn’t draining away.

‘During my resting period, my magic normally can’t gather like this… strange.’

The teddy bear was somehow sealing my small, concentrated magic inside.

There’s definitely something about this bear.

“…I don’t get it.”

I decided to think about it later since I couldn’t figure it out right now.

For now, I should rest.

I stayed up all night waiting for Blake, not knowing when he would return, and my body felt like it was made of lead.

“This bed is reaaally good.”

If there was one thing I liked most while exploring the room yesterday—

It was this bed.

A huge bed where I could do five forward rolls and still not reach the end, I happily kicked my feet in satisfaction.

Being small isn’t so bad after all.

Lying flat and resting felt like heaven.

‘Haaaam, come to think of it, I forgot to tell Blake something… what was it…’

Ah, I remember.

The sleep spell only works if I hold his hand tightly.

It wasn’t anything weird—it was just how it worked.

It was originally a spell created by my witch mother to put children to sleep, so the activation condition was like that.

Of course, for me, it’s perfect since touching Blake restores my magic at high speed…

But would Blake understand?

How do I make it less uncomfortable for him?

My vision kept fading in and out.

I shouldn’t fall asleep.

If Blake comes back, I should practice the sleep spell I’ll use on him.

It wasn’t a difficult spell.

“Kororong, kooo.”

It’s an old activation phrase, a bit childish. (Again, I didn’t make it.)

Anyway, to fight off sleep and get used to the embarrassing chant, I kept muttering.

Kororong, kooo. Kororong kooo.

Kororong kooo….

“Ko… kooo…”

That night, I had a dream.

A beautiful man, like an angel descended from the moon, gently held my hand and whispered, “This crazy teddy bear…”

And I struggled desperately to hold onto his hand while chanting the spell.

“Kororong kooo…”

And early in the morning—

When I woke up because of something tightly hugging me so hard I couldn’t breathe…

“…Huh?”

A breathtakingly handsome man with pure silver hair was holding me in his arms, fast asleep.