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IBP 74
However, at my words, the maids shook their heads.
“I don't know. Still, it's a bit scruffy, and it looks like it might have some diseases....”
“Ah, that's right. I heard stray dogs carry germs.”
They weren't wrong.
Among strays, there are many sick ones and many that bite humans indiscriminately.
But...
I'm not that kind of dog.
“That's such an unfair comparison....”
...I stood there blankly, watching the puppy wander around the bedroom.
The puppy, boasting snowy white fur, fluttered its ears wildly.
‘It smells good, too.’
A cute puppy, going mung-mung, receiving love from people.
The puppy explored here and there, sniffing the air, and eventually approached me.
Is it trying to smell me?
I pressed down on the puppy with my index finger and muttered.
“You, go away.”
“Human! Like!”
A baby puppy barking and wagging its tail wildly, trying to act cute for me.
A lovely puppy that looked the same from the front and the back.
It felt like Sister would have no choice but to love it.
Perhaps, even more than me.
I felt a bit deflated, but I tried to think positively.
‘No, I'm cuter.’
I trotted over to the puppy.
“You!”
“Human! Like! Baby human!”
“...You don't understand a word I'm saying!”
“Cute baby human!”
A bad puppy that doesn't communicate.
I shrugged my shoulders high and made the meanest face I could manage.
“You, you really! Very, very. Very, very u-ugly.”
As I said that, I looked down at the pure white puppy.
Glossy, fluffy fur.
Sparkling black eyes.
A body as small as a palm.
But you see.
I had looked in a mirror once when I died.
‘I was a hairless, foolish dog.’
...Sister probably remembers me as that kind of hairless doggy, right?
The puppy in front of me is young, so it's more sparkling and cute.
It even circled around me as if acting cute.
“It doesn't cause trouble and it's smart. The original dog used to have so many potty accidents here and there.”
At the maid's words, comparing us without a second thought, my earlobes instantly turned red.
‘I did make mistakes back then, but.’
Sister said it was okay.
But for some reason, I started feeling bad.
I stopped my steps and murmured softly.
“But you know.”
“Yes, little one?”
“That puppy... is it cuter than Coco?”
They fell silent for a moment, then looked at each other and giggled.
“Oh, no way! You are much cuter and more lovely!”
“Of course, of course. More so than that puppy.”
I quietly bit my lip.
Perhaps because it wasn't the reaction they expected, the maids grew a bit quiet.
I carefully opened my mouth to ask again.
“...Um, you know. Not me, but the dog called Coco. The one who was here before....”
At my words, they looked at each other and nodded.
“Compared to that dog, yes, of course. That puppy is very cute.”
“Now that I think about it, it really didn't suit Lady Chloe at all. Lady Chloe's Coco was a stray.”
I recalled the words I had heard back when I was a puppy.
“Did you hear? I heard she picked up a low-class stray.”
“Oh, no way. It must be a pedigreed dog.”
...A low-class stray.
I didn't think of myself that way.
Every dog is cool in its own way.
Just as all humans are cool despite having different hair colors, skin colors, and eye colors.
But humans were strange.
They always insisted on dividing ranks even among doggies.
Except for my Sister.
But now, it seemed my Sister had a grand puppy that 'fit her status.'
Thinking that made me a bit gloomy, but I thought to myself.
That the friendship Sister and I shared is something no one can destroy.
And that the time we spent together would be the same.
* * *
Trudging back to the annex.
Agent Jack flew in through the window, and Emperor of Mouse came running.
Below my room's window, Ruth's horse, Thunder, also came galloping with a whinny.
These friends...
“Oi, oi. Coco. I heard news that you're feeling sick. My subordinates told me your expression looks completely devastated, like a defeated puppy.”
“...Not sick. Not one bit.”
“Don't ignore our animal network. They said you've been depressed.”
I heard Emperor of Mouse and Thunder exchanging words while looking at each other.
“Why did the puppy become gloomy?”
“Ah, is it because a new puppy appeared?”
At Emperor of Mouse's loud voice, my shoulders slumped to the floor.
“You, you tactless mouse....”
“Hah, really. You long-faced horse!”
Normally, I would have listened to their bickering with a smile.
But right now, I had no strength in my body.
I've become so close with Sister that I can now lie down next to her.
I've also become able to handle the light ability well and stopped Sister's berserk state.
It means I've become a Coco who can make Sister happy.
So, it feels like Sister is finally ready to give me her embrace. The probability that Sister will recognize me has become incredibly high.
But, but why...
...Why do I keep sounding nasal? Why does my body keep shaking?
“It's because I have a cold.”
“Eh? Really? They say even dogs don't catch winter colds.”
“Maybe dogs don't catch summer colds! You tactless mouse. Hey, come out quickly.”
Until Thunder dragged Emperor of Mouse away, I stayed lying on the bed with my face buried in the pillowcase.
My round, small body trembled slightly.
A memory from a long time ago, one that had almost been forgotten, resurfaced.
In front of Sister, everyone said they liked me and that I was cute.
But whenever Sister left the room...
“That dog is a stray, right?”
“It really doesn't suit the Young Lady. A mongrel picked up from the wild with unknown lineage.”
“Wow, now that I look at it, doesn't that dog look really stupid?”
“I heard it doesn't even have a pedigree certificate.”
...The words the maids had said just now came flooding back.
‘I think my heart is torn.’
“.......”
Even if I said that, there was no one around me to listen to the conversation.
I kept talking to myself in a small voice with my eyes cast down.
“What should I do when my heart is torn?”
Whenever I was in pain, Sister always came to me.
For the first time.
A fear arose that ‘perhaps I am nothing to Sister.’
And...
I remembered when I was with Choco.
“Listen, don't get involved with those dirty humans. Just be happy on your own. Got it?”
Choco had said that.
“You must not be caught by humans. The end is only catastrophe. When we grow old and sick, humans pick up a young puppy. Then, they throw away the old dog that has become useless.”
“B-but Choco, there could be kind humans....”
“No way. Humans are all bad people!”
Still, I shook my head.
Choco was wrong.
My Sister is not a bad person.
But...
“When we grow old and sick, humans pick up a young puppy. Then, they throw away the old dog that has become useless.”
Those words I had tried to forget kept echoing in my ears.
I struggled to shake my head.
“No. I am a very brave Coco.”
I am the puppy who even crossed the rainbow bridge to see Sister.
To be honest.
I am a little—no, a little bit too shocked, but...
I tried my best to control my mind and clenched my paws tightly.
“I'm better. I'm much better than that puppy!”
Since I don't know the intense catalyst to get closer to Sister, and I don't know how to become a puppy...
...It can't be helped.
I have no choice but to go with the other method.
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