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IBP 79
“You, Coco. This little one. You're sulking at Chloe, aren't you?”
Ruth took Caligo and me to his annex.
Then, he placed warm milk in front of Caligo and me to soothe our startled hearts.
Thanks to that, I could speak very well again, and I became a spirited and brave puppy once more.
“......I'm not sulking.”
“Yeah, I don't think she is.”
Caligo sided with me.
“Then, would the mature Young Grand Duke care to tell me why Coco acted that way?”
“She's upset, Coco is.”
At Caligo's words, Ruth looked back and forth between Caligo and me.
“Upset, huh. Well, Chloe is quite blunt and doesn't understand people's feelings very well, but... Ah, this is complicated and giving me a headache.”
Ruth nonchalantly called for an attendant.
“In times like these, you just have to eat.”
Ruth brought a plate of snacks for both Caligo and me.
However, I didn't even touch the delicious sweet potato cookies; I just stared at them blankly.
“My goodness. She's not eating sweet potatoes... This is truly serious. What should I do? What's wrong?”
Ruth's eyes darted around with a panicked expression.
I murmured softly.
“Puppy......”
“Hmm? A puppy?”
“......I saw a puppy next to Chloe-nim's mansion.”
“Ah, you mean that white puppy?”
“Mm-hmm......”
“Are you scared of puppies?”
I drooped my head gloomily.
Then, Ruth gently rubbed my cheek and said,
“Why, Coco. Tell this big brother. Should I scold the puppy for you?”
“Don't scold it....... Ruth, will Chloe-unnie play with the puppy instead of me?”
Actually, I was worried that she might forget me and replace me with another puppy.
But I left out that part of the story, as it was something I couldn't actually say.
“Chloe probably didn't bring that in herself. She was absolutely obsessed with the puppy she had back in the day. She's the type who would never raise a new puppy.”
Even hearing those words from Ruth, I couldn't quite feel at ease.
So, I murmured softly.
“But you know, that puppy keeps digging up Coco's grave......”
“Huh? Hmm? But what does that have to do with anything?”
I pouted and muttered.
“I don't know...... Ruth is a dummy.”
Caligo glared at Ruth and patted my shoulder gently.
Ruth looked at Caligo and me with a bewildered expression and said,
“Fine. I'm a dummy. But Chloe is even more of a dummy. Do you know how much she worried about you earlier? It was the first time I've ever seen her make a face like that.”
Just as Ruth said, it seemed Unnie had been worried about me.
And since I didn't let her hug me earlier, she might have been upset.
And because I'm a dummy puppy who only knows Unnie, even if she brought another puppy....... I couldn't hate her.
“So, Coco. If there's something you're angry about, tell me. I'll listen to everything. Or tell me what you want me to buy you.”
“Mm-hmm...... okay. Ruth, you suddenly seem like a real adult.”
“You little rascal. Of course this big brother is an adult!”
“Mm-hmm......”
I smiled a little at Ruth.
And I decided not to avoid it anymore.
I decided to be brave. I resolved to ask who on earth that puppy was.
But.......
Just as I made my decision, a sound came from outside the door.
“Coco, can I come in?”
I hiccuped.
The moment I decided to go see Unnie, she came to me first.
* * *
I became a brave puppy again and took a walk while holding Unnie's hand.
Unnie didn't say anything particular.
She must have found it strange that I had stubbornly found my way through the dark passage.
Yet, she didn't say a single word about it.
Instead, she just held my hand tightly to convey her warmth.
To me, it sounded like she was saying, ‘Unnie will never abandon Coco.’
So, I gathered a bit of courage and asked to go to her annex.
‘I'm going to ask about that puppy.’
It was as we passed my desecrated grave and entered Unnie's annex.
That was when it happened.
A tiny puppy, which seemed to have been playing alone in the bushes, came trotting toward us.
My body stiffened instantly.
Chloe-unnie stared at the puppy with a bewildered expression.
“......Why is that dog here?”
The maid, looking even more flustered, blinked.
“Ah, did you forget? It was a gift. A noble lady heard that Chloe-nim liked puppies and......”
“Ah, I remember that. But I didn't know it would be here.”
“Well....... We thought you would raise it separately. Then, should we move it elsewhere?”
“No. Leave it for now, and send a separate message to the person who sent a living creature as a gift.”
The maid bowed her head and left.
Until then, I was just staring blankly into the air.
‘Unnie, she wasn't interested in that puppy......?’
Unnie gritted her teeth as she looked at the puppy with the maid.
“Ah, that puppy made a mess near our Coco's grave too......”
“......Coco's grave?”
“Yes. Look over there. I planted exactly three flowers, and it dug one up. I'll have to restore it. Our Coco might be upset.”
I flinched.
‘I was already upset while watching from beside Unnie.’
I gathered my courage, stopped walking, and asked.
“But you know, that puppy....... Are you going to keep it?”
I didn't have the courage to meet Unnie's eyes.
My heart kept fighting with itself, carving wounds into a corner of my chest.
But you know.
‘I shouldn't make another tiny puppy a stray just because I'm upset.’
I thought bravely.
If Unnie says she'll keep that puppy, I won't tell her to kick it out.
Ruth might like puppies too, so if I tell her to play with Ruth a lot.......
Then maybe there will still be a little bit of a place for me.
Just as I was thinking that with my shoulders slumped, Unnie spoke plainly.
“No. I can't keep it. Honestly, I'm not ready to meet another puppy.”
My mouth and eyes widened at the same time.
“B-but. But why did the puppy come here? Why did you receive it?”
“You heard what the maid said, right? It was a gift. Some crazy person sent a living creature as a gift just to flatter me.”
“T-that's exactly it! Puppies aren't objects.”
Thinking that made me feel sorry for the puppy.
Unnie, who had been watching me quietly, said,
“Yes, exactly. If I returned it hastily, it might be disposed of like other gifts. So I left it in the mansion for now. Well, I guess everyone misunderstood and thought I received a puppy.”
“Ah......”
“I have no intention of keeping it. I'll protect it well and then find a better new owner than me.”
“I-I see......”
My face turned bright red at the realization that it had all been my misunderstanding.
At the same time, I was so happy that I hugged Unnie tightly, crying and then laughing.
Then, I heard a small 'mya-mya' sound in my ear.
A white fluff-ball trotted up to me.
No, it was the tiny baby puppy Unnie said she had received as a gift.
It seemed to have hopped down from the maid's arms and come back to us.
‘Huk, the puppy. It's so tiny......’
Once I let go of my selfishness, it really was so small that I, the brave and spirited puppy, felt I should be generous.
I reached out my hand toward the puppy and murmured softly.
“Hello?”
“......Woof! Woof woof!”
The excited puppy lifted its front paw and pressed it firmly against my thigh.
“That tickles, you dummy!”
The tiny paw tapped, tap-tap, against the back of my hand.
Smiling like that, I had an absurd thought.
‘You and I, we're making up.’
Promise me you won't take Coco's place.
Then I'll give up my spot for just a very, very, very short while.
Stay happy and then go meet a good owner.
The puppy panted, circling around us.
Unnie, watching me play with the puppy, asked quietly.
“Do you like puppies? Then, shall I tell you about our Coco?”
Nod.
I only nodded once, but Unnie talked for over ten minutes about how good I was at playing tug-of-war.
Listening to the endless bragging about me, I thought deeply.
‘I wonder where else Unnie brag
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