Chapter 71
Kierne returned triumphantly with Chesha in his arms, like a hero victorious from war.
“Baby!”
Karha, who had been waiting anxiously at the hotel, nearly tripped and fell as he hurriedly stood upon seeing Kierne return with Chesha.
Scurrying over, Karha stopped in front and cleared his throat with a hmm, then spoke in a rather dignified manner.
“Thank you for coming back. I’ll do even better from now on.”
It seemed like a welcome speech he had prepared and practiced in advance.
The boy, shyly greeting her, was adorable, but…
“…?”
Chesha tilted her head curiously as she examined Karha’s attire.
He was supposed to have been waiting quietly at the hotel.
Yet somehow… he gave off a slightly armed vibe.
Noticing Chesha’s gaze, Karha quickly shed the light armor he was wearing.
“This? I was just wearing it because I was bored.”
“Chesha might misunderstand, Karha.”
Kierne gently admonished him, gesturing with his eyes to remove the sword at his waist as well.
“What if she thinks you were planning to take her by force if she refused? Be careful next time.”
“Yeees.”
“…”
‘It doesn’t seem like a misunderstanding—more like the truth.’
If Chesha had refused today, another mansion in the capital might have been destroyed.
Realizing the truth, Chesha chuckled inwardly with a resigned sigh.
But Belzeon and Ishuel were nowhere to be seen.
As she looked around curiously, Kierne smiled brightly and said.
“Belzeon is being punished… And Ishuel went to meet His Grace the Duke. He’s scheduled to take lessons from Duke Ivroiel.”
The first part was so shocking that the second barely registered.
“Brother Belzeon… is being punished…?”
She had expected him to get a serious scolding for what he’d done.
But she hadn’t anticipated actual punishment.
Chesha was so startled that her face turned pale, prompting Kierne to wave his hand dismissively.
“It’s nothing big. He’s just doing a bit of work in the underworld. It’s what he usually does, but now he’s handling the twins’ share too, so no need to worry.”
“Yeah. You don’t know, baby, but we almost died because of Belzeon.”
Karha pouted sulkily.
“And both Belzeon and Ishuel have been living outside recently… But they’ll return tonight. You’ll see them soon if you wait a little.”
The atmosphere had been so solemn that she thought she wouldn’t see them for a while.
But hearing they’d be back that very night puzzled her.
Noticing Chesha’s curiosity, Kierne laughed softly.
“Because…”
He dredged up a fact that had been completely forgotten.
“We have to attend the banquet tomorrow.”
They had decided to attend the banquet hosted by the Ivroiel ducal family and make Basilian’s debut in high society.
But with so many incidents in between, it had slipped her mind entirely.
Come to think of it, when she ran away, there wasn’t much time left until the banquet.
And after wasting several days, she was heading straight to it upon her return.
Fortunately, the diligent Hata had already made and sent the hat and hair accessories.
Miya had also promised to bring the completed outfits early the next morning.
That night, she was able to meet Belzeon and Ishuel, who returned utterly exhausted.
Both looked worn out from whatever they’d been through.
They came home like corpses, on the verge of collapsing.
But the half-dead boys’ faces lit up instantly upon confirming Chesha’s presence.
“Little one.”
When Belzeon called her with that ticklish term and hugged her tightly, Chesha felt a mix of embarrassment and joy.
Ishuel welcomed Chesha with a genuinely bright smile.
“Welcome back home, sister.”
He didn’t forget to add a reminder.
“Let’s not run away anymore, okay?”
Chesha nodded to Ishuel.
On the morning of the banquet.
Miya burst into the hotel at the crack of dawn.
“I’m here-nyan!”
Chesha pressed her forehead with her hand at Miya’s speech.
The silver lining was that she had removed the cat ears.
If she had come with cat ears attached, she probably would have been stopped by the staff in the hotel lobby.
Or perhaps even dragged off by the capital’s security forces…
“Welcome, President.”
Ishuel greeted Miya with a gentle expression.
Behind Ishuel’s alert gaze, the Basilian family members—dragged out early in the morning because they couldn’t withstand his nagging—were sprawled on the sofas.
Karha was completely face-down asleep in the corner of the sofa, Belzeon was dozing off while sitting with his arms crossed.
Kierne, too, had Chesha on his lap and was yawning repeatedly.
Amid everyone except Ishuel looking listless, Miya, who had arrived laden with bundles of outfits, confidently declared.
“The ultimate outfits are complete-nyan!”
Ishuel applauded her proclamation with claps.
After checking the outfits, he became even more generous.
It was the kind of mood where he might have smiled indulgently even if Miya had shown up with cat ears and a tail.
“Yes, this is it… This is what I wanted…!”
Ishuel examined the outfits with eyes that bordered on madness.
Beside him, Miya explained her masterpieces with an excited face.
The two of them rapidly exchanged incomprehensible chatter about lace this and frills that.
Watching the scene, Kierne commented in an ambiguous tone.
“Impressive.”
It was unclear what exactly was impressive.
Miya’s peculiar speech and behavior were certainly remarkable.
And the outfits she had tailored were impressive as well.
The outfits that Ishuel and Miya took out one by one and dressed on mannequins were completely transformed from before.
They felt so new that without being told they were the same, one wouldn’t recognize them.
The somewhat common vibe from before was gone, reborn into something unique and captivating.
Above all, they seemed perfectly suited to the Basilian family.
Ishuel had already disappeared to try on his outfit.
Miya approached unsteadily with Kierne’s clothes in hand.
Kierne slowly lifted his gaze.
The moment his red eyes met hers.
She trembled and asked.
“W-would you like to t-try it on…?”
Kierne hadn’t said a word, yet Miya’s cat speech corrected itself instantly.
Though her endings were a bit off due to nervousness.
Seeing Miya shrink her shoulders and tremble as if facing a wild beast, Kierne smiled faintly and took the clothes.
“Daddy’s going to change.”
After planting a quick kiss on Chesha’s forehead, Kierne vanished into another room.
As Chesha rubbed her forehead with her hand, she blinked.
Before she knew it, Miya had thrust her face close.
“Cute little miss…?”
Miya’s laughter—huhu, hehe, hihi—sounded like a drunken uncle’s line, and it was scary.
Chesha instinctively leaned back in rejection.
The more she did, the more Miya ignited.
With bloodshot eyes wide open, she said in a bizarre tone.
“Shall we change clothes…? I’ll help you…? Don’t refuse…?”
Unable to hold back any longer, she scooped Chesha up.
“Eek!”
Then, carrying the screaming Chesha, she dashed into the next room and began full-on doll play.
“Aww! Waah! Waaah, so cuuute!”
Bouncing around with all sorts of antics, she was utterly chaotic.
While Chesha was dazed and stunned, she found herself changed into the dress before she knew it.
As she tied the ribbon on the lace bonnet that Hata had poured his heart into, Miya muttered to herself repeatedly.
“This is insane. I, Miya, have created the masterpiece of a lifetime. You’ve torn up the banquet.”
“…”
She had already seemed strange enough just mimicking a cat beastkin.
To think there was room for even more strangeness—it was truly astonishing.
Having finished dressing Chesha, Miya clutched her chest and let out a groan.
She carefully carried Chesha out of the room as if handling a treasure.
The Basilian men, already changed and waiting, all turned to look at Chesha simultaneously.
With a supremely smug expression, Miya asked.
“What do you think, everyone? You like the outfits, right?”
But their red eyes were all fixed on Chesha, too absorbed to respond.
Kierne murmured in a somewhat dazed voice.
