Chapter 3
“Yeah. I answered you!”
“W-w-wait a minute.”
With a loud bang, Thunder was startled and fell backward, but he quickly jumped back to his feet.
“L-l-let me ask again. Can you hear what I’m saying? Not just hear the sound of my neighing, but actually understand me?”
“Yes, I can hear you very well.”
I’m a very amazing former puppy, after all.
At my words, life returned to Thunder’s dull eyes, which had looked almost dead until now.
“This little one isn’t stupid. She’s a genius! Then p-please. Help me! I’m in pain!”
“Huh?”
I tilted my head.
“Where does it hurt?”
Thunder’s eyes were now sparkling as he stuck out his tongue and said,
“Ugh, there’s a th-th-thing here! (There’s a thorn here!)”
I could barely see it……
So, this supposedly great horse was actually a spoiled crybaby suffering because of one tiny thorn stuck in his tongue.
‘It looks like Ruth spoiled him a lot.’
I pulled out the thorn that was almost impossible to see with the naked eye.
“Then you didn’t eat hay, carrots, or even drink water because of the thorn, and you bothered all the people too?”
“Yes! This damn thorn was stressing me out! But those veterinarians couldn’t even find the thorn. They’re completely useless!”
Well, that was because you kicked anyone who tried to come near you……
But that wasn’t important right now!
I carefully stroked Thunder’s magnificent mane and asked,
“Anyway, it’s okay now, right? Then tell me! What does it mean to make a contribution?”
“Ahem, ahem. Treating a magnificent horse like me is also a kind of contribution!”
“Wow, pulling out a thorn means making a contribution!”
“That’s right. But you said you’re a child who was adopted, didn’t you? Someone will steal your contribution. This family isn’t easy on a child without any backing.”
“That can’t happen. I have to make a contribution so I can meet my sister!”
I grabbed my head with both hands and frowned.
‘How can I stop them from taking my contribution?’
My number one priority in life was my sister.
My second priority was sweet sweet potatoes.
Only when it came to those two things did my usually dull brain start working at full speed.
After some time.
Patricia, the veterinarian who had taken over from Dot, casually opened the barn door.
And……
Patricia was faced with a seriously shocking sight.
“Hey, are you crazy?!”
Some child she had never seen before was carelessly stroking Thunder’s mane.
‘There’s definitely a barrier so outsiders can’t enter. How did she get in?’
Then that meant she was someone from the family.
Patricia was about to shout again, but suddenly stopped.
‘Besides, the great horse’s condition is so good!’
He wasn’t sensitive at all, and he was even staying still while she touched his mane.
Confused, she walked toward the unfamiliar child.
“Y-you…… Who are you?”
“Me? I’m Coco!”
“Coco……”
When the child stuck out her round, chubby belly, Patricia suddenly remembered something.
‘Ah, isn’t she the commoner who’s supposedly going to be disowned soon? Why is she here?’
With an annoyed expression, Patricia casually picked Coco up.
“I don’t know how you came to be in the barn, but for now, please stay here, little miss.”
The important thing was Thunder’s condition.
Patricia looked around.
Fortunately, there was animal examination equipment that the veterinarian kept in the barn for emergencies.
“Oh my goodness.”
After checking Thunder’s condition, the result was astonishing.
There was nothing wrong when she checked the horse’s eyes, front teeth, legs, and so on. On top of that, instead of kicking, Thunder was completely docile.
He even gave a lazy yawn as if he were happy.
Patricia brushed Thunder’s mane with a brush and smiled.
“You’re quite impressive, aren’t you?”
“Hm?”
“How did you calm down such a sensitive horse?”
Thunder, the prized horse that Ruth, a direct member of the family, treasured more than anything, had become completely fine.
There was no doubt that an enormous reward, far beyond anything a child could imagine, would be given.
Then……
“Anyway, I should report this right away. I’ll say that I treated the great horse, Thunder-nim, okay?”
“Hm? But I fixed him, and you said I was impressive……”
“No. That was just a slip of the tongue. Come to think of it, I think I was the one who fixed him with those tools just now.”
Patricia firmly stated her version of events and shrugged.
‘Well, she’s just a clueless little kid anyway. Besides, there’s no way a child like her could have really cured Thunder.’
There were plenty of rumors that she was an ordinary person who hadn’t even manifested a Stigmata.
‘It seems the timing just happened to work out.’
Patricia sneered inwardly and said,
“Little miss, you should return to the annex, shouldn’t you?”
“Hm? I-I have something I want to say for just a moment……”
“Come on. I’ll call a maid for you, so please go.”
She was basically treating Coco like an annoying child she wanted to get rid of, but what did it matter?
‘She’ll be kicked out of the family anyway.’
She hummed as she casually picked Coco up.
“Let’s go, little miss.”
She even closed the barn door with her other hand.
“Ah, I can’t wait to see Lord Ruth. I wonder what kind of reward he’ll give me.”
“So it was really you, Patricia, who treated Thunder-nim?”
“Yes, I did it.”
Veterinarian Dot had returned after hearing Patricia’s report.
After examining Thunder’s condition, he looked surprised.
“Impressive. How did you do it?”
“Haha. It was nothing.”
Just as the light praise continued one after another, the barn door suddenly opened with a loud bang.
“I heard that my Thunder has completely recovered. Where is he?”
“Oh, you’re here.”
The person who entered the barn by roughly opening the door was Ruth Ardos.
He was a man with short black hair and vivid purple eyes.
His appearance alone had an intimidating quality, and he was also a rare ability user who could control wind.
However, unlike his outstanding public image, his reputation within the family was poor.
He had given up on the position of heir early on and was known as a reckless man who only cared about things that entertained him.
“I couldn’t concentrate on anything else, so I came here. So, what illness did he have?”
Under Ruth’s cold gaze, Dot wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered,
“W-we still don’t know the name of the illness.”
“You don’t know the illness, so how exactly did you treat my Thunder?”
Patricia blushed and quietly said,
“Ah, yes! Thunder-nim seemed to have a little trouble digesting his food, so I cut his carrots into smaller pieces than usual and fed them to him.”
“Hmm. That was all it took? I’m suspicious.”
When Ruth’s reaction was lukewarm, Patricia unnecessarily reached out to stroke Thunder’s mane.
“Look, he listens to me so well……”
But right then.
“Neigh!”
Thunder, who had been docile just moments ago, suddenly began neighing and kicking wildly.
It was a fierce gesture of rejection.
“…He listens to you?”
“Ah, ha, haha, I-I mean…… Why is he doing this……”
As Patricia looked flustered, Ruth narrowed his eyes and stared at Thunder.
Then Thunder stopped kicking and gracefully trotted toward Ruth.
“Hm? Thunder, if you wanted to hug me, you should’ve just said so……”
……Thunder passed right by Ruth.
Then he gracefully slipped out through the open barn door.
“…Thunder?”
With everyone watching him, Thunder stopped in front of a sign that read ‘BARN.’
And standing in front of that sign was……
“Thundeeer!”
There was a little child with silvery-white hair like silver thread, chubby cheeks, and light iris-colored eyes.
