Chapter 05

“Pardon?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. Anyway, you said she’ll be kicked out of the family since she didn’t manifest a Sacred Mark, right?”

“Yes, that’s what I heard…”

“Hm. Then, after she gets kicked out, it wouldn’t be bad to keep her in the family and use her as our Thunder’s personal maid.”

At that moment, Dot, who had been quietly listening to Ruth, gently spoke against him.

“…Although the young lady has no supernatural ability, she managed to win over a fine horse like Thunder in an instant.”

Dot also had no idea why Coco suddenly wanted to meet Chloe.

Besides, he had also thought that Coco would be kicked out by Chloe soon.

But still.

Dot remembered Coco’s warm purple eyes.

He was forty years old now.

He had worked as a veterinarian for more than twenty years and had seen countless apprentices, but Coco was special.

‘Especially those eyes with which she looks at animals so warmly.’

And somehow, he felt that warmth might be able to melt Chloe’s cold heart.

“So, I think the two of them might become close.”

Ruth’s eyes sparkled mischievously.

“Then shall we make a bet? Don’t say something boring like you don’t want to.”

“Then I’ll bet that the two of them will become close.”

“I didn’t know this, Dot. It seems you enjoy gambling.”

Dot spoke in an unusually firm voice.

“We’ll see what the result is.”

Chapter 3. Reunion

“Are you really allowed to visit Lady Chloe’s detached residence?”

“Yep! They said I can go because I did something great!”

I happily waved the visiting permit Ruth had given me.

[Visiting Permit for Chloe Ardos’s <Haeguk Residence>]

I tightly held the hand of the maid who looked confused.

“But why are you going to Lady Chloe’s detached residence…?”

“Because I like it! Let’s hurry! I want to give her a present. I picked lots and lots of wildflowers, too.”

My sister used to be happy whenever I brought her sparkling purple flowers in my mouth.

I walked with a bag full of flower stems tightly hanging over my shoulder.

When we finally reached the front of my sister’s detached residence,

my eyes grew wide at the sight of a grave I had never seen before.

“Whoa! What is this? There’s a huge grave!”

“Ah, Young Lady, you didn’t know? This grave is…”

The maid hurriedly looked around before lowering her voice.

“It’s Lady Chloe’s dog’s grave.”

She had a deeply doubtful expression on her face.

“There’s a rumor that the maids of Lady Chloe’s residence take care of the dog’s grave day and night. It looks bigger than my father’s grave…”

The maid let out a deep sigh.

But I didn’t care.

A joyful fanfare was ringing inside my head!

‘My sister remembered me! She didn’t forget me!’

I happily wiggled my bottom like I was wagging my tail and said,

“Wowww, a grave! The best!”

“I wonder why she made the grave of some old dog this big…”

“……”

I froze in shock.

“Young Lady?”

“…Coco isn’t an old dog. I’m a good baby puppy!”

“T-The Young Lady doesn’t understand! That dog was at least fifteen years old when it died.”

“…Th-That…”

“Ah! Young Lady, did you know that dogs over ten years old are like grandfathers or grandmothers in human years?”

The more I listened to the maid, the more shocked I became.

I desperately shook my head.

‘No. Coco is absolutely not a grandmother.’

My sister called me a baby puppy.

So I’m a baby puppy!

“Coco is a baby puppy! And a very good baby puppy, too!”

The maid looked flustered when she met my burning gaze.

“Ah? Ahahaha, y-yes, of course. You’re a good baby puppy. Of course…”

Feeling much better, I nodded firmly.

Maybe it was because I had practiced walking last night so I could come see my sister?

Today, I was able to walk proudly like a proper baby puppy.

But just as we arrived at the door of the detached residence—

“Um, Young Lady. I’m sorry, but I can’t go any farther from here.”

“Huh…? Why?”

“Lady Chloe’s residence is in a semi-secluded state. So only a very small number of authorized people are allowed to enter…”

“I see…”

“I hope you return safely, Young Lady.”

“Okay! I’ll be back!”

I waved goodbye to the maid.

Then I confidently stepped into the Haeguk Residence, which was covered in darkness.

It was a place that some people might find frightening.

But I was fine.

“I finally came to meet my sister!”

I wasn’t afraid of the darkness at all.

My sister could control all the darkness in the world.

‘From here on, this is really Coco’s territory!’

I adjusted the strap of the bag filled with flowers.

‘Maybe my head is getting really smart now that I’m at my sister’s house!’

And so, Coco, my sister’s little sister, charged straight toward her room!

…Or at least, I was going to.

The moment I took a step,

several dark figures blocked my path.

“Who are you, and why have you come to the residence?”

“Hm? I’m Coco! Who are you?”

“…I am one of Lady Chloe’s maids.”

I proudly held up my permit.

After checking the permit, they politely bowed their heads.

“You are the Young Lady from the detached residence. We apologize, but Lady Chloe is currently meeting with an important guest.”

“……”

“We will pass along your message, but you may not be able to meet her.”

“It’s okay. I can wait!”

“…You may have to wait for a very long time.”

“Yep! I don’t mind!”

I’m the best at waiting in the whole world.

Whenever my sister went outside, I always waited alone at the door.

Then my sister would come back and say,

‘Our Coco, were you waiting for your sister?’

When I went woof woof, she would give me a snack and kiss me because I had waited so well.

So I obediently followed them.

I drank the tea they gave me in a small room.

I pressed my little body tightly against the chair and waited patiently.

But then…

One hour.

Two hours.

Three hours…

The tea had gone completely cold.

As more time passed, the maids became less watchful.

Around the time I heard the maids whispering outside the door that I would eventually get tired and leave on my own,

I stretched my neck out and looked around again.

‘…My sister really isn’t coming.’

She used to come whenever I waited.

‘Things are different now.’

Because I wasn’t puppy Coco anymore.

I was human Coco.

The moment I thought that, I made a serious decision.

“This time, instead of waiting, let’s go meet my sister myself.”

I’ll meet my sister directly and find out in detail how she has been living.

And…

“Let’s become close again.”

I slung the bag full of flowers over my shoulder.

‘Use your head, Coco!’

This was the residence I had wandered around every single day!

I sharply looked around like I was searching for a sweet potato.

My sparkling brain, blessed by the Puppy God, began spinning rapidly as I searched for a way to meet my sister.