Riana wore a face that looked like she was trying hard not to laugh.
Squeak…
The ball of fur’s ears drooped when it realized that its surprise pounce attempt had failed.
Sadly, it was the same reaction as when it tried the same trick on its original owner.
When the little furball began curling into itself with drooping ears, Riana finally realized her mistake.
‘…I should’ve just acted surprised.’
Anyone could see the furball was downcast, and Riana quickly put her mind to work.
Would it be better to pretend to be surprised even now?
“Oh my! You scared me! Don’t jump at me so suddenly like that.”
However, Riana’s acting—unanimously deemed terrible by all her guards—didn’t solve the problem.
It only made the furball even more sulky.
“…Um, Scruffy?”
Even when she called out in a voice ten times sweeter than usual, the furball remained still, curled up and burying its face in its chubby paws.
Riana honestly didn’t understand, but it looked genuinely upset.
She briefly thought calming this tiny fluffball might be harder than coming up with strategies to win wars.
In truth, Riana personally preferred to blast away enemies with a large-scale spell and then clean up the rest.
Squeak– Whine…
When Riana didn’t respond as she pondered, the furball let out a series of sad whimpers.
To her, it sounded like a plea to hurry up and comfort it.
‘This tiny thing is acting like a complete noble…’
Riana gave a helpless chuckle but still gently stroked the warm little body with care.
Riana, who loved small creatures, welcomed this adorable noble overlord anytime.
“Hmm, I didn’t pick up on your mood, did I? What should I do to cheer you up?”
The moment the word “Scruffy” left Riana’s mouth, the furball lifted its buried head and shot her a resentful look.
“…Ah, you don’t like being called ‘Scruffy,’ do you?”
This smart little creature clearly hated being called Scruffy.
But she couldn’t exactly name someone else’s pet however she wanted.
Whenever its owner was mentioned, the furball would avoid Riana’s gaze.
It didn’t realize that this reaction, in a creature that understood human speech, had completely confirmed Riana’s suspicions.
“How about ‘Blackie’ then? Since I can’t give you a separate name if you already have an owner, let’s settle with Blackie, okay?”
The furball had been avoiding her gaze again but blinked at the name Blackie.
It seemed to be contemplating whether or not to accept it.
Riana seized the moment and pressed forward.
“Blackie, want to go for a walk? If you compromise with me now, I won’t bring up your owner until tomorrow.”
It wasn’t exactly a dog, but since it resembled one, she figured it’d enjoy a walk. She also baited it with the topic it disliked most—its owner.
Sure enough, the moment she said “walk,” its tail started wagging, and when she added she wouldn’t mention its owner until tomorrow, the once-drooped ears perked right up.
Riana was speechless.
‘Seriously…’
She had considered the possibility that the furball had been abandoned.
But she dismissed the idea after realizing it could understand her words.
“Did your owner abandon you? Is that why you hate talking about them?”
At that question, the furball used every means available to deny it.
It shook its head so vigorously it looked like it might fall off, and let out heart-aching whimpers.
Even that wasn’t enough—it began pacing in nervous circles.
Riana got the feeling it didn’t like hearing her speak ill of its owner.
“…Anyway, shall we go for a walk then, Blackie?”
Woof!
Having finally received a new temporary name, Blackie accepted Riana’s proposal.
It seemed to have forgotten all about its earlier sulkiness, happily wagging its tail.
‘Well, it’s a smart little thing. I suppose we can wait a bit before finding its owner.’
She had no idea just how much would change in the near future—hence the carefree thought.
Pat-pat-pat—
Whizz—
As soon as she set Blackie down in the grassy field behind the palace, it bolted with astonishing speed.
It had already been over a week since they met, but its leg and belly wounds had only healed two days ago.
That was why Riana had never seen it run before.
The failed pounce earlier had been the first.
“…You’re really fast.”
After running alongside it for a bit, Riana plopped down in the grass and watched Blackie dart around like a fish in water, a small smile on her lips.
Though it was early spring, the Kingdom of Lohen in the southern continent had mild weather for most of the year, save for the heart of winter.
Even then, snowfall was rare—it didn’t get too cold.
The only chillier region was near the border of the Forest of Death at the kingdom’s northernmost tip.
“Ahh, the weather’s so nice.”
Warm sunlight bathed her body, and a gentle breeze played with her hair.
After years of nothing but battlefields, she must’ve been more worn out than she thought.
To feel peace even in a palace she so thoroughly hated.
Whimper—Snort—
Blackie chased butterflies fluttering through the air and even played with some small woodland creatures that had wandered down from the royal forest.
Yip!
After a long bout of play, Blackie tired out and walked over sluggishly to collapse into Riana’s arms.
“Did you have fun?”
Yip!
Though exhausted, Blackie let out a joyful bark and nestled into Riana’s touch.
Soon, its breathing evened out and it drifted into sleep.
It must’ve been tired after finally burning off the frustration of being injured for so long.
“…Haa.”
Looking down at Blackie sleeping on her legs, Riana gave up on her plan to return to the palace.
The guards were off exploring the capital anyway, and she had nothing pressing to do today.
She had already completed her personal training in the early morning—missing the afternoon session wouldn’t matter.
As she basked in the calm, the reality she was facing crept back into her mind.
Right now, it was peaceful, but the whole reason she returned to the capital in the first place was because of marriage.
‘They’ll probably try to push a marriage proposal on me soon…’
There was a welcome banquet scheduled for next week—whether it would even be held was uncertain.
But if her guess was correct, the king would wait until after that to introduce her potential suitor.
Likely candidates would be nobles from other countries, or royalty who weren’t heirs…
So what if she was the first magic swordswoman born in centuries? She couldn’t even decide her own marriage.
“I guess… the only option is to really get married…”
If she had a powerful maternal family—or if she had been born a prince instead of a princess—things would’ve been different.
If her maternal family had been strong, they would’ve backed her. If she were a prince, factions would’ve rallied around her.
“…So frustrating.”
Riana quietly closed her eyes in resignation to her powerless reality.
She didn’t notice that Blackie, whom she had been petting just moments ago, had opened its golden eyes and was watching her.
It was a night when even the moonlight was hidden behind clouds, and everyone was asleep.
Rustle—
A small sound echoed through the still bedroom.
It came from beneath the softly shifting blankets.
Normally, Riana would’ve reacted sensitively to even the tiniest noise—but tonight, she was fast asleep.
After a little while, a small, black furball popped its head out from the covers.
It was Blackie, who had fallen asleep in Riana’s arms about two hours earlier.
Squeak—
The reason Riana had fallen into such a deep sleep, Blackie, finally wriggled out of the blankets and gazed down at her face.
Blackie possessed intelligence far beyond anything Riana imagined—and as expected, had not been abandoned by its owner.
“I guess… the only option is to really get married…”
Remembering the words Riana had mumbled with a sorrowful expression, Blackie’s eyes turned fierce.
Riana was the beautiful, strong, good-hearted human that it had chosen as its partner months ago.
How thrilled it had been to finally meet the woman who kept appearing in its dreams!
Its foolish master couldn’t understand its words, but Blackie had made the long journey on its own to find her—and now she was talking about marrying someone else?
As long as Blackie lived and breathed, that was never going to happen.
What’s more, Riana in person was even a hundred times kinder than the one in its dreams.
With a human this wonderful, even its ill-tempered master could surely live happily together.
Squeak!
Lost in its rosy daydream, Blackie let out a soft cry and touched Riana’s cheek with its damp nose.
Golden energy spread from its black body and seeped into Riana.
Blackie didn’t want to use its power on someone so kind, but it couldn’t reveal its identity yet.
Flash—
Moments later, the glow faded—and the figure of Blackie, who had sent Riana into a deep sleep, vanished completely.
