CHAPTER 34…………………………….

The maid Brita’s morning was a busy one.

She needed to clean while the young lady was briefly out of her room—

“Eek! You—are you not coming out?!”

—but because of this little thing, she couldn’t.

Brita bent down low, close to the bottom of the sofa.

There was just enough space under it for a small baby animal, and when she came to clean this morning, sure enough, there was a puppy hiding inside.

At first, she’d panicked, thinking some dusty rag was crawling around on its own.

But then she looked closely and saw two round eyes and a tiny black nose.

“They say the young lady had magic lessons a few days ago… and this puppy appeared?”

Brita’s mind hit its limit.

No way… Her fearful gaze darted toward the puppy.

Woof woof.

If the young lady had created it with magic…

Then it could very well be a phantom with no real substance.

“Gasp! A—A ghost?!”

Brita’s runaway imagination was cut short by the puppy letting out a small whine.

…Okay. So it wasn’t an illusion.

“Right. You must be hungry too. Fine, fine—I’ll give you some food. So please come out.”

Brita tore off a bit of her precious ration of dried jerky and placed it on the floor.

“You won’t be able to resist this smell. Hmph.”

What happened next was instant.

Without even one second of hesitation, the puppy darted out from the corner of the sofa—
and Brita grabbed it tightly.

“Got you, little rascal!”

After giving it water, food, and a proper wash…

“Oh my goodness, you…!”

It wasn’t brown-furred—it was covered in soft, fluffy white fur.

Brita softly ran her hand over the puppy’s head.

“You’re cute, so I’ll forgive you for not listening earlier.”

After eating its fill and being carried over to a warm rug, the puppy curled up in her arms.

Brita laughed at the sight, but her expression soon turned worried.

“But… is the young lady okay?”

She hadn’t been eating properly these past few days and seemed full of worries.

Just then—dada-dada-dada—quick footsteps sounded from outside the door.

Brita instantly knew who it was.

There was only one person in this mansion who darted around that adorably.

A moment later, the door swung wide open, and at the height of the doorknob, Cream poked his head in.

Startled by the sudden noise, the puppy in Brita’s arms stretched its neck out.

“Young master, you’re here?”

Cream’s big eyes wandered around the room.

When he realized the sister he was looking for wasn’t there, he quickly closed the door and hurried off.

Dada-dada-dada—the sound faded into the hallway again.

Brita gently stroked the puppy’s fur and thought:

If the adorable young master and the adorable puppy were together…!

“Ugh… I just imagined it.”

Her heart might actually burst.

Cream’s room.

His small, chubby hands rummaged around the shelves here and there.

But whatever he wanted wasn’t showing up, so after making little grabbing gestures in the air, his hands dropped.

“Young master, shall I help you?”

The nanny beside him asked, but Cream shook his head firmly.

His red eyes turned to the bottom shelf.

Several books and toys were lined up there.

He reached for a boat-shaped toy—then opened his hand again.

His tiny lips pursed together in deep concentration.

The nanny’s mouth twitched.

She’d been a nanny her whole life.

And not just anywhere—but for the Kerace family.

She had raised the eldest, Young Master Shebert, and the second son, Young Master Ron, until he went missing.

And then she had cared for the third, Young Master Cream—
until she had to temporarily leave the duchy because her own daughter gave birth recently.

The incident that happened while she was away had broken her heart, and now she treated Young Master Cream even more dearly.

To think someone dared hit such an adorable young master!

She had nearly ripped every hair out of the new nanny’s body.

Barely managing to suppress her anger, she regained her composure.

What is he thinking so hard about choosing?

Cream’s plump cheeks dimpled as he focused.

He was so cute that the nanny wanted to bite him.

Just watching him happily made her day.

“Cha-jatta!”

At that moment, Cream pulled out a book as big as his face.

A fairy tale book—a princess story.

She used to read it to him when he was younger.

Smiling with soft, wrinkled eyes, the nanny asked:

“It’s not bedtime yet, but shall I read it to you?”

Cream shook his head again.

“Huh? You didn’t take it out because you wanted to read it?”

Cream widened his sparkling eyes.

“It’s for noo-na.”

“Oh my goodness… how sweet!”

The nanny’s eyes grew misty.

Our little Cream had grown—he really had.

And it was mostly thanks to Lady Marianne.

During the month she was gone, she’d only heard that a count’s daughter had entered the duchy…

But when she heard that that very young lady saved not only Young Master Cream but Young Master Shebert as well, she had stood up and applauded on the spot.

A true blessing has entered this household.

And indeed—when she returned, the once overly babied youngest son had changed.

And the heartwarming surprises didn’t end there.

“Choco cake.”

Cream scurried down to the first-floor kitchen and confidently obtained a cake from the head chef.

That too, was a gift for Marianne.

The nanny dabbed her teary eyes with her handkerchief, overwhelmed.

Of course, when Cream acted like the little child he still was, she immediately burst into fond laughter.

“Yum-yum.”

The chocolate-cream-covered cake sitting on the white plate looked dangerously tempting.

Cream stared at it intensely for a long time, as if in a staring contest…
then puckered his lips pretending to eat it.

“Young master, how about taking just one bite before giving it to her? The chef made plenty.”

Cream’s big eyes trembled.

Then he nodded.

After taking one big spoonful, Cream grinned happily.

The nanny tried to wipe the cream off his mouth, but Cream—too excited about giving his gift—refused the help and hurried toward the stairs.

“Oh my, our Young Master Cream is so sweet! The whole world needs to see this!”

The nanny declared, nearly shaking the chef who was still cleaning up the leftover cake.

It was during tea time, after finishing my meal and walk.

“Young Master Cream is here.”

I said he could come in.

Now that I thought about it, I had been too down lately to properly play with him.

Brita had mentioned several times that he’d come by while I was asleep.

“Nooonaaa!”

“Cream.”

Cream burst in, holding a cake in both hands, smiling brightly.

His smile was always adorable—
just seeing it washed away the heaviness in my heart.

“Noona, this!”

“A cake? Thank you, Cream. I’ll enjoy it.”

After handing me the plate, Cream confidently opened the book the maid had given him.

He stared earnestly at the pages.

Wait… can Cream actually read?

Just then, a loud voice boomed beside me.

“Da wolf climbed da twee!”

…Was Cream… a genius?

The maid and I both stared wide-eyed at the book.

“….”

The text said something completely different.

Even so, Cream continued reading with passion.

“Da wolf appeared-ed.”

This was Cream’s own imaginative version of the story.

He’d only just begun learning to read—so of course.

But the sight of him reading for my sake was unbelievably precious.

“The wolf is brave like Cream.”

“Hehehe.”

At my praise, Cream rested his tiny chin on his hand proudly.

I poked his dimples.

Then suddenly, as I looked into his red eyes, another face overlapped with his.

…If only Ron had been able to have a happy childhood too.

Ron, who resembled Cream, never got that chance.

The emotions I had been suppressing surged again, and I quickly averted my gaze.

“Noona?”

Perhaps noticing, the perceptive little Cream stretched out his arms and threw himself onto my lap.

Warmth enveloped me.

I gently stroked his soft, pale-blue hair.

“Thank you, Cream. For reading to me. And for the cake.”

“All for Noona.”

“Yes. I know.”

Cream lifted his head, and I wiped the chocolate cream from his lips with my hand.

Grrrr.

At that moment, something tried to wedge itself between us—

A tiny white puppy, showing its new little teeth, growling as if jealous.