“Waaah!”
[Quiet down already! Pink-haired brat, haven’t you ever heard that you shouldn’t disturb others when they’re sleeping?]
“S-sorry for waking you… But I really wanted to talk to you—”
[Kids really are hopeless… Huh? Wait. You understood me?]
“Yeah! Isn’t that super cool?”
The cat’s already huge eyes widened even further. It opened its mouth to say something, then suddenly sprang to its feet.
[How can a human…? Divine Beast-nim!]
Behind Vivian, Kiki sauntered into view.
Even though the cat was far larger than Kiki, it immediately stiffened like a terrified new recruit standing before a superior officer.
[Yaaawn. This child is the human assigned to assist me. So I shared a small portion of my power with her.]
[Ahh! I heard rumors that you were staying in this house, Divine Beast-nim. But I didn’t know this child had received such an honorable duty.]
“Why did the way it talks suddenly get weird?”
At Vivian’s comment, the cat gave an awkward cough and a yawn.
Then it slowly approached and rubbed itself against Vivian’s calf as if they were old friends.
[After suffering that much, you’ve finally moved up in the world, little one. To think you’d receive the noble task of serving Divine Beast-nim.]
“Huh? What did I even do?”
[The family living here bullied you and barely fed you, didn’t they? All the animals in this village know about it. Humans really are awful. Instead of taking care of a young child, they tormented you.]
Goodness.
She was being comforted by a cat.
“Y-you… you all knew?”
[Hmph. Of course we did. Just because we can’t speak human language doesn’t mean we’re idiots.]
“Kittieee!”
Her nose tingling, Vivian scooped up the meowing cat into her arms.
The plump feline’s soft, warm body overflowed slightly from her embrace.
The pleasant warmth naturally brought a smile to Vivian’s lips—
But Kiki reacted far more dramatically than the cat itself.
[W-w-w-what do you think you’re doing, Vivian?! How dare you hug another animal instead of me?!]
[Hyaaaack!]
The cat twisted out of Vivian’s arms with astonishing flexibility, fur puffed up in every direction as it frantically defended itself.
[I-it’s a misunderstanding, Divine Beast-nim! I would never dare covet Divine Beast-nim’s human!]
Kiki hurriedly climbed onto Vivian’s head as if staking a territorial claim.
[I shall overlook this just once! But be more careful next time!]
[Y-yes, sir! Thank you, Divine Beast-nim!]
Afraid of getting caught in the fallout, the cat bolted away without even glancing back at the sunny spot it had been lounging in.
Watching the cat’s chubby backside disappear into the distance, Vivian pouted regretfully.
“Kiki chased the cat away.”
[Vivian! How can you adore another animal besides me?!]
“When did I ever say I only liked you?”
Kiki looked as though the world had collapsed. It staggered dizzily and nearly toppled off Vivian’s head.
[How could you?! How could you?!]
“But cats are cute.”
Seeing Kiki repeat the same words like a broken clock, Vivian mischievously drove the final nail in.
[…!]
Kiki’s pride as a Divine Beast wouldn’t allow it to ask, Then am I not cute?
Instead, with tearful eyes, it climbed down from Vivian’s head and leapt onto another tree.
“Ah— Kiki! Pfft…”
For some reason, Vivian couldn’t stop the laughter bubbling out of her.
Still, she couldn’t just leave it sulking like that.
“Kiki! I’m sorry! Come down!”
[Hmph!!]
“Oh, come on. I never said you weren’t cute!”
[Who are you, acting all familiar with me?!]
Kiki perched on a branch at exactly the right height for Vivian to look up at, chin raised stubbornly in protest.
Every time Vivian hopped up and pleaded, its large ears twitched visibly—yet it continued pretending not to hear her.
“Sorry. I didn’t know you got this jealous.”
[When did I ever say I was jealous? This great one does not feel such things!]
“I’ll never call other animals cute in front of you again!”
[Doesn’t that just mean you’ll do it when I’m not around?!]
Vivian unleashed her ultimate move.
She clasped both hands together, looked up pitifully, and drooped her eyebrows into a helpless expression.
At the very least, Jean always fell for this tactic.
[Grrgh…!]
Kiki groaned as it resisted the devastating attack from Vivian’s rabbit-like innocent eyes.
Why it was fighting so hard to hold out, Vivian had no idea. Apparently its pride still wouldn’t allow surrender.
“Kiki, please come down now. Okay?”
There happened to be an audience watching this ridiculous little drama unfold between Vivian and Kiki.
[It’s Divine Beast-nim! Huh? But why is Divine Beast-nim up there?]
[Seriously. I think that human must’ve done something wrong.]
[The human’s at fault.]
[Definitely the human’s fault.]
Hearing butterflies—or maybe ants—whispering nearby, Vivian felt wrongfully accused.
I didn’t do anything wrong!
Jean was sitting on the drawing room sofa, supposedly enjoying a peaceful tea time…
Yet his leg shook uncontrollably beneath him in the most improper manner imaginable.
The very same Jean who would normally scold Vivian for shaking her legs was behaving this way because—
There had still been no news of diamonds being discovered in the Dohaju Mine.
‘Did it fail this time?’
‘Well… there’s no guarantee the animals identified the diamonds correctly. And there were a few other mines with “Ju” in the name too.’
‘Should I just buy every mine with “Ju” in its name?’
‘Do I even have enough spare money for that?’
‘Should I give up on the diamond mine altogether and start another business?’
‘No. I still have enough jewels from the deserted island. It’s too early to give up—’
Ripples trembled across the surface of his teacup, as if reflecting his restless mind.
Two pairs of eyes watched the anxious Jean carefully.
The owners of those gazes were—
Vivian and Kiki.
[Why are you two just staring at your father like this? Shall I summon him for you instead?]
“No! Shh, shhh.”
Vivian quickly pressed a finger to her lips. The tension radiating from her made it painfully obvious she was plotting something.
[What secret are you keeping from your father? If you’re planning something dangerous—]
“It’s not like that!”
[Then what is it?]
“Tomorrow’s Daddy’s birthday! But I still haven’t—”
Thunk.
A dull noise came from behind them.
Startled, Vivian whipped around to see Anne staring at her with her mouth hanging open. A laundry basket had fallen at her feet, apparently dropped while she was on her way to hang clothes outside.
“Anne!”
“H-his birthday?”
“Shhh! Daddy’s going to hear!”
“Ah!”
Anne clamped both hands over her mouth in panic, looking like a character straight out of a comedy play.
Bent nearly double at the waist, she tiptoed over to Vivian by the window.
“His birthday… Then why are you secretly watching him like this?”
“Well… I don’t know what to give Daddy as a present…”
“What did you usually give him before?”
Vivian lowered her head.
“I’ve never given him anything…”
Well, of course she hadn’t. Jean had left when Vivian was only five.
Truthfully, Jean wasn’t expecting a gift from Vivian this year either. What kind of adult would expect birthday presents from a child?
Anne was just about to reassure Vivian that it was okay not to give anything when Vivian quietly fiddled with her tiny fingers and muttered,
“When Daddy was gone, Peter gave Uncle Ron and Aunt Mary presents for their birthdays, and they looked so happy… I wanted to make Daddy that happy too…”
Peter’s “gift” had merely been a hastily scribbled drawing done at the last minute, but Ron and Mary—who adored their son—had been overjoyed anyway.
To Vivian, who had sat quietly at the birthday dinner table watching that warm family scene with envy, it had been unforgettable.
And now, as if by miracle, Jean had returned. Her dream could finally come true…
But there was one problem.
In the chaos of everything, she had only remembered his birthday the day before it arrived.
And since they were supposedly moving away soon, tomorrow might be the last chance to celebrate her father’s birthday in this house.
Vivian drooped miserably.
Watching her, Anne felt her chest tighten painfully.
Without realizing it, Anne smacked her chest confidently and declared,
“Leave it all to me, young miss!”
