After seeing Daru off, my mother gently asked Sara:
“Is Luria still sleeping?”
“Yes. Daru wanted to go to the bathroom, so Sara came with him.”
“I see? …Well then, shall we go wake Luria up together?”
“Y-yes.”
My mother was completely suspicious.
‘Mother began walking toward Luria’s room.’
There was no time left. I ran as fast as I could toward my room’s window. I couldn’t make any noise, since I didn’t want the servants to notice.
“…How am I going to climb?”
My room’s window was open, but it was on the second floor. Climbing would be difficult.
There was nothing I could use as a foothold or handhold.
‘Leave it to Kuro. Hurry to below your room.’
“Understood.” “Yuu.”
Carro and I nodded and started running. I was running while Sara and Mother were walking, so I still had time.
‘Luria-sama, keep running at full speed.’ ‘Do your best!’ ‘Hurry, hurry!’
I trusted Kuro’s words and kept running.
‘Carro, you can do it on your own, right?’
“Yuu.”
‘Good. You’re reliable. Owl, take care of Luria-sama.’
“Owl?”
In the next moment, I was floating.
“Ooh? Owl!”
The owl flapped its wings strongly, but the sound of its wings was silent. As expected of a hunter skilled at blending into the twilight.
“Hoh-hoh.”
The owl grabbed my shoulder and carried me to my room.
“I was saved. Thank you.”
I thanked the owl and patted its head.
The owl’s feathers were strong. Even regular owls can capture and carry prey heavier than their own body weight.
However, my weight was easily ten times greater than that of an owl.
“The owl is amazing, huh? Is it because it’s a great hunter?”
“Hoo.”
Talking about that, I hid food in the wardrobe. I couldn’t forget to hide the eggs I stuffed into my pockets.
Carro also chirped and hid the nuts wrapped in a handkerchief alongside me.
Just after I arrived in the room, Carro was already there. It seemed climbing the wall was easy for Carro after all.
By the time I finished hiding everything, I could hear Sara and Mother’s voices outside. They were very close.
“Um, Oka-sama.”
“You’ve been talking a lot today. I’m happy.”
“Yes. Um, um… what’s that?”
It seemed like Sara was trying to slow them down by talking a lot. She was asking about anything she noticed and getting explanations.
(Thank you, Sara.)
Thanks to Sara’s quick thinking, I made it in time.
‘Luria-sama, this is no time to be relieved!’
“Huh?”
‘Look at your clothes!’
“Huh?”
Because I ran in the rain, I was drenched. Plus, the owl’s claw marks were clearly visible.
“Hoh…”
“The owl is not at fault. I was saved, right? The wetness is from magic…”
Desperate times call for desperate measures. I used magic to dry my clothes.
But I couldn’t do anything about the holes.
If Mother noticed them, she would ask, “What happened to this hole?”
If asked, I felt like I’d lose at that point. I just couldn’t lie to her without her finding out.
“Ugh…”
While I was in distress, Sara and Mother continued their conversation.
“Thank you for telling me, Oka-sama.”
“…Hmm. I’ve been wondering for a while, but how about that way of addressing me?”
“Is it wrong? Is it?”
It seemed like Sara got nervous thinking she was being scolded, and her tone became strange. I could picture her ears pressed down and her tail between her legs.
“It’s not wrong. But Sara has become my and Graf’s godchild, right?”
“Yes.”
“Just like with Luria, you can call me ‘Oka-sama’ too.”
“…But, that feels… too much.”
“Sara knows such complicated words.”
Saying that, Mother laughed cheerfully.
“Well, you probably won’t be able to call me Oka-sama right away, so take your time.”
“Yes.”
“If you’re uncomfortable calling me Oka-sama, you can call me Mother or Aunt instead.”
“…Thank you.”
Sara had been calling Marion “Mama.” So Mother probably didn’t want Sara to call her “Mama.”
“Ah. I just thought of something.”
I didn’t come up with it because of Sara and Mother’s conversation, but suddenly, an idea flashed into my mind.
‘…I’m getting anxious.’
“It’s okay! The owl will help.”
“Hoo?”
I decided to put my plan into action—an act of deception to buy some time before Mother arrived.
