Chapter 59

Chapter 59

“Who told you what?”

As he asked that, his pupils widened and shrank like he didn’t like what I found out.

“That’s not important. Tell me in detail what happened on the day of the last council of elders.”

“It was just like usual.”

“There are many other ways to find out if you won’t tell me.”

After all, there were still many people in Blois who didn’t believe me and still didn’t like me. If I asked them, they would surely explain in great detail how much damage I’ve caused to Blois. Frankly, I could also just ask Baron Placen without going too far and hurting my feelings, and that would be more than enough.

Even though I knew that, I came to Dimitri because he seemed to have a reason for keeping it a secret from me.

“Tell me what’s going on. If it has anything to do with me, shouldn’t I know?”

“The elders just hate me, so they’re just trying to pick on me in some way.”

Dimitri crossed his arms and took a defensive stance as he went on.

“It happens all the time, and it’s something that can be resolved on my own, so you don’t have to worry too much about it, wife.”

“However…!”

I was choked up.

In the first place, I could guess that Madam Elbas had purposely come to my office at a time when Dimitri was absent to upset me. I knew rationally that if her ulterior motive were to piss me off, it would be my loss if I played in the palm of her hand.

To win over Madam Elbas, I needed to act calmly and pretend nothing was wrong.

I know, I know…

“And now, that dirty thing met a vulgar woman like you.”

She couldn’t stand it because I was angry that I’d given her an excuse to talk like that.

‘How dare she…’

I grinded my teeth.

‘How dare she say that cats are dirty?’

My stomach was burning.

“I heard that they treated me as a thief at the council of elders. That’s an insult to me, and I don’t want to let it settle on Dimitri’s shoulder. So tell me, what’s going on?”

Having said that, he didn’t insist anymore and confided in me obediently.

“It’s because of Coco’s issue. Do you remember the slave traders who followed him?”

“…Are they saying I stole Coco?”

Regardless, Coco was a slave with an owner.”

“Still, he was seriously injured and was dying on the road. He would have died on the spot if I hadn’t found him. Besides, the scars were caused by severe abuse.”

At my words, Dimitri opened his mouth as if he was very curious to hear those words come out of my mouth.

“The owner who bought the ownership of the slave is free to abuse the slave, and if Coco died as he was running away, it would have been their personal loss. However, the moment Rowaine intervened, you violated private property rights. As you know, slaves are like that.”

I was at a loss for words.

‘Right… This was such a world.’

The shock that I had come to another world suddenly penetrated my skin and seeped into my body. I thought of Coco, who had fluffy hair like a sheep, smiling with sky-blue eyes wide open and teeth exposed. At the same time, words such as abuse, death, ownership, slavery, and private property overlapped his face.

I knew what a slave was, but knowing it with your head and feeling it with your skin like this was completely different.

It took me a long time to think before I could acknowledge Coco’s position in the world and my fault.

“Okay, if I were to comply with the system, it’s my fault for recklessly saving Coco and bringing him here.”

Dimitri, who waited until I accepted the fact, continued his explanation.

“The slave traders who had ownership of Coco were being invested in by a man called the Count of Bilbao.”

Come to think of it, it occurred to me that the day the slave traders invaded Blois, they threatened Dimitri, saying that they were getting investment from someone.

“Because of me, he suffered great damage. The Count of Bilbao requested that this matter be dealt with at the council of elders, and the elders concluded that I must pay him damages.”

I understood what the situation was now.

First, I apologized to Dimitri.

“I’m sorry, Dimitri. I had no idea things would turn out like this.”

At my words, he shrugged his shoulders.

“Even if you knew, wouldn’t the result be the same?”

He was right. I couldn’t have let Coco die, or I couldn’t have saved him and handed him back to the slave traders. I just apologized again because I had nothing to say.

“I’m sorry.”

Staring at me, Dimitri turned to the other side and uttered softly.

“Don’t apologize.”

“Why?”

“Because I think Rowaine was right.”

His gaze, which had been lowered for a moment, turned back to me. Brilliant emerald eyes stared straight at me as he gave a little more strength to his voice.

“Good job.”

I stared blankly at the unexpected compliment and only blinked my eyes.

What I thought was right became a nuisance to him. Still, he was praising me. While everyone concluded that I was wrong, Dimitri, who would have been accused of covering me, said I was right…

Until now, I felt like I had just fallen into another world and was alone. I was depressed and out of breath. I also felt a bit queasy. However, Dimitri supported me when I was about to lose my balance and get swept away by depression.

I felt like bursting into tears.

‘…I’m thankful and reassured. Still, I’m sorry.’

“That’s really… Thank you.”

It was just one person’s support though I felt like I had the whole world.

At the moment of relief, a memory that I had forgotten about one thing suddenly flashed in my head.

‘Wait a minute. The Count of Bilbao is a vassal of Blois…’

I remembered seeing them on a list brought by my aide, Baron Placen, who said it would be a good idea to familiarize myself with the names of the vassals.

‘He’s showing hostility by bringing issues that can be resolved amicably with Dimitri to the council of elders… Although it’s just an internal matter, and from the outside, he’s also tied to Blois.’

Blois, slave trader, and shapeshifters…

Once the words were connected in my head, I could easily recall an episode from the original story that I had read before.

‘I can’t believe the Count of Bilbao…’

I quickly got up from my seat.

“Dimitri, I have to go now.”

“….?”

“Just trust me.”

Smiling at the man, who looked puzzled in front of me, I clenched my fists and went out. When I started, I felt like I could see the end… Me and Dimitri, the end that only we can be happy.

“Coco.”

At my call, Coco, who was lying in the front yard of the annex in the cat form with his belly exposed and his limbs hanging down, opened his eyes narrowly.

“Hi, angel.”

After greeting me in a drowsy manner, Coco closed his eyes again. The sun was moderately warm, so it must’ve felt comfortable.

“Have you been here all day?”

“It’s still morning.”

What about Sasha?”

“She ran after the bees.”

As if telling me not to talk to him because it was annoying, Coco slightly twisted his body. He was showing mild irritation.

The grass crunched under Coco’s thick, wheat-colored fur.

It was a sight that made me drowsy just by looking at it. A languid cat had the magical power of bringing sleep. However, I was now impatient. I wanted to enjoy this peaceful time with him, but I made up my mind and gently shook Coco, who was dozing off.

“Coco, can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Haam~ What is it?”

Coco yawned and stretched out his arms and legs as much as he could, then turned around and threw himself on his stomach.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to hear about your time at the slave trader.”

At my words, he sighed and sat upright.

“I don’t want to talk about that.”

Fear flickered in his sky-blue eyes as his pupils slightly dilated and ears pricked up. I could feel Coco’s body hardening with tension even without touching it. From his attitude, I was convinced that the ‘something’ I had guessed was right.

But even so, I needed to be a little more certain. In the future, I plan to do something pretty big.

“I don’t want to bother you, Coco, although I hope you can help me.”

“Help you? Do you need my help?”

Coco opened his eyes wide and tilted his head. Seeing that reaction, I knew how to get him to help me.

“I really need your help. It’s something only Coco can do, not anyone else. I thought the two of us would carry out a secret operation without anyone knowing.”

“You mean the secret operation between angel and me?”

As he asked back, Coco’s tail wiggled pleasantly. He placed his soft front paws on my lap and spoke excitedly, holding his face as close as possible.

“What shall I tell you? The story of my birth? The story I was almost sold on? Or, or…”

‘He’s so cute.’

Coco, in a human form, and I sat across the table.

Even though he was a little nervous at first, Coco gradually calmed down as the conversation progressed… No, it would be more accurate to say that he felt downcast. I asked, feeling the conflict between the half of my heart that wanted the words I wanted to come out and the other half that didn’t want them to come out.

“So, you mean the slave traders took the shapeshifters and bred them randomly?”

It would be of great help to Dimitri if a story related to a certain episode, seen in the original work, came from Coco, but it was such a terrible story that I wished it hadn’t happened yet.

Nonetheless, from Coco’s mouth, the story flowed just as I expected the next moment.

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