CH 17

Translated by EunEun

Edited by Slowday

The round object placed on an unnecessarily fancy pedestal is—

‘A running wheel?’

A small running wheel that was possible to enter only if she transformed into her squirrel form.

Carlitos’s eyes shone with an unusual expectation as he put it down in front of Beatty. 

“Do you want to ride it now?”

‘… Is he kidding me?’

As expected, did I misunderstand his previous attention as a kindness?

Beatty unconsciously frowned because of the doubt.

“You don’t like the running wheel?”

The boy tilted his head and this time he pushed a huge tray.

“Then, how about this one?”

“?”

Beatty raised her head and with her questioning eyes, she saw a seven-floored mansion.

Besides the lobby, the mansion had a banquet hall, the drawing room, the dressing room, and so forth. With nothing lacking, it was surely—

A mansion for a squirrel.

“….”

Seeing the furniture perfectly reduced to squirrel size, Beatty forgot about what she was going to say.

‘What in the world is this…?’

“Among these, do you have anything that you like?”

The boy took things out of the mini-mansion then put them in front of her as if asking her to choose.

A bed for a squirrel.

A dress for a squirrel.

A tea set for a squirrel.

Beatty stared at the chestnut-sized miniatures in front of her with puzzled eyes.

“Ah.”

The boy’s voice sounded playful.

“Give me your hand.”

“?”

She hesitated, then reached out her hand.

“Ta-da.”

He put a life-sized squirrel doll which was dressed for a banquet in her hand.

Tiny Beatty shook the doll with both hands, and Carlitos, who was staring at her, spoke.

“It’s a squirrel holding a squirrel.”

Looking at the somehow proud boy, Beatty had an incomprehensible look on her face.

***

“Hohoho. Did you two have a good time together?”

“Yeah. She played with me well.”

“Oh my, taking care of your younger sister like this, our Young Master has become all grown up!”

“I originally already am.”

‘Did he say I played with him…? So, he wasn’t joking around?’

At the sight of the boy answering calmly, Beatty somehow felt wronged.

“Chuub….”

‘Actually….’

Earlier, Beatty transformed into her squirrel form after feeling pressured by her brother’s twinkling eyes. She mumbled in secret.

“Chu chuuu chuub, chuut chub chuuuuut!”

‘Who said we played together, it’s more likely he teased me!’

As soon as she turned into a squirrel, her older brother’s eyes sparkled.

“Do you want to ride this?”

“This one too.”

“Get in here.”

He brought out all the toys in the room and bothered her a lot.

It was hard to listen to all of his requests, as though she had climbed a big old tree ten laps up and down.

“Chuchuu chuuuut!”

‘He’s really a strange lion!’

There was no need for her older brother to understand the squirrel words.

“Oh my! It was like that? Our Young Miss, did you have fun?”

The problem was Johanna couldn’t understand her words either, but….

Johanna smiled delightedly at the Young Miss, who seemed to be showing off that she had been playing with her brother, while her limbs fluttered restlessly.

“Oh my, looks like you’d so much fun playing that your cheeks are flushed like this.”

‘It’s red because I’m angry…!’

Beatty was choked up with injustice.

“Now, Young Miss. Would you like to comfortably wear these pajamas?”

Following Johanna’s lead, she was moved to a dressing room—Beatty was again shocked by these magnificent dresses they gave to a guest—and changed into her nightwear.

Trudge, trudge.

She came back to the bedroom with her two legs that were never short in the first place.

“Hm?”

She discovered her older brother standing in the middle of the huge and empty room.

‘Why is he still here and not going out?’

Beatty gave him a puzzled look.

“….”

“….”

So, for a moment, the siblings had a staring contest and confronted each other.

Then, Beatty carefully looked at him and called.

“Older Brother Carlitos El Aslan…?”

‘Why isn’t he doing anything, even when I called him ‘Older Brother’?’

She had thought about it for a while, but she couldn’t think about any other title.

‘Since I’ve politely called him first by his full name… this is considered as an honorific, right?’

She remembered reading somewhere that a respectful honorific was to call a person’s name without leaving out their title or surname.

“Again, what is that.”

Or perhaps she remembered it wrong because her older brother had an absurd look on his face.

“You’re not even some kind of officer, so why are you calling me so weirdly?”

“Then, what should I….”

“Just call me by name.”

“Older Brother Carlitos?”

Then he appeared like he was confused at why she had called him like that.

“Um, Older Brother Carlitos isn’t going to sleep?”

“Of course, I have to sleep.”

“Then, why is Older Brother Carlit-u-z.”

Continuously calling the long name was harsh on the child’s tongue.

Beatty blushed after her tongue twisted from repeatedly saying his name.

‘My body is still young….’

She didn’t usually make mistakes like this, but—

This was all because of the eight years old’s body.

The boy looked at Beatty’s embarrassed face, then smirked and spoke.

“Call me Carl.”

The corners of his mouth drew a crescent-shaped line.

Beatty’s eyes widened at the unexpected soft smile.

However, the smile quickly disappeared, leaving him with a mischievous grin.

“Since it’s hard to pronounce it with that short tongue.”

When she saw her brother adding that undoubtedly provoking word, Beatty’s round eyes turned into a pointed triangle.

“…. Carl.”

Firstly, she called him as she was told.

Then accordingly as she was told, she simply called him by his name only.

Juuk.

Her soft cheeks were stretched out.

“You have to add the ‘Older Brother’ too.”

“… Olda Bwoda Carl, pease yet ma cheeks go.”

Her cheeks were pulled, so the words didn’t come out properly.

Beatty looked sulky because her older brother grabbed her cheeks, making her let out the short-tongued sounds she didn’t like.

Juuk. Juuk.

Afterward, Carl stretched, poked, and kneaded her soft cheeks as much as he wanted.

“Hm.”

When he released his hands, despite adjusting his strength to the weakest level, red marks remained on her glutinous rice-cake-like white cheeks.

‘Finally, I’m free!’

As soon as her cheeks were released, Beatty wrapped them around with her small hands and quickly widened their distance.

“….”

He was staring blankly at her.

Somehow, Beatty turned her head slightly to Carl’s eyes, which had a hint of disappointment.

“Ahem. Ahem.”

“….”

“So, Older Brother Carl.”

“Why.”

“I’m going to sleep now.”

“Sleep.”

Beatty asked, looking back at the eyes that were still stuck at her.

“… Are you not going back?”

Now she really wanted to sleep.

This young body was too weak to handle drowsiness.

It hadn’t been long since the sun set, yet her eyelids had become so heavy.

“I’ll watch you lying down.”

“?”

Why would he want to see that?

While she was still thinking, Beatty was soon laid on the bed by a strong force.

“Lie down.”

He said he controlled his power, but for Beatty, it was as powerful as some elephant shapeshifter’s strength.

‘Hm?’

He abruptly put her head on the soft pillow, and—

“Uph!”

She was buried under the blanket which Carl lifted up to her mouth, also—

“Rockabye.”

He even patted her through the blanket.

Although it was clumsily done, Carl did the entire steps of putting a baby to sleep. He nodded with a proud face, then told her.

“Sleep well.”

“… Older Brother Carl too.”

“Kay.”

It was Beatty’s first time for ‘being put to sleep’ even though it was poorly done.

Beatty hesitated for a moment then said good night in the most respectful way she remembered.

“Please have a good night’s rest.”

A strange greeting for a small child to pass to the boy.

*Smirk.*

Upon hearing that, Carl naturally reached out his hand while deflating his mouth.

“Okay, Beatty.”

A playful breeze patted Beatty’s head lightly, ruffling her hair.

“See you tomorrow, Tail Fur.”

Soon the door closed and the boy left the room.

“… He called me Tiny Kid, then he called me Tail Fur.”

Tch. 

Beatty, who was left behind, grumbled this and that about her older brother who teased her with whatever names he liked.

“….”

She turned her head and repeatedly confirmed that there was no eye around her.

After she’d finally felt reassured and done checking…

Beatty hesitated for a moment, raised her arm then put her hand at the place Carl patted previously.

As if by doing so, she could catch the remaining warmth.