#15
“Young master seems very smart.”
Elisa, who had already heard dozens of words from Noah, carefully spoke to Loren. Noah was not just more gifted than his peers; he could write and read books on his own without being taught.
“The Grand Duke teaches him every night.”
Loren smiled as she watched Noah, still immersed in his naming game. Watching her child grow day by day was both happy and sad. At first, she used to read books to him, but now that he could read on his own, she missed the joy of holding Noah and reading to him.
And now that he had an animal friend, he spent more time outside with others than with her.
“Choco, Steamed Bun, Nodong (Noah’s little brother), Yeppi…”
“It seems he doesn’t have much talent for naming, does he?”
It was good that Noah knew many words, but since none were suitable for naming, Loren whispered to Elisa in a small voice so Noah couldn’t hear. Elisa also nodded quickly while laughing silently.
But neither of them said anything to Noah. They didn’t want to say anything that might set off the stubborn Noah.
“Haah…”
Whether he was enjoying the naming game or not, as the playtime extended with Noah sitting on his back and just playing around, a small sigh escaped from the snow leopard’s mouth. He was waiting for the small human who kept grabbing his ears and giggling to let him go.
“Aeong?”
“…?”
“Aeongi?”
The snow leopard started to sigh, and at the same time, Noah, who had started to meow, clapped his hands and smiled brightly.
“Aeongi. Say ‘aeong.'”
“Roar!”
“Mommy! Aeongi said ‘aeong’~”
The snow leopard had clearly made a threatening sound like a growl, similar to a roar. Unlike Loren and Elisa, who flinched and were startled by the rough sound, Noah became even more excited and shouted loudly.
“From today, you’re Aeongi.”
Noah, who had been sliding down from the large body he had been riding on, ran in front of the snow leopard. Then, he grabbed the huge face with both hands and met the snow leopard’s eyes, which were larger than his fists.
“Hello, Aeongi.”
No matter what anyone said, once Noah decided, that’s how it would be.
The snow leopard, watching Noah singing “Aeong, aeong, Aeongi” with bright, clear eyes, accepted that he would be called Aeongi for a while.
What did it matter what he was called?
Loren and Elisa’s warm laughter filled the room as they watched Noah shaking his small body from side to side, dancing and meowing.
“Aeongi, eat lots and grow big.”
Aeongi closed his eyes, eating the sweet cookie that Noah had taken from the snack plate in front of Loren and put into his mouth.
Well, as long as it was warmer than the forest, had more to see, and wasn’t boring, it would do.
* * *
“Aeongi, run!”
Contrary to Noah’s clear shout, Aeongi leisurely walked and slightly picked up the ball rolling in front of him. The knights resting in the training ground all turned their attention to the sight of Noah playing ball with the snow leopard in the vast field, as if it were just an ordinary dog.
And just as the snow leopard caught the ball, it quickly turned its head and threw the ball, causing little Noah to start running hard.
“You’re mean!”
After running for a while and stopping, Noah turned around, looked at the snow leopard, and shrieked. The snow leopard hadn’t thrown the ball that hard, nor had the ball rolled that far. But from Noah’s mouth, who was tired from going to pick up the ball, the words “You’re mean!” inevitably flowed out.
Along with that, tears instantly welled up in his eyes, and his lower lip began to pout. It was obvious that if he hesitated a little here, a loud crying sound of “Waaah” would be heard.
Then the snow leopard, which had been walking sluggishly as if everything in the world was bothersome when it was time to pick up its ball, suddenly disappeared from sight. And the snow leopard, with the ball that Noah hadn’t picked up in its mouth, was now sitting next to Noah.
“Good job.”
Noah, with tears still welling in his eyes, patted the snow leopard’s head and took the ball from its mouth. It was one of the strange phenomena where both the knights and Aeongi knew about young Noah’s little tricks but played along.
After Aeongi arrived, Noah’s life changed dramatically. Going outside the castle was more strictly prohibited, and the small hole he had used to get out last time was blocked, even though he hadn’t told anyone that was how he escaped.
Instead, from the moment he woke up until the moment he fell asleep—no, even while sleeping—he was with Aeongi.
Being in a cold region, until now, Noah had slept in a large bed with Elisa. Because of this, he spent more time with Elisa than with Loren. It was natural for him to become closer to Elisa, his nanny who helped him with everything from the moment he woke up until he fell asleep so that Noah’s life would not be uncomfortable.
But after Aeongi appeared, Noah boldly stopped sleeping with her. Aeongi’s embrace was warmer than Loren’s or Elisa’s. It was only natural that Noah wanted to sleep with Aeongi, as he was not just warm but hot, and had fluffy fur too.
When Aeongi lay comfortably on the large, wide bed, Noah would snuggle into his embrace. While Noah enjoyed comfortable and warm sleep, Aeongi had to sleep lightly. If he moved and accidentally pressed on the small body, it would be a major accident.
So, he watched over Noah all night, and if Noah struggled and left his embrace, he would raise his front paw and immediately lay him back down. Not knowing that children sometimes smile and talk in their sleep, he would open his eyes to check Noah’s sleeping face whenever he mumbled.
They not only slept together, but at mealtimes, Noah would secretly pass the foods he didn’t want to eat to Aeongi, who was under the table. While Noah used to ride a hoverboard when traveling fairly long distances by his standards, now he rode Aeongi.
And instead of following knights in the training ground which was difficult to keep up with, or swinging stone hammers, his play style had changed to playing ball with Aeongi like this.
“Young master, it’s snack time…”
Noah quickly raised his head at the voice calling them from below. And at the same time, Aeongi’s head also shot up.
Before Noah could say anything, Aeongi grabbed the back of Noah’s clothes with his mouth and tossed him upward. Now quite used to flying through the air, Noah quickly grabbed Aeongi’s fur and settled on his back.
If Noah had gained a playmate, Aeongi had gained snacks. Thinking he was really raising Aeongi, Noah made sure that live chickens or thick cuts of raw meat were distributed to Aeongi during meal times.
But what Aeongi looked forward to most was not meal time but snack time, filled with sweet treats.
“I asked earlier, and today it’s apple pie.”
Aeongi, who had been running like crazy, stopped abruptly, and Noah, who almost fell off from the recoil, let out a shriek.
Why apple pie? Aren’t there any chocolate cookies?
Apple pie is my least favorite snack.
Aeongi’s pace, which had been flying just a moment ago, slowed down considerably.
“Hurry up! I’m hungry.”
Aeongi’s expression turned gloomy, not caring at all about Noah fidgeting or pulling his fur on his back.
Noah urged the sluggishly walking Aeongi and entered the castle, then patted the head of Aeongi, who now knew to go to the bathroom first.
“Aeongi, paw!”
After quickly washing his hands and face, Noah squatted in front of Aeongi. Then he tapped Aeongi’s paw, which was thick and larger than his head.
Whether it was a purr or a growl, a small sound expressing discomfort came from Aeongi’s mouth, but Noah patiently waited until Aeongi raised his front paw on his own.
How can he hate washing so much? You have to wash after going out.
You don’t even wear shoes. This is why raising pets is hard. You have to teach them everything.
“Cleaning keeps you from getting sick.”
Although he wanted to nag on and on, since his speech was still childish with a lisp, Noah spoke briefly. When Aeongi reluctantly raised one paw, Noah quickly patted his head and kissed his cheek.
Rewards must be clear!
The idea was that Noah, who had been playing outside, would wash Aeongi.
But in reality, one of the maids who came from the side was washing Aeongi’s front paws. Noah was just playing with water, scooping a little with his tiny hands and sprinkling it on Aeongi’s front paws, patting them lightly.
Regardless of Aeongi’s mood, Noah, having successfully washed all of Aeongi’s paws, happily hopped toward the small reception room on the first floor, excited about eating apple pie.
Eating delicious food was truly a happy thing. Even when he lived in Korea, he wasn’t the type to eat whatever he could find when hungry, so while he sometimes missed Korean food, he had no major complaints about the food here.
Rather than having no complaints, Noah, who was very satisfied, stopped himself as he began to dance involuntarily. Although he had a child’s body, he was actually an adult. His body might be that of a child, but his thoughts were those of an adult…
As he got used to a child’s life, his personality was gradually changing too. If necessary, he would throw tantrums and use tears.
Sleep when he wanted to sleep, eat when he wanted to eat. Play to his heart’s content.
There was no need to be mindful of others’ feelings or do things forcibly to maintain social face. Because of that, he would dance whenever he felt like it and sing whenever he wanted to.
He played to his heart’s content. Even without games, computers, or phones, he could play purely physical games. When he was young before, he didn’t know how precious these things were, and he wanted to quickly become an adult. So he imitated adults and pretended to be one.
But now, knowing how precious this time was, he decided to enjoy it comfortably. It was happiness to show people who listened to him the side of himself they liked. Lucas’s rough beard, which tickled when he hugged him tightly, was also nice.
These people were completely different from his previous life’s parents, who were obsessed with money and ignored their young child, valuing only their own lives. Knowing how great the love these people gave him was, Noah didn’t cling to his fading memories of his previous life. Although he missed modern civilization, nothing else remained in his heart.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
