Knock, knock.
Ah, finally here.
Just as I was straightening my brand-new work uniform in front of the mirror to ensure it looked perfect, I heard the anticipated knock at my door. Naturally, I expected Butler Squawk to escort me to my new workspace, but the person standing there turned out to be someone else entirely.
“Huh? Kalz-nim?”
What was this guy doing here first thing in the morning? He’d shown up at my workspace plenty of times, but he’d never once come to my room.
Narrowing my eyes suspiciously, I looked up at him. He simply stared down at me, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
“I’ve cleared your schedule today. There’s something else I need you to do. Follow me.”
With those blunt words, he turned and strode off without even glancing back. Seriously, was being the boss enough of an excuse to casually assign personal errands like this? Well, actually, I suppose it was. After all, running errands was technically my job.
Despite knowing that full well, I still grumbled inwardly as I trailed after him. He glanced briefly over his shoulder at me.
“Is that your new outfit?”
“Yes, it is.”
I felt his gaze slowly scan me from head to toe.
Fine, look all you want. He was probably preparing to mock me again—maybe asking why I needed something so flashy just for work, or saying that the clothes were wasted on someone like me. I was ready to strike back, too, telling him my clothes were still better than his pitiful shirt, which looked like its buttons might burst any second.
Kalz nodded approvingly.
“It suits you.”
Wait a second—did he just compliment me?
“Huh? Oh, um, thank y—…”
My voice faded awkwardly. I’d been so focused on planning my counterattack that the sudden compliment left me feeling unexpectedly flustered. I knew it looked good on me, of course, but why was it so embarrassing hearing it from him?
Kalz didn’t say anything else and simply continued walking ahead. Feeling awkward, I kept my mouth shut and concentrated on walking.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before my heavy breathing gave me away.
Was it because he was tall, or did he always walk this quickly? Thanks to him, I was forced into an early morning power walk, legs nearly splitting apart.
“Are you seriously out of breath already?”
“Who… huff… said I was… huff… out of breath…?”
Crap!
Too late, I tried holding my breath to pretend nothing was wrong, but my shoulders betrayed me, jerking up and down as if dancing uncontrollably. God, how embarrassing.
Despite his words, Kalz noticeably shortened his stride, matching my slower pace. After finally catching my breath, I quickly added an excuse.
“It’s because it’s morning. I’m naturally more of a night owl.”
“Ridiculous excuse. Anyone can tell you’re just out of shape. Perfect timing, then—today you’ll be sweating plenty.”
“Sweating?”
Now that I thought about it, he still hadn’t told me what the actual task was. It had gotten pretty chilly recently—why would I be sweating?
Kalz’s oddly cheerful expression also worried me. Why were his ears twitching excitedly like that?
What on earth was he planning to make me do?
Filled with uneasy anticipation, we eventually arrived at an open clearing behind the castle. Someone was already waiting for us there.
“Mr. Gold, you’re here too?”
Just what was Kalz planning to make me do out here in the middle of nowhere—with Mr. Gold, no less? My curiosity spun wildly, conjuring all sorts of absurd scenarios.
“Let me explain today’s task.”
At last.
“It’s nothing complicated. Actually, it’ll be quicker just to show you.”
Reaching into his breast pocket, he pulled out something. Was that… a disc-shaped boomerang?
Kalz tossed the object high into the air and issued a blunt command:
“Fetch.”
Wait. Did I hear him correctly? Not even “pick it up,” but fetch? Did this lion bastard just call me a dog?!
My brain momentarily froze at this blatant violation of my dignity, my mouth hanging open uselessly. Before I could even regain my senses, Mr. Gold dashed forward eagerly on all fours and caught the flying disc skillfully in his mouth.
His movements were swift and practiced—clearly, this wasn’t his first time.
Since when had being a doorman become such an extreme job?
“Good job.”
“Woof!”
Kalz praised Mr. Gold, who eagerly returned with the disc in his mouth, and handed him… a dog treat. Tail wagging, Mr. Gold took the treat and dashed joyfully onto the grass.
Wait—no matter how you looked at this, something was definitely weird.
My brain, frozen in shock, slowly started working again.
“Did you see that clearly?”
Kalz’s mouth was twitching slightly as he turned to me, clearly trying not to laugh.
“You just have to throw the disc like that. Gold needs his exercise, after all.”
“No way…”
“Looking after the master’s dog’s health is also an employee’s responsibility.”
Wait a second—Mr. Gold was a dog all along?!
“That… that can’t be right. Wasn’t he a doorman?”
“Who said he was?”
“Well…”
Thinking back carefully, no one had explicitly said that. Even Gold’s name—I only knew it because Butler Squawk introduced him as “This is Gold.” But when I asked him to look after me, he clearly responded with a “Woof!” I’d assumed it was just a casual acknowledgment, not an actual bark!
“But he always stood by the entrance and opened the door for everyone!”
“Gold was clever from puppyhood. He learned early on how to open doors for guests.”
“He even wore clothes!”
“Is dressing up your pet dog such a rare sight nowadays? I doubt it.”
Sure, people dressed up their dogs all the time—but that shouldn’t apply here! This castle was full of animals already; there should’ve been a clear way to distinguish pets from people!
No matter how desperately I denied reality, the conclusion was painfully clear: the misunderstanding was entirely mine. Kalz chuckled quietly, watching my shocked, hollow-eyed expression.
“You look thoroughly stunned.”
“…Happy now? You could’ve just told me Gold was a dog from the beginning. You deliberately hid it, didn’t you?”
Finally, Kalz gave up trying to hold back and burst into loud laughter.
Sure, laugh all you want. Honestly, even I felt like laughing at my own stupidity—except it really wasn’t funny at all.
So that’s why he gave me such a strange look whenever I called him “Mr. Gold.” I’d foolishly thought Kalz was admiring my kindness and had even delivered an earnest speech about my work ethics.
The more I thought about it, the more humiliated I became. My horoscope today must have been full of embarrassment.
“Hahaha, weren’t you proudly calling him your sunbae because he started working here first? Or do dogs not count?”
“Knock it off! Marianne, Jack, and the Pitt couple are all like this too, so obviously I thought Gold was similar. Especially when the most beastly one here is you!”
Even now, Gold looked far more human to me than Kalz ever had.
Attempting to bury my embarrassment, I deliberately exaggerated my complaints. Kalz’s laughter suddenly stopped. His expression grew serious as he stared intently at me with those piercing golden eyes.
What now? I wasn’t even scared anymore.
“What? Upset because I called you beastly? Or because I spoke informally? After all the teasing you’ve done, surely you can handle this much. Look, you’re already baring your fangs again.”
“Come to think of it,” Kalz said suddenly, eyes narrowing, “there’s something strange about you.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve never once questioned why I look like this. Almost as if you already knew.”
“…Huh?”
Of course I wouldn’t wonder—everyone knew about the prince cursed by a witch and turned into a beast. But this man wasn’t supposed to know that. A cold chill ran down my spine.
“You’ve been suspiciously calm since the beginning. You’re never really afraid, even seeing me in this beastly form.”
“What are you talking about? I’m trembling right now. Oh no, so scary.”
“Someone genuinely frightened wouldn’t act so boldly.”
“Well, maybe I’m just naturally fearless.”
I desperately tried to joke my way out, but Kalz no longer seemed to be listening.
“And it’s not just that. From the start, your attitude toward the castle’s servants was oddly natural. Almost as if you were dealing with regular humans. Why?”
“That’s…”
Obviously, because I knew they’d originally been people caught in the curse along with the Beast. Of course, in the movie they turned into objects rather than animals, but the idea was essentially the same.
It felt completely natural to me—but suspicious from his perspective.
To get out of this tricky situation, I needed some shameless acting and quick thinking. Calm down, Briel. Think of it as an important job interview.
Taking a slow, quiet breath, I put on a sincere expression and began speaking confidently.
“I’m not sure I understand what you mean. Was there a special way I should’ve treated them? Of course, their appearances are unusual, but they’re still colleagues who work hard together for this mansion. It’s only natural to treat them with respect—even if they’re animals.”
Thankfully, my self-hypnosis seemed to work, and my words flowed out smoothly. My voice sounded suspiciously like an eager job applicant, but that was a minor issue.
Now hurry up and tell me I passed this interview.
Confidently, I held Kalz’s gaze. He didn’t look away either. His golden eyes blazed like molten sunlight, thoroughly scrutinizing me as if searching for hidden truths. Eventually, he turned away first.
“Surprisingly…”
He murmured quietly, eyes lowered.
“Your character isn’t half bad.”
Wait, what?
“I heard that perfectly! What’s with the ‘surprisingly’? If you’re going to compliment me, at least do it properly!”
Expecting him to mock me immediately afterward, I braced myself. But he remained oddly silent. Great, now I looked like the one causing trouble. The atmosphere turned awkward, and I quickly changed the subject before he could dwell on it.
“I have a question too.”
“I’m sure it’ll be something useless.”
Really, was there a manual in the castle library titled “How to Alienate People”? Still, his blunt response felt more reassuring than awkward silence. Maybe I was starting to get used to him.
“When I first met you, Kalz-nim, you wore a mask, and Butler Squawk had a cloth over his head, pretending to be human. You obviously weren’t planning to reveal your true forms, right?”
“Correct.”
“Then how exactly were you planning to assign me work? You couldn’t have hidden everyone’s appearances indefinitely, especially those who would train me.”
“I didn’t need to hide anyone’s appearance because I never intended to give you any actual work.”
Wait, what now?
“I originally planned to have you occasionally write letters for me or keep me company. Nothing more.”
“Then why am I being worked to the bone—I mean, enthusiastically working in so many different roles?”
Kalz raised an exaggerated eyebrow, looking genuinely baffled that I hadn’t figured it out.
“Because you forcibly discovered my true identity on your very first day—quite aggressively, if I may add.”
“Oh…”
So I brought this all upon myself. As despair gripped me, Kalz offered a small consolation.
“Though honestly, even without that incident, I probably would’ve put you to work anyway. There was no reason to go easy on a man.”
“Wait, so if I had been a daughter instead of a son, you wouldn’t have let me lift a finger after hiring me?”
“If you insist on hearing it explicitly, yes.”
“Whoa!”
Wow, talk about blatant discrimination—wait, hold on.
Did he really not need a worker at all? Had he just been searching for a beautiful woman to break his curse? If that was the case, it made sense. He wouldn’t have burdened someone he intended to romance with menial chores.
Wait… does that mean I’m going to be fired once my temporary contract ends?
No way. That would ruin my chances of a prosperous guild and peaceful retirement! Anxiety twisted inside me, and I resolved firmly:
I needed to tone down my attitude from now on.
Kalz looked slightly startled by my sudden outburst.
“What did that noise you made just now mean? ‘Whoa’?”
“Oh, that? Well…”
After careful thought on how to explain the magical versatility of that one word, I simply flashed him a thumbs-up.
“It means you’re awesome, Kalz-nim.”
Whatever. Flattery couldn’t hurt at this point.
