It’S A Cat, Adopted By A Wolf Family? [EN]: Chapter 14

Theo and Deon were holding back laughter, amused by my predicament.

Phillip told me to wait a moment, then picked a basketful of strawberries from a small woven basket and handed it to me.

“You’re such a lovely young lady. You can eat as many as you like.”

“Oh, really?”

“Of course. It’s so rewarding to hear you say the strawberries are delicious.”

I giggled, took the strawberry basket, and thanked him. The strawberries glistened as if they had been washed in the stream.

“Thank you, Phillip!”

“Come visit again, young lady.”

“Yes!”

The three of us continued our walk, munching on the strawberries we had received. I looked at the beautifully ripe strawberries and said,

“Being a gardener is a wonderful job. I wish I could do something as wonderful as this at the Gridwolf mansion.”

“If you went around with a duster looking so cute, the employees would be too busy watching you to work.”

Theo said. I replied in a sulky voice.

“But being cute isn’t my job, is it?”

“Of course not, of course not. That would be a disaster. If being cute was a job, Kitty would be working overtime every day.”

Deon said slyly, then added it was a joke.

“For now, the priority is to eat well, sleep well, and get chubby. When you grow up, Soft Paw will become someone wonderful.”

“That’s right. Kitty is a Gridwolf, after all.”

I knew I was only temporarily adopted, but it felt good to hear my brothers say that. My mood quickly improved, and I replied that I hoped so, then ate another strawberry.

We arrived at the boundary between the east and west gardens. It was a place where a large tombstone stood on a stone altar.

Seeing the usually playful Theo and Deon become a bit more serious, it was clear that this was an important place.

“This is a memorial stone, Kitty.”

“Is it someone’s grave?”

“The grave is elsewhere. This was erected to remember the wolves who died. The names of the wolves who lost their minds due to the Blue Moon [a period of heightened magical influence] and were sacrificed to the panthers are written here.”

As Theo said, the surface of the large tombstone was covered in tiny writing.

I couldn’t read yet, but I could tell that there were many victims. It was heartbreaking.

I clasped my Soft Paws together and prayed for a moment.

‘May you be happy in a place where salmon float by.’

Just as I was about to get a little depressed thinking about the family whose funeral I had attended recently, Deon suddenly picked me up. Before I could say anything, he ran quickly.

“Look, Soft Paw. You can see the village from here.”

“Wow―!”

The Gridwolf mansion was located at a considerable altitude, and in Deon’s arms, I could see clearly below.

It was a small village mainly inhabited by wolves and dog beastmen [humanoids with animal features]. Squinting and focusing, I could see beastmen shopping and children playing.

Theo pointed to the market area and said,

“Let’s sneak out there later when we get our allowance. Mom and Dad give us allowance in envelopes after the New Year’s festival.”

“Will I get one too?”

“Of course. Kitty is a Gridwolf, isn’t she?”

Allowance. I had never received one before, so I was a little excited.

There’s plenty of delicious food at the mansion, so I hope I get enough to buy a big ball of yarn. Then I can play yarn ball chase with my brothers!

While I was wondering whether to buy a red or yellow ball of yarn, Deon shielded his eyes with his hand and looked somewhere far away.

He narrowed his eyes, so he must have found something. I couldn’t see it, but Theo, being a wolf, probably could.

“Oh, this is bad.”

They both said almost simultaneously. My cat eyesight couldn’t see anything, but I went along with the mood, crossed my arms, and said,

“I know, right? It’s really bad!”

I found out what they were surprised about shortly after. A large carriage was passing through the main gate of the Gridwolf mansion.

Theo checked the pocket watch he was carrying and muttered that he didn’t know when it had gotten so late.

“Looks like people from the clothing store are here.”

“We’ve seen the east garden, so let’s go back now. Soft Paw, are your feet hurting?”

My feet were throbbing because of the broken toenail. It would take a long time to cross the wide garden and return to the mansion.

But I didn’t want to act like a child, so I shook my head.

“Don’t lie to your brothers. Does it hurt?”

“A little. But I can walk.”

“No. You need to save your energy to try on cute dresses.”

Theo smiled wickedly and looked at Deon. Deon glared at him, then soon sighed.

“Okay. But don’t be surprised.”

Deon closed his eyes tightly, and a gray wind swirled.

Soon, with a pop, a wolf as big as a carriage burst out, cutting through the gray whirlwind.

“Hic!”

Theo caught me as I almost fell on my butt in surprise.

“I told you not to be surprised, Soft Paw.”

“Is that Deon, Brother?”

“Yeah. Get on quickly.”

Looking closely, his eyes were slightly upturned, just like Deon’s. His fur color was the same gray as his hair.

But he was really big. Even when I transform into a cat, I’m only the size of a kitten, but Deon had become several times larger than his original size.

“Theo, Brother. How can Deon, Brother’s wolf form be so big?”

“When you reach a certain level of magic power, you can increase your size in proportion to your strength. It’s useful in battle or for transportation like now. For reference, Father has great magic power, so he can transform into something much bigger.”

As Theo explained to me, Deon sat down on the ground with a thud. He lowered his posture to make it easier to get on his back, so he must really be Deon, Brother.

“Yay―! Then I won’t refuse and will climb on!”

“It tickles, so hurry up.”

Theo picked me up and sat me on Deon’s back, and Deon started walking. Because he was so big, walking quickly was several times faster than me running.

“Brothers, if I study hard, can I become this big too?”

“Maybe? A big Soft Paw……”

“If my Soft Paw gets big, I’ll let you play on it.”

“!”

The two brothers were silent for a while, seemingly imagining something satisfying. In the meantime, Theo was steadily supporting me from behind. Thanks to him, I felt more comfortable and held onto Deon’s fur tightly.

Everyone who passed by waved at us, so I felt really good.

“Deon, Brother, can I eat the cookie that Lena gave me earlier? I’ll be careful not to drop crumbs on your fur.”

“The crumbs can be washed off when I shower, so it’s okay. Chew it well so you don’t get indigestion.”

I shared the cookie with almonds and chocolate chips with Theo. I threw strawberries without the stems into Deon’s mouth one by one, but his mouth was so big that he didn’t seem to taste much.

To be able to ride on my brother’s back with soft fur, be held by my brother, and eat snacks.

After finishing all the snacks, I felt the speed gradually slowing down and whispered softly.

“You brothers are the best.”

The two couldn’t hide their very proud smiles.

* * *

“I’m glad you enjoyed the walk.”

Lena took me to the room as if she had been waiting, fed me, and washed me thoroughly. Her hands were so quick that I felt like I had become laundry.

Lena was very worried while drying my hair and putting on easy-to-change clothes.

“It would have been nice if Madam was here. After all, Madam knows women’s clothing well……”

“Isn’t Lena going with me?”

“Of course, I’ll go with you to help you, young lady. I can look at the clothes, but I haven’t handled expensive jewelry much, so it’s difficult.”

“Brothers said they can’t come because they have homework to do……”

Lena said that the clothing store people would be in my dressing room and hurried to guide me. While going down the stairs, I was able to meet Sir Elliott.

“Sir Elliott! Is Sir Jackal very busy?”

“Good day, young lady. I’m on my way to see Sir Jackal, so I don’t know exactly, but he’s probably busy.”

Indeed. He said he would be in his office all day today. Could he be studying the ‘Blue Moon replica’ that Sir Elliott mentioned this morning?

Sir Elliott asked me why I was looking for Sir Jackal.

“I’m going to get a dress made. Sir Jackal is a stylish person, so it would be helpful if he came.”

“Pfft. That’s right. Sir Jackal would look good even if he wore a sack of flour. I will make sure to convey your compliments to him.”

Sir Elliott greeted me and hurried on his way again. I followed Lena down the stairs.

While I was washing, the clothing store staff, who had neatly set up all kinds of fabric samples, mannequins, and pins, bowed their heads all at once.

The designer standing at the front bowed politely.

“We greet Mrs. Gray. We are the Weila couple. We are both designers.”

“It is an honor to make clothes for Caris Gridwolf.”

Oh. I’m too small next to them, so they can’t see me.

I held onto Lena’s skirt, and Lena looked down at me and smiled awkwardly.

“I think you were misinformed. We didn’t call people for Madam’s clothes today.”

“But didn’t you say that the Lady of Gridwolf was getting clothes made?”

A group of clothing store staff all had question marks on their faces. They were all wolf beastmen, and judging by their fur color, they were mixed-race, so they didn’t seem to have a good sense of smell.

That’s a relief. They won’t find out I’m a cat.

‘I washed, but I still smell like my brothers.’

Lena, having confirmed that there were several Gridwolf female knights nearby, carefully suggested to me.

“Young lady. Please introduce yourself.”

I took a step forward, grabbed my skirt, and greeted them. They were all wolves, so they were tall and had to lower their heads to look at me.

“Hello? I’m the young but brave baby wolf, Kittyara. I’ve been adopted into the wonderful Gridwolf family until I become an adult.”

“……”

The clothing store staff didn’t show any reaction for a while.

‘Huh?’

I tilted my head slightly.