It’S A Cat, Adopted By A Wolf Family? [EN]: Chapter 74

While Theo and Deon savored the rich flavor of the fatty tuna, Ethan remained holed up in his room.

He started by washing off the sweat from his body, not wanting to read Kitty’s letter in such a disheveled state.

Ethan, wearing only his lower garments, towel-dried his hair as he opened the letter.

[To Ethan Wibois,]

Before he could even read the first line, Kitty’s adorable, squishy paw print caught his eye.

At first glance, it looked twice as big as the temporary adoption document hanging in Jackal’s office. Ethan couldn’t help but smile, once again feeling the weight of the time he had spent with Kitty.

For some reason, it was her left paw print instead of her right, but even that was endearing. Ethan gently placed his finger on top of Kitty’s paw print, feeling as if the paper was soft.

[Hello, Ethan. This is my first time greeting you in a letter.]

His blue eyes moved to the first line of the letter. Every character Kitty had carefully written was something they had gradually refined together.

Her grammar and writing skills were also impeccable. Ethan suddenly recalled the moments when he taught Kitty grammar.

“Kitty, what do you call a male dog?”

“Do you say ‘sugae’?”

“Wrong. It’s ‘sutgae’ [male dog in Korean]. What about a male chicken?”

“Sudak…?”

“I told you, the correct word is ‘sutdak’ [male chicken in Korean]. Look for the pattern. What do you think you’d call a male cat?”

Kitty’s eyes sparkled as if she had finally realized something.

“Su… Ko-yang-i!”

“No. Cats are just cats. Male cats.”

“Hmph…”

He could still vividly picture her drooping ears and tail, expressing her resentment towards grammar and her teacher.

The little one who used to groan while taking dictation tests was now sending a letter without a single mistake. Ethan felt a strange mix of emotions as he continued reading.

However, next to the lovely paw print, in small letters, a shocking fact was written.

[P.S. Starting today, Cleed will be staying in the room next to mine. It seems better in many ways to be close. Goodbye for now.]

That was the end of the letter. Ethan doubted his eyes, rereading the end of the letter several times. But nothing changed.

To drop such an important fact and then say, ‘Goodbye for now.’

Ethan ran his hands through his hair, glaring at the letter.

There wasn’t a single reason given as to how it had come to be. Ethan’s brow furrowed noticeably.

‘Why is that fox bastard in the room next to you?’

His heart felt heavy at the thought of Kitty’s eyes sparkling at Cleed’s thick fox tail.

When the weather warmed up, they would come out to their respective balconies, enjoying the cool breeze and having conversations.

Ethan, who rarely lost his composure, felt as if something inside him was snapping at the thought of Kitty nestled in Cleed’s arms.

When had she ever perked up her ears, saying she had always liked him, only to turn to another man?

Ethan threw on a shirt, grabbed his coat, and headed downstairs. Theo and Deon were leisurely enjoying dessert in the dining room.

“Ethan, where are you going?”

“To the Gridwolf mansion.”

“…What?”

They stared at Ethan with wide eyes, as if they had heard something they shouldn’t have.

Even if Ethan was the highest-ranking member here, leaving the training grounds without permission would result in punishment.

Judging by the look in his half-crazed eyes, it didn’t seem like he was going to ask for prior approval for his outing. It seemed he meant to leave the training grounds right now.

“Are you crazy? Doing that will make all the tests you took while sleeping four hours a day worth zero!”

“What’s wrong?”

Ethan briefly mentioned the postscript in Kitty’s letter.

However, unlike him, Theo and Deon knew from the correspondence that Kitty had made that decision to help with mana core formation.

They calmly explained the facts they knew to Ethan. Nevertheless, Ethan’s blazing eyes did not calm down.

‘…Ethan seems more serious than I thought.’

‘This is all because Squishy Paw has been overworked.’

While calming down Ethan, who was burning with jealousy, they also felt a bit of schadenfreude. Thanks to Squishy Paw, they were able to see Ethan, who was always aloof and cold, withering away.

They secretly hoped that Kitty would display her cat-like aloofness and play Cleed and Ethan against each other.

‘Then we’ll make them live with her parents.’

‘For… about 10 years?’

In addition, many selection procedures were prepared for Kitty’s future groom. The corners of their lips crept up.

‘I wonder if Ethan still remembers us calling him a stupid wolf.’

‘We can’t send him to the mansion with this rare opportunity.’

Theo and Deon were wolves with very long grudges.

* * *

My brothers quickly sent back replies. They all said they received the letters and were doing well, and that I should stay healthy too.

Surprisingly, Ethan also sent a reply quickly.

[To Kitty,]

Perhaps it was because it was written in a cool, straightforward handwriting. Ethan’s letter felt as prickly as his tone. The content was also simple enough to summarize.

[If you’re knitting a scarf, don’t forget mine.]

[Don’t fall for a fluffy tail.]

[Don’t hang out with the fox, read a book. You can’t stop studying.]

Ethan didn’t tell me anything about how he was doing. I was curious about whether he had adapted well and what his daily routine was like.

It seemed like Ethan had just read my letter casually.

‘Maybe he’s a popular wolf and doesn’t have the energy to write back.’

Besides, the only new information he gave me was the address of where he was staying. Unlike the dormitory address where my brothers lived, there was no room number.

‘I should be satisfied with getting a reply from a grumpy wolf.’

The letter was full of nagging, but perhaps because I had seen it so many times during class, just seeing Ethan’s handwriting made me feel at ease.

With a lighter heart, I wrote a reply to his letter.

[No way. I’m going to do all the things I wanted to do when you weren’t around!]

It was half a joke. Ethan would probably just laugh it off.

I wrote simple replies to my brothers as well, stamped them with my paw print, and sealed the letters individually. I should leave the room soon and put them in the mailbox on the way.

I put on the wolf fur cloak that smelled faintly of Jackal, tightened my boot laces, and left the room. I didn’t forget to bring the bribes I had prepared in advance.

In the lobby, Jackal and the wolf knights were gathered in groups, preparing to visit the leader of the white rabbits.

After putting the letters in the mailbox, I slipped in among the knights, and Jackal quickly found me.

“Kitty. Did you come to see me off?”

“Um, no. It’s important to me too, so I wanted to come with you.”

“No. It’s cold outside.”

As expected, Jackal refused firmly. It wasn’t dangerous, but he said it was too cold.

I approached Jackal with light steps and sparkled my eyes. It was time to use the bribe I had hidden inside my cloak.

“This… is a ‘Kook-Kook’ scarf I knitted for Jackal.”

“Still no.”

Unlike his firm voice, Jackal reached out for the scarf. I subtly pulled the bribe back.

“You’ll take me with you, right?”

“…”

“Jackal, pleeease?”

As I wagged my tail and urged him, Sir Elliot, who was next to me, let out a light laugh.

“Jackal, you’re being threatened by the cat lady now.”

“…”

Jackal seemed to really like the scarf I had prepared as a bribe.

‘Then…!’

I stood on tiptoe and wrapped the thick scarf around Jackal’s neck. As expected, Jackal didn’t avoid it at all.

“Since you didn’t avoid it and accepted my bribe, you have to take me with you.”

I said shamelessly with a grin, and Jackal poked my cheek and replied.

“…I have no choice.”

It was an anticlimactic ending, unlike his scary face that looked like he was about to scold me. Sir Elliot raised his eyebrows at me.

“We should pass the position of head of the family to the lady, shouldn’t we?”

“Quiet, Elliot.”

Jackal tucked the end of the scarf into his coat and led me to the carriage. He said it would take about an hour to get to the place where the leader of the white fur rabbits was.

Right after the carriage departed, I realized I had forgotten something.

“Ah, should I bring Cleed? If I tell him to stay in his fox form and carry him around in a bag, it won’t be a hindrance.”

“He’s already taken the room next to yours, so his magic power should be full enough. It’s okay since I and Elliot are here.”

Jackal said in a cold voice that was different from when I wrapped the scarf around him. Ethan also had this tone when he talked about Cleed.

“Well, when we talked on the balcony yesterday, he seemed to be much better.”

“You talked on the balcony.”

Jackal turned his head and said to Sir Elliot.

“Elliot, as soon as we get back, take off the balcony railing in that guy’s room. Lock the door so he can’t get in.”

“Understood.”

…Oops. I accidentally made it so Cleed couldn’t watch the new scenery.

I brought up the story of exchanging letters with Ethan to change the subject. But this time too, Jackal’s expression wasn’t good.

“Kitty. If Ethan uses inappropriate expressions in the letters he sends you, tell me anytime.”

I tilted my head slightly and asked back.

“Inappropriate expressions…?”

Jackal and Sir Elliot both heard my question, but neither of them gave me an answer.

‘Was I too chatty?’

Just as I was thinking about quietly shutting my mouth and looking at the scenery outside, Jackal asked me cautiously.

“Kitty. If, if you were to get married.”

It was really rare for Jackal to say the same word twice to emphasize it. I took out my cat ears and started listening.

“Who would you want at your wedding?”

“At my wedding…”

I rolled my eyes and imagined it. It was difficult to picture someone’s face holding my hand tightly.

‘Ethan is prickly, so he wouldn’t hold my hand, would he? Cleed would hold it.’

I don’t know why their faces come to mind now, but there were definitely parts I could answer.

“I don’t know about the groom. But I’ll definitely send invitations to Jackal and the Gridwolf family too.”

Jackal froze as if he had heard an unexpected shocking fact.

“…Invitations?”

“Yes. I’ll send them without fail, so don’t worry. I’m a cat who keeps her promises well, right?”

“…Yes, invitations will be necessary.”

“I’ll definitely prepare a delicious meal that suits the tastes of the wolves who come as guests and invite you.”

Sir Elliot, who was always giggling like a prankster, also had a serious face this time. The two wolves exchanged words in low voices.

“Elliot, is there really no way for me to hold her hand and enter?”

“Well… you won’t be the lady’s father at that time. You’ll be completely taken away by the groom.”

“…”

Jackal’s profile, looking at the distant mountains, looked a little sad.