“Get some fresh air?”
Meanwhile, Mino—completely unaware of what Neya was thinking—cheerfully opened the window. A blast of cold air rushed straight into the room.
“This won’t do. It’s still cold.”
“……”
“Up we go.”
Mino picked Neya up again. Now that he thought about it, he was holding her quite steadily—like someone used to carrying a cat—so it wasn’t uncomfortable at all.
“Young master, are you awake?”
At that moment, a woman’s voice came from outside the door.
The door opened right after. Though she was a servant, she looked quite accustomed to coming in and out of the young master’s room.
The woman who entered was middle-aged—a nanny who had taken care of Mino since he was little.
Seeing Mino standing by the window, the nanny smiled.
“Well, this is a surprise. You’re up early.”
“The cat woke me up.”
I didn’t wake you up!
Neya, cradled in Mino’s arms, shot him an indignant look. Of course, there was no way Mino could notice.
“Shall we go have breakfast?”
“Where’s my sister?”
“She hasn’t returned yet.”
“……What about my parents?”
“……”
Instead of answering, the nanny gave an awkward smile. Understanding what that meant, Mino let out a small sigh.
“I’ll eat alone in my room again today.”
“Yes.”
Mino’s expression darkened.
But only for a moment. When his eyes met Neya’s, a faint smile suddenly appeared on his lips.
“No, I’ll eat in the dining room.”
“Oh? Really?”
Since Mino never ate alone in the dining hall, the nanny looked surprised.
“I want to show the baby around the mansion.”
Calling a cat a baby when he himself was one—finding it endearing, the nanny let out a soft laugh.
Soon, following behind the nanny, Mino left the room. He seemed to be wearing pajamas that doubled as indoor wear, but even though he hadn’t changed clothes, the nanny didn’t comment.
Cradled in Mino’s arms, Neya was dragged out of the room before she could process what was happening and was completely flustered.
I—I’m a Catsha, though……
One thing was certain: Mino thought Neya was just an ordinary cat.
However, revealing her identity by turning back into a human right now gave her serious pause.
Just recently, she’d nearly been sold after recklessly revealing that she was a Catsha.
After much deliberation, Neya decided to behave quietly until she saw a chance to escape.
Shane must be really worried…
She didn’t know how long she’d been asleep, but it was already morning. Her original plan had long since gone awry.
Of course, Neya still intended to escape from this place and return home.
“……?”
But when she stepped out into the hallway and saw the scene before her, thoughts of escape flew right out of her mind as her eyes widened in shock.
The corridor before her was luxurious and spacious. There were countless rooms, and maids in uniform and knights wearing swords passed through the hallways in great numbers.
The moment Neya saw it, she understood.
This is a noble’s mansion!
The noble estate she’d heard so much about at the cat shop—this was it.
A mansion like a princess’s castle, with a wide and comfortable environment. Pretty maids in skirts and handsome knights.
It was exactly the kind of place Neya had dreamed of before being adopted.
While Neya was completely absorbed in the surroundings, darting her eyes this way and that, they arrived at the dining room.
In no time, the table was filled with dazzling, delicious-looking dishes. It was far too extravagant for breakfast.
That looks so good!
Whether at the cat shop or the countryside estate, she’d always had decent meals—but this was the first time she’d seen such a lavish spread.
Do I get to eat this too?
Neya’s heart pounded.
“Alright, baby, you eat here.”
But the place where Mino set Neya down was the floor beside a chair. There sat a shabby bowl of cat food, in stark contrast to the splendid dishes on the table.
“……”
Neya was not pleased.
Instead of eating, she repeatedly thumped her tail against the floor in irritation. Seeing this, Mino, seated on his chair, looked down at her with a puzzled expression.
“You’re not eating? I made sure to get the very best.”
“……”
Neya might have been a cat, but she’d been raised eating only human food since she was little, so a meal consisting solely of cat food was bound to be unsatisfactory.
“Young master.”
Suddenly, the woman standing nearby called out to Mino in a stern voice. Unlike the nanny, she gave off a strict air.
Only then did Mino take his eyes off Neya and straighten his posture.
The woman clearly looked displeased that Neya had been brought into the dining room. Still, Mino pretended not to notice her gaze and picked up his fork.
“Ahem.”
Immediately, the woman shot him a warning look.
“Young master. I’ve told you repeatedly to start with the outermost utensils.”
“……”
“And you came without changing your clothes.”
“There’s no one I’m going to meet anyway.”
“You must set an example for the people who serve this family. You are to become the head of the house, so you must cultivate proper dignity from now on.”
Head of the house?
Neya looked up at Mino. She had heard that term from Alex before, so she knew what it meant.
The head of a family—the one who bears responsibility for the entire house.
That was why, despite being so young, Mino carried such heavy responsibility.
“……”
Mino didn’t look happy, but he didn’t voice a single complaint.
This kind of daily life was all too familiar to him.
Mino kept Neya with him all day.
By the time they returned to the room, the sun had already set.
I spent the whole day here…
She’d planned to slip out at dawn just to look for Hugh, but now she’d been away from home for more than two full days. At this rate, people might even think she’d run away.
“Sorry. It must’ve been boring, sitting through classes with me.”
After placing Neya on the bed, Mino spoke in a gentle voice.
Unlike Neya, whose days mostly consisted of playing or napping, Mino spent the entire day attending lessons without a break. Every one of them was at a level far beyond what someone his age should be learning.
Mino sat down beside Neya and let out a small sigh.
“A few years ago, I inherited the position of deputy head of the house. That’s when I started getting this busy.”
Mino was only seven years old. Normally, no one would appoint a deputy head so early, but due to various circumstances, Mino had been burdened with both the position and its heavy responsibilities from a very young age.
“There’s a family that’s on really bad terms with ours. They say we can’t fall behind them, so they push me to study this hard.”
For that reason, Mino endured the overwhelming workload without complaints.
He didn’t want to lose to that family either.
So he spends every day just studying…?
It was unimaginable to Neya.
Back at the countryside estate, Shane had taught her simple arithmetic and writing little by little. But it had been done like a game, so she hadn’t even realized it counted as studying.
Mino gently stroked Neya’s fur.
“Honestly, I’ve always been alone in this mansion. But today, I wasn’t lonely even once.”
In fact, as Neya had seen while following him around all day, aside from his tutors, Mino hadn’t really had a proper conversation with anyone. He even ate lunch and dinner by himself.
“I’m such a loner that if my sister isn’t around, there’s no one to eat with. My parents definitely live in the same mansion, but I haven’t seen them in weeks.”
Weeks without seeing them?
Neya couldn’t understand.
They were his parents, and they lived in the same place. How could they go weeks without seeing each other even once?
Because Mino’s upbringing was the complete opposite of hers, it was hard for Neya to truly grasp.
Mino hugged Neya tightly and smiled.
“I’ve always wanted a friend. I’m glad you came.”
“……”
Hearing him say that made Neya’s heart soften.
She’d originally planned to slip away while he was asleep—but she abandoned that idea.
J-just one more day…
She didn’t have a map or a compass anyway. Staying one more day was unavoidable. That was all there was to it.
Thinking that to herself, Neya closed her eyes.
