~Chapter 12~
When Kaire turned his head toward the opposite direction he had come from, he saw a carriage in the distance.
On this darkened road, there were no people except him and Pico, and only that single carriage was passing by.
“That smell might be coming from that carriage.”
He had never expected to encounter the scent he had questioned back at the palace on a roadside like this, so it caught him off guard.
Kaire quickly reached inside his clothes. Ever since receiving the magic potion from Lorienne, he had been keeping a bottle in his inner pocket just in case.
He pulled out the potion and drank it in one go.
Immediately, Kaire transformed into a large golden retriever and kicked off the ground, running toward the path the carriage had taken.
Pico, shocked by what had happened in an instant, shouted, “Y-Your Highness!” and quickly picked up Kaire’s discarded clothes from the ground.
“Do you have any idea what would happen if someone saw you like this? That was so sudden!”
Pico quickly scanned the surroundings, then folded Kaire’s clothes neatly and hid them in the bushes.
Kaire had already sprinted far ahead—only his light brown tail could barely be seen in the distance.
Pico was about to run after him when the door of Loftis suddenly opened.
Lorienne stepped out holding a bucket filled with ashes and tilted her head.
“Pico? If you were here, you should have knocked. Why are you standing outside?”
She found it strange that he was standing just past the entrance of Loftis.
Pico took two steps back and stood in front of her.
“Ahaha, well, I guess I got lost in thought and almost walked right past Loftis! Haha! If not for you, I might’ve gone who knows where…”
He glanced back toward the direction Kaire had run, but the dark road showed nothing now.
Flustered, Pico made a face that looked neither like crying nor laughing.
“Please come inside.”
Lorienne dumped the ashes beside the overgrown path and gently pushed Pico into Loftis.
“Yes, yes, I should go in.”
‘This is bad… where did His Highness even run off to?!’
Seeing Pico’s uneasiness, Lorienne tilted her head.
“Pico, is something wrong?”
“No! N-no, not at all! Um, the potion is finished, right, mage?”
“Yes.”
Lorienne placed two bottles of the requested magic potion on the table.
Pico quickly tucked them into his chest pocket. Then he noticed around fifty empty glass bottles lined up on the crafting table.
A rumor flashed through his mind—that Lorienne earned more money than most nobles of the court.
“Wow… are you making that many potions today?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Lorienne glanced back at the empty bottles.
She smiled, understanding why Pico was so amazed.
“But this is a cheap potion. It’s a regular order from a frequent customer. Compared to the transformation potion you requested—the one that turns people into dogs—this is very cheap. There are many types of magic potions.”
At the mention of different types, Pico lowered his voice and asked:
“Then… is there a potion that makes someone speak more politely?”
Lorienne burst out laughing, slapping the table.
Pico chuckled too. They both knew exactly who he meant without him having to say it.
Pico suddenly remembered his urgency.
He needed to go find Kaire immediately.
“I should get going!”
“Alright.”
Just as Pico turned, scratching noises came from outside the door.
They exchanged a glance.
Who would scratch a door instead of knocking?
Pico opened the door—and a large golden retriever suddenly rushed inside.
“Gasp.”
“Oh my goodness!”
Realizing it was Kaire, Pico gasped.
Lorienne was surprised too, but not frightened or displeased.
She quickly approached the dog and began stroking its head.
“Coco…”
Lorienne kept petting the dog’s head, her eyes shining.
Her touch was affectionate, almost as if she had reunited with a long-lost lover.
“Co…co?”
Pico, who knew the dog was Kaire, felt chills at the cute name “Coco,” but seeing Lorienne so happy, he kept quiet.
“I used to have a golden retriever when I was young. His name was Coco… you look exactly like him. You’re not really Coco, are you?”
She pressed her cheek lightly against the dog’s face and let out a soft laugh.
But that laugh was somehow melancholic.
‘It’s already been six years… he must have died wandering somewhere… I hope someone kind took him in and cared for him…’
Coco had already been old even six years ago.
He had been with her since she was six years old—essentially her only friend in the estate.
When soldiers stormed the mansion, they forcibly took her parents away and killed the servants indiscriminately.
Startled, Elond and Lorienne used a secret passage known only to the family to send Marma and Marcel away.
Coco had tried to stay by her side, refusing to leave, but Lorienne had tearfully pushed him away.
The soldiers were so violent that even an innocent animal like Coco would not have survived.
Fortunately, Coco had escaped the mansion. Strangely, he kept appearing wherever Lorienne and Elond were taken.
When soldiers chased them, he would flee—but then reappear far away, watching her and barking.
Coco followed them all the way until they were placed on the slave ship, whining and crying as the ship sailed away, as if he already knew he would never see them again.
That was her last memory of him.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Lorienne hugged the dog’s neck and rubbed her face against him.
‘Ah, no… I’m going to cry.’
She held back tears, remembering Pico was right beside her.
After calming down, she released the dog and lightly tapped its moist nose.
“I’m so happy to see you like this. Will you come visit often? Coco?”
The dog—Kaire—suddenly began circling Lorienne, sniffing her all over.
Lorienne laughed, thinking he understood her words, but Pico’s expression slowly stiffened.
‘That… that’s exactly what our dog Happy does when she’s in heat and meets females…’
Before Pico could fully process that thought, Kaire suddenly started licking Lorienne’s cheeks and lips.
“H-Hey! What are you doing?!”
Startled, Pico rushed to pull him away, but Kaire was too heavy to move easily.
Lorienne just laughed and kept stroking his head.
“You’re such an affectionate one. So cute. My Coco used to be very affectionate too.”
Pico checked the time.
By now, Kaire should be returning to his human form.
‘Why is he acting like this all of a sudden?! No choice—we need to get outside!’
Pico grabbed Kaire by the neck and lifted him.
Kaire’s large body dangled as his paws flailed in the air.
“Haha! He’s energetic today!”
“Was your dog always like this?”
“Hmm? Ah, well, he’s not exactly my dog… he belongs to the nation. Yes, the nation’s dog.”
“The nation’s dog?”
Lorienne blinked at the phrase.
“Oh, you mean a stray dog?”
“Y-Yes! Exactly! Haha!”
Pico hurried toward the door, dragging Kaire along.
Kaire suddenly began scratching the door—he knew it was time to revert back.
“It looks like he wants to go out.”
Lorienne’s eyebrows drooped slightly, clearly disappointed.
“Seems so! I’ll let him out. I should also be going now, mage.”
“Alright. Take care.”
Lorienne said goodbye to Pico, but her eyes kept returning to the golden retriever, and her waving hand was still aimed at the dog rather than Pico.
* * *
Outside with Kaire, Pico pointed toward the bushes.
“Your Highness, your clothes are there!”
Kaire quickly dashed into the bushes and returned in human form.
His clothes were disheveled—three buttons undone, hair messy.
His expression looked slightly dazed.
“Your Highness, are you alright?”
At Pico’s question, Kaire rubbed his face with both hands, then swallowed hard.
His green eyes trembled slightly with confusion.
‘The moment I saw that mage… I completely forgot about the smell.’
