<Chapter 7>
#1. This Contract Is Somehow Wrong (7)
“Hik!”
Melty’s eyes trembled anxiously as a hand pressed firmly on top of his head. Looking at him, Calix gave a wickedly delightful smile and nodded toward Angel sprawled on the sofa and Jenny standing blankly.
“The person is ready, so now it’s time to do the work.”
“That… my head…”
“What if you run away again?”
“……”
Moisture welled up in Melty’s large eyes. Calix, who was thoroughly rubbing Melty’s head with his hand, gave a nod.
“Take a sheet of paper each and write down the food you most want to eat right now. After writing, fold the paper and place it on my desk.”
Following his instructions, Jenny handed a piece of paper and a pen to Angel. Then she sat down next to him and wrote something on her paper. Calix, who had covered Melty’s eyes with his hand, only released Melty after they had all submitted what they had written.
“Now it’s your turn. I authorize the use of all ingredients in the mansion’s kitchen. Of course, it’s unlikely, but if there are ingredients you want that aren’t available, tell the chef and they’ll get them for you.”
Melty nodded obediently and carefully moved forward. Watching Melty approach step by step while hesitating, Jenny wore a warm smile. She had seen him during mealtime too, but someone who smiled brightly and openly showed his feelings through expressions was a rare type of person here. His lively round eyes, small mouth that kept moving, and the cute ears and tail were adorable and lovable.
Jenny smiled as she made eye contact with him, who was approaching with a slightly scared face, and greeted him politely.
“We meet again, Mr. Melty.”
“Ah, um…”
Flinching, his shoulders trembling and unable to settle down, Melty bowed in greeting. Jenny’s lips curled into another smile at the small murmur of “hello” and his gesture of checking the atmosphere. Whether due to his small height or his adorable appearance, she felt like she was looking at her grandchild.
“What can I help you with?”
At the kind question, Melty rolled his eyes around and fidgeted with his clasped hands while whispering softly.
“If you could just… give me your hand.”
“Your hand?”
At the simple request, Jenny extended her hand without any difficulty. Melty finished taking a deep breath while looking at the hand held out in front of him and wished for Jenny to eat delicious food and be happy. And the moment he overlaid his hand on hers, food appeared in his mind.
After confirming the food, Melty tried to slyly release her hand. Or rather, he tried to. Jenny held his hand firmly so it couldn’t escape. It wasn’t a particularly strong grip, but since she was also from the snake clan, Melty’s expression quickly changed to one of fear. Meeting his anxiously trembling eyes, she smiled warmly and took out a well-packaged cookie from her pocket, placing it in his hand.
“The chef asked me to pass on his thanks for enjoying the food today. This is a service.”
“…Oh.”
Melty’s gaze fell on the cookie in his hand, an unexpected situation. The cute cookies shaped like sunflower seeds included some with chocolate chips embedded and others with the normal cookie color. Stopping his attempt to run away, Melty shifted his gaze from the cookie to Jenny. Seeing his frightened appearance considerably diminished, Jenny continued to offer a gentle smile.
“If you have a type you prefer, I’ll tell them to prepare that next time.”
Melty’s eyes sparkled as he held the rustling cookie package with both hands. Today’s lunch had been extremely delicious, and now receiving cookies made him feel even better.
The wariness that had come from her being of the snake clan vanished instantly. His eyes curved into a wide smile as he completed the formula “Jenny = good person” in his mind.
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy them.”
Jenny’s lips also formed a pleased smile as she watched him, clearly excited. She kept wearing a gentle smile while watching Melty cutely chattering away with questions like “Can I eat one now?” and “Would you like one?” After taking cookies out of the package and giving one to Jenny, one to Angel who was nearby, Melty finally could put one in his own mouth. The crunching sound and the sweetness spreading in his mouth automatically brought a feeling of happiness.
Jenny, who had been contentedly watching Melty’s cute appearance, turned her head to the side as she felt a piercing gaze that could bore through her face. Completely excluded from Melty’s warm and fluffy atmosphere, Calix was watching the scene with his arms crossed and a displeased look. Contrary to Melty’s mood, which had improved enough to pierce the sky, Calix’s mood had long since deteriorated enough to dig through the ground.
Belatedly realizing that Calix hadn’t received a cookie from Melty, Jenny gave an awkward smile.
“I just ate, so I’m not in the mood for cookies. Calix-nim, perhaps…”
“Ack. But I was the one who shared them… You shouldn’t take away someone’s food.”
Melty, who cut in with a gloomy expression before Jenny could finish, glared at Calix while asking. Calix, who looked at the hamster with annoyance for somehow understanding the situation without even giving him a glance, slightly raised the corners of his eyes. Angel, who had just put a cookie in his mouth, felt like he might choke on the atmosphere that seemed about to come between the snake and hamster again. Ignoring their current, Calix moved forward and approached the flinching Melty, casually taking one cookie from the package tightly held in Melty’s hands.
“Ah, my cookie!”
“You think it’s bad to take someone’s food, but you don’t think it’s bad to exclude someone?”
“It’s mine, so I was planning to give it to nice people…”
Calix smiled faintly as he watched Melty mumble and pucker the opening of the cookie package. He placed his hand on Melty’s shoulder. Melty tensed his body at the firmly applied pressure and turned his head to look at him.
“Where do you have time to munch on cookies?”
“Th-there was no time limit…”
“Ah, now there is. I’ll give you two hours.”
Calix spoke leisurely as he put the cookie he had taken from Melty into his mouth. At his spite, Melty made a startled “Huk!” expression and pouted. Jenny quietly shook her head and sighed at Calix, who had instantly turned Melty’s previously smiling face into a tearful one.
Calix calmly received Melty’s eye attack as he shot him an indignant look saying “that’s too much.” He rang the bell once more to call someone.
“Don’t we need to check Angel’s too?”
“…It would be more confusing to look at both people’s at once. I’ll check after finishing Jenny-ssi’s.”
Though he answered reluctantly, Melty’s cheeks were puffed up. Calix smiled at the cheeks so visibly puffed even from behind and tousled his hair.
“Alright. Then let’s look forward to it. It will still be difficult for you to find your way around, so I’ll assign someone to you.”
Melty looked up at him with narrowed eyes as he shrugged and said flatly:
“Making a big deal out of doing what you obviously should do is a bad habit.”
“Huh…”
“Hmph.”
Calix was flabbergasted at the sight of Melty crossing his arms and turning his head sharply to the side. When had he stopped trembling? His words came out clear and crisp. Just as Calix lost words, finding it absurd to be treated this way for taking just one cookie, he heard a knocking sound. Melty, as if he had been waiting, hurriedly went to the door, glared at Calix, and quickly stuck out his tongue. Then he swiftly went out the door.
“You just got burned.”
Calix burst into laughter at Angel’s neat assessment. Melty’s mischievous face sticking out his tongue wouldn’t easily leave his mind. Jenny and Angel exchanged glances at the rare sound of Calix’s laughter.
“Angel. Report.”
“Ah, yes. Melty Crosel. It’s confirmed that he is the youngest of the Crosel family and has recently completed his coming-of-age ceremony. Since he has never officially appeared in public, there probably aren’t many people who would recognize him.”
“Then there shouldn’t be any issues with the contract.”
Given Melty’s exceptionally short height and childish appearance, it was difficult to readily believe he was an adult, but if Angel’s investigation confirmed it, there was no choice but to believe it. Angel cautiously opened his mouth as he observed Calix nodding quietly.
“But if your Gift was wrong, would you really eat Melty-ssi?”
“Pardon?”
After briefly explaining the situation to Jenny, whose eyes had widened as if to say “what are you talking about,” Angel waited for Calix’s answer. Calix, who still had a smile on his lips, stroked his chin and tilted his head.
“Well, what do you think?”
At Calix’s words mixed with amusement, Jenny and Angel, without anyone telling them to, both shook their heads from side to side. They could tell from long experience that there wasn’t a grain of truth in his statement.
“Why were you staring so intently at him in the dining hall in the first place?”
“Because it’s fascinating to watch him eat, isn’t it?”
“Fascinating…”
Angel, who had opened his mouth to contradict, recalled how Melty had eaten in the dining hall and quietly nodded. Leaving aside how he diligently chewed with his small mouth, the amount he ate was enormous compared to his small body. It was a mystery why his bowl emptied so quickly despite eating slowly. Even the servants who brought the food were surprised, so clearly his eyes weren’t deceiving him.
“Well, it was indeed amazing how much food went into such a small body.”
“What are you talking about? The fascinating part was his cheeks.”
“His cheeks?”
“Yes. The way they puffed up and moved energetically was quite…”
Calix’s lips formed a gentle curve as he recalled the sight of Melty’s bulging cheeks bouncing up and down from how much food he had stuffed in. When trying to explain the feeling in words, no appropriate term particularly came to mind. After pondering for a moment, he traced back to Melty’s bulging cheeks, his small mouth working hard to take in food, and even the way he slightly wiggled his feet back and forth, which might be a characteristic of when he was in a good mood.
“It makes my mouth water.”
“What??”
Both Angel and Jenny’s eyes couldn’t help but widen at that word that finally came out. The words he spoke while still smiling were truly shocking. Angel slyly moved his buttocks to the corner of the sofa, just as Melty had done. Jenny, who had been looking back and forth between Angel and the still-smiling Calix, opened her mouth with a warm smile.
“Did you want to eat it?”
“I wanted to bite it. Those cheeks look like they’d have a chewy taste.”
He had seen many furry creatures before, but none that made his mouth water like those attached to Melty. It was also strange that his hand kept going to that small head, but he also wanted to knead the belly that had prominently bulged after the meal.
“While Melty-ssi is cute, such remarks are prone to causing misunderstandings.”
Angel’s guard mode finally eased at her words spoken with a smile. Angel, whose expression had changed to “What, you wanted to bite him because he’s cute?” waved his hand.
“So Melty-ssi wasn’t saying nonsense. Did his Gift see right through everything?”
“A Gift reacts precisely. If his Gift really ‘tells what food someone wants to eat,’ such nonsensical content wouldn’t come out.”
Angel’s head nodded quietly at Calix’s explanation. As someone possessing a Gift, his words carried high credibility. Jenny, who had listened to the flowing conversation with an amused expression, spoke in a leisurely tone:
“So you’re certain that Melty-ssi’s Gift is not what he claims it to be.”
