The Snow Leopard Baby of the Black Leopard Family

Not long after the Crown Prince's visit, two letters arrived at the Asterian estate.

One was a reply from Ali, a painter Alpheus had specially sought out.

The other...

"Estella?"

Alpheus tilted his head, puzzled as he read the name on the envelope.

Wasn't Estella the imperial family's exclusive designer? Why would she be sending a letter to the Asterian household? 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Alpheus opened the letter.

The contents were brief and neatly written.

She would be visiting the Asterian mansion in five days to tailor a dress for Tiel Asterian.

"Tiel's dress...? Why...?"

Why Estella, of all people?

Had the Emperor pulled some strings?

His sharp gaze turned cold as a blade at the mere thought.

Then, his mind drifted to a certain imperial prince who had, not long ago, unexpectedly celebrated his birthday at the Asterian mansion.

"Was it a good decision?"

"Well, good things lead to good outcomes... If it means Tiel gets to wear a fine dress, then..."

And then he recalled his two grandsons, whose attitudes had been oddly displeased at the time.

Lying sprawled about like debt collectors who had money to collect but couldn't quite bring themselves to act on it.

At first, Alpheus had thought nothing of it—just a small gathering among close friends.

But thinking about it now...

Ludian, maybe. But Ferdy? That boy was not the type to let something like that slide.

The only reason they were more composed now was that they had matured. But back when they were younger? Ian Dross freely roaming around the Asterian estate? That would have been enough for Ferdy to threaten to burn everything down.

Alpheus had assumed that gaining a little sister—Tiel—had changed them.

But now, staring down at the letter in his hands, his expression turned dry and unreadable.

As head of the Asterian family and leader of the Leopard Clan, one thing was clear—

"They made a deal."

Alpheus was not slow-witted.

An imperial-exclusive designer, who only crafted clothing for the royal family, was now tailoring a dress for Tiel.

And on top of that, his grandsons had been acting uncharacteristically cooperative.

A deal had been struck.

It was obvious—

They must have extracted Estella’s dress from the Crown Prince in exchange for letting him spend time at the Asterian estate.

And with Luminaria approaching this year, it only made sense. They wanted to dress Tiel in the most beautiful gown possible—so they negotiated for it.

The scattered puzzle pieces fell neatly into place in Alpheus’s mind.

"Should I be pleased?"

That his grandsons didn’t even consider the Crown Prince a friend, but rather a mere trading partner?

Alpheus was aware that his grandsons and Ian Dross were of the same age, which allowed them to speak freely with one another.

"I thought they were becoming good friends..."

It had been a heartwarming thought.

But now...

Alpheus’s expression grew complicated. And he was certain that if the Emperor, who had been so delighted to hear that Ian had spent his birthday at the Asterian estate, learned of this—he, too, would find himself wearing the same troubled expression.

Alpheus ran a rough hand over his face.

Still... If Ferdy became head of the family one day, Asterian would never fall.

That much was certain.

***

"You didn’t tell him?"

"You were supposed to, you idiot!"

The first voice belonged to Ferdy. The second, Ludian.

Both boys stared wide-eyed at Alpheus.

"So... you’re saying you didn’t spend time with the Crown Prince because you consider him a friend?"

"What do you mean, Grandfather?"

Ferdy smiled.

With his features leaning more toward beautiful than handsome, that smile alone had the power to brighten the space around him.

But those who knew him well...

Did not fall for that smile.

"His Highness is the Crown Prince of the Empire. How could someone like him ever be friends with me?"

"Tch... The two of you never treat him like a prince anyway..."

Alpheus clicked his tongue.

Ferdy merely shrugged, as if he truly didn’t understand.

"It’s a good thing, isn’t it? Tiel needed a dress, after all."

"It is a good thing, but..."

"For the record, Tiel asked, so we agreed. It wasn’t about the dress."

"......."

"...Really?"

"Ahem."

Alpheus eyed his grandsons with deep skepticism.

Alpheus had been a close friend of the Emperor for many years. Because of this, he knew exactly how Ian Dross had lived up until now.

The boy may have been the Crown Prince of the Empire, but at the end of the day, he was still just a child—one who had led an unbearably lonely life. And in the future, his loneliness would only deepen.

That was why Alpheus had placed his grandsons at Ian’s side. Since they were of the same age, he had believed they could become good friends.

And the Emperor, too, had been grateful to Ferdy and Ludian. After all, they were the only ones Ian could truly call friends.

But now...

Ferdy and Ludian looked far too pleased with themselves. Their faces practically gleamed with smug satisfaction, as if they had simply done something mutually beneficial and couldn’t understand what the problem was.

In reality, there was nothing inherently wrong with their actions.

Ian had given something in return. Asterian had given something in return. A fair transaction had been made.

The problem was...

This had nothing to do with the friendship that Alpheus and the Emperor had originally hoped for.

Alpheus sighed and set the letter aside, his sharp gaze settling on his grandsons.

"Ferdy, Ludian."

"Yes, Grandfather."

"Yes."

"I know you don’t treat him with formalities. And His Highness, in turn, must tolerate it because he considers you his friends."

His voice was heavier than usual—stern in a way that made it hard to believe he was the same man who doted on Tiel.

"But he is the Crown Prince of the Empire. He is not like you. Even if you interact with him informally, mind your manners."

"Yes, Grandfather."

"...Understood."

Ludian’s response held a trace of dissatisfaction, but Ferdy, as always, listened with unwavering courtesy.

There was no denying that Alpheus’s words were correct.

But Ferdy wasn’t particularly fond of long lectures either.

He quickly assessed the situation and changed the subject.

"By the way, Grandfather, may I ask where the other letter came from?"

"Oh, this?"

Alpheus picked up the second letter. A faint smile crossed his face.

"It’s a reply from the empire’s greatest painter. I reached out to commission a portrait of Tiel."

"The empire’s greatest painter?"

"Yes, the same one who painted your portraits long ago. His name is Ali."

Alpheus’s expression was already brimming with anticipation.

"Since the Crown Prince has gifted Tiel a dress, we should have a portrait of her wearing it!"

"You’re not just going to commission one portrait, are you? You will have multiple smaller ones made and give me one, right, Grandfather?"

Ludian swiftly latched onto Alpheus’s side, his eyes gleaming.

"Of course! I’ll have several small ones made and give you both copies!"

Now in a much better mood, Alpheus completely forgot the earlier headache and let out a hearty laugh as he ruffled Ludian’s hair.

Ferdy, observing from a short distance, calmly stepped in.

He fully intended to secure a portrait of Tiel for himself as well.

"Wow—!"

Tiel’s eyes sparkled.

Pinned to the front of her dress was Breath of the Snowfield—the treasure Ian had gifted her not long ago.

Though its stem had to be cut down to craft it into a brooch, the remaining part was still more than magnificent.

Even after fastening it, Tiel continued to exclaim in awe, hopping excitedly in place.

And it was incredibly beautiful.

"It’s actually cold...!"

She hadn’t noticed it much at first, but now that she was wearing it, she could really feel its effect.

"What do you think, Ria?"

"It’s absolutely stunning! My lady, it suits you perfectly—!"

Ria clapped her hands, full of admiration.

Tiel beamed and looked down at her brooch.

It was such a meticulous gift—exactly like Ian.

"Now then, let’s fix your hair as well."

Ria guided Tiel to sit down and began tidying her hair.

The once-tangled mess—so severe that they had been forced to cut parts of it—was now gone, replaced by soft, downy locks that shimmered like silk.

This was all thanks to the dedication of Ria and the other Asterian maids, who had taken care of Tiel’s hair day and night.

Some of them still secretly wiped their tears whenever they saw her smooth, glossy strands.

Ria carefully gathered Tiel’s hair and tied it up, securing it with a pearl-adorned ribbon.

They weren’t heading out for a formal event—just meeting the designer who would be making Tiel’s dress—but Ria was completely devoted to making sure her young lady looked perfect.

It wasn’t personal.

Tiel simply had to be flawless, wherever she went...

"...She’s so cute... Sniff."

...Actually, it was personal.

Overcome by the sheer adorableness of Tiel’s round, delicate figure, Ria clutched at her chest, trying to hold herself together.

Hearing a strange sound from behind, Tiel turned and blinked at her maid.

"Ria?"

"You’re just so adorable, my lady! Ahh, how can you be this cute? You’re getting prettier by the day."

Ria gently adjusted Tiel’s hair once more before taking her tiny hands in her own.

"It’s time to go now. The young masters must be waiting."

"Okay! Let’s go!"

Tiel nodded enthusiastically and stood up. Ria naturally followed close behind.

With every graceful step the child took, her ribbon fluttered gently, like the wings of a butterfly.