The Snow Leopard Baby of the Black Leopard Family

With trembling hands, Etienne accepted the small box.

For a long time, she said nothing, simply staring down at it.

Those who recognized what it was fell into silence, their expressions growing somber.

Ludian even lowered his head.

"Tiel."

Etienne gently set Tiel down, letting her stand on her own feet.

Then, she knelt before her, meeting the child’s eyes.

"This... belongs to you."

"...It’s mine?"

"Yes, it’s yours."

Etienne carefully placed the small box in Tiel’s hands.

Tiel stared at it for a moment before reaching out her small hands to accept it.

Then, she unfastened the latch.

Click!

The clasp released, and the child slowly lifted the lid.

Inside—

"..."

A tiny piece of clothing lay neatly folded.

It was so small, it barely looked like clothing at all—more like a soft white cloth meant to wrap a newborn baby.

Tiel instinctively knew what it was.

The very first garment a child wears after birth.

It was far too small for anything else.

At the center, carefully embroidered, was the crest of the Asterian family.

The stitching was slightly uneven, a little rough in places.

But none of that mattered.

"This is..."

"Your mother made it," Etienne said softly. "She wanted to dress you in it herself when you were born."

The room fell silent.

Ferdi and Ludian had been too young when Lena was lost to remember much about her, but even they knew of this tiny piece of clothing.

And they remembered.

‘Etienne!’

They remembered Karsus at Lena’s funeral, gripping Etienne’s wrist, shouting—

"This can’t be. It can’t be!"

They remembered Etienne clutching that small piece of cloth, holding onto it as if it were her last shred of hope.

At the time, Karsus and Alpheus had tried to convince her to place it in Lena’s empty coffin.

Since they had never recovered Lena’s body, they had been forced to bury her with only a few of her belongings.

But Etienne had refused.

Because she knew what Lena’s expression must have looked like as she carefully embroidered that cloth.

And she had been right to keep it.

After all those years, the little garment had finally returned to its rightful owner.

Though its owner had long outgrown it.

"...Ah."

Tiel’s wide eyes filled with tears.

Her pupils trembled as if she didn’t know what to do.

Drip.

She hadn’t even blinked, yet the tears that had gathered in her eyes overflowed, spilling down her cheeks.

Tiel clutched the tiny piece of clothing in her hands.

"Ah... Ahh...?"

Since the day she first arrived at the Asterian mansion, she had never cried.

She had made a promise to herself.

To be strong.

To never cry, to never whine, to never act weak, to never behave like a child.

But all those vows crumbled in the face of her mother’s warmth.

Tiel was still a child.

No matter that she had died once and come back.

A child does not suddenly become an adult.

A child is simply... a child.

"Mom..."

Tiel clutched the tiny garment to her chest and buried her face in it.

Because Etienne had taken such good care of it, it still smelled fresh.

And somehow, that scent felt like her mother.

Like Lena’s embrace.

Tiel couldn’t bring herself to lift her head.

And then—

Karsus, who had been standing at a distance, suddenly stepped forward.

With long, sure strides, he reached his crying daughter.

And without hesitation, he lifted her into his arms.

"It’s alright, my child."

His gentle voice soothed her.

"...Dad..."

"It’s alright. You came back, so everything is alright."

It was almost as if he was speaking to himself.

Karsus felt the warmth of his daughter’s tears soaking into his chest.

And he murmured—

"You’re alive. That’s all that matters."

"..."

"Lena would feel the same."

Tiel cried for a long time.

Until Karsus’s shirt was completely drenched.

Until the handkerchief Ferdi handed over was soaked through.

She cried and cried.

All the sorrow she had held back her entire life poured out of her tiny body.

There was something she had always wanted to say.

Something she could never say while living in the Nestian household.

Because there, she had been a sinner.

She had never been able to face her mother with pride.

But now—

Now, she could say it.

Tiel’s small lips parted, and in a trembling voice, she whispered—

"Mom... Mom, I miss you."

It felt as if the ice castle deep within her heart had come crashing down.

Tiel cried and cried.

Until the fortress of ice that had trapped her for so long had completely melted away.

And still—

She kept crying.

"Are you done crying now?"

Ferdi carefully wiped away the tears from Tiel’s swollen eyes as he spoke.

Tiel nodded.

"Yes..."

Her eyes stung from all the crying, but it wasn’t unbearable.

And oddly enough, after letting it all out, she felt a little lighter.

Though... it is a bit embarrassing.

Everyone had seen her cry—not just her family, but even the servants and maids of the estate.

But... it can’t be helped.

There was no point in regretting it now. Besides, the Asterian household’s staff wouldn’t mock her or resent her just because she had cried.

So there was no reason to dwell on her embarrassment!

Olivia, sitting comfortably with a cup of ice cream in her hands, suddenly scooped up a spoonful and gently popped it into Tiel’s mouth.

Tiel accepted it eagerly, like a baby bird being fed.

"Is it good?"

"Yes!"

"If you come to Wolfgang, you can have even better—"

"Enough, Olivia."

Olivia clicked her tongue and turned her head away in mock annoyance.

Tiel giggled at the playful bickering between her older siblings.

Seeing them act so casually made her feel even more at ease.

"So..."

"Hm?"

"When are you, Auntie, and Uncle going back?"

There was a slight tinge of disappointment in Tiel’s voice as she asked.

Olivia, quick to notice, grinned mischievously and cupped Tiel’s cheeks.

"Aww, how can we leave this adorable little one behind? There’s no Tiel at home!"

"Tell your parents to have another kid, then."

"Ugh, don’t even talk about it. I already tried. But they said it’d complicate the heir situation, so they don’t want to. Can you believe that’s their reason for not having a second child?"

Waving Ferdi away with exaggerated gestures, Olivia turned back to Tiel.

"We’ll probably leave the day after tomorrow. The Luminaire Festival isn’t far off, and I need to get my dress and other things ready. Mom and Dad have even more to prepare."

"Will you..."

"Will I?"

"Will you come again?"

Tiel’s question caused mixed reactions.

Ludian and Ferdi’s expressions darkened immediately.

Olivia, on the other hand, beamed.

"Of course!! I’ll come all the time! Our family can move faster than anyone else. I can be here in the blink of an eye!"

"Hah. Such arrogance."

"At this rate, the Wolfgangs might not be the head of the wolf clan next time. Which family has the strongest abilities again?"

Among the beastkin clans, the ruling families occasionally changed.

Each clan had two or three families that possessed the necessary abilities, and the one with the most powerful bloodline would take the leadership.

The imperial family never interfered in these internal struggles.

This was the world of beastkin.

A world where only the strong survived.

And Olivia fit into that world perfectly.

As if to prove it, she clenched her fist with a confident grin.

"Wanna die?"

"Hey, hey! Focus on your ice cream. Don’t drop it."

"You’re so annoying. Just wait until Luminaire—I’ll show you how the rankings shift!"

"Wait... the rankings change at the Luminaire Festival?"

Tiel, who had been quietly listening, tilted her head in confusion.

Just what kind of festival was Luminaire that it involved clan rankings?

Judging from Olivia and Ludian’s conversation, it sounded less like a festival and more like a hunting competition.

Since she knew almost nothing about it, Tiel struggled to understand what they were talking about.

Ferdi scooped her up and settled her onto his lap, whispering—

"They’re just talking nonsense."

"Oh..."

"Ignore them. It’s better to let most of what they say go in one ear and out the other. You’re a good little sister, aren’t you?"

Ferdi flashed her a teasing smile.

Meanwhile, Olivia and Ludian continued their lively argument, completely ignoring him.

After thinking for a moment, Tiel slid off Ferdi’s lap, leaving the two to their squabble.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to put this away."

She pointed at the small box she had been holding tightly to her chest.

Ferdi didn’t ask further, simply watching as she carefully made her way to her bed.

After some hesitation, Tiel slipped the box under the bed, tucking it away in a hidden spot.

"This should be safe here."

It was an old habit.

Back in Nestian, if she had anything she wanted to keep safe, she had to hide it in dark, out-of-the-way corners.

But no one here scolded her for it.

Instead, Ferdi silently approached and pulled down the blanket to help conceal it.

A small smile formed on Tiel’s lips.

Her cheeks flushed a soft pink.

For the first time—

She felt like she had truly found where she belonged.

And so had everyone else.