The Snow Leopard Baby of the Black Leopard Family

In front of the grand gates of the Asterian estate, a row of imperial knights clad in armor bearing the imperial crest stood in perfect formation.

At the head of the group, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, Ian Dross sat atop his black horse, towering over them.

"Ian-nim!"

Tiel’s face lit up the moment she spotted him, and she ran straight toward him. Seeing her, Ian quickly dismounted from his horse in one swift motion.

"Tiel."

Ian opened his arms wide. Just as Tiel was about to throw herself into his embrace, someone else’s hands grabbed her first.

"...Huh?"

"Where do you think you're taking my sister?"

The one who scooped Tiel up was Ludian.

Because of that, Ian was left standing with open arms, unable to embrace her. Instead, he had to cross his arms and watch the scene with an unreadable expression.

Ludian, holding Tiel proudly in his arms, stuck out his tongue at Ian.

"Absolutely not! Do you even know what Tiel went through? And it’s all because of you—"

"Ah, Oraboni!"

Tiel quickly clamped her tiny hand over Ludian’s mouth. Ludian, unable to shake her off, looked down at her.

Tiel didn’t let go.

"Stop, stop! You promised not to say things like that!"

She had already spent the past four days extracting promises from Ferdie, Ludian, and Olivia that they wouldn’t threaten to drown Ian the moment they saw him.

And yet, Ludian had just broken that promise in under three seconds.

Seeing Tiel’s reproachful gaze, Ludian scratched the back of his head awkwardly and nodded.

"Ah-aww-wight, ah won’t shay it."

Only then did Tiel remove her hand from his mouth.

"You really won’t, right?"

"I won’t, don’t worry."

"I’ll trust you, Oraboni!"

Tiel beamed. Ludian, still looking slightly reluctant, gave a slow nod before finally setting her down.

Ian, who had been watching quietly, stepped closer and gently stroked Tiel’s hair.

"Are you all ready?"

"Yes! We just have to leave now!"

And at that moment—

Pop!

"...Huh?"

Two small ears suddenly poked up on top of Tiel’s head!

Ian, who had been running his fingers through her hair, was startled and quickly pulled his hand away. Between the soft strands of her neatly arranged white hair, a pair of fluffy leopard ears had suddenly appeared.

"...Oh?"

Surprised, Tiel let out a small whimper and touched her own head. Beneath her fingers, she felt the soft fur of her newly emerged ears.

"Why did your ears come out all of a sudden?"

Ian peered at the small, white ears twitching on top of her head. Tiel quickly shook her head.

"I didn’t do it on purpose..."

She hastily tried to push them back down. Fortunately, at least, her tail hadn’t come out too.

'Maybe it's because my room was so cool these past few days, and I stayed in my beast form the whole time...'

Had her body simply gotten used to it? Frustrated, Tiel frowned and covered her ears with both hands.

"It’s okay."

Ian, watching her struggle, turned her around so that her small back was facing him.

It was the exact same posture Ria used whenever she tied Tiel’s hair.

Then, Ian carefully cupped both of her ears with his hands, shielding them from view.

"Mm..."

"It’s not a big deal. It happens sometimes. Don’t worry."

Ian’s calm, soothing voice eased Tiel’s nerves. She nodded, tilting her head up to look at him.

His low, steady voice instantly quieted her racing heart.

At that moment, Ian looked down and met her gaze.

And then, he smiled faintly.

"Feeling better?"

"Yes..."

At that moment, the white ears perched atop Tiel’s head disappeared without a trace. Ian, seeing that she had retracted them, finally let go of her.

Ludian watched the entire exchange with a dissatisfied expression, but Ian didn’t spare him a single glance.

Right then, Ferdie and Olivia arrived, as if on cue.

"Hurry up, we need to leave quickly. Didn’t they say there’s no time to waste?"

"Tiel, come here. Get in the carriage."

Ferdie gestured for her to come. Tiel looked at Ian, who nodded as if telling her to go ahead.

Without hesitation, she ran to Ferdie and threw herself into his arms. Ferdie caught her easily and lifted her into the waiting carriage.

"Are you planning to ride on horseback?"

Ferdie turned to Ian and asked. Ian blinked.

"Yes."

"Do you really have to?"

"If I get tired, I’ll ride in the carriage."

Ferdie didn’t push any further. Unlike Ian, the children all opted for the carriage instead of horseback.

Riding a horse was an exhausting task. Since the journey to Arne was long, traveling by carriage was the most practical choice.

If Wolfgang were to imbue the carriage with his ability, they could reach Arne much faster...

'But there are too many knights for that.'

When traveling within Asterian, only a small escort was needed since Karsus and Alpheus usually accompanied them. But this time, they had to move in formation with a large number of knights.

Because of that, Wolfgang’s ability—normally capable of granting astonishing speed to carriages and horses—couldn’t be used.

After everyone had climbed into the carriage, they glanced at Alpheus and Karsus before the door was closed.

The two stood at the estate’s grand entrance, watching as the children boarded the carriage.

"Travel safely. Take care of yourselves."

"Be careful. And then be careful again."

The first words came from Alpheus, the second from Karsus. Their farewells were brief, and their expressions were calm. The worry that had constantly flickered in their eyes for the past four days was now absent.

They had already made the decision to let them go—so now, they would trust them.

"Don’t worry, we’ll be back safely!"

Tiel spoke brightly. Alpheus and Karsus’s expressions softened in an instant.

"Alright, Tiel. I’ll be waiting for you."

At that moment, Karsus strode forward toward the carriage. He leaned halfway inside and ruffled each of their heads.

Ferdie, Ludian, Olivia... and finally, Tiel.

"Tiel, may Lucette’s blessing be with you."

Karsus placed a light kiss on her forehead. A ticklish sensation spread across her skin... Tiel tried to smile as brightly as she could so that he wouldn’t worry.

"Yes, Daddy! I’ll be home soon..."

"Alright. I’ll wait for you at home without worry."

Karsus personally closed the carriage door. From outside, the sound of Ian giving orders to the knights rang out.

Soon after, the carriage began to move.

"Wow! This is my first time going to Arne!"

Olivia exclaimed excitedly as she peeked out the carriage window.

"You’re not the only one..."

Ludian replied in a voice completely lacking enthusiasm.

***

The carriage traveled without rest toward Arne.

The imperial knights, personally dispatched by the emperor, guarded them. The entire escort was made up of beastmen of herbivore species—those capable of entering the "Land Where Morning Never Comes."

'So far, so good.'

Ian narrowed his eyes as the wind brushed against his hand. The air was still not too cold.

But they still had a long way to go before reaching Arne... The farther north they went, the harsher the cold would become. Ian pulled on the reins of his horse.

"We’ll rest here for a while."

It was going to be a grueling journey, so they needed to take breaks along the way. As commander, it was Ian’s responsibility to make sure the knights and horses didn’t exhaust themselves.

Midway up a low mountain, the knights halted the carriages and tied their horses to trees. Ian, too, dismounted from his black horse in one fluid motion.

"Your Highness, please don’t hesitate to use the carriage if you need rest."

The knight captain approached and bowed. Ian lifted his gaze. In the distance, a carriage bearing the imperial crest stood waiting.

It had been prepared in case Ian needed to travel inside.

Ian nodded slowly.

"Alright, you may go."

The knight captain bowed once more before stepping back. Ian tilted his canteen and took a sip of water.

Just then, the children poured out of their carriage, one after another.

The once-quiet forest, which had only been filled with the low murmurs of knights and the occasional whinny of horses, instantly became lively.