Episode 5
Meanwhile, Michael, who was sitting as if protesting, felt a moment of confusion upon hearing Cynthia’s words.
‘…I can’t believe I stink.’
He timidly sniffed his own body and immediately wrinkled his nose.
Until just a moment ago, he hadn’t been aware of it at all.
After hearing her words, he felt like he could really sense a foul odor coming from his body.
If one were to liken it to something, it might be like the smell of a wet rag left in a damp place for a few days.
It was amazing that he hadn’t noticed it until now.
‘Definitely, I need to wash up.’
Mikael gave a small, embarrassed cough and raised his head.
Realizing that he had been giving off such a stench, his face flushed in embarrassment.
At that moment, Cynthia’s voice came from behind him, almost as if she could read his mind.
“Now that you know, it’s your choice. Whether you want to put on the collar and go to the bathhouse to clean up or stay like this and continue giving off that odor.”
‘Choose one, huh?’
Michael nervously wagged his tail.
Neither choice appealed to him, but if he had to choose, the former was better.
If he endured a moment of humiliation, he could at least spend some time in a clean state.
He didn’t know when he would have another chance to bathe, so for now, he decided to obediently follow her advice.
“…Grk.”
He reluctantly made a soft sound and turned his body back towards Cynthia.
As their eyes met, Cynthia smiled playfully and praised him.
“That’s right, good boy. You’re so well-behaved, that makes you even more beautiful.”
“…?”
Her voice was like soothing a puppy, and Michael found himself suppressing a chuckle he didn’t even realize was there.
‘…Is it because he’s a big shot, or does he just not know the ways of the world?’
A normal person would be afraid of him and hesitate to approach.
However, Cynthia was as comfortable with him as she would be with a neighborhood dog.
It was an attitude that was far from what one would expect from an ordinary noblewoman.
‘With that kind of courage, she’s better than most knights.’
Narrowing his eyes, Michael observed Cynthia.
She was a type of human he had never encountered before in his life.
Strangely, rather than feeling uncomfortable, he felt more intrigued.
“Just a moment, Cece.”
Suddenly, Cynthia’s voice intervened.
Michael turned his gaze to the side, and he saw a man with bright red hair blocking Cynthia’s path.
‘…That man, was his name Eren?’
Michael scrutinized Eren with a somewhat displeased expression.
A light smile, a carefree attitude, and that vibrant face.
He was the type of human Michael disliked the most.
‘Considering how they call each other by name, he’s probably a noble too.’
As his occupation was a veterinarian, there was a high possibility that he was a younger son or lower-ranked noble who couldn’t inherit titles.
“Since it might be dangerous, Cece, you stay back. I’ll handle the collar.”
Eren flashed a bright smile and reached out his hand to Cynthia.
Seeing this, Michael internally scoffed, thinking, ‘He’s offering to take the risk in place of the lady. What touching friendship.’
Of course, he had no intention of joining in on their friendship game.
‘If she were a lady, it might be different, but I can’t offer my neck to a guy with such a vibrant face.’
Thinking that, he observed Eren with cautious eyes.
Breaking the brief silence, Cynthia’s voice spoke again.
“I understand your feelings, but I can handle this much on my own.”
Cynthia firmly responded, giving a dismissive nod towards Eren.
“Got it. Will you step aside then?”
Michael didn’t say anything in response, acknowledging the clear order. Eren quietly stepped back, realizing that protesting wouldn’t help.
“What a relief.”
Michael watched the situation with satisfaction, but suddenly, he felt something was odd.
‘Why did I think ‘what a relief’ just now?’
He blinked in confusion and quickly shook his head.
It seemed like his mind was wavering due to the injury.
He finished rationalizing his thoughts and looked up again just as Cynthia approached him, speaking casually.
“Now, it’s time to put on the collar.”
* * *
A few minutes later.
“Okay, all done.”
Finally, after successfully putting the collar on Michael, I stepped back, satisfied, and brushed my hands off.
‘Now, if we wait, the effects should start to show.’
The collar Michael was wearing was originally a magical item used by monster hunters to transport large creatures.
According to the instructions, the collar had a shrinking spell on it, reducing the wearer’s size to one-third of their original size the moment they put it on. Additionally, it had a strength-reducing spell, making it difficult for the wearer to even kill a single rabbit while wearing it.
‘When my father said he bought this thing, I thought it was just some useless item. Who would’ve thought I’d end up using it myself.’
With a slightly nervous anticipation, I waited for the magic of the collar to activate.
The manual stated that the collar could be used on any creature, but whether it would actually work was still unknown.
A few seconds passed.
As the gem on the collar sparkled, Michael’s size began to shrink rapidly.
“Oh, it’s working.”
I silently marveled at the sight of the now miniature Michael.
Michael, who was originally as large as a carriage or even larger, had shrunk to the size of an ordinary wolf.
“…!”
Surprised by the sudden change, Michael widened his eyes and examined his body from different angles.
I could tell how flustered he was just by looking at his drooping tail and ears.
“Don’t worry; it’s only temporary. The shrinking spell on the collar will wear off once you take it off.”
I explained briefly and observed Michael’s expression.
I was worried that there might be some side effects. Fortunately, besides shrinking in size, he seemed fine.
‘Now that the collar is securely fastened, let’s head to the bathhouse.’
I took out a separate key and inserted it into the lock of the iron bars. As I turned the key, the firmly closed iron bars swung open with a creaking sound.
“Come out.”
I signaled to Michael to come out as I stepped back.
With an unwilling expression, Michael hesitantly stepped out, his eyes fixed on the collar.
I waited until he was completely outside the iron bars and then approached him again with the lead in my hand.
Thankfully, he seemed to have made up his mind to cooperate; Mikael stayed still as I put the lead on him.
‘…With this collar on, you really do look like a dog.’
After putting on the lead, I took a step back and observed Michael from head to toe.
If it weren’t for his fangs occasionally showing between his lips, I might have believed he was just a slightly larger dog.
“Now, let’s go to the bathhouse.”
As I lightly tugged on the lead, Michael got up from his spot with a chubby face.
I moved slowly, making sure not to put any strain on his wounds, as we headed towards the entrance of the banquet hall.
As we stepped outside, a knight guarding the entrance looked at Michael with a puzzled expression.
“…Where did you bring that dog from?”
“It’s not a dog, it’s a wolf.”
“Oh, I see. A wolf… not a dog.”
The knight nodded and then frowned.
“If it’s a wolf, are you referring to the wolf that was in that iron-barred area earlier?”
“Yes, that’s right. As you can see, our little friend is a bit dirty, so I’m going to give him a bath.”
I casually replied and pointed to Michael’s collar.
“As long as he has that collar on, there’s nothing to worry about.”
“But still…”
The knight hesitated in his words as he looked back and forth between me and Michael. From his reaction, it seemed like he was aware of the effects of the collar.
“If you’re worried, you can come along too.”
I made a suggestion without much thought, and the knight’s expression showed a sense of resignation.
“Alright, then I’ll accompany you to the bathhouse.”
“Sure.”
I shrugged lightly and then walked towards the bathhouse again.
“Are you here, Lady?”
As we arrived at the bathhouse, a servant who happened to be coming out of the door noticed me and bowed politely.
“Yes. Is the water ready?”
“As you requested, we’ve prepared it.”
“Thank you. I’ll take care of the rest, so you and your colleagues can leave.”
“Understood. Then, we’ll leave now.”
As soon as the servant received the dismissal order, he and the other servants left the area.
I waited until all the servants were gone and then quietly opened the door to the bathhouse.
As we entered, I noticed the spacious bathhouse, large enough to accommodate Michael even after he had shrunk considerably.
“Kung!”
As soon as Michael saw the warm steam rising from the water, he became excited and started wagging his tail enthusiastically by my side.
He seemed eager to jump into the bath even without me encouraging him.
“He might be a little cute like this…”
I smiled with affection as I watched Mikael wagging his tail.
But suddenly, a familiar voice echoed behind me.
“CeCe.”
“… What?”
I narrowed my eyes and turned around. There was Eren, standing next to the knight, smiling brightly.
“Why did you follow us?”
Eren casually replied to my blunt question.
“Well, it’s my duty to monitor the patient until the end, right?”
“…Right.”
That’s right, he had come as a veterinarian.
“I’ll be the one to bathe him, so you just hold the lead.”
Eren rolled up his sleeves and slowly entered the bathhouse.
“…You don’t have to go to such lengths.”
As I showed some reluctance, Eren gestured towards the knight and said, “If Lord finds out that you personally bathed that wolf, wouldn’t he be quite surprised? Isn’t that so?”
Since it wasn’t entirely untrue, I couldn’t argue and just sighed.
“Fine. You hold the lead, and I’ll wash him.”
“Great. Leave the rest to me.”
Eren looked like he was confident in himself as he smiled back.
* * *
And then, after 10 minutes.
I regretted trusting Eren, deeply and bitterly.
