ITBFL | Chapter 4

Episode 4

The day after that incident, Cassium approached me and asked to meet briefly in the evening.

His excuse was something about needing to “cure a hangover” since we drank so much.

“What are you talking about? Who cures a hangover in the evening? And with you, of all people.”

“Just come, Lize.”

And yet, he didn’t even show up at the agreed-upon location!

Clearly, he’d made up some weird reason to get me there just to mess with me.

Where had he even gone?!

“Cassium, you bastard!!”

I yelled out in sudden anger, startling the bunny nearby.

“Beep, beep…”

The bunny trembled, staring at me with wide, shocked eyes.

“Sorry, I wasn’t yelling at you.”

I looked at the bunny watching me, then scooped it up.

‘You’re not running away!’

Holding its warm, soft body covered in fur seemed to calm me down.

“Beep.”

The golden bunny, looking dazed for a moment, stretched out one tiny paw and placed it gently on the back of my hand.

It then tapped my hand a couple of times with its jelly-like paw pads.

“Are you comforting me?”

“Beep-beep.”

“What a good bunny.”

Right, it’s rare for the protagonist of a novel to have a bad personality. And besides, this bunny was destined to fall in love with my younger brother someday.

On the very day Cassium had made my blood boil, I’d found this bunny.

For some reason, it felt like this bunny had come to me as a treasure.

Though it wasn’t exactly friendly to me yet.

And, to be precise, it wasn’t my treasure—it was meant for Bryce…

“Golden Bunny.”

I hugged the bunny tighter, stroking its forehead with one hand.

This time, the bunny didn’t avoid my touch. It rolled its eyes for a moment before closing them and showing a peaceful expression.

“Shall we go see Bryce?”

“Beep?”

The bunny let out a sharp sound.

“Bryce is my younger brother. He’s as adorable as you are.”

“Beeng.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

I stood up, holding the bunny in my arms.

“Anyway, let’s go see Bryce. He’ll take care of you. He’s probably a better match for you than I am.”

The bunny, looking full of dissatisfaction, jumped out of my arms.

“Golden Bunny! No, no! Be good and don’t wander off!”

I cried out in alarm.

Bryce and I were staying in the annex. If the bunny roamed around and ended up in the main building where my uncle was…

‘Why is such a creature in my mansion?’

…he might immediately get rid of it.

But the bunny, oblivious to my concerns, hopped away again.

With a single leap, it covered an enormous distance.

I reached out to grab it, but it wasn’t easy.

Like the high-level bunny it was, the golden rabbit pushed its head against a slightly open door and slipped into the hallway.

‘Why is it so fast?!’

I mean, I’ve heard about their developed muscles in stories like The Tortoise and the Hare, but this?!

I never imagined the strength of those muscular legs would be this extreme!

“Stop right there!”

Thus began the race between me and the bunny down the annex hallway.

***

“Has Captain Cassium still not been found?”

“No, not yet.”

The Black Panther division of the Erne Knights.

A man with brown hair leaned his head against the wall, his face filled with worry.

Standing before him was a knight with short, ash-gray hair, who nodded grimly.

They were Hedel and Milia, the aides of Cassium Balteire, captain of the Black Panther division.

“Where on earth could he have gone? And while injured, no less.”

“If I knew, wouldn’t I have found him already?”

“I’m just frustrated. What if something really happened to the captain…”

At Hedel’s words, Milia shook her head firmly with a hardened expression.

“That’s impossible. We’re talking about Captain Cassium. Even if he were attacked by the enemy, there’s no way he’d be kidnapped, tied up, or trapped somewhere, let alone… cross a river of no return.”

“R-right. Milia, calm down.”

“We’ll find him. He must be somewhere, recovering and waiting for the right moment to return.”

“Yes, I think so too.”

The two tried to reassure each other.

Captain Cassium of the Black Panther division had been missing for days after being ambushed.

Hedel and Milia suspected it was the work of an enemy nation.

Cassium had reclaimed a territory they had illegally occupied, which likely made him a target of their vengeance.

A few days ago, the two had been returning from the forest with Cassium, carrying the heart of a Grade 1 beast, the Lagon.

But they were ambushed on the way, the heart was stolen, and Cassium disappeared during the battle.

Despite searching for hours, they couldn’t find him.

The disappearance of their captain was a serious matter. If word got out, it could boost the morale of their enemies and lower that of their own knights.

Additionally, the enemy who had stolen the Lagon’s heart hadn’t been caught yet.

To prevent the news of Cassium’s disappearance from leaking, the aides decided to keep it under wraps until they captured the culprit.

Through the window, the cold winds of the winter forest blew.

Clenching their fists, the knights set off once more to search for Cassium.

“Huff, huff.”

This was tougher than the knight training…

After running around for a while, the bunny finally returned to my room.

Thankfully, it had avoided my uncle and made it back safely.

But staying confined to my room posed another issue—it made it harder to get closer to Bryce!

In the original story, wasn’t this bunny supposed to be curious, hopping from room to room and enjoying discovering new places?

Why was it suddenly sticking to my room?

Since the bunny refused to leave, there was only one solution left.

I’d have to bring Bryce to my room.

“Sister, what’s… Whoa, the bunny’s awake?!”

“Bryce, come here.”

“What do you want now?”

“Feed the bunny.”

“Why me?!”

I waved at my sulking younger brother.

Though he pouted, he eventually walked over at a snail’s pace.

“Bryce, you like bunnies.”

“No, I don’t!”

But I was sure you did. I’d believed that for so long…

Wasn’t that one of the premises of the original story? You found a bunny, cared for it, and loved it because you liked them, right?

“Just feed the bunny.”

“Where’s the food?”

“Here.”

I handed him a bowl filled with greens.

“Ugh, seriously, Sister. Ugh…”

Bryce let out a deep sigh and reluctantly grabbed a handful of greens, shoving them toward the golden bunny with an annoyed look.

“Eat it.”

It was far from a kind gesture.

The golden bunny snorted.

“Sister? This bunny just laughed at me!”

“If a bunny laughs, that’s a good thing, Bryce.”

“No, that’s not what I meant! It mocked me!”

“What’s so bad about being mocked by a bunny? It’s not like your life is going to fall apart.”

“…Well, that’s true.”

Bryce, regaining his composure, extended the greens toward the bunny again, this time with a bit more sincerity.

‘That’s right, just like in the original story…’

It had been mentioned in a flashback from Bryce’s perspective:

[When he offered the greens for the first time, Bryce felt as if he were sharing not just food but a part of his heart. It was only later that he understood the reason for that emotion.]

Yes, share your heart! That’s what this is about!

“Sister, it’s not eating.”

“What?”

“The bunny’s not eating the greens.”

“Really?”

Sure enough, the golden bunny had turned its head away from Bryce and was refusing to eat.

“Golden Bunny, say ‘ah.’”

I tried coaxing it, but the bunny remained silent, turning its head indifferently. When Bryce pushed the greens closer, the bunny instead tried nibbling on his sleeve.

“Sister! Does this bunny even eat greens?”

“It should!”

“No, I don’t think this bunny eats greens. Look at those muscles. There’s no way they came from eating plants.”

“Hmmm.”

I took the greens from Bryce and extended my other hand toward the bunny.

“Golden Bunny.”

The bunny glanced at me.

With its brows furrowed as if deep in thought, it alternated its gaze between me and the greens.

“See? It’s not going to eat, Sister.”

“No, it’s just hungry, Bunny.”

In the original story, it ate the greens just fine. Was it still wary of us? Or did it dislike eating alone?

I crouched down to make eye contact with the bunny and put a piece of the greens into my mouth.

“Look, it’s delicious.”

“Beep?”

The bunny let out a curious chirp, as if saying, “Huh?”

Bryce stared at me in shock, but I waved him off.

“It’s edible for humans too. This was in the side dishes you had for breakfast.”

Since this bunny was technically a person, it wouldn’t make sense to give it something humans couldn’t eat.

As I explained to Bryce, I suddenly felt a tug on the greens in my hand.

“…!”

I turned quickly and saw the bunny chewing on the greens with a disinterested look in its eyes.

“See! It’s eating!”

“It looks like it doesn’t want to, though.”

“But it’s eating anyway!”

A smile spread across my face. It’s eating well!

Bryce hesitated for a moment, then took another handful of greens from the bowl and held it out to the bunny.

“Here, eat this, Bunny.”

Though he pretended not to care, I noticed a faint hint of anticipation in Bryce’s eyes.

“Beek.”

But the bunny snorted and turned its head away.

“This… this bunny!”

“Bryce, why are you getting upset?”

“The bunny’s only refusing my greens!”

“Try offering it with more sincerity.”

“How am I supposed to show sincerity in giving greens?”

“Like this.”

I offered the greens again with a soft smile.

The bunny glanced back and forth between me and the greens before grabbing it with its front teeth.

Bryce shot the bunny a disapproving look.

Hesitating once more, Bryce grabbed another handful of greens and held it out.

“Here, Bunny. Eat this.”

This time, he made a visible effort, lifting the corners of his lips into a forced smile.