Chapter 15

No matter what had happened on the battlefield, Ronald had decided that the current situation was extremely serious.

This was an emergency.

Though it was terribly disrespectful to even think such a thing—

and though the conclusion was horrifying—

‘Could it be that the Young Master has finally gone mad because of the curse?’

Ronald squeezed his eyes shut tightly, trying to shake away the dreadful thoughts storming through his mind.

After barely steadying himself, he raised a trembling hand and knocked on the door again.

“Young Master Blake. It is Ronald. Are you inside?”

“……”

Silence answered him from the other side of the door.

Ronald tilted his head.

The Young Master had always been so sensitive to even the smallest noise due to his inability to sleep.

“Perhaps he really isn’t here? Ah, of course. I must truly be losing my mind. Young Master Blake in a greenhouse….”

There was no way.

Thinking he had made the trip for nothing, Ronald turned to leave—

“…Because it’s uncomfortable?”

A man’s voice suddenly drifted from inside the quiet greenhouse.

Ronald’s half-turned body froze instantly.

‘That was definitely the Young Master’s voice….’

“Young Master. I am deeply concerned that something may have happened to you. Would it be alright if I came inside?”

Again, no response came from within.

After hesitating for a long moment, Ronald finally made up his mind and grabbed the handle.

The greenhouse door swung open.

“…W-What is this?!”

And in that moment, Ronald witnessed the single most shocking sight of his entire forty years serving this household.

Standing proudly atop a cushioned garden chair was a brown teddy bear—

while Blake glared at it with clear displeasure.

Watching the tense standoff between man and teddy bear, Ronald slowly scooted backward while still seated.

But unfortunately, his suffering did not end there.

Crash!

Unable to see the flowerpot behind him, Ronald stumbled and fell flat onto the ground.

And what entered his eyes next was—

Blake, frowning slightly at the sudden disturbance, casually lifting the struggling teddy bear with one hand before placing it onto his lap—

and—

the teddy bear speaking while calling Blake’s name.

“W-Wait, Blake?!”

“U-Ugh!”

Unable to suppress the strangled sound of shock escaping him, Ronald stared in horror.

At the same time, both Blake and Vivian turned toward the doorway.

The moment Vivian spotted Ronald, she waved happily.

“Oh? Hello, White-Mustache Butler!”

Well… this was awkward.

I quietly observed Ronald, whose face had turned as white as his mustache while he sat frozen in the chair.

“Blake. Do you think White-Mustache Butler fainted while sitting upright?”

Since Blake immediately shook his head faintly, apparently Ronald hadn’t fainted.

Whew. That was a relief.

If an elderly butler had actually collapsed, it would’ve totally been Blake’s fault.

Crossing my arms, I clicked my tongue at him.

Seriously, why insist so stubbornly when I was perfectly willing to keep pretending to be an ordinary doll?

Noticing my stare, Blake pressed his huge palm directly against my face.

“Gah!”

“Ronald.”

“…Y-Yes.”

Ronald, who hadn’t spoken a single word for an entire hour, finally answered weakly.

“Do you feel capable of talking now?”

“My apologies. How disgraceful of this old man to lose his composure in a place like this… yes, of course.”

“It’s understandable you’d be surprised.”

“No, sir. I behaved rudely. Not a single servant had seen you today, Young Master, so I became worried and….”

“It’s fine. Don’t concern yourself with it.”

Pwah!

Finally escaping Blake’s hand, I kicked his thigh with my tiny foot.

I nearly suffocated to death!

This ungrateful brat seriously seemed to think I was nothing more than an actual teddy bear.

Then suddenly, I felt an incredibly intense gaze fixed on me, making me awkwardly scratch the back of my head.

When someone stared that hard, even I got embarrassed.

“I probably should’ve worn clothes. That was rude of me. Sorry, White-Mustache Aide. I’m Vivian.”

“Hoo….”

Still unable to hide his shock, Ronald blankly asked:

“Y-Young Master… what exactly is the true identity of that doll? It speaks and possesses intelligence.”

Aha. Questions about my identity were always enjoyable.

Even if I was currently trapped inside a mere teddy bear, it was still a chance to proudly remind everyone that I was actually Vivian Holloway, the Great Witch of the West!

And besides, this situation practically already exposed my identity anyway.

It didn’t count as breaking the contract!

I puffed out my chest proudly and began to answer.

“I’m a wi— mmph!”

“A very old teddy bear.”

“…Pardon?”

Hey!

My mouth covered again, I flailed furiously in protest while Blake calmly continued speaking.

“It’s a teddy bear I happened to obtain recently. Strangely enough, whenever this doll is nearby, I can finally sleep.”

“Y-You can sleep…? Good heavens. Young Master! That is wonderful news! Truly wonderful!”

Ronald’s eyes sparkled nonstop as they bounced rapidly between me and Blake.

He looked so emotional he practically jumped up, declaring he needed to inform the Duke immediately, but Blake stopped him.

“Wait. I’ll speak to Father personally. There are still things I need to investigate first.”

“Haha, yes. Of course. Certainly. I merely….”

The shock had already faded from Ronald’s face, replaced entirely by overwhelming emotion.

Tears began gathering in his gray eyes.

Then he turned toward me, where I had escaped Blake’s grasp and was standing in the corner of the flower bed admiring flowers.

I was busy rubbing my squashed face with the back of my hand after that human fast-charger had crushed it again when Ronald suddenly bowed deeply toward me.

“Thank you, Teddy Bear. Thank you truly, from the bottom of my heart!”

“M-Me…?”

When I pointed at myself in confusion, tears slid down Ronald’s wrinkled cheeks.

“Yes. For helping our Young Master finally sleep… I do not know how to repay this kindness….”

He didn’t ask how Blake slept.

He didn’t ask what I truly was.

Ronald simply kept bowing his head over and over in gratitude.

He didn’t even try to uncover my real identity.

Frozen awkwardly in place, I looked back and forth between Blake and Ronald.

Apparently I wasn’t the only surprised one.

Blake, too, seemed completely frozen by Ronald’s tears.

Still expressionless, he stared stiffly at Ronald with sharp eyes.

“If the Young Master can finally sleep peacefully… if he can finally be happy… then I do not care what method made it possible. And the fact that it’s such an adorable teddy bear means I could ask for nothing more.”

“Um, White-Mustache Butler. Thanks for trusting me, but honestly now I’m starting to worry. What if I’m actually some evil teddy bear plotting something terrible?”

Weren’t these people way too pure?

From the outside, this place looked like a den full of villains, yet everyone inside was as soft as melted cheese.

It weirdly made me feel guilty.

“Is that so? Haha. But this old man does not see you that way. I may look like this, but I’ve lived quite a turbulent life. I have a decent eye for judging people—or teddy bears.”

Now that he’d started joking around, Ronald truly carried the seasoned ease of someone shaped by long experience.

“And since the Young Master has already investigated and made his own decision, I simply trust and follow him completely.”

At some point, my face had become round and squished like kneaded dough again, and Ronald gazed at it fondly before extending his hand.

It was different from Blake’s hand.

Older.

Worn by time.

Quietly staring at it, I carefully took it.

With a gentle little handshake, Ronald smiled warmly.

“Until the Young Master permits otherwise, I shall carry this secret with me to the grave. I look forward to working with you from now on, Lady Vivian.”

Smiling brightly back at him, I answered:

“Yep. I’ll be in your care too.”

After Ronald finally left, promising absolute secrecy—

I climbed onto Blake’s lap, where he still sat silently.

Naturally settling there, I realized his lap wasn’t nearly as hard as I’d expected.

Kind of like his true feelings.

I muttered quietly:

“So much for having no close people in this mansion. Look at this, Blake.”

I’d never seen such a loyal and dependable attendant besides my own Max.

“You’ve got yourself a pretty amazing aide, huh?”

Blake’s violet eyes trembled faintly as he continued staring at the place where Ronald had been sitting.

And the expression on his face—

the realization that during all those lonely years, someone had silently stayed by his side the entire time—

was so beautiful that before I knew it, a delighted smile spread across my own face too.