"Fortunately, we were able to repel the attackers. However, in the confusion at the time, the princess went missing…"
Claudia wore a pained expression, as if recalling those events.
It was clear she felt deeply sad —
and probably incredibly frustrated too.
Her hands, resting on the table, clenched tightly.
“I wanted to set out immediately to search for the princess, but the village had suffered great damage… And since we didn’t want the same thing to happen again, we decided to relocate the village… Up until now, I haven’t been able to go looking for her. I am truly sorry!”
Claudia lowered her head to Aisha, looking utterly frustrated.
The sudden apology made Aisha flinch in surprise.
But Claudia’s sincerity came through clearly, and she didn’t try to run away.
Still hiding behind me, she peeked out and said softly:
“…It’s okay. I don’t really mind.”
With those words, she tried to comfort Claudia.
“Princess…! Thank you for your gracious words!”
“Uu…”
It seemed strange to Aisha to be called princess, and she fidgeted shyly.
Her tail swayed uneasily, so I reached out and patted her head.
“Ehehe.”
Her tail calmed down as she gave a soft, relaxed smile.
“…Ah, excuse me, I got off topic.”
“What happened to the beastfolk’s village?”
“The relocation was completed, and things have settled down quite a bit.”
Claudia answered Sofia’s question with a smile.
“I don’t know if I should call it coincidence or fate, but the new village is near Snowlake. Well, ‘near’ still means about a week’s walk… In any case, I’ve come here several times, both to gather supplies for the new village and to search for any clues about the princess.”
“I see.”
“And then, by chance, I met you two and was able to reunite with the princess… Truly, it must be fate.”
I’m not a particularly religious person,
but… somehow I found myself agreeing with Claudia.
It really was that dramatic of a meeting and reunion.
“…Fate.”
Sofia quietly called out to me, her voice low enough only I could hear.
“…What are you going to do now? About Aisha…?”
“…Aisha is our daughter.”
Meeting someone who knew Aisha was… really a good thing.
But that doesn’t change the fact that she’s our daughter.
If Aisha herself said she wanted to live in the village,
then I wouldn’t stop her…
but unless she did, I planned to stay with her.
One day she’d marry and leave?
No.
No way. Absolutely not.
“Um… Claudia, what do you plan to do now?”
“Well… now that I’ve found the princess, of course I’d like to welcome her back to the village right away…”
She glanced at us.
“…But I’m not sure if that’s really the best thing to do.”
Good.
She understood our situation and didn’t plan to force her way.
“Besides, I have one more mission to fulfill.”
“One more?”
“Yes. I must also search for the divine beast who disappeared from the village at the same time.”
“The… divine…”
“…beast?”
I exchanged a glance with Sofia.
“Would it be like… a goddess, in human terms? The Divine Beast is the god of us beastfolk. That Divine Beast had a child, but during that same incident, it also went missing… Ugh, where could they be now, what might be happening to them? Ah, how pitiful… If only they’re safe, at least…”
“Hey, hey.”
Licorice, who had been quietly watching things unfold, suddenly spoke up.
She floated gently through the air…
and landed atop Snow’s head, who was sitting calmly a little distance away.
“This furball here… is that your Divine Beast?”
“Huh?”
Only then did Claudia seem to notice Snow’s presence, her eyes going wide.
"…"
She froze there, for about a full minute.
“THE DIVINE BEAST!!!?”
Claudia leapt to her feet with such force she nearly kicked over her chair, shouting.
She dashed over to Snow in a flurry of footsteps.
“Ah, Divine Beast! Divine Beast! To think I’d find you in a place like this… This too must be your divine guidance. Thank you, Divine Beast… Thanks to you, I’ve finally found you.”
She seemed extremely confused and flustered.
But still…
“So… Snow was actually an amazing dog all along.”
That was the thought that came to mind.
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