Chapter 69

At first glance, I immediately noticed.

Indeed, this person doesn't seem to get along with Kicks or the leader.

There's a hint of the refined elegance of a noble, which is somewhat similar to the sub-leader, but unlike the unpretentious sub-leader, this person seems a bit pretentious.

"Once, Nild, Sai, well done."

Captain Sarell called out to the sharp person, the quiet person, and the hooded person, who was not wearing a hood at the moment, one by one.

Then, lowering his gaze, he saw Kugarug and me at the feet of the three and widened his eyes slightly.

"Are these... the children of the spirits?"

Captain Sarell's voice was as thin as his build.

"Are these really the children of the spirits, Yorg? Really?"

Captain Sarell pointed at Kugarug and me and repeatedly asked the person with bags under his eyes standing next to him.

Probably because we were dressed in a way that was too ridiculous for spirits.

To make matters worse, in front of me was a paper that had been used to wrap biscuits, now covered in crumbs.

Spirits are supernatural beings, closer to gods or angels than humans in this world. If they saw someone dressed as a sheep with a rabbit backpack, licking the crumbs from their mouth while looking at them, it's understandable why they would want to confirm, "Are these really the children of the spirits?"

"Are you sure you haven't mistaken them for someone else's pets?"

Glaring at us, Captain Sarell made the sharp person, Once, hurriedly deny it.

"No, they are definitely the children of the spirits. It seems Cromwell made them wear these costumes..."

"Cromwell? Has he gone mad since he went to the northern fortress?"

In Captain Sarell's mind, the sub-leader was not the type to dress animals in such outfits.

It would be hard to believe even if I said I had received cute raincoats and shawls.

He is usually wearing an icy mask, but occasionally, at unpredictable times, he gets a nosebleed, which is quite playful.

"But speaking of Cromwell..."

At that point, Captain Sarell's face twisted into a sinister smile.

"His punishment for this incident is inevitable. The same goes for Gauss. To have the spirit children he was with kidnapped is an unforgivable mistake."

After laughing, "Haha," he continued.

"This way, I won't have to feel uneasy anymore. Every time I heard that Cromwell had gained the trust of the Snow Spirit or that the spirit children had taken a liking to him, my brother would scold me, 'Why didn't you go to the northern fortress on your own initiative?' Now, I won't have to hear that anymore. Cromwell will lose his current position and the trust of those around him, and I will take his place. Then, my brother and the knights will have no choice but to recognize me."

"You're right."

The five people, including Once, nodded deeply at the arrogant Captain Sarell.

As I watched this, I was a bit anxious about how smoothly my plan was going.

I had already reached the mastermind, Captain Sarell, but the one-eyed knights who were supposed to be chasing us should have already arrived in the capital by now.

The people involved in this incident, excluding the hired thugs, were all six of us here.

The culprits were all gathered in one place. It would be fine if the one-eyed knights stormed in now... but it might still take some time.

Well, I'll have to buy some time.

Thinking this, I lay down on the spot and showed my belly.

This is a magical spell that makes everyone at the northern fortress unable to resist petting my belly.

Even when they're in a hurry, they say, "Oh, we don't have time!" but still pet me.

The fairy rabbit backpack prevents me from lying on my back properly, but I think my fluffy belly is even more attractive than the rest of my fluffy body.

Come on, come over.

I usually only let people I trust touch me, but this is an emergency, so it's a special case.

"......?"

In the upside-down view, Captain Sarell and the other five looked puzzled.

Hmm? That's strange.

When I do this, everyone at the northern fortress smiles and calls out "Mii~" in a high voice and comes over.

Oh, I get it!

Because I'm dressed as a sheep, the fake fluff is hiding my real fluff. This is unexpected.

In other words, I can't show the charm of my real fluff unless I take off this costume.

What a disaster!

I hurriedly got up and struggled to take off the costume.

I thought I could take it off by myself since the buttons on the front were already undone and there were no elastic bands in the sleeves.

First, I tried to pull my right front paw out of the costume but lost my balance and fell. But I didn't give up.

While lying on the floor, I bit the sleeve to hold it in place and tried to pull my right front paw out again. This time, it worked. I was also free from the rabbit backpack.

Next, I bit the left sleeve and pulled my paw out.

Ouch! I bit my fur too.

But I managed to do it, sacrificing a dozen or so hairs. The rabbit backpack also fell to the floor.

All I had to do was pull my head out and then pull the costume up to take it off—

Oh no, my butt is stuck.

This costume doesn't just cover the upper body like a T-shirt. It's like a full-body suit, and for ordinary dogs or cats, it would be a nightmare when they need to go to the bathroom.

It's impossible to pull it off from the top. I have to take it off from the bottom.

Kugarug, looking worried, was pacing around me, who was wriggling on the floor.

I put my head out of the costume again and then pulled out my front paws one by one.

I did it carefully to avoid getting stuck.

Thanks to my clever strategy, I successfully got my upper body out of the collar.

All that was left was to take off the part covering my lower body.

I got up and lifted my hind legs one by one, shaking them.

But this time, my tail got stuck and wouldn't fall off.

...I'm tired.

I glanced up at Captain Sarell. In situations like this, it's best to use people.

If it were the one-eyed knight, Tina, or the sub-leader, they would understand what I wanted and help me immediately, but Captain Sarell doesn't seem to be very perceptive.

"What does this spirit child want to do..."

I want to take off my costume.

As I approached, Captain Sarell stepped back, looking scared.

"O-oh, I've been afraid of dogs ever since I was chased by one my brother set on me as a child."

"Captain Sarell, the spirit child is not a dog, so it's fine."

"I know that! But..."

Instead of Captain Sarell, who was retreating, Once stepped forward and tried to hand me, who was still half-dressed, to Captain Sarell.

"It's fine, Captain Sarell. Besides, the spirit child needs to get along with you. You need to be more liked than Cromwell."

"A-ah, yes..."

Captain Sarell nodded twice, wiping cold sweat from his forehead.

He swallowed hard and awkwardly reached out his hand. Since he was afraid of dogs, I stayed still like a stuffed animal.

I didn't want to be dropped if I struggled.

"Is this okay?"

Captain Sarell was also bad at holding me.

Stop holding my arms! My shoulder is going to pop out.