Kays Translations

Chapter 14: To Viscount Howler’s House

　The next morning, I woke up while it was still dark and made my way down the stairs, trying not to make any noise. Even so, it seemed that he had heard my footsteps, as a large black cat was sitting in front of the fireplace, looking my way.

“Good morning, Mr. Henry. You didn’t change back.”

“Good morning, Miss Mai. I did not return. Please write to the Howler family. I am so sorry.”

“Please don’t apologize to someone who wants to be nice to you. Some of us are just happy to be of help, you know?” 

　Outside, dawn has only just broken. My heart is racing, but it’s insane to visit a house for the first time at this hour, no matter how important it is.

“First, let’s have breakfast. You want the same thing as me, right?”

“Yes, I’d like the same thing as Mai-san. Thank you for your help.”

“Okay. I’ll write the letter for you after I finish breakfast.”

“That would be helpful. Thank you very much.”

　Fried eggs, thick slices of bacon, boiled broccoli, yesterday’s leftover consommé soup, raisin bread, and butter. It would be hard to eat with cat paws. But I figured he wouldn’t want to eat with his mouth on the plate in front of me.

“I’ll cut the food into small pieces and feed it to you with a spoon.”

“No, no, no that’s a bit much.”

“I want to feed you. I’ll probably never get a chance to spoon-feed a cat. Please let me do it.”

“I see. Then I’ll take you up on your offer. I was just thinking how pathetic it would be for you to see me eating with my face in the bowl.”

　I cut up some fried eggs and tore up some bread for him. He ate the soup little by little with a spoon. Henry’s way of eating is elegant and beautiful even as a cat. It took a while, but he finished his meal. I also have my own meal in between.

“It was delicious. Now, I am sorry, but I would like to ask you to write on my behalf. Could you please deliver it to my parents, Viscount Howler’s family?”

“Viscount Howler ……. I understand. I’ll write it for you.”

　I had thought this might be the case, but Mr. Henry was indeed the son of an aristocrat.

　From the perspective of commoners, nobles are people who are far above the clouds. I learned that from experience after coming to this world. Being Japanese, there were many things that shocked me.

　It didn’t occur to me that I had to be quick to give way when I met one on the street, and several times in the beginning I was verbally abused by the nobleman’s servants. So now, when I heard that Mr. Henry’s family is a viscount, I felt a little lonely, as if Henry had become distant from me.

　The contents of the letter I wrote on his behalf were: that he had turned into a cat and could not return to his original form, that he was staying at his favorite café, that the person who delivered the letter was its manager, and that he wanted them to inform his workplace that he was taking the day off.

“Then I’ll go deliver the letter. Please wait for me.”

　With the address given to me, I set out for Viscount Howler’s house.

　The Viscount family house was a magnificent mansion, and there was a gatekeeper. When I told him my business, the gatekeeper, who had been in a “what do you want so early in the morning” kind of mood, suddenly became very polite.

“Is this a letter from, young master?　Could you wait here?　I’ll get back to you right away.”

　The gatekeeper ran off and brought back a well-dressed man with him After I handed him the letter I had written, I was ushered into the house and made to wait in a small room. The man was the butler of the mansion, and he immediately took me to see Viscount Howler.

　Viscount Howler is a slender, silver-haired man with a gentle demeanor, just as I had heard from Henry.

“I read the letter. Henry is at your house now, is he not?”

“Yes. He has not been able to change back and is still a black cat. This is the first time he’s turned into a cat since she became an adult, and he’s very worried about going AWOL.”

　Then Viscount Howler chuckled.

“It’s just like him to worry about something like that at such a momentous event. It is very Henry-like. I believe the young lady’s name is Mai, am I right? Thank you for taking care of my son. I’m sure you must have been very surprised to see him. Thank you for helping my son. I will send a carriage to pick him up immediately, and I want you to ride with the butler. I will send a messenger to the castle to inform them that he isn’t feeling well and will be taking the day off.” 

“Yes, sir.”

“Also, about this incident…”

　I knew immediately what he meant by the way he was choosing his words.

“If it is about Mr. Henry’s secret, I won’t tell anyone. I don’t ask for anything in return. Henry is a valued customer. I will keep his secrets safe.”

“I’m not doubting you, but it’s comforting to hear you say so. Could you please go pick up my son and come back here? I’d like to talk to you about something.”

“I will.”

　I rode in a carriage with the butler, Jude. It was my first time riding in a carriage, and it vibrated more than I expected. I could count the joints of the cobblestones. But the interior was gorgeous. The seat was covered in velvet-like fabric.

　The carriage pulled up in front of the store, and Jude and I went inside. Henry the cat was in front of the fireplace.  Jude was hesitant, not being sure that the big black cat was Henry.

“Master Henry… is that you?”

“Jude, I’m sorry. It’s me.”

“Oh my, my boy! It must have been terrible.”

“I can’t get back to normal. Can you take me back to the mansion?”

“Of course, sir. Let’s go back to the mansion. Come with me.”

“Mai, you’ve been very kind to me. Thank you for saving me. I’ll be sure to repay you for this.”

　Henry the cat is being honest. It’s fine. He let me pet him, that’s more than enough for me.

“The Viscount said he wanted to talk to me at length, so I’ll accompany you .”

“I see. Again, my apologies.”

　I stuck a piece of paper saying “Temporarily Closed” on the door and got into the carriage. It’s nice to be temporarily closed sometimes.

　We arrived at Viscount Howler’s house, but I didn’t see any other servants until I reached the back room. I saw a servant here and there when I was there. I wonder if they are trying to hide Mr. Henry the cat.

　A discussion ensued between myself, the Viscount, and Mr. Henry the cat.

　The Viscount and Mr. Henry the cat each sat side by side on a one-person sofa, and I was advised to take a seat facing the Viscount. Mr. Henry the  Cat was curled up on the single sofa.

“Mai-san, I’m sorry I caused you to close your restaurant.”

“It’s no big deal to take a break every now and then. Don’t worry about it.”

　Then the Viscount began to speak with a somber look on his face.

“Henry has only been like this once since he was adopted shortly after he was born. He had a high fever at the time, but this time he seems to be in good health. So why has he ended up like this now…?  Mai you were there with Henry at the time.  I would like to know if there was anything that could have caused this, or if you noticed anything.”

“Henry and I exchanged a few words before he got up to leave, but by then he was already feeling ill. I was worried that he was deeply intoxicated, so I followed him outside to look for him, and when I found him, he was already in this state.”

　The Viscount sighed as he looked at Henry the cat, who was nodding next to him.

“As you know, there are very few beastmen in this country. Even If there were, they would hide the fact that they are beastmen. In this country, it is never good to be known as a beastman. Because we have no contact with the beastmen country, we have little knowledge about them. And I have never heard of anyone born between a human and a beastman, except for Henry, as far as I know. I have no idea how Henry could ever return from this state.”

“Maybe we should ask his mother, who gave birth to him?”

“I don’t know where Henry’s mother is. I think we’ll just have to wait and see.”

　Huh?　Didn’t he say he sees his real mother from time to time?　Thinking that, I looked at Mr. Henry and saw him shaking his head in a small way. Oh, that’s right. His adoptive parents don’t know that Henry meets with his mother.

“Father, may I have a word with her alone for a moment?”

“With Mai?　Why?”

“I want to talk to her and find out what was going on in the restaurant before all this happened. I want to know what Mai-san was talking about, what she was drinking next to me, everything. That is her personal matter.”

“I see. Then I’ll leave. If you find out anything, be sure to let me know.  You should wait and see for a while.. You may return to your natural state, just like when you were five.”

“Yes, sir. I understand.”

　The Viscount left the room and it was just me and Henry the cat.

“Thank you for not saying anything. My adoptive parents don’t know where my mother is or that I’ve seen her. If they found out I’d met my biological mother, it would hurt them. They’re very kind people, so I don’t want that to happen.”

　When I was listening to him talk last night, I thought (he doesn’t say a word against his own circumstances), but he doesn’t want to hurt his adoptive parents either. What a kind person.

　My grandma was kind, too, but God likes to make such kind people bear heavy burdens. God has a mean spirit. If we were in the same class, I would never want to be friends with him.

“I’m sorry for causing you so much trouble, but there are things I can only ask you, Mai.”

“I’m fine with that. Please leave it to me.”

“Are you going to accept the task without asking any questions?”

“I’ll do what I can. If I ever get into trouble someday, I might ask you for help.”

“I will certainly help you then. So, as a favor, I would like to leave this mansion tonight and go to see my mother. When I do, would you mind meeting my mother with me?　My father says I should wait and see how things go, but I’m afraid that if I wait and see how things go, it will be too late. If I don’t manage to return to being human again… I’m in despair.”

　I’ve processed what he said in my head, but what he’s asking me to do now seems like a bad idea.

“Why are you acting without telling your parents here? You can just tell your mother the situation and ask her if there is a solution, right? If you sneak out of the house and something happens on the way, it will just cause more trouble.”

“It has to do with …… my biological father’s position. Please wait a moment.”

　With that, Mr. Henry the cat trotted over to the half-open door and looked left and right. When he returned, he said, “This way,” and led me to the window farthest from the door.

“If I insisted on meeting my biological mother and talking to her, my father here will talk to my biological father. It would be very bad if anyone around my father found out what was going on.”

“Is that because of succession issues or something like that?”

“Yes. I am sure that my father is a nobleman of a higher rank, since he entrusted his own child to a Viscount’s family. If it was discovered that my father had an illegitimate child and that It was a half-breed, it would not only be my life that would be targeted for the honor of the …… family. My mother could also be targeted to keep her mouth shut. My mother lives in hiding from my father, or even from those around him. I cannot put my mother in danger.”

　Henry is the one who is suffering the most. It hurts my heart to see him always thinking about those around him.

“My mother works as a maid at a boarding school for girls, where the daughters of wealthy commoners gather. Because of the location, I can’t go and see her in this state.”

“A girls’ school dormitory ……. It would certainly cause a commotion, wouldn’t it? Don’t worry, I will accompany you. What time?　Even if I were to accompany you, it wouldn’t be too late, would it?”

“Then let’s meet at seven o’clock in the evening. If you go west from the gate of this mansion, you will come to a grove of red pines. We will meet there. It is early evening, but please be careful.”

“Got it”

　It’s okay. I can use magic, I muttered to myself and smiled.

　Afterwards, Henry reported to the Viscount that “I couldn’t think of anything in particular,” and I returned to the “Hideaway.”

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