“Ppi.”
The rabbit answered half-heartedly.
From Bryce’s perspective, it had been a serious question, but the rabbit only tossed out a casual response, as if to say, So what do you want me to do about it?
Bryce, however, paid no attention to the rabbit’s reaction and continued speaking.
“Kim Toki, I happen to know another rabbit besides you.”
Throughout the conversation, the rabbit’s gaze remained fixed on Lize.
“That rabbit is definitely different from you. But there is one thing you have in common.”
“Ppi.”
“It has a marking on its ear. Just like yours.”
At those words, the rabbit stopped walking.
Its eyes turned toward Bryce.
“Do you know anything about it? Since you have the same mark, maybe you're the same species. Or relatives.”
“……”
“I think it got lost, and I want to help it find its way home.”
“Ppi.”
“No, actually, if I’m being honest, I don’t really want to help it find its home.”
“Ppi?”
The rabbit looked at him as if he were some kind of scoundrel, and Bryce calmly explained.
“I like having that rabbit around.”
“……”
“And I think it likes being with me too.”
Then he hesitated.
Besides...
I don't think it's an ordinary rabbit.
It's almost as if a person became a rabbit.
He kept that thought to himself.
After all, he still had no idea what this Kim Toki really was.
This rabbit didn't seem normal either.
Though whether his sister realized that or not was another matter.
Still, she adored the rabbit so much, and it didn't seem to mean her any harm, so Bryce had left it alone.
But if it ever causes trouble for Sister...
He wasn't talking about something obvious, like the rabbit bullying her.
What if she became so attached to it that she gave up things important to herself?
Or if something related to the rabbit caused her pain?
A few days ago, when the rabbit disappeared, she'd searched the entire forest in tears.
Even then, he'd felt uneasy.
“Ppi.”
“Forget it, Rabbit.”
Just then—
“Ah!”
Lize’s foot caught on a tree root, and her body suddenly tilted forward.
“Sister!”
“Lady Lize!”
Before Bryce could even take a step forward, the rabbit beside him vanished.
Only scattered leaves and a cloud of dust remained where it had stood.
The rabbit had already leapt toward the direction Lize was falling.
Its tiny body stretched forward, little paws reaching out.
The instant Lize collided with it, her momentum shifted.
Instead of falling forward, she bounced in the opposite direction—
“Lady Lize!”
And Julius caught her safely.
His hands wrapped around her shoulders.
Startled, Lize looked up at him.
“Are you alright, Lady Lize?”
The rabbit landed back on the ground and stared at the two of them.
“Yes. Thank you, Sir Julius.”
Lize blinked up at him.
The rabbit was making soft ppii noises nearby, but Lize was talking only to Julius.
Watching the scene unfold, Bryce suddenly remembered a fairy tale he'd read as a child.
The one where the protagonist clearly saved the heroine—
but the neighboring princess somehow got all the credit.
“Ppiii...”
“Aww, Kim Toki...”
At that moment, Bryce’s wariness toward the rabbit vanished.
In its place was sympathy.
“Ppiii!”
The moment they entered the annex, the golden rabbit jumped out of Lize’s bag.
“Golden Rabbit!”
For some reason, it seemed to be in a terrible mood.
It had hidden quietly during the trip back to avoid being spotted by her uncle, but the second they reached the annex, it stormed off.
Even after returning to the room, it sat with its back turned on the sofa and refused to acknowledge her.
“Golden Rabbit, what's wrong?”
It felt like the rabbit was deeply offended about something.
What happened?
They had grown much closer lately, and nothing bad had happened in the forest.
Besides, on the way back, it seemed to be getting along really well with Bryce.
She'd been dying to know what they were talking about, but she'd deliberately refrained from interrupting.
Instead, she'd chatted with Julius.
If Bryce and the rabbit were bonding, she should give them some space.
But now the rabbit was treating her coldly, and she felt wronged.
No matter how many times she called, the rabbit only glanced at her from the corner of its eye.
Not even a token ppii in response.
After pondering for a while, she headed to Bryce’s room.
“Bryce, the rabbit is acting strange.”
“Kim Toki?”
“It feels distant. Did something happen while we were coming down from the forest?”
“Yes.”
“What?”
Her eyes widened.
Something actually happened?
“What happened?”
“Who knows?”
At that moment, footsteps echoed from outside.
That sound...
She could recognize that crooked, swaggering gait anywhere.
“Mars? What are you doing here this late?”
“I told you to call me Brother. How many times do I have to say it? And Bryce, your elder brother has arrived. Aren’t you going to greet me?”
“I don't recall that being mandated by Imperial law.”
“Must you bring up the law for everything? How do you live like that?”
Mars frowned.
Bryce merely stared back.
The law alone already forced enough interactions between them.
There was no reason to create additional ties beyond that.
After all, the reason he still lived here—and why his salary went directly into his uncle’s hands—was because of the law.
“What do you want?”
“Don't look at me like that. Technically speaking, this annex belongs to me too.”
“Why are you here?”
“Well... this is a little awkward.”
Mars cleared his throat.
Then he turned toward Lize.
“About the other day... I'm sorry.”
Lize almost laughed.
Sorry? You?
“For giving your rabbit a hard time. You know what they say—hate the crime, not the person. I almost ended up hating the rabbit's crime.”
The actual saying was the exact opposite.
But she couldn't be bothered correcting him.
If Mars wanted to spend the rest of his life getting it wrong, it made no difference to her.
Still...
Why was he apologizing?
Just as she wondered when he planned to leave, Mars thrust something into her hands.
“Take it already. You're making me look ridiculous.”
“What is it?”
“Grass.”
He shoved a basket toward her.
Inside were piles of fresh green leaves.
“Give it to your rabbit, Lize. It's not like you have much money to buy rabbit food.”
“……”
“See this lettuce? This is the kind served at fancy parties. High-class vegetables. You know how expensive it is, right? You don't have to thank me. It's not a big deal—I bought it with spare money anyway.”
After muttering to himself for a while, Mars left.
Lize looked down at the basket.
Then she slowly raised her eyes.
Her gaze met Bryce’s.
“Kim Toki probably won't like this.”
“Exactly.”
Their rabbit didn't eat grass.
What an idiot.
“Oh, right.”
Lize returned to her room.
Cassium, who had been sitting sulkily on the sofa, raised his head.
“I went to ask what happened, but I completely forgot. I'll ask again tomorrow.”
As she muttered to herself, she noticed him watching her.
Immediately, her face brightened.
Cassium couldn't take his eyes off her smile.
Not by choice.
“Golden Rabbit, are you feeling better now?”
Then he remembered how he'd been sulking all this time.
I wasn't angry.
There was no reason to be angry.
No one had done anything wrong.
He had simply been a rabbit.
When Lize fell, he could stop her from hitting the ground—
but he didn't have large human hands capable of catching her.
And there just happened to be another man standing nearby.
A tall, handsome man at that.
That was all.
So what reason did he have to be angry?
“Still upset?”
“Ppii.”
Lize reached out toward him.
No matter how many times it happened, he could never get used to her touch.
She didn't know who he really was.
Yet she treated him with such warmth and affection.
Whenever she petted him, Cassium sometimes felt guilty.
As though he were deceiving her.
But right now...
This time, he surrendered willingly.
Lize gathered him into her arms.
Then she flopped backward onto the bed, holding him close.
“Golden Rabbit.”
She called him lovingly.
And suddenly—
another memory surfaced.
“Cassium.”
A cold voice.
A stern face.
Lize glaring at him with her lips pressed into a tight line.
She had never looked at the rabbit that way.
If she knew who I really was... she'd hate me.
Lize hugged him tighter.
Feeling her warmth, he slowly blinked.
When he briefly returned to his original form and then became a rabbit again, he'd spent a long time wondering what he should do next.
Truthfully, there had been no reason to come back here.
Once his body fully recovered, he would likely be able to return to his human form permanently.
His wounds were healing.
That day wasn't far off.
He could have stayed away from Lize and managed just fine.
Most of his injuries had healed.
He could move freely.
And since he knew every corner of the Valteir estate, finding food was no problem.
But...
Golden Rabbit, thank you.
He wanted to see her again.
That smile she showed him.
That expression she reserved only for the rabbit.
And so...
The reason he returned to her side—
was pure selfishness.
He simply wanted to see that smile again.
