Chapter 261

The reunion between Cat and Cashimilly wasn’t as dramatic as I had imagined.

It turned out that Cat had already suspected her grandmother was a werewolf to some extent.

After all, if you enter your grandmother's room and find no one but a wolf, that’s the most logical conclusion to reach. Especially when her grandmother had disappeared, leaving behind only her clothes—it was practically a hint for Cat to suspect something.

When I asked why she hadn’t said anything and had explained things to Ethan and me as if she hadn’t thought of it, her response was simple:

“…If Grandma didn’t tell me, I figured she had a reason. So, I just pretended like I hadn’t thought about her being a werewolf… I-I’m sorry for tricking you, big sister… and handsome big brother…”

“…”

I couldn’t exactly blame a child for trying to avoid confronting the truth if she thought her grandmother was hiding something on purpose. So, I let it slide.

In the end, everything worked out, and if you think about it, the misunderstanding had started because of my mistake, which had forced Cashimilly to transform into a wolf in the first place.

Both Cashimilly and Cat had been trying to be considerate of each other. I had briefly imagined a rebellious granddaughter and a troubled werewolf grandmother, but thankfully, it didn’t come to that.

And so, after their reunion, the next day, Ethan and I found ourselves heading back to Cashimilly’s mountain shop, The Wolf’s Scent, early in the morning.

It wasn’t exactly a date. Cashimilly had mentioned yesterday that she wanted to give us a token of appreciation, and I also learned that her shop sold something I needed.

-Creek.

“Welcome~ Miss Lilith, Mister Ethan.”

“…Hello, Miss Cashimilly.”

“You look better than you did yesterday.”

Indeed, as Ethan observed, she seemed in better spirits today. Most likely, it was because she no longer had to hide anything from Cat.

While she hadn’t completely returned to her human form—there were still traces of her werewolf self, like the ears on her head and the tail behind her—the gray fur on her face and hands had mostly faded.

“You’re not fully back to your human form yet?”

“I returned to my human form this morning, but now that I don’t need to hide it from Cat, I reverted a little. Most of my customers prefer me this way, anyway.”

“…I see.”

I decided to let that comment go without further thought. It wasn’t something I wanted to delve into.

“Oh! It’s big sister and the handsome big brother!”

“…Cat?”

“…”

Suddenly, Cat, who had been sitting at a table, spotted us and ran straight into Ethan’s arms without hesitation. Watching her shamelessly cling to him, I felt a bit odd. She’s only nine, and already so… forward?

“So, you brought Cat to the shop with you?” Ethan asked.

“I don’t need to hide the fact that I’m a werewolf from her anymore, so there’s no need to leave her home alone. I’d always felt guilty about making her stay by herself, and now I regret not telling her the truth sooner.”

“So this shop wasn’t just a hideout—you actually run it regularly?”

“Yes. If it were just me, I wouldn’t need to run a shop to survive, but with two mouths to feed, I needed an income.”

“But do customers really come all the way to a shop out in the mountains?”

“I have more regulars than you might think. As I mentioned earlier, many of them prefer me in this form, so after the full moon, it gets quite busy.”

Again, I decided not to dwell on that. This subject was definitely outside my comfort zone.

…And why hasn’t that kid let go of Ethan yet?

“Cat, come here. Stop bothering our guests.”

“Yes, Grandma~!”

“…”

Before I could say anything, Cat obediently let go of Ethan and walked back to Cashimilly. Maybe she had just been craving attention. It made sense—she’d lost her parents young and lived with her grandmother for three years, so she must have been starved for affection.

Suddenly, I felt embarrassed for thinking I had been jealous of a child. It wasn’t jealousy, but still… it was awkward.

To distract myself, I glanced around the shop. Shelves lined with potion bottles and colorful liquids caught my eye.

I’d heard on the way down the mountain yesterday that Cashimilly’s shop specialized in perfumes, and now I could see it for myself.

‘With a name like The Wolf’s Scent, I thought it was something shady.’

But it turned out that she used her keen wolf senses to create and sell custom perfumes. In modern terms, she was like a perfumer. Given the shop’s location, it probably catered to a niche clientele. Still, in a medieval fantasy world like this one, perfume was considered a luxury. She could likely support herself just by selling ten bottles a month.

Now that she no longer needed to hide her werewolf nature, her business might even grow.

Normally, I wouldn’t have had any reason to visit such a specialty shop, but this time was different.

Tomorrow, we were leaving for the Witch’s Forest, and the only thing I hadn’t yet secured was bug repellent perfume. It was something I absolutely needed to bring with me, and Cashimilly’s shop seemed the perfect place to find it.

Bug repellent perfume was hard to find, even in large shops and potion stores, so this was a lucky break.

“Here you go, Miss Lilith.”

“Yes?”

“This is a gift from Cat and me. No matter how it happened, thanks to your help, I was able to finally be honest with Cat.”

“Oh, thank you…”

I thought about declining the gift, but coming back to the shop only to refuse a present felt a bit transparent. Besides, it seemed rude to reject a gift from someone older, especially when they were giving it in good faith.

“It’s a special tea blend. You should drink it when you’re alone with your lover.”

“…W-we’re not lovers or anything like that…”

“But you call each other by pet names. Doesn’t that make you lovers? Or are you engaged?”

“N-no, we’re definitely not engaged…”

“I never said your ‘handsome young man’ was your lover, but you brought him up immediately, didn’t you? Seems like you have feelings for him.”

“…”

“Take it. It’ll help bring you two closer together.”

“…Thank you.”

To be fair, our relationship didn’t need much “improving.” If anything, I worried that getting any closer might be a bit too much. I wasn’t sure I could handle anything beyond what we already had.

Still, I accepted the gift. Whether or not I’d actually drink the tea with Ethan was another matter entirely.

“What’s so special about this tea?”

“Well… it helps lovers be a little more honest with each other.”

“…”

“And just so you know, it doesn’t work well with people you don’t have feelings for, so I wouldn’t recommend using it for… unfaithful purposes.”@@novelbin@@

“…I’m not unfaithful!”

“I didn’t think you were, Miss Lilith.”

“…”

I glanced over at Ethan to see if he had overheard the conversation. Sure enough, he was looking at me, his face slightly flushed as our eyes met.

I hadn’t meant to imply that I was completely devoted to Ethan or anything. He was just the exception to the rule—I wasn’t interested in dating anyone else, so I reacted strongly to the idea of cheating.

Not that explaining all that to Ethan would have made any difference. It was probably better to let him misunderstand for now.

…Anyway, I should wrap things up quickly and leave. We didn’t come here to accept gifts and chat. I had a specific purpose.

“…By any chance, do you sell bug repellent perfume?”

“Of course! It’s a perfume shop, after all. How many would you like, Miss Lilith?”

“Two… no, three bottles, if you have them.”

With the bug repellent perfume, the final item we needed for our journey to the Witch’s Forest, I quickly made my way out of the shop.

‘Make sure to drink the tea alone with your lover.’

…Holding the gift from Cashimilly, I couldn’t help but feel the weight of her meaningful words.