11 PM at night. The time when most people would have already fallen asleep.

“Oh my, my bones are aching.”

I returned to my room on the 3rd floor of the research building, patting my stiff shoulders and waist.

Today marks the 2nd week since I got the job as a monster caretaker.

For 2 weeks, I’ve been taking the puppies on 4 walks a day as a basic routine, along with separate training and playtime, and now I can barely walk properly.

But I still can’t go to bed yet.

Instead of lying down on the bed, I sat at the desk and took out my sewing kit. To play excitedly with our puppies again tomorrow, I need to make a large number of sturdy toys in advance.

I picked up a few thick pieces of cloth and laughed like a mad scientist.

“Hehehe… I’ll put my all into raising you to be the best puppies. My cutie tiny awesome puppies…”

I held a small piece of chalk in my hand and drew patterns on the cloth with all my heart. Then I suddenly realized.

Am I getting my priorities wrong right now?

For the past 2 weeks, I had completely forgotten about Aspeiran.

“Urgh.”

I let out a groan as if being choked and hit my forehead with my tightly clenched fist. My skull rang with the intense pain.

Surprised by their guardian’s sudden self-harm, our Sammemmer―I decided to call Cutie, Tiny, and Awesome collectively like this―stopped playing and rushed over to me.

My good and cute babies. Look at them worrying about their mother.

I gently patted each of the whimpering children. Reassured, the Sammemmer started playing again, running across the snowy field.

Watching them, a warm smile naturally formed on my face.

‘Until just a week ago, they were still lurking in the corner of the playground.’

In fact, for the first two days after leaving the cage they were confined in, they couldn’t even approach me easily. Except for Awesome, whom I had met first in the corridor.

But now they’re so excited, rolling in the snow, chewing on toys, and acting cute to be petted.

I was so happy about that, I poured all my heart and mind into the Sammemmer…

And ended up pushing Aspeiran to the back of my memory.

‘This won’t do.’

I clenched my fist. I need to get my act together and gain Aspeiran’s trust and build a friendship as soon as possible to rise to the position of his closest aide.

Until now, I had been moving with just vague thoughts like:

1. Take good care of the moonlight wolf dogs.

2. Aspeiran is pleased.

3. Gain Aspeiran’s favor and become his closest aide.

4. Use the authority of the closest aide to promote Aspeiran’s marriage.

5. Aspeiran has a happy wedding and I’m freed from my terminally ill life!

But now it’s different. I’ll approach with a more meticulous plan.

I rummaged through the supply box in the corner of the pergola and took out a notebook and a pen.

They were brand new and shiny, brought in case I needed them when decorating the pergola, but I had never taken them out until now.

I opened the notebook and wrote on the first page, ‘Project to Marry My Favorite Character – Survive, Possessed Person’.

“Hmm―.”

Good, good. Now I feel like I’m doing something.

With a sense of satisfaction, I wrote ‘Goal 1. Become the Closest Aide’ on the next page. I even underlined it twice. Now it’s time to make specific plans.

‘Let’s see. First, to become the closest aide, I need to see his face often.’

Originally, the more you see someone, the more affection builds up and your heart leans towards them.

But for the past 2 weeks, I hadn’t met Aspeiran even once.

If this situation continues, my presence will gradually fade in Aspeiran’s mind and I’ll end up remaining as just ‘Servant 1’.

That can’t happen. I need to stick to As like a cicada on an old tree, following the example of the three closest aides.

I drew myself tying As down in the corner of the notebook while pondering deeply.

‘There are many excuses to meet Aspeiran regularly. I’m a servant who received As’s special command after all. But to persuade As, I need to see his face first…’

How do you meet the monarch of a country?

Should I submit a request for an audience? Then who should I submit that audience request to?

I scratched my forehead with the tip of the pen.

“This is difficult…”

“What is?”

At that moment, a soft baritone voice interrupted my worries. I shrugged my shoulders and quickly lifted my head.

“!”

A welcome face was standing outside the fence.

It was Canis, one of Aspeiran’s three closest aides, known as ‘Force’.

“Ah, Canis…”

Just as I was about to greet Canis whom I hadn’t seen in a long time, I quickly glanced down at the drawing I had been scribbling.

Thanks to my crazy genius, As and I were drawn so realistically that even a passing dog could easily recognize who we were.

If someone saw this drawing and it reached Aspeiran’s ears, I would be accused of harboring impure thoughts towards the lord and…

I’d be exiled immediately!

I shoved the notebook under a cushion lying around in the pergola at a speed faster than light.

Then, with a nonchalant expression as if nothing had happened, I went outside the fence to greet the guest.

“Sir Canis! It’s been a while. What brings you here?”

“Yes, it’s been a long time, Lady Shuria. I was passing by and dropped in for a moment. I was curious if you were doing well.”

“I’m always doing well. The food in Roakin is delicious and beauti―achoo!”

A sneeze burst out in the middle of speaking well. Canis asked with wide eyes.

“Have you caught a cold?”

“No, I’m just a bit cold, achoo! I’m very sensitive to cold, achoo achoo achoo!”

Three loud consecutive sneezes. It seems I suddenly came out to a cold place after being in the temperature-controlled pergola until just now.

Canis said in a voice full of concern.

“It seems Roakin’s cold climate doesn’t suit you, Lady Shuria.”

“It’s okay. Humans are adaptable creatures, right? I’ll get used to it soon. Achoo!”

Although I confidently assured him, the sneeze added at the end reduced the persuasiveness, perhaps that’s why Canis’s stern face didn’t soften.

“But you look like you’re struggling a lot right now, how about… Ah, shall I give you this? It will help.”

Canis fumbled around his nape and then unfastened a necklace to hand over. It was a pretty necklace with a bumpy red gemstone attached to the end of a leather cord.

I carefully received the necklace and examined it from various angles while admiring.

“Wow, it’s beautiful. The gemstone is unique.”

“It’s a necklace with temperature control magic. It’s something the lord gave me a long time ago when he saw that I wasn’t adapting well to Roakin’s climate…”

…The lord gave it? Then it’s a bestowed item?

This person, there are things you can gift and things you can’t!

I quickly held the necklace out to Canis again.

“Thank you for your concern, Sir Canis. But I can’t accept something the lord bestowed.”

However, Canis didn’t take the necklace back. He said firmly.

“I no longer need it. So it’s time for it to go to its next owner. The lord would also prefer the necklace to continue helping someone.”

“But.”

“It’s really alright, don’t worry. Here, let me put it on for you. Excuse me for a moment…”

Saying so, Canis bent down and matched his gaze with mine. My mouth, which was about to utter words of refusal again, clamped shut at those kind eyes.

Taking advantage of my stiff posture, Canis carefully put the necklace on me. His large hands were delicate yet courteous as he adjusted the cord length to ensure it wasn’t uncomfortable.

Finally, having finished what he set out to do, Canis smiled contentedly. A clear and pure smile without a speck of impurity.

I thought blankly.

‘He’s really handsome…’

And kind to boot. There’s a reason he was quite popular among readers despite having less screen time than Aspeiran.

He was truly a typical ‘sunshine doggy knight captain character’.

Unaware of what I was thinking, our sunshine doggy… no, Canis massaged the back of his neck while explaining about the necklace.

“It works by charging magic power. If you fill the necklace with magic power like this, the formula inputted here activates and maintains your body at the optimal temperature.”

As Canis infused magic power, a soft light gleamed from the gemstone. My body, which had been shivering from the cold, quickly warmed up.

“Ah! It’s become perfectly warm.”

“I was worried since the magic formula hadn’t been activated for a long time, but I’m glad it’s working properly. When the magic power runs out, I’ll recharge it for you. So please come to me anytime.”

I stopped examining the necklace and looked up at Canis.

He said in a gentle voice.

“I sincerely hope that Lady Shuria’s path ahead is filled with happy and joyful events. Enough to shake off all sad and difficult memories.”

Canis’s face was slightly flushed after finishing his words. He ruffled his own bangs and gave a hearty laugh.

“Actually, these were words I wanted to say when you first became a member of this Beloi Castle, but it’s too late now.”

Along with embarrassment, affection for me was overflowing from Canis as he said this.

If it had been someone else in my place, they might have misunderstood that he had fallen for them.

But I was a possessed person who had read the story of this world over and over again. I could quickly notice what was at the root of the goodwill he was showing.

What lay at the very bottom of those kind eyes was a sense of kinship.

narrated that Canis was actually from Elbas, not Elros.

In other words, to put it simply, Canis also had the experience of being sacrificed to Beltraum. Just like me.

I remember the concern Canis would briefly show whenever he saw me.

I didn’t know why he did that then, but now I could understand.

He must have been worried about how my heart, sacrificed by neighbors, would feel, whether I had been deeply hurt, ever since he heard my story.

Because he had gone through something similar himself. Because he knows how painfully betrayal by people pierces the heart.

That’s why he reaches out first like this, willingly sharing warmth.

He really was a good person.

“Thank you so much.”

So instead of feeling burdened, I decided to gratefully accept his kindness.

“I’ll cherish it dearly. And later, if I meet someone who needs this necklace more than I do, I’ll pass it on then. Just like you did, Sir Canis.”

“Yes. That would make me truly happy.”

We smiled at each other. Somehow, I felt like I had made a good friend with him.