“We thoroughly searched the surroundings, but could not find traces of other magical beasts.”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes. I am certain.”

Dante furrowed his brows at the knight’s report.

It was fortunate that there were no traces of other magical beasts, but he couldn’t completely let his guard down.

The magical beast they encountered this time had suddenly appeared without any traces until just ten days ago.

“What is the state of the ice field?”

“About that… There were more water droplets formed compared to ten days ago.”

Oh no. This seems quite serious.

“I understand. You may leave. For the time being, form a team to continuously monitor the northern forest and the vicinity of the ice field. Report anything suspicious, no matter what it is.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

The knight who answered spiritedly left the room.

Barhan, who had been standing at the back, approached with a grave expression.

“It doesn’t seem like a matter we can easily overlook.”

“Indeed. Things are going to get bothersome.”

Dante sighed and tried to lean back in his chair, but sat up straight again.

The wound on his back was bothering him.

Under normal circumstances, he would have just leaned back regardless of the wound, but…

〈…I want to do other things now. That, in a healthier physical condition, those kinds of… those things.〉

Now, he had a reason to recover quickly.

“Your Grace?”

“Ahem. Yes. What is it?”

Coming to his senses at Barhan’s call, Dante found it absurd.

To think of something irrelevant in the midst of discussing a serious matter.

But what could he do?

His mind was filled with Serpina Richter all day long.

He tried hard to gather his thoughts and read through the magical beast autopsy report the knight had compiled.

“A black panther.”

The identity of the magical beast that had attacked him and Serpina Richter was a black panther.

“It seems a black panther residing in the northern mountain range absorbed magical energy while coming down to search for prey.”

Originally, the habitat of wild animals like black panthers was in the northern mountain range, much further north than the northern mountains.

However, they occasionally come down in search of food, sometimes reaching the northern forest, and this was one such case.

In a word, it was just bad luck.

“How is the condition of the panther cub?”

“Ah. You mean the one Her Ladyship calls a cat. It shows symptoms of dehydration and malnutrition, but its life is not in danger. But…”

Barhan hesitated and asked, trailing off.

“You really intend to raise that ferocious beast?”

“Yes.”

The resolute answer showed not a hint of hesitation.

Hmm. Well, sure.

This is the Richter Mansion, after all. The Richter Mansion that grows herbs and potatoes in the garden.

The Richter Mansion where the Monster Duke is the master.

Heck, they could even raise a panther.

“Yes, then I shall keep that in mind.”

After Serpina Richter’s appearance, Barhan learned to quickly acquiesce.

Now, there was only one matter left.

“And this.”

Dante’s face turned cold upon seeing what Barhan handed over.

“…Another one arrived?”

“Yes. The imperial palace sent it this time as well.”

In ten days, this was already the third letter sent from the imperial palace.

The contents were probably similar again.

Fingers that couldn’t hide the irritation roughly tore open the letter to confirm.

“As expected, it doesn’t deviate from the predictions.”

The contents of this letter were also similar to the previous letters.

Telling him to have an heir as soon as possible.

It was a nagging he heard to the point of being sick of it since getting married, but recently, it had become strangely excessive.

Judging by the Emperor’s obsession, one would think he and Serpina Richter had been married for several years.

In fact, they were newlyweds who hadn’t even completed a year yet.

…Moreover, the two of them hadn’t even properly spent their first night together yet.

Based on the atmosphere, it seemed like a problem that would be resolved soon.

“Ahem.”

Dante, who fake coughed for no reason, glanced down at the bandage wrapped around his hand.

…When will the wound heal?

This was the first time he had ever wished for a quick recovery this desperately.

“Is this really a black panther?”

“Yes. That’s what they say.”

“Hmm. No matter how I look at it, it seems like a cat.”

“I think so too. Could it actually be a cat pretending to be a black panther?”

Siena and I had a serious discussion about the identity of the beast sleeping with its belly bulging out.

According to Barhan, this is a black panther, but…

How is this a black panther?

Shouldn’t a black panther look more like a ferocious beast?

This one, no matter how nicely you put it, was the neighborhood boss cat.

Purr.

Look, look, even its purring is just like a cat’s.

“It is a black panther. Its paws are extremely thick. It also has panther patterns on its face.”

Mari, who was watching the serious discussion, interjected and walked past.

…Now that you mention it, that’s true.

“The paw pads are indeed very thick.”

“The patterns on its face are quite distinct too.”

“If you look closely, its ears and mouth seem a bit different from a cat’s!”

“…It’s a black panther. My goodness. To think the cat I picked up is a black panther.”

I briefly considered naming it ‘Cat’ since things turned out this way, but soon shook my head.

That’s like a dog person naming their pet ‘Dog’.

“What will you name it?”

“Well… How about simply ‘Choco’?”

“Wow, that’s really plain!”

I felt a twinge of dissatisfaction at the bright response. I had actually put quite some thought into the name.

“Living plainly is actually the most difficult thing to do.”

I stroked the sleeping cat, no, black panther, gently while adding a plausible reason.

“Choco. You just need to live plainly and ordinarily.”

I’ll help you live like that. You just grow up healthy and happy.

Somehow, I felt like the words I was conveying in my heart weren’t just for Choco.

I rolled my eyes and gently rested my face on Choco’s sleeping back, whispering.

“…I’ll make sure you don’t grow up like me.”

A life where you adapt to hell, not even realizing it’s hell.

A life where you’re suddenly left alone in the world, with nothing to rely on, and every day feels like a survival game.

I will never let you live such a life.

As if understanding my words, the sleeping Choco flicked its ears.

Truly.

“So adorable. Right?”

“Yes. Absolutely the best.”

“Cats, no. Black panthers are the best.”

The topic of this discussion was ‘Why is Choco so helplessly cute?’

The discussion, which even Mari participated in, continued for quite a while.

Baby panther Choco quickly became the popular star of the Richter Mansion.

“Eek!”

“So cute.”

With its black and fluffy fur, dignified yet insignificant steps.

Its sparkling eyes and whimpering cries.

Indeed, it had sufficient qualities as a popular star.

I, too, had fallen head over heels for Choco.

When I saw it waddling with its protruding belly, I couldn’t resist the urge to run over, bury my nose, and smell it.

Mmm. Sniff. Ah, our baby smells good too.

Meow!

Each time, Choco would struggle in fright, but skillfully refrained from extending its claws at me.

So smart, wise, angelic, kind, cute, and awesome.

I grinned from ear to ear and played with Choco for a long time using toys.

Choco, who had been jumping around vigorously while playing, seemed exhausted and fell asleep on my lap.

“So cute…”

I carefully reached out to the bookshelf so as not to wake the sleeping angel.

Let’s see. I think it was this book…

‘You Can Do It Too! Herb Expert!’

I slightly lifted the book cover covering the book.

Then, the book’s real title was briefly revealed.

‘The Secret Rendezvous of the Princess and the Demon King.’

Yup. This is the right one.

After confirming it was the book I was looking for, I meticulously covered it with the book cover again.

Only after perfectly disguising it as an herb book did I find the part I had left off last time and began reading.

“Hmm… Ahem. Huh?”

Wow. The rendezvous between the princess and the demon king is awesome.

Oh my. Oh? My goodness. Wow.

I seriously immersed myself in reading the book. I first discovered this book in the small library at the ducal residence.

The library, which could also be used by the servants, was filled with books from various fields.

What I was looking for among them were romance novels.

Since it was my first time in a relationship, I wanted to refer to novels for reference.

I thought about seeking advice from those around me, but felt it would be a bit embarrassing, so I decided to rely on the power of books.

While pondering for a long time on what to read, this novel suddenly caught my eye.

‘The Princess and the Demon King Series’

For reference, the title of the first volume I found in the library was quite ordinary.

‘The Princess and the Knight.’

So I started reading it, thinking it was an ordinary romance novel about a princess trapped in a tower and a knight who goes to save her.

However, it turned out the real protagonist was not the knight.

The Demon King.

It was the Demon King!

In the first volume, the princess is kidnapped and imprisoned in the Demon King’s castle, but due to the overly robust traps set by the Demon King, it takes too long for the knight to come and rescue the princess.

As a result, the princess adapts to the Demon King’s castle faster than the knight comes to save her.

As the princess adapts to that place, the Demon King also gradually becomes immersed in the sunshine-like bright princess.

Eventually, that’s how the forbidden love between the princess and the Demon King begins…!

〈Wow. There are novels like this?〉

As I read the thrilling story that exceeded my expectations, I became completely engrossed in reading the novel, forgetting about studying romance.

I quickly finished reading all five volumes of the novel, and this was the last remaining side story.

‘The Secret Rendezvous of the Princess and the Demon King’