The Northern Grand Duke’s Hamster

Danger would arrive in 15 days. Until then, I decided to quietly serve my probation while preventing the spread of the ‘Frost Brand.’

To be honest, calling it probation sounded more dramatic than it was. Aside from knight training, everything was nearly the same as usual. Since I was stuck to Kyle the entire time I lived as a human, in some ways, it was actually better.

“So, why do you look so serious?”

“Probably because I’m anxious about how little time is left.”

I mumbled my reply while leaning against him.

Sitting on the long sofa, I rested my head on his shoulder, lost in thought, then dozed off for a moment, only to wake up and think again. Sleeping while lying down made my shoulders ache from tossing and turning, so this was the only option.

“Time left?”

“Yes. I had a dream that Your Highness might be in danger in about ten days.”

[ Kyle Jane Meinhardt. Approximately ten days remain until the estimated time of death. ]

The fifteen days I had gained in advance were disappearing quickly. Kyle’s life was still threatened by numerous factors, and the safety of the North had yet to be secured.

“Can’t you figure out the cause?”

“No. It would be great if I could see that too, but unfortunately, I can’t.”

“If you don’t know the cause, how do you know I’m going to die?”

Kyle, who had been reviewing documents, turned his head slightly toward me.

“Did you actually see me dying?”

“…No, not that either.”

“So, you don’t know my cause of death or how I die, just that I die?”

I flinched and mulled over his words.

But contrary to my worries, he didn’t doubt what I was saying. He simply frowned slightly, as if intrigued, deep in thought.

“That seems less like a prophetic dream… and more like a kind of notification.”

Damn, he’s really sharp.

Even though I was carefully avoiding saying that this world was inside and that the system was what informed me of the future, he still managed to grasp the essence of it.

At this rate, is he going to find out this place is just a novel’s setting?

“What could put Your Highness in danger ten days from now?”

I quickly changed the subject, and Kyle seriously considered the question.

“Hmm… I have no plans to leave the territory for now. That would mean something is going to invade this place. If there’s anything that could threaten both the territory and me… mutated beasts, perhaps?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe Nox himself will show up in a rage.”

“That would be unpleasant.”

“I think so too.”

I mean, would he really come all the way here himself? I shrugged and pointed at the document Kyle had been meticulously reviewing.

“By the way, what’s this?”

“It’s a report from informants outside the territory. It seems like small issues are cropping up all over Meinhardt.”

“Issues?”

I leaned in slightly to read the text, and Kyle tilted the document toward me so I could see it more clearly.

“Let’s see… so basically…”

People were disappearing.

If I had to sum up the lengthy report in one sentence, that was it.

The poor, the subjects of tyrannical lords, or those caught in power struggles between noble factions—people who were always the ones suffering—were steadily vanishing. Beggars, war refugees, orphans, and wandering souls who had lost their families were disappearing without a trace.

To those who had always seen them as a nuisance, this might have seemed like good news. But in reality, it wasn’t. It meant that they had been deliberately ‘cut out’ from the world.

“People don’t just sink into the ground or vanish into thin air. Are they just disappearing all of a sudden?”

“You could call it mass disappearances. According to the reports I’ve received, the scale is quite significant. Some slums were found completely empty, with only traces of their existence remaining. I was too occupied with handling territorial affairs, so all I could do was hear about it until now…”

That certainly was suspicious.

I stroked my chin, leaning in a bit more. Kyle smoothly flipped to the next page, using the shoulder I wasn’t leaning on.

These disappearances had been occurring throughout Meinhardt for about three months—more precisely, since Lorenz officially ascended the throne.

Of course, if people had merely gone missing, it wouldn’t have warranted an official report.

Several local lords, as well as those who had lost family or comrades, petitioned the imperial court for an investigation. However, no real progress was made.

The imperial envoys would conduct a cursory survey and then simply conclude that the people had either left for unknown reasons or disappeared without a trace.

With no means of survival left, many of these people followed the envoys to the capital. However, most of them never returned.

The imperial court kept repeating the same line—that they had “helped them settle in new places, but they disappeared.”

“Some of the survivors and escapees are seeking asylum in the North.”

Kyle spoke seriously.

“I don’t know why this is happening, but it’s likely connected to Lorenz. Those who chose to flee to Blake’s territory must have realized that much, even if only vaguely.”

With Belial’s fate uncertain and neutral nobles near the capital being purged one by one, Kyle was likely the only person they could trust. After all, when Lorenz took the throne, he had declared that Kyle would be treated with the respect due to a royal.

“We should be able to hold out until winter arrives. But the North isn’t exactly in great shape either, so we’ll need to come up with countermeasures.”

I thought dealing with those outlaw mages would be enough, but I guess not.

Every time I watched Kyle handle his duties as a lord, I was reminded of how burdensome and full of headaches his position was.

“You’re working really hard.”

At my words of sympathy, Kyle tilted his head slightly. His dark eyelashes, softly draped over his eyes, fluttered gently.

“I’m simply doing what must be done for this land.”

“Exactly. You don’t think of it as a hassle, or frustrating, or even a headache…”

I yawned widely as I leaned against his shoulder. So comfortable. So warm.

“I think it’s amazing that you consider it a given—and even take pride in it.”

“…….”

“I also…”

I wanted to say that I wished his small, cold world would remain unbroken.

That this land would become his warmest, gentlest sanctuary—a safe haven for someone who had struggled through a lifetime of misfortune and loneliness in this ‘setting.’

If even a barren land could bloom in spring, if a future came where no one trampled over this place with muddy boots, then maybe I, too, could return to my original world in peace.

“I’m just… gonna sleep a little.”

Despite sleeping so much as a hamster, I was still drowsy. The medicine that suppressed the Frostbrand’s spread had some sedative effects, and I’d been dozing off more than usual.

“You’ll end up turning back into a beast again like this…”

“Yeah, it’s fine.”

“What about when you finish reading the documents?”

“I’ll have to train. Can’t let my body get stiff.”

“Mmm…”

By then, I was barely conscious, answering in a sleepy mumble.

Kyle chuckled softly, his voice resonating deep within me.

“I don’t like being alone.”

“Then… I’ll go with you.”

“…….”

Did I nod?

I don’t know. I just drifted off to sleep.

***

“Wow. So this is the infamous beast companion?”

“It’s been a while since he brought it here, but it hasn’t grown at all…”

“The mage said its core isn’t gathering mana.”

“Then it’ll stay in its juvenile form forever? Releasing it into the wild would be difficult, then.”

“Release it? His Highness dotes on it; where would he send it? Besides, even if it went out like this, it wouldn’t be able to mingle with others of its kind. It’d just freeze to death.”

Voices murmured above me, their sound spreading like a distant hum. I could also feel their sharp gazes prickling my skin.

‘The hell?’

I was sure I’d fallen asleep in Kyle’s study, leaning against his shoulder. It must’ve been just before the ‘Recall’ activated, meaning I turned back into a hamster while still asleep…

“Can I touch it?”

At the sound of James’ voice, I squinted my eyes open. My eyelids were puffy from sleeping too deeply. Through my narrowed vision, I could see the knights gazing down at me.

…Sorry, but from this low angle, you guys look kinda ugly.

Though, to be fair, comparing anyone to Kyle was a bit cruel.

As I lay there groggily, someone’s hand approached.

It was a rough, calloused hand, covered in scars from wielding a sword for years. Judging by how hesitantly it moved, its owner had probably never handled a beast so carefully before.

Not that I had, either. Watching a huge man hesitate before touching me was just—

Squeak! (Get lost!)

I lunged forward and bit the approaching finger.

Of course, with my tiny, weak incisors, I couldn’t even leave a scratch on that thick skin. But just the act of being bitten startled James enough to yank his hand back in alarm.

“I-It bit me…!”

Damn right, I did.

Keep your hands to yourself. Look with your eyes, not your fingers.

“It bit you? But it’s such a well-behaved little thing.”

Kyle, who had been furiously swinging his sword in the distance, approached. Taking a towel from another knight, he wiped away his sweat before extending his hand toward me, his lips forming a slight pout.

“Cashew Nut, come here.”

I had been lounging on a small cushion, but the moment I sensed the other knights itching to touch me, I quickly moved.

Curling up tightly against Kyle’s chest, I nestled my face into him, making sure no one else could reach me. Kyle responded by gently stroking my head with his index finger.

“Good boy.”

Squeak. (Keep those other guys away from me.)

“Looks like he’s wary of strangers.”

“…….”

No, I’m just annoyed.

Sure, I had grown used to my life as a rodent and had made some compromises with my past human dignity, but did I really have to be passed around like some pet hamster?

For the sake of my peaceful future, you’d better be a possessive owner. Don’t let anyone else touch me.

“I see. I like you too.”

Kyle chuckled warmly and nuzzled his cheek against my forehead.

Not only the knights but even I was left utterly dumbfounded.

Wait, wait, hold on!

That kind of affectionate expression is totally unfair!