13: Meow, hehe.
The next ten days.
The first thing Ciel and Amelia heard as soon as they leave their room is the sound of people crying.
"Aide-nim, where are you going..? We can't live without your snacks!"
"Nooo don't go, aide-nim! We're sorry because we chased you out of the kitchen before, just because we foolishly don't know your skills, so don't leave us..!"
The royal cooks.
"We won't be getting to pet Amelia-nim anymore, no.."
"Our source of happiness while working will be gone, hiks."
"I don't want to say goodbye to my goddess yet."
The maids.
"There won't be a cat that will bring us delicious cookies when it comes to visit the garden anymore."
And even the gardeners.
The news that the two will leave spreads in a strange way. Ciel then glared at Amelia with a 'this must be your doing,' look. She tried to delay their leave again.
Amelia acts as if she didn't understand what the meaning behind his gaze and meowed cutely.
"Sigh, then I shall give everyone a farewell gift."
Only after then the palace staffs' faces cheer up.
***
"(Lunch~ It is lunchtime, nya!)"
She enters the palace kitchen happily and soon saw Ciel that have already collapsed on the floor.
"(Meow?! Deja vu, oh friend, are you still alive?)"
She poked his body only to get a quiet hums. She know that he bake a lot of pastries just by looking at the kitchen's condition.
"(Just how much people have you feed, nya? I'm worried if we go to a journey with you're like this. So how about we leave tomo-)"
"Don't even dream about it."
Amelia grinned as she watch the other struggling to get up.
"I will have a short nap and wake up in the evening. We will leave after then so please don't disturb my sleep. And there's your lunch on that table."
Amelia quickly went to the pointed table and was delighted. Then she saw another pastry beside her meal.
"Please deliver that to Alberu after your lunch."
"(You baked for the royals too? And why didn't anyone comes to bring it to him?)"
"They don't go to his palace, they said."
And then he left.
***
Amelia walked to the Roan Kingdom's crown prince chamber with careful steps. Once she arrived, she meowed for a minute and then went in by herself as there's no sign of someone inside.
She sat on a table and take a peek of what kind of pastry Ciel bake for that prince.
"(Uwoo, it's cookies!)"
There's no harm if she tastes just few of them right, hehehe.
Swooosh.
She finally realizes the opened window as the wind brushed her fur gracefully.
Flap. Flap.
A weird looking bird flew inside the room through the window and immediately bow before her.
"(My lord.)"
It looks like a raven, but it had some scales on its wings and was way too big to be called as a crow.
Amelia stares at the beast with a piercing gaze and quietly put a cookie inside her mouth.
Crunch.
The monsters of the Dark Forest act like they don't have a ruler without her present so it was funny to watch one did not even dare to lift his head in front of her.
She asked the beast.
"(Did humans invade the Dark Forest again?)"
The beast quickly nods and proceed to tell her the details.
"(We send out the Honta army but they were too weak. The humans successfully explored to the black swamp again and...)"
Crunch. Crunch.
The beast stutters as he speak.
"(We- we believe the humans this time aren't the same as those who came before. Um, probably.)"
Crunch.
Amelia thought for a while and then asked how many are them.
"(The group has two men, a woman, two kittens and...a dragon. A-a young dragon.)"
Amelia was puzzled when she heard of the group members.
"(Is one of the men is a redhead?)"
"(Ah, ah yes, yes! My lord, do you know them?)"
The beast quickly realized his rudeness and covered his mouth with his wings. Fortunately, Amelia was deep in thought that she paid no mind to his tone just now.
'Those cuties entered the Dark Forest? That's way too dangerous- sigh..'
She shakes her head.
"(I know them, so it's fine. That's all you must say, right? Go back quickly.)"
Amelia shooed him away but the beast body suddenly trembled.
"(L-last thing, my lord- um..)"
"(? What is it?)"
He hesitated to speakcas if he has gold in his beak.
"(They...bombed the black swamp.)"
"(...??!)"
Amelia's shocked face was so terrifying that the beast do not dare to look at her face. He speak with great difficulty.
"(It. Disappeared. Completely.)"
The beast is way bigger than Amelia, but he felt so small thanks to her sharp gaze. The gaze crushed him completely, as if he will be her dinner tonight.
Amelia watches as the beast flew away until she can't see him anymore. The poor bird's wings must feel so weak but he is grateful enough that he can went back to the Dark Forest with his soul and body still remain together.
".....uh, mnya?"
She finally realized that she ate all of the cookies that was supposed to be the crown prince snacks.
"(Oh no! Oh...well, if I hide the evidence, both young Alberu and Ciel won't know about this.)"
She turned around to leave the room when she saw a really pretty figure of a man beside her. The blonde hair reminds her of Zed and his eyes, are as pretty as the sky.
The sun of the Roan Kingdom smiles at the cat with various meanings behind it.
Amelia falls for his beauty and meowed innocently.
"Mnya?"