The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella

Elodie, suddenly flustered, completely forgot that she was being carried and instinctively tried to sit up.

Losing her balance, she teetered precariously.

Unprepared for the sudden movement, Eisen lost his grip.

"Ah—!"

She was falling—falling from a height of two meters!

Bracing for the pain, she squeezed her eyes shut—

But before she hit the ground, rough, wrinkled hands caught her effortlessly and pulled her back into a firm embrace.

"You reckless brat. Be more careful."

"……"

Elodie blinked in a daze, securely nestled in his arms.

"You said you saw that nerve poison would paralyze me completely, didn't you?"

"Mm-hm…"

"Then that's enough."

…That’s enough?

That was it?

‘So he’s decided to just accept that I saw the future through some divine revelation.’

In truth, it was simply a memory from her past life.

But if this misunderstanding kept her out of trouble, that was fine with her.

Elodie sighed in relief and hesitantly rested her head against him.

He was massive and utterly unyielding.

And somehow, in that moment, she felt completely safe.

"Was Hamilton a really bad person?"

"Hm?"

"Not just the part about making you unable to feel anything. Did he seem like he wanted to hurt you more than that?"

"Me?"

Eisen stopped walking.

His expression made it clear that he thought she was talking nonsense.

"That bastard was a small fry. Even if I had been poisoned, he wouldn't have been the one to kill me."

Ah, just as she thought.

Hamilton hadn’t seemed like someone with a grand scheme to eliminate the Duke and rise to power.

More like a pathetic man blinded by revenge, acting impulsively.

‘So something else must have been responsible for the Duke’s death.’

…Was it really overwork?

Maybe she should start sabotaging his work so he wouldn’t wear himself to death.

She was seriously considering her options when—

"Stop calling me 'Your Grace'."

"Mm?"

"Call me Grandpa."

Elodie blinked.

Her thoughts screeched to a halt.

"Go on."

Eisen poked her on the nose, snapping her out of her daze.

"…Grandpa."

"No. Say it properly—Grandfather."

Thud.

Eisen knocked his fist lightly against her head.

It didn’t hurt, but the slight sting made her puff out her cheeks in protest.

"You told me to say it!"

Grumbling, she rubbed her head and mumbled,

"…Grandfather."

"Good. Now, who exactly are you worrying about?"

If she hadn’t known the future, she never would have worried about him.

"If someone dared to poison my food, I would at least admire their courage. They’d have to be prepared to swallow explosives themselves."

"…I don’t think Hamilton thought that far ahead."

Especially not against someone like this.

Eisen seemed like the type to claw his way out of hell and grab God by the throat if necessary.

"Come on, let’s go."

"Where to?"

"You offered to plan my meals, didn’t you?"

…That was just something she had said while pretending to play doctor.

Elodie panicked.

"Why don’t you ask a real physician instead?!"

"Who could possibly be better than a Ratson?"

"I’m still just a quack!"

"If you’re a quack, then the doctors in this estate are leeches."

"Th-that’s not…!"

The physicians of House Valkyrisen did nothing wrong!

She had just used knowledge from the future!

But there was no way she could explain that.

‘Didn’t he just say playing doctor was pointless?!’

Before she could argue, Eisen, suddenly much more invested in her medical expertise, dragged her along.

***

What was the one place in a mansion where a mouse absolutely should not appear?

And who among the staff would be the most sensitive to its presence?

The kitchen.

The cooks.

The kitchen assistants.

They were the ones who had mastered the art of killing mice in every possible way.

That was true in Bluewood Mansion.

That was true in the royal palace of Silvaria.

And now, she had been dragged into such a place.

Elodie trembled as if she had walked into a death trap.

Rows of gleaming knives lined the walls!

Cauldrons bubbled ominously over raging fires!

Flames roared high enough to lick the ceiling!

But worst of all…

The people here knew exactly how to wield every tool in this room to eliminate rodents.

"She looks terrified of us."

"What do we do? We already sent out all the beastfolk."

"Even the dogs and cats."

"…Mr. Catlix cried."

The chefs murmured amongst themselves.

Were they plotting how to get rid of her?

Elodie knew it was irrational.

But panic had overridden her ability to think.

She clung to Eisen’s sleeve like her life depended on it.

His gaze briefly flickered to the tiny fist clutching his shirt.

"Should we just leave?"

Before she could nod, he added nonchalantly,

"Or will you spend the rest of your life running away?"

"……"

…He knew?

‘So he brought me here on purpose.’

Of course.

He had just heard her talking about poison being put in food.

And usually, the people who did that sort of thing worked in the kitchen.

‘So this is his idea of education?’

Like throwing a baby eagle off a cliff to force it to fly?

Sera, by contrast, would have hugged her and told her she could keep her eyes closed until she felt safe.

They were opposites in every way.

But honestly…

This approach was very Duke Valkyrisen.

"If you want to leave, I’ll take you back to your room."

"I, I…"

The choice was hers.

Elodie hesitated.

Her ears twitched, picking up the whispers of the staff.

"Maybe she’s scared of the head chef?"

"Me?"

The bull beastfolk, Tauros, pointed at himself in disbelief.

"But I’m a vegetarian."

"Yeah, but you’re huge. You look terrifying."

"Should I cut off my horns?"

"…How would that help?"

"Just stand at the back."

The other staff quickly shoved him into a corner.

Then, with eerily forced smiles, they turned to Elodie.

They were clearly trying to make her feel at ease.

But the way they were smiling only made them look more unnerving.

"……"

They were having such a ridiculous conversation.

Elodie let out a small cough, realizing she had completely overreacted.

Fear had clouded her mind so much that she hadn’t even heard anything properly.

"I’ll… stay."

Eisen glanced down at her and smirked.

"Nothing to be afraid of. Since His Majesty entrusted you to me, you are under my protection."

Elodie recalled what he had said before.

That if someone wanted to poison him, they had better be willing to swallow explosives.

‘He is reliable.’

At least while he was alive, she had nothing to worry about.

Straightening her back, she forced herself to stand tall.

"Nice to meet you, little miss. Would you like a cookie?"@@novelbin@@

…To poison me?

Maybe she wasn’t quite ready to overcome this fear just yet.

Her instincts immediately screamed suspicion.

But she clenched her teeth.

If I can’t even handle this, how am I supposed to break the Ratson curse?!

Taking a deep breath, Elodie declared,

"I came to plan Grandfather’s meals."

"…What?"

"His meals!"

The kitchen staff blinked in confusion.

Eisen, standing silently with his arms crossed, clarified,

"She means his diet."

"Ah, I see!"

A kitchen assistant scurried off to grab parchment and ink.

Then, suddenly remembering something, they asked,

"Wait, can she even write yet…?"

…What do they take me for?

Elodie may have been a mouse, but she was an elite mouse.

She was literate!

With her tongue sticking out slightly in concentration, she clumsily scribbled on the parchment.

Meal Plan

• Wheat

• Sunflower seeds

• Fl-flour…?

• Strawberries