Chapter 32
Leon stood on tiptoe, widening his eyes to get a better view. But when nothing came into sight, he focused his hearing, carefully following the sound toward its source.
The commotion was coming from the storage warehouse on the eastern side of the castle.
Rushing over, Leon found a group of distressed attendants gathered outside.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
The warehouse keeper, who had been fidgeting anxiously, was momentarily taken aback. A small, unfamiliar child speaking so informally to him? But remembering the rumors about the mysterious boy Lucas had taken in, he chose to answer respectfully.
“A valuable supply of food has gone missing from the warehouse,” he explained.
“What kind of food?” Leon pressed.
“Asparagus. A delicate vegetable that can’t be grown in the North due to the climate. We have to import it, making it a rare and costly ingredient. Occasional thefts have occurred before, but this time, it’s gotten out of hand.”
Leon placed a finger to his lips, deep in thought.
“If it wasn’t stolen by a person, then who…?”
The monsters in the greenhouse were well-fed—Lucas made sure of that. They wouldn’t need to steal food.
“Could it be rats?” he suggested.
The warehouse keeper shook his head firmly.
“Rats? That would be impossible. As you know, the greenhouse is home to animals with monster blood. Even that cat beside you has some monster lineage, doesn’t it? How could ordinary rats dare to roam here?”
“That’s true…” Leon rubbed his chin. Normal animals would be too afraid to approach an area where monsters or part-monsters lived.
“Then… it must be a monster.”
“How often has this happened?” he asked.
The attendants exchanged uneasy glances. More people were beginning to gather, curious about the identity of the golden-haired child questioning them. But the warehouse keeper remained focused, answering promptly.
“At first, it happened once a month at most. But recently, the thefts have been happening more frequently. When we reported it to the Grand Duke, he simply dismissed it, saying, ‘If it’s feeding the hungry, then so be it.’ But we can’t keep losing such expensive supplies forever…”
Leon listened carefully, his golden eyes glinting with sharp focus. His lips pressed into a determined line.
The warehouse keeper observed him closely.
“He doesn’t look like an ordinary child. Who is he? Golden hair… Could he be—? No, impossible.”
Before he could dwell on it, Leon clapped his hands together.
“Wait here. I’ll be back soon.”
“What? Where are you going?”
Leon grinned confidently.
“I think I might know how to solve this.”
The warehouse keeper and the attendants were speechless. How could a mere child solve a problem that even adults couldn’t?
Just as Leon turned to leave, he added one more thing.
“Oh, and I’ll be bringing some animals from the greenhouse. Don’t be scared—they’re all well-behaved.”
The warehouse keeper paled.
“Wait—what?!”
The idea of letting creatures with monster blood roam freely around the warehouse was absurd. But before he could protest further, Leon grabbed his arm.
“Where do you think you’re going?” he said, narrowing his eyes. “You’re the warehouse keeper. Your job is to stay here and guard the warehouse, right? So don’t leave your post.”
The man gulped.
Leon’s words left him with no room to argue. Instead, he gave a meaningful glance to the other attendants, silently urging them to report this to the Grand Duchess.
“Be back soon!” Leon called over his shoulder before dashing off.
Not long after, Leon returned—accompanied by Lulu, Jerry, and a small group of greenhouse animals.
By now, Michelle had received word from the attendants and was standing nearby, leaning on her cane.
The attendants looked to her desperately, silently pleading for her to intervene.
But Michelle simply watched in amusement.
“H-Hold on…” one of the attendants stammered.
They couldn’t believe their eyes. The same creatures that usually ignored everyone except Lucas were now lined up perfectly in a row, obediently following Leon’s lead.
Among them was Jerry, the large beaked bird that occasionally accompanied Lucas on patrols.
Even so, Jerry wasn’t exactly a tame creature. When Sion tried using hand signals to command him, Jerry would pretend not to understand.
Yet now, he and the other animals were standing in perfect formation.
Leon paced in front of them, his voice lowering as he spoke. His tone, his posture—it was clear he was mimicking Lucas.
“You all heard, right?” he said. “It looks like a monster has been stealing the asparagus. You may not be full-fledged monsters yourselves, but you can still track its trail, can’t you?”
Lulu stomped a paw against the ground.
Jerry and the other birds nodded their heads.
The dogs wagged their tails.
The attendants watched in disbelief.
“H-How…?”
How could they understand him?
It wasn’t just basic commands—they were responding as if they understood his full sentences.
“Alright,” Leon continued, his tone firm and authoritative. “Coco and the other dogs, step forward.”
At once, the canine-like creatures moved to the front, wagging their tails in unison.
“You guys have the best noses,” Leon said. “Track the scent of the asparagus thief. Find out where it went.”
“Woof!”
The dogs scattered, sniffing the air as they began their search.
Leon then turned to Jerry and the other birds.
“And you guys—search the castle perimeter from the sky. If the culprit has a long tail, sooner or later, they’ll trip up.”
Jerry flapped his wings enthusiastically.
“You know what to do. Go!”
With a loud cry, Jerry and the birds took off, soaring into the sky.
The investigation had begun.
As Jerry and the birds took off into the sky, Lulu, who had been watching them intently, rubbed against Leon’s leg, as if wondering what they should do next.
“Hmm…” Leon tapped his chin, thinking. “For now, the cats can rest. You’ll have something to do later.”
“Meow!”
The cats immediately fluffed up their fur, forming a protective circle around Leon as if ready to guard him.
Watching this, the warehouse keeper and the attendants stood frozen in shock, their mouths hanging open. They were too stunned by how the animals obeyed Leon’s every command to say anything.
Only Michelle seemed entertained, idly tapping her cane against the floor as she observed the scene.
Until now, none of the greenhouse animals—except Lulu—had willingly left their enclosure.
Lucas had said they still carried traces of monstrous energy, but watching them now, they seemed far from dangerous.
“They look so tame… almost like regular animals.”
Leon was about to follow Coco, but just as he took a step forward, Michelle grabbed his arm.
“Your Highness,” she said, lowering her voice. “Would you mind explaining what exactly is going on here?”
Leon tilted his head, then whispered back.
“I’m a tiger, remember? That means I can understand animals and even communicate with them.”
Michelle let out a thoughtful hum.
“I expected as much… but understanding them is one thing. Training them is another.”
“And how exactly did you manage to tame them?” she asked, eyeing the obedient creatures.
Leon shrugged nonchalantly.
“I don’t know? They just listen to me because they’re all really nice.”
Before Michelle could press further, Coco came bounding over, sniffing frantically.
“<It’s a rabbit! A rabbit! A monster took the food!>”
“A rabbit?” Leon’s eyes lit up.
“Do you know where it went?”
“<We’re tracking its scent right now!>”
With the culprit identified, Lulu’s group—who had been eagerly waiting—immediately took off in pursuit.
“They’re built for hunting—it won’t take long for them to catch up.”
Leon smirked confidently before glancing at Michelle.
She wasn’t smiling outright, but the corner of her lips had curved up slightly—a rare sign of approval.
Not long after, Jerry and Lulu returned, looking triumphant.
Behind them, a terrified rabbit-like creature cautiously peeked around as if searching for an escape route.
Leon blinked in confusion.
“Wait… that’s supposed to be a rabbit?”
The creature did have white fur and tall ears, but instead of walking on all fours, it stood upright on two legs, and its face was almost bear-like.
Lulu, noticing his confusion, tilted her head.
“<It looks weird, but it’s still a rabbit.>”
Leon squinted.
“Then… is it a hybrid? Half-monster, half-animal?”
Jerry turned to examine the rabbit, his beak clicking thoughtfully.
“<Now that you mention it… yeah. It doesn’t feel completely monstrous. But it was really easy to catch.>”
Leon stepped forward, closely observing the creature.
It definitely radiated a faint monstrous aura, but its small size and trembling body made it seem more scared than dangerous.
“If it’s not a real monster, I can’t just let them kill it… Lucas would be upset.”
To test his theory, Leon narrowed his eyes and let out a deep, guttural growl.
“GRRRRRR…”
If it were a true monster, it wouldn’t back down.
“KYAAA!”
The rabbit shrieked in terror, flinching backward before falling flat on its rear.
The other animals burst into laughter, their tails wagging and wings flapping in amusement.
Leon, however, remained serious.
“Come here,” he commanded, beckoning the rabbit forward.
The creature hesitated but, still trembling, cautiously crawled toward him before lying flat on its belly.
“<S-Sorry!>” it whimpered. “<I was just so hungry! There’s no food anywhere…>”
Leon knelt beside it, his expression softening slightly.
“More importantly… where are your parents?”
The rabbit stiffened, then suddenly burst into quiet sobs.
Its small shoulders shook, and tears welled up in its round eyes.
The other animals, sensing its grief, instinctively huddled closer, as if sharing in its sorrow.
Leon let out a small sigh, placing a gentle hand on its head.
“I think we’ve found more than just a thief.”
