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Mariabelle's mother, Christina, who came to visit the Galleria Empire to see her daughter, brought a souvenir for Renato's younger brother, Rinaldo. It was a white cat with odd-colored eyes, one red and one blue.
Rinaldo, a cat lover, was overjoyed and spent all his free time playing with the cats in the palace known as the "Cat's Palace."
On sunny days, all the windows on the ground floor of the palace were opened, and the cats lounged comfortably on the spacious lawn.
In the garden, there were trees with branches that seemed easy for cats to climb, scratching boards, hammocks, and cat towers for them to play on.
The white cat had completely adapted to the empire and was now relaxing on the hammock. Every time the wind rustled, the hammock swayed, and the cat's white ears twitched.
Mariabelle, who had come to check on the white cat, worrying if it was living happily after being brought from the kingdom, felt reassured by the cat's attitude as if saying, "I've been living here all this time."
When the white cat sensed someone's presence and opened its eyes, it recognized Mariabelle and Renato. However, it lost interest and closed its eyes again as if it were ignoring them.
"I'm glad Blanc is doing well."
Initially, it was planned to name the white cat "Snow" because of its appearance, but Rinaldo ignored the name no matter how many times he called it. So now, it is called "Blanc," its original name.
"Meltie, it seems Blanc is not in the mood to play today. What a pity."
"Nya."
Meltie, Mariabelle's pet cat, also loved this garden. She especially adored the cat tower. When placed on the lawn, she would rush towards it with all her might.
A fluffy little orange furball ran across the vibrant green grass. Then, lowering her body, she jumped onto the tower with great force.
"Meltie, be careful not to get hurt."
Mariabelle watched, feeling a bit nervous.
This cat tower was specially made by Rinaldo for the cats, but it was designed for adult cats. That's why Mariabelle worried if it might be too big for the still-kitten Meltie.
"Even if she's small, she's a cat, so she should be fine."
Renato, standing next to her, lovingly gazed at Mariabelle, who looked worried.
As Mariabelle raised her eyes, she noticed Renato's gentle gaze, causing her cheeks to turn red.
Renato's affection for the innocent reaction of Mariabelle only grew stronger.
Feeling embarrassed, Mariabelle averted her gaze and suddenly noticed a small hut at the edge of the garden.
"Ren-sama, what is that?"
Asked by Mariabelle, Renato explained about the hut.
"That is a cat villa."
"A villa?"
Now that it was mentioned, the small hut was a bit small for humans to enter, and the door opened vertically instead of horizontally. Presumably, it was designed for cats to easily enter by pressing against it with their bodies.
Still, Mariabelle tilted her head, wondering why a villa was built right next to the palace known as the Cat's Palace. Renato explained with a wry smile.
"It's made for cats that got tired of being doted on too much by Rinaldo and needed a place to take refuge."
"Huh..."
Indeed, while aware of Rinaldo's love for cats, Mariabelle was surprised that it went to the extent of remodeling an entire palace just for cats, going beyond the boundaries of common sense.
But cats prefer freedom.
Certainly, being stuck to someone like Rinaldo would cause them stress.
"The roof of the hut can be removed, and it is well-maintained for cleaning. However, it is a rule that the key should never be given to Rinaldo, so the cats can relax without worry."
"Is that so..."
Not knowing how to respond to Renato's words, Mariabelle mumbled vaguely.
"It would be a problem for the prince to abandon his work to search for a runaway cat, after all."
"Uh, yeah. You're right."
Indeed, Mariabelle knew about Rinaldo's love for cats, but she trembled at the thought of it being to that extent.
It seemed that until the villa was built, the loop went like this:
Rinaldo pays attention to the cat → The cat, feeling bothered, runs away → Rinaldo goes searching → While searching, Rinaldo feels lonely and pays even more attention to the cat → The cat runs away again.
"In particular, the black cat that Rinaldo loves the most often takes refuge in the villa. Look, it just came out."
As Renato said, a graceful black cat slowly appeared from the villa's door.
Without paying any attention to Renato and Mariabelle who were watching, the black cat let out a small "meow" under the hammock.
Upon hearing the meow, Blanc, the white cat, twitched its ears and opened its unique odd-colored eyes, one blue and one red.
Blanc slowly stood up, stretched its body, then jumped down from the hammock, pressing its tail upright as it approached the black cat.
The black cat gently touched Blanc's nose with its own, as if giving it a kiss.
"Oh..."
Mariabelle involuntarily covered her mouth with her hand, watching the affectionate behavior of the cats.
"It's just like us."
Renato, with eyes as deep blue as the sea, captured Mariabelle gently.
Mariabelle was enchanted by the color of his eyes and blushed.
In response to her expression, Renato's eyes filled with even more affection.
"Nyaa!"
At that moment, Meltie, who still had a kitten-like spirit, intruded between the two cats as if asking to play.
The two adult cats didn't get angry at Meltie's interruption; instead, the three of them started playing happily together.
A breeze blew, causing Mariabelle's golden-thread-like hair to flutter.
As Mariabelle held her hair that brushed against her cheek, she felt a warm embrace on her back from Renato.
It was just an ordinary day, nothing special, but this simple everyday life was so enjoyable.
Mariabelle continued to gaze at the playful interaction of the cats, enveloped in Renato's warmth, wishing it would last forever.