I Opened an Illegal Animal Hospital in Another World - Chapter 16

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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16

Chapter 4. Isn’t There No Problem (1)

The round nose was moist.

The adorable snout, small white teeth visible between black lips, and the moist tongue that showed when yawning with mouth wide open.

The densely grown black fur had a lustrous shine, and the exposed belly rose and fell plump and round. I want to touch that belly. But that would be rude, right? It must be rude… Then instead.

I watched from a distance but couldn’t resist and buried my nose in the puppy’s paw. Sniff sniff.

“I’m going crazy… That sweet smell…”

It was real… What people who raise puppies talked about, it was real… I’m going crazy, I’m getting addicted…

Even though I buried my nose in the sensitive paw pads and kept sniffing, the puppy didn’t wake up and slept soundly. This was another heart-fluttering point.

‘Originally such a wary and sensitive child, but it completely trusts me…’

What should I do with this emotion…

I silently covered my mouth and pretended to sob. I like it so much, I like it so much I want to jump around! But if I jump now the baby will wake up, so I can’t, but I like it so much…

‘I already feel like I’ve succeeded in life…’

I’m only 3 years old but the sense of achievement was incredible, wondering if this was okay.

“Do you like it that much?”

“Unnamed Father, shh!”

“Huh?”

“The baby will wake up! Shhh!”

“If it woke up from my voice, it would have woken up long ago when Shana grabbed its paw.”

Father muttered in a somewhat sulky tone, whether it was my imagination or not. Father seems to be sulking.

‘No way, that can’t be.’

He’s an adult after all. Besides, there was nothing to sulk about. I just said the puppy was cute.

Mother, who had been watching, said.

“Shana, your shoulders will hurt if you lie down like that.”

“I’m fine. Oh wait, shh…”

“The puppy won’t wake up, so you can speak without worry. It seems like it hasn’t eaten or slept properly for days, it ate a lot and then fell fast asleep.”

Mother lifted me up and stroked my hair. I squirmed briefly because I didn’t want to leave the cushion where the puppy was lying, but I couldn’t go against Mother’s will.

“If I had known Shana would like puppies this much, I would have brought one sooner.”

“Yeah, I like puppies. I really like them!”

“What do you like so much about it? Mommy thinks Shana is the prettiest and cutest, so I don’t really understand.”

“It’s cute, isn’t it?”

“Hmm. Well…”

Mother’s eyes were still cold as she examined my fingers and looked down at the puppy. I unconsciously hid my fingers behind my back and said.

“Its fur is soft too!”

“Shana’s hair is soft too.”

“It’s warm and squishy!”

“These cheeks that mommy loves most are more squishy and warm.”

“Its nose is moist!”

“Mm, will you give mommy a kiss on the cheek, Shana? Your lips are moist too.”

Mother annoyingly pushed her face close. When she keeps her mouth shut she’s an elegant and incredibly capable beauty, but in front of me she’s such a handful…

“And, and, uh, it’s going to grow this big!”

“Oh. Shana will grow too… Shana, don’t grow up too fast…”

“When it gets this big! I can hug it tight!”

Father sat on the sofa and said “Daddy is big too. I can hug you, Shana.” I answered sulkily.

“Unnamed Father is… not fluffy…”

“…”

Too neat and clean. Of course, as a human, being neat is better.

Father made an indescribable expression and muttered.

“Should I grow out my beard and hair?”

“Stop it. Shana likes your face too. She’d dislike it if you covered it up.”

“…”

I wish he wouldn’t aim for animal-like qualities. Thanks to Mother’s wise intervention, Father seemed to decide against such a pointless attempt.

Thank goodness.

I wouldn’t dislike it, but Father’s face is too precious to hide. I hope he shows off those insane features that even suit slicked-back hair for a long time.

“It’s just cute, the doggy…”

I saw something cute and said it was cute, but if you ask why it’s cute, I can only say it’s cute because it’s cute…

“Shana calling it doggy is cuter.”

“…Hmph. I won’t talk to mommy anymore.”

She doesn’t understand my heart.

Of course, people can’t understand other people’s hearts. They can’t comprehend them, and they won’t be conveyed unless spoken aloud. But since I’m still young, it should be okay to feel hurt over something like this.

I turned my head away sharply and puffed out my cheeks. This was more effective than frowning.

However, when I turned my head and saw the puppy lying there, the facial muscles I had deliberately puffed up in a sulky expression lost their strength and relaxed into a goofy smile.

Pretending not to notice my parents bursting into laughter behind me, I positioned myself in front of the cushion again. This time I sat instead of lying down.

I pressed my palms against my flushed cheeks and let out a word that bubbled up from deep inside.

“So cute…”

Is this what healing feels like? Though I wasn’t in a difficult state to begin with.

Originally, mental healing is something you can do even when you’re not struggling, that’s right…

“Really… so small…”

I spread my palms wide. About two of my palms? Even though my hands are really small, it only takes up two of them.

How long has it been since it was born?

‘When it was in human form, it looked older than me.’

It looked similar to Raven, who left grumbling with the annoying prediction that he’d “be back soon,” or maybe a little younger.

‘Why is that Raven guy coming back anyway? Is he some kind of phantom thief? Leaving strange predictions before departing…’

For a while, I was going to be busy playing with the puppy.

“Do you like it that much, Shana?”

“Yeah!”

“Don’t you have something to say to the mom and dad who gave you permission?”

Ah. Right.

I jumped up. If it weren’t for Mother’s subtle hint, I would have completely forgotten.

First, I wrapped my arms around Mother’s neck as she sat close to me and gave her cheek a loud kiss.

“Mom, thank you. I love you!”

“Mm, Mom loves Shana the most too!”

“No more kisses.”

I firmly pushed away Mother, who was trying to shower my cheek with a barrage of kisses. If I left her alone, who knows when I’d be freed…

Mother was cool and pretty and everything good, but she was a bit persistent.

Then I walked toward Father, who had already gotten down from the sofa and was kneeling with a face full of anticipation.

In the living room where I spend time with my parents, I don’t have to wear those squeaky shoes. So nice.

I wrapped my arms around Father’s neck and gave his clean cheek a loud kiss.

“Dad, I love you! Thank you.”

“Shana… Dad loves you too.”

“Uh, uhm… Don’t cry…”

Father is handsome like a foreign actor, but he gets moved too easily and cries a lot. Is he really a cold person outside… He needs to conduct himself properly when he’s out there…

‘I guess the rumors Maria heard were false rumors.’

I gently wiped Father’s teary eyes with my sleeve as he seemed moved to tears.

“Shana!”

“No!”

And I slipped away, timing it just as he tried to hug me. Of course, this was probably Father going easy on me too.

“Shana, you hug that beastman just fine!”

“Don’t compare yourself to the puppy, Dad…”

“Shana…”

“The puppy is a baby, a baby!”

“…”

Father made a serious expression, as if he was reflecting. Yes, get it together, Father.

“You have to hug babies tight and say ‘how cute, how cute’…”

Father, and Mother who had approached at some point, silently spread their arms wide.

What, why.

“…?”

“We have to hug you tight.”

“We have to say how cute, how cute.”

“…Not me!”

These people, really.

“Not me, Shana is already 3 years old. Not a baby! A kid!”

“Shana is forever our baby.”

“Ah, really…”

Well, I understand that feeling. Even when Mina grew up, even when she grew taller than me, she still looked like a baby to me.

But these parents had doting tendencies, so I had to drill into them the idea that “Shana is all grown up. She’s an adult. Don’t treat her like a baby” so I wouldn’t be embarrassed in front of other people.

If they treat me like a baby in front of Raven, I’ll cry.

“Here! This is a real real baby!”

“Hm?”

“This small! A baby!”

“I doubt it.”

Father poured cold water on it again. Hmph.

“But why not…?”

“Beastkin are a race whose age cannot be determined by appearance.”

Mother kindly elaborated.

“When I saw her yesterday, this girl was about as tall as His Highness the Prince. But as a puppy, she only looks about one or two months old. So in reality, she’s probably around, what, 10 years old?”

“She’s this small but 10 years old?! She’s an older sister?!”

“It’s remarkable that she survived. Must be a long-lived species. They become powerful when fully grown, but I’ve heard that the longer a species lives, the longer their infancy period, so few actually survive.”

“There are nobles with the nasty hobby of raising them from infancy to use as guards.”

“But it’s hard to care for them for 10 or 20 years, so they give up halfway through.”

My parents exchanged this conversation.

“Wow, that’s really amazing…”

To think she looks so young but has actually lived for at least 10 years.

‘Living in a baby form must be so difficult…’

Having gained enough muscle to run around on my own, I hadn’t forgotten the humiliation of my newborn days.

‘Those humiliating days when I couldn’t get clean after soiling myself without someone else’s help…’

Those times when I had to swallow my shame and make “waah waah” sounds because crying was the only way to communicate my condition…

Looking at her appearance, in human form she seemed developed enough to not have much inconvenience, but by her standards, she must still be in a frustratingly weak and helpless state.

This tiny puppy, no bigger than my two palms, now seemed admirable to me.

I gazed at her lovingly and gently poked the puppy’s paw. I shouldn’t wake her up. I want to hear her crying sounds. Those sparkling black eyes were so cute. Seeing her sleep so peacefully, it seems like she’s come to trust us. Ah, I want to talk to her. I want to wake her up…

Just then, Mother asked.

“What are you going to name her?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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