I Woke Up from Hibernation and Found a Husband - Chapter 34

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 34
“Hibernation?”
Theodore’s voice carried a note of bewilderment as he repeated the word back to me.
“Yes, hibernation.”
His confused reaction brought an unexpected lightness to my chest.
“Do I seem like some common bear-kin now?”
“…Do all bear-kin hibernate?”
I turned my head slowly, letting my gaze drift toward the Flower Bed as I answered.
“Not all of them.”
Hibernation was more of a choice for us kin than a necessity. We didn’t have to sleep through winter, but doing so brought no particular physical harm either.
‘Mother never slept through a single winter.’
So hibernation was my own habit, my own choice. It was a method I’d discovered as a young girl waiting for Veronica who never came, for Angela who always ran late—the finest way to let time slip away.
“But I do enjoy it.”
Winter was peculiarly silent. With no sound of insects or frogs, only the wind’s whisper filling the Cabin, it was far too tedious a place to spend alone.
“I wrap myself in blankets and sleep deeply, and when I wake, spring has arrived.”
Theodore fell silent for a moment. He blinked slowly as if wrestling with something, then finally spoke.
“In winter, snow falls sometimes.”
“Pardon?”
“White. It transforms this entire Garden into pristine white.”
My lips parted slightly at words I couldn’t quite comprehend.
“Then we decorate a grand tree in the Lobby. We haven’t managed it these past few years, but that’s why I was planning to make it even larger this year. Not just the tree, but a party too. We’d lay out delicious food and eat together while watching the snow fall outside.”
His words tumbled out rapidly, tinged with a hint of urgency, each one painting glittering images.
“Of course, it would be cold outside. But cold is all it would be. We could fill that time with so much more together. If we spent a winter so joyful that we wouldn’t count the days until spring arrived, wouldn’t that be enough? So.”
“Wait!”
Without thinking, I reached out and covered Theodore’s mouth with my hand.
I couldn’t bear to hear more. Every word from those lips threw everything into chaos. I’d left the Forest where I’d spent my entire life less than a year ago, and everything around me was changing far too quickly.
‘What is this.’
My hand lost its strength almost immediately. I couldn’t understand how this raccoon-kin, after knowing me for such a short time, could cling to me so blindly.
Theodore didn’t miss this moment. He gently grasped my hand as it fell away, speaking softly.
“Don’t go.”
At those words that finally escaped him, I covered my eyes with my hand.
“Don’t go, Claire.”
Still holding one of my hands, Theodore spoke again. Without meaning to, I answered him in a sharp voice.
“If I don’t go? If I spend winter like this and face spring again? What would change then?”
When I was purely a maid, it was manageable. I had duties, and fulfilling them was enough to belong to this society. When I could simply perform what was assigned without overthinking or questioning, I never felt this way.
“I’m no longer even useful as a maid.”
But recently, things had changed. Theodore, now recovered, no longer needed my help, and Isabella had begun treating me as something more than a mere servant.
“That’s not what I meant. I just—”
“That’s enough.”
I lowered the hand covering my eyes and turned to face Theodore.
“Young Master, even if you say such things, my choice will not change. I need time.”
She didn’t mind being called a coward who always ran away. She just wanted to escape this strange feeling, even if only for a moment. Theodore bit his lip, then nodded. Now was the time to step back.
“Fine, I understand. Then I won’t stop you from hibernating.”
With those words, he stood and sat at Claire’s feet. Before the startled Claire could even rise, Theodore’s lips parted again.
“But promise me you’ll come back when you wake up.”
Like a scene from a play moments before, he took one of Claire’s hands and knelt on one knee, gazing up at her earnestly. Claire had been about to refuse outright, but for some reason, the words wouldn’t come.
“…That’s a strange way to put it. The place I would return to is the Cabin.”
“I’m not talking about a place.”
The hand holding hers was warm. Claire did not pull away.
“To House Voltier, to the people waiting for you there. And to my side. I’m asking you to come back to me once more.”
Claire didn’t answer immediately, instead looking down at Theodore’s hand. His trembling transmitted through to hers, and her own hand trembled finely in response.
‘Ah, no.’
Claire realized her own hand was trembling just as much.
“Why would you go so far?”
At her sincere question, Theodore’s eyes widened, then he smiled mischievously.
“I’ll tell you that when you wake from your hibernation.”
Claire let out a hollow laugh. Unlike her hand, which gripped his as if holding a lifeline, her playful expression didn’t match, and her resolve wavered.
“I’ve lost.”
“You’re promising to come back?”
It was a persistent question. Claire rose to her feet and pulled his hand firmly, helping him up.
“Fine, yes.”
“What? You’re coming back?”
“Yes. Of course, it won’t be to stay permanently, just a brief visit.”
Whatever caveats she added didn’t matter to Theodore. Unfiltered emotion overwhelmed him.
“Ha.”
Watching him in real time, Claire’s face flushed crimson in an instant.
Theodore laughed. Brighter than ever, his face radiant like a pristine snowy field she was seeing for the first time, he laughed.
‘Well, that works.’
She, whose lips had been moving as if parched, covered her flushed face slightly with the back of her hand and fell silent.
She didn’t want to ruin this moment. Whether she appeared for just a moment or stayed for days—she had promised to return, so they would meet at least once more.
‘It might not be so bad.’
“…Is there…something?”
“Yes?”
Claire, who had been cooling down for a moment, came back to her senses at Theodore’s voice.
“Hm? You’re promising?”
‘What did he say?’
She hadn’t been paying attention and hadn’t heard. But seeing his expression urging for an answer, it seemed she should say something first.
“Yes. Sure.”
“Really?”
“Yes? Wait, but what—”
The moment I answered, I caught the rapid shift in his expression—but it was already too late. Claire found it utterly absurd. Now that I looked closer, Theodore was no innocent raccoon at all, but rather a cunning fox of the highest order.
‘Has the Young Master always been this emotionally expressive?’
Both of us seemed intoxicated by the night air, dizzy and disoriented. Oblivious to our state, Theodore wore a satisfied smile, as though he’d achieved exactly what he wanted.
“Shall we head inside then?”
I suddenly became aware that I was still holding Theodore’s hand and jerked away in surprise.
“I’ll go first. You should put on some clothes.”
Claire hastily thrust her cardigan into Theodore’s reluctant, grasping hands and bolted from the Garden like a startled deer. Theodore, unable to wipe the smile from his face, watched her retreating figure disappear into the distance.
* * *
At breakfast, Ludwig observed Theodore sniffling and spoke.
“A cold? Did you kick off your blankets?”
Theodore closed his mouth and laughed awkwardly. He absolutely could not bring himself to admit he’d caught a cold from giving up his cardigan.
“Claire, are you really going into hibernation?”
When Isabella heard the news and her expression grew melancholy, Ludwig answered on Claire’s behalf.
“Isabella, did we not agree to respect Claire’s decisions? She promised to return, so please don’t burden her with your worries.”
Isabella nodded glumly at his words, her reluctance plainly written across her face—yet the little raccoon was gradually learning patience. Claire transferred some fruit to Isabella’s plate and spoke.
“Winter will pass quickly.”
“Mm-hmm.”
Ludwig, who had been observing them both while sipping his coffee, asked.
“Is there anything you need? If there are supplies or materials necessary to maintain your dwelling, I’ll arrange for them.”
Claire, who had been about to shake her head, suddenly set down her utensils as though struck by a desire.
“Then, might I take the bedding I’m currently using with me?”
House Voltier had given me enough money to purchase new bedding, but I preferred to take the familiar quilt I’d grown accustomed to.
Ludwig raised his eyebrows at the unexpected request, then chuckled softly.
“Of course. There is nothing in this house you cannot take with you.”
‘All I need is the bedding.’
Claire scratched her neck at his grandiose words.
“Thank you.”
Time flowed like an arrow. After Theodore recovered from his cold and the trees shed their colorful garments, winter’s threshold arrived.
Claire entered her hibernation.

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