A Rare Animal in Its Own Right.

　My husband turned towards me and looked at me sternly.

“Risha, do you know the fur of an animal called Vancoury――or rather, the product?”

“Yes, at least the name.”

　I nodded, perplexed at the question my husband suddenly popped.

　Vancoury is the fur of a precious animal that can only be found in neighboring countries. Or, more precisely, the name of its species.

　They live at high altitudes, and their fur is fine, smooth, heat-insulating, and of super high quality.

　Despite knowing the name, I’ve never seen or even handled one before.

　The fur is so rare that only the royal family or rich people with stacks of money can get their hands on it.

　In the neighboring countries, I heard that it accounts for a large percentage of exports, to the extent that it has become a major industry.

“Do you understand now?

　It wasn’t hard for me to understand with that much prelude.

　In other words, my husband and Michel both think that this pup is the offspring of that Vancoury.

“Are you kidding me?”

　But…It’s rare in this country to begin with, and I’ve never seen the creature itself.

　Seriously?　

　I can’t be blamed for asking that question.

“I can’t say for sure…Let’s just say it’s as close to black as you can get. Ragnard, there is a blackish coat at the back of my winter wardrobe. Fetch it, please.”

“Okay, Sir.”

　My husband asked Ragnard to fetch something.

　It might be the coat made of Vancoury fur that he mentioned earlier.

“I’ve seen one before, when I was in the territory. I didn’t know it at the time and only found out about it later.”

“Then, how did you know?”

“It’s not a very pleasant story. They infested an area around a farming village in the Duchy, and were targeted for subjugation. They aren’t particularly evil, but they’re large beasts, over two meters long. You know what they say about dealing with things before they become a big problem, right?”

　I’ve once acted as Lord, so I understand what he was saying.

　I think I would have done the same.

“Master, here.”

　It didn’t take for Ragnard to bring back the coat.

　It’s a black coat, and it would look really good on my husband if he wore it.

“This is Vancoury’s fur. It is soft and smooth. It’s so soft and smooth, it’s almost as if it can absorb your hands.”

　Husband held out the coat for me to touch.

　I stroked it slowly, and immediately understood.

　It is the same as the pup on my lap.

　The pup also got interested in the coat and sniffed it.

“Just so you know, you have to spend nearly five hundred gold coins just for the tailoring of one of these.”

“WHOA!”

　Five hundred! Gosh!

　I swear I uttered the same thing as Diego!

　Michel nodded as if he expected such reactions.

“In other words, they are that rare. They look like large wolves, but their fur is thin probably because they live at high altitudes. As a result, their fur has this texture. I don’t know why they inhabit such places. To be honest, they are so strong that they are unlikely to lose in a fight for survival, so there is no need for them to live in such a harsh place.”

“There’s no question that they’re creatures shrouded in mystery, Risha-sama. Moreover, do you know how they collect all those animal fur? But surprisingly, these animals would come to get their fur shorn themselves. Once every two years, at a certain time.

“Aren’t they…smart?”

“It’s more than just being smart. It’s not normal. For the record, wild animals can groom their fur themselves or shed them with the changing of the seasons without human care. But with all this fur to begin with, a greedy person would probably hunt them all down, and poaching would become a common occurrence, but that hasn’t happened yet.”

　That’s true.

　If the texture is this good, I think at least women will buy them.

　Women are more sensitive to these commodities than men.

　If that happens, poaching will flourish, and these animals may even become extinct.

　No matter how much control the government has, I think it will be difficult to completely eliminate such things.

“It could be that they know they can’t be harmed by appearing in front of people ――Or it could be that they know they can’t harm us, so they act accordingly. Absolute confidence, which could be considered as conceit because of their strength. Who knows? But just looking at this, I think I somewhat understand…doing something reckless.”

　My husband gently took my hand and stroked the bite mark (or marks).

　It hurts a little, but it’s not a big deal.

“Even though it is a cub, its teeth are sharper, thicker and stronger than those of other dogs and wolves. If he’s taken you seriously, he could have at least bitten your fingers off.

　Uh…

　Does that mean that the pup was being very easy on me?

　I only bled a bit, but it stopped right away. 

　My husband slowly and gently kissed the spot he’s been caressing.

　Even though it was just a touch with his lips, it felt hot and strange there.

“Ah…m…”

“Does it hurt?”

　Now it does.

　I’d say it hurts, but something that isn’t pain is creeping in!

   It’s something else that makes me feel very shy!

“Michel is being Michel for not stopping you, but from now on, don’t do something like this.”

　He looked at me straight in the eyes with concern, and I timidly averted my eyes.

　Because!

　My husband is a very handsome man!

　When he stares at someone like that, any woman will probably fall for him, including me!

　Oh, no, no, no! My cheeks are burning up!

“…Excuse me, we’re still here. Can you please do that kind of thing when you’re alone?”

　A dazed stare and a dumbfounded voice that sounded like a complaint came. I instinctively shook off my husband’s hand.

　My husband glanced sideways at Michel. His eyes seemed to be telling him to stop cutting in, but I was very grateful to Michel for interrupting us.

　And Diego.

　You look like you’re covering your eyes with your hands, but why are you looking at us through the gaps? I’m rather embarrassed by it, you know!

“Claude-sama, we seemed to have gone off track, but what are you going to do in the end? In case you’re wondering, the fur itself is a problem, but smuggling and trafficking live Vancouries is a crime, okay? Are you just going to ignore it?”

　My husband put his hand to his chin as if in contemplation.

“I’ve seen them in my territory. This means that some of them have strayed from their pack or have been driven out, and come to us. Tell them we found it there, and no one will complain. After all, we’re not keeping them as livestock. They’re in their natural habitat, so it happens.”

“Is that okay?”

“I don’t know much about them either. It’s probably the same for our neighboring countries. The ecology of this animal itself is shrouded in mystery, so no one can argue with it no matter what we say. If they want us to give it back, well, that’s none of our business. After all, even the neighboring countries don’t have the right to own them.”

　They just happen to live there, and they just happen to let them shear their fur.

　So it seems.

　Maybe the animals think they’ll be cleaner if they let others do the deed rather than shedding by themselves.

　Or perhaps they feel good about it…

　Is that what you want, wild animals?

“All in all, it’s not going to be a problem to have it here, is that correct?”

　That’s what I want to hear, Husband.

　I looked up at my husband, and he glanced down at the little furball in my lap.

“I can’t make a judgment based on just one animal, anyway. I can’t say that I am one hundred percent sure either. If others say anything, we’ll go through with it and pretend ignorance.”

　You’re saying, we’ll claim we didn’t know about it, are we, Husband?

“Risha, are you seriously going to keep this creature?”

　My husband’s question clearly implied his disapproval.