Translator: Nox
The Squirrel Will Raise the Tiger Cub
Jane
“Excuse me, Teacher Lulubell.”
As I watched Hokan, who had wandered listlessly around the room before finally drifting off into an afternoon nap, I heard someone calling out to me from outside the door.
I opened the door a crack and slipped out into the hallway.
Jane
“Teacher, aren't you having a meal? It looks like you skipped lunch too. I'll have an early dinner prepared for you. Please come eat something now.”
Lulubell Durams
“No, Jane. I'm not going to eat until tomorrow.”
Jane
“What? Why won't you eat?”
Lulubell Durams
“Because Hokan can't eat either. I want to keep him company.”
Jane ☁
“Still… you must be starving.”
Lulubell Durams
“Yeah, to tell you the truth, I am hungry. The little bit of food I had at home early this morning was my last bite today. But if such a young child can endure it… I can't leave him to bear it all by himself. I should hang in there too.”
I offered a reassuring smile, but the expression on Jane's face crumpled into tears instead.
Jane
“I'll smuggle some bread and soup in here. Please, have at least a few bites together with the young master.”
Jane whispered with a look of quiet resolve.
My eyes widened, and I caught her by both arms, firmly reasoning with her.
Lulubell Durams
“No, Jane. You mustn't do that. You'll get yourself into serious trouble. The Duke gave strict orders.”
Jane ☁
“Still, if you ruin your health like this…”
Lulubell Durams
“We'll be just fine, so don't worry. If you're truly concerned… please prepare some exceptionally tender, delicious meat for Hokan at lunch tomorrow. I'm counting on you.”
Jane
“Rest assured. I'll see to it that the tenderest meat in the entire world is served.”
Watching Jane put on her most steadfast expression, I couldn't help letting out a warm laugh.
***
Lulubell Durams
“Hokan, aren't you hungry?”
Having slept soundly through his nap, Hokan looked to be in much better spirits.
Yet waking up meant he was bound to feel all the hungrier.
The boy pushed himself up from the bed and trotted over to the table by the window where I was sitting.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“I'm… fine.”
Taking a seat in a chair, Hokan rubbed his eyes.
His face looked slightly pale as he woke.
Brushing back the thick fringe spilling forward across his forehead, Hokan let out a faint sigh.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
His tiny, dainty ears twitched gently.
The sight was so adorable that a smile rose to my lips unbidden.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“I've had this kind of punishment before. I can take it.”
Lulubell Durams
“Goodness… you've been punished like this before?”
When my eyes widened, Hokan gave a brisk nod as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Still, it's way less painful than standing in front of the Thinking Tree all day.”
Lulubell Durams
“The Thinking Tree?”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Teacher, you remember the fireflies dancing in the courtyard at Blanders Castle, right?”
Lulubell Durams
“Of course. How could I forget?”
At my nod, Hokan gave a bright, clear smile.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“That tree we saw there. The Holly Tree. That's the Thinking Tree. Whenever I misbehaved, Father always made me stand in front of the Thinking Tree. He said our family's spirit would grant me wisdom.”
Lulubell Durams
“Really? Hokan, have you ever felt the spirit?”
Hokan Russell Blantiger ☁
“No…. He told me the spirit never speaks to fools.”
Lulubell Durams
“That isn't true. It's not because you're foolish, but because you're still young. They say the spirit only speaks to those whose hearts are mature enough to wield the scales of justice and a valiant sword all at once.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Will I be able to talk to the spirit when I grow up too?”
Lulubell Durams
“Maybe you will, someday.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Teacher, have you ever talked to your family's tree spirit? Rina told me spirits only want to communicate through spirit contractors. She said it's not entirely impossible, but almost everyone who claims to have spoken to one directly is lying.”
Lulubell Durams
“Actually… I've had that experience once.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Really? What did you talk about?”
Lulubell Durams
“Our family tree is an oak. Hokan, have you ever seen a tree that grows acorns?”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Yeah. There are oak trees at Blanders Castle, and here at Blan Castle too.”
Lulubell Durams
“That's right. Such a common tree is the symbol of our family. As you know, people say spirits rarely dwell in ordinary trees. So my family lived all our lives thinking the old oak in our yard couldn't possibly house a spirit.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“My father said there are only a handful of spirit-inhabited trees in the entire empire. He said that's why the northern Holly Tree is so precious and must be protected no matter what.”
Lulubell Durams
“Yes. They must be protected at all costs. The tree at our estate was old too, but everyone said no one had ever spoken to a spirit through it. But one day, I was crying in front of that tree.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Uh-huh, and then?”
Before I knew it, Hokan's eyes were sparkling with rapt attention.
An encounter with a spirit was bound to inspire wonder and awe in anyone, adult and child alike.
Yet because charlatans sometimes swindled people with such tales, it was not something to share lightly.
Looking into Hokan's wide eyes, however, I truly wanted to tell him the honest truth of what I had experienced.
Lulubell Durams
“It was the day my seventeenth sibling was born. While Mother was in labor… I was crying beneath the oak tree.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Why were you crying when a little brother or sister was being born?”
Hokan stared at me, his face utterly bewildered.
Lulubell Durams
“Well, you see…”
I had no wish to invent lies for a child. Shaking off my hesitation, I spoke again.
Lulubell Durams ☁
“I hated the thought of having another sibling…”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Why?”
Lulubell Durams ☁
“Back then… I just didn't have room in my heart to welcome the blessing of a new birth.”
“…”
Hokan tilted his head a few times in silence before slowly nodding, as if he understood a little.
Lulubell Durams ☁
“But as I cried… my heart suddenly dropped. I felt so terribly sorry toward the baby who had just been born, and so ashamed of myself.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“The baby wouldn't know.”
Lulubell Durams ☁
“The baby might not have known, but I knew my own heart, and that made me feel so ashamed. I was so embarrassed and remorseful about how I felt that I begged and begged the tree's spirit for forgiveness.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“And then? Did the spirit appear?”
Lulubell Durams
“No. It only offered a voice. Very faintly.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Really? What did it say?”
“‘You are steeped in an immature pain. Overcome it, and dream of a world that mirrors your own warmth.’”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Whoa. That's so cool!”
Lulubell Durams
“Isn't it? But whenever I told anyone that story, no one ever believed me.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Why?”
Lulubell Durams
“Because I'm not a spirit contractor. Hardly anyone ever speaks with a spirit directly.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“I believe you.”
Hokan's gaze held a reassuring strength.
Lulubell Durams ♥
“Thank you. For believing me.”
I answered that look with a radiant smile.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“So is the sibling born back then the youngest?”
Lulubell Durams
“No. The one born not too long ago is the youngest.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Whoa. Amazing. Teacher, are you going to have lots of kids when you get married later too?”
Lulubell Durams
“No. I'm not going to get married.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Why?”
Lulubell Durams
“Because my dream is to live peacefully on my own and make books.”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Is that really your dream?”
Lulubell Durams
“Yes. It sounds pretty modest for a dream, doesn't it?”
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“No. My father said living peacefully is the hardest thing in the world. So that makes it a big dream.”
Looking up at me with clear eyes, Hokan gave a grown-up smile.
Lulubell Durams ♥
“I've finally found someone who understands my dream. Thank you, Hokan.”
Hokan acknowledged my thanks with a slight nod.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight. Teacher, tell me another fun story.”
Lulubell Durams
“All right. Let's read some books and chat until you get sleepy. Let's see what books we have…”
Fortunately, there were a few children's books in Hokan's room.
I stood up and walked over to the small bookshelf.
As I scanned down the book titles, Hokan came over beside me.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“By the way, what was the name of that seventeenth sibling from earlier?”
Lulubell Durams
“Oh… Jackjack.”
Hokan's eyes went wide as saucers, then softened back to normal.
Hokan Russell Blantiger
“Teacher, I'm good at keeping secrets.”
I understood what he meant at once.
Hokan was looking at me with eyes sparkling like sunlight dancing across water.
The child's heart was as deep and pure as a tranquil lake, bringing a smile to my face all on its own.
Lulubell Durams ♥
“Thank you, Hokan.”
***
Kuhn Russell Blantiger
“How is Hokan doing? Does he seem to have reflected on his conduct?”
The moment Gale opened the office door and stepped inside, Kuhn fired off the question point-blank, without lifting his gaze from the documents.
Gale Onca
“Word is that he is reading books with Teacher Lulubell.”
Gale strode forward toward Kuhn's desk as he answered.
Kuhn Russell Blantiger
“I see.”
Gale Onca
“However, they say the teacher has not taken any meals either.”
Kuhn Russell Blantiger
“Why?”
Only then did Kuhn raise his head and look at Gale.
Gale Onca
“It seems she intends to stay by the young master's side throughout.”
Kuhn Russell Blantiger
“She brings hardship upon herself for no reason.”
Gale Onca
“Yet with the teacher sharing his suffering, might the young master not reflect all the more deeply?”
Kuhn Russell Blantiger
“It would be fortunate if he did. Pass word to the kitchen to prepare a tender, highly nutritious meal for tomorrow.”
Gale Onca
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Clicking his tongue softly, Kuhn rose from his chair and walked toward the window.
Kuhn Russell Blantiger ☁
“Hokan refuses to accept me as his father. What ought I to do?”
