The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella-Chapter 33
Elodie had spent enough time observing Cesare to understand his thoughts perfectly.
He must have thought that persuading a mere child would be nothing more than an easy task.
“Elodie.”
“Elodie?”
That expression—he clearly didn’t recognize the name.
It was to be expected.
The name known to the public wasn’t Elodie, but Gracia Ratson.
‘He must’ve asked just in case after seeing my ears and tail.’
Had he assumed she was just some ordinary harvest mouse beastfolk loitering around the palace?
Cesare slowly erased the expression from his face.
He clenched the Magic Cotton in his hand even tighter, as if he were afraid to let it slip away, and then spoke.
“I don’t know why you’re looking for this, but it’s mine to begin with.”
“......”
Since when?
He sounded so confident that she momentarily lost the words to respond.
“I was just reclaiming what belongs to me. You understand, right?”
“Magic Cotton is a protected species.”
“A kid sure knows a lot.”
Cesare chuckled dryly.
“In that case, it must’ve been well-protected, untouched by anyone, all this time, just for this moment.”
Muttering nonsense, he firmly gripped the Magic Cotton in his hand.
To absorb Magic Cotton, he needed to crush it completely.
But—
Of course, nothing happened.
“What? This can’t be...”
Elodie inwardly clicked her tongue as she watched the prince’s face twist in shock.
If Magic Cotton were that easy to absorb, I would’ve used it to lure you in much earlier.
No matter how much force Cesare applied—enough to make the veins on the back of his hand bulge—the Magic Cotton refused to break.
It flattened slightly, but like a rubber ball, it bounced right back to its original shape.
The prince kept trying over and over, only to grow more and more bewildered.
‘It kept following me around, so now it’s like this.’
Apparently, Magic Cotton became more stable when exposed to divine energy, but she hadn’t expected it to actually grow sturdier.
Originally, it had seemed like it would tear apart the moment it was tugged.
Now, it had solidified into a single lump—definitely not something that could be crushed with brute force alone.
Maybe if he stabbed it with a sword, but...
‘Even Eagles looked surprised.’
Who would’ve thought it would evolve?
At that moment, one of the Magic Cotton bundles barely managed to slip out of Cesare’s grasp—
—And promptly slapped him across the cheek.
“......”
The boy pressed his hand against his stinging cheek, staring in the direction the Magic Cotton had flown.
The small, white mass darted through the air and promptly latched onto Elodie’s cheek.
‘Wow, look at his eyes.’
He looked ready to commit murder.
His expression was one of sheer fury, as if he had been humiliated by a mere insignificant creature without a will of its own.
Elodie met his gaze and put on a completely innocent, guileless expression.
Just like he did.
Feigning pure, childlike naivety.
“My cotton?”
She tilted her head, blinking up at him.
“Magic Cotton doesn’t seem to think so.”
A crack formed in Cesare’s composed expression.
The moment his grip slackened, every last piece of Magic Cotton immediately flew away—
—and began to orbit around Elodie.
Cesare’s face, now half-hidden in shadow, was twisted into something far more vicious than before.
“This is ridiculous...”
Cesare strode toward her without hesitation.
“Hand it over.”
He sounded as if she had taken something he had entrusted to her.
“I never took it.”
“Hah...”
He let out a mirthless laugh, then reached out toward her without hesitation.
“I don’t know what kind of trick you pulled, but I—”
And then—
“My Lady, here you are!”
Without warning, the silver-clad knight, Sir Howlf, suddenly appeared, cutting in between them.
“We were searching for you! You vanished so suddenly. Are you hurt anywhere?”
Behind him, a group of knights followed, quickly flooding the area with noise and chaos.
“My Lady!”
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“My goodness, you should have told us where you were going!”
“You nearly gave us heart attacks.”
The wolf beastfolk knights were in an uproar. They scooped Elodie up, held her tightly, and fussed over her.
Cesare was pushed back by the sheer number of bodies surrounding her.
Despite standing right in front of them, the knights were completely absorbed in checking Elodie’s well-being.
“...My Lady?”
Had he finally realized?
The child he had dismissed as nothing special was actually the sole heir of House Ratson.
Magic Cotton wasn’t sticking to her because of some trick.
It was because she was Ratson.
The High Priest’s authority was often mentioned alongside royal power.
Even though she was from another continent, there was no way he didn’t know that she was someone he was supposed to show the utmost respect to.
‘Attacking someone like him directly doesn’t work—unless you meet him as an equal.’
Assert authority?
He doesn’t even acknowledge those ranked lower than him as people?
Then that means the only thing he values is status.
Which means status is the best way to crush him.
Sir Howlf turned to Cesare and asked,
“Your Highness, may I ask what you were doing with the young lady?”
Cesare’s expression was priceless.
He couldn’t exactly act coy all of a sudden, but he couldn’t maintain his usual arrogance either. His mouth twisted into an awkward smile.
“Are you questioning me?”
“I am simply requesting your cooperation. Even the most trivial matters concerning Lady Ratson must be reported.”
“...Nothing happened. I only just ran into her.”
Well, that was true.
He had confidently tried to declare theft but failed.
He had attempted to threaten her, but that had also failed.
But what if she told them he had tried to absorb the Magic Cotton?
One thing was certain—it wouldn’t end with just an apology.
If a mere servant of the prince had attempted to steal a protected treasure, that could be excused.
But if the prince himself had tried?
Then the king would have to get involved.
“Is that true, my lady?”
Sir Howlf carefully set Elodie down and asked.
“......”
Elodie silently met Cesare’s gaze.
Like a figure from a painting, his gentle smile remained intact—but the corners of his lips trembled ever so slightly.
If she had wanted to escalate things, she would’ve called for Edmund from the start.
But instead, she had summoned a group of beastfolk knights.
Large enough to be imposing, but not a direct threat.
A presence that Cesare couldn’t completely ignore, but also couldn’t openly challenge.
Someone who could pressure him.
That was what made it a weakness.
Watching his expression shift rapidly, Elodie suddenly smiled brightly.
“You wanted Magic Cotton?”
“...What?”
“Mmm, I get it. Magic Cotton is soft and fluffy, after all.”
She nodded sagely, as if she truly understood.
“So that’s why you said it was yours?”
“...He said it was his?”
The wolf knights’ eyes narrowed in unison.
“No, no! That’s not what I meant! I think Lady Ratson misunderstood me...”
Realizing the atmosphere had shifted, Cesare hastily raised his hands in protest.
“I wasn’t saying it was mine! I was asking if it was hers. I didn’t know she was Lady Ratson at the time. I was just curious about why the Magic Cotton was following her.”
How pathetic, Your Highness.
