Dodorin Nuts
There was a tapping sound at the window.
When I looked over, Ciel had returned, a small twig with nuts still attached held in his beak.
He flew in through the window and dropped the twig onto my lap.
“Thanks, Ciel. These are the nuts the chicks eat, right?”
Ciel nodded.
“I’ll have the head chef make something you like, so tell Father your request later.”
When I told Father I was heading to the greenhouse to grow this tree, he shrugged and said, “It can’t be helped. It’s an emergency.”
I went to Gardener Tom, showed him the twig, and asked what tree it was, as well as where we had space in the greenhouse.
He said the spot where the oido tree had been was open.
So first it was feed for Pere…
Now it’s feed for the Cocottes?
If it happens twice, will it happen a third time?
No, no, definitely not.
I pushed the thought out of my mind immediately.
Tom told me the twig bore Dodorin nuts, which were commonly used as feed for Cocottes.
So Ciel went all the way to the Great Forest… for their *favorite* adult snack.
Great.
When I asked if I could get some quickly, Tom said that around the Cocotte ranches they planted Dodorin trees, but in the city you couldn’t get them at all.
So we had no choice but to grow them in the greenhouse.
Since we needed the nuts for the chicks, I stripped the nuts off the twig, then buried half the twig in soil. While splashing it with water magic, I said, “Grow fast, grow big.”
“I want the Cocottes to eat as much as they want, so grow strong, alright?”
Good enough.
I headed back to Maria’s workshop and showed her the Dodorin nuts.
“Do we have a bowl and a pestle to crush these?”
“We do. Here’s a spare set—brand new. Please use it.”
“Thanks.”
I cracked the shells open, took out the insides, and ground them in the bowl.
The nuts were low in moisture, so they powdered easily.
I moved the powder to a flat plate and placed it in the middle of the box where the chicks were—but they didn’t even look at it.
“They should be hungry. Why aren’t they eating?”
“These are Cocottes’ favorite nuts, aren’t they?”
“Yeah. Ciel brought them, so there’s no mistake.”
“Then why…?”
If they didn’t eat, they’d die. I needed to do something.
In my previous life, baby parakeets were fed softened food through something like a syringe…
But Cocottes are wild. I shouldn’t need to hand-feed them.
Still, maybe if I mixed the Dodorin powder with water?
I took one-third of the powder, added water little by little, and made a thick paste.
I placed the dish near the cluster of chicks. One by one, they approached, lowered their faces to the plate, and sniffed.
“Alright, go on, eat.”
One chick stuck its face in the paste and ate.
The others began eating too.
“Yes! They’re eating!”
“It worked.”
We celebrated—but soon saw that they weren’t eating well. Their little faces were smeared in paste.
All of them looked the same. I couldn’t help laughing.
“They barely ate any, did they?”
“Probably not.”
I picked one chick up, scooped a bit of the paste with a small spoon, and brought it to its beak. But it wouldn’t open its mouth.
Even when I tried to pry it open with the spoon, it wouldn’t budge.
I gave up and put the chick back.
“It might be faster to ask the animal shop.”
“Animal shop?”
“Yes, the place that sells puppies and kittens. They also examine sick animals.”
So kind of a combined pet shop and animal hospital.
It looked like I had no choice but to go.
“Huh? Captain Kyle is coming as my escort?”
At the entrance it wasn’t Meyer’s group—it was Captain Kyle and the squad that usually accompanied me into the Great Forest.
“I gave Meyer and the others time off.”
Right. They’d been with me constantly as guards. Of course they needed rest.
“You’re going to the animal shop, but… did something happen to Young Master Atre and the others?”
“No, the Cocotte chicks were born today, but they don’t eat properly. I was hoping for some advice.”
“The Cocottes’ chicks were born?”
“Yeah. But if things stay like this, they won’t survive, so I’m in a hurry.”
What do you think about this chapter?
