But the first time she took the children out, she very nearly lost one of them.
Hazel took the children into the village, and the very first thing she did was find a clothing shop. Normally, all her own clothes were homemade, and if she needed something lengthened, the little spirits would sew it for her. But for the children to live safely here in the long run, she needed to build good relationships with the villagers.
Despite the shop clerk's unwelcoming, sour attitude, Hazel stayed warm and full of goodwill. "I'd like to buy some clothes and shoes for the children. Money is no issue."
Seeing the two children, the clerk whispered to the person beside him. They assumed the kids had been kidnapped and thought about refusing to sell, but on second thought, they were afraid Hazel might turn them into frogs.
Having caught the whole exchange, Luna's eyes went wide with anger. "I can't hold it in anymore. I'm extremely annoyed right now. How could you people be so rude to a customer?"
Seeing the little firecracker about to explode, Hazel hurriedly pulled Luna away. The moment they stepped outside, an old woman running the shop next door called out to them. "I can see these children are clean and healthy, with rosy, glowing cheeks. You don't look like a bad person to me at all."
With that, the old woman happily picked out clothes for the children. A little while later, the three of them headed home loaded down with bags.
Luna kept wondering how on earth a witch could have so much money to spend. Truthfully, even Hazel herself didn't quite know how to explain being secretly loaded. When she'd first arrived at this house, she'd discovered a basement piled high with mountains of gleaming gold coins. She'd never intended to touch that money, but now there were more mouths to feed at home.
Lost in thought, she overheard the villagers behind her buzzing with gossip. Apparently the Grand Duke had just issued a wanted notice with an enormous reward. Seeing the notice about the missing young lord and lady, Hazel's first instinct was to want to help. She was about to ask a passerby what the two children looked like when Luna suddenly distracted her. "That rabbit looks just like Lulu."
The moment Hazel took Luca over to look, she turned around and Luna was nowhere to be seen. Hazel panicked instantly. Could someone really be bold enough to kidnap a witch's child in broad daylight? But before she'd taken more than a few steps, she found Luna busy tearing up a missing child flyer.
Caught in the act, Luna explained sheepishly, "I wanted to draw, but I couldn't find any paper, so I tore this up instead."
Naive as ever, Hazel fell for it completely. "Next time, warn me first, okay? All right, then. Let's go buy some paper and crayons."
Walking through the village, everyone was buzzing about the two missing children, guessing wildly about what had happened. Kidnapped by the royal family.
Meanwhile, the Grand Duke sat staring blankly at a portrait of the three siblings. Lulu, where on earth did your owner go? If something happens to those two, what am I supposed to do?
Just then, a flustered knight came rushing in to report. "My lord, someone spotted two children matching their exact description at a clothing shop near the dark forest. They said the two children were named Luna and Luca."
Meanwhile, Hazel had no idea what kind of trouble was about to come crashing down the next day. After leading the two children around all day, the three of them finally made it back home. She used to complain that the days went by far too quickly. But now she felt like there was never enough time.
Lost in thought, Luca pushed open the living room door and dove straight into Hazel's lap. "Sis, sis, I'm scared."
The moment he finished speaking, Hazel saw Luna standing right behind him. Hazel gently stroked Luna's head. This little girl really is remarkably tough. She's every bit the responsible big sister. Taking care of a little brother like this must be so hard. If it were me at such a young age, with no home to shelter me, no good food to eat and no adult by my side, I probably would have been sobbing my heart out a long time ago.
Hazel, aching with sympathy, wrapped her arms around both children and pulled them close. "From now on, just leave the grown-up matters to me, okay?"
She truly wished they could just keep living together like this forever. If only the children's father would never come looking for them.
The next morning, Hazel had barely woken up when she heard frantic pounding on the door. The moment the door swung open, a cold blade thrust straight toward her. The young woman had simply taken in two children she found near her home, and it very nearly cost her her life.
Standing there was the Grand Duke, killing intent radiating off him. "I will execute you for the crime of kidnapping."
Fortunately, the two children woke up at just the right moment. Seeing this, Luna panicked and rushed to stop her brother's violent outburst. It was only then that Hazel realized, in stunned disbelief, that the man in front of her was the Grand Duke. And the two children were none other than the missing young lord and lady. No wonder their reactions had seemed so strange before. Now everything finally made sense.
The two children also ran up and clung tightly to their brother's leg. "If you kill Sister Hazel, I'll starve myself forever. I'll never eat carrots again either."
Hearing that, the Grand Duke froze in place. Wait. These two have never once been willing to eat carrots before. With that, he noticed the carrot cake sitting on the table behind them. He knew all too well just how much his siblings despised carrots. Instantly, his suspicious gaze locked onto the infamous witch before him. She must have done something to them. This is something even the royal chefs haven't managed to pull off in years.
The knight standing behind him chimed in as well, suspecting the children had been brainwashed. After all, there had always been rumors about witches using dark magic. But what infuriated Hazel most of all was the aide brandishing his sword right in front of the children. She'd meant to turn the blade into a small, harmless creature with magic, only to discover the blade was coated in holy power.
Seeing that Hazel wouldn't answer, the domineering Grand Duke suddenly bellowed, "I asked you what you did to them."
The loud shout startled little Luca, who burst into tears. To prove her innocence, Hazel wanted the Grand Duke to taste the cake himself. Instead, he ordered a knight to take the cake away for testing, wanting to check whether it had been laced with some suspicious substance. Thinking about all the effort she and the children had put into making that cake, only for it to be treated as something filthy, made Hazel furious.
"I've heard that you lock these adorable children up and abuse them. I absolutely will not let you take them away. You'll only cage them up again — unless you promise me you'll become a proper guardian."
But the Grand Duke only sneered, his eyes full of contempt. "A man-eating witch daring to lecture me on being a proper guardian. Once I find the evidence, I will execute you without fail."
That remark only made the children react even more fiercely. They tugged at their brother's sleeve, shouting that Hazel was not a bad person. They even insisted that she come along to the Duke's estate, declaring they wouldn't go home otherwise.
Watching the two children cry and plead, Hazel felt her heart ache. But in the end, that was still their home. So she gently soothed them, promising to write letters to them, and telling them to ask someone else to read any words they didn't know. The two little ones finally climbed into the carriage, still sniffling.
"Big brother, you have to promise us you won't kill Sister Hazel, okay? And you should thank her, too, for taking care of us. Didn't you always teach us to never forget to say thank you?"
So the Duke, grumbling all the while, reluctantly forced out a word of thanks to Hazel. Deep down, though, he still firmly believed she had used dark magic to manipulate the children.
Hazel stared blankly after the carriage as it disappeared from view, reliving the warm days she'd just spent with the two children. She couldn't hold back the tears welling up in her eyes.