I'm so glad we could come to a stop.

Huh, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah.

　Nicole exhales wildly in front of me and gives me a counterpart.

　And Rag, with a somewhat satisfied look on his face, exhales while sticking out his tongue and saying "hahahahaha".

　Nicole runs as fast as she can through the snow to stop Rag, and she comes to stop him.

　Even though she's pulling the sled, I'm very sorry for making her run as fast as she can until she catches up to Rag.

'Thanks so much, right?'

No, no. You're welcome.

　Once my breath settles in, I work on Nicole again.

　It's important to show my gratitude.

Next time Nicole can come skiing with me. It would be better if we had a couple more dogs for that...

'Then I have two of them at home and I'll bring them over!　Lug, you stay right here!

　As she said this, Nicole started running towards the village with a light step.

　There was a twinkle in her eye, and maybe Nicole wanted to have her sled pulled.

'Woof!'

　I thought about petting the rug until Nicole came back, but I couldn't pet her as she ran around the sled. It's like a child who starts playing as soon as the adults are gone.

　You're the one Nicole told me to stay in place.

　But you can say that you're following the least amount of orders around not pulling the sled and running off.

"Al, what are you doing in there?

　As I sit in the sled and stare at the rug, Father Nord and Mother Erna come out of the workshop.

　They have probably finished their orders in the workshop.

'You're making something unfamiliar again. It's not skiing or snowboarding.

　Mom Erna makes a sound of dismay when she sees the sled I'm sitting on.

　I made a new plaything yesterday, today, and in a little while I've added another new one. I think to myself that it's no wonder Mother Erna is dumbfounded.

''........I was just playing with it to pass the time for a bit.

It's one thing to come up with one thing after another.

　There was no excuse for it, just an excuse.

'From the looks of it, it's a vehicle to be pulled by a dog?'

'Yeah, it's a dogsled. The dog pulls me through the snow.

　As I explained this, Dad Nord and Mother Erna looked at the sled with admiration.

'Would you mind giving it a little run?'

I wish I could show you, but this dog is a village hound, and he won't listen to anyone--

"One!

"...Oh come on, Lug. Why are you trying to run?

　Dad Nord asked me to run into the rug, which is totally ready to run.

　Didn't he tell me to wait for him earlier?　Is that okay with you having an owner named Nicole?

　You didn't say anything at all when I asked you.

"Such a cute dog.

"Phew!

　Lug is purring pleasantly as Mother Erna pets him.

　This guy has a habit of pushing me down and flattening me at first, but he's a great, obedient, smart guy to both of us. Could it be that the wild instinct is to know who to follow?　It's a bit frustrating to see them licked by a dog.

　But I can't blame Lug too hard, since they're two of the strongest human beings in the world.

'Go on, Lug!'

"One!

　The rug really starts to run according to Dad Nord's orders.

　The sled I'm riding in is pulled by the power of the rug.

'Whoa!'

Oh, you're faster than you thought.

　My body was brought to my back for a sudden start. I heard the faintest hint of Mother Erna's swallowing thoughts from behind me.

　For now, I sit back down firmly and deeply so that I don't slip off.

'No, wait!　This guy doesn't listen to me and I can't stop on my own!

　The dog listens to two people's commands, but he doesn't listen to my commands.

　In other words, if he starts riding with me on, it is very difficult for him to stop at my will.

　Do you want me to ask Nord Dad and the others to chase after him?　

　No, no. Those two are too busy watching the sledding to notice anything like that.

　What should we do? I don't want to do it because of the risk of overturning, but do I drive a stake into the ground and brake?　

　No, I'd feel bad for Nicole if I let Ragu get hurt by it. It's not that I don't want to, but when Lug is satisfied, he'll stop, so I'll just let him go.

　As I was sliding along with such determination, Nicole had just arrived from the village with two dogs of a similar breed.

　Oh, it seems that God was on our side.

'Oh, Nicole!　I was just in the right place!

'Mr. Alfried?　Hey, Lug!　Why are you running?　I told you to wait, didn't I?!

　Nicole was upset that the rug was running and sliding down the sled.

　That's right. Your dog, your partner, is running against your command. It's a common mistake for a hound to make.

"Lug, stop!

　Nicole exclaimed, and Rag slowly stopped running and brought the sled to a halt.

　Yeah, even though he was intrigued by Nord Dad, he didn't seem to have lost his sire's bond.

'Hey, Lug!　Why aren't you following orders!

"Air.

　Lug is feeling sluggish because Nicole is angry with him.

　I feel unmotivated, as if I followed the president's orders and my boss, the department head, blamed me for it.

　I used to be on the board in the corporate world, and I uncontrollably put myself in the same position as Ragu.

'I feel like I've lived up to my dad's expectations, Nord...'

'What?　My lord?

　I look at the direction I'm pointing at and Nicole is surprised.

'It's true. There's Lady Nord and Lady Erna.

"Did I just follow a strongman's wild instincts?

'Well, there are times when you and Nord-sama work together on patrols and hunts, and I can't blame you that strongly for some of the things you do.

　It looks like she was just a normal acquaintance of Nord Dad.

　Maybe he had to be resourceful when he was out there fighting monsters or something.

"One.

　I'm not sure if he understands that I'm following him or not, but Ragu rubs his body against my leg.

　It's only at times like this that I think it's a good idea to rub up against me, but I don't care about the details because the mofo is righteous.

　I'll give him all the fluff he can handle, even the ones I couldn't.

"Woof!

"One!

　Then the two dogs that Nicole brought with her also spoiled her, as if they thought they were going to be cute.

　Suddenly, it's the dog's time to be popular. It's a mofo-mofo paradise.

　The rugs' fur is plush and their bodies are warm and comfortable. But it was a little cold because of the snow on them in some places.

　I'll lightly brush off the snow from their bodies while I'm petting them.

''For now, let's go to those two.

Yes.

　When I'm satisfied with petting the rugs, I just let the rugs pull me along and Nicole comes running with the dogs.

'Hello, Nord-sama, Erna-sama,'

'Hey, Nicole. I'm sorry for playfully giving orders to the rug.

I'm sorry. I just wanted to see what dogsledding was all about.

　He knew that giving orders to other people's hounds without permission was not a very good idea. Father Nord and Mother Erna apologize awkwardly.

''No, if it's Nord-sama and Erna-sama, it's not that much of a problem.

That would be great to hear.

It's kind of refreshing to see the two of you do that.

　I looked at them apologizing and blurted out a frank comment, and then Mother Erna pinched my cheek.