Chapter 100
Chapter 100
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 100
Chapter Title: How the Prince Makes Friends
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Abel, who had been put in charge of the guard rotations, looked utterly exhausted as he glanced warily at King Sedes before cautiously speaking up.
"You know, Your Majesty."
"What is it."
"Sir Evan... he's a bit more ruthless than I expected."
"...The 2nd Prince's guard knight?"
King Sedes lifted his eyes from the documents at the sudden mention of Lianus's guard knight and looked at Abel.
"What brought this on out of nowhere."
"Maybe he just doesn't like birds?"
"Explain yourself properly, Abel Brigide. What have you been up to behind my back."
"......It wasn't anything big. It just reminded me of Sirentea yesterday, and I got curious..."
"No beating around the bush."
"I got curious about that little friend of his, so I sent over a bird."
"...Didn't I tell you to hold back for now."
Sedes pressed a hand to his forehead and let out a deep sigh. Ever since receiving Sirentea, the boy had been singing about how curious he was, and it seemed he'd finally acted on it.
"No, I just wanted a quick peek at what he looks like. White hair and multicolored black eyes? Come on, who wouldn't be curious? I mean, black eyes are black eyes—why multicolored?"
"......So you really called them multicolored just because they are."
"I can't picture it! So I sent a bird!"
"Rein in that curiosity of yours."
"Anyway, I sent it, and..."
"And?"
"The little guy didn't show up. Sir Evan came out instead, tried to chase it off, then—whoosh!—with his sword."
"Did he kill it."
Sedes's eyes sparkled with mild interest. Abel, who had shared vision with the sparrow, shuddered again at the memory of that dawn encounter.
"Sedi! I was brutally murdered!"
"The bird, not you. If anything, Sir Evan deserves a commendation for eliminating an intruder."
"It... works like that?"
"He seems to take his guard duties seriously. I'm quite pleased."
Sedes smiled, genuinely satisfied. He'd always worried that the 2nd Prince had only one guard knight, but this one seemed worth two or three, which put his mind at ease.
Still, if he didn't resolve Abel's issue, efficiency would plummet, so he beckoned a shadow knight with a gesture.
"Your command."
The knight dropped to one knee, head bowed, awaiting orders.
"How are the princes' lessons going today?"
Abel's eyes lit up at the question. Given the green light, he'd send another bird right away.
"They're in swordsmanship class now, both at the training grounds."
"Go tell Sir Evan this: I'm sending a bird, so don't kill it."
"Understood."
The shadow knight bowed and headed straight for the training grounds.
At the training grounds, the princes' guard knights stood in a line a short distance away, watching the lesson. Evan stood notably apart from the rest.
The shadow knight gave the young knight—who didn't quite fit in with the others—a pitying glance before quietly calling out.
"Sir."
Evan, who had been staring fixedly at his charge, startled and turned his head.
"What... is it?"
His heart sank at the shadow knight's sudden appearance.
'Did they already find out about Sharton Street?'
His Majesty had encountered the wildcat boy before, so a report could have reached him. It was entirely possible.
He knew it would come out eventually, but not this soon. He had no excuses prepared, nor the resolve to face punishment.
"A word, if you please."
"......Yes."
To avoid the eyes of the 1st Prince's guards, the shadow knight led Evan a bit farther off. The others thought Evan looked a touch dejected—probably another argument with the 1st Prince's knights—and let it pass.
"His Majesty's message: Don't kill the bird."
"......The bird, you say?"
"Yes."
Evan's eyes widened at the unexpected words. He recalled the little sparrow he'd sliced in half at dawn.
Could it have been one sent by His Majesty?
"Do you know whose bird it was?"
"The Prime Minister's."
"......"
The Prime Minister. His Majesty's childhood friend, once hailed as a magical prodigy destined to lead the Mage Tower. Abel Brigide, the marquis who, for some reason, stalled at three circles and never entered the tower, now serving as Prime Minister.
Mild-mannered and impartial toward both princes, he was well-liked by His Highness as well.
Evan's eyes trembled slightly upon hearing the explanation.
'...I cut the Prime Minister's bird in half.'
"I've delivered the message, so I'll be going."
"W-Wait, that's it?"
Evan grabbed him as the shadow knight turned to leave, as if that was all.
"Did the Prime Minister say why he sent it...?"
"He seems curious about the child who entered as the prince's friend."
"Ah......"
Evan pondered briefly before speaking.
"That... boy's quite wary. All I can do is explain who the bird's owner is and not kill it. How he'll react? No idea."
"Understood. I'll relay that."
With that, the shadow knight vanished. Evan debated whether to feel relief that Sharton Street hadn't come up or anxiety that the Prime Minister's curiosity had latched onto the wildcat boy—but settled on relief.
The kid handled himself fine on his own, so no need to worry.
Evan chuckled, picturing the wildcat buried under the covers, sleeping in.
But at that very moment, the wildcat was...
"Achoo!"
...cleaning.
Nihil was diligently sweeping a secret passage in his study that had coincidentally opened. The bookshelf, which wouldn't budge before, swung open easily once filled with books. It must have needed a certain weight.
The passage behind the study had once led somewhere, but renovations had sealed it off, leaving just a small empty space.
"Achoo!"
"Pip!"
The puppy he'd fetched from the cushion—left alone and squeaking—sneezed right along with him from the dust.
"Evan II, you should go."
"Pip?"
Such a dusty place wasn't good for a young pup.
As Nihil set the cushion farther away, the puppy waddled after him, squeaking plaintively.
"......High maintenance......"
Sighing, Nihil picked up the pup again and tucked it into his arms. True to his mongrel roots, it was a handful.
He still needed to research awakening rituals for dogs too...
Nihil shook his head to clear the thoughts. Handle what's in front of him first.
After finishing the cleaning with the pup in tow, he considered turning the space into a herb storage but changed his mind and began lining it with glowstones he'd gathered from the back hills.
Pups were simple creatures—throw a blanket over some chair legs, and they'd nestle in happily. A secret hideout like this would thrill the young prince.
'Ta-da! Requiem, look! It's my secret base!'
Nihil froze at the little voice echoing in his mind, then resumed work.
He laid down a soft rug, added candelabras for ambiance. Raiding his bedroom left it barren, but he rarely used it anyway—the servants would restock it.
Satisfied with the cozy setup, Nihil fetched heatstones from the butler and experimented, jotting notes.
'Two 100g heatstones clacked together with about 10 nu of force yield roughly 50 degrees. Duration seems proportional to size...'
Nihil recalled everyday items once made with heatstones from old memories. They were commonplace before he slept, but the Heavenly Demon War had regressed civilization worse than he'd thought.
Mana density had dropped, making magic stones scarce as expected, but knights and mages were far weaker too, and even common potions were hard to find.
How fragile humans survived monsters and other races was a mystery.
Waking up felt less like the future and more like the past.
With his weakened body, the lack of immediate threats was a blessing. The only snag was that Grand Duke called a demon.
'No way demons help humans out of kindness.'
Nihil rubbed his dry face. One worry sparked a chain.
'Rest for now. Can't face him yet anyway...'
He gathered the makeshift tools, wrote usage instructions, and handed them to the butler, asking for servant feedback later.
With palace chores done, Nihil settled in to read and wait—the boy could return anytime.
As he headed to Lianus's bedroom, he ran into maids coming up to clean.
"Ah, Master Nil, where are you off to?"
"......"
The 2nd Prince's Palace servants always tried chatting with Nihil. He had never spoken in front of anyone but the butler and head maid, spawning odd rumors.
-They say the young master the prince brought is some divine beast or spirit that doesn't like people much.
-Hearing his voice brings good luck.
-He can't speak human.
And this morning, the servants had pranked him properly, making Nihil's brow twitch.
-Master Nil's hidden gold coins bring luck!
Most servants had his stashed coins, so he'd debated firing them all—turns out they'd swapped their own for "lucky" ones and returned them.
He'd spent the morning sorting lucky from regular coins.
Their unpredictable nature mirrored Lianus's so closely it was absurd—and amusing.
"Master?"
The young maid called again as Nihil stared blankly in silence.
He had no intention of mingling until he'd vetted and culled the staff, so he turned to leave.
"W-Wait! Master Nil, hold on, don't go!"
"......"
A maid with neatly braided pigtails hurried over, crouching to block his path.