Chapter 189
Chapter 189
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 189
Chapter Title: The Palace Haunting
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'Your Highness, please don't be too upset.'
The nanny had comforted him, saying birds were delicate creatures by nature. It was the same whenever the chicks he raised afterward passed away.
Too fragile as fledglings, already injured when he found them, or simply reaching the end of their lifespan.
Each time, the nanny would console him with, "They must have been happy to spend their final moments with Your Highness." And Lianus believed her words with every fiber of his being.
When the nanny who comforted him passed away, Lianus stopped raising animals for a time. Perhaps deep down, he knew. That the deaths of those animals weren't natural.
His vision flipped upside down, revealing something red. A puppy corpse, blatantly displayed. A dagger pierced straight through its small, frail body.
Lianus squeezed his eyes shut against the blatant malice directed at him.
"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay. This is a dream. Just a regular nightmare."
But even with his eyes closed, the bloody lump didn't vanish from before him. Then someone spoke.
You killed it.
"No."
You knew it was going to die.
"No, I didn't know."
Don't lie.
"...It might have been culled anyway if I hadn't taken it in."
Lianus mumbled excuses, but the voice stabbed into his heart like a dagger.
Hypocrite.
"......"
You just used fragile things to soothe your own emptiness.
"No, I..."
Thud. Footsteps approached, as if telling him to stop making excuses. They drew closer until the figure came into view.
Selfish bastard.
It was none other than "me."
Tears welled up. You're me—why are you tormenting me? The question rose to his throat. Lianus hated this version of himself. It looked just like him but was never on his side.
He wanted to wake up. Squeezing his eyes shut with that thought.
Kkiang...
"...? Robby?"
No way.
Anxiety forced his eyes open.
He saw the thin canopy fabric he'd changed recently. And a fluffy bundle of perfectly roasted almond-colored fur.
"......"
His face was damp. Sir Evan, who seemed to have witnessed the scene, spoke up, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Your Highness, you're awake."
"...Yeah."
Come to think of it, Robby had slept with him too.
Lianus scooped up the puppy licking and pawing at his face, then staggered to sit up. He felt oddly absurd.
Turning his gaze slightly, he saw Nihil sleeping soundly beside him without stirring. Sir Evan interpreted the look and soothed him gently.
"The physician visited today as well. He said there's no one healthier, so please don't worry too much."
"...Sniff, yeah."
Of course, after using the elixir. It was terribly precious, but wasn't that exactly why it existed? If a treasure couldn't save his dear friend, it didn't deserve the name.
Lianus rolled up his sleeve to wipe his damp face. Then he placed the puppy on Nihil's face. Since Robby had pulled him from the nightmare, maybe it'd work this time too.
But Nihil didn't wake. He'd have to confront the grand duke. The elixir must be defective.
"Kkiang!"
"...Robby."
Robert barked as if consoling him. Nihil had said Sir Evan taught him how, and sure enough, the sound was quite convincing now.
"Thanks, Robby."
Lianus hugged the puppy again, its short tail wagging furiously. Seeing it grow so healthily eased his mind a bit. And yet, it also made him anxious.
"Maybe I shouldn't have taken Robby in either."
"Kkiang!"
"...Yeah, sorry."
Lianus looked a little downcast at the puppy's scolding, then turned back to Nihil.
"...Will you end up like that too?"
Like his mother who died giving birth to him, like the animals he raised, like the nanny. Were you unhappy because of me too?
Maybe the curse was real after all.
He didn't resent the grand duke. His friend had struck first, and it was a near miracle the grand duke hadn't exploded after having his hair grabbed.
"Nil's... strong, so he'll be fine."
It's okay, it's okay, it's okay.
Knock knock.
"Your Highness."
As he desperately clung to that shred of hope, the head maid arrived.
Lianus dabbed away his fresh tears with the puppy. Piyo-ok—Robby whined in protest, but since Robby had slobbered all over his face too, he ignored it and replied brightly.
"C-come... ahem, come in!"
But it wasn't just Perry who entered the bedroom. Behind her came Rima, her expression blank—it felt like ages since he'd last seen her.
The head maid was stiffer than usual, almost looking frightened at a glance.
"Head maid, what happened?"
Lianus grew uneasy, wondering what new problem had arisen.
"Y-Your Highness..."
She hesitated before finally parting her lips, her voice trembling slightly.
"H-have you heard the rumors circulating in the palace lately?"
"...Rumors?"
Lianus tilted his head. He had no idea what was going on in the palace right now. He'd been by Nihil's side the whole time. His friend would be upset if no one was around when he woke.
He glanced at Sir Evan, but he'd been glued to his side all day too, so he looked clueless as well.
Then Rima replied indifferently.
"There's a ghost in the palace."
"It's not a ghost!"
"......?"
Perry's immediate retort made the mood awkward. But she shoved Rima aside as if refusing to yield and continued.
"Th-the Grim Reaper's been coming and going in the palace."
"Grim Reaper?"
Foreign envoys had often lost their way and wandered up to his palace before. His Majesty had eventually found out and posted guards in a rage, but Lianus had always kindly directed them on their way.
Maybe this was something similar.
"Which country's envoy is it this time..."
"The Reaper's come to take the young master away..."
The two spoke at once, then froze mid-sentence.
"...Huh?"
"...Pardon?"
Lianus finally processed Perry's words, his face draining of color as he stammered.
"Wh-why would they take Nil?"
Did one of the envoys know his friend?
Lianus's face grew paler by the second. His mind raced. Of course! Nil couldn't be some ordinary street urchin. He was pretty, smart, and strong!
But, but...!
"...Finders keepers, right...?"
"Your Highness... what on earth are you talking about?"
Sir Evan sounded baffled, but Lianus shook his head vigorously while clutching the sleeping Nihil.
"No way am I giving him up!"
"Kkiang!"
Robby chimed in supportively. Even if real family came looking, no dice. His friend had a history of kidnappings tragic enough to call his life tumultuous.
It surely wasn't a good family!
"I used elixir on him, fed him tons of meat, Nil said he likes me, and... and..."
Lianus choked up mid-sentence. Thinking about it, he'd only received things—hadn't given much back.
"I can make him happier!"
"......"
"......"
His resolute shout met only silence. Lianus deflated.
"...Not good enough?"
Could he not find happiness by my side?
"Your Highness, I think there's a misunderstanding..."
Perry, who'd been tense, gave an awkward smile and explained the ghost sightings in the palace from a few days ago.
But Lianus's face grew stiffer with every word.
"In my opinion, it's not an ordinary ghost. It's the Grim Reaper."
The "Reaper" Perry meant wasn't a diplomatic envoy, but the messenger of the underworld.
The one who ferried souls to the afterlife!
"...So the Reaper's been searching for something in my palace for three days, and you think it's Nil?"
According to Perry, the first to spot it were Yvon and Jane, and other servants had seen it since.
"Yvon's got guts."
I'd have screamed in terror. As he muttered, Perry continued hesitantly.
"...At first, they thought it was just a lost child."
"Hmm... yeah, that tracks."
It was so very Yvon-like that Lianus nodded unconsciously.
"But like Rima said, it might just be a normal child ghost. Why think it's the Reaper?"
"It's not a normal child ghost."
Rima contradicted her this time. Lianus's head filled with questions.
"That's definitely the young master."
"......?"
Who?
"It's the Reaper!"
"It's the young master's soul."
"???"
Lianus grew more confused. The conversation felt disjointed. Had he dozed off midway without realizing?
"...Let me clarify."
Sir Evan finally spoke up, exasperated.
"A ghost has been appearing for three days, and now you're arguing whether it's the Reaper or the wildcat's soul?"
"Yes."
"Exactly."
"......"
Sir Evan narrowed his eyes as if wondering what kind of people these were. Unable to hold back his curiosity, Lianus asked Rima first.
"But Rima, why do you think it's Nil's soul? Does it look just like him?"
"No, no one got a clear look at its face. They said its eyes were covered."
"Uh..."
Nil did cover his face with cloth often, but...
Perry jumped in again.
"It's not the young master! It was much smaller. About... this big."
Perry held her hand a bit above Lianus's knee for scale. Seeing the height, he tilted his head in confusion.
"Isn't that too small?"
It looked about two or three years old.
"...It is, rather."
"What kind of Reaper is that tiny?!"
Rima cut in at Perry's hesitant reply. Lianus had never seen Rima talk this much.
"It's a fragment of the young master's soul. That's why it's small. Some remains in his body."
"Wh-what?"
"So we catch it and put it back in the young master's body."
Lianus's eyes widened at the firm explanation. It sounded plausible. If a soul fragment had broken off, preventing his friend from waking—that was worth trying!
"No, it's definitely the Reaper. Seeing the young master won't wake, it'll surely come to claim his soul!"
But Perry stuck to her guns and continued.
"I encountered the Reaper myself last night."