Chapter 191
Chapter 191
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 191
Chapter Title: Catching the Little Reaper
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"Uherng, nooo."
"…."
Our fearless baby kitten had finally managed to grab the little reaper. The problem was that his toddling steps were so clumsy he stepped on that long, flowing hair and tumbled over….
"Waaah, I'm sorry, please spare me."
"…."
Right now, the baby kitten was tangled up in the hair, scrubbing the floor with his face.
The salt pouches from the kitchen had burst in similar fashion, scattering across the floor, and the little reaper's hair was currently getting smeared with the prince's tears and snot.
"…."
"Uheungheung, don't take my dear friend. Uwaaang, help me, Sir Evan."
Even with the baby kitten's desperate plea for help, the hapless puppy could do nothing.
"…My body… won't move."
There was no hostility, but the power was staggeringly overwhelming—too much so to even think of resisting.
He considered alerting Lyma, who was guarding the lynx, but it would likely backfire. The little reaper didn't seem to sense the lynx's presence either. That must be why they'd checked every room one by one.
The moment Lyma moved, the little reaper would chase after that presence.
And this confirmed it. Whether the kid was truly a reaper or not remained unknown, but they were definitely searching for the lynx right now.
"Uheungheungheung, sorry for pulling your hair~. But please don't take my dear friend. Heungwaaang, how do I untangle this?"
"…."
Even while thrashing about, tangled in the hairball—no, the locks of hair—the baby kitten managed to say everything he wanted to.
He had no idea why the little reaper wasn't restricting the prince's movements, but it didn't seem like they meant harm….
Snap.
"Waaang."
Contrary to expectations, the little reaper's patience finally wore out, and they grabbed the flailing baby kitten by a fistful of hair.
"Oh dear, Your Highness~"
The butler rushed over at the sound of the prince's wail. The head maid was with him, and the two immediately clung on, apologizing profusely as they worked to untangle the hair.
'…What a mess.'
Fortunately, the baby kitten was rescued unscathed.
"Sniff, hic."
"…."
The group glanced warily at the reaper. Most of their face was hidden, making their expression hard to read, but it felt like they were glaring at the prince.
"I'm so sorry…."
"…."
"But my dear friend—"
Smack—
"Ow!"
In the midst of stubbornly forcing out his words, the prince finally took one to the forehead. And right after that, the little reaper vanished.
The baby kitten stood there dazed, eyes brimming with tears, mumbling to himself only after a long while.
"Hic, did they leave?"
"…Yes."
For now, at least.
"Ha."
The man let out a hollow laugh as he stared at his hair, all tangled up and smeared with tears and snot. It glistened slickly, coated in mucus.
What was that little blood clot doing up so late?
That person… hadn't awakened yet, it seemed. Or maybe it wasn't them at all.
If they were awake, they never would have let the kid make that much racket. They wouldn't have let him stay up so late in the first place.
'Dia, it's bedtime.'
'…Father, I'm not a child. I'm almost an adult.'
'Already… has it been that long?'
But not yet. You're not growing any taller. Go to sleep.
Faint remnants of memories he'd thought completely forgotten resurfaced hazily.
When was this from?
Feeling inexplicably stifled, the man ran a hand through his hair. Then he froze.
"…."
A slimy mucus coated his hand—something he didn't want to identify.
"Dia."
At Requies's quiet call, the man eating his meal looked up.
"Yes."
"…You don't resent me?"
"Are you telling me to become a filthy traitor?"
"That's not it."
"Then eat your meal. Don't make the mood weird."
The man tore off a piece of bread as he spoke. Requies stared at him intently for a moment before speaking again.
"Do you resent me?"
"Should I feed you myself?"
"Do you remember me?"
"…Father, I have no idea what you're talking about."
The man frowned at the out-of-the-blue question. Requies smiled bitterly and dipped a roasted paprika, holding it to the man's mouth. The man grimaced as if wondering what this nonsense was but ate it without protest.
Requies watched him for a long while, committing the sight to memory, then murmured softly once more.
"Dia."
"…."
"Will that child remember me?"
The man's face went blank at the near-mumbled question. No answer came. Of course not—he couldn't answer because even I wasn't certain. So neither are you.
"I keep hearing a child's cry."
"…."
"Whining about being bored, too."
"…."
The blank-faced man didn't respond, but Nihil pressed on.
"You can stop imitating my little one now."
In that instant, his vision crumbled. The dinner table laden with food, the cozy cabin, the fields, the forest….
And my little one, too.
"…."
"…."
Nihil met his own gaze.
"Thank you."
"…."
"I was happy, even if just for a moment."
With those words, "I" finally collapsed, the scene shifting. And there appeared the little one he'd longed to see again.
His little one was angry.
'No, I refuse. Don't do it, Father. Please…! Rather, let me die remembering you!'
Should he have let go back then?
Because of my selfishness….
[Traitor who abandoned your duty,]
'Damn it, Requies!!'
[Decide your future.]
I'm sorry, Dia.
[Will you forget, or be forgotten?]
In the end, it wasn't even my choice.
'[…I will be forgotten.]'
So I must bear it.
Nihil opened his eyes. His chest felt strangely heavy. Had he always been this sentimental?
No, it wasn't that. It was different. Right—this wasn't an inner heaviness rising up; it was external pressure stifling him.
Nihil glanced downward slightly. Seaweed was there.
"…."
Nihil gently laid aside the pillow and repositioned the sleeping Lianus, who was sprawled over him in an odd pose. As he carefully tucked the blankets around him, a familiar presence approached, casting a shadow. It was the puppy.
"Awake?"
"…Yeah."
"How's your body?"
At the question, Nihil patted himself down. Not a wound or even a scar remained. He was just starting to think it felt too perfect when the answer came.
"His Highness used an elixir on you."
"…I see."
No wonder it felt too pristine. Feeling oddly guilty, Nihil gave the round little head a gentle hug. Lianus, perhaps uncomfortable, frowned slightly before twisting to rest his chin on Nihil's body and plop a foot atop him.
"Guh…."
"Bear it."
Sir Evan smirked smugly at the ambushed Nihil. Just then, Lianus frowned faintly and mumbled in his sleep.
"Mmm… Nil… No more paprika…."
"Yeah."
"…."
A brief silence fell. Moments later, heterochromatic eyes snapped open aggressively.
"Nil!?"
"Yeah."
Lianus bolted upright. Wondering if he was still dreaming, he slapped his cheeks. They stung.
"Rian, no paprika today."
"Uh, uh…."
Lianus couldn't respond right away, staring blankly. He had so much he wanted to say, so many questions. Paprika wasn't the issue now—wasn't he glad to wake up safe? He'd been so worried, why the reckless stunt….
But as he opened his mouth, the most important thing came to mind first. Namely,
"Nil! Eat a lot!"
Nod, nod.
Not even considering that it had been five days since Nihil last ate, Lianus shoved heaps of meat at him.
"Skip sword training today just in case. Oh, eat this too…."
"Mmph, mmph."
Lianus beamed at the heartily eating Nihil, practically glowing with a halo. His choice had been right. Fill the belly first. Absolutely.
Nihil waking up safely was all thanks to him fending off the reaper last night. A bit unusual, but it was definitely a reaper.
Well… "fended off" was a stretch, but they retreated, so effectively yes!
"…So that's why I kept them from reaching the fifth floor!"
Pretty good, right? Lianus puffed out his chest, bragging about his adventure—omitting the part about bawling his eyes out. That was embarrassing.
Nihil, who had been listening skeptically to the absurd reaper talk, soon focused and started asking questions.
"The reaper was a baby…?"
"Yeah. About yay high, with super long hair. Like the Grand Duke's."
"The box they had…."
"Mm, about this big, a bit elongated wooden box."
"…They took… it, huh."
"Huh?"
"N-no, nothing. Thanks for protecting me."
Nihil smiled brightly, in high spirits. Lianus felt his mood lift too.
"Oh, and Carus and Baron Allié were really worried. Oh, the Prime Minister too. Things almost blew up, but the Grand Duke and His Majesty handled it smoothly…."
As he spoke, Lianus's mood soured, gripping his fork tightly.
After the incident, the banquet hall had been pure chaos. A child impaled on a skewer was no small matter, and amid it all, the queen's nobles had immediately picked a fight. Wild and uncontrollable with no one to take responsibility, they argued he should be expelled or locked up.
'Nil's not a pet!'
If the Grand Duke had gotten angry, it would've escalated, but he'd neatly handled the aftermath and even offered to remake the elixir. The Grand Duke really was a good guy—or good demon, anyway.
Having finished eating, Lianus thought that since Nihil was awake, he should at least send thank-you letters to those who'd worried. He immediately called the butler.
"Butler! Send word that Nil's awake!"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Mm, mm, and while you're at it…."
"What the hell…!"
"…?"
Lianus whipped his head around at the sudden curse. Sir Evan, who had yelled it, was frozen like his soul had fled after some exchange with Nihil. Noticing Lianus's gaze, he flinched and apologized profusely. He faintly overheard Nihil scolding him to mind his language.
"Sir Evan, what happened?"
"…That reaper… no, it's nothing."
"…?"
Lianus tilted his head but soon turned back, whispering to the butler.
"Butler, hey. If it's okay, could you invite the kids over to play? Mm, casually, nothing pushy…."
Inviting on the same day wasn't proper etiquette, but Lianus wanted a surprise recovery party for Nihil. His dear friend loved kids, so he'd surely be thrilled with a bunch around.
The butler smiled warmly, calling it a great idea.
"Sword practice in the training grounds?"
"Ah, yeah!"
"And the young master…."
"I'll leave Nil somewhere safe!"
"Pardon…?"
"The reaper might come back!"
King Sedes gazed down at his son, who had arrived early in the morning clutching his dear friend's hand, with a complicated expression.
"…So…."
"Please look after my dear friend while I do sword training!"
"…."