Chapter 46
Chapter 46
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: A Peaceful Night
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The door burst open, and Evan's hand, just about to knock, froze in mid-air.
Nihil lifted his chin and asked,
"What is it."
Truly startled, Evan furrowed his brows and muttered curses under his breath as he pulled a small glass vial from his pocket and tossed it to Nihil.
"Here."
Nihil caught the vial filled with red liquid and shook it gently, making the contents slosh around.
"His Majesty sent it. How are your wounds?"
"A potion, huh."
"Yeah, it's a low-grade one, but still rare. It's the kind you use in emergencies on the battlefield or during monster subjugations. Anyway, it would be trouble if His Highness noticed your injuries, so use it without worry."
"……."
Nihil recalled the gashes on his forearm that he had inflicted himself. They had been pretty ragged, but by now they must have mostly healed.
"I'll wash up and use it."
"I'll check, so don't forget to use it."
"…Got it."
Nihil finally managed to send Evan off after some soothing words, glancing repeatedly at his forearm. He washed up roughly and stepped out.
Steam rose gently from Nihil's body as he emerged from the bathroom, his pale cheeks slightly flushed pink. Unlike the steamy bathroom, the bedroom was quite cool. He hadn't lit the fireplace since he planned to head to Lianus's bedroom anyway.
The wounds on his forearm hadn't healed as much as he'd thought. Perhaps because he hadn't regained his full strength yet, or maybe because he was already assimilated into a human form.
If anything, it was a stroke of luck. Now he could use the potion.
Nihil uncorked the potion and boldly poured it over his forearm. Since it was already half-healed, a tiny amount would have sufficed, but potions made from troll blood spoiled easily once opened, so he emptied the entire bottle.
Nihil flung open every door attached to the bedroom in search of a place to store the herbs. Excluding the bathroom, there was a reception room, a small study, a dressing room, and an unusually spacious terrace. It had everything, but no suitable spot for the herbs.
The dressing room especially was lined with clothes and shoes made by the royal designer that Lianus had given him, each occupying its own space. Thanks to that, there were plenty of fancy outfits for going out, but hardly any casual clothes or loungewear.
Nihil deliberately pulled out pajamas with sleeves that rode up a bit and slipped them on, as if to show them off. Otherwise, that puppy would fidget anxiously until he confirmed the wounds for himself.
After changing, he stepped out of the dressing room and headed back to the study. Location-wise, it seemed the most suitable for storing herbs.
Nihil tapped on the study walls. It felt a bit cramped, but since the room next door seemed empty, he wondered if he could knock down the wall and remodel the study into a herb storage room. That's when Evan returned.
Having realized that Nihil always sensed presences anyway and didn't need knocking, Evan entered without any warning.
But unlike Nihil, Evan couldn't detect Nihil's presence as readily, so when he didn't see him in the bedroom, he called out softly.
"Wildcat."
"In the study."
Evan strode toward the study where the voice came from.
"Couldn't you at least light the fireplace?"
As he spoke, Evan sneaked a glance at Nihil's forearm as if he hadn't meant to. Seeing the wounds cleanly healed brought him some relief. Then his eyes caught two thick books shoved unceremoniously into a corner of the study.
They were none other than the herbology tomes he himself had procured.
"Why'd you leave those there?"
"So the kid doesn't see them."
"…Why?"
"I lied to Rian, saying he was bad at reading."
"That's true, but… you have to make medicine for His Highness eventually, so you can't keep hiding it forever."
"Later. I still need an excuse to read him picture books for now."
Evan felt a strange mix of emotions and carefully opened his mouth.
"Uh, didn't you say you can see mana?"
"Yeah."
"Could you… maybe fix His Highness's mana vessel too?"
"…I can only see it. A mana vessel is like a mana heart, so if there's a way to restore a shattered mana heart, that method would work."
Evan, understanding Nihil's words, bowed his head deeply. There was no way to restore a shattered mana heart. If there were, mages or knights with broken mana hearts wouldn't end up as invalids.
Nihil paused for a moment, looking at Evan with his head hung low. The words "I'm sorry you can't remember" echoed in his mind, making him feel unnecessarily bothered.
Nihil hesitated, opening and closing his mouth as he looked at Evan, then continued in a very small voice.
"…Still, if it's right after it shatters, there might be a way, so if your mana heart ever breaks, come find me."
"……?"
Stunned by the unexpected kindness, Evan wondered if he'd misheard and stared down at him with wide eyes. The wildcat avoided his gaze and kept talking.
"I can't promise a sure fix. But it's worth trying once, right?"
"……."
"Just in case, don't go breaking your mana heart relying only on my word."
"……."
"…What, you forget how to bark now?"
"……."
When Evan didn't respond, Nihil looked up. Evan was still staring down at him with wide eyes and his mouth agape.
Nihil furrowed his brows at the dumbstruck, screw-loose expression.
"Forget it. Pretend you didn't hear."
"N-No, I mean, yes. I'll keep that in mind."
Evan shook his head quickly and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. Then he handed over a tin of tea leaves he'd brought.
They were the precious leaves the apothecary had given him.
"Take this. From the apothecary."
Nihil opened the lid to check, then set it down indifferently.
"Throw it out."
"…Something wrong?"
"The tea itself is fine. It helps expel minor toxins and calms the nerves. The problem is its compatibility with Rian. For elves, it's no different from a narcotic."
"What?"
"It doesn't harm the body like human drugs, but it's highly addictive. I don't know how or how strongly it'll affect a quarter-elf like Rian, but better safe than sorry. Or you drink it."
"……."
Evan ground his teeth. He'd been suspicious about the 1st Prince's side, but this confirmed it.
Nihil shrugged nonchalantly, as if it were nothing, and asked,
"More importantly, the room next door seems empty—mind if I break through?"
"This study's at the very end of the building, though?"
"……?"
A question mark rose on Nihil's face. If the study was at the end of the building, structurally it shouldn't feel cramped. And he'd definitely tapped the wall and sensed empty space next door.
To confirm, Nihil left the bedroom and headed to the far end of the hallway with the stairs. As he'd sensed, the space visible from the hallway was slightly larger than the study's, but there was no door.
"A secret passage?"
"…Not impossible."
Ignoring the unhelpful Evan, Nihil re-entered the study through the reception room door. He deliberately stomped loudly, tapped the walls, and lifted decorative empty vases.
"Puppy."
"…Don't call me that."
"Push that bookshelf."
"……."
Evan carefully pushed the bookshelf as instructed. It was empty but heavier than expected, and it only budged a little before sticking.
"Won't go any further… Should I smash it?"
"No. We'll look more later. Rian'll be out soon."
"…You're still guarding all the way to His Highness's room?"
"With you, my only guard knight, here, shouldn't I stay vigilant?"
"……."
Evan had guessed Nihil's vigilance range was wide, but this was truly impressive.
This room faced His Highness's bedroom directly, like a mirror image in reverse layout. With the study being the farthest from the bathroom, it meant the wildcat was guarding the entire fifth floor alone.
"I only focus like this when you're away from Rian. Keeping such a wide range normally would tire me out."
Nihil pressed his temples as if genuinely exhausted. Evan thought that with this guy around, His Highness's safety was assured. Feeling proud, he ruffled Nihil's still-damp hair and scooped him up, heading to His Highness's bedroom.
Lianus had just come out of the bathroom and was being tended to by the maids. Spotting Evan and Nihil, he quickly dismissed them.
When Evan handed Nihil over, Lianus grinned like he was receiving a gift box and hugged him tightly.
It looked like a gift-giving ceremony with zero input from Nihil, but he hugged back without complaint, then grabbed a dry towel and gently dried Lianus's hair.
"Rian, let's sleep early tonight. Like I said earlier, I might be a bit busy tomorrow preparing to go out. Tomorrow's just swordsmanship and imperial language classes, right?"
"Um, no. There's princely studies after swordsmanship."
"Then I'll eat at the main palace."
"Erm……."
Lianus couldn't answer right away.
Yesterday, His Majesty had invited him to dine, so it was unavoidable. But now, he didn't particularly want to eat with his older brother. Still, with classes right before and after lunch at the palace, going back to his own palace just to eat would seem inefficient and arouse suspicion.
As Lianus pondered, Nihil poked his cheek.
"Rian, I don't wanna eat alone. If time allows, come back and eat with me?"
"Uh, huh? Yeah, plenty of time. Got it. Lunch here!"
Lianus's slightly darkened expression brightened instantly.
Meals really should be eaten back here. He couldn't leave his dear friend to dine alone!
"What time will you come back?"
"Swordsmanship ends at 11, …and I can be here by 11:30!"
"Pardon?"
Evan interjected at the impossibly tight schedule, but Lianus, eager to spend every minute with his friend, emphasized with shining eyes.
"11:30!"
"…Don't rush and strain yourself. I'm not going anywhere."
"Okay!"
"Alright. Mind if I watch you read before bed tonight?"
"Yeah!!"
Lianus nodded vigorously and darted off to hug a stack of fairy tale books before Nihil could stop him. Nihil soothed the wide-eyed boy, dried his damp hair first, then settled in properly to read the fairy tales.
It was a peaceful night, just like Nihil's soft, gentle voice.