Chapter 34: Is it really alright?

Today, Lianus woke up earlier than usual.

The night before, Nihil had been practicing reading aloud from a fairy tale book, but Lianus had dozed off and fallen asleep early.

The early morning air was quite chilly due to a late cold snap returning after just four days.

Just when it seemed the weather was warming up, this mischievous, jealous chill of spring would suddenly arrive again, frosting the terrace windows white without fail.

Evan, who had finished training at dawn, arrived at the Palace even earlier than usual and immediately stuffed a large pile of firewood into the fireplace.

Days like this were prone to sudden snowfall, making it the perfect weather for the delicate young Prince to catch a cold without fail.

As Evan shoved in about fifteen logs, something white dripped water from its head and scampered over.

“Woof, woof.”

“…Why?”

“Take this.”

“What is it?”

Evan unfolded the note Nihil handed him. It was nothing less than a list of medicinal herbs.

“When you have time, gather one of each. The marked ones are poisonous, so keep that in mind. If some are hard to find, it’s fine to skip them.”

“How many?”

“One each.”

“…Alright, got it for now.”

Evan pocketed the note and sent the servants to bring breakfast. The lynx-like creature kept staring at him persistently, but he ignored it for the moment.

The scene of the three of them sitting together for a meal had become quite familiar now.

Nihil ate a spicy chicken soup that seemed a little too strong for breakfast.

In contrast, Lianus, who was dipping bread into his snowy white mushroom soup, suddenly spoke up.

“That’s right, I had a dream that I became a hero.”

“Is that so?”

Evan responded with a warm smile. Nihil nodded, thinking that since the fairy tale Evan read before bedtime was about a hero, it probably influenced the dream.

“I became a hero and went to rescue Nihil, who was kidnapped by a witch!”

“Kuhp…! cough!”

At the mention of being kidnapped by a witch, the spicy chicken soup backfired on Nihil.

Lianus jumped up in surprise, quickly handing him a napkin and patting his back, but the tickling, stinging sensation deep in Nihil’s throat refused to stop the coughing. Tears even welled up naturally.

Evan imagined the delicate Princess Nihil in a frilly dress, kidnapped by the witch, and chuckled mischievously—almost tipping the entire table over.

When Evan locked eyes with the tearful Nihil, he felt a pang of guilt and hastily handed him some water.

Nihil, distracted by his coughing fit, nearly spilled the water on Evan’s face but managed to restrain himself.

“Are you okay, Nihil?”

“Cough, y-yeah, cough, I’m okay.”

After drinking the water, Nihil felt a bit better and wiped away the tears indifferently with the back of his hand before looking up.

His face was flushed red from excessive coughing, and white eyelashes glistened with tears. Maintaining a blank expression despite everything was impressive, but it only made him look more pitiable.

Seeing this, Evan couldn’t bring himself to laugh anymore and pressed his lips tightly shut.

Nihil sipped water repeatedly, trying to quell the lingering cough.

Feeling guilty for making his close friend cry, Lianus spoke up.

“Nihil, I’m sorry for having to come rescue you!”

“Pft! cough!”

The water in Nihil’s mouth suddenly burst out again. He hurried to cover his mouth, but water dripped between his fingers.

“Nihil!”

Wide-eyed, Lianus quickly handed over another napkin. Evan tried to hold back his laughter but couldn’t.

“Ku, kuh-huhh, Your Highness, are you doing that on purpose, kuhp?”

“Hm? Doing what? Did I do something wrong again?”

“N-no, no, Your Highness, you’re not at fault at all. How could going to rescue someone be wrong?”

“Cough, Li- Lian, cough, p-please, cough, don’t say anything, cough, cough, okay?”

“Uh, uh-huh……”

Evan was on the verge of collapsing to the floor. The fragile Princess Nihil being kidnapped was funny, but the innocent words and actions of this little kitten, causing trouble for the lynx-like creature with no malice at all, were just too adorable and admirable.

The table and the food on it trembled along with Evan.

Nihil, having finally suppressed his coughing, opened his mouth.

“Lian.”

“Yes. Are you alright, Nihil?”

“I’m okay now. If you’re going to talk about the dream, just get on with it.”

Nihil wanted to finish the story of Lianus’s dream quickly before resuming the meal. He didn’t want to accidentally spit food from the unexpected tale during breakfast.

“Uh-ugh, Your Highness, did the witch’s tower, uh-ugh, get blown up?”

Evan, still trying to control his laughter, asked intermittently as his face twisted with spasms, almost like he was sobbing.

Since Evan already knew about Nihil’s previous incident involving a pirate ship explosion, he decided this was the perfect chance to tease Nihil mercilessly.

Nihil gave Evan a look of utter disbelief, but Lianus’s eyes were wide and round as if they might roll out of his head.

“E-Evan, how did you know? I just got to the tower entrance, then boom, it exploded and was on fire!”

“Kuh-huh-huhh…!”

“But then Nihil, who was supposed to be at the top of the tower, was crawling up from underground, covered in dust, you know?”

“Ku, hahaha!”

Evan burst out laughing again.

Now, Lianus’s worried gaze shifted from Nihil to Evan.

The little kitten was anxiously meowing beside them, and the lynx-like creature sighed, holding its forehead, but Evan didn’t care and laughed freely.

It was the most boisterous and funniest morning in Evan’s twenty years of life.

***

Lianus left the Palace a bit early.

He intended to pay his respects to His Majesty before class.

Until now, he had gotten into the habit of meeting the King briefly after class, so his greetings were always short and simple.

But since the class had been split into groups, he had fewer chances to visit the main Palace.

Today, with a Royal Studies class scheduled, he resolved to find time to visit His Majesty and at least exchange a few words.

He especially wanted to express his gratitude for allowing his close friend to enter the Palace.

Though it was still early morning, His Majesty was surely already buried in paperwork in the study.

The main Palace, a solemn and majestic place that resembled the King himself, was far from lavish.

His Majesty rarely sought out the Princes personally, but as long as he wasn’t absent, he never sent them away once they came. So Lianus had no worries about being turned away.

As he waited quietly in the reception room right next to the study, His Majesty soon appeared.

Lianus stood up abruptly and showed proper respect.

“Please, sit.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

A maid brought tea. The faint floral scent wafted through the room with the rising steam, warming the space.

“Forgive me for dropping by unexpectedly despite your busy schedule.”

“It’s nothing. Is there something you wished to discuss?”

Sedess, who until now had only exchanged brief greetings with the Princes to confirm their well-being, found this private meeting somewhat awkward.

Since the Princes had no reason to visit him without cause, he also worried that something might have happened.

“No, no! It’s nothing, Your Majesty. I just wanted to visit. Since the class division, I come to the main Palace less often, and also… I wanted to thank you for permitting my close friend to enter the Palace…”

“Are you getting along well with your close friend?”

Sedess interrupted unexpectedly, speaking out.

Though he had shown no reaction when he approved the friend’s entry, he was curious about the child nonetheless, trying to act indifferent to avoid drawing attention.

Thinking of Nihil at Sedess’s question, Lianus smiled brightly.

Seeing his son’s pure smile after so long, Sedess’s eyes briefly flickered, though barely noticeable.

“We are doing well, Your Majesty. I especially wanted to express my thanks again for allowing the entrance.”

“I see.”

It was a relief to hear they were getting along.

Sedess didn’t continue and took a sip of tea. The floral scent filled his mouth.

Lianus followed suit, and the quiet clink of the teacup echoed softly in the reception room.

This time, Sedess spoke first.

“I heard the reason you have separate lessons from the First Prince is because of that child.”

“Yes, I set it up that way because I want to spend more time with my close friend.”

“I heard he’s a commoner. It must be hard for him to keep up with the lessons.”

“…He seems a bit bored, but there are no serious problems yet. Karus, or rather, the Francesca Marquis seems to like him very much…”

Lianus trailed off with a subtle expression. He recalled Karus clinging to Nihil’s pant leg and throwing a tantrum.

‘If that’s the case, he must really like him.’

Settling his thoughts, Lianus nodded and corrected himself.

“He likes him very much.”

“That fellow is so carefree, he probably doesn’t care about status.”

“Yes. Your Majesty, if I may…”

“What is it?”

Sedess dismissed the maid. Lianus wondered if he was finally going to bring up the main matter and grew serious.

“There is something I want to ask.”

After confirming everyone else had left, Lianus began.

“Sorry, it’s nothing important, but my close friend prefers to keep his story private, so I’m being a bit cautious.”

“Your close friend?”

“Yes, he says he might be my weakness.”

Sedess narrowed his eyes.

Though true, it made Lianus’s close friend seem a little suspicious. Ordinary children wouldn’t give such advice.

He wondered if the child had approached them intentionally, taking advantage of the Prince’s status.

But since the child didn’t try to hide anything suspicious, it was hard to judge.

‘I hope my innocent son isn’t tangled up with some strange kid…’

“Though you say he’s a commoner, he sounds quite intelligent. Is he perhaps a bit older?”

“I’m actually not sure of his age, but he’s about my height. And I truly think he’s very clever. So, if I may, I’d like to ask…”

Unaware of how much his father’s worry was burning inside him, Lianus smiled brightly, pleased that his close friend was receiving compliments.

“…Please, go ahead.”

“Have you heard anything about my close friend from the teachers or anyone else?”

“The Countess said you seem very fond of your close friend.”

“Of course I am! Is there anything else?”

“Well, no. I didn’t try to find out, and there were no rumors. The Marquis hardly says a word. Maybe he likes the child. They say that the child never goes out alone, and even the guards patrolling the Palace have never seen him. Could it be that this is also your…”

“…Yes.”

“Did your close friend tell you to ask?”

Feeling bad for coming to express thanks but ending up talking only about his close friend, Lianus grew embarrassed.

Seeing him shrinking back nervously, Sedess decided to continue the conversation openly, both to talk and to find out more about the commoner child.

“May I ask you about this child?”

“Yes, yes! Please ask!”

“Didn’t the child say to keep his information from spreading? Are you sure it’s okay to talk about this so easily?”

“It’s fine! The child said if Your Majesty asks, I shouldn’t hide anything. If I hide it, it’ll all show on my face anyway. And hiding it might make people suspect the child is strange, which would be troublesome.”

Suddenly, Sedess felt a wave of concern.

…Is it really alright?