How the Prince Makes Friends Chapter 141

“…….”

“…….”

A heavy silence settled over the room. His fatal mistake had been getting so distracted by his tail that he’d let his guard down.

As the hand gripping his tail loosened, it slipped downward and curled up neatly between his legs again.

Evan stared at it for a moment before cautiously asking,

“…What are you doing?”

Faced with that weighty question, Nihil hurriedly made an excuse.

“The magic won’t wear off…”

“…And so…?”

“I was going to cut it off…”

“Have you lost your mind…?”

Evan’s pupils trembled as though he genuinely couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“N-No, wait. Is there no way to undo the magic?”

“It’s not permanent, so it’ll wear off on its own eventually. Probably in a week to two weeks…”

“T-Then why not just leave it alone?! Why try to cut it off?!”

“…It’s annoying when it moves on its own.”

“Y-You… You absolute lunatic!”

Evan shouted, then promptly snatched the dagger away from him. He proceeded to unleash a torrent of scolding.

“How is that any different from cutting off your own finger?! A-Are you seriously insane? Stop tormenting your tail! It’s a hundred times—no, a thousand times cuter than you!”

“…If you like it so much, shall I cut it off for you?”

“Argh, you little—!”

Evan furiously raked his fingers through his hair, then grabbed a blanket and wrapped Nihil up tightly in it.

“Please, just stay put. If you start talking about cutting off your tail in front of His Highness, I’ll never let you hear the end of it.”

With that, Evan picked up the blanket-wrapped wildcat and headed for the adjoining room. Surely, even this brat wouldn’t talk about cutting off his tail in front of the children.

“Neil!”

The little kitten greeted him brightly, stretching out both arms.

Evan watched with satisfaction as their adorable little kitten, who remained the pinnacle of cuteness even without ears or a tail, then handed over the wildcat wrapped up in the blanket.

“Your Highness, he says he failed to get rid of his ears and tail. Apparently, they’ll disappear on their own in about a week or two.”

“Oh, I see! More importantly, Neil, everyone promised to keep it a secret, so you don’t have to worry too much!”

“…Okay.”

Nihil replied weakly from inside the blanket. Rianus immediately wrapped his arms around it.

“Neil, don’t be too disappointed. Um… It actually suits you very well.”

“…….”

“I’m serious. You really are adorable.”

“Ahahaha! That’s right, young master! It suits you wonderfully!”

Frederick, who had been hiding in the shadows the entire time, finally revealed himself and laughed to his heart’s content, as though savoring his newfound freedom.

Nihil tried to act as if he didn’t care, but the tail poking out from beneath the blanket thumped against the floor, expressing his displeasure in his place.

That annoyed him even more, so he grabbed his tail tightly. Another burst of laughter immediately erupted.

“…Rian, he’s making fun of me.”

“Y-You! You’re going back now! I’ll send you back!”

“Send me back? What if I go to the Magic Tower and report everything?”

“What?! B-But you promised me you’d keep it a secret!”

“Well, let’s see~ I might be able to keep my promise if I get to touch that fluffy tail just once~”

Frederick teased the little kitten.

Rianus looked close to tears, unable to believe someone could go back on their word so easily. Still, he firmly refused to let Frederick have Nihil’s tail and carefully tucked it back inside the blanket.

He seemed to like the fluffy texture, though, because he secretly stroked it once or twice. Nihil pretended not to notice.

Sniff. “Neil, if the Magic Tower comes after you, let’s run away together.”

“Excuse me? Your Highness, you can’t run away from home.”

“Hmph! I’ll tell them I ran away because of you!”

“W-Wait! You shouldn’t do that…”

“Neil, come here.”

Leaving Frederick behind as he stammered in confusion, Rianus pulled Nihil over and sat him on the bed. Then he carefully wrapped the blanket around him.

And began feeding him meat.

“Neil, eat lots!”

Nod, nod.

Nihil obediently accepted each bite of meat. He was quite satisfied with the arrangement: buried in a blanket, all he had to do was open his mouth, and the meat came right to him.

“Do you have no hands or feet?! Eat it yourself!”

Evan, who had been watching, suddenly burst out in frustration. How could their adorable little kitten be reduced to waiting on some disobedient wildcat?! This was simply unacceptable. Even the other children had each taken a piece of meat on their forks and were waiting for their turns.

Meanwhile, Bella the cat also tried to offer him some meat, picking up a piece in her mouth. But apparently deciding that wasn’t a good idea, she simply ate it herself.

“Marquess, why are you doing it too?!”

Even the Marquess had quietly joined the feeding procession.

“Haha! I wanted to try feeding him, too.”

Carus chuckled cheerfully, then casually approached and whispered,

“Can you see that tail?”

“…Is there something wrong with it?”

Following Carus’s nod, Evan looked at the white tail poking out from beneath the blanket.

“Many animals express their moods through their tails. Watch carefully.”

“…….”

At those words, Evan found himself observing the tail.

And then he saw it. Every time a piece of meat entered Nihil’s mouth, the tip of his tail swayed gently!

‘Oh, for the love of—!’

He should never have looked!

Even as he cursed inwardly, Evan unconsciously picked up his fork and speared the last piece of meat.

He stood there in a daze, having apparently lost all his intelligence, waiting in line until his turn came. Then he suddenly froze, realizing what he was doing.

‘I can’t believe I’ve fallen for that wildcat’s tail!’

There was no guarantee the brat would even accept meat from him. Evan hesitated, wondering whether he should put the fork down again, when he heard a series of thumps.

“……?”

He turned his head. The wildcat was staring up at him expressionlessly.

But despite that blank face, it was obvious he was extremely displeased.

Thump, thump-thump, thump, thump!

His tail was mercilessly whipping the bed.

Thinking that perhaps raising a tail wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all, Evan held out the meat. Fortunately, the wildcat accepted it without complaint. His tail immediately settled down, its tip swaying gently.

‘…Maybe I should ask if I can keep this one.’

Evan still thought the tail was a hundred times—no, a thousand times cuter than the wildcat himself.

His thoughts began wandering toward whether it might be possible to raise the tail separately, without the wildcat attached. But just then, the swaying tail was pulled back beneath the blanket by its owner.

Carus tapped Evan’s side, looking disappointed.

“My friend, how could you stare so openly? Now it’s gone back inside.”

“…….”

‘I never thought I’d live to see the day I was charmed by a wildcat’s tail rather than the wildcat himself…’

Evan felt thoroughly humiliated, yet he couldn’t help missing the sight of it.

Fortunately—or unfortunately—he didn’t have to wait long to see the tail again. When they showed Nihil the medicinal herbs sent by the Allier Trading Company, it shot straight up, trembling so vigorously that it nearly lifted the blanket.

His excitement was painfully obvious. Yet he still managed to keep his face perfectly expressionless, which made the whole thing rather amusing.

“Let’s just keep the tail, after all.”

“…What… nonsense are you talking about?”

Nihil frowned as though he’d just heard something utterly absurd, while stroking Rianus’s hair. The little prince had fallen asleep while clutching Nihil’s tail tightly.

“His Highness seems to like it very much.”

“Why? Would you like me to entertain you with my tail, too?”

“…No, thank you.”

While Evan struggled to maintain his sense of identity, Nihil quietly turned his head toward the man standing motionless nearby.

He was Noah’s escort knight.

“More importantly…”

“……?”

“Hand it over.”

“Pardon?”

“I said, hand it over.”

The knight, who hadn’t uttered a single word and had merely stood guard until now, tilted his head slightly as if he had no idea what Nihil was talking about.

“…What… Do you mean?”

“The communication orb.”

“…….”

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

The man tried to play dumb, but Nihil didn’t press him any further.

Instead, he merely continued stroking Noah’s head, who was asleep beside Rianus.

But when that gentle hand moved past his head, down to his forehead… his cheek… his jawline… and finally his neck, the knight had no choice but to move.

“…Here it is.”

Nihil accepted the crystal orb, which was slightly larger than his fist, and gave it a faint smile.

“Company President.”

“…….”

“I know this side has been broadcasting everything in one direction.”

“…….”

“I advised you not to investigate my background, yet here you are, openly investigating what lies in front of you.”

“…….”

“I’d like to have a conversation. Connect us both ways.”

“…….”

The moment he finished speaking, a figure appeared inside the crystal orb, which had previously shown nothing. A voice immediately followed.

—…I’m sorry.

“So you do know how to apologize. I’ll accept this communication orb as your apology.”

—……

“What? Does that bother you?”

—…No. You may keep it.

Nihil casually removed the communication orb—of which there was only one in the main palace—and smiled with satisfaction.

“So, how did you find the investigation into what lies in front of you?”

—……

“Hm? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Morris couldn’t bring himself to answer so easily. Nihil’s manner of speaking was gentle, yet carried a subtle pressure that made it difficult to respond carelessly.

His gaze unconsciously drifted toward the tail, but unlike its smiling owner, the tail resting in the prince’s arms hadn’t moved at all.

“Company President.”

—…Yes?

“You… have quite a bit of influence behind the scenes, don’t you?”

At that question, Morris’s lips, which had been pressed tight with tension, curved slightly upward.

—There are more sides to me than you’ve seen.

“Contact me when you have time. I’d like to speak face-to-face. Today, though… I’m rather busy with something else.”

As he spoke, Nihil glanced at Carus.

“We’ll meet outside. It would be troublesome if we attracted too much attention.”

—Understood.

After a brief exchange, the communication orb swallowed the image it had been displaying. Nihil casually rolled it into a corner of the bed, then called out to Carus.

“Teacher.”

“Y-Yes, my dear friend!”

“Come here.”

Nihil handed the teddy bear Pupu to Rianus, who was still clutching his tail, then reached out toward Carus.

Carus happily scooped him up at once and began fussing with his ears and tail. Nihil gave him a sharp smack on the forehead before closing his eyes.

With his eyes closed, he opened his spiritual sight and sensed the spirits’ energy. After confirming that Carus’s condition had improved slightly, he slowly opened his eyes.

“How is it, my dear friend? I’ve been keeping the spirit… um, the little stone you gave me very carefully.”

Carus’s turquoise eyes sparkled as he gazed at Nihil with eager anticipation.

Nihil adjusted Carus’s glasses, which had become slightly crooked from rubbing his face against Nihil’s head. Then he glanced at Cara, who was asleep while holding Bella the cat in her arms.

“…You’ve improved quite a bit, but compared to that child, your talent is… utterly inadequate.”

If Carus had possessed any real talent in the first place, he would have awakened as a compatible one long ago. His mother would have continued casting spells on him, after all.

But Carus seemed far more interested in the fact that his youngest sister had talent than in Nihil’s assessment of his own abilities. His eyes lit up.

“Does our Cara have talent?”

“Yes. Teacher, that child could enter into a contract right now. However…”

“However…?”

“Her power is not something to be underestimated, so I can’t help her carelessly. It would be troublesome if you ended up siding with the First Prince.”

“Oh! Then should I officially announce my support for the Second Prince? What about becoming his patron? Would a marquess be a useful enough supporter?”

Nihil rubbed the corner of his mouth awkwardly as he watched Carus so readily declare his support for the Second Prince.

“…I don’t think that’s a decision you should make so lightly…”

“It’s not a particularly difficult decision, either. I’ve only maintained a public stance of neutrality because I didn’t want to oppose the ducal house.”

Carus shrugged as though it were nothing, then scratched his head awkwardly as if he’d just remembered something.

“Though Cayenne and Carum will probably scold me…”

“…Your younger brothers?”

“Haha… Well, they’ve been saying they’re glad I haven’t been cooped up in my research lab lately. Of course, that’s also because you told me to stop doing that, my dear friend. Anyway, when will you make a contract with our Cara?”

“Who knows? Once she’s ready for a contract and I like her, I suppose I’ll do it right away.”

“So you need to prepare, too, my dear friend!”

“…? What do I need to prepare?”

“Then does that mean our Cara hasn’t quite won your favor yet?”

“……?”

Nihil raised an eyebrow slightly, feeling that something about this conversation wasn’t quite right.

“Teacher, I think you’ve misunderstood something. I’m not the one who will be making the contract.”

“What? You’re not the spirit… the esteemed one? Since when?”

“…….”

…What on earth is he talking about now?