How the Prince Makes Friends Chapter 155

***

 

“Have some of this, too!”

“Thanks, Noah. Here, Neil, eat while you work!”

“Okay.”

Nihil accepted a bite-sized sandwich, made a few adjustments to the contract, then pushed it back toward Morris.

“Merchant, will this do?”

“Hmm… Like this… No, the exclusive contract period… Ah, yes, thank you, Noah. Please extend it to fifteen years. In return, I’ll increase your share.”

“You’re asking me to change five years to fifteen? Isn’t that a little too greedy…? Ner, open your mouth. Isn’t that a little too greedy?”

Nihil slipped a carrot into Rianus’s mouth just as he was trying to discreetly push it aside, then picked up his pen and calculated the interest rate.

Morris glanced somewhat awkwardly at the brown-haired prince, who was chewing on a carrot with his lips slightly puckered, before turning his attention back to the contract.

Then he noticed tomato sauce splattered across the document and let out a deep sigh.

The prince’s guardian… No, his friend, was displaying an impressive ability to multitask even amid this chaotic situation, taking care of both the contract and the prince at the same time.

Come to think of it, he had wanted to get a proper look at those cat ears he’d seen through the communication crystal, but today they were nowhere to be seen.

He had been about to ask about them, thinking that magical tools might sell quite well, when Noah spoke in a dejected voice.

“Father, do you not like it?”

“H-Huh? No, that’s not it. I’ll eat it, Noah.”

Morris realized that he was still holding the stuffed egg Noah had prepared for him, and hurriedly put it in his mouth.

After scribbling a few more things onto the contract, Nihil glanced at him and curled up the corner of his mouth.

“See? I told you we should have had a leisurely meal first and continued afterward.”

“…But I have other appointments this afternoon.”

“You should have cleared your schedule.”

“Did you really expect me to know it would take more than four hours…?”

Morris said that he had come with a light heart because he had been told he could bring his child along, then quietly offered that as an excuse.

“If you’d told me from the beginning that the contract would contain terms like these, I would have come better prepared.”

“You should have anticipated something like this when I told you to bring mana stones.”

“…….”

It wasn’t entirely wrong, so Morris let out another deep sigh.

“That’s why I told you there was no need to sign the contract right away. It’s not good to make such hasty decisions. Isn’t that right, Ner?”

“Hm? Yeah!”

Rianus hadn’t really heard what was said because he had been busy doing something else, but he nodded anyway and hurriedly put a sandwich into Nihil’s mouth.

If his friend said so, then it must be so.

Actually, he had secretly hidden the bell pepper he’d picked out earlier inside the sandwich. He hoped his friend wouldn’t notice.

Nihil either hadn’t realized there was bell pepper in it or found even bell peppers delicious, because the corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly. What a relief.

After speaking a little more with Baron Allier, Nihil took a fresh sheet of paper and began writing something on it.

“Ner.”

“Y-Yes?”

Rianus had been busy making another bell pepper sandwich, so he was startled when his name was called. Still, he tried to act as though nothing was wrong.

“What is it?”

“Come here and write your name.”

“My name?”

When told to write his name, he picked up the pen and briefly wondered whether he should use his alias or his real name. Nihil gave him a short explanation.

“Your real name.”

“Okay!”

Murmuring his name, Rianus de Harpense, he carefully filled in the blank. His friend let out a quiet laugh.

“Why are you laughing? Is my handwriting that strange?”

“No. Next time, make sure you read the document before signing it.”

“Uh… What was it about?”

“Nothing much. Since my identity is unclear, I simply wrote your name in my place. Oh, while we’re out, shall we stop by Shaton and visit the children?”

“R-Really? Sounds good! I want to go!”

Were the children doing well? Had their living conditions improved at all?

As he wondered what he should bring them, something slipped into his mouth. It was a sandwich.

Rianus instinctively began chewing it, when—

Crunch.

“…….”

“Is it good?”

“Mm… Mhm…”

Sniff. I shouldn’t have put bell pepper in it.

 

***

 

“Meow, meow, little kitty cat~ The little kitty will grow up to be a tiger~”

“Dan, stop singing and come here. And you’ve got all the lyrics wrong. Come on, let’s wash your face.”

“It’s such a hassle…”

“Get over here, you little rascal. The tiger will come and gobble you up with a roar.”

“Nooo! If I’m dirty, it’ll think I’m disgusting and won’t eat me!”

Dave scooped up Dan, who was trying to sneak away, and scrubbed his face clean.

At first, the act of washing up had felt unfamiliar in itself, but after watching Yvonne hyung grab the children one by one and make them wash their faces, he’d soon gotten used to it.

“Who went to collect the rations today?”

“Oh, Pan, Mari noona, and the twins.”

“What did we get today? I want potato soup. You know, the kind that guy made for us.”

“Bri, where are you going?”

“I don’t wanna wash my face~ The water’s cold.”

“Jane, catch Bri!”

It was another busy yet peaceful day. Looking at the cozy tent instead of the old warehouse where the wind had whistled through every crack, Dave was overcome by a strange feeling.

Shaton Street was changing by the day. Of course, that didn’t mean it was becoming prettier. The road had been dug up everywhere because the water pipe construction was in full swing.

Even so, the streets were much more pleasant now that the drunks and drug addicts had disappeared.

“Yvonne hyung, when will the fountain be ready? I want to see it.”

“Bri, it’ll be a while before construction is fin— Ack! Dan, I’ve only seen that three times! Dave, make him stop!”

Yvonne was horrified as he watched Dan folding newspaper into origami. But the newspaper, already worn and battered, was torn to pieces with a satisfying rip before Dave could even open his mouth.

“Ah, darn.”

“Hyung, leave him alone. Three times is plenty. Let’s just buy a new one. But can we get something other than the employment newspaper? The sentences are all so similar that I don’t think it’s much help.”

“It’s still useful for looking for jobs while we’re at it, isn’t it?”

“What’s the point? All the application deadlines have already passed. That’s why I’m saying we should get the latest issue. Neil even paid the newspaper office to get one.”

Dave grumbled as he gathered the torn newspaper and tossed it into the bonfire.

Whoosh! It burned very well.

“We’re back!”

Just then, the children who had gone to collect the rations returned. The others, who had been busy doing their own things, rushed over and began carrying the supplies.

“Look! There’s milk in today’s rations! We still have some potatoes, right? Jane hyung, can you make potato soup today?”

“There’s a picture on the milk bottle! It’s so pretty! Can I keep the glass bottle after I finish the milk?”

“Jane oppa, I’m hungry!”

“O-Okay, I’ll make it. J-Just wait.”

While the children laughed and chatted over the groceries, Pan came running over noisily, waving a newspaper.

“Yvonne hyung! I found a newspaper!”

“That’s great. The one we had just became kindling.”

“It’s less than half a month old! Hmm… Is that right?”

Pan tilted his head, apparently unsure of his own calculation. It seemed counting was still difficult for him.

Dave took the newspaper and checked its publication date.

“Pan, this is a nine, not a six. When are you going to learn to tell them apart?”

“Q-Quiet! I only started learning recently, so it’s natural to get a little confused! Anyway, it’s recent, right?”

“Hmm, yeah.”

The newspaper was a little wrinkled, perhaps from being exposed to the night dew, but compared to the ones they’d seen until now, the ink was much clearer. It was definitely a recent issue.

It would have been better to buy one, but Yvonne hyung was reluctant to spend money. Perhaps it was because more and more children were joining their group.

“Yvonne! Come help me with this!”

“O-Oh, okay! Mari, I’ll be right there!”

Yvonne blushed at Mari’s call and hurriedly ran over.

Good for him.

“I want chocolate.”

At Pan’s sudden demand for chocolate, Dave scrunched up his freckled face.

“Why are you suddenly talking about chocolate…?”

“I have some! Chocolate!”

“……?”

At the sudden shout, the boys whipped their heads around.

“Want some?”

“……Ner?”

“Yeah! It’s me!”

“???”

What are you doing here?

 

***

 

Bern, the baker, found himself at a loss for a moment. A group of children who looked vaguely familiar, along with one child he’d never seen before, had suddenly shown up asking for bread. How was he supposed to interpret this?

“Give it to us.”

“N-Noah, you shouldn’t do that.”

“Huh? Why not?”

“Well, you have to pay for it.”

“But the merchant company just gives things to me when I ask…”

That’s because you’re the merchant’s son…

Rianus was sweating profusely. How could he explain things so that he could buy bread without letting the baker discover who they really were?

“Um… Noah, do you have any money?”

“I don’t carry money around… Ah! Mikael, c-come—Mmph?!”

Rianus hurriedly covered Noah’s mouth before he could call the hidden guard knight. His heart was pounding. Was this how Nihil felt when he covered Rianus’s mouth?

They’d even deliberately changed into plain clothes to pretend to be commoners, but it seemed like all that effort had been pointless.

“Hyung… Do you happen to have any money…?”

Rianus decided to place a little hope in his ever-prepared friend.

A low chuckle came from beneath the hood pulled down over his head, and a money pouch appeared from inside his clothes.

“Just as expected of you, hyung!”

As someone who had already experienced his first errand, Rianus taught Noah how to buy things. He felt a little proud of himself.

However, after barely managing to stop Noah from complaining about what he could possibly buy with copper coins and successfully purchasing some chocolate and cookies, Rianus was completely exhausted.

“Neil, what did you give the baker earlier?”

“Payment for the bread I got from him last time.”

“Ah! I didn’t even think of that!”

Nihil simply shrugged. He had tossed a gold coin to Bern before leaving.

The moment the older Noah had spoken politely to Rianus, any chance of pretending to be commoners had already gone out the window.

“By the way, Noah. You don’t have to speak politely to me when we’re outside.”

“But how could I possibly…”

“We have no choice because we need to hide our identities. Oh, I’ll introduce you to the friends I met before.”

With that, Rianus confidently took the lead.

After buying groceries at the vegetable shop and fruit shop they’d visited before, the money pouch quickly grew lighter.

Nihil had tried to pick up some unpleasant bell peppers, so Rianus had hurriedly stopped him.

The other children definitely won’t like bell peppers either. It’s better to buy one more potato than an expensive bell pepper!

His friend ate anything without complaint, but children had their own tastes, too! If the others heard his reasoning, they would surely praise him for making the right choice.

When they reached the slums, they saw sturdy temporary tents set up in rows.

Rianus was wondering how he could find Yvonne and the others among so many tents when he heard a familiar name nearby.

“Yvonne! Come help me with this!”

“O-Oh, okay! Mari, I’ll be right there!”

Thinking that was perfect, Rianus hurried toward the tent where the voices were coming from. He spotted Dave and Pan.

Just then, he heard Pan mumble something.

“I want chocolate.”

Chocolate! He’d just bought some! It was a good thing he’d thought to bring it!

“I have some! Chocolate!”

“……Ner?”

“Yeah! It’s me!”

Rianus hurried over, delighted to see them.

“Ner… Is that really you? Your hair color changed. And your eyes… Weren’t they originally greenish brown? I thought they were a little lighter…”

Dave tilted his head. He’d thought Rianus had been covering one eye because he’d been injured, but now that he looked closely, there wasn’t even a scar.

“Ah, yeah. Um… Dave, here. Take this.”

Rianus fiddled with his brown hair, which had been changed using the magical tool Nihil had made for him, then awkwardly brushed the question aside and handed over what he was carrying.

“What is all this?”

“Food! There’s chocolate, too.”

“W-Where did you get all this?”

“I bought it! Oh, this child is Noah.”

As he introduced Noah, Rianus also handed Dave the paper bag Noah had been carrying.

“Are you giving all of this to us?”

“Yeah! Oh, and the things Neil is carrying, too.”

“Ah…”

Dave sighed as he looked at Nihil, who was almost entirely hidden behind a large paper bag, with only his feet barely visible. So it had been Neil all along.

“Hey, give it here. I’ll carry it for you!”

Pan took the bag from the walking paper bag… no, from Neil, and hugged it to his chest. But it was apparently quite heavy, because he staggered badly with every step.

“Ugh…”

“…Give it to me. I’ll carry it inside.”

Nihil gave Pan a pitiful look as he stubbornly struggled to carry the paper bag without admitting it was heavy, all because of his pride. Then he took the bag back.

Pan immediately looked dejected.

“…But I’m taller and older than you…”

“Who said that? You’re older than me.”

“……?”

Confusion filled Pan’s eyes.

Nihil chuckled and headed toward the place where he could sense Yvonne’s presence.