How the Prince Makes Friends Chapter 38

At the mention of the hill behind the palace, everyone turned to look at Nihil with expressions that clearly said they’d been had.

Nihil responded by disrespectfully twitching an eyebrow at their gazes. Then, remembering that the owner of the hill might have something to say about it, he pretended to look a little apprehensive.

“…Are you going to scold me for digging it up without permission?”

He lowered his head slightly and looked up at Sedes, appearing rather pitiful. But Sedes merely pressed his lips together, wearing an awkward expression. He was less concerned about the boy digging up herbs than the fact that such a precious treasure shouldn’t possibly be growing on a hill behind the palace.

When His Majesty showed no particular reaction, Nihil decided to push his luck.

“Surely a friend of your son is allowed to make a few mistakes.”

“…I suppose so.”

“If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have been able to dig it up in the first place, so please let it slide.”

“I have no intention of scolding you just for picking plants on the hill.”

“Then I’ll continue digging with a clear conscience.”

“…”

“There are surprisingly many medicinal herbs on the hill behind the palace.”

“…”

Everyone fell silent at Nihil’s shamelessness. However, what they were truly curious about was whether the red flower was really a Sirenthea.

At that moment, Evan, looking rather uneasy, asked the question on everyone’s mind.

“Is that really a Sirenthea?”

“Yes.”

“Then doesn’t that mean it’s fairly easy to obtain?”

The porters all nodded in unison. Nihil raised an eyebrow at their reaction, then shook his head and added an explanation.

“It has to grow for over a hundred years in a place where the sunlight isn’t too strong but it can receive moonlight for a sufficient amount of time. Meeting those conditions is difficult enough. On top of that, Sirenthea has the property of blending in with its surroundings, so it looks exactly like the grass and flowers around it. Ordinary people can’t even distinguish it from other plants. Furthermore, before digging it up, you have to thoroughly soak the soil around its roots with blood. If you go around randomly sprinkling blood everywhere in an attempt to find Sirenthea, you’ll surely end up dying from excessive blood loss—”

“Wait, wait a minute. Then how did you dig it up? The blood…?”

Evan interrupted him in alarm upon hearing that blood was necessary to harvest Sirenthea.

Nihil stared at Evan for a moment, then hesitated before rolling up his sleeve.

The bleeding had stopped, but several long, deep, and ragged wounds ran along his forearm.

Horrified, Evan grabbed Nihil’s arm. It was so badly mangled that just looking at it made his brow furrow involuntarily.

“What on earth did you do to yourself?!”

“I didn’t have any cutting tools on me, so I had no choice but to scrape the soil away with my fingernails.”

“Even so, how could you leave your arm in this state?!”

“Don’t make such a fuss. If I find another one, I’ll make sure to leave it for you.”

“That’s not the problem! What are you going to do about these wounds?!”

“…Next time, I’ll make one clean cut.”

“You little—!”

Looking troubled, Nihil pressed his palm against Evan’s face and pushed him away repeatedly. Then he lowered his sleeve, fastened the cuff button securely, and continued speaking.

“At first, Sirenthea looked no different from an ordinary weed. I moved it into a flowerpot and went looking for another one, thinking I might be able to find more, but I couldn’t. Then I spotted that intruder and ran into you.”

After explaining matter-of-factly, Nihil turned to Sedes.

“Your Majesty, do you have any questions?”

“How did you identify the Sirenthea?”

“I can tell just by looking at it.”

“You soaked the soil with blood, yet there’s no smell of blood at all.”

“That’s because the Sirenthea absorbed it. Isn’t the flower red now? That’s your proof.”

“What color is it normally?”

“Translucent white. It’ll return to its original color as time passes.”

“So all I have to do is give it blood?”

“You have to give the blood to the flower, not the soil. The fruit will take on the same color as the aura or mana of the person who supplied the blood. Be careful not to mix in anyone else’s blood, or it’ll be pointless.”

“…”

Sedes pondered what to do with this “bribe.”

Meanwhile, one of the escort knights tentatively raised a hand. Another knight gave him a warning look, prompting him to pout.

Sedes sighed as he watched his knights bicker through their expressions. He waved his hand as if to say they could ask whatever they wanted, and one of them promptly spoke up.

“If our captain eats the fruit, can he really become a Sword Master? …Please?”

“…You don’t need to use honorifics with me.”

The knight seemed to consider this for a moment before cheerfully asking again.

“Can he?”

“Don’t ask stupid questions. People who are capable of reaching that level don’t need to eat it. Besides, I’ve never studied swordsmanship, so don’t ask me about that.”

“How did you know our captain’s level?”

“What do you think of our levels, young master?”

“If this fellow fought that fellow, who do you think would win?”

“…”

Once one knight had broken the ice, the others began firing questions at Nihil one after another.

Sedes was at a loss for words and let out another deep sigh. His escort knights were men he had taken in and trained because they showed promise, despite being wandering mercenaries, war orphans, or defeated soldiers. Perhaps because of their backgrounds, they sometimes forgot their age and behaved like children.

But Nihil had no desire to answer every foolish question. He ran over to Evan and tugged firmly at the hem of his clothes.

“They’re noisy. Make them leave already.”

“…”

The bedroom fell silent, and everyone’s eyes turned toward Evan.

Under their gazes, which seemed to ask, Are you really going to kick us out?, Evan began sweating profusely. When all was said and done, he was the youngest and lowest in rank among them. There was little he could do.

Unable to decide how to respond, Evan finally picked Nihil up carefully and patted him reassuringly.

“You’ll have to put up with it.”

“Useless.”

Nihil shot Evan a glare, then pulled the knight’s cloak over himself and flipped it over his head. His intention to end the conversation was unmistakable.

Seeing the little boy sulking, Sedes gave his escort knights a meaningful look. They awkwardly took a step back.

“If this really is Sirenthea, it must be an extremely rare treasure. Why are you giving it to me?”

“…Didn’t I tell you? I want you to look kindly upon me. I don’t have much to give right now, so that’s all I could offer.”

“More specifically, what do you want me to look kindly upon?”

“There’s nothing I particularly need at the moment, but there’s no harm in earning some points with you, is there? Just think of it as acquiring a refined hobby by raising a flower.”

A hobby… Even if the legend of Sirenthea was somewhat exaggerated, the flower’s value, judging by the boy’s explanation, was extraordinary.

Sedes suddenly thought of the Second Prince, who had been branded as someone cursed by mana. Despite trying everything, they hadn’t even been able to determine the cause of the prince’s condition. But what if this flower could help?

He cautiously asked,

“…If someone who cannot contain mana eats the fruit produced by this flower, would they become able to contain mana?”

Hearing the question, Nihil slowly poked his head out from Evan’s cloak and met Sedes’s eyes.

“Rian’s mana vessel is broken, so it would be useless. If that were possible, I would have fed it to the child instead of giving it to you as a bribe.”

“…His mana vessel is broken? Do you know something about the Second Prince’s physical condition?”

Sedes’s eyes widened. Evan was equally astonished, having never heard anything like this before.

“It refers to the stage before the mana heart is strengthened. When someone comes close to death, their vessel begins to break.”

“…What does that mean? Then it isn’t a ‘curse of mana’?”

“Mana doesn’t possess the awareness necessary to curse someone.”

“Then… are you saying the Second Prince nearly died, and that caused this so-called mana vessel to break? But…”

It was true that the Second Prince had nearly died. Two years ago, there had been an attempted poisoning, during which the prince’s wet nurse had also died. However, Rianus’s supposed “curse of mana” had existed long before that incident, so the poisoning had nothing to do with it.

Watching Sedes struggle to make sense of the situation, Nihil added another remark without much concern.

“You shouldn’t have hesitated.”

“…What?”

“Your Majesty, too much time has passed. You should return now.”

“W-Wait. What do you mean by that?”

Sedes still had many questions, but Nihil once again coldly ordered him to leave.

“Just tell me how you knew the prince’s condition!”

“I can see mana.”

“What?”

“Have a safe trip, Your Majesty.”

And so Sedes was driven out of the Second Prince’s Palace, clutching the little flowerpot to his chest.

 

***

 

As always, Evan bowed deeply.

“…I apologize, Your Majesty.”

“No, no, it’s fine. That was a very fascinating experience. I’m still so bewildered that it feels as though I’ve just woken from a dream.”

“He doesn’t usually go that far, not even in front of the prince, but…”

“…Should I consider that a good thing?”

Was it really a good thing that Nihil behaved so outrageously in front of the king but remained well-behaved around the prince? Still, perhaps because of the boy’s mysterious, mature—no, downright elderly—air, Sedes didn’t feel particularly offended.

The sun was just reaching its zenith.

Sedes glanced down at the flowerpot he had received as a bribe. Remembering Nihil’s warning to keep it out of strong sunlight, he instinctively raised a hand to shade the flower.

The Shadow Knight disguised as a coachman took the reins, while everyone else climbed into the wagon.

“…The reason the Second Prince cannot contain mana is that he nearly died…”

You shouldn’t have hesitated.

At the memory of the boy’s voice, Sedes’s expression hardened again.

“My lord, is something wrong?”

“No, nothing.”

Sedes shook off his thoughts and turned to Evan.

“Did you know that child could see mana?”

“…He said that he could see things he shouldn’t be able to see, but I didn’t know he meant mana.”

“So that explains how he could immediately assess the knights’ abilities. And his ability to identify Sirenthea must be related to this power as well.”

“That seems to be the case. His other senses are exceptional, too.”

“…His sense of smell is certainly impressive. What about his other physical abilities?”

“He can conceal his presence and imitate other people’s footsteps. I haven’t seen or heard enough to know what else he can do.”

Sedes was left shaking his head in disbelief. It seemed the Second Prince had picked up someone far more extraordinary than he had imagined.

“…His way of speaking wasn’t very childlike, either. Is he actually much older than he looks?”

“He did say himself that he was older than he appeared, but… there’s a bit of a reason behind the way he speaks.”

“A reason?”

What sort of reason could there be for a child to speak like an old man?

“Apparently, he hasn’t been learning the language of this kingdom for very long.”

“Is that true?”

“Yes. So, much like a young child imitating their guardian’s speech, he has a habit of copying the way other people speak. He doesn’t usually talk like that. Perhaps…”

Evan trailed off and glanced at Sedes to gauge his reaction. Guessing what the knight was about to say, Sedes’s expression twisted slightly.

“Then that old man’s way of speaking… was he imitating me?”

Evan discreetly avoided the king’s gaze and answered after a brief delay.

“…He uses a much more childlike way of speaking when he talks to the prince.”

So he thinks I talk like an old man.

Sedes, who was still in the prime of his thirties, felt a little depressed.