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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: First Friend, Nil
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"I'm Lianus de Harpen, the 2nd Prince of the Harpen Kingdom. I'll turn eight this summer. Call me Rian. And you? What's your name? How old are you?"
Lianus introduced himself once more. But the boy seemed utterly uninterested, giving a half-hearted reply.
"...I'm older than you. And call me whatever you like."
"You don't have a name?"
"I do, but I don't like it much."
The opal-eyed child glanced at the knight beside him before answering slowly. Lianus worried that Sir Evan had scared him earlier with his shout.
Sir Evan was his one and only guard knight—they'd be spending a lot of time together from now on. What if things started off like this? He was a bit big and gruff-looking, but he was truly a good man.
Sensing that his knight made the boy uncomfortable, Lianus subtly shifted to block the child's view. He couldn't fully hide Sir Evan's massive frame, which was several times larger, but he felt oddly satisfied when those pretty opal eyes turned to him.
"It's okay! No matter how strange the name is, I won't laugh."
The child fell silent a bit longer, then parted his lips ever so slightly, murmuring the word 'Nihil' in a voice so faint that even Lianus, with his sharp hearing, barely caught it.
"Nihil?"
"Yeah."
Hearing the name, Lianus tilted his head and blinked.
It was unfamiliar, but not strange at all. Why had he hesitated? If anything...
"I don't know what it means, but it suits you perfectly."
"...You have good instincts."
Nihil's face stiffened for a moment at the compliment before he let out a soft chuckle.
He muttered that nothing could suit him and the word better, gazing out the window in resignation. He looked terribly lonely.
He really hates that name. The meaning must be awful.
Realizing his slip-up, Lianus racked his brain to smooth things over.
"W-well, then can I call you Nil? F-friends use nicknames, you know... You're my first friend, s-so, if you're okay with it..."
His mismatched eyes rolled anxiously, gauging Nihil's reaction. Fortunately, Nihil had already returned to his expressionless state and nodded with a simple "sure."
To avoid messing up again, Lianus repeated the short name in his mind over and over.
"Nil."
"Yeah."
"Nil."
"What."
He answered every call. It was natural, perhaps, but Lianus's chest swelled with emotion.
"Nil, say my name too. My name."
"...Lianus."
Nihil quietly recited Lianus's name. His voice held no emotion, but its presence was undeniable. Lianus felt a twinge of disappointment that it wasn't "Rian," but he beamed anyway.
Once we're closer, he'll call me Rian for sure. It's just too soon.
"Nil, my bed's huge, so we can share it no problem! Once the servants leave, we can relax. I'll ask for extra food, so there won't be any shortage. We're about the same size, so you can borrow my clothes. And, also..."
"Your Highness, Your Highness, please calm down for a moment."
Lost in happy imaginings and chattering away, Lianus was interrupted by Sir Evan stepping in again. Perhaps to prevent him from yelling at Nihil once more, but the knight was quicker.
"Your Highness, not only are you hiding a beggar in your bedroom, but sharing the bed, meals, and even clothes?"
"Nil's my friend now, so don't call him a beggar."
Lianus's cheeks puffed out and his lips pursed in displeasure at Evan's word. Worried his new friend might be offended, he quickly checked his expression, but those black opal eyes still shone proudly, letting him breathe a sigh of relief.
"Sir Evan, we'll see each other every day now, so get along with my friend."
"If he gets caught, what then?"
"We'll sneak him in just for today, then get permission from His Majesty."
"And he'll grant it?"
"He doesn't care much, so he might surprisingly agree."
"Even so, what if word spreads that Your Highness is friends with a commoner?"
"They'll just say the outcast prince picked up a friend from somewhere because he wanted one. There are only commoners around me anyway."
"You need to consider your reputation."
"What reputation do I even have left?"
"..."
The commoner-born knight Evan was at a loss for words. He was a 'commoner No. 1' himself, and it was true there was no reputation left to ruin.
Evan scratched his head and sighed deeply.
"Your Highness, even granting all that, this feral cat has no manners. He's like this with you—what do you think he'll be like with other nobles or royals? He'll surely end up arrested for insolence and have his head chopped off."
"..."
Evan mimed slicing his own throat with a hand chop.
Speechless, Lianus looked at Nihil.
Evan was right. He found Nihil's boldness a bit cool, but other nobles or royals wouldn't see it that way.
All sorts of thoughts swirled in his head, but Nihil's eyes remained mysteriously aloof, quietly gleaming unlike his own.
"I don't use honorifics."
The aloof black opal drove the nail in deeper.
Evan looked ready to strike him then and there, but Lianus just nodded vigorously.
Yeah, if my friend doesn't want to, I can't force him. Friends don't make each other do that.
"If you don't want to, don't. I'll make sure you don't run into any nobles!"
Lianus answered brightly.
Evan bent at the waist, burying his face in his hands. Ignoring his guard knight's dramatics, Lianus nodded to himself, repeating his words.
Yeah, I'll hide Nil well and protect him.
Realizing further persuasion was futile, Evan glared at Nihil once more, stood, and opened the carriage door. A gust of cold wind whipped inside.
To keep the warmth from escaping, Evan leaped out quickly and shut the door tight, saying,
"Since you're so insistent, we'll depart. It's late, so we'll move fast—sit still."
"Okay!"
Delighted by his knight's resignation, Lianus grinned and settled back into his seat.
Soon, the carriage creaked into careful motion before picking up speed with a jolt.
Lianus's heart began to race.
Making a friend was a first, but inviting someone to his palace himself was another. He stole a cautious glance at his new friend.
He was still barefoot, his ragged clothes stained with blood and crusted red. His ash-gray hair remained damp, clumped with dried blood, looking quite filthy.
Come to think of it, he'd knocked Nihil out again and rushed here without properly tending his wounds, too dazzled by his proud demeanor to even remember the injuries.
Stopping his observation, Lianus looked up into the black opals.
Nihil was looking at him too—their eyes met suddenly.
Caught off guard, Lianus flinched.
Unable to move, head against the carriage wall in a slouched pose, Nihil met the prince's gaze. The prince couldn't look away, fidgeting tensely as if being judged for friendship, straightening his back.
The enigmatic black eyes, coolly indifferent, began slowly scanning Lianus.
The strongest impressions: anxiety and nervousness.
What had him so anxious and nervous in front of a beggar?
Nihil smirked at the squirrel-like trembling and spoke.
"Fine. Let's do it."
"Huh?"
"Friends."
He'd thought so before, but he was weak to small, fragile things.
Especially ones struggling to be loved. Even more so if they were young.
Beaming at the thought of a real friend, Lianus asked,
"For real?"
"Yeah. But I've lost a lot of blood, so I might die soon."
Not really, but still.
"That's okay?"
Intending to lighten the mood, Nihil grinned and joked.
But contrary to his hope, the seaweed before him started wilting damply again.
Would it dry out completely from all the crying and turn into dried seaweed?
The seaweed wailed once more.
"Waaah, is your life in danger because of me? Waaah, I'm sorry, I didn't know... Waaah."
Nihil wanted to comfort the young prince whose waterworks his joke had restarted, but he couldn't lift a finger. He just leaned against the shaking carriage, staring blankly.
Since getting hit, his vision had been blurry, ears muffled like underwater, body heavy and hard to move.
Somehow staying conscious must be thanks to that wild, constantly bawling seaweed.
When drowsiness hit, it cried on cue—irritating, but he owed it gratitude.
"Seaweed."
"Waaah, sorry. Hic, I'll stop crying."
No, stopping the crying wouldn't do.
Nihil felt his mind fogging over.
"Hic, too, hng, too much crying..."
"Cry more."
"...?"
About to apologize, the mismatched eyes widened round again at the unexpected words.
The sobs cut off abruptly.
'I said cry more—why stop?'
As the carriage quieted, Nihil grumbled inwardly. Then cursing from the driver's seat reached him.
Damn beggar, don't bully our prince! I'll make you wail once you're healed! Think I'll go easy 'cause you're small? And so on.
But the knight's low growl did nothing to anchor his consciousness.
And "wail once healed"—the knight took after his master, all bark.
His vision twisted sharply again.
Was it the carriage's motion or his fading focus? He couldn't tell.
If he passed out now, the young prince would surely panic, but he couldn't hold on anymore.
Just before his sight went black, Nihil spat two final words at the seaweed.
"Prepare food. Lots of meat."
Crucial info—he hoped it got through.