Chapter 7

**Prince's Method of Making Friends - Chapter 7 (7/324)**

Nihil momentarily lost for words at the instant disappearance of the seaweed and sighed deeply, bowing his head. The cloak spread on the floor came into view. The cloak he was sitting on was stained with dirt. Knowing that all the dirt came from his own body, Nihil couldn't escape from that spot. If he stepped on the pristine white rug, black footprints would surely be left behind.

"Hey, beggar."

"What."

Nihil replied curtly. As expected, the moment the seaweed disappeared, the knight, who resembled a light grayish-brown dog, started barking.

"Do you know how precious that elixir is? You could never repay the favor even if you worked your whole life. Just because the prince was kind to you as a friend, do you really think you're a friend? Know your place and behave respectfully to the prince..."

His nagging continued for a while. But it was like a dog's jealousy towards a cat that had stolen its owner's attention, or a kitten's disappointment.

Nihil, who had been watching the large grayish-brown dog bark, replied expressionlessly.

"You, who couldn't even stop the precious elixir from being poured on a complete stranger, what did you do as the only bodyguard?"

Thud.

The knight's voice, now lower and sharper, pierced his heart like a dagger. Evan involuntarily took a step back and let his emotions show.

"I'll get rid of you no matter what!"

"Try it if you can. If I'm chased away, that prince might cry himself dry this time."

Nihil's strong words made Evan flinch. Indeed, the prince's behavior today was different from usual. The lonely young prince who always cried silently to hide his weakness was nowhere to be seen; only the image of a kitten crying bitterly and pitifully came to mind.

The kitten was strangely fixated on the wild cat. Although the prince was gentle and clearly distinguished between public and private matters, he made no such distinction with this wild cat.

But the cat is dangerous. The knight's instincts told him so.

This gray wild cat was suspicious from head to toe. The way it suddenly darted in front of the moving carriage, the way it "came back to life" (it was never dead to begin with), and the way it remained calm in an unfamiliar place—all these were suspicious.

It was too risky to let the gentle kitten stay with it. Most importantly...

"Disrespectful brat."

"Hmph."

Evan gritted his teeth. The brat was too disrespectful. That was the biggest problem. This kind of brat couldn't be fixed with education. He knew he was disrespectful but acted that way anyway.

Even if he tried to force him, the brat would run away rather than submit. Besides, if he submitted, the prince would be disappointed.

Anyway, keeping him around would definitely cause problems. Although it was a waste to use half of the elixir, which could only be obtained once in a lifetime, he couldn't help but think that he needed to reveal the brat's true nature to the kitten and separate them.

Unlike the cute and adorable prince, the brat was not a cat but a wild cat. They seemed similar, but the wild cat was more savage and dirty, a completely different creature.

If the prince couldn't let go of the wild cat, he would have to guide him to leave on his own. The longer it took to separate them, the harder it would be to do so.

"Know your place. I saved you from freezing to death on the street, so if you have any conscience, crawl away on your own."

A chilling voice, even to himself, slipped out of his lips.

Is he scared? No, I said it to scare him, so why am I worried?

But in Evan's calm, light brown eyes, he saw Nihil's lips curling slightly.

Sitting on the dirty cloak on the floor, the brat looked up, but it didn't seem like he was really looking up.

Evan's jaw tightened at the sight of the brat's still calm and composed demeanor.

The brat started to sneer.

"If I don't want to leave, what can you do?"

"If you harm the prince in any way, I'll hang you from a tree and beat you senseless."

"Is that so."

'That's all he can do.'

Evan's threat was just to beat him senseless.

Nihil, returning to his expressionless state, swept the cloak he was sitting on carefully, as if the threat had nothing to do with him. The soft texture tickled his fingers. It was clearly a very expensive cloak, even though it was dirty because of him.

The prince had made it sound like he was being bullied, but it seemed that the materials were abundant and his life was far from lacking.

At that moment, the image of the round, emerald-green head bawling after being rejected as a friend flashed through Nihil's mind, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"A royal knight, worried about not being able to catch a kind beggar. You must stick close to the prince out of fear."

"Hmph, if you don't want to be chased away, just act cute and fawn over the prince."

"Fawn over...?"

Just as Nihil was about to retort that the prince was the one fawning, he heard the sound of wheels rolling outside the bedroom. The sound was getting louder as it approached.

Nihil looked up at the bedroom door, then jumped up and grabbed the cloak.

"What are you doing!"

Seeing the dirty footprints on the pristine white rug, Evan frowned and grabbed Nihil by the back of the neck. Nihil, surprisingly light, dangled from Evan's hand, but his expression remained unchanged.

"Someone's coming."

"What?"

Evan listened. He had been so focused on the wild cat that he hadn't noticed the sound of the trolley wheels getting closer.

"What? Hurry up and hide me, won't you?"

Evan, annoyed by the brat's brazenness despite being held by the back of the neck, still had to hide him.

The trolley approaching must be carrying the "lots of meat" meal the brat had ordered for the prince.

It was clear that the prince liked this brat, no matter what else.

Evan, uncharacteristically grumpy, muttered.

"Why should I?"

"Hurry up. If I'm found out, the one who'll be in the most trouble is the cute little prince you care so much about, right?"

Evan, about to retort at Nihil's sneer, realized the trolley was right at the door and quickly walked to the terrace, opened the window, and threw Nihil out.

He then quickly closed the window and locked it to prevent Nihil from getting back in. As an added punishment, he meticulously drew the blackout curtains to prevent any light from escaping.

Nihil, watching the bedroom light being blocked, guessed he would be kept outside until the prince came out of the bathroom. He unfolded the cloak and wrapped it around his shoulders, then crouched in a corner of the terrace.

Feeling his stomach tighten from the smell of food, he realized he had been hungry for quite a while.

As Nihil was banished to the terrace, a knock sounded at the bedroom door. When Evan opened it, three maids, instead of the usual one, entered, pulling the trolley.

The innocent kitten had ordered "lots of meat" because he was hungry.

Seeing the food (especially the meat) being placed on the table, Evan felt a mix of emotions and glared at the terrace.

The wind started to pick up, causing the terrace window to rattle.

Evan wished it would be very, very cold outside. After the food was served and the maids left, he started to think about what to do with the wild cat on the terrace.

He wanted to lie and say the wild cat had run away and get rid of him, but it would be an obvious lie, and even if it wasn't, the kitten might be deeply disappointed and never socialize with peers again.

Thinking about it, it seemed better to expose the brat's savage nature and make the kitten avoid him on his own.

Evan, still annoyed, considered bringing the brat back inside just before the prince came out of the bathroom, but then shook his head. If the brat decided to tattle, Evan would be the one in trouble.

Whooosh—

The wind, like a ghost's wail, beat against the window more fiercely.

'Ah, damn it.'

Evan's hesitant steps finally headed straight for the terrace.

Swish— Click, Creak!

Evan pulled back the blackout curtains, quickly unlocked the window, and opened it. But he was momentarily stunned when he didn't see the wild cat where he expected.

Did he run away?

Just as Evan was about to smile at the thought, he met the gaze of the brat, who was crouched in a corner, staring at him with peculiar black eyes.

"..."

"..."

'Fine, then.'

Evan looked down at the brat, who looked like a pile of trash, with a cold eye.

The wild cat had rolled up the prince's precious cloak, firmly stepping on the edges to block the wind.

Evan had underestimated the brat's survival skills. This brat would surely survive even if chased away.

Evan grabbed the brat by the back of the neck and brought him back into the bedroom. Placing him in the same spot, the wild cat saw the table laden with various meats and smiled, then looked up at Evan.

"Surprised."

"What do you mean?"

"I thought you'd definitely keep me outside until the prince came out."

Indeed, that was his intention.

Just as he was about to say he wished the brat had disappeared, the wild cat continued.

"You're not as petty as I thought."

Evan, taken aback by the wild cat's comment, closed his mouth without saying what he was about to say.

He almost became a petty person.