The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away - Chapter 30.2
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Because Crown Prince Kailos and his aide Leslun had disappeared for a while, delaying matters, they ended up stuck at the Academy for the entire night.
After sending Leslun outside, Kailos faced Blue.
Ever since Blue had first appeared, the two often met in private whenever Leslun was asleep.
Kailos crossed his legs and folded his arms. His posture was far more crooked than usual, an unmistakable sign of his displeasure toward the creature before him.
Meow—.
But of course, Blue didn’t care in the slightest. His response was more along the lines of And what are you going to do about it?
“Ha.”
Kailos let out a dry laugh.
A spirit beast truly was a spirit beast—or rather, a sly little monster.
“If you remembered what you did to me, you wouldn’t be sitting there so shamelessly.”
Meow—.
Blue calmly licked his fur.
“A guardian beast, and yet you dare to shake me?”
Meow—.
Blue batted at the bell by his side with his paw, sending it tumbling.
“You understand every word I’m saying, and still you fool around?”
Meow—.
The more he spoke, the deeper the lines on Kailos’s forehead grew.
That was deliberate—he was sure of it. That same cry, over and over again, was proof enough. The fact that Blue didn’t even bother to make another sound made it all the more infuriating.
Between spirit beasts and humans, no special hierarchy truly existed. In time, a guardian beast would go on to serve the Emperor, but that didn’t mean it bowed to humans.
And since Kailos was still only the Crown Prince, perhaps Blue thought there was no reason to respect him yet.
At one point, Kailos had even thought the little creature was endearing—small, cute. But there was nothing cute about this.
Worse, he knew that in front of Leslun, Blue would act even more irresistibly adorable. That knowledge only deepened his resentment.
“…Is this because I put the necklace on? Is that why you shook my mind…?”
Meooow—…
This time the cry stretched out just slightly. Blue looked at him and tapped his paw against the floor.
The complaint was clear: Weren’t you harboring feelings for Leslun?
“What nonsense. When did I ever feel that way?”
Meow—.
“He was nothing more than my aide. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Meow—.
“All right, fine. I admit it. I wanted to torment him. But you know exactly why that was.”
Meow—.
“I’m confused enough as it is, so I’ll stop here. But you’d better stop crossing the line yourself.”
Robin, watching the standoff between Kailos and Blue, wondered desperately how he was supposed to explain any of this.
“Why… why are you like this, Your Highness?”
Ever since he had stumbled upon that clandestine moment with Leslun earlier, none of it had made sense.
“Don’t just keep it between the two of you—at least explain it to me, too.”
Even as Robin muttered in frustration, neither Kailos nor Blue showed the slightest sign of consideration. The Crown Prince glared at him irritably, while Blue met his gaze with a look that said, What do you expect me to do about it? The tension only thickened.
“If anyone saw you, they’d think you really were just a common cat. Why keep pretending you can’t speak, crying like that?”
Meow—.
Kailos tried to provoke him, but Blue deliberately gave the exact same cry again. Then, as if to rub it in, he hopped down from his soft cushion.
It even looked like the kitten had grown a little—no longer a baby, but closer to a child.
Watching the creature walk away so haughtily only made Kailos’s indignation surge. He pointed at Blue.
“You spoke so clearly inside my head, and now you pretend you can’t say a word? Isn’t that cunning?”
He pressed Robin for agreement.
Following his master’s finger, Robin glanced briefly at Blue. The spirit beast stopped mid-step, looked back at Kailos, and—astonishingly—shook his head like a person.
That gesture was nothing but cute, not infuriating in the least. Robin almost burst out laughing, but he knew he couldn’t. Biting his lower lip, he finally answered:
“…I don’t know, Your Highness.”
Sometimes, pretending ignorance was the best course. Unable to withstand Kailos’s displeased gaze any longer, Robin hurriedly busied himself with his papers.
“I—I have a meeting to attend. Please don’t worry, I’ll look after Leslun carefully.”
Meetings for aides were usually held during mealtimes. With those words, Robin was making it clear he would check on Leslun as well. He quickly excused himself with brisk steps.
He had to disappear before Kailos could call him back. Just as he was about to slip away as if on urgent business—
“This isn’t the Imperial Palace.”
At Kailos’s low words, Robin forced himself to stop and instead shifted discreetly to a corner.
The meeting had only been an excuse from the start. Now that he couldn’t leave, this was the best he could manage.
Kailos tilted his head.
“What in the world is going on?”
He still couldn’t understand what had happened earlier. Why had Blue made Leslun appear so alluring?
Where, exactly, had things gone wrong?
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