JSOML 13

Chapter 13

Larry curled his toes tightly. He was so tense that his tail, resembling a foxtail, stood straight up.

Just then, a completely unexpected question came out of Ian’s mouth.

“……What’s that smell?”

“……Myaang? (……What?)”

“You……. When did you last bathe?”

After all that buildup to make him nervous, that’s all he had to say…….

Taken aback, Larry sniffed his pink nose. A faint musky, stale odor stung his nostrils.

“Ahem. Sir Ian, is that you……. Hmph.”

‘No, what is this smell? I haven’t been washed that long ago…….’

While Larry was trying to identify the smell, Luke, his face flushed, bowed his head to Ian. His persistent fake coughs were clearly attempts to stifle laughter.

“Our Larry is so clean, though.”

Watching them, Theodorus abruptly stood up. He seemed intent on stepping in as the owner to defend his companion cat’s image.

“Then, Your Highness, you take a whiff.”

But when Ian shoved Larry towards him,

“No, I’m fine.”

Theodorus waved his hands, firmly refusing. He couldn’t even manage his expression, forcing an awkward smile.

“Chirp! Chirp chirp! (#$%#$)”

Even the annoying Pompom was rolling around on the table, convulsing with laughter.

If this place was a circus stage, Larry was undoubtedly the clown.

‘You bastards…….’

In the end, Larry exploded at their antics.

Times like these made him regret not being human. If he could just curse them out properly, he’d feel better, but in this body, it was impossible.

“……Smelling it again, well, it’s not bad.”

Perhaps realizing he’d gone too far, Ian set Larry down and muttered casually. Then he lightly brushed the fur clinging to his palms and clothes.

‘What? Not bad?!’

But those words only fueled Larry’s burning rage.

Larry, who had been patiently waiting for an opening, suddenly swung his front paw.

[SYSTEM: Skill ‘Deadly Nyan Punch’ has been used!]

“Myaaaang! (You instigator!)”

However, Ian twisted his body aside, easily dodging the attack. As a result, Larry ended up swinging at thin air.

Witnessing this ridiculous sight, Pompom burst into laughter again.

“Chirp! Chirp chirp! (&^*^! %$#!)”

“What are you doing, seriously.”

Ian caught the wobbling Larry, who was swaying like a branch, and snorted in a pathetic manner.

If it weren’t for him, Larry might have stumbled and fallen from losing his footing in midair, but Larry felt no gratitude whatsoever.

He handed the glaring Larry over to Theodorus.

“By the way, Ian, what brings you here?”

Theodorus asked, placing Larry on his lap. It was curious, as Ian should be with the 1st Knights Division at this hour, yet he was here, quite far from there.

“My schedule ended early today, so I’m on my way home from work.”

“Already?”

“Then are you telling me to work overtime?”

At the sharp retort, Theodorus grinned affably.

“Would I ever make you work overtime? I meant have a meal before you go.”

“I’m fine.”

“I’m fine too. As it happens, some good venison came in today.”

Ian was dumbfounded. Looking at Theodorus’s brazen face, a wave of regret washed over him.

He had only stopped by briefly because he heard commotion on his way home, but now he felt caught against his will.

As if Ian alone wasn’t enough, Theodorus glanced subtly at Luke.

“Luke, what about you?”

“I, Your Highness! I have nieces and nephews waiting for me, so I must be going.”

“Your nephew got married last month, didn’t he?”

“Th, that’s right, but his children are waiting for me now…….”

He said he got married last month, and now he has ‘children waiting for him.’

Luke’s snowballing lies were about to build a mountain. Theodorus folded his arms and grumbled.

“Fine, go ahead. And take Pompom with you on your way.”

“Ah……. I’m so disappointed, Your Highness. I will make sure to attend next time.”

“Empty words.”

The moment permission was given, Luke hurriedly prepared to leave with Pompom. His liege could change his mind at any moment, so he couldn’t let his guard down for a second.

After Luke scurried away, Theodorus watched his retreating back and muttered.

“Anyway, Luke definitely has a secret lover.”

“I think you’ve got it wrong.”

“Then?”

“……Never mind.”

Ian quietly shook his head. Saying more would only waste his breath.

Then he shifted his gaze to Larry, who was still looking at him with a sour face.

Chewing on Theodorus’s fingers on his lap, he seemed particularly displeased.

Ian’s eyebrow twitched mischievously.

“Thug.”

“Myaaah? (What did you say, you bastard?)”

Instantly realizing the remark was directed at him, Larry shot Ian a glare.

He had just been silently suppressing his anger, but he couldn’t understand why he was being targeted. He felt like bundling him up with Pompom and throwing them both away.

“……Stop fighting, you two. Let’s wait a bit until the meal is ready.”

Theodorus brushed back his golden hair, looking tired.

Ian lightly tapped Larry’s grumpy pouch and spoke to Theodorus.

“Ah, I saw Lady Lopez in front of the Empress Dowager’s palace today.”

“I see.”

At Theodorus’s unexpectedly calm response, Ian asked with a puzzled look.

“You knew?”

“She said she often visits Her Majesty. The frequency has increased recently, though.”

Bella, a key figure in the Empress Dowager’s faction, had long enjoyed tea parties with her. Theodorus had an inkling of what those tea parties meant, but the recent noticeable increase in frequency was problematic.

Theodorus shrugged.

“Anyway, the Crown Princess will be Larry.”

“Please stop joking.”

“Why do you think it’s a joke?”

“Well, are you saying we should have a cat as the nation’s Empress?”

Theodorus only responded with a sly, smiling eye.

Ian now found it difficult to tell whether his words were jokes or serious. He was also worried about the future of the empire.

Larry felt the same way as Ian.

‘He’s a real nutcase. I need to escape this place before that happens.’

Larry imagined himself wearing a crown, waving a soft paw in front of the people. For some reason, he pictured himself giving a speech consisting of ‘Mya mya mya’.

Unaware of their concerns, Theodorus tapped the table and muttered.

“The daughter isn’t the problem; it’s the father.”

“……Pardon?”

“……How arrogant he is, as if he can even manipulate the imperial family at will.”

Ian nodded.

Indeed, during every meeting, Duke Lopez always steered every agenda in a direction favorable to himself. Intimidated by his momentum, other nobles couldn’t even voice opposition, merely watching the mood.

Theodorus watched the sky growing darker and turned his head.

Perhaps wanting to retire early, the lights in the distant First Prince’s palace were fading.

“Ian, what about that matter?”

“You mean His Highness the First Prince. Fortunately, he is safe.”

Hearing Ian’s report, Theodorus chuckled in relief.

The 1st Knights Division, to which Ian belonged, couldn’t protect the First Prince as they ostensibly supported Theodorus, the Second Prince. They had assigned the task to the 2nd Knights Division as a fallback, and it seemed they had succeeded.

“The 2nd Knights Division earns their keep too. And what about the assailants?”

“We tried to capture them alive, but they bit down on poison capsules they had in their mouths and took their own lives.”

“A pity. We could have resolved it easily if we’d extracted confessions using magic.”

“But you decided to keep that a secret.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Theodorus clicked his tongue regretfully.

Recently, assassins had been targeting Theodorus’s older brother, the First Prince ‘Noah Wilton,’ with increasing frequency.

Fortunately, they had managed to get through it safely thanks to the knights’ protection, but it was still too early to relax.

Theodorus could roughly guess who the black-hearted mastermind was.

Someone who saw his brother as a thorn in their side. Someone who consistently acted friendly towards himself.

“I have a suspicion. There’s someone who would benefit most from my brother’s death.”

“……You suspect the Ducal House as well?”

“It’s only circumstantial. By any chance, was the poison used for the suicides from the Travis Empire?”

“We suspect so. It might be the same poison said to have been used by Emperor Kaiden when he massacred his siblings.”

“How devious. Their intention is to link my brother’s death to the Travis Empire, right? They’re underestimating the Travis Emperor far too much.”

As the conversation extended to the Travis Empire, Larry, who had been listening with great interest at first, gradually lost interest.

Understandably, he didn’t have enough information about this world yet, and absorbing the political situation was too much for him.

Tired of listening, Larry stealthily slipped down under the chair.

Then Theodorus looked at Larry and spoke gently.

“Larry, don’t go too far. Okay?”

“Mya myang. (Got it.)”

Larry answered playfully and then trotted around here and there.

He wanted to explore the garden a bit more, looking different from the daytime.

The garden, which had sparkled brightly during the day, took on a romantic atmosphere as dusk fell.

‘Refreshing.’

The cool late evening air permeating his entire body felt pleasant.

As he was wandering around the garden like that, it happened.

A sinister energy brushed past somewhere, and he heard a creepy sound of something slithering across the ground.

‘What’s that?’

Larry quickly tracked the source of the unknown energy with his eyes. Then he caught a glimpse of something hastily hiding in the bushes.

At a glance, it looked like a tail.

Instantly, a sense of revulsion washed over him, not wanting to approach. However, against his will, his feline instinct drew him there.

Larry frantically dug through the bushes.

And the moment he confirmed its identity, he froze like a stone.

‘Oh my god!’

A small black viper was flicking its jet-black tongue.

‘If that thing bites me, it’s instant death, isn’t it……?’

He felt a threat strangling his life, as if death was right before his eyes.

The viper slowly approached, as if it had found a curious prey.

“%^&***^&%^!”

It seemed to be speaking to Larry. Although it was an incomprehensible animal language.

While Larry trembled all over, the viper drew closer.

[SYSTEM: Caution! Current fear level has exceeded 50%.]

“Myaaaah! (Stay away, you son of a bitch!)”

Overcome with extreme fear, Larry let out a sharp cry and dashed away from there.

As he ran without looking ahead,

‘Ouch!’

He felt a pain in his head. Looking up, he realized he had bumped his head into Theodorus’s leg.

Theodorus, who had been deeply engrossed in conversation with Ian, was startled and checked on Larry.

“Larry, what’s wrong?”

“Mya myaaah! (There was a viper over there!)”

Larry urgently pointed at the bushes with his soft paw. But the viper had already vanished without a trace.