《Kiss the Black Cat》


 Chapter 1

    Chapter 1


    Translator : Hasr11


    Editor : Aconyte


    ¡¸We don¡¯t have the scope to spare manpower for such a thing!¡¹


    ¡¸It can¡¯t be helped since the Prince¡¯s Coming of Age ceremony is less than a month from now! Even now, it¡¯s because of these preparations that we¡¯re lacking in manpower!¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t you want to let His Highness Chennel return to his own country!?¡¹


    In the spacious room, the meeting was thrown into a chaos. I, while noncommittally listening, pulled my hood over my eyes and laid face down, stifling a yawn. l was exhausted.


    I was always tired of these regular meetings, held once a week to ensure the smooth sailing of life within the royal palace. Why? It was because they were only crunching numbers and nobody expected me to say anything.


    I thought, if that was the case, it¡¯d be fine if they just didn¡¯t bother calling me at all, but it seemed that as long as you showed your face, it was tolerated. Our captain-dono said that it was due to the past, that our positions had remained unchanged, but when I thought of how they were all attending the meeting while thinking the same thing, it was all a giant waste of time.


    However, if we ended up not even being called to this meeting, the increasingly declining prestige of our Order would become more and more noticeable. I, a single-minded youth, chose the seat prepared in the most inconspicuous corner, trying to stifle my yawns throughout the meeting.


    Incidentally, I did not have the position required to attend this meeting. Actually, it was the captain who was supposed to attend, but he, being well past his prime, would be sleeping soundly every time, unfazed by all the eyes on him. As expected, censured by the rest of the attendees, our captain, who felt bothered, ended up pushing it onto me.


    Captain told everyone around, ¡¸The second-in-command, Nidel shall attend in my stead from now on.¡¹, but I was not even really the one next-in-charge. It was because even the ones amongst us who were meant to be the next captain, were actually also elderly people who dreaded going out, and thus this burden was pushed onto me. Our Order was filled with a bunch of shut-ins.


    Thanks to that, it was mostly up to me to show my face for official matters.


    ¡¸Certainly, in our views, it¡¯s most welcome for Chennel-sama be returned to his own country, but the travel might be dangerous.¡¹


    When the Prime Minister was talking, the King, who until then had a long face in the center of the room, looked over to us and lowered his head.


    ¡¸This is a request from the King. I¡¯m sorry everyone, but please cooperate.¡¹


    When the King said that, even the ones who had been loudly expressing their disapproval, made a sour face and remained silent. As expected, when the King made a request, they wouldn¡¯t dare to say ¡¸Don¡¯t wanna¡¹.


    Even though our king was not a talented person full of unique wisdom, his personality was gentle and pleasant, I had always thought of him as a good ruler.


    To begin with, our country¡¯s Kings had always been docile, no matter what era. With people around him always being reliable, perhaps it was balanced out.


    Incidentally, the ones with power were the three main divisions: the Prime Minister, the Royal Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order . It could easily be said that these three controlled the country.


    Even within the meetings, people had always said that.


    Today¡¯s meeting topic of discussion was a prince of a foreign country, Prince Chennel. Even if I did address him as a Prince, he was just the third prince, merely seven years old. Prince Chennel¡¯s country was a small rural country (our country too wasn¡¯t a particularly large one), but it had a heartwarmingly good relation with our country in the past, and for the sake of cultural exchange, relatives of the royal family had often stayed here spanning to several months.


    This time, under the pretext of our country¡¯s Crown Prince¡¯s Coming of Age ceremony drawing near, they had come to play all the way since last month.


    I had also seen him numerous times, with a bright and gentle face (which was indeed countryside-like), he was a cute prince.


    Prince Chennel¡¯s homeland was relatively peaceful, but unusually, there had been discord and disputes arising over blood lately. It seemed that they were fighting over the throne. The sparks extended to even Prince Chennel, and for that reason, they were aiming for his life.


    He probably judged that it was safer to stay in our country as compared to his homeland, and thus he was to stay in our country as planned till the internal conflict in his homeland had calmed down. Moreover, there had been a request from the other King, who said¡¸I¡¯m sorry, I want you to strengthen the guards around Chennel.¡¹.


    Even if we were in peacetime, we were now in the middle of preparing for the Crown Prince¡¯s Coming of Age ceremony or something like that, and we could barely spare more than the bare minimum strength for some foreign country¡¯s Prince. That was the truth, but we couldn¡¯t possibly say that upfront.


    Even our country had appearances to maintain.


    ¡¸Can¡¯t they just send guards from over there?¡¹


    Suddenly, the Squad Commander-dono of the Royal Knight Order spoke. From the Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order , three people each were attending. One could easily tell that they had massive strength just from the numbers.


    ¡¸It seems that the circumstances there, do not allow for people to leave the country as of now. I¡¯ve heard this will last till just before the Coming of Age ceremony. Someone else who has planned to attend will come along, and after the ceremony, will take His Highness Chennel back home.¡¹


    ¡¸I see¡­¡¹


    After hearing the Prime Minister¡¯s reply, Squad Commander Legato said nothing more, and obediently withdrew. He scowled just a bit and made a complicated expression.


    I gazed at that figure from under my hood. The best way for me to kill time during the meeting was to gaze at the Squad Commander of the Royal Knight Order, Legato.


    Because I was only stealthily observing from under my hood, the other party wouldn¡¯t notice.


    I¡¯ve held a one-sided interest, or should I say, a special affection towards this squad commander. And of course he¡¯s a person that was worthy to look at.


    Legato and I had a lot of things in common. First of all, our age was the same. He was the youngest amongst the attendees of this meeting at only twenty seven years old. That meant that he had reached this peak position capable of attending this meeting at this age. I too was attending as well, but it wasn¡¯t as if I had an official post, so our circumstances were different.


    The time when we began working at the royal palace was also the same. We both entered the Royal Knight Order and the Technological Magic Order respectively at the age of eighteen.


    There were two magic Orders in our kingdom. The Royal Palace Magic Order and the Technological Magic Order .


    Of course, it went without saying that the Royal Palace Magic Order were better than us. Our Technological Magic Order got the dropout treatment so to speak. Our numbers only totalled fifteen, and we resided in a dark, narrow, old and tiny tower at the edge of the Royal Palace premises. We were thought of as irresolute and doing work without understanding anything. Thanks to that, we were made fun of, even within the Royal Palace, and our status was exceedingly low.


    Well, it wouldn¡¯t be wrong to call us dropouts, being a gathering of people who couldn¡¯t adapt to the Royal Palace Magic Order , magicians who didn¡¯t have any particularly special talents or ones whose usage were difficult, or those with absolutely no social skills.


    But, in my opinion, in terms of ability in magic, we definitely wouldn¡¯t lose to them, and in terms of variety, we surely excelled over them. Of course, I possessed the strength to think that I was the best in that field within the kingdom.


    In the Technological Magic Order, there were many instances when the work was simple. Repairing a magic tool, and other mediocre things like that.


    Because it was filled with people who only had thoughts of magic throughout the day, shut in the tower, we were quite friendly amongst each other, but we had absolutely no social interaction towards outsiders. Thanks to that, even I, who did not particularly possess any social skills was seen as ¡¸Extremely Sociable¡¹by them, and all contacts with the outside was pushed onto me. I thought of pushing that work onto my juniors once they grew up a bit, but for now the reality was that I was left with no choice but to undertook the work assigned by my shut-in senpais.


    Because all the members of the Technological Magic Order , wore sultry black robes, pulling the hood over their eyes hiding their faces, and lying face down walked unsteadily, I thought it couldn¡¯t be helped that we were looked down upon.


    It was too different from the brilliant white robed figures of the Royal Palace Magic Order, or the imposing figures of the Knight Order .

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Charlotte


    And, the time when Legato and I reached our current position was also the same. He took the position of squad commander last year. The Royal Knight Order had to be more nimble than the main force, so since time immemorial they have had comparatively younger leaders, but that did not change the fact that he was chosen.


    I also assumed the post of public relations or rather, I was the one who went out when there was need for someone to go out in the Technological Magic Order. I was certainly thought of as the ¡¸vice-leader¡¹ by everyone around. I didn¡¯t intend for that though.


    Legato was a fine man even from the eyes of a man like me. He was tall, and as a knight who had attained balance, he had an ideal body type. And since he had been selected for the post of captain, he was capable. Even though he was capable, he indeed did not have strong and rugged looks, but was refreshing and cool. His ashen hair was cut in a neat style, his eyes had a tinge of blue in them, and his features were also good.


    Certainly he was a subordinate, but he seemed like a someone from a noble peerage. Maybe that was why he had elegance. His nature too was earnest and he was a hard worker, and he was modest too. His attitude toward the people who held a lower position was courteous, and he was never arrogant. The fact that both his hand in sword and his position as a captain were fruits of his hard labour, was something that one could understand just by looking.


    That degree of perfection was somewhat obnoxious, but the reason he was not disliked was because he was teased by his superiors for being a type to sometimes go round in circles. Being too serious would become his foe, and occasionally he would even be a bonehead. That was certainly worth teasing. He was said to be a lovable person.


    Anyhow, even if that was included, he was still a man who left nothing to be desired.


    Just as our personal histories were similar, and our positions were also similar, I felt, in one way and another, that he was treated as a doormat by the main force¡¯s members just like me. I often saw the main troops push bothersome work onto the squad. The squad commander Legato, without voicing a single complaint, would do the work earnestly. He was too obedient. You could feel his good upbringing.


    If it were me, I¡¯d definitely complain.


    Legato, being the same age as I, might have been slightly bothered about me, but if I had to say then it felt as if he were keeping away from me. I¡¯m sure he, who was diligent, couldn¡¯t tolerate someone like me who seemed the insincere type.


    A person who did nothing but stifle yawns all throughout the meeting.


    It wasn¡¯t as if I particularly wanted to get close to him, but the part of me that held a sense of closeness to him wanted him to do his best.


    ¡¸Anyhow, I know that we lack the manpower, but we shall provide guards to Chennel-sama for this one month. Tomorrow evening, the concerned people shall gather again. Till then, please sketch up a guard plan.¡¹


    When the prime minister spoke, members of the Knight Order gave out a sigh, yet replied in the affirmative. I once again stifled a yawn. The guard matter had nothing to do with our order.


    Like that, I listened to it completely as someone else¡¯s matters, but when the king suddenly turned to me and said a few words, I shook my body in surprise.


    ¡¸Nidel, won¡¯t you go out as a bodyguard from the Tech side?¡¹


    Told by the king I stared in wonder for a moment. Incidentally our Technological Magic Order was often called ¡¸Tech¡¹or ¡¸Tech Order¡¹in short.


    It seemed I was not the only one surprised by the king¡¯s words, simultaneously from my surroundings bewildered voices were raised. Incidentally, the ones who showed the strongest displeasure were the Royal Palace Magic Order.


    ¡¸Your Highness, what do you mean by that!? That we, the Royal Palace Magic Order would lack ability if we went by ourselves!? To borrow the strength of Tech!¡¹


    ¡¸N-No¡­That¡¯s not it, it¡¯s because we¡¯re lacking in manpower, that I thought of seeking the cooperation of Tech¡­¡¹


    The king offered an explanation even while being overwhelmed by the vigour of the Royal Palace Magic Order.


    ¡¸It¡¯s impossible for Tech to become bodyguards! The coordination will unnecessarily be in disarray! Even if you do not worry, we shall join hands with the Knight Order and become proper guards!¡¹


    ¡¸I-see¡­I¡¯ll leave it to you¡­¡¹


    The king nodded while being forced by their vigour, but he still turned his gaze towards me in a regretful manner. I was uneasy at the king¡¯s gaze; it seemed as if he wanted to say something, but he added nothing more.


    The Royal Palace Magic Order too threw a scowling gaze, and I nonchalantly averted my eyes from that gaze. I had no intentions of burdening myself with unnecessarily troublesome things.


    The Royal Palace Magic Order had incredible pride and hated our Order putting our noses in their affairs the most. That gaze eloquently conveyed that it was best that Tech stealthily worked behind the scenes under the feet of the Royal Palace Magic Order.


    Moreover, I who had no qualms whatsoever, wouldn¡¯t adopt a defiant attitude. We were not suited for the role of bodyguards. Anyhow, if I accepted such a job, I could see it coming back to me.


    Tech being Tech, at present there was a dizzying rush. As we inched close to the prince¡¯s coming of age ceremony, small jobs such as repairing the magic in toolset within the palace piled up like a mountain. I didn¡¯t want to add jobs needlessly.


    The meeting closed, leaving behind the Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order who were discussing in all seriousness, the others were all scattered and left that place behind.


    I, while traversing the royal palace, hastened my steps towards the tower that was my haunt.


    It seems the black robe that each of the Technological Order were wearing was not the uniform per se, but because everyone else was wearing it, I too decided to do the same. When you wore the hood, you could block out the gazes from the surroundings as well as the sunlight so it was convenient.


    I myself had black hair and black eyes, thus had a familiarity towards black, and felt at peace for some reason while wearing it, so I was fond of this robe.


    When I left from the black door of the royal palace and walked to the depths, from the corner, the short tower of the Technological Magic Order where I worked stood. From the time the king¡¯s palace built it, that tower that stood unchanged was considerably old and shabby. However, we occasionally repaired it by ourselves, so the inside was comfortable compared to its outer appearance.


    Entering the dark and chilly tower, when I showed my face on the single floor room where everyone was present, the black masses that were crouched down on the gaps between the piled up tools disconnectedly rose their heads.


    ¡¸Hi Nidel¡­How was the meeting?¡¹


    Looking at the senpais who approached restlessly or the kouhais who only raised their heads and stayed where they were, it somehow gave of a feeling of a gathering of black insects.


    ¡¸An excellent problem came. On the matter of Prince Chennel.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh¡­They¡¯re aiming for his life, right? It seemed as if the disputes had been settled, but it seems the rebellion members paid an assassin, and the assassin wants to execute it.¡¹


    Hunon, who was scheduled to become the next leader, nodded with a know-it-all look. I wondered why he knew such information, but Hunon was an abnormally well-informed person. I always thought he¡¯d go out for the meeting, having the capability to get such information, and being scheduled to be the next leader, but Hunon was a person who hated troublesome things. I suspected he had the intention to let me continue being the one to show his face outside even if Hunon became the captain. Most probably, that was for sure. He had a greater ability than I, and it was not possible to defy Hunon, who was twice my age for real, and I felt heavy-hearted from then on.


    ¡¸If our work increased with the task of becoming bodyguards at such a busy time, everyone would be having a headache, right?¡¹


    At Hunon, who completely considered it someone else¡¯s job, I shrugged my shoulders.


    ¡¸Because the king entrusted the job of becoming bodyguards to us, the Royal Palace Order were enraged¡¹


    ¡¸Eh, us!?¡¹


    At my words, everyone in the room shook in surprise, and looked towards me with frightened eyes. I waved my hands with a bitter smile.


    ¡¸The Royal Palace Order aren¡¯t angry anymore, so it¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡¸Haa¡­Thank goodness¡­¡¹


    ¡¸If we became bodyguards¡­we¡¯d die.¡¹


    ¡¸At such times, the Royal Palace Order are reliable.¡¹


    The air of relief overflowed, and retrospective statements filled the room in mutters.


    ¡¸Tomorrow there¡¯ll be another meeting, so I¡¯ll just show my face.¡¹


    ¡¸Ohh, Nidel, please.¡¹


    The usual air returned inside the tower again. It might have seemed dark and gloomy on the outside, but this suited my nature more. I truly felt glad from the depths of my heart that I was here, not in the Royal Palace Magic Order.


    Sitting in my usual place that had been decided somehow or the other, I took the magical tool that I had set about since yesterday in my hand. It was a magic device that, if placed among a group of ants, would repel them from the area. I didn¡¯t know exactly what it was made for, but since a request to repair it had come, I had to do it. Thinking there might have been an outbreak of ants in the kitchen, I wound the tool around.


    At that stage, I had already completely expelled the thoughts of Prince Chennel¡®s bodyguard from my mind. I thought it had nothing to do with me now.


    However, a few hours later, there was an unexpected correspondence from the king.

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Cat


    Nobody other than the royal family knew of it, but actually, in this tower where the Technological Magic Order resided, there existed a mechanism that directly connected to the King. From the past, whenever there had been a situation where a problem arose that couldn¡¯t be taken care of by the Royal Palace Magic Order, the King would personally contact us. Everyone in the Order said that Tech Order might have most probably been a secret Magic Order, original formed exclusively for the royal family.


    Incidentally, the last time there had been a correspondence was a few years ago, and its contents were a request to make a tool to liven up the nightlife with the Queen; it was extremely vulgar talk, but still it was an important task.


    It was the leader¡¯s job to personally talk to the King. Captain, who had a drowsy look, rushed to the communication room in surprise when the signal of communication from the king came.


    We, who were left behind, looked uneasily at each other¡¯s faces.


    The communication from the king was the greatest happening in this tower.


    After a while, leader came out of the room. While scratching the white hairs growing on his chin, he made a sullen face.


    And then, as he was beckoning everyone in the room with his hands, we each stopped what we were doing and stood up and gathered in front of Captain with some bustle.


    I wonder if everyone had a bad premonition, but the atmosphere in the room felt heavy. Receiving everyone¡¯s clammy gaze, Captain sluggishly opened his mouth.


    ¡¸Just now, there was a request from the king.¡¹


    ¡®Gulp¡¯, the sound of someone swallowing their spit was heard.


    ¡¸It was a request that he wants to ask us to be His highness Chennel¡¯s guard behind the scenes too.¡¹


    The moment leader said that, everyone let out sighs simultaneously. As there were no sounds of surprise, maybe everyone had already predicted it in their hearts.


    ¡¸It¡¯s not as if he doesn¡¯t trust the Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order, but the king is a cautious person. Everyone else is busy now, so he must have thought that we have room to be able to easily do it. Moreover, His highness Chennel is a person with a nervous disposition, so if he stays close to guards all day, he might not be able to sleep at night. Therefore, he requested us to be his guards for the night.¡¹


    Then, Captain looked at me. I had a bad premonition.


    ¡¸When I consulted with the king, I said it. We have just the person for this. Nidel!¡¹


    ¡¸Aah, ¡­It¡¯s me after all¡­¡¹


    With a thud, I fell to my knees. I knew that the people around heaved a sigh of relief on knowing that the work hadn¡¯t come around to them. I too wanted to heave that sigh in relief!


    ¡¸The king is bothered by the Royal Palace Magic Order, so it¡¯s an agreement only between us and the king. You, stay close to His Highness Chennel at night for this one month. You have your animal transformation magic that you¡¯re good at. And you can use offensive magic too, you¡¯ll surely meet the minimum for a guard.¡¹


    ¡¸Haah¡­¡¹


    I ambiguously nodded. Certainly, I¡¯m good at my magic of transforming into animals. You could also say that I extraordinarily good at it. It was talent second to none in this country. However, I had not told it to the people around. No one other than my colleagues knew of it.


    If the fact that I specialise in this magic gets out, I¡¯ll be forced to do espionage as and when required, and there¡¯s the chance that if the enemy saw any animal, they¡¯d suspect it to be me.


    Due to that, I hid the one thing I specialised best at. It was to the extent where occasionally, when I would be free, I¡¯d become a bird and fly in the sky to release my accumulated stress, and when my things fell in places my hands couldn¡¯t reach, I¡¯d turn into an animal that made it possible and recover them. I didn¡¯t have ways other than that that I could use it for. I can use magic quite well, so there¡¯s no need for me to especially feel tired.


    ¡¸Every night, for a month, I see¡­¡¹


    ¡¸It can¡¯t be helped, there¡¯s no one else suitable for this job. In exchange, you can rest easy in the afternoon.¡¹


    Wouldn¡¯t be nice to have some rest¡­thinking so, I looked into the distance. Certainly, in the midst of being so busy, it¡¯d be hard to tell someone to devote themselves to only being a bodyguard, even for me.


    ¡¸Understood. Because it¡¯s a request from the king, it cannot be refused¡­¡¹


    When I said that, resigning myself to my fate, the people around said words like ¡¸You spoke well¡¹, ¡¸Nidel, do your best¡­¡¹in a perfunctory manner.


    Captain had long returned to his work, for I had agreed.


    ¡¸How should I get closer to the Prince, I wonder?¡¹


    ¡¸You have to transform into an animal the prince would like, and then enter the room.¡¹


    Hunon and everyone else pondered with me.


    ¡¸An animal a 7 year old prince would like¡­a dog?¡¹


    ¡¸A Cat?¡¹


    ¡¸A Bird?¡¹


    ¡¸A bird won¡¯t enter a room¡­Which one is Nidel good at?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s not as if I¡¯m particularly good at one¡­well, but it¡¯d be nice to be one that¡¯s easy to move in, being a bodyguard.¡¹


    If an assassin actually appears, I¡¯ll return to my human for (I can¡¯t use offensive magic in my animal form), and it would be nice to have an animal that could move about accordingly.


    I scratched my chin and thought. Various animals crossed my mind, but the one I decided on in the end was¨D¨D.


    ¡¸Well, cat it is.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, they think there¡¯s the the danger of being bitten, and not let you come close to the prince if you¡¯re a dog?¡¹


    Hunon nodded. Because there were completely fascinated voices raised by the people around, I thought for a bit, and then snapped my fingers.


    ¡¸Oooh©`¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a cat©`, a black cat©`¡¹


    ¡¸Nidel¡¯s transformation magic is always perfect, no matter when I look at it¡­¡¹


    Everyone surrounded me, I who had turned into a cat. When I became a cat, everyone looked gigantic, and I shrugged my shoulders in my heart. Maybe it wasn¡¯t seen as anything more than a twitch with my catlike body.


    ¡¸¡­But it seems a bit uncute. Or should I say rude.¡¹


    ¡¸Or self-important¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Nidel¡¯s personality comes out that way.¡¹


    ¡¸I wonder if the prince will like it. Couldn¡¯t you make it a bit more kitten-like?¡¹


    At my colleagues, who said what they felt like, in a murmuring tone, I was annoyed. I thought for a bit, and with a jump, called again for my magic.


    ¡¸Ooh, he became a kitten¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Cute¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t he cute¡­¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a cuteness unthinkable of Nidel¡­¡¹


    Voices of admiration leaked out from the surroundings, and my colleagues who had been standing up until now crouched all at once and stretched their hands out towards me. It seems the loveliness of my appearance made them want to pat. Humans are self-interested. I, who was hated, was at their mercy as a kitten.


    ¡¸Nidel, if it¡¯s like that, then you¡¯ll be too powerless. You¡¯ll be trampled before you can become a bodyguard.¡¹


    Because Hunon calmly interfered, I who intended to completely agree, thought a bit, and once again called upon my magic.


    This time, it was a bit more grown-up than a kitten, but not exactly an adult; a supple young cat. It was ideal for moving about.


    ¡¸Hm, this is good. It¡¯s quite cute, and seems nimble too.¡¹


    After getting permission from Hunon, I groomed my fur that had been patted quite roughly by my colleagues. I hadn¡¯t transformed much as of late, but I spent the whole day in transforming in my teens, so I was well versed in the art of pretending to be an animal.


    ¡¸Make hay while the sun shines. Show yourself to the prince at once.¡¹


    At Hunon¡¯s hasty order, I raised my voice in dissatisfaction with a ¡¸Nya©`¡¹, and reached an understanding with an ¡°I see¡±. It¡¯ll be hard to find a way of being liked by the prince before becoming a bodyguard, and not be thought of as suspicious by the other guards.


    Saying¡¸Nya©`¡¹, and expressing my consent, I nimbly ran out of the room. From behind me, powerless cheers of my colleagues saying ¡¸Do your best¡¹were heard.

 Chapter 4

    Chapter 4


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Xeodee


    While choosing an inconspicuous path, I rushed towards the palace where the prince lived. I¡¯ve visited inside the castle¡¯s premises many times as an animal, so I was quite familiar with the grounds inside.


    There was a mountain near the castle. Because animals often trickled into the inner castle from the mountain, I wasn¡¯t seen with much suspicion. It was to the extent of people saying ¡¸Look, a black cat!¡¹when I ran.


    Due to the fact that the guard duty this time was to last all night ¡ª every single night ¡ª for a month, I had to use long-lasting magic. But in a situation where an assassin really appeared, I had to be able to fight. For that sake, I had to reserve a bare minimum amount of magical power.


    Thinking so, I paid attention to the allocation of magic. If it were a simple transformation magic, I don¡¯t think I¡¯d have to use magical power to that extent. However, I was a behind-the-scenes bodyguard. A considerable amount of technique was needed so that even the members of the Royal Palace Magic Order will be tricked into not knowing that the creature was a transformed one.


    The reason I became a black cat was that it made me the happiest. I could become a cat in any colour and pattern, but an appearance different from my usual colour was fun.


    Normally, magical power would leak and be noticeable when I used magic, but I had confidence on my proficiency with transformation magic that I would probably be overlooked with the level of the castle¡¯s Royal Palace Magic Order.I would be detected if they seriously doubted and investigated me. If it came to that, I¡¯d have no choice but to come out clean.


    Anyhow, assuming Captain also had the same opinion, in order to save face I¡¯d stick to the fact that¡¸The people of Tech stayed close to the prince throughout and guarded him, just as the King requested¡¹.


    While thinking so, I ran and snuck into the palace where the prince lived. As I proceeded ahead, I saw Prince Chennel playing in the palace courtyard. The fact that we can meet so soon was a good omen. If he had been holed up in his room, I¡¯m sure I couldn¡¯t have met him in a way that would allow me to be liked.


    A few of the Royal Knight Order members were standing near the prince. It seems the guards, albeit temporary, had begun their job.


    When I came closer, the Knights noticed me and were troubled by what to do. Despite that, they let me get closer to the prince. What would they do if I was an assassin, I worried. Good thing I¡¯m a friend.


    I¡¯m sure Prince Chennel¡¯s homeland is turbulent, but our country takes peace for granted. It can¡¯t be helped since there hasn¡¯t been much of a war in the past few decades. It¡¯s peaceful on the domestic front too. I sometimes wonder if we lack tension.


    ¡¸Look, a cat!¡¹


    The prince, who had a gloomy face despite playing, noticed me and raised a shout of joy. Great, it seems he likes cats. If he hated cats, I¡¯d have had no choice but to start over with a different animal. Actually, considering the fact that if he hated animals I¡¯d be relieved of my duties, perhaps the prince liking cats might be a regrettable thing.


    ¡¸It¡¯s a completely black cat! I raised a cat I¡¯m my country too! Its name was Earl Curtis!¡¹


    The prince grinned and picked me up in his arms. For the prince to have even raised a cat, what a coincidence.


    The people around made a move to stop him, but they hesitated to do so after seeing the prince making such an elated face.


    Because he raised a cat, the prince picked me up with a practiced hand. He brought his face nearer and looked at me with a smile. Prince Chennel had brown hair bordering on red and light brown eyes. No semblance of a prince came to mind.


    Wondering if thinking that he gave off a countryside-ish feeling was bad on my part, I apologised suitability with a ¡¸Meow-¡¹.


    ¡¸Great, you¡¯ll be my Earl Curtis here! Hey, is it ok if I keep this cat? ¡¹


    When the prince asked the adults around, the attendant who accompanied him from his homeland asked the ladies-in-waiting and the knights with a glance ¡¸Is it all right?¡¹. Because I was an animal of my country, it seems he asked for permission just in case. The ladies-in-waiting and the knights looked at each other. In the midst of it, the oldest knight nodded his head.


    ¡¸Thank you. It has been many days since I have seen the prince this happy.¡¹


    The man who seemed like the prince¡¯s aide courteously bowed his head. There¡¯s no doubt that the prince is all smiles. The adults looked at the smile with tender eyes. Knowing the disputes in his homeland and the threat to his life, the prince must have been feeling down all the time while he was here.


    And the moment a cat like me appeared, his mood changed completely for the better. I was of split opinion whether to feel guilty or to feel proud of raising the prince¡¯s spirits.


    ¡¸Earl Curtis, aren¡¯t you hungry?¡¹


    I don¡¯t know when, but it seems my name has become the name of the prince¡¯s pet from his homeland, Earl Curtis. It was a name that seemed nobler than my actual name, Nidel, and made me give a wry smile.


    ¡¸Earl, c¡¯mere! Let¡¯s go to my room.¡¹


    Besides, if you wanted to shorten the name, wouldn¡¯t it have been better to only give the name Earl in the first place?, I ridiculed in my heart while being carried to the prince¡¯s room in his arms. The adults around the prince trailed behind.


    The prince¡¯s room was, as expected, worthy of being called a guest room for a foreign delegate; it was quite luxurious for a child and was tens of times the size of my room.


    The prince, who¡¯d completely been enraptured by me, from then on didn¡¯t let go of me. I, sitting beside him, received leftovers from the prince¡¯s supper and was able to eat something much better than what I could as a human. Of course, nobody nearby was suspicious of me. Rather, I ended up even getting tender looks that seemed to say Thank you for making the prince happy!.


    When I entered the bath, I was a bit frightened. But I who became thoroughly clean was able to enter the prince¡¯s bedroom and curl up on one corner of the wide bed where the prince slept.


    Just like the king said, the prince seemed like the nervous type. He considerably disliked the dozens of knights acting as bodyguards and entering the bedroom. In the end, two knights who didn¡¯t give out much of a sense of intimidation stood far from the bed, near the door, erasing their presence. Midway through, the guard knights switched places. Even that slight change of presence woke the prince up. The prince, who woke up many times throughout the night, escaped from reality by stroking my coat of fur.


    This job of being a bodyguard is quite troublesome, I sympathised with the Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order like I was an outsider. However, there was no way they would not have even a single person accompanying him to the bedroom as a guard.


    With a small number of people, perhaps the same knights ended up guarding the room all through the night. It¡¯s a difficult task, I thought as I was on the soft bed swaying my tail. But as dawn neared, I too realised the gravity of my job.


    No matter how much I want to sleep while sprawled on the bed, because I was guarding him there was no way I could sleep. I successively opened my eyes while on the verge of nodding off.


    Do I have to continue this lifestyle for a month? Wondering so, I yawned.

 Chapter 5

    Chapter 5


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Cat


    Daybreak arrived, and sitting in a daze with drowsiness, I received scraps from the prince¡¯s breakfast; and noticing the increase in the number of guards, I temporarily left the prince.


    When I rubbed my face against the prince¡¯s legs and after going Nya~ Nya~, and turned my body around, as expected the prince, who had raised a cat understood my feelings.


    Saying ¡¸Return back by nightfall¡¹he made a slightly desolate face, but he permitted me to leave.


    He understood a cat¡¯s wilful nature. Besides, after meowing in reply, I left that place.


    When I left the castle, the rays of sunlight poured in, and made my heart feel dispirited. In the first place, I lived a lifestyle avoiding basking in the sunlight, so it was too stimulating for this tired body of mine. I didn¡¯t even have my robe to block it.


    I ran while reproaching my body, into the comfortable tower. And as soon as I entered the room, I undid the magic. It had been a long time since I¡¯d used a long duration magic that lasted for around half a day, thus my senses felt strange for a moment.


    ¡¸Yo Nidel, welcome back. How was it?¡¹


    ¡¸Perhaps you¡¯ve been by the prince¡¯s side all this time?¡¹


    To the mass of black that approached me, shuffling, I nodded.


    ¡¸The plan was bang on. The prince seemed to like cats in the first place, so it went too well to be true. I was in the prince¡¯s room all this time, guarding him.¡¹


    When I said so, lethargic words of praise that went something or the other like¡¸Ooh, as expected of Nidel¡¹overflowed. There was no mistaking it that the real meaning behind the words was ¡¸With this, we can leave everything to Nidel and can continue our life as normal.¡¹


    ¡¸But, there¡¯s a problem.¡¹


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m too at leisure, and I feel drowsy.¡¹


    When I said that, the people around nodded quietly. That was the only reaction. Peering at the colleagues who had once again scattered and cold-heartedly returned to doing their respective jobs, I approached the dirty divan in the depths of the room. On top of the divan that was rarely used, broken magical tools were piled up, but I dropped them on the floor.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll sleep till the evening¡¯s meeting.¡¹


    When I laid down saying so, the slave driver¡¯s unconcerned harsh words, saying ¡¸Do your work other than guarding properly too¡­¡¹piled up. I ignored them and drifted off to sleep. Working throughout the day, and then continuing to use my magical power at night without sleeping a wink, that¡¯s been decided against my will.


    When I closed my eyes, I could hear the rustling sound of everybody working. With that as my substitute for a lullaby, I soon fell asleep.


    Rubbing my still sleepy eyes, I left for the meeting that was continued from yesterday. I thought, wouldn¡¯t it be alright to not leave on behalf of the Technological Magic Order, but it wouldn¡¯t be good to show too much of a lethargic figure. Moreover, it¡¯d be better if I too knew of their plan for guarding.


    When I visited the meeting room, the members of the Royal Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order, who had arrived beforehand made a slightly surprised face. It seems they thought I wouldn¡¯t come.


    ¡¸Is Tech-san also interested in the plan?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­No, well more or less.¡¹


    When I smiled wryly, the captain of the knights praised me,¡¸That¡¯s some dedication¡¹. I lethargically lowered my head and sat at my usual seat.


    The meeting was yet to begin, but they were all conversing in a serious manner, with papers unfolded. Seeing Squad commander Legato, who was at the centre of all this, I smiled wryly, guessing Squad Commander-dono must have had the work pushed onto him again.


    Just as my guess, once the meeting commenced, in the plan for guarding that had been announced, the load Legato had to bear was too much.


    It seems more or less all the guarding of the bedroom for a month is going to be done by Legato. It seems it was decided in view of the prince¡¯s actions the previous night. If a single person was a guard as far as possible, they said that the burden on the prince would be lessened. Nevertheless, on the other side of the bedchamber, other knights and magicians would guard in shifts.


    However, he would be alone in the bedchamber. Legato¡¯s burden was terribly huge, but I thought well, it can¡¯t be helped. When there are few people as guards, one must use competent people. Moreover, our country is quite busy currently, and the main body of knights is busy too.


    That being the case, their squad was the main focus of attention, and amongst them the most competent was squad commander Legato, thus his selection had been set in stone.


    On top of it, from his appearance through the meeting, it seems Legato himself raised his hand to volunteer. Quite a choice like a serious man I thought, looking quietly at Legato from my seat.


    Even though we were of the same age, he was a man within capabilities completely unlike mine.


    For a person to take up an administrative post in Royal Knight Order, no doubt needed one to be competent, but in addition, one¡¯s manners, appeared and intelligence also needed to be above average. It was a matter of course, since they were to be seen by people from foreign countries. It wouldn¡¯t do if they were unable to uphold our country¡¯s dignity. Legato as a Royal Knight was an ideal one.


    Legato had a serious atmosphere, but when he laughed it¡¯d become gentle all of a sudden, so I¡¯d often think It¡¯s nice when he smiles while observing him.


    Compared to that, I wasn¡¯t even a member of the Royal Palace Magic Order that requires manners, so I was a carefree person who disregarded my looks. Just like a magician, I¡¯d never held a sword nor trained my body, and having always worn a hood, I¡¯d not even got a healthy tan. At times when I was cooped up in the tower, I¡¯d tend to even forget about food and sleep, so I was excessively unhealthy. It wasn¡¯t just me, all the members of the Technological Magic Order tended to be so.


    My lack of hair had grown to adequate length and curled up. There have been numerous times when I¡¯ve had to take off my hood in public places, and I¡¯ve been told ¡¸You have such a face, I see.¡¹. Believe it or not, I was renowned as a handsome young man in my neighbourhood as a child, but due to not prolonging that virtue, I grew up to become an ordinary person. No, there¡¯s still traces of that left. ¡¸What a waste, had you become a member of the Royal Palace Magic Order properly, you¡¯d have shined even more brightly¡¹, I¡¯ve been told by the servant Obaa-sans in the Royal Palace.


    However, not only am I young, but I¡¯m also 27 years of age, what¡¯s with shining from here on¡­doing it properly is also a pain in the neck, due to such a useless way of thinking, won¡¯t I continue living on just like this in the end, I thought.


    I didn¡¯t have any intentions of getting married either, I¡¯ll surly spend my life in that tower repairing and inventing tools that no one quite understands. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s that bad of a life in itself.


    Come to think of it, squad commander Legato is still single. I think I¡¯d be a bit shocked if Legato got married. I¡¯d feel like I¡¯ve been completely left behind. I¡¯ve been completely left behind even now though.


    The agenda of the meeting was, nothing but the plan of guarding Prince Chennel, and thus, the work preparations of the Knight Order and the Magic Order for a months interval were talked about. I won¡¯t serve anything other than the night guarding duties, but they have to serve during the daytime too. I sympathised lining up people, it was a huge task.


    The battle scene would continue till the coming of age ceremony of our prince ended.


    All through the meeting, the king¡¯s gaze caught my sight multiple times, and in order for other people to not catch wind of it, I nodded with my gaze. ¡¸I understand, our side is perfect¡¹, when I put in some confidence with my gaze, the king replied with his gaze ¡¸I¡¯m sorry, I requested you¡¹. Perhaps, such a conversation ought to happen.


    The position of the Technological Magic Order was quite low in the Royal Palace, But we were quite handy to the Royal Family, with the king topping the list. As a handyman.


    The meeting ended, and I left the room. And showing my face in the tower saying,?¡¸Well then, I have to go for guarding¡¹I changed into a cat right there, and once again rushed to the prince¡¯s side.


    If I make it to the prince¡¯s side by supper, there might still be some food left.


    Thus, my double life began.

 Chapter 6

    Chapter 6


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Kai


    When I returned to the prince¡¯s palace, it seemed as if I¡¯d already become well-known amongst the peers around the prince, I was greeted with a ¡¸Welcome back, Earl Curtis¡¹innumerable times. I was picked up by the cat loving ladies-in-waiting, and carried to the prince¡¯s room.


    The prince, smiled and raised a shout of joy upon seeing me.


    ¡¸Welcome home! Isn¡¯t it great, you came back home properly!¡¹


    ¡¸Nya©`¡¹


    Internally thinking that¡¯s because I¡¯m a grown up man on the inside, I drew closer to the prince. Ever since being petted by the prince the night before, I¡¯d gained a favourable impression from him.


    Considering that the age of seven was the prime of mischief, he was quite well-behaved, and despite my worries that even my tail would be caught and abused, the prince spiritedly caressed me.


    Until the prince entered the bedroom, the guards remained stationary in the room with their numbers as is. During that time, on account that it was good that I could too loaf off my responsibilities, I relaxed and dozed off. The problem was during night, when the manpower reduced.


    Because today was the day when the guard duties began in right earnest, the captains of both the Royal Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order visited the prince¡¯s side and explained the plan for guarding him. The prince placed me on his lap and petted me whilst listening to them with an uneasy face.


    It was a matter of course, any one at that age being told that their life was being targeted would be fraught with worries. In the first place, he was a prince of a peaceful country.


    Sensing the emotion of fear through the trembling hand that was petting me, I swayed my tail and lightly struck the prince¡¯s stomach in an attempt to soothe him.


    At first, the guards were a bit surprised at my presence, but without anything being said I was accepted. It was convenient for me, but the worry that Is it fine? once again floated in my mind. Especially the Royal Palace Magic Order. I thought that they really should have investigated a bit whether I was really an ordinary cat or not.


    Should I develop such a magic tool once this job ends?, I wondered whilst on top of the prince¡¯s lap.


    ¡¸Regarding the Night Guard duties, since his highness Chennel is uncomfortable with people entering his bedchamber, only one person shall accompany you.¡¹


    When the the captain of the Knight Order said that, the prince and his attendant nodded. The attendant made a face full of regret and bowed his head at the thoughtfulness towards the prince.


    ¡¸Basically, I shall be accompanying you. I¡¯m the captain of a squad of the Royal Knight Order, Legato. Pleased to meet you.¡¹


    Legato who was behind, came in the front, impeccably greeted and showed a slight smile towards the prince.


    ¡¸Legato is competent man, and I think he¡¯s a match for a thousand by himself, so be at ease. There shall be a few knights and magicians on standby beside the bedchamber, and they will be ready to jump in in case anything occurs.¡¹


    At the words of the Knight Order Captain, the prince and co. nodded in relief, and showed a smile to Legato, who was selected to protect them. Legato, having a serious atmosphere, wasn¡¯t the type that was amicable and easygoing, but he wasn¡¯t as intimidating as he seemed.


    More importantly, I uncomfortably felt Legato¡¯s gaze on me, and looked up towards the figure near me. Looking from the perspective of my cat body, Legato who was tall in the first place, seemed to touch the skies. Making eye contact with me, a cat, he made a perplexed face.


    Perhaps, he¡¯s bad with cats, I wondered.


    Because that gaze wasn¡¯t an endearing one used to look at something cute, but one that seemed to be worried of something. I couldn¡¯t help but laugh at the fact that the captain of the Knight Order, despite being strong, was bad with small animals.


    ¡¸Do you perhaps dislike Earl? Ah, by Earl I mean the little one here, it¡¯s his name. His formal name is Earl Curtis.¡¹


    The prince sent a worried gaze towards Legato. It seemed he was anxious of what to do if the reply was ¡°I dislike them, so please send this cat someplace else¡±.


    Legato hurriedly waved his hands in dismissal at the prince.


    ¡¸No, it isn¡¯t that I dislike him. Rather, I wonder If he dislikes me, I have a tendency of being disliked by animals right from the past¡­¡¹


    When Legato smiled wryly, the members of the Knight Order who were there too smiled, irresponsible talk like¡¸You certainly aren¡¯t liked by animals¡¹¡¸It¡¯s difficult even with a horse as company.¡¹popped up.


    I see, such a person exists too I thought in surprise. I had often played with animals for the sake of my transformation magic right from young, so I was quite liked by them. You can¡¯t judge a book by its cover, thinking so, I looked at Legato with great interest.


    ¡¸I see! But Earl is smart, so it is fine. He won¡¯t hate the Knight-san who has come to protect me.¡¹


    Because the prince said so while smiling, I chimed in agreement with a pleasant ¡¸Nya©`¡¹. As for me being smart, I¡¯m a human so that¡¯s not a problem. Legato, saying ¡¸Pardon me¡¹, nervously extended his hand towards me. When I stayed still, that hand patted me once briefly.


    And then, looking at my figure that didn¡¯t particularly dislike him, he raised a voice in slight surprise ¡¸Don¡¯t tell me¡­¡¹.


    Just how much has he been hated by animals in his life, I burst out in laughter, but maybe because I was a cat all that was seen was my whiskers trembling.


    And thus the meeting with the guards ended smoothly, and the prince, who was even more tired than usual, retired to his bedchamber early. He didn¡¯t even get to sleep soundly the day before so he must surely be tired.


    The body warmth of the person hugging me, being that of a drowsy young child, was considerably high. Dismissing the attendants and the guards, the prince crept onto the bed. I curled up close to the prince¡¯s face. Legato sat on the chair near the door of the bedchamber, and set his sword such that it seemed it would fall off anytime.


    As expected, a competent man such as him was good at erasing his presence, and Legato lowered his breathing to an extent where it seemed as if he wasn¡¯t even there. It must be hard to keep this up the whole night, I sympathised.


    Our situation of being unable to sleep was the same, but there was a difference between him who was sitting still without moving a muscle with a sword in hand and a cat lying about restlessly on a soft bed.


    However, I was able to relax a lot more than the day before. The guard was Legato. Apologies to the guard from yesterday, but there was a difference in level of competency. Legato was certainly strong enough to become squad commander. We entered the royal palace around the same time, and it could be said that we were some sort of colleagues, and I thus could see Legato¡¯s strength at display at times despite being in different positions.


    Rather than having many unskilled Knights, the prince was safer under him alone. Because there was such a man acting as a guard, the burden on my shoulders too had lessened a little. If it was an ordinary assassin, I¡¯m sure he could handle it, it¡¯d be fine if I went about assisting him till the guards in the neighbouring room jump into the fray.


    Unlike the joy in my heart, from Legato¡¯s point of view, he was the the only guard in the bedchamber. And there was the prince and a cat. The sense of responsibility must have been heavy. He couldn¡¯t doze off either.


    Because he was the squad commander, it wasn¡¯t as if he could sleep in the daytime either, I sympathised with him again thinking he always gets the short end of the stick, doesn¡¯t he? That was also one of the reasons my sense of closeness gushed forth.


    Even though he was running on the glorious highway of success, and he was an excellent man in addition to his good looks, maybe it was his modest nature or his nervous temperament, he was something of an unsung hero. There were many times when I felt like saying ¡°He can tackle anything seriously, but wouldn¡¯t it be better if he knew how to get along well in life?¡±.


    Even if I said that, Legato would only get offended, so I won¡¯t say it though.


    The prince at first was unable to sleep soundly and his eyes opened many times and he petted me, but that stopped past midnight and he slept soundly till morning came.


    Legato must¡¯ve been quite good at erasing his presence. It was to the extent that even I, would suddenly realise that I¡¯d forgotten Legato¡¯s existence.


    In the midst of dozing off, looking at the prince¡¯s little sleeping face, I felt that doing the mission together with Legato was slightly fun, even while thinking that it had turned out somewhat strange.


    But, that was that.


    ¡¸First is sleep!¡¹


    When morning came, with the number of guards increasing, I¡¯d part from the prince side and the first thing I¡¯d say was always this.


    I lay still on the bed for about 10 hours. Without anything to do. It was to the extent of looking at the prince¡¯s sleeping face or being lost in my thoughts. Legato was outside the prince¡¯s field of vision, and staying still in order to not wake up the prince, I couldn¡¯t see legato¡¯s figure. Legato didn¡¯t seem to have any indication of moving at all, I respected him, thinking Don¡¯t you need to even pee? I wondered if it was a result of training. For me there was a restroom in the bedchamber for cat use just in case, I can go if I want to. But Legato couldn¡¯t afford to leave the room.


    ¡¸Because I¡¯m a cat, it isn¡¯t as if I can read a book either¡­¡¹


    My colleague accompanied me in grumbling while doing other things.


    On one hand I felt happy that Legato was there, but on the other I couldn¡¯t act as I pleased under Legato¡¯s watch. When the prince slept, I could behave in a manner deviating from that of a cat, but under Legato¡¯s watch, I couldn¡¯t do strange things.


    It was to the extent of wanting to ask Legato ¡¸How does Squad commander-dono kill time?¡¹, but had no means to ask. Or maybe I should try asking casually during the next meeting.


    With a ¡¸Aren¡¯t you bored?¡¹


    Because the squad commander-dono would get angrily ask ¡¸Are you making fun of me?¡¹ if I, who never talk normally suddenly asked him that.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t have anything to do now, let me get some sleep.¡¹


    I laid down on the divan that had become my usual spot lately. My mind felt foggy. Even up until recently I have stayed up the whole night engrossed in my work, but it¡¯d be a different story if it continued.


    On the other hand, it¡¯d be troublesome to hand over the work of being a liaison to someone else, I somehow continued to work even during day time like usual.


    Legato too, only had to guard at night, but because he worked even during daytime, I¡¯d sometimes catch sight of his figure. But he didn¡¯t seem tired in the least bit. Amazing. With that thought in my head, I admired him.


    Surely, the one who was sharing the greatest pains is Legato, but it couldn¡¯t be helped that the other side hadn¡¯t realised my existence.


    And thus my days were spent grumbling complaints to another tech order member who didn¡¯t give much of a reaction, and getting sleep in whatever little free time I had.

 Chapter 7

    Chapter 7


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Cat


    When around a week passed, even the nervous Prince was more or less used to the guards. He also got used to the person called Legato and gradually the occasions when he woke up in the middle of the night reduced, and yesterday he slept tightly right up until daybreak.


    He was finally able to have a soundless sleep. I was relieved as it was genuinely good for the prince¡¯s health too.


    In the morning Legato, while telling the prince ¡¸Yesterday night, you didn¡¯t wake up even once¡¹too showed a smile.


    As the Prince became healthier, both us adults felt our fatigue accumulating, however.


    I thought, It¡¯d be fine for Legato to have someone else substitute for him at times, but there was no one in the squad more competent than Legato, but Legato himself had a strong sense of responsibility, and added to it he was adored by the prince, so he thought it¡¯d be difficult to get a substitute.


    In the midst of it, I entered the bed chambers with the prince just as usual. Legato too followed silently behind, and placed a chair at his usual position and sat down.


    ¡¸Earl, G¡¯night.¡¹


    The prince gave me a goodnight kiss on my forehead. When the adorable prince did that I felt embarrassed, but a part of me felt apologetic too. Actually, he was kissing an uninspiring, good for nothing magician nearing 30.


    If possible, I¡¯d like to pass this one month in peace without my identity being revealed. For the sake that I don¡¯t shatter the dreams of a pure boy!


    When the prince got in bed, he fell fast asleep, as if the difficulty in sleeping up until now was a lie. Regular and healthy quiet breaths echoed in the room.


    While swaying my tail to fight off my drowsiness, I who was absentmindedly gazing at that sleeping face, seeing that the prince was fast asleep, quietly lifted my body up.


    I thought Since he¡¯s sleeping so well, there¡¯d be no problem if I moved about a bit. It¡¯d be impossible for me to last this one month unmoving like this. I¡¯d go crazy from being so idle. In my head to make good use of the work from daytime, I¡¯d think of magic formulations, but there was a limit to that. For the most part, I felt sleepy and thus couldn¡¯t think straight and I wasn¡¯t able to get any useful thoughts.


    Thinking of moving my body to fight off my drowsiness, I jumped off the bed onto the floor taking the greatest care not to make a sound. Even when I strained my ears, there were no signs of the prince waking up, and only his silent sleeping breaths were heard.


    Breathing a sigh of relief, I ensured that my claws didn¡¯t dig in and walked on the floor. I felt a gaze on me. When I raised my head, I saw Legato, sitting on the chair, looking at me with reproachful eyes. He seemed to silently caution me, If you move, the prince will wake up, but I pretended not to understand.


    Legato turned his eyes at the prince sleeping on the bed, but seeing him sleep as usual, his gaze softened. But still, his gaze returned to me once again.


    I wondered Why is he looking at me that much, but I understood it.


    That makes sense. Legato too is idle and has no choice.


    He ended up looking at something moving unintentionally.


    Even I¡¯d have my eyes glued if I¡¯d see a mouse running about when I¡¯m on the top of the bed.


    I quietly loitered around the room, but I quickly grew bored. During that period of time too, Legato¡¯s absentmindedness gaze continued to follow me.


    I who came to the conclusion that there was no way to kill time in this room other than with Legato after all, approached him.


    Legato, who was convinced that he was hated by animals, even while guarding for about this one week, did not approach me. It seemed as if he thought that if he scared me and I ran away from the prince¡¯s side, he¡¯d be troubled.


    When I snuggled up to Legato¡¯s feet that were on the floor, he stood still as if his body had gone stiff. It seemed as if he really hasn¡¯t played with animals.


    I wanted to jump up on the chair, but if I think to jump onto the long-legged chair that Legato is sitting on, a considerable jump strength is necessary. Normally I¡¯d be able to do it but to put it into practice while not making a sound is a bit too hard.


    When I climbed up onto the legs wearing the Knight Order¡¯s boots, Legato after momentarily going stiff on seeing me, slowly stretched his legs. As the slope of the legs became gentler, I quietly rushed up those legs and arrived on top of Legato¡¯s lap.


    I¡¯d expected it, but Legato was considerably surprised seeing me, who climbed up on his lap, and his eyes grew round. That reaction was extremely amusing, and I thought Looking at such a Legato is the best way to kill time, right.


    Legato really wasn¡¯t liked by animals. The clear eyes that I gazed at to observe were purely surprised, but they still seemed a bit happy.


    Legato nervously, in order to not scare me, timidly brought his hand nearer. I, twitching my whiskers, internally retorted, if you act so roughly, animals will perceive it as something threatening unnecessarily. It was a sign of me laughing internally.


    Legato¡¯s hand was placed on my body. The black coat of fur that had been maintained every single day thanks to the prince, must have surely felt nice to the touch. There were many things linked between my transformed form and my human form, and lately, my hair even in human form seemed to have become lustrous. My hair weirded them out to the point that ¡¸Your hair¡¯s kinda pretty huh¡­¡¹was something I frequently heard.


    Legato placed his hand on my body to make me waver, but I didn¡¯t show any signs of running away, and rather laid down on top of Legato¡¯s lap as if I was content with it, and that hand, albeit clumsy, began petting my fur.


    It¡¯s a perk, thinking that and comfortably enjoying the feel of that hand, my heart felt satisfied. With this, I could kill time. Even for Legato, petting a cat would help distract him. It was a win-win situation.


    I wonder if he got used to it amidst petting, his hand movements seem to have become gentler. Having my coat petted by a huge hand was comfortable.


    I and Legato had no choice. Since there was nothing else to do, in the end, both of us were in the same condition until morning.


    However, there was a problem. Though it killed time, being petted by a person made me feel excessively sleepy. I fell half asleep many times and woke up many times, but if Legato sensed something amiss, he¡¯d surely get up or something, and with that movement, I should wake up too.


    Assuming so, I thought conveniently that my sleeping might not be a problem, and I ended up dozing off for a bit.


    Rather than Legato, it¡¯s surely me that¡¯s reaping the benefits.


    I feel sorry for him.


    But still at dawn, when the time when the prince¡¯s sleep would become shallow came, I got down from Legato¡¯s lap. Since Legato gently put me down on the floor, I jumped onto the bed and unconcernedly slipped near the prince. To show him I¡¯ve been here for the whole night.


    The prince, not noticing I¡¯d cheated him through the night, greeted me with a cute wake-up smile, saying ¡¸Morning, Earl¡¹.


    The fact that one ends up learning only how to cheat as they become an adult, is something I do regret a bit.

 Chapter 8

    Chapter 8


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    From then on, my nightly spot was on Legato¡¯s lap. Once I¡¯d confirmed that the prince had fallen asleep, I¡¯d quietly leave the bed and approach Legato. Legato too would quietly bend his upper body and lift me up from the floor.


    Within the bedchambers, Legato and I were like partners in crime.


    Partners in killing time.


    The Prince was able to sleep soundly now, and, as time passed, little by little, Legato inched his chair closer to the prince. When something happened, the closer he would be to the prince, the easier it would be to protect him.


    Even while petting me, as I lay on top of his lap, Legato watched over the sleeping prince.


    There were instances where I slept just for a bit, but I¡¯d try to stay awake as long as possible. When I felt sleepy, I¡¯d sway my tail and wrap it around Legato¡¯s arm.


    I think Legato was originally liked by animals. However because he¡¯d been hated by them, he wasn¡¯t able to dote on them, and he was now looking after me to settle all of his pent up feelings.


    It felt good to have Legato pet me, his long, bony fingers moving slightly nervously. It was a perk of transforming into an animal. Because of human etiquette, since I¡¯d become an adult, and more so was a man, I had not been petted from head to toe by anyone.


    Every evening, as he looked after me, Legato¡¯s petting skill improved. At first he¡¯d only pet near my back, but he soon began scratching me under my chin, and gently petting near my belly. He¡¯d mastered various types of petting techniques.


    Especially when he would scratch my chin, I¡¯d unconsciously want to purr and it was difficult to resist the urge. If the prince woke up, I¡¯d be in be a situation like that of a woman having an affair with someone while her husband was sleeping.


    Thanks to Legato, I came to think of the guard time as not something bad. Legato also got to play with a cat every night, and it probably acted as stress relief for him. It felt as if his expressions had grown softer compared to how he was in the beginning.


    Of course, our main purpose was guarding, and it wasn¡¯t as if we had lost focus: we remained alert for the whole night. No, I slept for a bit. Legato didn¡¯t sleep a wink though, since the hand petting me never stopped.


    I came to completely like Legato¡¯s slightly hard lap and his surprisingly gentle way of petting me. It was to the extent that I harboured stupid thoughts like occasionally transforming and being taken care of by him at home even after the guard duties ended, if I ever managed get through without my identity getting exposed.


    For me to have gotten a chance to get close to Legato like this, life sure could throw unexpected surprises.


    While sprawling on Legato¡¯s lap as usual, I remembered about the incident that had occurred nearly 10 years ago.


    There was actually a reason as to why I felt familiarity towards Legato. Legato didn¡¯t remember it, but I remembered it quite well.


    *


    *


    It was a story from when Legato and I were 18, soon after we¡¯d entered the Royal Palace.


    I had, from the beginning, been assigned to the Technological Magic Order, but it was quite a shocking thing for me. Because I, like any aspiring magician, had wanted to join the Royal Palace Magic Order.


    In terms of ability too, I thought I had the talent to enter the Royals Palace Magic Order, but for some reason I was sent to the Technological side and it was a shock to me. I now feel glad that I went to the Technological side, but for a young, 18-year old greenhorn, it felt as if the door to the future of him becoming a magician had been closed.


    When I asked about it much later, it turned out that the number of youngsters in the Technological Magic Order had decreased, and the number of unsociable people too had increased. They had wanted someone who was a young and normal magician,


    so I was chosen. I didn¡¯t have any connections in the Royal Palace Magic Order either, so I didn¡¯t think there were any complaints when I was chosen by the Tech Order.


    When Hunon told me later that they had thought, If it¡¯s this guy, he¡¯d get influenced by the Tech order, I had mixed feelings. Well, just like Hunon thought, I got used to it.


    I was handed over to the Technological Magic Order that I hadn¡¯t aspired for, and I, who had my hopes thoroughly crushed, sulked every day.


    On one fine day like that, I was sitting on a bench by the side road in the periphery of the Royal Palace, a place I still visited when I wished to be left alone.


    A young Royal Knight passed by. It was Legato.


    His build was thinner than it was at present, and when the pure and innocent Legato noticed me, he vaguely stopped his steps. Since I felt a gaze on me, I too looked up.


    It wasn¡¯t as if I knew all the knights and magicians who had entered the palace at the same time as I did, but I recognised his face. Even among the many rookie knights, Legato stood out.


    I don¡¯t know whether Legato had recognised me or not. Perhaps he had not.


    I avoided Legato¡¯s gaze, whose eyes had met mine, and looked at his hand. Blood still oozed out of the back of his right hand and there was quite a vivid gash. He¡¯d possibly gotten injured while training with the sword.


    When I held out my hand, Legato made an incomprehensible face.


    ¡¸Your hand, give it. The injured one.¡¹


    When I said so, Legato looked at me in a hesitant manner, but still held out his hand. I took that hand, gathered magical power, and stroked the wound. I wasn¡¯t that good at treatment magic, but if it was something simple, I could do it.


    When I removed my hand to check, the wound was still there, but the blood had stopped flowing. Surely the pain must also have subsided.


    When I let got of the hand, Legato took at long hard look at the back of his hand and then looked at me.


    ¡¸Thank you.¡¹


    ¡¸No need.¡¹


    Usually you wouldn¡¯t use healing unless it a huge injury. If you had to use healing magic for even the knights¡¯ lightest of injuries, no matter how many magicians you had, it wouldn¡¯t be enough. It wasn¡¯t as if all magicians could use healing magic either; healing magic consumed a considerable amount of magic power.


    But since I spent every day sulking in the Technological Magic Order, unable to get a chance to use it, I had a lot of magic power left and I felt like using it.


    ¡¸Do your best¡¹


    I gave the words of encouragement thoughtlessly, as if it were someone else¡¯s affair. It was something like sarcasm. At that time, I was thinking of quitting the Technological Magic Order and resigning from the Royal Palace.


    With feelings of desperation like, I can¡¯t do my best, but you can, I said¡¸Do your best¡¹to Legato.


    Legato, after opening his eyes wide in a slightly surprised manner, loosened his serious and stiff expression and laughed.


    ¡¸Ahh, you too. Let¡¯s protect the country together.¡¹


    Legato said the honest lines with an extremely calm smile, You sure say a lot of embarrassing words like that, lightly touched my shoulder, and left.


    I saw off the silhouette of a well postured back in a dazed manner.


    It wasn¡¯t as if Legato¡¯s words had left an impression on me. It¡¯s just that I¡¯d felt as if I¡¯d been drained of all my malice.


    I got up from the bench and decided to return to the tower.


    *?


    *?


    From then on, though I still played truant, I got used to the Technological Magic Order bit by bit. Sometimes, I¡¯d catch sight of the knight from then: Legato. When we met the first time, I still hadn¡¯t begun wearing the black robe and my face was exposed, but soon after, I began wrapping myself in the black robes like everyone in the Technological Order, and because I pulled the hood over my eyes, the other side wouldn¡¯t recognise me even if they saw me.


    Even before that, there¡¯s no way Legato would remember such a small incident with me.


    Nowadays, I had to show my face often at the Royal Palace, having a Public Relations kind of position, but basically all the members of the Technological Order are usually cooped up in the tower. As a result, I had very few chances to catch sight of Legato, but now and then, whenever there was an event or something in the castle where the knights were present, I¡¯d unconsciously search for Legato.


    He was the one and only man whom I had contact with among the knights. And Legato soon began to distinguish himself as a knight.


    Since I felt a sense of closeness towards Legato, I felt happiness at seeing him grow stronger. I admired him, thinking He really is giving his best. He was surely giving his best earnestly in order to protect the country.


    Looking at that figure, despite not having a similar personality I¡¯d think ¡¸I too should try doing my best¡¹and felt like someone had patted my back.


    That¡¯s why, the person called Legato was a special existence to me.


    *?


    *?


    *?


    While I reminisced on Legato¡¯s lap, his finger tickled me near my face. When I looked down by chance I saw blood oozing out from near the cuticle of the nail on his middle finger.


    If I were in human form, I could have healed him, but in cat form, it was a hard task to use anything other than transformation magic.


    But I could still spare some magic power.


    I raised my head and licked the injured spot with my tongue. Legato stopped his hand. While I licked multiple times just to lick off the blood, I poured in just a little bit of magic power. It would make him suspicious if it healed at a glance, so I thought it¡¯d be enough if the pain were relieved.


    When I finished pouring in magic power, I licked one last time, and turned my face back. Feeling a gaze on me, I lifted my face up, and saw Legato looking at me with a joyful expression. He then bent his body and left a fleeting kiss on my face.


    As expected, I stiffened in surprise and Legato relaxed his well featured face, giving a joyful laugh.


    Following that, his hand once again resumed petting me gently.


    It seemed like my feelings of wanting to heal his injury reached him


    I felt embarrassed, my body felt as if something were softly scratching it and it felt as if my heart would jump out; there were all kinds of strange feelings. My face would¡¯ve surely been red had I been in human form. I was glad I was a cat.


    With those restless feelings, I settled on top of Legato¡¯s lap

 Chapter 9

    Chapter 9


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    It was currently peaceful around the prince. Two weeks had already passed since the guard duties started and we had entered the halfway point.


    I had been worried about whether my body would keep up, but I somehow managed.


    Unlike me, though, Legato, who was in a tense state all the time, seemed to get tired. His face seemed a bit pale, but he still tried his best to not show his fatigued appearance.


    Lately, Legato had begun taking care of me with the prince even before the prince slept and after he woke up. I wonder where he got it from, but he even began feeding me pet food. I¡¯d basically eat it out of gratitude, but if he gave me something too cat-like, I¡¯d ignore it.


    ¡¸He¡¯s quite wilful.¡¹


    ¡¸Earl likes food that¡¯s for humans!¡¹


    Legato and the prince felt quite excited, talking about me. The prince was now thoroughly unafraid of Legato, and the two got along quite well. The two of them raised me well. I¡¯m glad that¡¯s the case, I thought while grooming myself.


    ¡¸Earl, when I return to my country, come along with me.¡¹


    The price had lately been inviting me as such, but it wasn¡¯t as if I could accompany him. Not only was I dissatisfied with my current life, I also didn¡¯t hate my usual life in this country.


    It was bad to foolishly raise the hopes of the prince, so I, rejecting the proposal, turned my head away, intending to convey¡¸I won¡¯t go.¡¹.


    The prince somehow understood my complaints and slumped his shoulders in disappointment.


    ¡¸But Earl, what will you do? If I¡¯m not here, there¡¯ll be no one to take care of you.¡¹


    When the gentle prince made a worried face, Legato, sitting beside him, laughed and placed a hand on him.


    ¡¸At that time, I¡¯ll take care of him.¡¹


    Eh, is he serious? I was surprised. Was he that moved by my affection?


    ¡¸Really? If Legato becomes his Dad, Earl too will be relieved.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll protect him.¡¹


    Dad¡­I smiled wryly. But when Legato smiled gently and petted me, I felt a little embarrassed. Legato seems quite serious about protecting me, I thought. Anyone, be it pet or a wife, would sure be happy if they¡¯re raised by Legato. For a moment I seriously considered whether being raised by Legato was possible, if I managed to not reveal my true identity. Working during the day, and pretending to be a black cat at night¡­ I wouldn¡¯t say it was absolutely impossible, but perhaps my magic wouldn¡¯t last. But still, if I felt tired I could spend a few days resting somewhere, not returning to Legato¡¯s house, and once I¡¯ve recuperated, I would once again¡­ after thinking so far, I shook my head in refusal.


    What am I thinking so seriously about? Whether there existed a possibility was not the point.


    I smiled wryly.


    It wasn¡¯t only Legato who was moved by affection, I was the same.


    The guarding went smoothly.


    However, as expected of living a double life, I kept on using magic, and what was hard remained hard. Today was the day of the regular meeting and it would continue through the morning hours. Once I had returned from the prince¡¯s side to the tower, I¡¯d dozed off, but once I woke up, I left early for the meeting room in order to ward off my drowsiness so that I wouldn¡¯t oversleep.


    When I entered the room, as expected, there was nobody in it. With the prince¡¯s coming-of-age ceremony fast approaching, everyone was quite swamped, especially the people with administrative posts who usually came for this meeting. Even I was actually quite busy. It was just that I had some time to spare at the moment.


    I didn¡¯t sit in the chairs surrounding the huge table that was used for the meeting, but sat in one of the chairs in the corner that did not stand out and slept for a moment, folding my arms. I expected that someone would wake me up if they came. While I was dozing off, someone seemed to have entered the room and sat on the seat beside me. Because there still seemed to be time, I assumed it was someone who came early just like me. While wondering who it was, my head felt heavy and I one again drifted off to sleep.


    ¡¸Oh, how unusual.¡¹


    At the woman¡¯s sudden voice, my body shook in surprise. At the same time a ¡®kachak¡¯ sound came from the seat beside. When I looked over there, I saw Legato sitting on a chair. Legato flinched in surprise at the same time as me, and the sound came from the sword on his waist hitting his chair.


    Why was Legato on the seat beside me? I see, the person who came early was Legato¡­I wondered with a dazed expression, a bit drowsy, then turned to look at the person who had spoken. The one who had called out to us was the head lady-in-waiting, who¡¯d entered the room at some point in time. She was much older than us and was quite a prim woman.


    ¡¸Just the two of you sleeping peacefully. How unusual.¡¹


    It¡¯s wasn¡¯t as if the the two of us were sleeping¡­ I thought and looked beside me. Legato seemed to be drowsy too, placing a finger on his brow. This might be the first time I saw Legato looking so sleepy. Unlike me, he doesn¡¯t look tired through all the meetings, and even while guarding, he doesn¡¯t seem drowsy. However, looking at this appearance, it seemed like the fatigue was even piling up for him.


    Legato raised his head to look at the head lady-in-waiting and then turned to look at me, making an embarrassed face.


    ¡¸You were tired, weren¡¯t you?¡¹


    Looking at that face, I unconsciously called out to him. Since I was on his lap all night up until just a few hours ago, I didn¡¯t perceive a sense of distance towards him.


    ¡¸¡­Since Nidel-dono seemed to be sleeping, I was lured.¡¹


    At Legato¡¯s reply, I wondered Is it my fault? I also felt embarrassed about him calling out my name. I knew that he knew who I was, but I ended up thinking He even knows my name.


    In such a manner, the two of us soon began chatting; this must have been the first time we¡¯d talked properly since the conversation from that time.


    ¡¸It must be difficult for Squad Commander-dono to guard the prince too.¡¹


    ¡¸Not at all, I can manage this much.¡¹


    ¡¸Is your health all right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah. Nidel-dono is always drowsy, right.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh¡­I too was quite busy these past two weeks, so I couldn¡¯t quite sleep at night.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­It¡¯s the same for me.¡¹


    ¡¸As expected, you feel a bit tired.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right.¡¹


    ¡¸Till when is it going to continue, I wonder¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Till the Coming-of-Age ceremony, I guess¡­¡¹


    Legato and I, while gazing at the head lady-in-waiting making preparations for the meeting, continued our unproductive conversation with our half-asleep voices. Perhaps I was the same, but Legato seemed to be considerably absentminded. Usually, he¡¯d never talk, and moreover grumble in this manner to me. Somehow, I felt an atmosphere similar to that of when I dozed off on top of Legato¡¯s lap.


    After that, when the three members of the Royal Palace Magic Order arrived next, they looked suspiciously at us, still absent minded. And thus we sat at our usual seats for the meeting. Surely they must have felt out of place seeing Legato and me together, when we normally had no relation to each other.


    I was in high spirits for the rest of that day. Even I didn¡¯t know the reason for my high spirits, but I realised later that talking amiably with Legato had left me feeling happier than I¡¯d thought. Since I¡¯d always thought that I was hated and that my existence was ignored, I¡¯d never thought I¡¯d get to chat with him like that. Moreover, at that time Legato was quite relaxed and seemed to have his guard lowered considerably. I even felt affection. I started wondering whether Legato held affections towards me. Thinking about that lifted my spirits up a lot.


    My body feels weak, but I¡¯d feel lonely when the guarding duties ended, I thought. I didn¡¯t have much contact with Legato outside of meetings, and even in meetings, it wasn¡¯t as if we talked to each other personally. Thinking about the fact that once the guard duties ended, I¡¯d once again only look at Legato from afar and cheer him on in my heart, I felt a bit lonely.


    At night, I monopolised Legato, sitting on his lap.


    Other than the sleeping prince, only Legato and I were there. Legato let me doze off on top of his warm lap, and petted me all through the night. That hand only moved to caress me.


    My whole body was petted, and I nuzzled my face against his hand, licking his fingers in return. When I did that, Legato laughed a little. When I swayed my tail, Legato playfully chased after it with his hand, and I stroked his hand and body with my tail.


    Without making a sound. The two of us frolicked all throughout the night.


    However, there was only a week left till the Coming of Age ceremony of our country¡¯s first prince.


    And at last, that day came.

 Chapter 10

    Chapter 10


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    Even though I said that the prince¡¯s life was being targeted, our peaceful days continued and Prince Chennel lost his nervousness, now sleeping soundly on the bed each night.


    Beside him, Legato petted me as usual.


    Even though lately many people worked until late in the royal palace, everyone would have ceased their work at this late hour.


    I too dozed off for a bit while Legato petted me. However, when Legato¡¯s hand froze with a flinch, his taut nerves were passed on though the place where he caressed me and I woke up instantly.


    I raised my head. Legato¡¯s left hand had left me and was now quietly grasping the hilt of his sword. I silently raised myself up. Unfortunately, I only had senses comparable to an ordinary human and could not understand quite well what was going on, but if Legato had caught wind of something then there was no mistaking it.


    Since Legato sat as still as possible, I too thought it was better to not move, and stayed still on Legato¡¯s lap, fraught with nerves. However, I made preparations to undo my usual transformation magic and release an offensive spell at the same time.


    Since Legato quietly got up while grasping his sword, I too nimbly jumped down onto the floor from his lap.


    And it was when Legato got a few steps closer to the prince with long strides that I felt an unfamiliar stiff magic fall onto me.


    It was a Magic Barrier.


    The moment I realised it, a part of the wall flashed and exploded with a small boom. The bedchamber did not have windows for safety reasons, but a side of it bordered the palace. The assassin must have burst in through a feat of strength from there.


    I momentarily saw two shadows for amidst the explosion. So they have a magician too, I inwardly retorted.


    Since I felt a powerful magic, this room must have been enclosed by a barrier. There¡¯s no mistaking that the sound of the explosion had not been heard in the neighbouring room. In other words, the people on standby in the adjoining room would not come to help.


    At the same time as the explosion, Legato entered full combat mode and caught the blades of the assassin swooping in to the bed from the collapsed wall, parrying them with his sword.


    Clank! The sound of the swords crossing echoed in the room.


    Of course, it wasn¡¯t as if I was just idly looking on; while jumping onto the prince¡¯s bed with the swiftness of a cat, I undid my transformation magic.


    I guess Legato, who was exchanging blows with the assassin, was surprised at my sudden appearance, his eyes opening wide.


    Dammit, of course it¡¯d be surprising. I should have told Legato. All the more regret crossed my mind, but this wasn¡¯t the right time for stray thoughts.


    I felt magic ripple out from the other assassin, where he stood by the wall dressed in black. Just when I realized that he was the magician, he threw a violent blaze at me.


    I see. So he specialises in fire-type magic. I got lucky.


    The only offensive magic I excelled at was ice-type magic. Pushing the prince behind me, I created a wall of ice. The blaze rushed in and clashed against the ice, extinguishing, releasing a shockwave that hit Legato nearby and caused him to lose his balance for a bit. The assassin was expecting it, though, and broke his body away. I saw him hurl a knife towards the off-balance Legato.


    ¡¸Legato!¡¹


    I didn¡¯t know if my shout was helpful or not, but Legato repelled the sword and nimbly slashed at the assassin again. He seemed fine.


    I created icicles with sharp edges and released them towards the wall adjoining the neighbouring room. Along with a thud, spears of ice penetrated the wall and pierced through to the next room. I could hear the clamour through the wall.


    With this, the abnormal situation here should have gotten conveyed, and they should jump into the fray soon.


    Under my gaze, Legato had pierced through the chest of the assassin after exchanging a few blows with him. He was talented as expected. As for the magician, after I extinguished his magic, he realized that he was at a disadvantage and got ready to escape. The level of his magic barrier was quite high, so it must have been his speciality.


    It was rare to find people who specialised in a particular class of magic, regardless of its type. Even the magic I was best at, Transformation Magic, was no royal road, and my level of ice-type offensive magic was mediocre at best, and I could perform healing magic to only a nominal extent. Even I might stand above the mid-ranks of the magician of this country, however (though Transformation Magic was a totally different ball game).


    People who could use magic were considerably scarce.


    Legato stabbed the back of the escaping magician. At the same time, the other guards- the knights and the Royal Palace Magicians- entered by the door and jumped into the fray. Ten seconds had passed since the assassin had launched his attack.


    In my arms was the prince, hugging me. He¡¯d woken up due to the noise made by the explosion. It should have been his first time seeing me in my human form, but he seemed to have guessed that I was someone protecting him and clung to me, utterly frightened. I gently patted his back.


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine now, it¡¯s all over.¡¹


    When I said that, the prince looked up at me with tearful eyes and restlessly looked at the uproar in the room. The first thing he asked was,¡¸Earl? Where¡¯s Earl?, causing a smile to creep up unconsciously on my face.


    ¡¸He got frightened and left the room. He should be fine.¡¹


    ¡¸I see¡­I did a bad thing, frightening him¡­¡¹


    The prince made a downcast face at my lie, but there wasn¡¯t any need to tell him the truth. The prince was disappointed, but after finding out that the cat was fine, he resolutely gave a smile. I patted that small body as if to soothe it.


    ¡¸¡­Come to think of it, why is Nidel-dono here?¡¹


    With my tension eased, a warm feeling arose in me, but with the members of the Royal Palace Magic Order raising their suspicions, I couldn¡¯t act on it. I looked towards them with a subtle smile. Should I retort after all!?


    The wall had collapsed and many people had gathered in the dusty bedchamber. The assassin whose chest Legato had slashed was still alive, but he was now caught by the knights. Legato and the other guards had chased after the escaped and wounded magician, catching him, so the bedchamber now had the calm atmosphere created by an aftermath of an incident.


    ¡¸Umm¡­¡¹


    While wondering how I should answer, I handed over the prince to the attendant who came rushing in.


    ¡¸No, well¡­it was mere coincidence¡­¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s no way it¡¯s a coincidence! Was even the Tech Order guarding?¡¹


    ¡¸Just how did you enter the bedchamber, it was impossible for us to do so?¡¹


    When I tried to dodge the question, the members of the Royal Palace Magic Order and the Knight Order expressed their doubts. While the members of the Royal Palace Magic Order were cross, the Knight Order were just strange. Well, from the point of view of the Royal Palace Magic Order, we weren¡¯t of much use, so they must have been feeling ashamed.


    However, it didn¡¯t seem like anyone noticed that I was the black cat.


    I see, I thought and gave a wry smile.


    Legato, who was instructing his subordinate knights, looked at me for a moment. I met his gaze for a bit, asking him, Do you want to ask something? through my eyes; but the lot in front of me interrupted my reply, exclaiming ¡¸Nidel-dono!¡¹and making me shift my gaze towards them.


    While I was wondering, Hmm, what should I do? Should I tell the truth? the Prime Minister entered the bedchamber. He arrived rather quickly for someone who should have been sleeping, so he must have been up doing some work.


    ¡¸The Technological Magic Order was performing guard duties behind the scenes on the King¡¯s request. Nidel was the person assigned the duty. Since these are direct orders from the King, all your complaints may be directed to him.¡¹


    The Prime Minister said that to the people around me, and thanked me, saying ¡¸I appreciate your efforts.¡¹.Thank goodness, I thought and bowed to the Prime Minister, saying ¡¸Then, I shall excuse myself.¡¹I then quickly escaped from the room.


    Even the guys who seemed like they still had something to say, had no choice but to shut up at the Prime Minister¡¯s words. Since the fact that I was actually protecting the Prince was the truth, they threw kind words like ¡¸Thank you for your hard work¡¹and¡¸You were a great help¡¹.


    This might be my first time receiving such treatment. I inwardly laughed.


    After leaving the still noisy bedchamber, when I decided to leave the prince¡¯s suite, from behind me I heard someone call out¡¸Nidel-dono!¡¹, and someone approached me. Recognizing his voice, I turned around.


    The one who running up to me was Legato.

 Chapter 11

    Chapter 11


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    As Legato stopped in front of me, I started speaking before he had a chance to say anything.


    ¡¸Many thanks for your help. Squad Commander-dono is truly worthy of praise. You showed superb skills when capturing the two assassins.¡¹


    When I praised him from my heart, Legato replied modestly¡¸No, I still have a long way to go.¡¹and once again looked at me with a questioning gaze. I knew what Legato wanted to ask, but I kept quiet.


    Seeing me like that, Legato opened his mouth hesitantly.


    ¡¸¡­You really saved me just now. If Nidel-dono hadn¡¯t been present, I might not have been able to protect the prince.¡¹


    ¡¸No, it is I who should say so.¡¹


    ¡¸Nidel-dono can use offensive magic too, I see.¡¹


    At Legato¡¯s words, I looked at his face, raising my eyebrows.


    ¡¸The Tech Order consist of magicians after all. Of course we can use it. We just aren¡¯t fond of actual fighting.¡¹


    ¡¸No, that wasn¡¯t what I meant¡­You saved me with your wonderful discernment.¡¹


    I¡¯d spoken to Legato in a slightly curt tone, incorrectly assuming that he was making a negative remark. Truly, I was happy being praised by Legato. I was proud that even though I was a magician, I could be helpful to this man.


    However, I had quite a guilty conscience. I should have just revealed my identity to Legato in the early stages of the guard. If I¡¯d done so, the weight on his shoulders would have reduced and the both of us could have also taken proper countermeasures.


    I didn¡¯t do so because I did not want to lose my privileges as a ¡¸Cat¡¹, I wanted to be thought of as a ¡¸Cat¡¹by Legato. I now realized that I¡¯d prioritised my personal feelings and regretted my actions; if anything had happened to either the prince or to Legato, even regretting wouldn¡¯t have been enough.


    Upon seeing me suddenly fall silent after laughing, Legato appeared troubled.


    ¡¸Um¡­Also, Nidel-dono, I saw you transform from the cat, was that cat Nidel-dono?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right.¡¹


    Since he had seen me return to my human form, I nodded truthfully.


    ¡¸Since when?¡¹


    ¡¸What do you mean by ¡®since when?¡¯¡¹


    I, not understanding what he meant, tilted my head to the side.


    ¡¸When did you switch places with it? Your timing was great, did you know that they¡¯d attack today?¡¹


    After hearing Legato¡¯s marvelling voice, I understood. Legato thought that I was aware of the existence of a cat by the prince¡¯s side, and had switched places with it just for today.


    ¡¸Right from the beginning.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Right from the beginning?¡¹


    ¡¸The black cat was me from the first day. ¡¹


    When I said that, Legato, after making a flabbergasted expression for a few seconds, widened his eyes in realization.


    ¡¸Um¡­By that you mean, from before I began my guard duties?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I approached the prince a day earlier than Squad Commander-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸But¡­that means you¡¯ve been here everyday for around a month?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. That¡¯s why I¡¯d said before that I hadn¡¯t slept for about two weeks.¡¹


    When I chuckled, Legato with his eyes still wide open, muttered ¡¸I see¡­ so that¡¯s the case¡­¡¹. Legato was quite honest, and as a consequence, his reactions were easy to perceive. That¡¯s why everyone ended up teasing him despite themselves.


    ¡¸Squad Commander-dono.¡¹


    I smiled at Legato, who was still in a daze.


    ¡¸Squad Commander-dono was of great help. Thanks to that I was able to complete my bodyguard duties without a hitch. I¡¯m grateful.¡¹


    ¡¸No, I¡¯m the one who ought to say that.¡¹


    ¡¸I was quite doted on, thank you very much.¡¹


    When I laughed in a teasing manner, Legato once again opened his eyes wide, and after letting his gaze shakily wander, had an awkward expression. I saw the ears peeping out of his refreshing and neat hair turn red. When I saw those ears, those lips of mine curled up a bit more.


    ¡¸Many thanks for your efforts. Please, take care of yourself.¡¹


    I said so, lightly patted his shoulders, and prepared to return to my residence. It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve slept in my room. I felt my head spin. As expected I¡¯d gotten tired after the battle.


    Thus, my days of guarding came to an end.


    I should have been glad that it had all been settled by the time the Coming-of-Age ceremony happened. After I¡¯d slept today, I¡¯d have to go to the preparations for that again from tomorrow onwards.


    Thinking They really are slavedrivers, I staggered through the royal palace late at night.


    *


    *


    £ª


    *


    *


    Since then, I was worked so hard every day that I began thinking that the time spent guarding was more fun.


    Tomorrow was finally the day of ¡¸The First Prince¡¯s Coming-of-Age Ceremony¡¹. It was a joyful occasion, but the people behind the scenes were all thrown into utter confusion. Nevertheless, most of the preparations had been completed, and receiving the guests also went smoothly, though the Technological Order¡¯s workload seemed like a looming mountain.


    For the guarding incident, I received words of gratitude from the King too, but I bowed my head saying I was not worthy of them. Rather than me, it was Legato who should be thanked.


    Even the Royal Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order seemed to hold a debt of gratitude towards me, and their attitude towards me seemed to have changed a bit. Perhaps they felt chagrined just like the Royal Palace Order.


    After all, since then I¡¯ve not been able to have a peaceful slumber, and I have been pretty tired. I¡¯d been using magic continuously for around a month or so, and thanks to that, my magic was unbalanced and I felt unwell. But still, when I thought about how once I got through tomorrow, I¡¯d return to my usual days, I felt all right.


    At dusk, when I¡¯d return to the tower, since I knew that work would be pushed onto me, I went to the place I¡¯d visit at times to play truant. It was that backyard bench where I¡¯d had my first conversation with Legato.


    The place was mostly deserted and difficult to see from the main path, just perfect for a hiding spot.


    I let out a sigh and lay down with a plonk. I was tired. Even sitting seemed to be a hard task.


    Since then, I¡¯d seen Legato multiple times at meetings or in the Royal Palace, but the other party did not seem interested in having a conversation, and since I didn¡¯t bother opening one, we returned to our previous relationship of being acquaintances.


    Even though I frolicked about with him so much every night, I thought. But even from the other person¡¯s viewpoint, it must have felt quite embarrassing: the cat you doted on turned out to be a colleague from work whom you had no acquaintance with, moreover a man of the same age. It must have been a great shock.


    I giggled a bit, remembering the dumbfounded Legato when I told him the truth. Then my feelings changed to loneliness.


    While thinking of such things in the midst of dozing off on the bench, I vaguely felt another person¡¯s presence. I cracked my eyes open, only to see that someone was closer to me than I¡¯d expected, surprising me. It was Legato.


    As expected, this man is good at erasing his presence, I thought, still half asleep, and absentmindedly gazed at the man standing beside the bench.


    ¡¸Apologies, did I wake you up?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­No, I was just playing truant.¡¹


    Legato made an inexplicable face in response. From the serious Legato¡¯s viewpoint, what I¡¯d said must have been disagreeable, but he said nothing. Seeing his expression, I, who was still half-asleep remembered how I felt when I was a cat.


    ¡¸Here.¡¹


    I raised my body a bit and created some space on the edge of the bench that I occupied, pointing towards it. Legato made a face as if considering something, and, after seeing my finger and expression, sat down at that spot, saying ¡¸Ah, Thank you.¡¹.


    I placed my head on top of that lap. I knew that Legato had gotten startled and tried to move his legs, but I ignored him. After all, it was more comfortable than directly placing my head on the hard bench. Also, it felt nostalgic, as I¡¯d always dozed off on this lap when I was a cat.


    ¡¸¡­Um¡­Nidel-dono¡­¡¹


    ¡¸It was always like this when we were guarding, right?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­That was because Nidel-dono was a cat¡­¡¹


    I head Legato¡¯s perplexed voice above my head, but he didn¡¯t seem to reject it enough to get my head out of the way, so I relaxed on his lap and closed my eyes. Legato surely cared about me. We were the same age, and despite me being less important than him, he always used polite speech with me.


    Basically, Legato used courteous speech with everyone other than his direct subordinates. I thought that such modesty, or should I call it seriousness, was good, but it created a sense of distance and made one feel undue formality.


    Well, even I was polite to him to a level bordering on obnoxiousness.

 Chapter 12

    Chapter 12


    Editor: Mirial


    I spoke, my head resting on top of Legato¡¯s lap.


    ¡¸Is it fine for Squad commander to be loafing about over here? Even though we¡¯re all so busy?¡¹


    ¡¸Just for a bit. Thanks to the guarding incident, my work was cut down. Nidel-dono sure comes here quite often.¡¹


    It seemed like Legato had accepted being a lap pillow, and continued his conversation as usual. However, what Legato said surprised me. I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d know of my little spot.


    ¡¸¡­Have you perhaps seen me playing truant here before?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, many times.¡¹


    ¡¸Why didn¡¯t you talk to me, then?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­I thought it¡¯d be bad to disturb you. It always seemed as if you were tired.¡¹


    Sure, I only came here when I felt down or was awfully tired. For someone to have noticed me like that, it was certainly quite embarrassing.


    ¡¸The first time we met was also here.¡¹


    At Legato¡¯s next words, I was quite taken aback. Was he perhaps talking about the happenings from nearly ten years ago?


    For him to remember such a trifling incident, and furthermore recognise that it was me, it was completely outside my expectations.


    ¡¸At that time you helped me with my injury, thank you very much for that.¡¹


    At Legato¡¯s words, I was convinced that he was talking about the time I was thinking of.


    ¡¸¡­You have a good memory¡­to remember things from so long ago.¡¹


    ¡¸Ah, it was Nidel-dono as expected. Actually, I wasn¡¯t that confident.¡¹


    He said cheerfully above my head, something in his voice hinting at the joy he felt.


    ¡¸Actually I realised it was Nidel-dono only after a few years had passed.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because I also shut myself in the tower in the beginning.¡¹


    ¡¸I had always wished to express my gratitude for that time, but in the end I was rescued by you this time¡­If there¡¯s anything I could possibly do, I¡¯d like to repay that too.¡¹


    I smiled at the conscientious Legato. What happened 10 years ago was just a mere whim of mine, whereas this time was due to work obligations. Moreover, I was the one who ought to be grateful for this time.


    However, I felt like taking advantage of Legato¡¯s kindness. He¡¯d even given me a lap pillow. In that case, let¡¯s ask for a few more wishes.


    ¡¸Then, please pet me,¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­Huh?¡¹


    ¡¸When I was a cat, didn¡¯t you pet me? That¡¯s become somewhat of a habit.¡¹


    Legato sat silently in response. While I was thinking ¡°He¡¯s lost interest after all,¡± Legato started speaking cautiously.


    ¡¸Um¡­when Nidel-dono transforms into a cat, how much of your human consciousness do you retain?¡¹


    ¡¸I only have my human consciousness.¡¹


    When I replied straight away, Legato once again turned silent.


    ¡¸¡­So then you remain in a completely sane state?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, I¡¯m completely sane.¡¹


    Legato¡¯s words hit the spot, and I trembled with laughter. When Legato became perturbed, his words turned clumsy.


    From Legato¡¯s viewpoint, it must have seemed as if I wasn¡¯t sane when performing those actions.


    ¡¸You¡¯re good at transforming into cats.¡¹


    ¡¸Not just cats, if it¡¯s transforming into animals, I think I¡¯m most probably the best in the country. Please keep it a secret, since I don¡¯t speak too much of it. But still, I did something inexcusable to Squad Commander-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes?¡¹


    ¡¸I made you mistake that you weren¡¯t hated by animals, didn¡¯t I?¡¹


    Perhaps he realised I was teasing him, for Legato gave a wry smile.


    ¡¸Certainly, this was the first time I became attached to an animal.¡¹


    ¡¸I can become a cat even now, but I¡¯m too tired to use any magic¡­it¡¯s one of those transformations that requires quite a bit of power.¡¹


    ¡¸It must have felt terrible, staying like that every night during the guard.¡¹


    ¡¸I was happier than Squad Commander-dono, I was dozing off after all.¡¹


    Legato and I conversed as if to mutually appreciate the efforts we¡¯d taken during our time as guards. If one had heard our tone of voice, it would have seemed overly formal, but the atmosphere was quite amicable. Only we would understand the pains we took during guarding.


    For some reason, those days felt distant now.


    As we spoke, I felt a hesitant finger touch me, through the hood. I had pulled the hood lightly over my head, but that finger flipped it over and Legato ruffled through my hair. He seemed to be petting me just as I had requested. ¡°What an earnest fellow,¡± I thought, lying on my side, curling my lips into a smile.


    ¡¸¡­It¡¯s the same.¡¹


    Legato, who was ruffling his finger through my hair spoke words of admiration.


    ¡¸What is?¡¹


    ¡¸It feels the same as your coat when you were a cat.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    Legato, while moving his hand about as if to confirm the feeling, muttered ¡¸How amazing¡¹, greatly interested. At first he seemed hesitant, but gradually his hand¡¯s movements smoothed out and Legato started skillfully petting my head in the same manner when I was a cat.


    The familiar hand movements caused me to feel sleepy. ¡°Be it cat or human form, the feeling of being petted is the same,¡± I mused.


    However, one could only have their head petted as a cat. If I asked for something like ¡°Please pet my body¡± it¡¯d end up taking on a wholly different meaning.


    I would only like to be petted normally, I thought, laughing a little to myself.


    From the day when I first had a conversation with Legato, I was aware of the thing sleeping in the depths of my heart.


    Legato had always been special, he was one of the anchors that supported my heart. I¡¯d always been longing for that honest figure. Always.


    Legato was kind and earnest, causing him to always be taken advantage of, always getting the short end of the stick.


    He was just like me.


    When I brought my hand to my face, intending to rub my drowsy eyes, my wrist was caught. I raised my head in confusion. Legato had caught my wrist, and was staring at it unblinkingly. When Legato¡¯s fingers wrapped around my wrist, they seemed much longer than it.


    ¡¸¡­Nidel-dono, are you all right? You seem to have become a lot thinner?¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    While doubtfully thinking, ¡°Did Legato really know me well enough to tell whether my wrists had become more slender or whether I had thinned?¡± I gave a wry smile. However, Legato hit the nail on the head. I had surely lost weight in the past one month or so.


    The wrist Legato had caught felt warm.


    ¡¸Are you eating and sleeping properly?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll try to do so from the day after tomorrow and onwards.¡¹


    At my reply, Legato seemed to have perceived my attitude towards life, and knit his eyebrows. But thinking that it couldn¡¯t be helped with the business going on right now, he gave a sigh and lowered his hand.


    My gaze fell on that hand, and I once again was mesmerized by it. Near the base of his finger, there was now another wound. While thinking in amazement ¡°He gets injured quite often,¡± I grabbed and pulled that hand towards me, pressing my lips against the wound that was slightly oozing blood. His hand trembled in surprise, but I licked that wound, and poured my magic into it.


    In the midst of my movements I suddenly realised that I wasn¡¯t a cat right now, I could have used healing magic through my hands too. ¡°Sh*t,¡± I thought, but what had happened couldn¡¯t be undone. I¡¯d done it subconsciously.


    Pressing my lips onto the wound till it was healed, I let go of the hand. Legato looked down at me with a dazed expression. Looking at that face, a smile rose on my face and I felt like teasing him.


    ¡¸I¡¯ve repaid you for my time as a cat.¡¹


    Legato made a puzzled face and looked around our surroundings.


    When I gazed at Legato, asking through my eyes, ¡°Oioi, do you really intend to repay me?¡± Legato made a serious face as if he¡¯d come to a decision, leaned over me and left a fleeting kiss near my cheek.


    Extending my body towards the face that soon parted from my skin, I too grazed his cheeks with my lips. I met Legato¡¯s widened blue eyes. I gave a sly grin.


    I placed my head back on his lap and Legato turned stiff for a moment.


    *


    *


    £ª


    *


    *


    The Coming-of-Age Ceremony passed without incident and life returned to normal in the Royal Palace.


    One could often see the sight of the Squad Commander¡¯s footsteps on the way back home intermingling with those of a black cat, or that of a bird fluttering down through the window into the Squad Commander¡¯s room.

 Chapter 13 - Kiss the Friend 1

    Chapter 13: Kiss the Friend 1


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Alamerysl


    While relaxing at nighttime, I sat on the chair in my room and took my sword in my hand.


    A pleasant night breeze entered through the open window. I, who had received the honourable rank of the Squad Commander of the Royal Knight Order, stayed in one corner of the Knight¡¯s Quarters near the royal palace. It was so that I could quickly rush in case of an emergency.


    Since I was a Commander, I¡¯d been given a room much larger than the one I¡¯d had when I was a rank-and-file knight, and I was grateful for it.


    While I was concentrating on performing maintenance on my sword, I heard the flapping sound of wings. When I turned my eyes towards the sound, a black bird entered gracefully through the half-open window. When I paused my hand, the black bird transformed into a figure wearing a black robe, and sat on the edge of the bed, crossing his legs.


    ¡¸Squad Commander-dono, you sure are serious, maintaining your sword.¡¹


    ¡¸I won¡¯t be satisfied unless I do it myself.¡¹


    When I said that, Nidel-dono laughed, teasing me ¡¸Squad Commander-dono is uptight¡¹ .


    Since the incident from the last month, Nidel and I had become quite close, and Nidel-dono would come to my room to play as he fancied. It wasn¡¯t as if he had something to do, it was to the extent of conversing a little, and lightly drinking; I didn¡¯t know if Nidel-dono came to my room because he found it fun.


    I didn¡¯t think was a fun person to be with though.


    I¡¯d been often told by several of my seniors at Royal Knights, ¡¸You¡¯re so serious that it becomes boring.¡¹. I was not extremely dull, but I didn¡¯t have a cheerful personality either. Nidel-dono told me that too, that I¡¯ve been slightly uptight right from the past, and that seemed to show the most in my relationships with other people, and I couldn¡¯t create any relationships with people other than strictly formal ones. I was poor at grasping a familiar sense of distance, and I always ended up approaching with an excessively formal attitude, no matter who it was.


    As expected, I had the dignity to maintain with my direct subordinates and juniors, and thus adopted an appropriate attitude with them, but other than that, I had a uniform attitude towards everyone else. Even with my comrades in the Knight Order, I drew a clear line somewhere.


    In the midst of it, Nidel-dono held a strange position. Of course, until we found common ground the month before, I¡¯d adopted a formal attitude with Nidel-dono too, and Nidel-dono had adopted an attitude so polite, it felt curt. However, lately, he¡¯d been having a friendly attitude towards me.


    For some reason, it tempted me, and I too held amicable feelings towards Nidel-dono now.


    We had entered the Royal Palace in the same year and were of the same age; he had a relationship that didn¡¯t have much of his work interests at stake either, so it was great that he wasn¡¯t that cautious towards me, and could be called an unusual companion of sorts.


    Moreover, I had held a favourable impression towards Nidel-dono in the first place. Around the time when I¡¯d entered the royal palace, he had healed an injury of mine. It was a trifling matter, but to readily receive healing magic from a magician was an extremely delightful matter for me.


    Within the Royal Palace, the relationship between the Knight Order and the Magic Order was more of that of rivals than allies. A magician was especially unapproachable for a rookie Knight.


    At such a time, the memories of being treated kindly by a magician, who was young just like me, was something heartwarming. I¡¯d try to search for him whenever I caught sight of a magician, but I was unable to find him, and at a time when I¡¯d even mostly forgotten his face, I found someone who resembled him.


    It was at the time when I¡¯d been tasked with the order to take a magic device by my superior and deliver it to the Technological Magic Order¡¯s Tower. I, who did not usually come in contact with the members of the Technological Order, was nervous. The elderly person who responded to me was clad in black robes, and he took the device from me while whispering in an indistinct voice. But at that moment I caught sight of a person similar to him from that time, crouching in the corner of the room.


    I didn¡¯t have the confidence to be absolutely sure it was him, but I had an inkling that it probably was.


    Ahh, So, he was a member of the Technological Magic Order, I came to an understanding. They were all wrapped up in the same robes, pulling the hood over their eyes, and thus it wasn¡¯t easy to decipher their faces. Since they had an image of consisting of all older members, I didn¡¯t think there¡¯d be a young magician like him here.


    Since he wasn¡¯t wearing the robe the first time we met, I¡¯d properly seen his face. His face left behind quite an impression.


    He had pitch-black soft hair, and with his simple facial features, it wouldn¡¯t leave much of an impression, but thanks to his cynical expression and behaviour, and the impression his eyes gave seemed bright, or should I say those pitch-black eyes sparkled as if amused by something.


    As one of the faces of the Technological Order, he had to show up at many public places, and there were many occasions when I saw him with the hood taken off too, but the more I saw him, the more I thought, ¡¸Ah, it was him then after all¡¹. He gave off an impression similar to what I had felt then.


    I came to understand Nidel-dono, and always nonchalantly paid undue attention to him.


    Years passed since having that small encounter with him at that time, and I felt happy seeing him climb the stairs to success just like me. He must also be surely putting in hard work. Moreover, at the regular meetings, as the youngest, I felt quite small but having him who was of the same age as I felt reassuring.


    The standing of the Technological Order in the Royal Palace was weak, and there were many occasions when he adopted an impolite attitude, but he never showed an angry or hurt expression, and was always easygoing. I respected that conduct of his too.


    From my point of view, the Technological Order did many thankless jobs. But still, it was strange that they were never valued for it, inexcusable even.


    If I was to be promoted even higher than my current position, I thought I¡¯d like to do something about those circumstances. It must have been exactly because it was Nidel-dono who was in a position that meant he was sharply criticised, that I thought needlessly of it.


    I thought of wanting to have a conversation with Nidel-dono someday, but we were not on such terms that meant we could chat amicably, and I, always concerned about him in a corner of my heart had reached till here now.


    Even now, when I reminisced of the guarding incident from a month before, shame and embarrassment, and many other inexplicable feelings assaulted me, but it was nevertheless a chance, and thanks to it, we now had a relationship wherein Nidel would come to my room to play, it was a strange thing.


    When I thought of it calmly, Nidel-dono had done a lot of embarrassing things during that time. He had climbed up on my lap every night and had been petted for the whole night. It was impossible to think that that wasn¡¯t a cat, but Nidel-dono.


    However, even now Nidel-dono was in the form of a cat in my room, and I too was just like at that time guarding, petting him on my lap. For some reason or the other, Nidel-dono seemed to like it, and seeing that cat form accepting my caressing and seemingly enjoying it, a complex maze of heartwarming, embarrassing and guilty feelings arose.


    However, the black cat Nidel-dono transformed into was extremely cute. It was fun to pet too. He could transform into any animal he wanted to.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, care for a drink?¡¹


    ¡¸Just a little is fine.¡¹


    Nidel-dono, who now spoke familiarly with me, had grumbled to me, saying ¡¸It¡¯s feels creepy, so please stop using polite speech¡¹, and thus lately I¡¯d stopped using polite speech too.


    I wasn¡¯t that fond of alcohol, but my room always had some on hand. I thought I was good at holding my liquor. When I was a rookie knight, my superiors often forced me to drink, but they ended up complaining, saying ¡¸You don¡¯t change one bit! It¡¯s no fun.¡¹.


    I placed two glasses on the table and poured wine in them. Nidel-dono, while sitting atop the bed, legs crossed, leaned his neck in a bit and looked at the wine being poured, and those eyes trembled and sparkled in delight, and my lips curved up at that sight.


    Nidel-dono always hid his face with the robe so it went unnoticed, but his eyes were quite expressive. He usually did not wear his hood when in my room, and he was much easier to get along with than when in the Royal Palace.

 Chapter 14 - Kiss the Friend 2

    Chapter 14: Kiss the Friend 2


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    ¡¸To passing today peacefully.¡¹


    We clinked our glasses together and drank the wine. It was quite rare for me to drink without constraints with someone in my own room in such a manner. I didn¡¯t feel hesitant, however, instead, it felt great.


    I had never been a much of a talker, but with Nidel-dono my conversations often became lively. We had entered the royal palace around the same time, and when we talked about what we had learned, the conversation built up quite a bit. Nidel-dono often came over to my room, but we had yet to run out of topics to talk about, and spent our time comfortably, quietly having a pleasant chat. Nidel-dono smiled a lot more than I had expected too.


    ¡¸Squad Commander-dono once again got the short end of the stick.¡¹


    Nidel-dono said, laughing lightly while tracing his glass with a finger. His hands looked beautiful, and were almost like a woman¡¯s. Maybe it was because he often handled magic devices, but his fingers seemed quite dexterous.


    I tilted my head at his words, focusing on that hand of his, and asked ¡¸Is that so?¡¹.


    Nidel-dono often told me that I ¡¸have work pushed onto you, and get the short end of the stick¡¹, but I didn¡¯t think so. Certainly I had my work cut out for me, but since I was in the Squad, it was only to be expected, and I was thankful for the experience it gave me.


    When I told him my opinion, Nidel-dono chuckled, saying ¡¸It¡¯s precisely because Squad Commander-dono thinks so that work is unnecessarily pushed upon you.¡¹. Nidel-dono did not mince any words, bluntly saying what he thought, but his tone of voice and smile were kind, and I didn¡¯t feel the least bit uncomfortable. Instead, I felt pacified.


    ¡¸Leaving that aside, Nidel-dono, enough already. Can you stop that manner of addressing me?¡¹


    ¡¸What manner, Squad Commander-dono?¡¹


    Nidel-dono smiled cheekily. Seeing him feigning ignorance despite clearly understanding my question, I smiled wryly.


    ¡¸You calling me ¡°Squad Commander-dono.¡± It somehow sounds like you¡¯re teasing me.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh, but that¡¯s exactly the case. It¡¯s loaded with sarcasm.¡¹


    Nidel-dono laughed and my smile deepened. Nidel-dono had called out my name but once, when we had been guarding. Nidel-dono¡¯s voice calling out ¡¸Legato!¡¹while I was fighting with the enemy, rang in my ears even now. It¡¯s was also the first time I¡¯d head Nidel-dono shout out so shrilly.


    It made me strangely happy knowing that Nidel-dono was aware of my name and that he¡¯d left out the honorifics.


    ¡¸Then, what should I call you?¡¹


    ¡¸Just Legato is fine.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t you use honorifics with my name too?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­That is true¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Well, nevermind. Then, I¡¯ll call you that, Legato.¡¹


    Towards the end of the conversation, Nidel-dono called out my name in a soft voice. It tickled my ears and I felt somewhat embarrassed. However, it didn¡¯t feel bad to hear Nidel-dono leave behind honorifics. It felt as if we had become closer.


    I still couldn¡¯t bring myself to drop the honorifics with Nidel-dono though. In my mind, Nidel-dono was someone with a higher position than me.


    We enjoyed our conversation in a genial manner and drank wine. Nidel-dono did not seem to be someone who held his liquor well, as a faint flush appeared on his skin halfway through the first glass.


    Nidel-dono, who was sitting on the bed, called out my name and patted on the spot on the bed beside him. I gave a wry smile, got up from my chair, and sat there.


    Once I did so, Nidel-dono placed his head on my lap. While this has happened numerous times by now, I still felt embarrassed. Perhaps it was vestiges from his time as a cat, but Nidel-dono seemed to have caught fancy of my lap, and often asked for a lap pillow, especially when drunk.


    I thought a woman¡¯s lap would be better. I wondered whether there¡¯s anything comfortable about a man¡¯s stiff lap, but I did not mind giving a lap pillow to Nidel-dono.


    I too, couldn¡¯t let go of my feelings from when he was a cat. For instance, if a colleague from the Knight Order asked for a lap pillow, I¡¯d politely refuse him, but I felt no sense of rejection towards Nidel-dono. Nidel-dono¡¯s body itself being slender and his gestures having a cat-like atmosphere might be the cause.


    Even in his human form, I felt like I was taking care of a cat.


    When I, out of habit, petted the black hair scattered on my lap, Nidel-dono squinted his eyes. His figure reminded me of a cat squinting its eyes in satisfaction due to being petted well. If others saw it they¡¯d wonder what two men, both of considerable age, were doing. They might even doubt our relationship. However, in my relationship with him I didn¡¯t believe there was anything quite strange.


    Within the amicability I held towards Nidel-dono, it wasn¡¯t out of place to take care of his human form like a cat.


    While one hand petted his head, another was caught by Nidel-dono, who¡¯d already laid down. Nidel-dono¡¯s fingers traced my hand as if to make sure I was present. Even when we were guarding the prince, Nidel-dono, in his cat form, often licked my hand. Come to think of it, at that time, I was not the only one who doted on Nidel-dono, Nidel-dono also frolicked with me.


    Thanks to the black cat Nidel-dono, my life as a guard was quite heartwarming, but frolicking about with Nidel-dono like this, frankly speaking, was even more ticklishly heartwarming than when he was a cat.


    The feelings of affection I held towards Nidel-dono were surely more than what ordinary friends had. But I felt that the affection Nidel-dono held towards me was far greater than mine.


    I¡¯m too was not that imperceptive of a man. I knew the meaning of the feelings Nidel-dono showed me.


    It didn¡¯t give me the slightest discomfort. I knew that I was endowed with both status and looks, and it was thanks to that that I¡¯d received favour from various people up until now. However, to be loved by Nidel-dono, who was good at calmly judging people¡¯s character, was a mysterious feeling, and despite us being both men, it made me happy. Why like a boring man like me? I wondered.


    However, if you asked me whether I held the same feelings as Nidel-dono, the answer would be no. The feelings I held towards him, despite being something a bit more, were basically those of friendship.


    But I had no intentions of pushing Nidel-dono aside. To be friends with him was a extremely joyful thing for me, as someone who hardly ever let my guard down around others.


    Nidel-dono, who was touching my hand, grabbed my shirt near my chest and pulled me towards him. I did not resist and bent my body towards him. When I did that, Nidel-dono, who had raised his body up, brushed his lips against my cheek. I accepted it. For me, touching Nidel-dono and frolicking about with him, was within the limits of friendship.


    I met Nidel-dono¡¯s pitch-black eyes at point blank range. Nidel-dono didn¡¯t turn them into weapons, but I thought he was nevertheless handsome. If he¡¯d been in the Royal Palace Magic Order and had been trained more properly, he¡¯d have got a position of his own and would have certainly gotten along well with the members of the Knight Order. I thought so, looking at his way of handling people and his judgement.


    But I felt that being a member of the Technological Order suited him as well.


    While I locked eyes with Nidel-dono, his hands brushed my head and patted me multiple times. It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve been patted by a person, I thought.


    ¡¸Touch me in many ways, just like when I was a cat.¡¹


    Nidel-dono stared at me with eyes that were slightly moist due to the alcohol and opened his mouth in a whisper.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, such words will lead to misunderstandings.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m inviting you.¡¹


    When I subconsciously returned to using polite speech, Nidel-dono gave a sly grin. That¡¯s right, I was being invited, I realised.


    ¡¸When one drinks, such feelings do arise.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Well, that is true¡¹


    ¡¸Even the serious Squad Commander-dono feels it, I see.¡¹


    Perhaps my affirmation was unexpected, but Nidel-dono opened his eyes wide and laughed mirthfully. I didn¡¯t know what kind of person Nidel-dono thought of me as, but I didn¡¯t think I was a person with that great integrity. Especially in regards to relations between men and women, people who were acquainted with me would often be astonished, saying ¡¸You sure get swept away at once when you¡¯re invited.¡¹ ¡¸Indecisiveness and kindness are different things.¡¹was another thing I was often told. I was careful, though, because I was in a position that carried responsibility.


    While looking at Nidel-dono, I wondered whether to accept or reject his invitation. It wasn¡¯t as if Nidel-dono¡¯s gender was a problem. When I was young, I¡¯d slept with a man on request, so there was no confusion there. Though not public, same-sex relationships in this country weren¡¯t uncommon.


    While I was going in circles, thinking of various things like If I reject the invitation, it¡¯ll become awkward with Nidel-dono, seeing Nidel-dono¡¯s slender nape and his slightly flushed face due to the alcohol, I thought that anything was fine.


    I was also a man. If there was a meal set in front of me, Well let¡¯s eat it for now, was what I¡¯d think. I liked petting a Nidel-dono¡¯s hair too, and I wanted to pet his body just like when he was a cat.


    ¡¸Then, I won¡¯t hold back.¡¹


    When I, after reaching a conclusion, said that, Nidel-dono, after making a slightly surprised expression, grinned.


    *


    *


    *


    [R-15 Alert!]


    I held Nidel-dono, who was sitting on one corner of the bed in my arms, and pushed him down onto the middle of the bed. Nidel-dono quietly watched what I was doing with amused eyes.


    I undid the clasp of the black robe he always wore, and put my hand inside it. When clad in the robe, his figure wasn¡¯t easily discernible, but as I¡¯d thought, when I actually felt him, Nidel-dono was slender.


    *


    *


    ¡¸You¡¯re thin¡­¡¹


    While muttering subconsciously, I slipped my hand under his clothes. The bare skin I touched with my hands was smooth. His skin felt like it didn¡¯t belong to a man the same age as me, and reminded me again of his fur when he was a cat. It didn¡¯t lose in smoothness.


    ¡¸¡­Legato, put out the lights.¡¹


    Once told by Nidel-dono, who was lying face up on the bed, I left the bed for a moment, and made the room slightly darker. I also brought the lube and other things. I didn¡¯t know if we were going to do it till the end, but there was no trouble in being prepared.


    ¡¸You¡¯re completely prepared, huh.¡¹


    Nidel-dono, who was sprawled on the bed, noticed me and chuckled. Taking off my coat, I once again leaned over that slender body.


    ¡¸Legato is experienced in such matters, huh.¡¹


    ¡¸I wonder¡­It¡¯s been a long time now.¡¹


    That¡¯s right, the fact that it¡¯d been a while was also one of the reasons I¡¯d accepted Nidel-dono¡¯s invitation. Since it¡¯d been a long time, I wanted to do it.


    I took off Nidel-dono¡¯s robe and clothes. He obediently yielded to my hand. I thought I would get tense due to the guilt of laying my hands on a friend, but as expected, I held a relaxed attitude towards Nidel-dono, calming me down.


    Nidel-dono, now completely exposed, had a beautiful body with good proportions. So much that I felt it was a waste for it to be hidden by the robe. Perhaps it was the robe or perhaps due to being holed up the tower, but his skin was pale.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s figure fuelled my excitement. I¡¯d thought there was the possibility that I wouldn¡¯t be inclined to it, but now the first hurdle had been crossed.


    Just like when I was cuddling him as a cat, I petted Nidel-dono¡¯s whole body with my hands. The soft and comfortable feeling of touching him was identical to that of a cat. Nidel-dono¡¯s pulse was transmitted through his skin. Nidel-dono squinting his eyes and lightly stirring reminded me of a cat yet again.


    However, what the figure radiated wasn¡¯t cuteness, but seductiveness.


    Seeing Nidel-dono¡¯s figure, I realized that he too was a person who possessed sex appeal.


    I caressed his skin with the palm of my hand and stimulated the two projections on his chest. I rubbed them with my thumbs, and as I stimulated them further whilst kneading them, Nidel-dono¡¯s breaths became shallower. He wrapped his legs around me, as if to excite me as I nested between his legs. I licked his collarbone. Licking didn¡¯t feel bad.


    I brought the hand that was playing with his chest further down, grabbed his buttocks, and while taking care not to use too much force, kneaded them. I sucked with my lips everywhere on the upper half of his body. When I licked his sides, a muffled gasp came from above, and his legs were thrown into chaos, colliding against my body.


    His reactions weren¡¯t half bad. The thing within my underpants became hotter. While continuing to knead his buttocks, I decided to do him till the end. I wanted to try putting my thing inside that slender body, no matter what.

 Chapter 15 - Kiss the Friend 3

    Chapter 15: Kiss the Friend 3


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    I raised my head and poured the lube I¡¯d prepared onto my hand. Nidel-dono, who had been looking away, sent a gentle gaze towards me.


    ¡¸I need to do the preparations.¡¹


    After I said that, Nidel-dono nodded slightly. Come to think of it, I¡¯d decided to be the one on top as if it were natural and it bothered me for a moment, but it didn¡¯t seem as if Nidel-dono had any objections towards that.


    I placed a pillow under his waist, spread out his legs, and slid my body in the space between. I moistened my fingers with the lube. If I wanted to enjoy him to the fullest, I needed to get him loose and wet.


    I raised his legs, revealing his entrance. Bringing a moistened finger close, I traced the outside, wetting it, then massaged it to slowly relax it.


    Nidel-dono, trembling under my body, occasionally twitched his legs.


    Once I¡¯d rubbed in the lube into the folds, I pushed my little finger in slowly.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s body trembled in surprise once again.


    ¡¸¡­Is this Nidel-dono¡¯s first time with a man?¡¹


    Inserting my finger in a little, I swayed it slightly, then pushed in a little deeper. Ask I did so, I asked Nidel-dono and he replied affirmatively with an honest ¡¸Ahh¡¹. Understanding him, I continued to move my finger, and inserted it into his depths. So that¡¯s the case. I see.


    My finger, inserted into Nidel-dono¡¯s insides, was wrapped up by his hot inner walls, feeling as if it was being sucked from all directions. It wasn¡¯t a bad feeling and I expected more from here on.


    Up until his body completely accepted my finger, I carefully slid it back and forth. I couldn¡¯t hurt Nidel-dono¡¯s body.


    When he¡¯d gotten a bit used to it, I spread the entrance with my index finger this time, and inserted it by pouring in more lube. While taking that finger in and out, the movements there became smoother, and a shameful squelch leaked out from there.


    ¡¸Ngh¡¹


    Each time I moved my fingers, Nidel-dono let out a disordered gasp. But, perhaps because he was trying to keep his voice in, what reached my ears were stifled moans. When I looked at him, his hair was disheveled and his body was half twisted to the side. With every stimulation he endured he would twitch and tremble.


    In order to not be rash, I carefully accustomed the insides. Taking my time, I increased the number of fingers.


    I am likely not the type to be bothered with the struggles of keeping something a secret or staying silent such as when it comes to sword practice or even work. If if the people around me wanted to annoy me, I¡¯d often not be annoyed. That¡¯s why, when Nidel-dono told me ¡¸You get the short end of the stick.¡¹, I didn¡¯t come to much of a realisation.


    Seemingly unconsciously, Nidel-dono¡¯s voice escaped. It was when I stirred the large insides with two of my fingers. I¡¯d been only loosening the insides for quite some time now, and thanks to that, the entrance relaxed considerably. Wondering if I should insert another finger, I stuck my third finger in. Nidel-dono¡¯s throat rang and his body gave in.


    The third finger too was buried in deeply.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s dick hadn¡¯t been touched even once, but it was completely curved up. It was a beautiful penis the same shade as his skin, not at all darkened. Every time Nidel-dono gave out rough breaths, it too twitched and trembled. But still, it wasn¡¯t possible for it to stand up just from the stimulus inside, and it was in the same state since I¡¯d put my second finger in.


    ¡¸¡­nn oi, how longer nn ¡­¡¹


    Even as three of my fingers moved inside, making obscene squelching noises, Nidel-dono glared at me, short of breath. But with a flushed face and wet eyes, that glare absolutely lacked its usual composure. Despite myself, I smiled. Nidel-dono is a cute person, I thought honestly to myself.


    ¡¸Preparation is an important thing.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­nn Enough already.¡¹


    Since Nidel-dono had tightened his jaw and complained of the unbearableness, I gladly took on his request. Pulling out my fingers, I took off my underwear. Looking at the thing that was now half-hard, Nidel-dono curved his lips up in a wry smile.


    ¡¸¡­Squad Commander-dono is splendid as expected.¡¹


    ¡¸Not really.¡¹


    I too smiled wryly. There was a time when I thought my length was greater than average, but the truth was it was of little consequence.


    Pouring more lube in the palm of my hand, I stroked my member with that hand. While moving my hand such that the lube sank in all over, I was a little troubled by how much a excited state should I enter Nidel-dono in. My penis was already completely erect, so penetrating him was a possibility.


    I have an inferiority complex when it comes to sex. That is because I have a constitution that has a hard time cumming. Be it by myself, or when joined to a person, I took a long time. It isn¡¯t as if I absolutely don¡¯t get them, it felt good, but I couldn¡¯t reach it till the very end. While masturbating, it was alright to the extent of my hand becoming tired, but I had to exercise caution while doing it with a person.


    The people I¡¯ve experienced it with is quite reasonable, but there were many times when my partner raised their voice halfway, and begged me to pull out. There were many people who, despite being wet in the beginning, would dry out after taking such a long time, and lose their drive, and because of that I hesitate to have sex without lube. Thus, to cum as quick as possible, I¡¯d arouse it with my hand just before putting it in. Still, there were times when it would end without cumming. Thanks to that, there were many times when it¡¯d become awkward with my partner.


    In this way I felt reluctance, and considering the number of people I¡¯ve had it with, I wasn¡¯t that aggressive when it came to sex.


    I don¡¯t want to tell it to people either.


    While I was moving my hand with my emotions becoming heavy, because Nidel-dono made a dubious face, I gave up trying to stimulate myself any further with my hand.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, I¡¯m entering.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Ahh¡¹


    I replaced my feelings, and held both of Nidel-dono¡¯s legs. Even if I said so, since I was going to enter a person after a long time, I cheered up. I liked doing the deed itself. Even though there was a part of me that was bad at building relationships with people, spending time with people, and touching them directly was something I liked.


    Adjusting my posture, I aimed my tip at the tight hole. I slowly pushed my waist forward, the benefits of taking my time to loosen it up showed, and though it resisted for a moment, the tip was swallowed in smoothly.


    ¡¸Ngh¡ª!¡¹


    I heard a stifled moan, but I continued to move my body as is. The place that had become sticky and wet with lube, took my in more smoothly than I¡¯d expected. Nidel-dono¡¯s body too, must be of the flexible type.


    I continued so as to thrust into those inner walls that were offering a sweet resistance. Even I who was longer than average, was taken in deeply and could push in till the hilt.

 Chapter 16 - Kiss the Friend 4

    Chapter 16: Kiss the Friend 4


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    ¡¸Ngh¡­¡¹


    Nidel-dono¡¯s voice raised in a moan, but if it was like this, I didn¡¯t think it was a large enough burden to injure his body, and relaxed. When he gave a sigh of relief, his insides squirmed. My penis, entering his hot and melting body, was sucked in from all directions and was caught, just like when I¡¯d put my finger inside.


    I knit my eyebrows with pleasure and let out a hot breath.


    A numbing pleasure gushed forth at entering a person after a long time, and Nidel-dono¡¯s body felt the best amongst the ones I¡¯d experienced till now.


    I attacked, convinced that I would cum.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, is it alright to move?¡¹


    I felt the need to move quickly, but I held back the urge and sneaked a look at him. His face was a little raised with dazed eyes and when I caught his gaze, he nodded and gave a wry smile.


    ¡¸Please go easy on me.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh.¡¹


    As he gave his consent, I once again corrected my posture and slowly moved my hips. Standing on my knees, I pumped my hips back and forth. Nidel-dono leaned his head back and swallowed the screams in his throat.


    When I moved, the movement of his insides too changed, and it sucked me in even more strongly. While being sucked in I pulled out and pushed in, rubbing together my penis and his inner walls. I felt pleasure to the extent that my voice escaped. But still, as I¡¯d expected, I tasted pleasure even without cumming, and continued to move.


    ¡¸Ngh, ah, ahh!¡¹


    Nidel-dono tried to stifle his desperate moans, but his unstoppable voiced still spilled out. The quiet, mature, and coquettish voice excessively stirred up my excitement. I closed the window that had been left half-open beside the bed. The cool wind no longer entered and the room got a little hotter.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s penis was wet, as if it had already released semen. Just by looking it, it seemed like a painful level of arousal. Just like I thought, he wasn¡¯t able to bear the agony and his trembling hand was on his lower half.


    ¡¸So-rry, I ended up cumm-¡¹


    Nidel-dono spoke in a pleading voice and twined his fingers around his penis. I took a cloth that was beside us in my hand to catch the stain that was certain to be released, and covered Nidel-dono¡¯s fingers with it, placing my own hand on top and rubbing strongly.


    ¡¸¡­Ngh!¡¹


    Nidel-dono¡¯s body twitched, and the thing in my hand trembled. At the same time, the inner walls I was fucking contracted strongly. I grimaced in pleasure.


    Nidel-dono, who¡¯d climaxed after enduring for a long time, absentmindedly let out a rough breath. I gazed at him for a moment, but my dick once again prepared for attack. I was quite aroused, but I couldn¡¯t cum in this much time.


    I somehow managed to wait till Nidel-dono¡¯s breaths calmed, before raising up both his legs and changing my angle from before, continuing to move.


    ¡¸Nnhi.¡¹


    Nidel-dono trembled in a frightened manner, but he never said ¡¸Please stop.¡¹ Nidel-dono¡¯s insides felt even more melted after having climaxed once. While receiving the soft and sweet stimulus, I continued to move.


    £ª


    I¡¯d gotten a little tired from moving my hips in the same position for a while, but moved without bothering to change it. Nidel-dono had gradually gotten tired of stifling his voice, and was obediently raising a sweet coquettish voice.


    Usually I¡¯d be thinking of only climaxing quickly, but Nidel-dono¡¯s insides felt too good, and I wanted to continue feeling good. Nidel-dono¡¯s penis was also standing up again. It was a saving grace, letting me relax and feel more pleasure.


    Changing the mood, I held Nidel-dono¡¯s body and picked him up, making him sit on top of it. The connected place made schloping sounds from the change in position and he let out a sweet moan.


    This time I fucked Nidel-dono from the bottom as he straddled my waist and sat facing me.


    ¡¸Ngh ahh! Ugh!¡¹


    Nidel-dono, who was pushed up and down as I fucked him, was unable to bear the movements and leaned on my chest. After that he buried his face in my neck and his powerless hands clung onto my shoulders.


    He was in agony while leaning on my chest, but to me he was cute. His carelessly grown hair swayed each time I pushed into him and scratched my face.


    His buttocks and my hip bone clung together, and when I pushed my hip up, his body jumped and returned to that spot where he was before. My penis rubbed intensely against his inside walls.


    I knit my brows. The pleasure gradually gathered at my core. It was a sign that I was about to cum. In response to the rushing stream of pleasure, my lips became firm.


    While knitting my brows, I concentrated on that feeling. My lower half was tense enough that it hurt. I sped up, pushing my hips. Nidel-dono¡¯s cries continued ringing at the base of my neck.


    ¡¸N, ku¡¹


    ¡¸Nngh!¡¹


    And then I felt a shock travel down my spine to my penis and I immediately released the desire that had gathered inside Nidel-dono. My breaths stopped with pleasure. Nidel-dono¡¯s body stiffened too, and warm juices splattered on my stomach. He too seemed to have cummed.


    Climaxing at the same time left a deep impression on me.


    Bringing my hand behind his back to his spine, I collapsed on my back while hugging Nidel-dono. The rough breaths wouldn¡¯t settle down.


    I still had things to do, as just now my dick had released quite a lot into him. I thought I had to do something, but my mind was still soaked in the afterglow, and I didn¡¯t feel like moving.


    Embracing the slender Nidel-dono, I held his head with one hand and petted him. His hair, completely soaked in sweat, poked up in a disheveled manner and I gazed at the ceiling.


    I never thought I could be so content. With satisfied feelings, I patted Nidel-dono¡¯s back as he continued to release rough breaths.


    ¡¸Are you fine?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­Somehow¡­¡¹


    Nidel-dono replied in a feeble voice.


    I felt that his voice was very weak, but I could breathe again at his reply. I thought Nidel-dono would complain, saying ¡°that was too long,¡± but there were no complaints from Nidel-dono.


    Up until the end, all I felt was happiness.


    ¡¸¡­As expected, Squad Commander-dono is¡­strong in nightly matters too¡­¡¹


    After having regained some strength, Nidel-dono let out a long sigh, cracking a joke in his usual manner. Nidel-dono must have been tired, so I cleaned up various things afterwards. Hxe accepted it all with a wry smile, as if hiding his embarrassment.


    ¡¸¡­I¡¯m sorry, please let me rest till I regain my strength.¡¹


    When everything ended, Nidel-dono saying so, lay down on the bed. With his tiredness, it¡¯d be difficult for him to even return to his room, let alone use transformation magic.


    ¡¸You can stay here as long as you want.¡¹


    When I said that while petting his hair, Nidel-dono grinned. It was a smile that always seemed bold, but now that his hair was messed up, his eyes were reddened, and a little flush was still left on his face, that smile seemed extremely enchanting.


    After joining our bodies together, I felt that Nidel-dono was even more of a special existence to me.


    However, what position I held him in, even I didn¡¯t know.


    Gazing at Nidel-dono, it somehow felt like he was wishing for it, so I brought my face closer and brushed my lips past his cheek, comforting him.


    Nidel-dono gave a slight smile, and closed his eyes. I gazed at that face, continuing to pet his hair.

 Chapter 17 - The Meeting Dances 1

    Chapter 17: The Meeting Dances 1


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    While the customary regular meeting convened, I stifled a yawn just as usual and sat down. Since the guarding incident, I felt that the attitudes of the Knight Order and the Royal Palace Magic Order towards me had changed, but it was just for a short time, and it had returned to just as before.


    The topic of this time¡¯s meeting wasn¡¯t grave, so it continued normally. There was nothing of concern to the Technological Magic Order. I absentmindedly observed the progress of the meeting. Before, my pastime was to sneak peeks at Legato, but after getting along well with Legato, I refrained from killing time in that manner.


    The reason was that Legato had begun to take a slight interest in me, and often met my gaze when I looked at him. It happened multiple times, and I stopped looking at him out of embarrassment.


    Meeting gazes in a place where there were other people was extremely embarrassing. It was obvious that I was looking at him.


    Ever since I¡¯d joined bodies with Legato, I¡¯d feel guilty every time I saw him in the Royal Palace. I knew, under Legato¡¯s clothes, what a good body he possessed and how hot that body felt.


    In reality, I was the one who had invited him but I hadn¡¯t expected that Legato would accept it. Legato had a serious demeanor, but in hindsight, that might not really be the case. Unlike his cool and serious appearance, he was unexpectedly passionate at night.


    The act with Legato was a test of stamina. We¡¯d done it many times since then, but it was long each time. Legato often said things like ¡¸It was good¡¹, but I had mixed feelings.


    Legato must have said such things out of consideration for me. Even after Legato entered me, he wouldn¡¯t cum that easily. I suspect it was because my body wasn¡¯t that compatible.


    I¡¯m not a woman, so compared to a woman¡¯s body, mine wouldn¡¯t be that comfortable to embrace. If it¡¯s not good, it¡¯d be alright not to do it, I thought, but when I invited, he readily accepted and lately even the other side had started being proactive in asking for it. Well, when it comes to male relationships, there¡¯s no future trouble, and if it can be enjoyed in its own way, then it¡¯s fine.


    Having such close bonds with Legato gave me insurmountable happiness. I now knew very well that I loved Legato.


    However, I do not intend to impose those feelings upon him. I knew that Legato didn¡¯t hold the same feelings towards me. The feelings Legato held towards me were those of friendship. No, something a little more than ordinary friendship.


    The frolicking, the kiss, and the secret affairs I began were so intense that they couldn¡¯t be rejected.


    I was, as usual, taken advantage of by Legato¡¯s kindness, or rather his pace.


    Legato and I didn¡¯t get along that well, but I had no complaints. I didn¡¯t intend to get married in the first place and had decided to spend my whole life in the Technological Magic Order. It was nothing but my good fortune that in such a life I had found a partner whom I hadn¡¯t imagined in the wildest of my dreams would reach out his hand to me and to whom I could pour my affections on, even if it was momentarily. He wasn¡¯t the only heir, but he was still a noble and was a person who¡¯d rapidly succeed in life from here on. Even as a joke, there were no problems for him to have a relationship with me.


    In the situation that Legato lost interest in getting along well with me, or found a companion he liked or wished to marry, I intended to wash my hands of it at once.


    Till then, I shall be grateful for my good fortune and enjoy our rendezvouses for as long as possible.


    ¡¸So then, is there anything else?¡¹


    While I¡¯d been half-heartedly listening, the day¡¯s meeting had ended, and the Prime Minister was speaking.


    However, nobody raised their hand, indicating a ¡¸No¡¹.


    Just when I thought, Well, it¡¯s over., the Prime Minister continued his words.


    ¡¸So, we have an important matter to hear from the King.¡¹


    At the words of the Prime Minister, I raised my gaze with my hood pulled over my eyes. I wondered what it was, and when I looked at the people around me, everyone had a confused expression.


    The King, who was at the head of the table, leaned forward in a more eager manner than usual on receiving my gaze.


    ¡¸Lastly, I want to ask a very important thing!¡¹


    The king spoke forcefully. At that time, because a few people seemed like they¡¯d laugh, I knitted my eyebrows.


    ¡¸Legato!¡¹


    ¡¸Yes!¡¹


    Because the king had called out Legato¡¯s name emphatically, Legato had been caught by surprise and stood up for some reason.


    ¡¸Also, Nidel!¡¹


    ¡¸Yes?¡¹


    My name was called out next and my body shook in surprise.


    ¡¸Is it true that the two of you are going out?¡¹


    The place fell into dead silence.


    My face turned pale as a sheet at the words of the King. I didn¡¯t understand what he¡¯d said. Going out¡­going out¡­are Legato and I going out¡­the King asked¡­ The King¡¯s words played multiple times in my head until I finally understood the situation.


    The King is asking about Legato and my relationship! That, in a meeting with everyone present! King! Just what are you thinking!?


    I glared at the King, dumbfounded. The king had a grin unlike any other I¡¯d ever seen on his face. Seeing that face, I realised that that person was simply amusing himself.


    When I looked at my surroundings, the other person in question, Legato, seemed to be more confused than I, and simply stood in a daze. Leaving aside Legato who was like that, when I looked over at the other people, I received an even greater shock.


    Nobody had a surprised expression. The Prime Minister had an expression of indifference, the Royal Knight Order lot were grinning, the ones over at the Royal Palace Magic Order either had sour or amused faces, the upper echelons of civil servants also feigned ignorance with a grin, and the other people present likewise were smiling in general.


    Seeing that, I understood.


    Seemed like that King had informed everyone of this story, before saying it aloud.


    Cold sweat flowed down my back. If it¡¯s like this, it might not just be limited to them¡ª it must have spread through the whole palace. But Legato and I weren¡¯t going out.


    I frantically racked my brains as to why this got leaked out. I¡¯m quite careful whenever I visit Legato¡¯s room, and Legato too wouldn¡¯t tell this to the people around. The greatest possibility was of someone having seen the both of us on that bench outside one day before the day of the Coming of Age ceremony. I clicked my tongue, thinking, Dammit, I was careless.


    ¡¸The King is asking. The two of you, answer.¡¹


    The Prime Minister had an indifferent face, but his voice couldn¡¯t hide his mirth, and he pressed us for an answer. As expected, he is also having fun.


    ¡¸Legato, you answer. What is it? Are you going out?¡¹


    The King asked, and Legato drew his face. Hey hey, don¡¯t you dare admit to it! I screamed in my heart, facing Legato. If he doesn¡¯t confess, everything will work out in the end, and I can somehow dodge the question. Moreover, it isn¡¯t as if Legato and I were going out. Sure, we did this and that, but our relationship was that of friends. At least Legato seemed to think so.


    ¡¸Legato! Be clear!¡¹


    ¡¸No, um¡ª¡¹


    Seeing Legato completely shaken from being rebuked by the King, I opened my mouth beside him to deny ¡¸We aren¡¯t!¡¹. But at the same time, Legato shouted out¡ª


    ¡¸Yes, the both of us are going out!¡¹


    Idiot!!!


    I banged my head on the table. I thought, Why did you admit to it!, but a feeling of resignation too surfaced, as I felt it couldn¡¯t be helped¡­ He truly was an honest fellow. Maybe he couldn¡¯t dodge the question when grilled by the King like that.


    In any case, we¡¯d done this and that, there must be some guilt within Legato¡¯s heart too.


    The moment Legato admitted to it, the meeting room burst into excitement. Sounds of laughter and teasing came to life. I placed a hand on my forehead and hung my head. I don¡¯t have the courage to maintain an indifferent look in such a situation after all.


    ¡¸Well¡ª, it turned out to be true!¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s quite the gossip. The Captain of the Knight Order and the Leader of the Tech Order being a couple, this the first instance since the founding of the country.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s too unexpected, I couldn¡¯t believe my ears when I first heard it.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯d been no signs up until now, so I couldn¡¯t believe it.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, but both of them are of the same age. I think they¡¯re well matched.¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯re right, I, too, think they¡¯re surprisingly not a bad pair.¡¹


    Happy chatter flew about the room. There was enough excitement, more than what I¡¯d ever seen in a meeting, with different people giving their own opinions.

 Chapter 18 - The Meeting Dances 2

    Chapter 18: The Meeting Dances 2


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    Seeing the meeting room still brimming with excitement, I got a headache.


    I wonder why they¡¯re all so excited without feeling any sense of incongruity. I could understand it if it were a man-woman couple. But Legato and I were both men, and our country had no culture of welcoming same-sex couples with open arms. Of course, there existed a certain number of same-sex couples, but they couldn¡¯t be together out in public and simply restrained themselves. The people around also had an unspoken agreement to nonchalantly accept them¡ª it was that kind of an atmosphere.


    But for that to¡­


    ¡¸How long have you two been going out?¡¹


    ¡¸Hey, who confessed first?¡¹


    ¡¸Tell me how you first met!¡¹


    Facing Legato, everyone sent questions flying as they laughed. He¡¯s totally being teased. Legato being made the victim instead of me was because it was more worthwhile to tease him than me. In a sense, you could say they were actually doting on him.


    I felt things would go needlessly out of hand if I tried to awkwardly interrupt them thus I pulled my hood over my eyes and stuck to remaining silent. Sorry, Legato.


    ¡¸So then, what does Nidel like about him?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, um¡ª¡¹


    Everyone else attending the meeting was older than me, and their positions were also fairly high. Accosted and forced by such people, Legato seemed pretty shaken up. Was he all right? I was worried. Whenever Legato got flustered, his words would become a little strange. Don¡¯t blurt out untactful things, I prayed in my heart and kept an eye on his standing figure.


    ¡¸Um¡ª, I¡¯m always the type to get the short end of the stick, so¡­¡¹


    Just as I¡¯d feared, the words Legato had blurted out while blabbering after being shaken up made me guffaw, and I had to pull my hood further over my eyes.


    Why did he bother to make such a gaffe!? I wonder if¡­it¡¯d remained on his mind after me telling it so often¡­I¡¯ve said something along the lines of I like that part of you that always gets the short end of the stick.


    In the midst of my shock, the meeting room had turned silent for a moment at Legato¡¯s words.


    And then, I heard some people snigger. However, there were also many who didn¡¯t laugh.


    ¡¸Legato-dono, no matter how you look at it, that isn¡¯t the case.¡¹


    It was a voice laced with a bit of anger¡ª I couldn¡¯t believe it belonged to the Royal Palace Magic Order.


    ¡¸Then, do you mean going out with Nidel-dono is getting the short end of the stick?¡¹


    ¡¸No, that¡¯s not it! I didn¡¯t mean it in that way¡ª¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s cruel as expected. Even if Nidel-dono is from the Tech Order, to say that about your lover is something you should never do! And right in front of Nidel-dono too!¡¹


    The Royal Palace Magic Order seemed to be defending me for some reason, and I ended up laughing at the development that I¡¯d never imagined, but I didn¡¯t know whether to sympathise with Legato-dono or not.


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, Legato. It¡¯s cruel no matter how you look at it. Poor Nidel-dono.¡¹


    The King rebuked Legato with a serious face. Legato turned pale and accepted the King¡¯s scolding while standing at attention. Everyone from the the Royal Palace Magic Order nodded their heads in agreement at the King¡¯s words, whereas the higher-ups from the Knight Order were clutching their stomachs in laughter.


    I wonder if the lot from the Knight Order got on their nerves so much, that this time the Royal Palace Magic Order lashed out at the Knight Order.


    ¡¸You all are laughing, but it¡¯s because your attitudes are normally like this that it¡¯s a problem! Aren¡¯t you making a fool of magicians?¡¹


    ¡¸No, no, what¡¯re you saying. I regard magicians in high esteem.¡¹


    At the Royal Palace Order¡¯s snapping, the Captain of the Knight Order waved his hand in denial as he laughed. I thought it was an attitude that didn¡¯t show much sincerity, and of course, everyone from the Royal Palace Magic Order thought so too.


    ¡¸Basically, isn¡¯t it because there¡¯s such an atmosphere within the Knight Order that Legato-dono said something like that this time!? Nidel-dono too is an outstanding magician. To say such words treats him too lightly!¡¹


    No, no, you¡¯re the ones who treat me the most lightly usually, I rebuked in my mind, though I remained silent.


    ¡¸Everyone, calm down for a minute, please stop fighting!¡¹


    The Prime Minister raised his voice in exasperation.


    The meeting room could hardly be in more chaos.


    The meeting seemed to have more or less ended, and I prepared to leave the meeting room that seemed to be still buzzing with laughter. I was worried about Legato, who was being scolded by his higher-ups in the Knight Order who were still grinning, but I didn¡¯t have the courage to speak out at this place.


    I left the room in an attempt to escape.


    I drooped my shoulders in dejection and returned to the gloomy tower. The gazes of everyone in the Royal Palace I passed on my way to the tower bothered me. I wondered if they all knew about me and Legato.


    No, they definitely know about me and Legato. It¡¯d reached everyone for sure.


    I give up¡­ thinking so, I let out a sigh and set foot into the tower


    ¡¸Welcome back, Nidel.¡¹


    When I entered the room, Hunon sent me a smile. Seeing his face, I realised. There¡¯s no way the well-informed he doesn¡¯t know of it.


    ¡¸How was the meeting?¡¹


    ¡¸How, you ask¡­¡¹


    When I hemmed and hawed, Hunon gave a sly grin.


    ¡¸Did they make a fool out of you??¡¹


    As expected, he knew.


    I drooped my shoulders further in dejection. Just how far has this story spread? Listening to Hunon and me talk, my colleagues who were absorbed in their work nearby raised their heads in ones and twos.


    ¡¸Make a fool out of¡­what does that mean¡­?¡¹


    ¡¸Look, it¡¯s that. Nidel¡¯s personal matter. With Captain Legato.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh,that¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Such a topic arose in the meeting ¡­? It must have been unbearable for you¡­¡¹


    My colleagues looked at me with eyes of sympathy. Seeing that nobody seemed to be surprised, I realised that everyone already knew of it and I once again got a headache. Even though they knew it, nobody came to tell me. I¡®m grateful for that, but I wish they¡¯d told me instead. A complex feeling arose in my heart,


    ¡¸But Nidel, isn¡¯t this the first time we¡¯ve been a hot topic since the Tech Order was started?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. We caught a leader of the Knight Order. Moreover, it¡¯s the young and most promising Captain Legato. Well done!¡¹


    ¡¸We have some pride too!¡¹


    The people who¡¯d gathered around me spoke in excited and somewhat happy voices. That reminds me, everyone seemed to be in a good mood as of late. Maybe it was because of this news.


    ¡¸Wait a minute, isn¡¯t it strange!?¡¹


    When I reacted, everyone around me made an confused face.


    ¡¸Why is everyone talking as if it¡¯s normal!? We¡¯re both men! Isn¡¯t that bigger news? Doesn¡¯t it go against the Royal Palace¡¯s public order and morals!?¡¹


    When I voiced my doubts that had appeared in my mind during the meeting just now, everyone looked at each other and gave a half-smile. Hunon, grinning widely, turned to me and spoke.


    ¡¸That¡¯s because it¡¯s interesting. The fact that you and Legato are together beats you two being men and such by far. The whole Royal Palace knows it now. Just give up.¡¹


    At Hunon¡¯s words, I sank onto the floor.


    For now, let¡¯s not leave the tower for as long as possible, I decided in my heart.

 Chapter 19 - The Meeting Dances 3

    Chapter 19: The Meeting Dances 3


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    At night, I transformed into a different bird from usual, and landed on the roof of the building where Legato lived. I¡¯d usually swoop down to the window directly, but I was conscious of people¡¯s gazes today.


    In the darkness, there wouldn¡¯t be any people watching the window of a building facing the mountains, but I had to be doubly sure.


    Doing so, I gazed at the moonlight in a slight daze and after that, approached Legato¡¯s room. The window was half-open as usual.


    In the very beginning, I¡¯d follow him as a cat on his way back home and enter the room like that, but after that, I began transforming into a bird and entering through the window. Ever since that one time I¡¯d pecked at the closed window with my beak and made him open it, Legato made it a point to keep the window open every time I visited.


    It made it seem as if he was waiting for me and made me happy.


    When I quietly flew into the room, I saw Legato sitting on his usual chair, lost in thought, with an anxious expression on his face. As expected, today¡¯s events had exhausted him


    I wonder if he noticed my presence, for Legato turned his gaze towards me. I¡¯d returned to my human form and was sitting on the bed.


    ¡¸Are you all right?¡¹


    When asked him, Legato gave a wry smile. Seeing that face, a guilty conscience stung me, and I apologised despite myself.


    ¡¸¡­My bad.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s no need for Nidel-dono to apologise.¡¹


    ¡¸No¡­How should I say it¡­¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s just that my response was poor.¡¹


    Legato must be talking about what he¡¯d said at the meeting. But what I wanted to apologise for was not that, but something much more basic¡ª making a pass at Legato.


    ¡¸¡­Why did you admit to it? You could have feigned ignorance.¡¹


    ¡¸No, that¡¯s true, but¡­the King seemed to be excited to it, and I unconsciously¡­¡¹


    ¡¸But it isn¡¯t as if we¡¯re going out, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, that¡¯s true, but¡­¡¹


    Legato kept his wry smile. Although I¡¯d said it myself, complex feelings arose on hearing his reply. I wonder if the slight loneliness that is gushing from this heart of mine is because I wished for Legato to say something along the lines of ¡¸I admitted to it as I wish to go out with Nidel-dono.¡¹


    How absurd. I was amazed at how unmanly I was. Even I knew that Legato held none of those feelings towards me.


    ¡¸Weren¡¯t you teased quite a bit? It¡¯s increased during the time I was holed up in the tower.¡¹


    Legato wouldn¡¯t say something like that, would he.


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. But well, the rumours will soon begin dying down.¡¹


    At Legato¡¯s words, I felt doubt, thinking Is that so?. In such a case, I didn¡¯t feel that the news would die down that easily. If things go wrong, chances were I would be teased for the rest of my life.


    When I silently knit my eyebrows, Legato got up from his chair and climbed onto the bed. Then, he began touching my body.


    ¡¸¡­Nidel-dono, is it fine?¡¹


    He asked me in a whisper, and put his hand inside my robe. When I turned to face him, Legato¡¯s refreshing blue eyes were looking at me. I felt regret from making this man get embroiled in such troubles. I felt regret all through today.


    ¡¸Ahh.¡¹


    If he¡¯d cheer up just by doing it with me, I¡¯ll let him do as he wishes.


    When I nodded, Legato at once got to work taking off my clothes. Perhaps it¡¯s because Legato was originally a noble, but somehow his way with his hands feels quite graceful. It isn¡¯t as if Legato isn¡¯t strong, but thinking of the fact of how this man was awfully competent, an incomprehensible feeling arose.


    However, I certainly felt traces of Legato¡¯s efforts in the hands that touched my skin, and I started feeling agitated being touched by those hands


    *


    *


    *


    [R-18 Alert!]


    As if I were a woman, that place that accepted Legato was dripping wet. It was because Legato had smeared a large amount of lube. Seeing him use it like that, I unconsciously felt concerned, wondering if I too should chip in some money to buy the lube. Feeling it overflowing from my insides, going along the crevices and dripping from my butt, I got goosebumps.


    ¡¸Mmn¡¹


    Grabbing the waist of me, who was on his stomach, Legato entered from behind. I bore the impact, biting my lip. Legato¡¯s thing was long. That day when he first entered, the depth he penetrated gave me cold sweat each time. It seemed as if it would pierce right through my stomach to stab my heart. However, the reality is nothing like that. It fits snugly inside me.


    Lifting up my waist, Legato, who¡¯d firmly secured himself, began drilling into me. My insides, moistened with lube and the similarly wet Legato¡¯s cock made sounds of squelching that filled my ears each time they rubbed.


    And, what that place produced wasn¡¯t just sounds, but also a mind-numbing pleasure and a blazing heat that gushed forth. I submitted myself to the pleasure and remained trembling.


    Legato didn¡¯t come inside me for a long time. Even though I had come many times, Legato took his time, and finally came just once. I felt regret thinking about how my body was his companion. Thinking of wanting to stimulate him a little, I¡¯d put in strength there to tighten it around him, but in the end, the stimulation would rebound on me, and I¡¯d be left moaning by myself. It was of no use.


    ¡¸Ngh!¡¹


    At the unceasing rhythm, my body unconsciously writhed atop the bed in an attempt to escape, but it was immediately pulled back by Legato and he thrust in deeper.


    For a moment, I lost consciousness. However, it returned at once with the intense rhythm.


    I can¡¯t faint. It was my stubbornness. This relationship had begun with my invitation in the first place, the least I could do is completely satisfy Legato. I had decided to accompany Legato till he came.


    Legato switched between a slow and fast rhythm within me, and was once again beginning to move powerfully. It was more than anything I¡¯d ever experienced before, but Legato had yet to reach his climax.


    My hands grabbing the sheets were drenched in sweat and felt disgusting. I felt I¡¯d let out shameful coquettish moans if I lost focus, and thus I bit my fingers.


    Doing it with Legato was more pain than pleasure.


    Yet, doing it with Legato gave me immense happiness.


    Legato¡¯s movements stopped for a second and and he pulled up his body with a strong force. He seemed to be changing his posture. I wonder if it¡¯s because one round takes a long time for him as Legato tends to change his position many times. While still connected with him, I assumed the position of riding his waist, back facing him. Under my body weight, Legato¡¯s penis thrusted into my deepest part


    Legato twined his arms around and hugged me from the back, while I gave out a shameful cry. I felt hot breaths at the back of my neck.


    Surely, no matter how many years pass, for my whole lifetime, I would never forget these nights I spent with Legato.


    That is what I felt.

 Chapter 20 - Kiss the Lover 1

    Chapter 20: Kiss the Lover 1


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    ¡¸Then, Legato, I¡¯ll entrust the northern fort to you for a month.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Leave it to me.¡¹


    The final topic that arose in the regular meeting regarded the task entrusted to me. Addressing my words to the King, I stood up and paid my respects.


    This time the Captain of the Royal Knight Order had to go out on a expedition for a month. It usually took around five days by horse to get to the north; the purpose was to check over the fully equipped fortress along the border. There were knights stationed there, but with the first prince¡¯s coming of age ceremony having occurred, they too wished to return to the capital once. In exchange, our Order would guard the northern fortress.


    I felt anxious at the thought of leaving the Royal Palace for a month, yet I felt joy at getting a chance to go to the northern fortress. My former superior was at the northern fortress.


    Once I gave my respects and returned to my seat, the King faced a different direction.


    ¡¸Sorry Nidel, I robbed you of Legato for a month.¡¹


    When the King spoke in jest, the people around laughed. Nidel-dono, who¡¯d been looking downward with his hood on, looked up and gave a wry smile that was just within the limits of not being discourteous, lightly bowing his head towards the King.


    ¡¸Legato too will be lonely.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Ah, no¡­You¡¯re ¡­right.¡¹


    Being addressed by the King once again, I gave an ambiguous reply.


    I thought the rumours about Nidel-dono and me would die down soon, yet there were no signs of them abating. In fact, it was now treated as an obvious fact within the Royal Palace. Me admitting to it was obviously the reason, though. Being made fun of like this during meetings was also now a daily occurrence.


    Instead of making another strange gaffe by denying it, I resigned to my fate and accepted all the teasing.


    Since the day I was pursued for answers at the meeting, the whole royal palace began teasing me. Nidel-dono would usually be cooped up in the tower, so he wasn¡¯t affected as much, but he was quite worried about me. But I wasn¡¯t as uncomfortable as he thought.


    Of course, I was at a loss at first, but once I got used to it, I was able to look at the situation objectively. Most importantly, there wasn¡¯t any malice in the voices that teased us. They were purely amusing themselves and were filled with amicability.


    There were many occasions where I wouldn¡¯t know how to answer and people who I had nothing to do with would call out to me.


    I always made it a point to treat everyone politely, but I wasn¡¯t a person who¡¯d actively enter a circle of people. I wondered whether me drawing lines between other people and me coming out caused the whole debacle, but I wasn¡¯t the type to speak to anyone other than friends.


    That said, ever since the incident, more people who I had no connection to would approach me. I¡¯d especially be called out to by people who were Nidel-dono¡¯s acquaintances. Nidel-dono had many acquaintances despite being someone who was always cooped up in the tower. Since his job was to repair magic tools, he knew many people who worked as assistants, and I was often approached by those people. That must also be Nidel-dono¡¯s popularity.


    Even my superiors and subordinates in the Knight Order talked and joked about me. I felt uncomfortable being the topic of a conversation, but since the the place became uplifted I thought it was a good thing.


    Also, with Nidel-dono and I being a same-sex couple officially recognised by the Royal Palace, other male and female same-sex couples who existed in secrecy started calling out to me with their thanks.


    Same-sex couples weren¡¯t openly persecuted in our country, but the atmosphere wasn¡¯t so good that they could publicly celebrate their relationship. They needed to be prudent. In the midst of this, our story got blown up, and it became easier to talk about other homosexuals.


    I didn¡¯t do anything to deserve such gratitude, but when they spoke so happily spoken, I honestly felt glad. It was good if we made someone happy.


    I was taken aback when the Prime Minister and Civil officials said, ¡¸We have to change the law for Legato and Nidel¡¯s sake.¡¹ While their tone seemed to be a joking one, they didn¡¯t appear to be, and they seemed to be earnestly working towards legalising same-sex marriage. At present, same-sex marriages weren¡¯t recognised by the kingdom.


    Of course, there were a number of same-sex couples at home too. Everyone knew about them, and talk about what to do had been raised many years before, but with how busy everyone already was, they had remained shelved.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s and my relationship brought the debate back in motion, and because of that the influence of these rumours scared me.


    Nevertheless, I felt happy. If Nidel-dono and I were an existence that no one gave a damn about within the Royal Palace, the situation wouldn¡¯t have come to this. We wouldn¡¯t have become the talk of the town, nor would there have been an opportunity to change the law.


    In the midst of the teasing, I undoubtedly felt the goodwill everyone around held towards Nidel-dono and me. It seemed much bigger than what I¡¯d imagined, and getting to know it was something to be thankful for.


    Even with this nation in mind, rewarding all the people who have stayed hidden so far and taking joy in it didn¡¯t sound like a bad thing.


    As one who would give his life for this land, it was the purest happiness.


    But if they¡¯d gone this far, I thought the people around wouldn¡¯t be satisfied until I really went out with Nidel-dono and got married to him in the end. What a conundrum.


    Since we had the approval of the King, our families wouldn¡¯t have any protests towards it, but the problem wasn¡¯t with our families.


    I thought of Nidel-dono as a special existence, but I¡¯d never thought this far. You¡¯d be right to say that we¡¯d become intimate without thinking much of it.


    I¡¯d put it off for later, with my work being busy and my reluctance towards relationships with women, but I wanted to get married to woman with a status that matched mine and have children. I thought it was obvious. 27 years of age was the later half of marriageable age, and I¡¯d received many invitations for marriage meetings and such from my family and various captains of the Royal Palace. Just when I¡¯d thought I had better get moving, this had occurred.


    But I felt the people around would be highly disappointed if I said that Nidel-dono and I¡¸Aren¡¯t going out¡¹or¡¸Broke up¡¹. When I thought about the King, the Prime minister, or even my superiors being disappointed, I¡¯d be dead in the water.


    I suggested to Nidel-dono many times that we ought to tell the truth that we aren¡¯t going out, but I was unable to put the suggestions to practice.


    As a result, the rumours were gradually established as truth within the Royal Palace. I felt regretful towards Nidel-dono, who¡¯d accepted my indecisiveness with no complaints.


    But since Nidel-dono seemed to hold special feelings towards me, and this was a situation that made it seem as if we were a pair of lovers, it probably wasn¡¯t uncomfortable for him.


    I thought the cunning me who thought such things was disgusting at times.


    The one who felt regret towards Nidel-dono the most was my own cowardice.

 Chapter 21 - Kiss the Lover 2

    Chapter 21: Kiss the Lover 2


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    On the night before I departed for the expedition, Nidel-dono, in bird form, entered from the window as I was making preparations for the journey.


    I¡¯d expected him to come today, and thus was ready to halt my preparations.


    ¡¸Sorry, are you busy?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I¡¯m already done with all the preparations.¡¹


    Nidel-dono, who¡¯d returned to his human form, gave a small laugh, saying ¡°Is that so.¡± Ever since those rumours had spread in the Royal Palace, Nidel-dono¡¯s expression had clouded over a little. When I thought of how it hadn¡¯t clouded over because of his own situation but rather because he was concerned for me, it made me exultant being worried over like that.


    I gazed at Nidel-dono.


    When I thought of how I wouldn¡¯t be able to meet Nidel-dono for the next month starting tomorrow, I felt desolate. At present, the only person I got along well personally outside of work was Nidel-dono.


    Nidel-dono, not wearing his hood, had his face exposed, but because he was shorter than me, even if I lowered my head, it was difficult to decipher his expression.


    ¡¸Are you hurt anywhere?¡¹


    Nidel-dono spoke with his soft voice and held my hand, checking for any injuries. I¡¯d often hurt my hand unconsciously, and there were many times when Nidel-dono healed it for me. This happened the first time we met too.


    ¡¸You¡¯ll be going out on an expedition, right? If you¡¯ve got any injuries, I¡¯ll heal them for you.¡¹


    Nidel-dono had already taken my other hand. Nidel-dono¡¯s beautiful hands touched my hands to check them. Whenever Nidel-dono¡¯s slightly cold fingers touched me, I¡¯d always feel as if it was my insides that were being touched. It was an inexplicable feeling.


    I felt embarrassed, seeing Nidel-dono who¡¯d always adopt an easygoing attitude while giving me special treatment and tenderly worrying over me.


    I thought of silly things such as how nice it would have been if I had gained even a small injury as it meant getting healed.


    Nidel-dono, while holding my hand, remained silent with a downcast head. When I wondered what happened, Nidel-dono let out a sigh.


    ¡¸I¡¯m really sorry.¡¹


    At the words Nidel-dono uttered, I knitted my eyebrows in doubt. I didn¡¯t understand what he was apologising for.


    ¡¸I¡¯m really sorry, for everything that happened. It¡¯s all my fault.¡¹


    ¡¸What are you talking about?¡¹


    ¡¸About the rumours. Legato and mine¡­I never thought such a terrible thing would occur.¡¹


    Letting out a sigh, Nidel-dono let go of my hand. I felt a little disappointed.


    ¡¸That¡¯s not something Nidel-dono needs to apologise for. Nidel-dono is also one of the concerned parties. We¡¯re the same.¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re not the same.¡¹


    Nidel-dono gave a wry smile and looked at me.


    ¡¸There¡¯s the fact that I¡¯m always holed up in the tower too, but your and mine statuses are different. I¡¯m a petty magician of the Tech Order who people don¡¯t even spare a glance at, but Legato is different.¡¹


    Nidel-dono¡¯s mouth twisted into a grimace, but the eyes that looked at me were gentle.


    ¡¸It¡¯s inevitable you¡¯ll be successful in life. You¡¯re set to become the Captain of the Knight Order in the future. You¡¯ll become the face of the nation. You have that much strength in you.¡¹


    Being praised by Nidel-dono surprised me. I didn¡¯t know he thought so highly of me, and my heart felt restless. I don¡¯t have that great a power as Nidel-dono imagines, and I¡¯m still a greenhorn, but being told so by Nidel-dono gave me unbounded joy.


    ¡¸You are of noble lineage, and also have a rank. Both your looks and personality are great. You¡¯re a hard worker and are polite even to those below you. Moreover, you¡¯re are loved by everyone around you. You occasionally mess up, but still, I think Legato is a perfect man.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Nidel-dono, you praise me too much.¡¹


    Praised to the skies, I felt my temperature rise from the embarrassment. I felt my face burn up, and in an attempt to evade it, I placed my hand at the back of my neck.


    ¡¸Leaving a stain on you, who is looked up to by the whole kingdom, makes me feel deeply regretful.¡¹


    Nidel-dono lowered his eyes in self-reproach.


    ¡¸¡­Nidel-dono, it isn¡¯t particularly a stain or anything.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a stain. The news of you and me has spread in the whole Royal Palace. From now on, no matter what life you lead, this story will follow you. You should have been able to marry a person suited for you, and lived a wonderful and happy life without anyone pointing fingers at you behind your back.¡¹


    ¡¸Nidel-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s because I got carried away. I took advantage of your kindness. I selfishly got you involved. I¡¯m really sorry.¡¹


    Nidel-dono, saying so, lowered his head to me, his robe quivering. I was puzzled. I really didn¡¯t hold any grudges towards Nidel-dono, and I honestly thought it was a good thing that I got along well with him. Many good things had happened thanks to the rumours too.


    When I thought of voicing my opinion, Nidel-dono continued his words.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t think the rumours will disappear completely, but I think by the time Legato returns from the expedition, it should be more calm. If it doesn¡¯t affect us anymore, I don¡¯t think the people around us will raise a fuss either.¡¹


    I felt my temperature, that¡¯d risen from Nidel-dono¡¯s praise, plunge to freezing depths.


    ¡¸Legato must have had marriage meetings, right? Once you get married to a woman, the rumours too will die out. I¡¯ll properly tell the people around not to say anything bad of you.¡¹


    Gazing at him speak increasingly vehemently with a serious face, I realised something.


    Is he perhaps, talking of breaking up?


    When I thought of that, my chest suddenly started to feel heavy. To stop Nidel-dono, who was still rambling on, I threw a question at him.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, is this breakup talk?¡¹


    When asked so, Nidel-dono, caught off-guard, opened his eyes wide and returned my stare, then gave a wry smile.


    ¡¸Even if you call it breakup talk¡­it isn¡¯t as if we¡¯re going out, so there isn¡¯t any breaking up either?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true, but¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Well, take it in that sense. Let¡¯s stop meeting privately now. Legato too is leaving the castle for a month. This is a good opportunity.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­No, Nidel-dono. Even if you say it out of the blue, I think of Nidel-dono as a precious friend, and if you say that, I can¡¯t accept it and readily reply ¡®Yes, I see¡¯.¡¹


    When I said that seriously, Nidel-dono once again made an expression of shock and then laughed a little.


    ¡¸Is that so¡­ I¡¯m happy to hear that. But well, think carefully on your expedition, while you¡¯re away from the Royal Palace. It¡¯s about your most important future.¡¹


    After Nidel-dono said so, while saying¡¸Do your best on the expedition. Take care of your body.¡¹he patted my arm once and transformed into a bird. And then just as I began to speak, he left from the window.


    I watched that figure disappear into the daze in a daze. I didn¡¯t know what I should to say, but I knew that I had to stop him. We needed to have a proper chat.


    I let out a sigh and sunk onto my chair. And like that, I was absentmindedly absorbed by my thoughts.


    What Nidel-dono had said was logical. It was strange to continue such a relationship with Nidel-dono.


    It¡¯d have been better if we hadn¡¯t joined bodies. If it¡¯d been so, even if we¡¯d frolicked about a bit, I could have been confident that he was simply a friend. Even at that time in the meeting, when I was questioned by the King, I could have told my honest feelings, that ¡¸Nidel-dono is an important friend, we have nothing to be guilty about.¡¹.


    However, with a body that had intimately connected with him many times, I couldn¡¯t say that he was ¡¸simply a friend¡¹.


    However that was lust, and if asked whether or not I loved him, I wouldn¡¯t nod in agreement. I think of him as a truly important, precious friend whom I can open up to. Although, I wonder if that¡¯s love?


    I was the one who should have apologised to Nidel-dono.


    I was the one who took advantage of Nidel-dono¡¯s feelings towards me and used him as I felt convenient.


    I looked at the half-open window. Even though it wasn¡¯t as if Nidel¡¯s-dono would return, I couldn¡¯t bring myself to close the window.


    And so, early in the morning, the Captain of the Royal Knight Order left for the Northern Fortress.

 Chapter 22 - Kiss the Lover 4

    Chapter 22: Kiss the Lover 4


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    Listening to my story, Captain Ballam let out a sigh.


    ¡¸You¡¯re an honest and dependable man, but in the past, on that front, you¡¯ve been, should I call it, indecisive¡­You get carried away.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry.¡¹


    ¡¸In addition, you are nervous and don¡¯t go ahead with it. You don¡¯t let your guard down even in front of a lover. In fact, you¡¯re even more careful around them.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s exactly it¡­. I treat my family, too, as outsiders in a way. As I¡¯m like this, I¡¯ve wondered how I can form deep relationships¡­ Because of this I¡¯ve even doubted if I could carry out my duties as a Captain.¡¹


    When I hung my head, Captain gave a wry smile and scratched his chin.


    ¡¸You have quite the troublesome personality. But, you¡¯ve always exceeded my expectations when it came to doing work. That, I can vouch for. It¡¯s because you know your own shortcomings and work hard to make up for them that you can, on the contrary, maintain a smooth relationship with people.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you.¡¹


    At the obliging words, I once again lowered my head. Captain Ballam was not a person who¡¯d compliment someone easily, and to receive such words from him gave me unparalleled relief.


    ¡¸Then, getting back to the topic, You don¡¯t like him, but he likes you. And you did what you did.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸If even you have propositioned him, is it good? Your bodies¡¯ compatibility?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Yes¡¹


    ¡¸Does the other side know that you don¡¯t hold any feelings of love towards him?¡¹


    ¡¸He knows. That¡¯s why he even said to deny the rumours.¡¹


    ¡¸Could he have spread the rumours?¡¹


    ¡¸No, that¡¯s definitely impossible. He too seems quite troubled, and he even apologised.¡¹


    ¡¸What did he have to apologise for?¡¹


    ¡¸That he got me involved and such¡­. Um, he was concerned about my position, and was quite worried about the rumours spreading. He said, ¡®I¡¯m sorry I made a pass at you and caused you trouble¡¯¡­¡¹


    When I explained in bits and pieces, Captain Ballam let out his biggest sigh yet.


    ¡¸Oi, Legato. Don¡¯t make your partner apologise for such a thing.¡¹


    ¡¸You, think of it as if he was a woman. Going out with a woman who loves you, despite you not holding any feelings towards her, enjoying doing this and that, making the woman apologise herself saying ¡®it¡¯s my fault¡¯ when rumours run about; you¡¯re quite the scumbag.¡¹


    The words of Captain, who seemed astounded, stabbed my chest hard. No, even I knew it. I did something quite low for a man.


    ¡¸¡­I know that the problem lies with me. That¡¯s why I don¡¯t know what to do¡­. The atmosphere in the Royal Palace is such that it seems inevitable that we will get married, and my hands are tied.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because everyone loves such gossip. Do you not intend to get married, or should I say, go out with him for real? Well, there¡¯s the fact that you¡¯re both men.¡¹


    ¡¸Personally, it¡¯s not because of the the fact that he¡¯s a man that I dislike it. It¡¯s just that there¡¯s the issue with my house and I originally always had intentions of getting married to a woman, so I¡¯m confused.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s bound to happen.¡¹


    While thinking, I carefully searched for words.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono is an important person. I¡¯m happy when I¡¯m with him, and I like his personality too, and um, we¡¯re compatible in that manner too¡­. He¡¯s really important as a friend. It¡¯s to the extent that if ordered to marry him, I wouldn¡¯t think it¡¯s a bad thing, but I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s love¡­. I¡¯m worried if it¡¯s fine even if I don¡¯t hold the feelings Nidel-dono holds towards me.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because you¡¯re honest.¡¹


    Captain Ballam gave a wry smile. And then he contemplatively folded his arms.


    ¡¸Well, I¡¯m not one to talk about people, but when I got married, I didn¡¯t particularly love my wife.¡¹


    Captain Ballam¡¯s sudden words shocked me. Captain Ballam was well known to be a devoted husband.


    ¡¸My wife was my childhood friend, you see. She liked me since childhood. That, even I knew. But I dreamt of being a knight because I was a commoner. I actually thought of taking the hand of a woman of high status and getting further promoted by using her influence.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    I was surprised to find out about Captain Ballam¡¯s resolution. However, in the end, he succeeded by his own merits.


    ¡¸My type of women were flashy beauties, and my wife was definitely not like that. Frankly speaking, I didn¡¯t want to make her my partner, but my wife proposed out of the blue. Saying, ¡®I want to get married¡¯. I rejected her then, but after I rejected her, she promised to marry a man her parents had chosen for her. The man her parents had chosen was someone I hated a lot. Thinking of her marrying such a man made me angry, and I decided to marry her after all.¡¹


    Captain said thus, and laughed with a ¡®wahaha¡¯.


    ¡¸At that time I felt sympathy and assistive rather than love, but now, I feel glad I married my wife. Not just as a childhood friend, I feel happy being with my wife.¡¹


    It was well-known that Captain Ballam loved his wife and kids. I wondered how to take Captain Ballam¡¯s story.


    ¡¸Hey, Legato.¡¹


    After Captain remained silent for a while, he laughed at me while toying with the glass in his hands.


    ¡¸These are my own thoughts. I don¡¯t know what you think, but I¡¯ll state my opinion.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸You do not mind your companion¡¯s status, and think it¡¯s best to be together with a person who suits you the best. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s Nidel or not, search for them carefully. It¡¯s because you have such a personality that it¡¯s all the more important. It¡¯s better to stop a life where you remain guarded around your partner and return home tired. You spare no effort and also have talent. You can climb to the top just with your strength. You don¡¯t need to borrow a partner¡¯s strength. If you have to be guarded even at home, it¡¯ll just drag your feet. Everyone feels lonely so you can¡¯t escape from it. You and I too feel great loneliness. That¡¯s why, be together with someone who doesn¡¯t amplify your loneliness.¡¹


    Captain Ballam honestly told me his opinion with a straight face. And then, Captain let out a chuckle.


    ¡¸Well it¡¯s a good thing you¡¯re away from the Royal Palace. You¡¯ll get a chance to think peacefully here.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­That, even Nidel-dono said it.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, haha. Your partner¡¯s quite a sensible fellow.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, Nidel-dono is a much more mature person than me.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, I see. To hold such a high opinion of your partner, and doing this and that, yet you say you don¡¯t hold any feelings of love towards him.¡¹


    ¡¸Sigh¡­¡¹


    Captain Ballam, while grinning, patted my shoulder as if to encourage me.


    And then, he turned to another topic. Thus the hour became late, and we brought the meeting to a close. Because Captain Ballam said he¡¯d return to his home near the fortress, I saw Captain off at the door, and then returned to my room.


    When I returned to my room, it was freezing inside, and my body trembled. The room was cold because I had left the window open.


    Letting out a breath, I sat on the bed. I looked at the sky through the open window.


    Ever since I came to this fortress, the window had always been left open. Even I thought it was stupid to do so in this cold.


    Even if I keep it open like that, this is the north. Nidel-dono will by no means visit. I knew that, but I felt as if closing the window would be like rejecting him completely.


    Moreover, I felt he hadn¡¯t denied the possibility of him absolutely not coming here, and I¡¯d leave the window open in spite of myself. Even though it was not like that.


    I wonder if Nidel-dono is doing well in the Royal Palace.


    While I reminisced of him, before I knew it, I turned hot and bothered. I could only think of his audacious figure after he joined bodies with me.


    He¡¯d make a pained face while taking in my thing, but he¡¯d still sleep peacefully¡ªit¡¯d always entice me.


    I want to embrace Nidel-dono.


    I, who thought so every single day, was a scumbag after all.

 Chapter 23 - Kiss the Lover 3

    Chapter 23: Kiss the Lover 3


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    The move to the northern fortress went smoothly. It had been a long time since we¡¯d been away from the Royal Palace for a significant period of time, and thus the members of the order, including me, were in high spirits. I was slightly lonely, being away from the castle, but there was happiness too, from having an expedition with only comrades that I trusted. I could be at ease here, compared to when I was in the Royal Palace.


    The troops consisted of young people, but within the troops there were a few who were older than me. However, everyone was considerate and respected me.


    It was a peaceful journey, but I only thought of Nidel-dono throughout the trip. There was the fact that Nidel-dono had told me to think carefully during the expedition, but still, I couldn¡¯t get Nidel-dono out of my mind.


    Within my thoughts contained extremely vulgar desires such as Because I¡¯m going for an expedition that will last a month, I want to embrace Nidel-dono before that., and I was disgusted by my own vulgarity.


    I¡¯m absolutely not a person of great integrity that Nidel-dono often said I am. He thought of me too highly.


    We proceeded as planned, and once we reached the northern fortress, the stationed knights came to receive us. Amongst them were locals and people dispatched from the Royal Palace were also scattered intermittently. Faces that I hadn¡¯t seen for a long time were also there, and familiar voices fluttered about.


    ¡¸Legato! I¡¯m glad to see you here.¡¹


    Just at that moment, I heard a nostalgic voice and turned to look back.


    ¡¸Captain, it¡¯s been a while.¡¹


    ¡¸Hey, hey. You¡¯re also a captain now.¡¹


    The one who approached me with a hearty laugh was the one who led the knights in the northern fortress, Captain Ballam. When I¡¯d entered the Royal Palace, he was in the same position I now hold¡ª, the Squad Commander. In my opinion, when you say Captain, I¡¯d be reminded of Captain Ballam. When I was a rookie, he was the superior who took the greatest care of me.


    He quickly handed over his post to the younger generation and transferred to the not-so-popular northern fortress by his own volition. He was a person I greatly respected.


    ¡¸Are you doing well?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, thank you. Captain Ballam also seems well.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m always healthy.¡¹


    Captain Ballam laughed just as he did when he was in the Royal Palace.


    ¡¸This place¡¯s a lil¡¯ cold¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true, when compared to the Capital.¡¹


    Walking alongside Captain Ballam, I entered the northern fortress. It¡¯s further north than the capital, and being in the mountains, it was cold. I¡¯d heard it was terrible with the snow in the winter. At a time when only the nights felt chilly in the Royal Capital, it was already shivering cold here.


    ¡¸Tomorrow, our troops will depart for the Royal Capital. It¡¯s only for a short while, but I¡¯ll be in your care.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, thank you.¡¹


    ¡¸Once you¡¯ve rested, let¡¯s have a drink together. We have a lot to catch up on. Let¡¯s have a feast with everyone today.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes!¡¹


    I returned a smile to Captain Ballam, who was grinning widely. Most of the knights in the northern fortress were to go to the capital, but Captain Ballam would remain. I was happy I could work again with him, even if it was only for a short time.


    I was shown to my assigned room within the fortress. I was grateful that a single person room had been prepared for me. It was for a short while, and it was like renting a room, so it¡¯d been fine even if it had been a common room.


    Of course, when compared to my room in the Royal Capital, it was smaller but I had no complaints.


    Once alone in the room, the first thing I did was to open the window.


    I began my life in the northern fortress. Captain Ballam called the shots, and there was not a single problem; the days went by peacefully. There were members other than Captain Ballam who¡¯d also stayed back¡ª we happily spent our time exchanging swords with them and mingling with the locals.


    Once such a day had settled down, I, on Captain Ballam¡¯s invitation, called upon the Captain¡¯s study at night.


    ¡¸Glad to see you came.¡¹


    Captain Ballam seemed to be in high spirits, and had made arrangements for alcohol. I wonder if he pilfered it from the dining hall, for there seemed to be some kind of hors d¡¯oeuvre on the table too. Seeing that, I ended up laughing. He¡¯d always been a lover of wine t. I could also hold my liquor well and thus had often accompanied him when I was a rookie.


    Amongst my superiors, I¡¯d spent the most time with him.


    ¡¸How¡¯s work at the Royal Palace?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m still green, but I¡¯m managing somehow.¡¹


    Taking the glass which had been prepared, we talked without constraints.


    ¡¸Anyhow, they work you hard. After all, they¡¯re slave drivers.¡¹


    Using the name of the Captain of the Knight Order and the Vice-Captain, Captain Ballam laughed. If I¡¯m not mistaken, the Vice-Captain and he were colleagues, and got along well.


    While the topics crossed many things, such as state of the royal palace and life in the northern fortress, we whiled away our time, and Captain Ballam was smiling cheekily.


    ¡¸Incidentally, quite a rumour has spread about you. It¡¯s even reached my place.¡¹


    Seeing the Captain speak while grinning widely, I choked on my drink. I never knew that it¡¯d even reached here. The power of rumours is scary.


    ¡¸I never thought you¡¯d get together with a man. Moreover, a kid from the Tech Order?¡¹


    ¡¸Hah¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Seeing that he¡¯s the same age as you, is it that black-haired kid? He seems a bit apathetic, but he¡®s a softer guy than he looks.¡¹


    ¡¸Ah¡­I guess. You know quite a bit.¡¹


    I ended up smiling at Captain Ballam¡¯s impression of Nidel-dono. Nevertheless, this was well-understood by the many people within the Royal Palace.


    ¡¸Well, there¡¯s few young people assigned to the Tech Order. When you¡¯d joined the Royal Palace, I was also the Captain, so I¡¯d paid attention and remembered all who¡¯d newly joined.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, this is quite informative.¡¹


    ¡¸So then, what happened? I¡¯d heard from the rumours that everyone around has accepted it favourably.¡¹


    Asked by Captain Ballam, I placed my glass on the table and was at a loss as to what to reply. Captain too noticed my troubles.


    ¡¸What¡¯s wrong? Is it not going well with him?¡¹


    ¡¸No¡­rather than not going well¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Hm? What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸About that matter, I¡¯m a little troubled.¡¹


    I was a little hesitant, but I thought of consulting with him on this occasion. Captain was stationed in the northern fortress, and being far from the Royal Palace, it was easy to talk to him. Moreover, even when Captain Ballam had been in the Royal Palace, I¡¯d consulted him. He was the only one whom I could consult with on personal matters within the Knight Order. It wasn¡¯t as if I didn¡¯t trust other people, but I was poor at talking about myself.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono is¡­Ah, his name is Nidel-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh.¡¹


    ¡¸Um, we aren¡¯t going out. And yet, the rumours grew too large, and even the King ended up mentioning it, and I couldn¡¯t deny it at that late hour¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? That¡¯s quite unfortunate. He¡¯s not your lover, huh.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah¡­probably.¡¹


    ¡¸Probably, you say¡­you get along well, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. We¡¯ve become friends just a while back, and the two of us often drink in my room.¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯re a little introverted, so people you get along well with are quite invaluable.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. That¡¯s why, he¡¯s a precious friend.¡¹


    Captain Ballam knew my nature well, as expected. I, who certainly felt relieved having someone hear my story, took the glass in my hand again. Captain Ballam, placing a hand on his cheek, looked at me and opened his mouth.


    ¡¸So, he¡¯s like a friend but you did this and that.¡¹


    I once again choked on the wine I was taking a sip of. I wonder what he thought of my reaction, but Captain let out a sigh as if amazed.


    ¡¸Looking at that, seems like you¡¯ve done it.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­I¡¯m sorry.¡¹


    ¡¸No, you don¡¯t need to apologise to me. Because you did it, you couldn¡¯t deny the rumours.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s exactly the case.¡¹


    When I affirmed, Captain Ballam laughed.


    ¡¸So you¡¯re ¡°friends with benefits¡±.. Well, there are many among the Knights who have such relationships. There are a few even in this fortress. It isn¡¯t unusual in a place with only men. You don¡¯t hold any feelings of love towards that Nidel kid, do you?¡¹


    ¡¸Probably ¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Again with the probably¡­irresolute fellow, aren¡¯t you. What about your partner?¡¹


    ¡¸Nidel-dono¡­likes me, I think¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Huuh!?¡¹


    When I said that, Captain Ballam once again raised an astonished voice.


    ¡¸It¡¯s isn¡¯t as if he told me outright ¡­but I think that¡¯s the case. Um, he was the one who propositioned me first too¡­¡¹


    It was like an excuse, but in any case, it was the truth, so I said it in a low voice.


    ¡¸And you just went with the flow.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Did you do it just once?¡¹


    ¡¸No¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Did the other party proposition you¡¹


    ¡¸No, lately I¡¯d been propositioning¡­¡¹


    The answers being what they are, I felt like running away. But I felt since I¡¯ve begun consulting for once, I had to answer all of Captain Ballam¡¯s questions.

 Chapter 24 - Kiss the Lover 5

    Chapter 24: Kiss the Lover 5


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Mirial


    The days in the Northern Fortress went by smoothly. We¡¯d spent a significant amount of time there, yet while it appeared long, time flew by in the blink of an eye. Before we realised it, the time had come for us to return to the Capital. We were reluctant to part from the people at the fortress who we had become good friends with.


    Captain Ballam too patted my shoulders with a smile.


    ¡¸Legato, I¡¯ll leave the Royal Palace to you. Let¡¯s meet again.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, I¡¯m truly thankful.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m looking forward to your rumours.¡¹


    Captain Ballam brought his body close and whispered to me, making a teasing face. I smiled wryly.


    Thus, we left the Northern Fortress.


    The journey back to the royal capital went by smoothly and we reached the capital as planned. We arrived in the evening, but the Royal Palace was expecting our arrival and thus received us smoothly.


    When I went to greet the captain and vice-captain of the Knight Order, I was told to do the formal greetings tomorrow, and after the expedition troops were put in order, they were released.


    I too, returned to my room; the first thing I did was to open the window. The room, unused for a month, was dusty.


    However, the most important reason as to why I¡¯d opened the window was for the person who¡¯d always visit from there.


    He must have heard that I¡¯d be returning from the expedition. ¡®He might come to visit me, no, he¡¯ll come to express words of thanks,¡¯ I imagined.


    However, on that day, he did not visit my room.


    £ª


    All night I wondered as to why Nidel-dono did not come meet me.


    Does he not want to meet me anymore? Just like he¡¯d said before the expedition, will he stop meeting me in private? Or, did his feelings towards me die down already? Or perhaps he was ill?


    I, who could only think of such things, restlessly dove into a month¡¯s worth of work in the Royal Palace. The people around perhaps thought that I was confused after being away for long time, but I was absent-minded because of Nidel-dono.


    I searched for his figure when I moved about the Royal Palace, but I could not find him. In the first place, people of the Technological Magic Order weren¡¯t seen that often.


    I, who was nervously wondering whether he¡¯d come this night, finally realised. If I was so bothered by him, why not go meet him myself?


    Once I thought of that, I sped up my work and was able to squeeze out just a little bit of time, heading to his natural habitat, the tower.


    When the tower came into sight, my heart started throbbing. When I thought of how I was going to meet Nidel-dono after a month, I started feeling strange. I¡¯d been thinking of him every day this past month.


    I stepped foot into the tower and peeped at the floor where the members gathered. It¡¯d been a while since I¡¯d visited this place, the last time being when I¡¯d gone out on errands as a rookie.


    The members who¡¯d noticed my presence all raised their heads, revealing varied shocked expressions.


    ¡¸¡­It¡¯s Squad Commander Legato¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Ooh, to see the person in flesh so close¡­¡¹


    While hearing whispers spread, I looked around the room. When I searched for Nidel-dono, I saw a figure resembling him dozing off on the divan.


    When my gaze locked onto him, a member clad in black robes stood up.


    ¡¸¡­Do you have any business here?¡¹


    ¡¸Ah¡­ um, with Nidel-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh, as expected.¡¹


    At my reply, the person in front of me grinned. The members nearby also curled up their lips and smiled. The member closest to the divan shook Nidel-dono¡¯s body.


    ¡¸¡­Nidel, your husband came.¡¹


    When I gave a wry smile, thinking They¡¯re treating me as a husband, huh. Nidel-dono got up, speaking with a half asleep voice. ¡¸What do you mean Husband¡­¡¹Once he noticed me, he looked on in surprised, before changing his expression to a wry smile.


    Nidel-dono got down from the divan and approached me, passing by me with the words,¡¸Outside, let¡¯s go.¡¹I chased after his figure in a fluster.


    ¡¸Well done on your expedition.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Ahh.¡¹


    Once we left the tower, Nidel-dono turned back to look at me and his wry smile changed to a gentle one. I looked at him in a daze. Nidel-dono looked at the surroundings then frowned.


    ¡¸Sorry for making you come all the way here, but is it something urgent? There¡¯s curious eyes everywhere in the Royal Palace after all, so if it isn¡¯t something urgent, I¡¯ll go to your room at night, is it fine then?¡¹


    Nidel-dono looked up at me and tilted his neck to the side just a little. His black eyes softly sparkled as he studied me.


    ¡¸Legato?¡¹


    At Nidel-dono calling out to me, I returned to myself. At the same time my body temperature rose suddenly. My face burned up and my heart throbbed violently. Even my blood rushed to my head.


    While I spaced out, assaulted by my body¡¯s reaction, Nidel-dono continued staring at me.


    ¡¸Legato, are you listening?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Ah, ahh. Got it, night¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­I see. Then, I¡¯ll see you at night. Sorry for making you come all the way to the tower.¡¹


    After shooting a look at me from his lightly worn hood, Nidel-dono turned on his heel. I watched him return to the tower dazedly.


    When Nidel-dono left, I sunk to the ground.


    When he entered my sight, I could see nothing but him and my body suddenly became strange. My face still felt hot.


    Oh my God.


    ¡ª¡ªI¡¯m, falling in ¡ª¡ªlove with him!


    I was shocked by my own stupidity. I wasn¡¯t like this before the expedition. Of course, I¡¯d held complex feelings, but it wasn¡¯t like this.


    When I met him after a month, things turned out like this. Was it because I thought of him every day throughout the expedition? Every day, I repeated, I want to meet him badly. It might have been self-suggestion. Just how simple-minded was I?


    I place my hand on my forehead and looked down.


    All throughout the expedition I worried myself. I worried about what I should do with him, what he was to me. And I was worried enough that I couldn¡¯t sleep.


    All those worries ¡ª¡ªThey turned out to be meaningless.


    When assaulted by these violent heartbeats, more than what I¡¯d even felt for my first love, it couldn¡¯t be helped. His expression and voice were stuck in my mind, something I couldn¡¯t forget and I wanted to meet him again badly.


    I placed a hand on my face, my blush yet to disappear, and simply stood there like a fool.

 Chapter 25 - Kiss the Lover 6

    Chapter 25: Kiss the Lover 6


    Translator: Hasr11


    Editor: Gold Swallow


    At night, after I finished my chores, I just waited for Nidel-dono. Sitting on the chair next to the bed, I looked at the open window. It couldn¡¯t be compared to the chill of the Northern Fortress, but still, the night wind that blew in was considerably colder than before the expedition.


    I wonder how long I remained like that before I faintly heard the rustling of wings, and a small bird entered through the window. The moment I saw that figure, my heartbeat sped up and I felt elated.


    ¡¸Did I make you wait?¡¹


    The bird changed into a man clad in black robes, and landed on the floor gently. My heart was making a racket now that Nidel-dono was once again visiting my room and it couldn¡¯t be helped.


    I¡¯d truly lost my heart to Nidel-dono.


    I unconsciously stood up, closed the window and locked it. Watching my movements in wonder, Nidel-dono uttered ¡¸Ahh¡¹in understanding.


    ¡¸Sorry, was it cold? My bad, I made you keep the window open.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­No.¡¹


    That¡¯s not it. I did not want Nidel-dono to escape. I did this, because I thought even if he decided to go home suddenly, it¡¯d still take time to open the window and I could buy some time in the meanwhile. The incident the day before I left for the expedition had stayed in my mind, and I closed the window as if chased by a feeling of impatience.


    ¡¸Legato, I¡¯d told you before the expedition. Don¡¯t be rash. Yet, what did you wish to do, going all the way to the tower¡­well, nevermind.¡¹


    Nidel-dono complained, but let out a sigh midway. And then, he stretched out his arm to catch my hand, but he seemed to come to himself, and his arm returned to where it was. I, who saw it, held out my hand towards Nidel-dono. Nidel-dono gave a small wry smile and once again stretched out his arm to take my hand.


    When the slightly cold and beautiful fingers of Nidel-dono touched my hand, my body went numb, as if an electric current had traveled through it.


    ¡¸Injuries¡­there¡¯s none, but it¡¯s rougher than before.¡¹


    Nidel-dono lightly stroked my hand while checking it. At that feeling, I felt like grabbing and pulling that hand closer.


    ¡¸The north is cold and there was a lot of outside work too.¡¹


    Also, I didn¡¯t embrace Nidel-dono, and so I didn¡¯t get a chance to touch the lube. Ever since I¡¯d started embracing Nidel-dono, my hands had received benefits of the oil, and its roughness had reduced.


    ¡¸I see. It must have been difficult.¡¹


    I wonder if Nidel-dono used healing magic even on my rough hand, as the place where his fingers touched became warm. I thought of wicked things like I want him to lick like that time he was a cat.¡¯ Nidel-dono must have never thought that I was such a vulgar person.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono has become a little thinner.¡¹


    It had bothered me ever since I¡¯d seen him in the tower. I caught Nidel-dono¡¯s wrist. His wrist easily fitted in my hand. Nidel-dono was thin. Moreover, when work became busy, he¡¯d immediately lose weight. It was an unbearable worry for me.


    ¡¸Ahh, I got a little engrossed in the research of a new magical device¡­I¡¯ll take care.¡¹


    Nidel-dono gave a wry smile, and took back his hand unaffectedly.


    ¡¸Are there any other injuries?¡¹


    Nidel-dono looked up at me with gentle eyes and asked in a gentle tone.


    Seeing that figure in front of me, my chest suddenly tightened in pain.


    Why are you so kind? Why do you always repeatedly treat me gently? To such an immature man!?


    I couldn¡¯t help but stretch out my hand. I caught Nidel-dono¡¯s arm and pulled it towards me. His thin body fell into my arms. Putting my hands around his body, I hugged him tightly.


    The feeling of having Nidel-dono in my arms gave so much satisfaction it hurt. I thought honestly, I want to be like this forever.


    I¡¯ve never needed a person so desperately before.


    ¡¸¡­What¡¯s wrong?¡¹


    Nidel-dono, who¡¯d been caught off guard by my actions cowered, but seeing me still cling onto him, he worried in a perplexed voice. Nidel-dono¡¯s voice was a little unique and felt somewhat gentle. My heart throbbed listening to that voice. Why, perhaps everything about a person seems special when you love them.


    ¡¸Legato?¡¹


    Nidel-dono tugged at my clothes near my waist hesitantly.


    I finally raised my head a little and nestled my cheek against Nidel-dono¡¯s and took up those lips. Nidel-don¡¯t stiffened up in surprise, but he couldn¡¯t separate from the lips I¡¯d touched together. Sucking on Nidel-dono¡¯s confused lips, licking, I brought our lips together many times. Devouring them as if to taste them, I covered up everything, even robbing him of his breath.


    Till now, I¡¯d only given light playful kisses¡ª because I¡¯d never given such a serious kiss, Nidel-dono must be shocked.


    ¡¸¡­Throughout the expedition, I only thought of you.¡¹


    Separating the lips that had met deeply¡ª yet at a distance where our lips could brush against each other¡ª I whispered. And then once again I brought our lips together. Nidel-dono who froze, not moving an inch, finally stirred at my words


    ¡¸¡­Because Nidel-dono told me to think.¡¹


    Whispering as if blaming him, I once again brought our lips together.


    ¡¸I thought too much¡­and fell in love with you.¡¹


    When I whispered that, Nidel-dono blinked.


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t that self-suggestion?¡¹


    A calm analysis came. I thought, I love Nidel-dono who can even remain calm at such a time. Nidel-dono, unlike me, isn¡¯t someone who gets carried away easily. I respect that nature of his regardless of my love for him.


    ¡¸That might be the case. But, I can¡¯t think of anything but you anymore.¡¹


    I met his lips again, as if to block Nidel-dono¡¯s argument. Nipping Nidel-dono¡¯s lower lip with my lips, I fondled them. When my tongue invaded the slightly open mouth, Nidel-dono ¡®s body lightly trembled. His unaccustomed reaction betrayed Nidel-dono¡¯s lack of experience, and my mood improved. I was already acting like a lover, I now even wanted to rule his past.


    I found Nidel-dono¡¯s confused tongue and sucked it. Nidel-dono stiffened within my arms and let me do as I pleased. Entangling our tongues, I licked every spot my tongue could reach. I wonder if Nidel-dono wasn¡¯t accustomed to a deep kiss, but he painfully placed a hand on my chest and tried to separate us, but I put in more strength to make sure our lips didn¡¯t move apart. When I even drank the saliva that dribbled from the corners of his mouth, Nidel-dono panted as if short of breath.


    ¡¸¡­Nn, Lega-to¡­Wait-¡¹


    I guess his legs gave away, for Nidel-dono, despite attempting to stop me, sunk down and I supported him. I embraced him and moved a little, pushing him down on the bed.


    I leaned on top of him and looked down on him, placing my hands on both sides of his face, Nidel dono was still giving chaotic breathes, and looked at me as if troubled with his reddened eyes.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono.¡¹


    I caught his hands that had been casually tossed about and brought them close to my lips, planting a kiss on the back of his hand.


    ¡¸¡­I want to devote my heart ¡ª¡ªmy love to you. Am I too late?¡¹


    While dropping a kiss on the smooth back of his hand, I looked into his black eyes, and I, from the bottom of my heart, professed my love for him.


    Actually, even if I hadn¡¯t loved Nidel-dono, I would have done the same thing. All through the expedition, I thought of his and my relationship. I thought of Captain Ballam¡¯s words. I even thought of the environment, and I reached this conclusion.


    I genuinely liked Nidel-dono as a person, and when I thought about it, I¡¯d decided to sacrifice my body for the nation when I¡¯d become a knight. It wasn¡¯t as if I absolutely needed to leave descendants, and the prosperity of the kingdom was the proof of my life. The people of my house wouldn¡¯t be happy, but I wasn¡¯t the heir. I have the backing of the Royal Palace too, and if I seriously ask, my family would perhaps agree. They were flexible enough.


    Everyone around too is expecting us to live together till death does us part. Viewing it objectively, and thinking of it as a whole, I reached the conclusion to stay together with Nidel-dono. The moment I decided that, I felt my body immediately lighten. The knots in my heart came undone and I felt refreshed.


    I decided to receive his affection from here on and return as much affection to him as possible.


    But now, it was different. I was in a position of professing love to him.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, is it impossible?¡¹


    When I slyly begged him, he made a troubled face towards me, eyes darting everywhere nervously, and then he gave out a sigh.


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t say it¡¯s not possible ¡­¡¹


    Nidel-dono knitted his eyebrows while making a troubled face, and his expression turned clouded and he lowered his face. I expectantly waited for Nidel-dono¡¯s words. Nidel-dono, with his eyes lowered, maintained a long silence and then muttered under his breath.


    ¡¸¡­I also thought only of you during the whole month.¡¹


    It was a self-deprecating way of talking.


    ¡¸¡­I thought I wouldn¡¯t get to speak with you, touch you anymore. When I thought of it¡­¡¹


    Nidel-dono uttered such words. I silently waited for the continuation of those words, but Nidel-dono gave a small sigh and stopped talking. And then, with his eyebrows still knitted, he turned to face me and muttered as if to admonish me,


    ¡¸¡­You¡¯re going to have a lot of trouble.¡¹


    When I thought how he was still worried about my future, I felt ticklish enough that my chest hurt.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, the effort you put in grabbing the things you wish for with your own hand isn¡¯t trouble.¡¹


    When I spoke, Nidel-dono opened his eyes wide.


    ¡¸Those are words I¡¯d never even thought of. It¡¯s quite like you.¡¹


    The creases between Nidel-dono¡¯s eyebrows eased. At the same time, his black eyes turned moist.


    Moreover, if that is trouble, I¡¯d happily take all of it by my own volition. For the most part, I probably love suffering.


    ¡¸¡­I¡¯ll always tease you.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll become great enough that you won¡¯t tease me.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Reliable, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    Nidel-dono laughed at last. The eyes that looked at me turned gentle, and his voice too turned gentle. And then he scrunched up his face and made a face as if he was about to cry. I dropped him kisses while patting his hair to pacify him. Nidel-dono closed his eyes this time and showed an attitude of accepting kisses by his own accord. Nidel-dono, who was refusing to admit defeat, muttered ¡¸¡­But you, not matter how great you become I¡¯ll still tease you.¡¹ I made the kiss deeper as if to soak up the hoarse voice of Nidel-dono.

 Chapter 26: Kiss the Lover 7

    Chapter 26: Kiss the Lover 7


    I exchanged kisses with Nidel-dono multiple times. At times, when my eyes opened, his would too, and our gazes occasionally met at a distance where even our eyelashes would brush. At that time, Nidel-dono would narrow his moist black eyes as if embarrassed and would smile a bit. Every time, my heart would skip a beat.


    I wanted to touch Nidel-dono already and couldn¡¯t bear it. I wanted to be lost in his passion. I wanted to make everything of him mine.


    That desire tempted me and I slipped my hand into his robe. But the moment I touched his velvety skin, I came to my senses.


    I must deeply apologise for having joined bodies with Nidel-dono without much of a thought. Without giving an apology or anything, and yet laying a hand on him as if it was reasonable, was an action very much lacking in integrity.


    When I was troubled as I touched Nidel-dono¡¯s skin, Nidel-dono stirred and softly wrapped his arms around my back. And then looking at me, he laughed.


    ¡¸You won¡¯t do it?¡¹


    At Nidel-dono¡¯s teasing voice, my body temperature shot up at once. My whole body boiled and at a loss with my impulsive love for him, I dropped my head in Nidel-dono¡¯s chest.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono is too indulgent.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    When I muttered, Nidel-dono replied from the top of my head in a truly mysteriously way. And then, Nidel-dono¡¯s cool fingers touched the top of my head and petted me. Does he intend to indulge me further?


    Nidel-dono had said that being petted by me as a cat had turned into a habit of his, but I now understand that feeling. Having my head petted gently by Nidel-dono gave me unparalleled happiness.


    However, as expected, I couldn¡¯t be petted forever. When I raised my head, Nidel-dono paused his hands.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, I¡¯m sorry.¡¹


    ¡¸About what?¡¹


    When I apologised, Nidel-dono cocked his head. For the most part, I felt there¡¯s a problem with apologising in a situation where he is pushed down.


    ¡¸I¡¯m apologising for all my actions to you until now.¡¹


    ¡¸No need. I don¡¯t remember you having done anything that needs for you to apologise.¡¹


    When I remained quiet on Nidel-dono¡¯s reply, Nidel-dono laughed. Seeing his laugh, I realised. Nidel-dono definitely knew everything I wanted to say. He¡¯s smart. There¡¯s no mistaking that he¡¯d correctly predict everything that I¡¯d thought.


    What gushed forth from my heart was, The gentle person in front of my eyes is beloved by me.


    I felt saying any more than this would be rude to him, and I instead dropped kisses on him. Nidel-dono closed his eyes and once again wrapped his arms around my back.


    While taking off his clothes and my clothes, I didn¡¯t part my lips from his skin as much as possible. Savouring his lips, licking his cheeks, I kissed his temple and forehead. Even I thought myself as annoying, but Nidel-dono, without detesting it, even responded when I met lips with his.


    Kissing his whole body, trailing kisses on his skin, I loosened at the place that called out to me. Inserting my finger dripping from lube, when I sucked at the base of his buttocks, I heard pants. The feel of his skin, his response, everything seemed dear, and my lower half showed a greater reaction than ever before.


    But I didn¡¯t care about it any longer. I didn¡¯t mind if I came or if I felt good. What mattered the most to me was how Nidel-dono felt. If he felt good, I¡¯d be fine either way.


    When I thought of that, I felt happy on the contrary.


    I entered Nidel-dono¡¯s insides that had become loose. Suppressed moans escaped from his mouth, and I too let out a deep breath.


    I wonder if it was because I was mentally satisfied, but the stimulation felt sweeter than before. I felt soothed having my most important place enveloped by his whole body and heart. I felt I was going to climax already. This was the first time I felt like this just by insertion.


    But of course, even though I mentally felt a momentary peak, my body wasn¡¯t like that, and I slowly began moving.


    Nidel-dono arched his neck backwards, and grimaced as if bearing the impact of the whole month. When I made my movements gradually larger, taking care not to make him feel pain, those black eyes closed and his eyebrows tightly knitted. His doock, too was twitching and trembling with its top leaking. When I realised he was about to come, I felt further aroused.


    ¡¸Ahhh¡¹


    I pulled out my penis to the shallowest point and, as if to rub his inside, pushed my way to the deepest point. Nidel-dono arched backwards and raised a coquettish moan. Then, Nidel-dono knitted his eyebrows and pressed his lips into a line. He seemed to be embarrassed for making a high pitched voice. I wanted him to let out his voice more, but he didn¡¯t raise his voice much. Nidel-dono, who¡¯d turned his face to the side, brought his hand to his mouth and took his fingers in his mouth. It seemed he intended to bite his fingers to suppress his voice.


    The moment I saw that, I caught that hand in a hurry and took it out of his mouth, and instead thrust my fingers inside his mouth.


    I couldn¡¯t bear to let Nidel-dono¡¯s beautiful fingers get hurt.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s eyes showed surprise at my actions, but I wonder what he thought looking at my face, for he accepted my fingers in resignation. Nidel-dono licked my fingers in his mouth as if to ascertain them. My whole body felt numb from that sensation, and I felt dizzy.


    Presented with such a violent lust, I felt he was testing me. I even forgot of my guilt towards him.


    I leaned atop Nidel-dono, and once again began moving.


    £ª


    Engrossed by Nidel-dono¡¯s disheveled figure, I closed in on him many times, and I reached the climax faster than ever before. Perhaps it was because our hearts had become one, but joining our bodies left an even deeper impression on me. Nidel-dono¡¯s insides tightly wrapped around my thing that rapidly grew bigger, and I felt it pulling me in further. I gave a groan and let out everything inside Nidel-dono. Letting out a hoarse voice, Nidel-dono¡¯s body twitched and accepted everything.


    Continuing to move for a long time, a drop of sweat slid from my forehead, my whole body flooded with pleasure. Letting out a long breath, as if savouring the afterglow, I leaned on top of Nidel-dono, who¡¯d sunk onto the bed. And then I kissed Nidel-dono, who was panting more violently than me, and trailed kisses on his face as if to pacify him. Nidel-dono¡¯s sweat tasted sweet.


    While brushing lips, when I raised my waist up a little and moved, a wet squelch leaked from my lower half, and I who¡¯d calmed down, left Nidel-dono¡¯s insides reluctantly. Nidel-dono let out another sigh between our lips.


    Lube and the cloudy desire that my thing had released flowed out. Then, I once again inserted my finger inside Nidel-dono and drained his insides. It made me happy that Nidel-dono¡¯s skin, insides, everything had been touched by me. I didn¡¯t climax easily, so I felt regret for the huge burden on him, but I also felt happiness having enjoyed his insides for such a long time and seeing his disheveled appearance.

 Chapter 27: Kiss the Lover 8

    Chapter 27: Kiss the Lover 8


    ¡¸¡­Nidel-dono, I feel really good. But is Nidel-dono satisfied?¡¹


    Once I¡¯d put everything in place, I hugged Nidel-dono once again and brushed my lips against his. I knew from Nidel-dono¡¯s reaction how he felt, but I wished to hear it in his own words, asking a crafty question. If he felt like it was too long, or had any dissatisfaction whatsoever, I would endure it and manage somehow next time.


    While receiving my kiss, Nidel-dono looked at me. Looking at Nidel-dono¡¯s sweat-soaked bangs stuck to his forehead, his moist eyes, and his still flushed skin, my lower half held my passion. He was beautiful.


    ¡¸¡­Rather, is Legato really satisfied?¡¹


    I didn¡¯t expect those words from Nidel-dono. It felt like he had said something I couldn¡¯t comprehend.


    ¡¸You didn¡¯t come much, did you? I know I¡¯m not great as a partner. You don¡¯t have to be so careful. If you tell me, I¡¯ll put more effort in to make you feel good.¡¹


    ¡¸No¡­Um¡­¡¹


    Vulgar thoughts such as, Saying you¡¯ll put in effort for my sake, just what kind of effort do you intend to put in? floated across my mind for a moment, but I reconsidered, thinking that it wasn¡¯t what Nidel-dono meant.


    Frankly speaking, I didn¡¯t have much to say, especially with my inferiority complex. However, as Nidel-dono looked at me with sincere eyes, I couldn¡¯t stay quiet.


    ¡¸No¡­That¡¯s not the case. I¡¯m not a type that cums a lot in the first place. When I did it with Nidel-dono, it felt unbelievably good. Even this was quick in my opinion.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh. I¡¯m sorry for making Nidel-dono keep me company for so long. But doing it with Nidel-dono really feels great. I never knew joining bodies felt so good.¡¹


    When I honestly appealed to him, Nidel-dono thought for a bit and then gave a wry smile.


    ¡¸You should say such things earlier. I was convinced that our bodies weren¡¯t compatible, and I was quite worried, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸I apologise ¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Well, if that¡¯s the case, then great.¡¹


    Nidel-dono gave another wry smile and caught my hand that was tracing his cheek.


    ¡¸My bad, I bit them.¡¹


    My middle finger that had been thrust in Nidel-dono¡¯s mouth when he was trying to suppress his voice, had been bitten multiple times. Even that pain gave me pleasure, but my finger seemed to be a little bruised. Nidel-dono brought my hand near his mouth and licked my fingers. There wasn¡¯t much pain, so to speak, but even the little pain I had disappeared. I thought, It¡¯d be fine not to use Healing Magic at such a time, but the feeling of the tongue licking both my fingers filled my lust.


    Nidel-dono, done licking my finger, glanced at me, then his gaze travelled to my lower half. I remained silent awkwardly.


    ¡¸Want to do it again?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­No, it¡¯s fine. A second time would probably be even longer.¡¹


    Nidel-dono wouldn¡¯t be able to keep me company after all. I distracted myself, attempting to restrain the reaction in my stupid body.


    Nidel-dono made an expression as if pondering about something in my arms, and then said to me.


    ¡¸Anyhow, you won¡¯t wash that?¡¹


    ¡¸Eh?¡¹


    ¡¸¡¯That¡¯¡¹


    Nidel-dono pointed at my lower half. I was slightly at a loss, but since Nidel-dono hurried me, saying ¡¸Go quickly,¡¹ I honestly stood up. I thought he meant for me to go and calm it down with cold water, and picking up the clothes scattered on the floor, I left the bed.


    I washed myself lightly with water just as Nidel-dono told me to and returned to the bed. When I did so, Nidel-dono who was lying down, reluctantly got up and approached me.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry. As expected, I can¡¯t bring myself to put something that had been thrust into me inside my mouth.¡¹


    Nidel-dono said that and crouched in front of me, pulled down my underwear, and took out my thing that had completely quieted down. He crept his tongue up across it.


    I looked at the sight dumbfoundedly.


    Even when I had completely become hard, Nidel-dono traced it with his tongue many times, then took in the tip in his mouth.


    It was a completely different sensation from Nidel-dono¡¯s inside. More than anything, Nidel- dono purposefully created every stimulation. Contained in such a mouth, strength returned to my thing at once. Even though my thoughts had stopped, my body was honest.


    Nidel-dono¡¯s beautiful fingers twined around my root and, licking like a cat, his lips sucked my dick.


    ¡¸It¡¯s long after all¡­¡¹


    Nidel-dono, who had opened his mouth and gulped me down, knit his eyebrows and freed himself. He muttered under his breath, It won¡¯t enter much, yet he took it in as deep as he could.


    My whole body burned up, especially my face; even my ears were bright red. I gazed at that scene that almost seemed violent. Surely my reactions were transmitted clearly through Nidel-dono¡¯s mouth. That was embarrassing.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono¡­¡¹


    ¡¸If I stimulate till just before you cum, it¡¯ll end quickly.¡¹


    Freeing his mouth, Nidel-dono said that.


    But if he was thinking of stimulating me till I came, his mouth would surely get tired and even though I was in his mouth, I didn¡¯t know whether I¡¯d come immediately.


    I thought that, but didn¡¯t voice it out. I wished to submit to this unbelievable pleasure. Moreover, with the pleasure and visual stimulation I got, I felt that my lower half would certainly close in on it and I thought I might climax faster than my expectations.


    ¡¸¡­Why is Nidel-dono so kind to me¡­¡¹


    Burying his face in my abdomen, Nidel-dono, making wet slopping sounds, raised his head once I said that subconsciously.


    ¡¸That¡¯s because I love you.¡¹


    My mind shook at the way Nidel-dono grinned with narrowed eyes.


    Riding on that impulse, I forcefully held Nidel-dono¡¯s shoulders.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono!¡¹


    ¡¸Ah-ahh.¡¹


    ¡¸I do not know whether I have the power to make you happy. But I shall wholeheartedly devote myself to your happiness, and I swear to the gods that I shall cherish you. My love is only yours in this lifetime.¡¹


    I voiced all my thoughts to him. You, who accepted my immature love, I shall surely cherish you many times more.


    I prided myself for putting in effort toward everything, and it was my principle to continue to follow through once I¡¯ve decided to do something.


    Nidel-dono opened his eyes and stared at me, blinked multiple times, and then laughed.


    ¡¸Ah, I¡¯m glad, but¡­This isn¡¯t something you say in such a situation, do you?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­That¡¯s true¡­¡¹


    Calmly rebuked by Nidel-dono again, I was surprised by my own worthlessness. Certainly, such words of oath were to be told in a more solemn place, and weren¡¯t something to be told when doing something inexcusable. My lower half was in a miserable state.


    Turns out I was a stupider person that I¡¯d thought, and I questioned my life. The fact that I said many strange things when perturbed was another cause of worry.


    While I became gloomy in my heart, my head was spinning. When I looked up, Nidel-dono was peeking at me, laughing, and pressed his lips onto mine.


    ¡¸I¡¯m happy, really. I¡¯m so happy--It feels like a dream.¡¹


    Nidel-dono narrowed his eyes and laughed. Seeing the smile gentler than the ones I¡¯d seen before, my heart felt so full it hurt. I returned the kiss many times, deeply.


    ¡¸¡­I¡¯ll accompany you, no matter how long, till you¡¯re satisfied.¡¹


    At the words whispered between the kisses, I simply savoured the lips.


    --If Nidel-dono was by my side, surely in this life, both my heart and body will be satisfied.


    Let¡¯s say that at more appropriate time, shall we?

 Extra 1 Omake (First Half) [Legato PoV]

    Extra 1 Omake (First Half) [Legato PoV]


    On the bed, leaning on Nidel-dono, who¡¯d entrusted everything to me, I enclosed his face with both of my hands and savoured his soft lips. From the gaps between his lips, disjointed gasps escaped.


    I bite his lip while changing the angle multiple times. When Nidel-dono let out a painful moan, I freed his mouth and kissed his cheek instead. Wilfully brushing up his bangs, I dropped a kiss on his forehead. And then, on the corner of his eye.


    And then, I once again brought our lips together. In the midst of that, I also gently moved my hips. Being as gentle as possible, I slowly rubbed my doock against his insides. While gently inserting, I moved my hips as if to stir his insides, and stimulated him from inside.


    ¡¸Ngh.¡¹


    Slight gasps escaped from the gap between our lips. His slender neck arched backwards, and Nidel-dono trembled a little under my body.


    While continuing the kiss, I pushed on with the stimulation, as if to pacify him. Nidel-dono knitted his eyebrows and shut his eyelids tight, as if to endure the pleasure.


    Seeing him feel my movements strongly, my lips curled up.


    Nidel-dono didn¡¯t speak much of his physical pleasure, but he preferred to be done gently rather than violently. Having become lovers and passionately joined our bodies, I now knew every part of Nidel-dono¡¯s body. Nidel-dono always told me it was fine to do as I wished, but I felt the most satisfaction seeing Nidel-dono¡¯s happy face.


    ¡¸Mn-Hah¡­¡¹


    As I continued to move my hips as I covered his lips, Nidel-dono escaped voice became louder, and his trembling too seemed to become shorter. He seemed near climax. His tightly shut eyes opened a crack, and he looked at me reproachfully through his eyes misted with lust.


    Because he gave such a seductive look, my ears turned red by just looking at Nidel-dono¡¯s misted eyes. Generally, Nidel-dono was quite erotic and alluring when struck.


    ¡¸¡­Ahhh!¡¹


    Controlling the movement of my waist that had unconsciously become faster, when I unconsciously rubbed my cock against Nidel-dono¡¯s weak spot, Nidel-dono trembled violently and his whole body stiffened. The part that enveloped my penis strongly pulled me in. A wet sound was heard near my stomach and I felt something moist and warm. Nidel-dono had came.


    I held his checks with both hands and met his lips, as if to take in all his rough breaths. I felt I was making his breath turn even more laborious, but I continued to savour his lips till his breaths settled.


    Once the violent heaving of Nidel-dono¡¯s chest returned to normal, I separated our bodies for a bit and wiped down Nidel-dono¡¯s soiled body with a cloth.


    And I then when I once again brought my lips near Nidel-dono¡¯s face, he let out a small sigh.


    ¡¸¡­I¡¯m fine¡­Didn¡¯t I tell you to move so that you come?¡¹


    Nidel-dono¡¯s slender fingers petted my head and ruffled my hair. When I looked at him, despite his face flushing from the afterglow of coming, he looked at me as if he was troubled. I loved Nidel-dono¡¯s defenceless atmosphere after coming. Instead of replying, I once again brushed my lips against his.


    ¡¸¡­Legato, at least do as you like today¡­It¡¯s your birthday after all.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s why I¡¯m doing as I like.¡¹


    When I laughed and said so, Nidel-dono made an astonished face, yet he avoided my gaze bashfully. Before Nidel-dono became my lover, he was the one who¡¯d show active speech and conduct, and so when I spoke words of love, he was embarrassed. Even that tickled my heart. I wonder if he realised that.


    Today was my birthday. I don¡¯t celebrate birthdays or anything at this age, and the day was usually an excuse for my comrades in the Knight Order to have a drinking bout, but this year I was freed from the drinking bout thanks to the rumours. Thinking carefully, there were women who I had relationships with each year on my birthday, but I¡¯d always run away from it on the pretext of work, so this was perhaps the first time I had spent the day happily with someone.


    This year I realised that celebrating it with a person you like felt good.


    I wasn¡¯t one to be flashy, and didn¡¯t do anything out of the ordinary. I only drank wine with Nidel-dono in my room as usual, but I was told to do as I liked at night. However, it wasn¡¯t as if I was unhappy or had any dissatisfaction with the usual, and in the end it was the same as always.


    I¡¯d always feel more than enough pleasure just by Nidel-dono touching me, and I didn¡¯t have anything more to wish of in particular.


    But well, although Nidel-dono had already come, I still wanted to keep this going¡­


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, is it alright to enter again?¡¹


    ¡¸I told you, don¡¯t take the trouble to ask.¡¹


    My cock, that had left from inside him, was still greedily excited even now. In the past, I greedily devoured Nidel-dono as I wished, but I now wanted to put great importance to his wishes too. However, Nidel-dono always told me to ¡¸do as you wish¡¹, and talking to him held no meaning. Rather, it was depressing?


    I was slightly lost in thought as I leaned atop Nidel-dono, and Nidel-dono pushed my body with his hand. When I accepted the force, Nidel-dono raised his upper body and pushed me further down and I fell on my back just like that. I felt the soft bed under me.


    Nidel-dono averted his eyes and tightened his lips and climbed atop me, who was lying on my back. I meekly watched Nidel-dono¡¯s actions. I knew that Nidel-dono¡¯s expression meant that he was hiding his embarrassment.


    ¡¸¡­I¡¯ll do it¡­¡¹


    Nidel-dono said that and brought his hand to my penis. Once he¡¯d straddled my waist, he slowly brought his body down. He let out a gasp, and at the same time, my penis was wrapped up in a scorching stimulation. Nidel-dono must have thought of being more active because it was my birthday.


    I wonder if it was embarrassing, for Nidel-dono, avoiding my gaze, took me in and let out a gasp.


    He then began moving hesitantly. The movements had some embarrassment and were clumsy, but I felt a special stimulation, as I thought of how he was doing this for me, and felt aroused. The body moving on top of me was alluring. I honestly often thought that Nidel-dono was a very beautiful person.


    I loved his hair and eyes that were black like the night. My eyes would be stolen by his curt and cold face that softened the moment an expression appeared on it. But the most beautiful thing about him was his heart. I respect Nidel-dono as a person.


    And, I couldn¡¯t help but feel happy when I thought of being the only person who¡¯d seen this stark-naked figure of his. The people of the Royal Palace hadn¡¯t even seen him sans robes.


    Other people didn¡¯t know of this beautiful figure. Of course, I would never let other people know.


    While I was in the midst of being fascinated by him, Nidel-dono, who¡¯d been moving, his movement gradually became slower, and he fell forward while still taking me in his body.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, are you alright?¡¹


    When I placed my hands on his slender shoulders, Nidel-dono raised his head and knitted his eyebrows with a flushed face.


    ¡¸¡­Legato¡­sorry¡­can¡¯t do well¡­¡¹


    I wonder what is this cuteness that Nidel-dono shows at times. I once again received a shock today.


    £ª


    NSFW End


    The next day, on the byroad in the Royal Palace, I stood as I looked down at a bench. To be precise, I was looking down at Nidel-dono who was sleeping defencelessly on the bench.


    I had known from the past that this spot was Nidel-dono¡¯s favourite hideout, and I¡¯d seen him sleep there many times, but I felt uneasy now. I worried, thinking, Is this godforsaken place somewhere to sleep without having anyone on the lookout?


    Moreover, the wind was cold in this season. No matter if you say he¡¯s wearing a robe, was he really not cold? I worried he might catch a cold.


    Bending down a little, when I looked at the face hidden by a hood, Nidel-dono was breathing peacefully. Looking at his sleeping face, worry and embarrassment rose at the same time. Nidel-dono taking a nap in the intervals between work was surely my fault. It must be because I got carried away yesterday night. Even though I¡¯d decided in my heart that I wouldn¡¯t make him do the impossible and treasure him, I can¡¯t say that I am able to keep my vow.


    I do not want to push the blame onto others, but fault lies partly on Nidel-dono too. He was too indulgent with me and aroused me. It might be my uncontrolled immaturity, but I could not be prudent in front of my loved one.


    I, who was gazing at Nidel-dono¡¯s sleeping face, dropped on one knee on the spot and knitted my eyebrows, while making sure not to wake him up. When I touched his skin for a bit, it was cold after all, due to the air outside.


    Even after we had formally become lovers, Nidel-dono and I avoided getting involved with each other more than necessary outside my room. He would get angry if word got out that I had kissed him in such a place, and I regretfully parted from his face and placed my hand on his body.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Mn¡­¡¹


    When I shook him, Nidel-dono slowly opened his eyes. And focusing his gaze on me, he made an baffled face. He must be wondering why I was here.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, you¡¯ll catch a cold.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Ahh, my bad. Was I sleeping?¡¹


    Nidel-dono slowly got up, rubbing his eyes. I was thinking to myself, He¡¯s really like a cat, but I came to myself and made a request.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, please stop sleeping here.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s all right. I might look unhealthy, but I¡¯m in quite good health.¡¹


    ¡¸No, that is not what I mean¡­¡¹


    Certainly, Nidel-dono had lived a life cooped up in the tower, and looked thin, but I believe he has the physical strength nevertheless. Even while guarding, he¡¯d lived an identical life like mine, and had furthermore continually used magic all throughout. That was the most surprising fact. Even at night, he¡¯d accompanied me right from the beginning.


    ¡¸It¡¯s dangerous to sleep in such a god forsaken place.¡¹


    When I earnestly spoke, Nidel-dono laughed.


    ¡¸Legato, who do you think will attack me?¡¹


    ¡¸That might be true, but I can¡¯t stop worrying.¡¹


    Nidel-dono¡¯s sense of crisis is weak at odd places. When I knitted my eyebrows, Nidel-dono laughed wryly.


    ¡¸Yes yes, I got it. I¡¯ll sleep in the tower henceforth.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Please.¡¹


    Frankly speaking, a small sense of jealousy arose when I thought of other people seeing his defenceless figure, even if it was within the tower. However, I felt saying it out loud would mean a man¡¯s capacity was too small so I remained quiet.


    ¡¸You should go back now. It¡¯s working hours. I¡¯ll also go back.¡¹


    Nidel-dono descended from the bench onto the ground. I said the words I had wanted to say ever since I had seen him on the bench.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, won¡¯t you come to my room tonight too? Um¡­I won¡¯t lay a hand on you. Just, I want to see you.¡¹


    I didn¡¯t want to overdo it every single day. It¡¯s just, I truly yearned to see his face and spend time together with him every single day.


    ¡¸¡­Got it, I¡¯ll come.¡¹


    Nidel-dono smiled in a troubled yet embarrassed manner, and turned his back to me. Seeing him off as he walked the path towards the tower, my heart felt elated at that fact that I would meet him tonight too.


    I could have Nidel-dono all to myself as much as I liked in my room. Today, I would thank Nidel-dono for the happy time he had given me the night before, and would give lots of kisses in exchange for joining bodies. Even if Nidel-dono hides his embarrassment, I¡¯ll always make him happy.

 Extra 2: Omake (Second Half) [Nidel]

    Extra 2: Omake (Second Half) [Nidel]


    ¡¸¡­Nidel, isn¡¯t it time for the meeting¡­?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Yeah, I know.¡¹


    Amidst everyone working busily, I, who was rolling on top of the divan, raised my body at my colleague¡¯s voice. Ever since those days of guarding, the number of times I¡¯d rolled on this divan had increased, but nobody complained of it. Legato too told me the other day to stop sleeping outside. Left without a choice, I could only laze about here every time I felt sleepy.


    Usually, everyone in the Technological Magic Order would not care about time and worked as and when they liked. Meanwhile, I had a lot of official work to do, and I was probably the only one who was pressed for time. That¡¯s why, I arbitrarily thought it would be excused at least to this extent.


    ¡¸¡­Were you loved by your husband yesterday too?¡­¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Squad Commander Legato seems to have a lot of stamina¡­¡¹


    When I ignored the vulgar whispers of ridicule that were raised, many around me let out a huge sigh.


    ¡¸Nidel¡­ even if it¡¯s a rumour, please deny it.¡¹


    ¡¸Huh? I didn¡¯t admit to it or anything!¡¹


    ¡¸You remaining silent is like tacit admission.¡¹


    ¡¸I feel like running away¡­¡¹


    Clicking my tongue at my colleagues who were now giving me cold stares, even though the topic had been brought up by them, I hurried to leave the tower. I felt like retorting at them in my heart.


    It wasn¡¯t as if we overdid it in the past either, but Legato now treated me so preciously that even I felt guilty. That¡¯s why, it¡¯s not particularly Legato¡¯s fault that I was sleeping today.


    ¡ª¡ªOf course, I wasn¡¯t stupid enough to say this retort out loud, nor was I a pervert¡­


    Objectively looking at myself, I thought No, I¡¯m certainly a pervert, and left for the meeting while pressing my hand to my forehead.


    £ª


    In the regular meeting, I was even quieter than before. Because if I stand out in a bad manner, they immediately tease us, taking up the topic of Legato and my relationship. You¡¯re all of considerable age, just how much fun is it to tease people? I was amazed. They¡¯re all childish.


    If I made a drowsy face and was ridiculed just like in the tower, I wouldn¡¯t be able to bear it, and so I pretended to listen seriously. Nevertheless, even if I listened in all seriousness, it wasn¡¯t as if any of the topics were of particular concern to the Tech Order.


    Thus, once everything on the agenda was discussed, I saw the Prime Minister and the King meet eyes and exchange grins. I had a bad premonition. At times like these, they¡¯d often bring up a topic to tease us with.


    While I watched anxiously, the Prime Minister made an unconcerned face, feigning ignorance, and opened his mouth.


    ¡¸Then, finally, I have some personal advice. Legato and Nidel, complaints have been raised from somewhere. Don¡¯t flirt too much within the Royal Palace.¡¹


    Just as the Prime minister said these words, a wave of laughter arose in the room. It¡¯s about us after all! However, I refuted as expected. I¡¯m not that quiet that I¡¯ll stay silent when toyed with me when I¡¯m innocent.


    ¡¸Wait a minute! Just what are you talking about!? I don¡¯t have any recollection of doing such a thing!¡¹


    Unexpectedly, such a statement was uttered in the meeting. There was a limit to shame too, and thus I clearly defended myself. I really don¡¯t remember having mingled with Legato more than necessary within the Royal Palace. I recollect having had a conversation recently with Legato on the bench outside, but to call that flirting was too much no matter how you looked at it.


    When I denied the Prime Minister strongly, the Prime minister shifted his gaze from me to Legato.


    ¡¸What about Legato?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­No, um¡­¡¹


    At Legato¡¯s strained expression and ambiguous reply, I knitted my eyebrows. Looking at Legato, it seemed like he had a clue. While I yelled in my heart, Oi oi, hang on!, the Prime Minister continued.


    ¡¸According to my sources, Legato made a move on Nidel while he was asleep.¡¹


    ¡¸Huh!? What¡¯s with that!?¡¹


    When I unconsciously reacted, forgetting that I was in a meeting, everyone ended up laughing at once. Legato looked at me for a moment and his face turned ugly in a flash. This guy, does he really have a clue!?


    ¡®When asleep¡¯¡­ you say. It¡¯s that time on the bench, after all. Maybe he did something while I was asleep.


    Just what was he doing, this bastard! Just how much material for teasing do you want to offer!? Even though I told him not to approach me too much when we¡¯re outside!


    All the same, I thought of that place as a secret hideout myself but probably there were many prying eyes in reality. I decided to not approach that place anymore.


    Knowing that the Prime Minister¡¯s sources were correct, I pulled my hood over my eyes, and tried to escape from reality. However, they had no intentions of releasing Legato, us, from here yet.


    ¡¸Legato, it¡¯s really bad to make a move on a sleeping person.¡¹


    The King tried to keep a serious voice, but that voice seemed to be a laughing voice no matter how you heard it.


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, you must apologise to Nidel-dono.¡¹


    ¡¸Why did you do such a thing!?¡¹


    The people around teased Legato relentlessly. I heard Legato hemming and hawing with ¡¸No, um¡­¡¹, shaken up. Even though he could evade the question by giving non committal replies, he would definitely try to honestly answer and make a gaffe. I thought I should keep an eye on him.


    ¡¸I-It¡¯s just, um, I was adoring his sleeping fa¡ª¡ª¡¹


    ¡¸Legato! Don¡¯t say another word!!¡¹


    Hearing Legato slip an outrageous thing from his mouth I ended up shouting, unable to bear it. Legato shut his mouth. At the same time, a roar of laughter erupted.


    My head hurts. I want to go back.


    It was hidden by the hood, but my face turned red all of a sudden. I felt like dying out of embarrassment.


    ¡¸My, how passionate. Even the room seems to have become hotter. Someone open the windows.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll open them. Hot hot.¡¹


    The King and the Vice Captain of the Knight Order took a dig at us.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, quickly get married and start living together with Legato-dono, don¡¯t you have to calm him down?¡¹


    Boisterous voices came from the Royal Palace Magic Order too.


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, Nidel. Please claim Legato quickly. If you let him run wild anymore, his disgraceful behaviour will be exposed to the eyes of the public, so it is the question of our country¡¯s Knight Order¡¯s reputation too.¡¹


    The Prime Minister added in a cloying voice all while maintaining an indifferent face, ¡¸We changed the law at long last too¡¹.


    I continued to remain silent, but as expected, I couldn¡¯t completely ignore the higher-ups either, and I simply answered, ¡¸¡­I¡¯ll think about it¡¹.


    £ª


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, I¡¯m really sorry. I even made you feel embarrassed¡ª¡ª.¡¹


    In front of me, Legato was earnestly apologising on one knee on the floor. I was sprawled on Legato¡¯s bed. ¡ª¡ªIn Cat form.


    No, me turning into a cat didn¡¯t have some huge reason behind it. I stepped into Legato¡¯s room today before he returned home from work. The window in Legato¡¯s room is always left slightly open for me. I was worried about security, but Legato told me there wasn¡¯t anything there which would trouble him if stolen.


    In the first place, although Legato was of noble lineage, I felt he lived a too frugal, or should I say too dull, life.


    Well, I don¡¯t mind either way.


    Thinking I¡¯ll laze about for just a bit till Legato comes home, I became a cat somehow or the other. When I turn into a small animal, the bed feels spacious and great, and amongst animals, I¡¯m best at turning into a cat. Certainly, it wasn¡¯t as if I didn¡¯t feel the slightest bit bitter facing Legato either. Certainly, I¡¯m a little angry with him.


    It seemed like Legato had perceived my subtle feelings, for he immediately offered an apology as soon as he returned to the room. I think he thought I¡¯d turned into a cat because I was angry. I missed the timing to turn back into a human and was a little troubled.


    ¡¸I swear I will not do strange things outside ever again. I hope you will permit me to at least talk though¡ª¡ª¡¹


    Seeing Legato continue to apologise, I inwardly gave a wry smile.


    I wonder what¡¯s with the man who holds the post of the Captain of the Royal Knight Order kneeling and apologising profusely to curry favour with a cat. If others see this very sight, the reputation of the Knight Order would be at stake, and so I picked up my sprawling body.


    Seeing me react, Legato let out a breath of relief and reached his hand out to me. In Cat form, even Legato¡¯s hand seems large.


    When Legato hugged me gently, he too sat down on the bed. And then, he place me on his lap and began petting me. Just like in the past.


    But the movements of his hand seemed even gentler than that time. His hands felt too comfortable, and I once again lost the timing to turn back into a human.


    ¡¸¡­Nidel-dono, isn¡¯t it time you turned back?¡¹


    When petted by Legato in human form, I felt guilty, but it honestly felt comfortable as a cat. I lost myself to the sensation, but Legato¡¯s troubled voice made me come to myself.


    ¡¸You¡¯re cute as a cat too, but I love the human you.¡¹


    Legato straightened his handsome face seriously and looked at me, the cat, through his light blue eyes.


    I¡¯m telling you, don¡¯t say such lines seriously. It¡¯ll become more difficult for me to turn back.


    Despite being a cat, I felt my face flush.


    Legato then stooped down and dropped kisses on my fur and whispered my name.


    ¡¸¡­Got it. I got it, I¡¯ll stop now.¡¹


    The moment Legato lifted up his body. I undid the magic. I couldn¡¯t stand him doing anything more to my Cat form.


    Because I had suddenly turned back into a human on top of his lap, Legato lost his balance for a bit as if surprised, but he wrapped his arms around me and apologised again.


    ¡¸Nidel-dono, it¡¯s my fault. I¡¯m sorry. Will you forgive me?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Yeah. It¡¯s not as if I¡¯m angry anyway.¡¹


    When I smiled wryly, Legato laughed happily. When Legato smiled, he softened in a breath. Since long ago, I¡¯d loved this man¡¯s smile, and of late the smiles he gave me had turned all the more soft and sweet.


    If he smiles like that, I¡¯ll knew that I¡¯d forgive anything. But still, Legato was an excessively affectionate man, even more that what I¡¯d ever imagined.


    Even though I was the one who lost my heart to him first. A strange frustration arose in my heart. Getting Legato¡¯s affections made me happier than anything, and my body felt feverish. Ever since Legato had become like this, I always worry, Am I visibly wavering?.


    Legato raised his head to me, sitting on his lap, who was in a slightly higher position, and he drew closer to my face and brought our lips together. My heart beat quicker from the gentle sensation, never learning.


    ¡¸¡­By the way, when does Nidel-dono plan to claim me?¡¹


    I opened my eyes wide at Legato¡¯s sweet whispers in between our kisses. Legato¡¯s blue eyes were gazing at me. I, who didn¡¯t understand what he meant for a moment, remembered the meeting.


    ¡¸¡­Ah¡­that¡­¡¹


    Exposed to Legato¡¯s eyes, my face turned red. In order to hide that, I wrapped my arms around Legato¡¯s neck and buried my face there. I heard Legato¡¯s slight laugh and the arms around my body tightened playfully.


    There was still some hesitation in me about if making this man mine was really fine, but lately, my thoughts in the direction of If I can get this man, I¡¯ll take up any hardship were stronger.


    I feel incredibly happy about this thought, which I have never had before and surely will not again.


    The End