Chapter 98

I tried to steady my heart and spoke slowly.

“C-Can’t we at least… talk about this later?”

“Later? When exactly do you mean?”

“W-When all of this is over?”

Even though it was a weak and forced answer, Esadien beamed like a flower in full bloom.

“I’m happy.”

“About what now?”

“Because you gave me permission to express my feelings.”

I felt completely drained. In front of this ultra-positive mindset, I didn’t even feel like arguing anymore.

Now I finally understood why Esadien adapted so quickly to me.

‘It wasn’t that he got used to me… he just gave up…….’

This must be karma.

The Imperial Palace gates were tightly shut, and although no one was guarding them outside, we couldn’t just blatantly pull up to the front gate, so the carriage stopped a couple of blocks away.

As soon as I stepped down from the carriage, Ramande grabbed my shoulder and led me a few steps away.

“Ramande?”

“Did you forgive the prince?”

“I don’t know if I’d call it forgiveness… I just want to give him another chance.”

I gave him an awkward smile, but Ramande’s face showed not even a hint of amusement.

“Aren’t you being too soft on him?”

I had kind of felt that way myself, but hearing someone else say it hit harder than I expected.

I was about to mumble something like, “I’m soft on you too,” and try to play it off, when Theodore suddenly pulled me toward him and said, “Minuelle, His Highness said he has something to tell you.”

“Oh, right.”

If Esadien had something to say, it was probably about the secret entrance. Even if I felt a bit bad about cutting Ramande off, this took priority.

I tried to give Ramande an apologetic glance, but he was staring straight at Theodore.

The hint of hostility in his gaze startled me. And Theodore’s tone wasn’t any better.

“Don’t interfere, Priest.”

“And why shouldn’t I?”

“Because at the very least, you should be playing fair.”

Did Ramande ever get in Theodore’s way?

I tried to recall anything, but nothing came to mind. I was about to ask what he meant when Esadien—standing a bit farther away—suddenly said something strange.

“Ah, you two. It’s been a while.”

But there wasn’t a single shadow of a person where he was looking—only his own silhouette on the wall.

‘What now…?’

What on earth was happening this time? I trembled a little from fear, but soon realized that Esadien’s gaze was actually aimed higher than the shadows.

On top of the wall, three cats with their fur bristled were staring wide-eyed at Esadien.

A black cat, a gray tabby, and a calico.

The calico cautiously leaned forward and sniffed the air around Esadien.

Then, startled, it tumbled off the wall!

“Gasp!”

Startled, I instinctively rushed over—but unlike El, this was a normal cat. It landed softly and unharmed.

Still, its tail was puffed up like it was about to explode, clearly still shaken.

The cat had come close to sniff Esadien, but was the one surprised instead. Could someone explain this contradiction?

“Are you alright?”

Esadien asked the cat as if he were talking to a person.

The cat hesitated, then opened its mouth—but I didn’t hear anything.

However…

“Yes, it was me that you tried to help back then.”

Was Esadien… understanding them? Or more than that—communicating with them? He started chatting with the cats as naturally as if he understood every word.

The cats still perched on the wall perked up their ears and swayed their tails, like they were happy to see an old friend who looked quite different now.

‘What is this…?’

Did Esadien always have this ability and I just didn’t know? Or was it some side effect from the time he turned into an animal?

I stood there dumbfounded, watching him animatedly converse with the cats.

I didn’t want to disturb the moment, afraid to break whatever strange magic was at work.

“These friends say they’ll check the situation inside and locate His Majesty and my sister.”

Esadien’s words finally brought me back to reality.

“You… can understand them?”

“Strangely enough, yes.”

“I see…”

If Esadien himself found it strange, then it must be a recent development.

“These cats kept an eye on me when I first escaped the palace, to make sure I stayed safe.”

“They’re kind-hearted cats.”

I approached the cats sitting neatly on the wall.

I was worried they might run, but maybe because Esadien was with me, they stayed still.

“I’d like to greet them too… but I guess they can’t understand me?”

I asked Esadien with curiosity. He smiled warmly.

“I’ll pass along your words.”

“…You should become a cat kingdom diplomat or something.”

“If… if you’ll come with me, I’d gladly do it.”

Ugh. My sugar tolerance had long been exceeded.

I turned my head away from Esadien and said to the cats instead, “I’m counting on you, everyone. Sorry I don’t know proper cat etiquette, but… if there’s a type of meat you like, please tell me. I’d like to reward you for your help.”

I meant it.

We needed to confirm whether the emperor and crown prince were alive to plan our next moves. If they were, we needed to find where they were being held to rescue them.

If Gabbie made a move, Austin would know instantly.

And sending knights could lead to casualties.

In this situation, using beings that wouldn’t raise suspicion—beings who might not even be noticed—was incredibly valuable.

“Meow. Mraowww.”

The calico, having heard my words through Esadien, straightened up and meowed loudly.

I didn’t understand the meaning, of course, so I looked to Esadien.

“Ah… ha ha. As an adult cat, she says it’s natural to help a younger one. She says you don’t need to offer a reward.”

‘Younger one’? Esadien?

My head throbbed.

But I figured it made sense—when they first met El, he did look like a tiny baby.

“Mrow.”

Then the black cat let out a short cry, drooled, and smacked its lips in embarrassment.

The gray tabby next to it, as if scolding, smacked it sharply with a paw.

And then… chaos.

The black cat, punched off the wall, leapt back up with shocking agility and struck back.

The scuffle dragged in the calico too, and soon it was impossible to tell who started it or why—it was a full-on brawl.

“Wh-why are they like this?”

“The black one said he likes all kinds of meat. The gray one scolded him to have some dignity.”

“I appreciate the explanation, but could you stop them first? We need to send them inside!”

I shot Esadien a glare that clearly meant: Do you want to get smacked like the black cat?

Only then did he snap back to his senses and awkwardly try to calm them down.

“Please, let’s calm down a bit…”

But it didn’t seem to be working, so I added,

“Tell them they’re always welcome at our house—we’ll have meat ready for them anytime. No pressure to come, but they can if they want.”

To his credit, Esadien was good at following directions.

Even as the cats clawed his hands, he gently picked them up and relayed the message.

“It’s not forced… Yes, that’s right.”

Only then did the cats finally stop fighting.

Not that they immediately took off—they spent time grooming their ruffled fur before finally setting out on their mission.

‘Ugh… if only they weren’t cats.’

Frustrating as it was, that’s just how cats are.

I could only hope they’d be safe.

“I hope nothing bad happens…”

As I watched our adorable furry friends disappear into the darkness, Ramande and his aide approached.

“Using cats for reconnaissance… You sure they’ll come back properly?”

“I’m also a bit worried, my lady. It’s not that I distrust His Highness, but it’s just… hard to believe.”

Even Theodore, though he said nothing, looked skeptical.

Their reactions struck me as stranger than the cat conversation itself.

“Why is it so hard to believe? You believe in divine power, magic, spirits…”

“Those are different. What you listed are visible forces.”

Well, yes—when something sparkles and flies around in front of your eyes, it’s hard to deny it.

But coming from a different world, I saw it all as equally fantastical.

“His Highness did speak with those cats in front of us.”

Still, they all looked unconvinced. I folded my arms and said,

“If you’re so doubtful, we can ask Gabbie. Spirits can communicate with all beings, right?”

Gabbie, Gabbie. Did Esadien really talk to those cats just now?

I asked in my mind, and Gabbie answered quickly—though still remained invisible.

It felt like even Gabbie was cautious of Austin.

— Yes. Humans doubt the weirdest things.

Fair. That’s how philosophy and science came about.

Anyway, I relayed Gabbie’s answer.

The aide and Theodore, unable to doubt my words, seemed half-convinced.

But Ramande still looked displeased.

This wasn’t good.

We had something huge ahead of us.

Worried, I kept an eye on Ramande.

As soon as he opened his mouth, I grabbed his wrist and pulled him aside.

“Ramande, you’re super on edge right now.”

“…”

“What’s wrong? What happened, huh?”

He looked down at the wrist I was holding.

Thinking I’d hurt him, I let go—but then he held my hand.

“Why do you forgive so easily?”

“Huh?”

“The prince lied to you. Weren’t you angry?”

Of course I was.

But it wasn’t so black and white.

Even I couldn’t fully understand my own emotions—it was all too complicated.

“Ramande, listen.”

I took a deep breath and looked into his eyes.

But maybe because my heart was conflicted—or maybe just because it was night—I couldn’t read his emotions like I usually could.

So I gave up and just told him honestly.

“To be honest… I don’t know how I feel right now.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m angry at Esadien, but I wasn’t entirely right either. I believed only what I saw… without hearing him out.”

As I tried to explain slowly, his voice cut me off sharply.

“Minuelle Karnian, are you an idiot?”

“…Ramande?”

“If you’re angry, be angry! Why are you twisting your feelings around? You need to be honest with yourself!”

I was stunned—he almost made me stop breathing.

Ramande raising his voice like this was extremely rare.