Chapter 8

 

When Sulayman appeared in the garden, everyone, except for Hurrem, bowed their heads.

 

‘Why did that guy come here…?!’

 

Startled, I hurriedly looked for a place to hide.

 

But with these short legs, there was no good way to get off the tea table.

 

‘I have to hide!’

I hid behind a three-tier tray filled with sweet treats and crouched as inconspicuously as possible.

 

“Nyao-on…” (Maybe you won’t recognize me…?)

 

The only thing Sulayman truly witnessed was me as a human being.

 

Plus, all of the cats around me are wearing the same bell chokers as me, so I shouldn’t worry about getting caught.

 

But regardless of such rational thoughts, I could not stop my heart from pounding to the ground.

 

Hurrem, who was lying on the armchair, greeted Sulayman with a soft tone.

“Come on. It is so hard to see the face of my real son even once. It’s really disrespectful.”

 

“You have a lot of my filial piety. I think I’m doing my best to be a good son.”

As he shrugged his shoulders and made a brazen expression on his face, Hurrem’s eyes narrowed.

 

“What is filial piety? The other princes send letters and gifts from their own hands every day, but you, the real son, do not even show your face.”

 

“Flattery and filial piety are two different things.”

“You’re just saying that. This mother is very disappointed. I think I was not good at disciplining.”

She poured out her dissatisfaction like rapid-fire, yet Sulayman hadn’t lost.

 

“That’s probably because the current Sultan handed me too much work. Aren’t you actually coming to my office to do all the work you have to do yourself?”

 

When Sulayman spoke the word ‘Sultan’ with extreme force, Hurrem answered with a smirk.

 

“You could just call me Mama, just like before. You used to be cute too. Didn’t you follow me around and call me mama?”

 

“… I am no longer a child.”

 

“Yeah, I think it was just yesterday that you were holding onto the hem of my dress and crying and begging me not to go to work. You’ve really grown up, son.”

 

It was a clear tone that she was laughing at him.

 

Sulayman clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, as he wanted to say something back to her, but he couldn’t answer.

 

“That… I can’t win again.”

This was a victory for his mother, Hurrem.

 

Although prince Sulayman didn’t seem like an ordinary individual , Hurrem was truly the owner of a more talkative horse than she had imagined.

 

“Come on, sit down. Shall we talk slowly over a cup of tea?”

 

“…… That’s right.”

Hurrem and Sulayman could not find the chairs.

 

The servants who appeared from nowhere began to set the tea table.

 

“Ah. A cute guest should also sit here. Please put this child down. She looks like she’s still having a hard time getting into the chair on her own.”

 

Oh no. I really want to decline!

 

However, as a formally invited guest, I ended up sitting side by side at the table with the two of them.

 

Instead of fragrant tea in front of my seat, there was a special drink for cats.

 

The drink, which was minced cod meat in boiled milk, smelled quite delicious.

 

Unfortunately, however, I had already lost all of my appetite.

 

I was sweating a lot since an excessively noble person close to me was having their  fight.

 

‘I just want to run away…….’

 

It was a strange sight to see a kitten, and a bloody mother and child who seemed very friendly on the surface, gathered together at one table.

 

Sulayman was the first of the two to speak.

 

As he drank tea with dignity like a prince, he clicked the cup and posed a sharp question to Hurrem.

 

“I had an uninvited guest in my bedroom yesterday. I hope you know. Aren’t you going to say anything?”

 

“Oh, you mean this kid? To cruelly expel such a lovely cat, my son, she has no discerning eye.”

 

As Hurrem pointed at me with the tip of her chin, Sulayman, who frowned, stared at me.

 

‘I’m scared to death…’

 

As the blood-red eyes turned towards me, I felt goosebumps on my back.

 

I withdrew and quickly looked away.

 

“… It looks like it is the runaway cat the guards were talking about. I’m talking about people, not cats.”

Hurrem, who was sitting opposite him, shrugged her shoulders and answered the question.

 

“Yesterday, I heard that someone was trying to break into your bedroom. But as your mother, would I have done that?”

As soon as her answer was finished, Sulayman let out a loud sigh.

 

“Never mind. I don’t think you have any intention of talking. Tell me what you found about me first. I’m sure you didn’t call me to have just a cup of tea.”

 

“After all, my son knows me well.”

Hurrem, who smiled mischievously with her eyes closed, brought out her main point belatedly.

 

“Your governor’s inauguration isn’t too far away. It’s been a long time since the coming-of-age ceremony, but you should keep at least one cat by your side.”

 

“I’ve told you many times that I don’t need a cat or a woman.”

 

“It is a matter that can be decided slowly if you are married, but if the royal family with the right of succession does not keep a cat by their side, it will become a subject of ridicule both inside and outside the capital. Foolish son.”

 

Crunching

 

For a moment, it felt as if a spark of fire was flying between the two of them.

 

‘If you’re going to fight over personal issues like this, please leave me out…’

It seems that the proverb ‘shrimps will explode in a whale fight’ is just the phrase to use in this case.

 

Humans exuding unusual auras were arguing on both sides of the battlefield, and a civilian like me was out of breath.

 

“Anyway, take this child and keep her in your room. This is why I called you here today.”

 

“Mother…!”

As if rebelling against a coercive order, he jumped up from his seat.

 

But she put her forefinger to her lips as if she didn’t care about her son’s will.

 

“Shh, don’t raise your voice. You will scare my cats.”

Hurrem picked up one of the cats on the floor and stroked it gently.

 

Sulayman, who looked at Hurrem who was ignoring his tantrum, seemed to burst out in anger.

 

However, Hurrem continued her words without raising an eyebrow.

 

“Do what I say. As it is, that child Aziz has worked hard to find it, and it will be of great help to your situation.”

 

“Are you still talking about the prophecy? I don’t believe in such superstitions.”

At that moment, Aziz, who had been quietly listening, suddenly interrupted the conversation.

 

“Prince, it does not matter whether the prophecy is true or not. It is more important to have a ‘cat of prophecy’ next to the next sultan. Haven’t you heard recently that other princes are also busy collecting cats?”

 

“Just because others do, doesn’t mean I have to.”

 

“You are correct, but it is not just a prophecy that I have brought this cat.”

 

“Then what for?”

When Sulayman raised his eyebrows and asked the question, the answer flowed out of Aziz’s mouth.

 

“Doesn’t your body feel much lighter today than usual? It’s one of the innate abilities a cat has.”

 

“…… Therefore?”

 

“Having a cat close to you will help you a lot in the future. I assure you, she is the incarnation of Ashtar and the Sultan’s exclusive sorcerer for generations.”

 

As if there was something deep in his words, Sulayman was completely speechless.

 

There was a quiet silence in the noisy garden for a while.

 

‘If it’s exclusive to the sultan… is it going to be about the same level as Hurrem’s family?’

As for the attitude of the people around me towards Aziz, I felt that even Prince Sulayman himself treated him with some caution.

 

Well, that would be enough to feed the prince with sleeping pills.

 

“… I get it. If so, I will take it with me. But if it bothers me, I’ll kick it out immediately, just so you know.”

Sulayman spoke coldly and got up from his chair.

 

When the short tea time was over, his servants, who had been waiting from afar, approached.

 

Some of them were also people I had met.

“Evelan, take care of this cat. Just throw it in the corner of my room.”

 

“All right.”

Evelan instructed the attendant to put me in a cage that looked like a birdcage.

 

“Nyaaaong……!” (I don’t want to go…!)

Having managed to return to the prince’s room, from which I had barely escaped last night, I grabbed the cage’s bar and looked at Aziz with an anxious gaze.

 

But he smiled brightly as he saw me off and waved his hand.

 

‘I’m an idiot for trying to trust that guy once more…’

 

Argh, that bad guy.

 

If we meet again, I will pour out a bucket of swear words.

 

That’s how I was dragged into Sulayman’s terrifying bedroom.