Norton immediately fell silent.
Albert, meanwhile, smiled as if nothing were wrong. "Sure. Do you prefer thick yarn or thin?"
Norton cautiously glanced back at his commander's expression. Seeing that Hayes didn't look displeased, he wagged his tail excitedly. "Either is fine—as long as it's warm."
Hayes turned around, crossed his arms, and regarded Albert coolly. "What are you trying to do—bribe my subordinates?"
"I wouldn't dare," Albert blinked innocently, thinking to himself that if you wanted to win over a cat, you naturally had to start by winning over the cat's followers. "Besides, bribing other people is pointless. They can't protect me the way you do. I just want to practice first, so I can knit you the best one."
Hayes snorted. He was, in fact, rather pleased, but still said, "Nice words."
Even Norton already had a scarf reserved, yet this was how he found out that Albert had been learning to knit.
