Don’t Concern Yourself With That Book

Right from the start of our journey, there had been a strange atmosphere between Dane and I as we sat in the carriage.

“Yeah, Ashley.”

Even after we arrived at the Kingdom of Leaf, this atmosphere persisted.

“You’re just overreacting.”

Lord Ray spoke flatly.

“Prince Dane is acting the same as before.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

I looked at Ray, a little displeased. Just a moment ago, Lord Ray had asked me something while I was pondering what I should do about Dane who was acting strangely. ‘Is there something wrong?’ I hesitated for a moment before speaking my mind. And that was the response I got.

“I’m serious. The prince is not acting any differently from before.”

His answer regarding my dilemma was adamant. I frowned.

“You’re siding with him, aren’t you?”

“That’s not possible.”

Albeit disrespectful of him, I could clearly see the pity in his eyes. I was slightly dissatisfied at the fact that my escort had to be someone like him. Through his deep blue eyes, Lord Ray stared at me for a long time before deadpanning.

“I think it’s your view that has changed, princess.”

“My view?”

He nodded.

“The way you look at the prince, princess, is like you’re trying to ascertain… what you think he feels for you.”

“What do you think I think about Dane? … Do you know?”

“How could I?”

At his curt response, I looked back at him.

“Lord Ray, if you’re planning on being kind to me, could you be kind to me continuously?”

“But I was dumped by you.”

I was rendered speechless. I had not expected this fastball. I tried to relay, “How could a gentleman act this way?’ with my gaze alone.

“Let us be clear. You didn’t confess to me.”

“Because I knew what your answer would be.”

The lord threw another fastball indifferently before turning his head away. I stared at his navy-blue hair as it fluttered in the wind before frowning.

“Would it change anything if I did?”

It felt like he had confessed. It didn’t seem like he was going to try again or expect anything. It made me uncomfortable. I mean, it was Lord Ray. He had been unnecessarily straight to the point. Even if Lord Ray were to ask, they were words he should not have uttered from the beginning. That only made me more uncomfortable.

“By the way, Ray.”

“Yes.”

When Lord Ray stopped walking, so did I.

“Are you not going to call me Ashley anymore?”

“Did you not like it?”

“No? It’s just strange. You call Dane Prince Dane and call Fleon Prince Fleon.”

“I do.”

He retorted as a matter-of-factly.

“Why don’t you continue to comfortably call me by my name?”

“I don’t want to.”

With a calm and relaxed expression on his face, Lord Ray took a step back before staring at me.

“Why?”

Just then, his expression looked strange. He veered his gaze away slightly.

“You’ll only regret hearing my reason.”

I could feel chills down my spine. If I remained silent here, it would only make things more awkward.

“Ah, Lord Ray. I am someone who would eat poison out of pure curiosity.”

I shook the diary I was holding before saying playfully. As if he found me funny, he gave a small grin while still looking back at me before also replying in turn.

“If I call your name now… it’ll be troubling.”

“Troubling?”

He lowered his eyes slowly. A mysterious expression passed over his emotionless face that made me question whether or not he was smiling. Soon after, he muttered relaxedly.

“I might keep thinking about the name I’m not allowed to utter.”

After he spoke, I knew those words were not meant to be taken lightly. It was too late to take back. It felt like a senseless friend had just asked me how my ex was doing before my wedding.

“… Are you talking about my Amasia?”

Amasia, a middle name only used in the Empire. A name only one person was allowed to call. Like the Rosé in Ashley Rosé which no one else had been allowed to call yet. Lord Ray nodded slowly.

“Lord.. You want to call me by that name?”

“Yes.”

He smiled like a rock withstanding the winds blowing against it. What a forthright stele. Just when I was about to speak.

“Princess!”

Someone came running over before grabbing my shoulders.

“Arghhh!”

No, to be more exact, he tried to grab my shoulders. It was just that Lord Ray managed to catch me before he could. Thanks to that, the man who had just shown up lost his balance. Just before he could fall, he flailed his arms in the air to catch his balance. The words I was about to say went right back into my throat. Now in Ray’s arms, I turned my head.

“Prince Cjezarn?”

“Yes!”

It was Prince Cjezarnian.

“I’ve been waiting for you! You heard that I’ll be the one guiding you from today onwards, right?”

HIs face reminded me of a puppy lying on the grass under the sun.

“You remembered, right? Right?”

I blinked my widened eyes. On the face that made him seem like he was now transitioning from a boy to a young man, I noticed the redness on his cheeks.

“Of course.”

Prince Cjezarnian of Walter. He was an undergraduate who had just entered the academy last year. I recalled meeting him as soon as I arrived. As he talked about how he had been waiting for me, the prince even accompanied me to my accommodation. Although Dane and Ray seemed uncomfortable with his friendliness.

“I already told you this yesterday but.”

“Yes!”

A flurry of silver invaded my sight. All because Prince Cjezarn was nodding his head so vigorously.

“I didn’t know you were a student here too, my prince.”

Of course, I only found out when I arrived here. There was no mention of this in the <Light of Rusbella>.

“Thank you for coming out to greet me yesterday, my prince.”

There had only been one way out of the special quarters. Perhaps the prince had been waiting for me along that path for the longest time. His cheeks that seemed to have frozen over had bothered me.

“D-Don’t need to mention it. Would you like to go now?”

I gave a little nod.

“So, we’ve arrived.”

Ray murmured in the background. As he just said, before we knew it, we had found ourselves right in front of the building. I could only blink my eyes at the magnificent building. The huge building was four storeys high and reminded me of the Palace of Versailles in France.

The Royal Academy of Leaf.

It was both an educational institution and home to various academic and medical societies. It was also a place where scholars from all over the continent gathered. It was known as the Cradle of Knowledge. It was given that name because there was nothing that could not be learned here. But there was something more important to me here than its name.

Rusbella was here somewhere.

“Princess, this way! Please head this way!”

I walked slowly behind Prince Cjezarn. I had only been given seven days. The emperor had instructed me to find evidence of a rebellion brewing between the Templars of Snow and the Sea and the Templars of Chaos. In short, within seven days, I had to find Rusbella in this large building and catch wind of a collusion between the Templars of Snow and the Sea and the Templars of Chaos.

Seven days, huh…

I suddenly recalled the day I had been first sentenced to death. Even then, the diary had given me seven days. Come to think of it, I must have some unknown bad luck tied to the number seven. I let out a smirk.

“I wonder what they’re planning?”

Why did the emperor send me here at this timing?

“What?”

“Nothing.”

I was suspicious of the whole thing.

“Nothing at all.”

I flashed a grin at Prince Cjezarn.

“… Wow.”

“This is the lecture room.”

After a while, Prince Cjezarn led me into a huge lecture room. I let out a small gasp of awe.

“It’s amazing.”

Was it because I had been so used to huge temples or palaces built like temples since I was born? The completely different style of furniture was unfamiliar to me.

“Right?”

The faint scent of old wood wafted into my nose. If furniture in Kaltanias used mostly stone as its building material, the Kingdom of Leaf used wood. This room was off limits to outsiders. This was why Ray had been left standing at the entrance.

According to the prince, the end-of-year tests here were very difficult hence the number of students in each course decreased with every year. That was why there was a surprisingly small number of people in the lecture room. They wouldn’t be promoted if they couldn’t pass the test.

“Please sit here!”

The prince pulled out a chair himself and tapped on it before looking up at me. I could only blink at him before pfft– I burst into laughter. If this man had a tail, I was sure it would be swaying gently now. Not only that, his eyes were glittering as it stared at me like a puppy chasing after a ball.

“The prince is very kind.”

“Huh? Of course!”

“It’s nice to see you being so kind to women.”

“Of course… Right?”

“Thank you.”

He hid his reddening face that looked close to exploding behind his palms. With a slight smile on my face, I glanced around the room. The blackboard, the chalk and everything else was reminiscent of old European furniture. I made eye contact with a boy who kept staring at me.

Usually, when people made eye contact with the person they had been secretly staring at, they looked away but the boy continued to stare at me. He was good-looking. But it felt strange, almost as if he had been staring at me this whole time. But then the door opened and a man entered.

“He must be the scholar in charge of us.”

The prince whispered. Just as he said, the man walking towards the lectern seemed to be a lecturer or a professor. While I hadn’t been paying attention, more people had filled the room. Most were boys and girls around the same age as Prince Cjezarn.

Tap.

As soon as the man placed his papers down haphazardly, the boy’s gaze fell from me as well.

“I’m Abel Cloud, the temporary lecturer in charge of this class. Please address me using my full name.”

The man on the lectern was a young man who appeared to be in his mid-twenties. He had a very large build. To the point where he would look closer if I were to see him from the ceiling than to view him from the ground. He was probably the largest man I had ever seen.

“While both you students and I have a teacher-disciple relationship we are also colleagues who study together, seniors and juniors. This is a place where your status is irrelevant and your skills alone will prove your worth. There are some who may forget this so please keep this in mind. Especially if you have come here with ulterior motives.”

The man’s eyes shifted before pausing at one spot.

“If you’re expecting special treatment, you may return quietly.”

Under his short green hair, there were dark green eyes. The moment I saw those green eyes, I thought of Amor. However, compared to Amor’s green eyes, this man’s eyes were darker like that of moss.

“For your information, I like playing favourites.”

His words sounded like a warning but for some reason, his tone was playful.

“If you’re able to stand out under my watch, rest assured you’ll at least be comfortable here. I don’t think I’ll have to say what happens when the opposite occurs.”

He fixed his gaze on me. Staring at me, the man grinned. HIs refreshing smile did not suit his heavy voice.

“That is all I have to say.”

Abel looked away from me before a wistful look appeared on his face. He gathered his documents before tapping them into order with one hand and turning around.

“Oh.”

I just recalled where I heard his voice before.

T/N:

been really busy the past week so double updates till I catch up ;-;