By Zephyria 
The sound of a door clicking open reached my ears.
I closed my book and turned to see a familiar face. Even though he was only holding a small candle in the darkness, making it hard to see his expression, I could immediately tell he was angry.
“I really won’t come anymore. I just had something to look for.”
I cut in before Mahir could speak. He opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it repeatedly before finally sighing.
“You said that yesterday too, didn’t you?”
“That was a lie…”
“And the day before yesterday.”
“That too…”
Mahir often scolded me, but he rarely actually got angry. His patience was like steel wire, almost impossible to break, but once it snapped, it was very difficult to put back together.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
“Uh-huh.”
It wasn’t exactly satisfactory, but it seemed like I really couldn’t push it anymore. I glanced at him and nodded, and Mahir, who had been looking at me for a moment, turned away and said,
“Then go back to Talim.”
“Brother, are you angry?”
I made a face and followed Mahir.
“Brother.”
“……”
“Brooother.”
“……”
I ran after him, almost tripping, watching his back as he didn’t turn around even when I called him, and then I stopped. I pouted and slumped down on the spot, groaning.
Mahir, who had been about to descend the tower stairs, must have heard the sound, because he reflexively turned and looked at me. I clutched my ankle and looked up at Mahir, saying,
“I tripped on a rock.”
“……”
Mahir’s face, illuminated by the candlelight, was stiff. I hesitantly got up, limping slightly, and approached him. Then, I grabbed the hem of his clothes and slowly shook it.
“I really won’t come anymore. I swear.”
“That’s your problem.”
“You’re right, it’s all my fault.”
“You don’t listen unless I say it nicely.”
“I’m sorry.”
Mahir, watching me apologize desperately, frowned and furrowed his brow.
“Don’t you know why I have to come looking for you every time? If I sent someone else or increased the guards, Your Majesty would obviously think it’s strange, so I have no choice but to come looking for you even at this hour.”
“I know.”
I mumbled in a voice so small it was barely audible, and Mahir, who had been silent for a moment, opened his mouth in a cold voice.
“Go back.”
“……”
“You’re confined to your room until I tell you to come out. If you sneak out again this time, then I won’t care what you do anymore.”
“Yes…”
Now I really had to stay quietly in the castle without causing any more trouble, no matter what. I was vowing not to take a single step outside until Mahir said it was okay, when Mahir asked,
“Your foot?”
“Huh?”
“Are you really hurt?”
“……”
At that, I hesitated for a moment and then shook my head slightly. Then I heard Mahir sigh. He said in a voice that was softer than before,
“Go quickly. Don’t run, and take it slow, it’s dark.”
“I’m really sorry. From tomorrow, I really won’t go anywhere and will stay put.”
“Go.”
“Okay. Good night.”
I put on the most pitiful expression I could muster, raised my hand, waved it a few times, and then turned around. As I slowly walked down the dark hallway, I glanced back and saw Mahir standing in the same spot as before, holding the candlestick.
I briefly considered asking why he wasn’t coming with me, but I just kept my mouth shut. I walked a little faster until I was out of Mahir’s sight, and then safely returned to Talim.
¸.•¨•¸.•¨•¸.•¨•¸
This wasn’t the first time I’d been ordered to stay confined. When I caused an accident or did something seriously wrong—when I did something that couldn’t possibly be dealt with just by writing a letter of apology—I was often confined to my room.
But that only lasted two or three days at most, and Mahir would always come to me, hug me, tell me not to do it again, and have a meal with me.
This time, I really felt like I had done something wrong, so I didn’t even go outside my room until Mahir came. I wanted to show him that I was really reflecting on my actions, but Mahir didn’t come after two days, or four days, or even today, the seventh day.
“……”
So, I hadn’t taken a single step outside my room for a week now.
Did he forget about me? No way, Mahir wouldn’t do that, would he? Or is he really angry? Is a week of confinement not enough to be forgiven? Should I go to him first and apologize again? Should I write a letter?
No matter what I thought or did, I just felt depressed.
I was lying face down on the bed, wondering what to do about this situation, when I heard a knock on the door. I couldn’t even be bothered to speak, so I stayed still, and someone came in.
“Excuse me.”
A maid, who had approached me without making a sound, spoke to me as I lay sprawled out in a slovenly posture.
“Kyle, Viscount Keduil’s wife has requested an audience.”
“Why?”
I didn’t even know who that was, and I was too depressed to want to meet anyone right now. I was about to tell her to just come back another time if it wasn’t important, but I couldn’t help but jump up in surprise at the next words the maid said.
“I’m not sure… Perhaps it’s something to do with Aegis?”
When I heard that it was related to Aegis, it finally dawned on me. Viscountess Keduil was someone who had recently been brought in to educate Aegis.
“Perhaps…”
Was he right? Were her clothes torn, or did she have any injuries?
I wanted to ask that, but I couldn’t. When I trailed off, the maid looked at me with a puzzled expression. I cleared my throat, straightened my clothes, and headed to the drawing room.
It was much better to go and see for myself than to stay like this.
While I was locked in my room alone for a week, I thought a lot about the Calderia Dynasty’s bloodline, which I had read about in the tower. I wrote down what I had read so I wouldn’t forget it, thinking countless times about what it all meant, but I had completely forgotten about Aegis.
As soon as I arrived at the drawing room, I burst open the door and approached Viscountess Keduil, who was sitting on the sofa waiting for me.
“Kyle, good… Kyle?”
The viscountess called me with a flustered expression, taken aback by my blatant gaze as I looked her up and down, checking to see if her clothes were intact and if she had any scratches.
Since she seemed fine on the outside, I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly and smiled. I drank the tea that the maid had brought and exchanged light greetings, and before I could even ask, the viscountess got straight to the point.
“Kyle. It seems that Aegis doesn’t know how to read.”
“……”
I had really been considering all sorts of possibilities. I wouldn’t have been surprised even if Aegis had hit the viscountess or cursed her out to her face.
“He doesn’t know how to read?”
“Yes.”
“…That’s ridiculous.”
But I had never even considered the possibility that he didn’t know how to read. Wasn’t it obvious? Aegis was a princess of the kingdom. He wasn’t a toddler, and a nineteen-year-old princess of a nation didn’t know how to read? Especially since they weren’t even using different languages, but the same common language of the continent.
That didn’t make any sense.
“Yes, it really doesn’t make any sense.”
“Are you sure?”
When I asked with a serious expression, the viscountess looked at me quietly before nodding.
“That seems to be the case. But as you said, Kyle, that really doesn’t make any sense, does it?”
“It doesn’t.”
“If that’s the case, then Aegis is pretending not to know how to read, but what could be the reason?”
“……”
When I fell silent for a moment, the viscountess, who had been sitting demurely, got up from her seat and knelt before me. Then, she bowed and pleaded with her forehead on the floor.
“I am inadequate and can no longer teach him, so I have taken the liberty of coming to see you.”
“……”
“I’m really sorry.”
“……”
I couldn’t possibly refuse the viscountess’s request, who had come all the way here to ask me to withdraw the order to educate Aegis. If Aegis was really pretending not to know, as the viscountess said, then there was no point in trying to educate him.
In the end, I saw off the viscountess, who had agreed not to come from tomorrow, and went to Aegis. When I arrived at his room, I saw Jade, who was standing guard in front of the door, looking flustered for some reason.
Normally, I would have asked him what was wrong, but I was very tired right now.
“Kyle!”
Just as I grabbed the doorknob and was about to open the door, Jade grabbed my wrist. I looked at my wrist, which Jade was holding, with a bewildered expression, and asked,
“What are you doing?”
“I-I’m sorry. But Aegis is currently…”
“What?”
“C-Changing clothes! Changing clothes! Changing clothes!”
I was startled by Jade, who was yelling at the top of his lungs, and flinched several times.