By Zephyria 
How could a person be born with such a rich array of colors within them?
Even if all the mother-of-pearl from Shandong were gathered, it wouldn’t shine as dazzlingly as this. Like a chocolate decoration swathed in sugar-crafted ornaments, like a patchwork of lace painstakingly woven over many days, a boy enveloped in a sweet and tender aura stole my gaze and wouldn’t let it go.
The autumn wind was in the midst of painting the trees within the Shierun Academy grounds one by one. Standing beneath the red and yellow leaves, Rubel was bathed in the shimmering golden sunlight upon his black hair, and his white cheeks were adorned with the reddish shadows of the autumn foliage.
I was captivated for a long while by the smooth and gentle lines of his well-sculpted jade-like nose and jawline, his coolly wide and deep black eyes, and his jet-black hair cascading down to his shoulder blades.
Our eyes met. My chest tightened as if struck by a vital blow.
“Mika.”
“Why are you standing there without even saying hello?”
“Good morning, Michael.”
Only belatedly did my surroundings enter my vision, which had been fixated as if he were the only person left in the world.
The anxiety I had felt while waiting for Rubel in my room the other day remained deeply ingrained in my mind, so today I had promised to meet him in front of the Shierun Academy’s main gate. Marianne and Jenny, standing in front of Rubel, who was bathed in the autumn sunlight, waved their hands wildly to greet me.
Their chattering voices and smiling demeanor were familiar. However, I was dazed and couldn’t easily regain my senses.
“Yes… Good morning.”
“What, are you not happy to see us?”
“No, it’s not that… Why are you together?”
“We were just heading out for a stroll and happened to see Your Highness, so we exchanged greetings. Just greetings.”
Beside Marianne, who was speaking playfully, Jenny bowed deeply to Rubel with polite etiquette.
“Thank you for taking the time, Your Highness.”
“I should be the one thanking you, as I received excellent advice.”
“Then we’ll be on our way. We hope you have a pleasant time, Your Highness. And Michael too.”
“…Yes, well… We will.”
Just this very dawn, as always, I had been doing rounds in the Martial arts training ground with Marianne and had confessed that I was going to meet Rubel here at this time today. It was only natural to feel that they had come on purpose. Marianne’s overly cheerful appearance made me feel uneasy.
I wondered if they had whispered something strange to Rubel behind my back. Anxiously, I cleared my throat a few times to steady my breathing. I couldn’t discern any suspicious signs on Rubel’s white face as he tilted his head, smiling brightly and prettily as always.
The two girls excitedly returned to the Shierun Academy as if flying, exchanging two silver coins. I stared blankly at their retreating figures. It seemed Jenny had won the bet today. I couldn’t know what they had wagered and joked about this time.
“…Um, by any chance… Did those kids say anything strange…?”
“Huh? No, no. I just received a little policy advice.”
“Policy… advice?”
Instead of answering immediately, Rubel personally opened the door of the carriage that was waiting behind him.
Aware of the coachman who had been watching us from afar approaching, I had Rubel board the carriage first, and I followed him into the carriage as well.
As soon as he sat down, Rubel burst into laughter. The sound of his laughter, as if he had been holding it back for a long time, tickled my ears.
“Ah… Mika’s friends always seem so cheerful.”
“Well, they’re good… They’re good people. And diligent too.”
“Ahaha, that’s right. You have to be diligent to be friends with Mika.”
I couldn’t lift my head, feeling strangely ticklish at the thought of facing his brightly smiling face.
I kept my gaze fixed on the area around his shoulders. My Martial artists senses fully registered the gaze that was licking my cheeks and ears. It was hard to gauge whether it was just my eyes or if others also found him beautiful as he grew more handsome with each passing day.
With a gentle and neat gesture, more graceful than I had imagined in my dreams, Rubel swept his hair back and neatly arranged it behind his back.
I suddenly felt thirsty. Trying to sound nonchalant, I asked,
“So, what did you talk about?”
“Hmm, just words of encouragement… things like that.”
“…”
Those kids.
Wanting to hide my blushing face, I covered it with one hand. Rubel cleared his throat a few times as if trying to suppress his laughter, but the joyful air permeating his voice was impossible to conceal.
“They were asking if I could submit a few proposals at the next imperial conference.”
“…Proposals?”
“Yeah, Brother Richard wants to expand the territory through diplomatic pressure and the conquest of the Yuil Mountains. And I’m more in favor of consolidating our internal affairs since we already have enough land as it is.”
“That’s true.”
“The Sierran Empire is currently in its most stable state ever. The population has increased significantly compared to previous generations, and the number of people in the territories who want to develop themselves has also increased. As the overall enthusiasm for education rises, there’s a tendency for the population and resources to be concentrated in the capital… They were suggesting we try to distribute that a bit.”
“…How?”
“They suggested establishing educational institutions in each region and attaching the name of the Shierun Academy to them. It’s a proposal that should have been made a long time ago, so I said I would suggest it. And also, regarding the freedom of movement for the people in the territories.”
This was a story that Jenny had mentioned to me before as well.
Since romance novels were widely read, there were quite a few people who knew how to read and write, but the Shierun Academy was the empire’s highest educational institution and the only Shierun Academy. In this land where tens of millions of people lived, only a mere two hundred or so people were selected each year, labeled as the upper class, and sent out into the world.
When a child is born, they want to walk, and when they start walking, they want to run. Those who are alive are always struggling with new thirsts. It’s only natural for those who don’t have excellent lineage and talent to crave new learning as well.
In the Sierran Empire, most of those who couldn’t enter the Shierun Academy hired private tutors. There might be institutions that gathered and taught young children, but most of those academies only taught skills such as arithmetic and accounting necessary for work.
The reason why the empire chose this form of educational institution was obvious.
“Would that be alright?”
“What do you mean?”
“I heard that having only one Shierun Academy is a means to strengthen the centralized system.”
“Yeah, that’s right. But… in order to integrate the existing power structure and the emerging class represented by the Single-rank title in the most moderate way possible, we need more numbers. I want changes across the board in the socio-economic culture, so I think the time is right…”
“Hmm.”
“More than anything, Mika, you… you think that’s the right thing to do, don’t you?”
I was speechless.
Well… that was true. Even that wasn’t something I had thought of first; it was because there were thousands upon thousands of academies and Martial arts training ground in the Central Plains.
In the Central Plains, there were those who had more and those who had less, those who were stronger and those who were weaker, but those who were not the Emperor did not divide classes by bloodline. There were also frequent cases of people forming sworn brotherhoods to survive and forging bonds stronger than blood.
I, who was born with the blood of the Namgung, which valued bloodlines, had no sworn brothers, but I often mingled with people from the same Five Great Clans as if they were blood relatives.
It was because it was commonplace for rich people to be stabbed to death while crossing the mountains, and for poor people to stab and kill others when they went into the mountains… There were more people being born than grains of sand, but even more people died every day. If a person reached the age of fifty without being stabbed to death and their body was intact, it was called a good death.
I don’t know much about the process of taking exams and becoming officials. But I knew well the desire to learn something and become a better person.
Even in the Great Namgung, there were several Martial arts training ground under its control, so I had also looked at several Martial artists and checked if there were any children with good physiques several times. I had experienced several times the unexpected emergence of talented individuals who were born into poor families and had not shown any particular talent early on.
No, did I need to look far? I was one of those guys myself.
I hesitated for a moment without answering, then opened my mouth with difficulty.
“Did Jenny give you a hint?”
“No, I just thought so. I just… could tell.”
“Hmm.”
“Of course, I also thought that your friends wouldn’t bring up a story they hadn’t told you to me.”
“Ah.”
The change of Emperor was an opportunity to introduce a new tone throughout the culture and economy.
Making policy proposals and exchanging ideas under the guise of Shierun Academy alumni relations was a honorable thing. So the children belonging to the Shierun Academy would choose and follow the Emperor they felt closer to.
Since my comrades had already made an impression on Rubel during the New Year Festival and the Hunting Festival, it was not strange for them to give a hint of the policies they wanted in this way. Even if I hadn’t been here, those kids could have brought up the same story.
Instead of questioning further, I asked something else.
“So, where is it that you wanted to go for lunch today?”
❖ ❖ ❖
At the restaurant that Rubel and I frequented, we often had meals that were closer to paintings than food. The dishes, shaped with various ingredients and colors on a white, wide plate, were decorated so that their original form could not be recognized.
There were eggs that resembled small mushrooms, fish that resembled flower petals, and foam that resembled clouds. I couldn’t imagine what any of the food would taste like until I put it in my mouth. I felt uneasy every time I put it in my mouth, wondering what kind of game this was, but it was delicious.
I didn’t get bored at all even though I was hearing the words I had already heard in the letter one more time. I also heard the story of how he had met Edwin well. When I suggested that the three of us meet next time, he nodded without hesitation, which made my heart ache a little.
Rubel always smiled brightly. As if he was very happy and joyful.
But I found it very difficult to face the child. I was glad that I had written in the letter beforehand that I might cover my face. Every time our eyes met, I felt awkward and embarrassed, and I kept losing my words. I kept avoiding his gaze.
In the first year I got to know the child, I didn’t feel so concerned about anything he said or did. In the second year, I thought he was cute and cherished him whenever he acted affectionately, but I wasn’t worried about keeping him by my side.
But not now.
I knew better than anyone now that the feelings I had for Rubel were a passionate love. That’s why I felt even more that the time the child gave me was a waste. I was worried every moment whether I could accept this young, tender, precious heart.
Whether he knew my feelings or not, Rubel playfully suggested that we hold hands for no reason after we finished our meal. I pushed aside the teacup that came with the dessert and allowed him to play with my hand across the table.
Watching him hold and release my fingertips like a young puppy playing with a ball, a silly laugh leaked out from between my teeth.
“Why are you laughing like that…?”
“Is this fun?”
He cleared his throat. His slender gaze darted around.