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Chapter One: Rescuing the Maidens
One day, some time before Wellmy and the others’ graduation ceremony, Aides sat with a letter in hand.
“What an interesting girl,” he murmured, a smile curling on his lips as he thought nostalgically upon the author of that letter. She truly was unlike any other noble lady he had ever met.
Aides was currently in his office at the Ormirages’ secondary residence. He tossed the letter on his desk, rested against the back of his chair, and crossed his legs, his fingers interlaced on his stomach. He fixed his gaze on the person who had brought him the letter, a young man with purple hair and golden eyes whom he hadn’t seen in a long time—Leoniel Lionel, the crown prince.
“What do you hope to accomplish, showing me this letter, Your Highness?” he asked, offering the boy a half smile.
“Snarky as ever, I see, Aides. You know you can call me Leo when it’s just the two of us,” the boy replied. He was eight years Aides’s junior and was very fond of the mage lord.
Е n.ü m̂ а . і̃ḋ
Aides shrugged. “Allowing your subjects to disrespect you will weaken your authority, Leo.”
“My subjects, huh? I would be vexed if they thought me so foolish as to act high-and-mighty toward you, even in private, when you have so much influence. Rumors say you’re even more powerful than the royal family.”
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It had been quite a long time since the two of them had exchanged such banter.
It was a known fact that the House of Ormirage wielded such intense influence that the royal family couldn’t simply ignore it. Despite being only holding the peerage of a marquis, it was more powerful than even the ducal houses, making it the most influential family of all nobility. But how had that come to be?
Of course, the efforts of all the previous marquises had played an important role in defining its current standing. Still, Ormirage House had been considered influential even before House Lionel claimed the throne. During the previous king’s reign, House Lionel had only held a remote margravate in the south of the kingdom.
Back then, they had excelled at commanding soldiers due to their military lineage, but had been treated poorly by the king due to their lack of powerful magic. As such, the man who had been the head of House Lionel at the time had sought to create an alliance with House Ormirage, known for having produced many powerful mages, in order to acquire their mana.
En̄ ū m ӓ . і̄d̄
Seeing the sincerity in the man’s demand and recognizing House Lionel’s outstanding military prowess, the head of House Ormirage had agreed to give them his daughter in marriage. The girl had purple eyes that were proof of her strong magic potential, though the children born from that union hadn’t inherited their mother’s eyes; they all had golden eyes. Regardless, in no time at all, the Lionels had been able to incorporate magic into their army corps, making them more powerful than ever before. Once that foundation had been established, they began assertively employing individuals with strong magic in their service, regardless of their nobility status, accelerating their development even further. People from remote regions had always believed in abilities above everything else, due to the dangerous nature of the land, so they showed almost no resistance to the integration of talented commoners into the ruling house.
The Lionels eventually claimed the throne. Due to the circumstances surrounding the event, it would be difficult to say that they did anything wrong.
Seeing them as a threat, the king demanded that a girl of House Lionel—one who excelled at healing spells—be taken as his concubine. If it had ended there, it would have simply been just another instance of a ruler buying a noble family’s loyalty through a forced alliance.
However, the royal family of the time made the mistake of underestimating the Lionels. The queen would constantly torment and abuse the poor girl, all with the king’s blessing. On top of that, they did nothing to help when other noble houses opposed and harassed the Lionels. Naturally, the head of Ormirage was dissatisfied with the way the royal family treated his granddaughter, causing friction with the other nobles.
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Meanwhile, as resentment grew in the Lionel and Ormirage territories, a pool of miasma left unchecked by the king began producing large numbers of monsters right as a plague broke out in the kingdom. The Lionels had to deal with the threats, just like the rest of the nation, but the damage in their territory was significantly less severe, thanks to their powerful army capable of using magic as well as the healers and saints they had trained over the years.
As for the foolish king, he had ordered his concubine, the daughter of the Lionel family, to bring the plague to an end. But because of the queen’s ridicule and the tensions rising in the kingdom’s remote regions, no mage house had been willing to cooperate with her. The Ormirages had been too busy handling the threats in their own territory to offer their assistance, so she’d had no choice but to do everything by herself.
Ẅ е̃b̈ ñ о v̌ê l̆ Е n um̂ â
Then one day, while running from place to place to heal as many people as she could, she finally collapsed. Dissatisfied with her efforts, the royal family began treating her even more harshly than before, calling her a “useless deadhead.”
When the royal family ordered the Lionels to go handle the monsters and the epidemic in another fief, the head of the house finally snapped.
“That family isn’t worth our loyalty.”
And thus, the Lionels stormed the capital to take back the daughter they had given to the king. House Ormirage immediately announced that they would be supporting the assault. Using their magic, they snuck into the royal palace, retrieved the concubine, and offered her shelter. The Ormirages had been thoroughly disgusted by the royal family’s treatment of the Lionel girl, who was the niece of the newest head of their house.
At that time, House Ormirage had already been recognized as the most powerful house of mages. With the combat techniques House Lionel had offered them, they had managed to counter the monster threat and epidemic in their territory with minimal losses. On the other hand, the royal family and the houses supporting them had found themselves worn thin, leaving them unable to fend off the combined assault of the Lionels and Ormirages, who excelled in combat and magic respectively. They executed most members of the royal family and the houses supporting them, save for the woman who had once been the king’s concubine and her son, whom they installed on the throne.
Thus was born the royal house of Lionel, the new rulers of the kingdom.
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It would have been fitting for them to promote House Ormirage to a ducal house, but the main branch decided it would be wise to keep an appropriate distance from the royal family. They still upheld that principle to this day, although, due to the circumstances around the nation’s founding, most nobles who were promoted to dukes at the time counted relatives of House Ormirage among their members. Moreover, with each successive head of the house seemingly blessed with both business acumen and magical talent, House Ormirage quickly grew into a powerful noble titan whose influence extended well beyond the kingdom’s borders. As such, even though their blood ties with the Lionels had diminished over time, the two families maintained a strong relationship to this day. Aides and Leo were no exception to that rule, having grown up closer than any other noble children.
“Back to the matter of the letter. Wellmy Ernest wrote it, didn’t she?”
Leo’s eyes widened in surprise. “How did you know?”
“This is my second time reading this letter, you see.” As he spoke, Aides pulled a piece of paper from a drawer and handed it to Leo.
“I see. So the one she gave me was a copy,” the prince commented.
“She must’ve been worried that I wouldn’t read her letter, as she sent it anonymously. Still, if she has discovered your identity, she truly has been treating you like her errand boy, hmm?”
Ê n u m а̂
There wasn’t a single soul in the Lionel Kingdom who didn’t know of the relationship between the Lionels and the Ormirages. It was a famous tale sung by bards and performed onstage, as well as being the very first thing noble children learned during their history lessons.
“She told me her sister wrote it, but when I asked Iora, she denied the claim.”
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“Wellmy clearly doesn’t trust you.”
“I’m not so sure about that. According to Iora, Wellmy doesn’t want anyone knowing that she’s trying to save her sister. I assume that’s the reason she lied.”
Aides found it odd that Wellmy would have entrusted a letter to Leo while knowing his relationship with his sister, but the prince apparently never interacted with Iora at school. Therefore, Leo assumed that Wellmy would never know that he’d discovered her lie.
My theory is that she doesn’t care either way, Aides thought.
Eń ŭ m̊ ä . і d̄
According to Wellmy’s letter, her plan was ready to be set into motion. If she intended for Aides to be the one to pull the trigger, she had likely decided to risk everything to be sure that her letter reached him, even if it meant exposing herself.
Aides didn’t see the point in correcting or arguing with Leo, so he kept his opinion to himself.
“She says that she has ‘left proof of her family’s wrongdoings with someone she can trust.’ You’ll never guess who.”
“Well, spill,” Leo prodded.
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“Clartes Liroud.”
A smile curled on Aides’s lips while Leo sighed deeply.
É ñ ú m̌ а. і ḋ
“Well, that’s surprising. I know he’s not a noble anymore, so how did Wellmy manage to get so close to him? No, scratch that. With her eye color, it might not actually be that strange. I’ve never heard of the Ernests being related to the Lirouds, though,” Leo said.
“Me neither.”
The ducal House of Liroud also had ties to the royal family, but their connection differed from that of House Ormirage. The Lirouds were elementalists, specializing in curses and disenchantment. While most magic users needed to expend a colossal amount of magical power to manipulate an elemental, the Lirouds did not. It was said that elementals were fond of their family, allowing the Lirouds to ask for their help with disenchanting through prayers rather than magic.
Elementals were different from familiars in that they didn’t regard the person who summoned them as their master. They only agreed to help either for a reward or out of their own goodwill.
A mark of being blessed by elementals was having vermilion eyes. There were no tales of them ever granting their benediction to anyone who did not possess Liroud blood.
“The Lirouds keep the truth about elementals a secret from most people, save for a select few. Only those with close ties to the royal family know of it. So while other nobles might be surprised by Wellmy’s eye color, they likely don’t suspect anything.”
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It would be strange for a member of a subsidiary line of the Lirouds to be born with vermilion eyes, but it wasn’t entirely unheard of. But Wellmy’s eye color, coupled with her connection to Clartes, had piqued Aides’s interest.
“I first thought that she had inherited her eyes from her mother’s side, but the woman was born a commoner, and an orphan at that,” he said. “It’s highly unlikely that she has any blood ties to the Lirouds. It leaves only one other option.”
“She was unfaithful to her husband,” Leo concluded.
“We may discover some interesting things if we dig deeper into this. If Wellmy truly is related to the Lirouds, there’s only one man her mother could have been involved with.”
Clartes had been disinherited by his family for wanting to marry a common woman and, as such, lost his noble title. Based on his connection to Wellmy, it was highly likely that he was her real father.
Leo made a face at this. He was a very upright boy, likely shaped by the circumstances that had led his family to seize the throne, as well as by the unwavering love between his parents. His father had never taken a single concubine, even though it would have been completely normal for him to do so.
W̄ е bn̄о v e l Ӗ ñu mа
Leo was the firstborn of five children, meaning that his father had more than enough potential successors. The king also had good relationships with the most influential figures of both the academic and martial fields, so he had never felt the need to take a concubine to solidify his position.
“The more I hear about Count Ernest and his wife, the more disgusted I get. They really are worse than trash,” Leo said.
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“Oh? And what brings you to that conclusion?”
“They’re abusing Iora. I wanted to help her, but she won’t let me. ‘I don’t want to stir the pot until I find a way to save Wellmy,’ she said.”
“I see.”
Aides had already started looking into the Ernests, investigating matters that Wellmy hadn’t even brought up in her letter. He was aware that Iora lived alone in a detached building, while her father and stepmother doted on her younger sister. Yet, according to Leo, there was no bad blood between the two sisters.
Е nům̀ а̌. ї d
“This is a mess, isn’t it?” Leo said.
“You don’t seem to like the younger sister all that much. So why did you bring me her letter?” Aides asked.
“Because I figured it wasn’t my job to judge her. Her usual behavior isn’t exactly commendable. But when Iora told me that Wellmy was trying to save her, I tried to observe her again with that in mind, and realized it was true. She’s just absurdly good at hiding her true feelings.”
“Oh?”
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
“At first, I didn’t believe Iora. I even wondered if someone had slipped her some weird drug for her to make such a ridiculous claim. But, turns out, she is perfectly sane.” Leo frowned before resuming. “I was also reluctant to believe her because I know Wellmy hates me.”
“Why is that?”
W̄ е́ b̂nоv̈ĕl̃ Е n̈û m̆а
Leo hesitated for a moment before replying glumly, “She called me a ‘coward.’”
A chuckle escaped Aides’s throat.
“Don’t laugh. She thinks that I’m too scared of my father to reveal my identity and that I’ve been doing nothing for Iora this entire time.”
“My, my. She figured out that you’re the crown prince, yet she still dares to speak to you like that? She’s quite the feisty one,” Aides said, feeling more and more drawn to that noble girl.
He grabbed a piece of paper from his desk and tossed it at Leo.
“What is this?” the prince asked.
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“Wellmy’s research paper. I had the noble academy forward it to me,” Aides replied. “The handwriting doesn’t match that of the letter.”
“Impossible. There’s no way Wellmy wrote this. The contents align perfectly with the research project Iora described to me.”
“And this is the one that was submitted under Iora’s name,” Aides said, flinging another document at Leo. “The handwriting on this one matches the letter.”
Leo compared the two papers and the letter and nodded pensively. “You have to examine them closely to see the difference. The handwriting is almost exactly the same. No, I suppose it would be more accurate to say they’ve been made to look the same.”
“What conclusions do you draw from this?” Aides asked.
Most people would reply that Iora must’ve written the letter. Leo had made the right decision, asking Iora if she was the author of the letter. If he didn’t know that Wellmy had written it, he wouldn’t have noticed the discrepancy.
Е̃n.ǔ m̊ а
“The letter mentions that Iora’s papers were all submitted under Wellmy’s name and vice versa,” Aides said. “Assuming one didn’t know who wrote the letter, if they focused exclusively on the contents of the letter without studying the handwriting, I suppose they could be fooled.”
“In other words, it’s designed to make it look like Iora wrote that letter to denounce her family, including Wellmy,” Leo concluded.
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“But you said that there’s no bad blood between the two sisters.”
“According to Iora, there isn’t, and I believe her. Wellmy hasn’t made my identity public, so that must mean something.”
“In other words, she was already planning this when she started switching her reports with Iora’s years ago.”
What an interesting girl.
Ė num̈ а̊_
Aides felt his mood improve as he thought back on the girl he’d met only once, and those vermilion eyes that had seemed to probe into his very soul. Thinking back, that had been the first time a noble lady had piqued his interest.
And he had just figured out her objective.
“She wants her family to be judged for their crimes—herself included.”
Leo threw Aides a doubtful gaze. “Huh? ‘Herself included’? What do you mean?”
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“What is it that you don’t understand? Why else would she want to make it seem like Iora is the author of that letter?”
The existence of that letter made it clear that Wellmy was willing to doom herself if it meant saving Iora.
En ǔ m̈ а̌ .і̄ d̆
“I can’t believe she’d go that far...” Leo’s eyes widened as if he had just received a severe shock, and he leaned back against his chair.
Aides’s smile widened as he watched him.
“I’m starting to think that I might just go along with her plan. Well, it depends on what this ‘proof’ she gathered is.”
Aides hadn’t gone to see Clartes yet, but as Wellmy had named his clinic as the place where she’d hidden the documents in question, Aides was almost entirely positive he had them.
“Oh, and the letter states that I can only get access to the documents if I, and I quote, ‘propose to Iora and take her out of that house.’”
“Wha—?!”
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Gazing at Leo’s outraged expression with amusement, Aides continued, “Don’t worry. I’m not enough of a fiend to steal the girl you love from you. Even if I were to go along with Wellmy’s plan, I’d make a few changes.”
“Like what?” Leo asked.
It was painfully obvious that the prince was head over heels for Iora, and he didn’t even try to hide it. Yet, his face was still as red as a tomato.
Aides’s smile widened once again. “Wellmy is the woman of my dreams. Unless it goes against Iora’s intentions—the ones she told you about—I intend to marry her.”
A pause. “What?”
Unable to suppress his delight, Aides turned to look outside the window, leaving the prince to gape at him like a fish. “I’ll need to get engaged to Iora first in order to bring her here. But the one I truly want is her fearless sister, the one who’s not scared of trying to use me as a pawn in her schemes—Wellmy.”
Е̂n̆ ůmа̇
“But why can’t I be the one to get engaged to Iora?” Leo asked.
“Wellmy hasn’t deemed you acceptable for her sister. If I follow Wellmy’s plan, I intend to stick to this part of her script. But if you have the means to save not just Iora but her sister as well, then prove it.”
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Show Wellmy what you can do without relying on your family’s influence. That was the implicit meaning behind Aide’s words.
Leo’s face twisted in frustration. Aides figured that the boy thought he would never be able to come up with a way to save Wellmy and Iora without asking for his help or using his position as crown prince.
But then, Leo spoke up. “We’ll prove that Wellmy is the one who wrote the letter and place her under witness protection. That way, she won’t be prosecuted for her wrongdoings. Although I suppose I’ll need to lean on my position a bit to make that happen.”
Hmm... It would be too cruel to ask more of him.
W̄ е̄ḃ n̂.ö v́ è l Е nu̇ m̆ a
As long as Leo didn’t intend to have the king intervene directly, Aides wouldn’t nag him about his plan.
“If we go along with your suggestion, they will both lose their nobility statuses. If they become commoners, we’ll never be allowed to marry them. Do you think you can convince the king to allow Iora to manage her family’s county until it can be transferred? If you can do that, I’ll put in a good word for you with Wellmy.”
Aides was satisfied that his little brother figure had immediately managed to come up with a plan, but he still added another condition.
“I’ll do it. For Iora. I’ll convince General Attorney Kilrane to put Wellmy under witness protection.”
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“Congratulations, Leo. You get a passing grade.”
Leo breathed a sigh of relief at his words.
Ë n̈ ū m а̄
“Please do as you said, then. In the meantime, I’ll prepare to propose to Iora when her fiancé breaks off their engagement.”
Leo still struggled with concealing his emotions like a true royal ought to, but Aides was pleased to see him grow wiser with each passing day.
Now, let’s see how that girl has grown since our last meeting...
Judging by that letter, it seemed that she hadn’t lost her spark and had become quite dignified.
Aides quickly drafted a letter asking Clartes to meet him, put it into an envelope, and sealed it. Then, he rang the bell on his desk to call his private secretary and handed him the letter.
Lastly, he turned back to Leo, who’d been absentmindedly waiting for him to finish, and flashed him a grin. “Now, Leo. You know you’re like a little brother to me. So, how about you tell me how you met your hopefully future life partner?”
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※※※
Crap. I’ve missed my chance to run away. Leo internally clicked his tongue at his own stupidity when he saw Aides’s amused expression.
Plastering a bright smile on his face, he replied, “Oh, it’s not all that interesting, really. I’m afraid it would bore you, brother dearest.”
“You have some nerve to try to hide things from me, Leo,” Aides said, a sadistic glint in his eyes.
Leo couldn’t contain the sweat beading on his forehead.
There were several reasons Leo still didn’t have a fiancée despite having been named crown prince years ago, at twelve. Most princes of other nations would already have been engaged at his age.
Е̇ǹúm̌ a
Firstly, Leo had been in poor health until he turned seven. Secondly, the kingdom’s state of affairs hadn’t been so dire that his parents felt the need to rush into an engagement and lose the opportunity to find a better party later. Lastly—and most importantly—the Lionel Kingdom had a custom of only looking for a fiancée for the crown prince once he came of age to enter noble society.
Leo had always been a brilliant child, but his father hadn’t officially acknowledged him as his successor due to his health. As a result, the seat of crown prince had remained vacant until his condition had improved.
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The royal family had five children: Leo, the firstborn princess, the secondborn prince and princess (twins), and lastly, the thirdborn prince. Their second son, Tygrim, was three years Leo’s junior and, therefore, had still been a little too young for the king to make him his heir when Leo had been ill. While it was technically permissible for a princess to ascend the throne and take an outstanding man as her consort, it was still preferred for the crown to adhere to the primogeniture and patrilineal succession rules, unless there was a large issue. That was to minimize the risk of adopted children and those born to concubines staking their claims on the throne.
Queens and queen consorts were expected to bear several children each. There had been instances in the past when a female ruler experienced consecutive pregnancies, which had kept her from ruling for long stretches of time. Regardless of how robust a queen was, she couldn’t will morning sickness away or control the rate at which her baby grew. It was only natural for others to be considerate so that she wouldn’t ruin her health. Even Leo’s mother, famed for her robustness, had been bedridden with awful morning sickness during her third pregnancy.
Thus, male succession was preferred.
In exchange, queen consorts were granted power second only to that of the king and could even challenge their husbands’ decisions if they had a valid reason. Furthermore, if the king found himself incapacitated, it wasn’t the crown prince or the chancellor who would rule in his stead, but the queen.
Е̃ ňũ m а.і ḋ
The king had eventually proclaimed Leo his successor once his health had improved, but the prince struggled to find a wife. It wasn’t that there were no suitable candidates—in fact, there were quite a few—but Leo kept using “tradition” as an excuse not to make a decision. His father wasn’t in a rush to see him married, so he chose to take his time.
Leo wanted his future queen consort to be a wise woman who would wield her power with intelligence and who could rule in his stead if the need arose. He likely would have had to make his decision sooner had he been a princess, as the window in which a woman could bear children was limited. But even if Leo were to take his time to choose a wife, as long as she was the right age, it would be fine. If anything, it left him the possibility of marrying the daughter of a foreign ruler in case of a diplomatic incident.
For all these reasons, Leo still didn’t have a fiancée. Aides was well aware of his little brother figure’s concerns, which explained why he was so curious about the girl he had chosen to court.
“I’ve taken the liberty to look at her grades, and she doesn’t seem to be particularly brilliant,” he said. “As for her appearance, I’ve heard only negative things. High society calls her a wallflower and sneers that she can’t hold a candle to her younger sister.”
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He’s saying all those things on purpose, isn’t he? Leo thought.
Aides was this kind of person. The more fond he was of someone, the more he enjoyed teasing and toying with them to get under their skin, although he always made sure to stop before going too far. Conversely, he remained cold and indifferent to those he didn’t care about. Either way, he truly lived up to his reputation as the “cruel, chauvinistic, and misanthropic lord of magic.”
Е n u m̈ а́ . і d
“The reason Iora has bad grades and hides her beauty is out of consideration for her lowborn sister,” Leo explained.
While Wellmy possessed the Lirouds’ vermilion eyes, she was an illegitimate child whose mother used to be a commoner. In recent years, societal views on lineage had softened, but the older generation still valued pedigree above anything else.
As such, Wellmy couldn’t compare to her sister, a pure-blooded noble. If Iora were to excel at school, she was bound to attract attention, regardless of her appearance. Some, like Leo, might even notice that she was hiding her true self.
Based on the fact that she had so easily agreed to exchange her papers with Wellmy, it was evident that she had decided to always let her sister shine brighter than her.
“Why are you going so far?” Leo had asked her countless times.
Iora’s response had always been the same. “If I don’t, it’ll hinder her plans. Besides, our parents do not like to see me do better than Wellmy. She would be sad if she saw them scold me,” she would say, always wearing the same melancholy smile.
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At first, Leo hadn’t been able to understand. Could that vicious and unscrupulous Wellmy truly feel bad for her stepsister? Wasn’t it just something Iora had convinced herself of to protect her own heart? Whenever Leo made even the slightest criticism of Wellmy, Iora would seem sad.
Back then, he had simply been confused. But now, he understood everything.
“I’d say that they have a good relationship, but that doesn’t quite cover it... It’s more like they care deeply about each other, but Wellmy is trying to get Iora to hate her,” Leo added.
“Oh? And why is that?” Aides asked.
“To keep Iora from being targeted by their parents. They both understand how their parents want them to behave and are playing their parts accordingly.”
“I see. And Wellmy is trying to rescue her sister, who has been cast as the abused daughter, no matter the cost. How laudable.”
Е̇n um а
Aides softly brushed his fingers against the two identical letters, his smile deepening.
He has really taken a liking to Wellmy, huh? Leo thought, puzzled. They had likely never met and had nothing in common.
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“So?” Aides spoke, crossing his legs again.
His voice pulled Leo out of his thoughts.
“I still haven’t heard about how your budding romance with Iora started.”
It seemed that Leo’s attempt at changing the topic had failed. Resigning himself to his fate, he reluctantly told Aides what he wanted to know.
Е̃n̈ um ӑ . ї d̆
※※※
One day, just before his first meeting with Iora, an annoyed Leo finally grasped the true meaning of the warning his father had given him just before he began his studies at the noble academy.
I can’t believe how stupid these kids who call themselves nobles are.
His father, the king, had taken time out of his busy schedule to stroll through the garden with him and talk about the school he was about to attend.
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“Some lectures will cover highly specialized topics that you might find somewhat interesting, but the majority of them will cover subjects you have already studied. I believe you may find them quite boring.”
“I imagine.”
W̊ е b́nо v е l̊ Е́ n̊u m.а
“However, the noble academy will provide you with precious opportunities to experience something that would be otherwise unattainable for us royals.”
“Unattainable for us? What might that be, Your Majesty?”
“What do you think, Leo?”
The crown prince had given his father’s question some thought before giving a tentative answer. “The chance to make close friends, perhaps?”
“That is not what I was referring to.”
Leo had interpreted his father’s words to mean that, yes, friendship was important, but it wasn’t the point he was trying to make.
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“Love on our own terms?”
“Incorrect.”
This guess, his father had completely dismissed.
It would be entirely foolish for a crown prince to lose his mind to romance and put his position in peril because of it, after all. While Leo’s parents had met at the noble academy and were now in a happy, loving relationship, they wouldn’t have been married if their union hadn’t offered some advantages to their respective families, regardless of their feelings for one another.
“Hmm... The opportunity to interact with others regardless of our nobility status?”
“Close, but not quite.”
W е b ṅ o v̊.е̇l Е̊nu mа
Leo’s growing frustration had clearly amused his father.
That side of him reminds me a bit of Aides... he’d thought, waiting for the king to give him the right answer.
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“Attending school while hiding your identity...”
“Yes?”
“...is the only occasion you will have to experience social discrimination from the point of view of the victim.”
Leo had needed a few moments to process those words.
Ѐ n̆um а . ĩ d
“Is it that different from the answer I gave?” he’d asked.
“Completely different.”
Leo had grown up surrounded by countless people preaching the core value of the Lionel House: Others might not share the same manners or decorum due to their social statuses, but he couldn’t look down on them for it.
“Attending the noble academy is an extremely important experience that will help you to understand how the House of Lionel became what it is today,” the king had added.
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He’d stopped at the edge of the pond in their gardens and placed a hand on Leo’s shoulder. His silver eyes, tinged with hints of purple, had settled on Leo, looking as if they could pierce right through him.
“Never forget this, Leo: A clear hierarchy is necessary, but discrimination breeds conflict. Before becoming the royal family, the House of Lionel was praised for its strength, both as commoners and later, when we earned our nobility title. We never could have ascended the throne without the support of those who believed in us.”
Ёń u mа
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Leo had heard that speech so many times; he was starting to get sick of it.
“Even now, we still rely on their help, all while using our own influence to uplift those who bemoan their misfortune. And that is something we must continue to do in the future. I believe that your time at the academy will help you understand our mission more deeply.”
Those were the words Leo’s father had spoken to Leo before he began his studies. And now, not even one month into his time at the academy, the crown prince had experienced their meaning the hard way.
So many of these people take advantage of their statuses and appearances to make fun of others.
At the academy, Leo wasn’t the crown prince, but the second son of Baron Metamo. With the help of an ancient magic item that no one in this age could replicate, he had altered his distinctive purple hair and golden eyes to appear black. However, his face remained the same, so those who truly wanted to see through his disguise could recognize him. Moreover, the House of Metamo was a fictitious one that didn’t actually exist, and the academy’s rules stated that students wouldn’t be punished for disrespecting the royal family.
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In other words, the royal family had purposefully left enough hints that the students who felt like something was amiss could discover Leo’s identity. Yet, most students didn’t even try. The moment they learned that Leo was the son of a baron, they would start picking on him. If he ever stood out during classes or practical training, his classmates, being sore losers, would spew insults behind his back.
“You pauper.”
“You’re just the son of a baron.”
“Know your place.”
And so on, and so forth.
These jibes made it very clear that most students were much more foolish than Leo had anticipated. To think that these were the people who would be responsible for the future of the Lionel Kingdom... Leo worried for his nation.
W ë b̆_nо_v еl Е̃ n̊ u m a
It also helped him understand what his parents and advisors had been repeating to him since he was a child: to see people for what they truly were, not their statuses or aptitudes.
This lot would never bother to try to give someone of a lower status a chance.
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He was also positive that they would do an about-face and swarm to get in his good graces the second he revealed his true identity.
As he ruminated on these thoughts, his gaze landed on one of those very groups, led by two infamous students: Wellmy Ernest and Arvine Schneiger. Out of all the students Leo had interacted with, they were the most proficient at mocking, slandering, and spreading rumors.
Leo stared grimly at Wellmy as she made eyes at Arvine, leaning on him with her usual haughty smile plastered on her face.
That’s her sister’s fiancé. How utterly shameless, he thought with indignation.
Е̇ nǔm̂ á
He was rarely aware of the rumors buzzing around school, yet even he had heard about how Wellmy Ernest constantly flirted with her sister’s fiancé. She must’ve been quite the promiscuous girl. To be fair, she was beautiful, with platinum hair, catlike vermilion eyes, fierce beauty, and porcelain-white skin. The accessories she wore were exquisite as well.
But that was all there was to her.
Leo knew more beautiful people than he could possibly count, and he didn’t find that hollow doll with no personality appealing in the slightest.
But then, he caught sight of a girl with uncombed gray hair watching that group, a sad look on her face. She was hiding at the other end of the corridor, hidden behind one of the hedges flanking the pathway. Her uniform must’ve been a hand-me-down, as it was quite worn out. The color had even started to fade. She likely had very bad eyesight, as she was wearing thick glasses and was clutching a heavy book to her chest. On top of that, she had pallid skin and was incredibly thin, to the point where “slender” hardly captured how frail she looked.
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Is she sick...?
That was the first thought that crossed Leo’s mind when he saw that girl who stuck out like a sore thumb. They were both in the advanced class, so he had caught glimpses of her during lessons before, but he had never paid much attention to her. It was the first time he’d noticed how sickly she seemed.
Ѐnù m̊ ӑ.і̌ d
Leo had long learned not to judge others based on their attire. After all, since he’d enrolled at the noble academy, others had mocked him not only for his status, but also for his cheaply made uniform, the fabric of which was no better than what commoners wore. He watched a group of students giggle as they walked past the girl in the tattered uniform, just like they had done to him earlier.
He caught a glimpse of the girl’s gaze and finally realized who she was.
Iora Ernest.
The sister of Wellmy Ernest, the girl who was currently ostentatiously flirting with Arvine.
Their parents clearly have a favorite child, huh? Leo thought.
He’d heard that they were the same age, but had different mothers. It was likely that Iora was being abused, as she was the daughter of Count Ernest’s first (now deceased) wife.
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Leo was intrigued by the girl, but feared that talking to her in public would only bring her more trouble. He was the opposite of popular at school, after all. He realized that he had never been this considerate to someone before attending the noble academy.
All of a sudden, Iora tore her gaze from her sister and fiancé’s public display of affection and started walking away. Leo’s eyes widened in shock at the beauty of her movements.
If one completely tore down any bias they might have had toward her due to her appearance, they would realize that her bearing was out of this world. Her spine was perfectly straight, and her gait was so graceful that it looked almost like she was gliding. Her elegance rivaled even that of highborn noble ladies, and Leo found himself unable to tear his eyes away from her, utterly captivated.
That was when a small gust of wind softly lifted Iora’s long bangs from her face, revealing her purple irises.
Leo let out a gasp of shock.
Even without makeup, Iora’s beauty was just as striking as her sister’s.
Е̊ nu̇mа̊
For a brief moment, their eyes met, but Iora quickly averted her gaze as she walked past him, her bangs falling back into place.
I can’t believe it...
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In a matter of seconds, Iora had stolen Leo’s heart with her beautiful movements and purple eyes brimming with magic power. Why was a girl like her forced to wear these dirty rags? Why did she look so sad?
I need to know.
Leo hurriedly turned on his heel, but before he could walk up to Iora, the bell signaling the start of their next lesson rang out. He clicked his tongue. His next class was an elective, and he was pretty sure that Iora would be in another classroom.
Damn it!
Ѐǹ um а̄
The school year had barely started. He couldn’t afford to skip classes just yet; doing so would only draw unwanted attention to himself.
Wrestling his impatience to speak to Iora back under control, Leo reluctantly turned back and headed to class.
Two days later, a little before lunch break, he spotted Iora leaving the classroom and...well...he followed her. In hindsight, that had been insanely creepy of him.
Iora made her way to a bench behind the building, where no other students could be seen. She took a chunk of stale-looking bread out of a small basket and began nibbling on it as she flipped through the pages of a book with her other hand.
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Leo walked up to the bench and, at last, spoke to her. “Pardon me, Lady Ernest, but may I sit next to you?”
He tried to sound as natural as he could, like he’d been planning on sitting at this bench all along, but Iora had just so happened to get there before him.
W̆e b̀ń о́ v̈ ẽ ľ Ėn ū m̃.а̀
She looked up at him, slightly perplexed, as if she couldn’t believe he was talking to her. Surprise still etched on her face, she gave him a small smile and nodded.
“I am greatly honored that you chose to speak to me, Your Highness,” she said.
Leo gasped and hurriedly looked around to ensure that no one had heard her reveal his identity. Other than his bodyguards, who had magically concealed themselves so that no one would see them, the area was deserted.
“My apologies, it was careless of me. I didn’t detect any magical signature other than yours and those of your guards, so...” Iora muttered, her shoulders drooping as she hung her head low.
Leo hurriedly spoke up. “No, it is no matter!” he said before correcting himself. “I mean, I don’t mind. But I’m impressed you noticed all that.”
“Leo” was closer to his real self than “Prince Leoniel” was. However, whenever someone other than his family called him by his title, he had a tendency to slip back into his princely persona, so he quickly fixed his speech.
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“Was my acting that bad?” he added.
Iora’s brow softened, and she offered him another reserved smile.
She’s beautiful. Leo couldn’t believe that he hadn’t realized how refined she was until he truly took notice of her.
“Not at all, Lord Metamo,” she replied.
“Call me Leo. I’m the son of a baron, while you’re the daughter of a count. You’re of higher station than I.” Leo managed to smirk despite his slight nervousness.
An amused expression crossed Iora’s face, but was immediately replaced by that same awkward, apologetic look she had been sporting before. “But...”
Wē b̊n о̌v̌ е̇ l̀ Еṅu m a
“You’ve figured out my identity, so you must also understand that you can’t be too polite toward me in public, right? I’ll be in a bit of a pickle if you are.”
The royal family had left hints for other students to figure out who Leo truly was, but that didn’t mean he could let just anyone know. These clues were meant only for those who had the discretion to keep his identity a secret.
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“That is true... I understand, Lord Leo.”
“Drop the ‘lord.’”
“I couldn’t possibly—”
“Are you sure?”
Еń uṁа̌
A pause. “Leo,” Iora muttered.
Leo watched as her cheeks reddened, and his heart skipped a beat. Was it her first time addressing a boy without honorifics?
She’s adorable.
“The reason I noticed your identity may be a little unfair,” Iora continued.
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“Unfair?”
“Indeed. Um... Your transformation magic does not work on me, Leo.”
Wе̄bnо vе l̄ Е̇ nũm̊ a.
The second those words left her mouth, Leo’s bodyguards began to stir, suddenly more alert. Leo nonchalantly raised a hand to signal to them to rein in their menacing auras.
“Does that mean you can see my true appearance?” he asked.
“Indeed. Um, it may sound a little insolent, but...”
“Don’t worry. The school rules state that you can’t be punished for disrespecting the royal family.”
“I am aware, but you might still feel offended... I believe I can see through your disguise because, um... My magic is stronger than yours...” Iora muttered, her shoulder hunching for some reason.
Leo nodded. The item he’d used to change his appearance didn’t work on Aides either. Golden and silver eyes were second only to purple eyes in terms of sheer magic potential, so Leo had never really thought of the possibility that someone would see through his transformation. However, it was a well-known fact that spells meant to trick others’ senses sometimes failed against those with greater magic. In this day and age, the only noble publicly known to have purple irises was Aides.
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“I see. It must be because you have purple eyes.”
It was Iora’s turn to be shocked. “How...?”
“Mm?”
“How do you know about my eye color...?”
Leo cocked his head to the side. “I saw them when we crossed paths in the hallway the other day. There are very few people with eyes like yours. Yet, no one seems to be talking about you... You should be the center of attention.”
“We have, um, little contact with our relatives, and I did not leave the house much before enrolling at the academy. Besides, I believe that my late mother used a spell to hide my eye color.”
Ẅ ёb̊n̈о̄v̄.е̃ l En̊ u m а̃
Apparently, Iora’s mother used magic to make her daughters’ eyes look blue.
“So that’s why no one knows.” Leo nodded to himself.
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“The spell must have started to fade, though... The only other person to ever notice my eye color is Wellmy.”
“Your sister?”
Now that must have bred tensions.
Simply from observing the two sisters’ appearances, Leo could tell that their parents didn’t treat them equally. That prideful, haughty Wellmy must not have appreciated her sister having a rarer eye color than hers, though vermilion eyes were special in their own right. In fact, there was something about Wellmy’s eye color that nagged at Leo, but he didn’t have time to think about it at the moment. Right now, his entire focus was on Iora.
Ẁ_е́ bnо̆v̄ е̄l̇ En̈ ûm̈ǎ
“Could it be that it’s because of your eye color that your parents and sister ostracize you?” Leo asked.
At this, Iora lowered her gaze, a sorrowful expression crossing her face—the same look she had worn the day he’d first noticed her in the hallway.
Leo shook his head. “I’m sorry. That was thoughtless of me. I’ve overstepped.”
“Not at all. Um... The reason my parents treat me that way has nothing to do with my eye color. As for Wellmy... I don’t think that she dislikes me.”
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“Huh?”
Leo hadn’t been expecting those words to come out of Iora’s mouth.
E ṅ.um ӓ . і̊ d
“But she’s been flirting with your fiancé in— No, nothing. Sorry.”
That wasn’t good. Leo was so curious about this girl that he kept putting his foot in his mouth. He slapped a hand against his mouth to stop himself from saying anything unnecessary, his brow knitted with concern.
The corner of Iora’s lips tugged upward at his reaction, though she still looked sad.
“She has her reasons. Um, please do not misunderstand my sister...”
Leo nodded for form’s sake, but in his mind, he had already started to think that he needed to investigate that family. Iora was barely skin and bones, while Wellmy seemed spoiled rotten. Something was obviously wrong.
That short interaction was enough for Leo to completely fall under Iora’s charm. If something was going on with her family, he wanted to help her.
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“Can I meet you here again tomorrow?” he asked with a smile. He wanted to know more about her—although he wasn’t sure he was doing a good job hiding his feelings.
Iora’s cheeks reddened slightly as she nodded. “It would be my pleasure. I do not have any friends, so...”
Leo couldn’t help but turn his face away.
She’s just too cute!
This was the first time he’d ever felt this way about a girl his age.
※※※
Wеb̃ n o v̀ ёl̂ Е ń umа
“From then on, I started meeting with Iora on a regular basis,” Leo said. “She would talk to me about all sorts of things—her lectures, magic, her relationship with her family... I loved listening to her. But the more attracted to her I grew, the stronger my anger toward her family became. I seriously considered destroying them more times than I could count.”
“You seem quite infatuated. How adorable—my baby brother is finally experiencing love for the first time,” Aides teased.
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“You’re the last person I want to hear that from,” Leo shot back.
Leo at least had the decency to smile at the girls who approached him. On the contrary, Aides behaved as if women weren’t worthy of his attention, which had cemented his reputation as a chauvinist.
“I simply have no interest in foolish people. I like clever women.”
“Is Wellmy clever?” Leo asked after a pause.
W̊ е̇ b́ no ve ľ_ Е̂_nǔm̂ а
“She clearly is. If you were in her shoes, how else would you try to protect your sister? It seems to me like she’s constantly making the best possible choices with the hand she’s been dealt.” Aides was referring to everything Wellmy had been doing as part of her plan—the way she treated her sister at home, her efforts to keep Arvine away from Iora, and her demeanor at school.
“I still think she could’ve asked for a bit of help,” Leo replied.
“Who can she trust? Forget Iora—do you really believe that Wellmy could have relied on you?”
Leo was at a loss for words. “Well, she noticed I’m the crown prince, didn’t she? She could have tried to turn to me for help,” he said eventually.
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“Have you done anything to make her believe she could trust you?”
Leo paused. “I haven’t.”
W̆е bnоv́ ёl Е ǹü m а
“You have your answer. You know what we call those who tip their hands to others without knowing whether they’re friend or foe? Fools, that’s what we call them,” Aides said. “I am honored that she seems to have chosen me, though.” He chuckled, then returned his gaze to Leo. His eyes were a little softer this time. “You must’ve done things to help Iora out of Wellmy’s sight, didn’t you? Tell me what you did.”
As always, nothing escaped him.
Leo awkwardly scratched his temple and said, “I noticed that Arvine and Wellmy always prevented Iora from interacting with other students. Although I realize now that Wellmy was simply being selective with who could talk to her sister. The students she didn’t let Iora talk to all seemed like trouble.”
Iora was an intelligent girl, but because of her circumstances, she had a tendency to fold when pressured by those above her. Leo had once stumbled upon a young lady trying to foist her homework onto Iora, and he’d had to step in to chase her away.
“At first, I started providing her food. Wellmy had ordered her not to approach Arvine, so she couldn’t eat lunch at the cafeteria. Her meals all consisted of a single piece of bread she brought from home.”
Iora had tried going to the cafeteria once. But when Arvine spotted her, he made her sit down before she could get her food and forced her to listen as he went on and on, comparing her to Wellmy. In the end, Iora hadn’t been able to eat that day.
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This incident must have been what prompted Wellmy to keep Iora away from the cafeteria.
“So I decided to help her get some food. The school had lent me a room to take my meals, as they all needed to be tasted for poison, so I invited her to join me for lunch there.”
He’d ended up arguing with his bodyguards and the school’s management, and had even gotten into a fight with his father, the king, but had eventually earned the right to invite Iora to his private room. Of course, he hadn’t told her those details.
Even when provided with full meals, Iora hadn’t eaten much, but over time, she had begun to look healthier. Leo had also finally understood why she looked so unkempt all the time—she simply couldn’t afford to stand out. The magic her mother had cast to make her eyes look blue had begun to dissipate—if others noticed her purple irises, it would have caused a huge uproar. To avoid causing a commotion, she had cast a similar spell on herself.
“Then, I created a secret salon of sorts. There are hidden passages at the noble academy meant for royals to use to escape in case of an emergency, and rooms connected to those passages. I remodelled the one accessible from the library and gave invitations only to students I knew I could trust.”
The first one had been Karla, a young lady chosen by Wellmy. After that, he had also invited the daughter of a duke, a girl who had been in the running to become the next saint, as well as a few other young ladies, including his own younger sister (the kingdom’s first princess) when she’d enrolled at the academy. Other than his sister, who obviously knew who Leo was, the others had all discovered his identity through the hints left by the royal family and had approached him nonchalantly, though still with the appropriate etiquette.
Wе̇ b n̄.õ v̌ еl̃ Е́ ñ u mа
Just to be safe, he had still let Wellmy screen them before inviting them to the salon. Iora had said that, if her sister refused to engage with these ladies, it must have meant that they were worthy of trust.
Leo didn’t know if Wellmy had been aware of his schemes, but as she was still calling him a coward, she likely hadn’t noticed.
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Only in the salon did Iora dress in proper clothes befitting her station. Over time, her smile also grew brighter. A little before graduation, her hair and skin had looked much too healthy for her to keep up her usual charade, so she had taken it upon herself to study Leo’s ring and learned how to make her hair look dull through magic.
Leo had only agreed to keep his activities a secret because Iora had begged him to. “I don’t want her to get in trouble,” or “I need to save her from that house,” she would say.
Wellmy wasn’t the one Leo wanted to save; Iora was. But he’d still honored her wishes for her sake.
“Wellmy is plotting to break off Arvine and Iora’s engagement during our graduation party. She told Iora that she would become Arvine’s new fiancée,” Leo continued.
Ė n u m̃ ӑ
“Oh? Are they planning to make a spectacle in front of the entire school at the expense of your sweetheart?”
“Probably. Iora said she would play the part Wellmy wants her to. I don’t like it. She’ll get hurt.”
But Iora had told Leo that if Wellmy was willing to sacrifice herself for her, she had to bear that pain. Faced with that logic, he had had no choice but to let Iora do as she wanted.
If Iora truly cared for her sister, then Leo had to help Wellmy. He had sworn to save Iora, and that included finding a way to protect everything she held dear as well. Besides, if Wellmy was devoted to rescuing Iora, just like he was, it meant that she was a friend, not a foe—although he refused to believe such a thing until he could make sure of it himself. He was almost entirely sure that her intentions were good...but he didn’t like that she hated him so much and that he had to compete with her for Iora’s attention.
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Leo would let her be Iora’s savior. He didn’t need to be the one she was the most thankful to. Wellmy had been protecting Iora since she was a child; he could let her have that.
“I’ll stay in the shadows until the very end,” he said resolutely.
Wе_b n о̄v̇ ё l̇ Е́ n̂ü.m̌ а̇
“Will you? Iora might be waiting for you to save her,” Aides said teasingly.
For the first time that day, Leo flashed him a smile full of self-confidence. “See, I know her better than you do.”
“Oh?”
“She’s already aware of my feelings and is starting to respond to them. So I don’t mind letting Wellmy take the glory this time.” Leo paused, stood up, and turned on his heel to go. He had to go meet with Chief Attorney Kilrane.
“As long as I can have Iora’s love, I don’t need anything else.”
