Chapter 60
One warm, sunny afternoon.
I was sitting at my desk in the room, leisurely reading a book, when my aide Io came in and handed me something.
“A letter?”
“Yes. It’s addressed to you, Miss!”
“Looks like it’s for Paulus.”
It used to arrive monthly, but since he went to the academy, it had become a bit irregular.
Curious about its contents, I opened the papyrus letter. The neat handwriting, so typical of Paulus, filled the page.
**[To Kalidora,
How have you been? I’ve been well.
It’s already been two seasons since we last met.
It feels like you only just left, but time really does fly.
And I think the happiness and peaceful days I’ve had are thanks to your affection and support.]**
His writing style has grown quite mature, I thought.
The next part, however, grabbed my attention even more:
**[It seems I’ll be the top student this time.
But it’s a special case, so it’s not truly the top in the strictest sense.
I can already imagine you being happy and then disappointed.
But if I don’t mention it, it feels like I’d be lying. Once you hear the circumstances, you’ll understand.
Aquillus, who always takes first place, will leave the academy before the graduation ceremony.
The Marius family has had intense factional conflicts, and apparently, due to some issue, their support for him has been cut off.
This is just my speculation, but the atmosphere at the academy seems unusual.
Someone like Aquillus, a genius of his caliber, would always have at least one teacher willing to support him, yet no one is stepping forward.
It’s just a matter of waiving his tuition, really. It’s as if someone is deliberately blocking his education. Strange, right?
I value his talent, so I hope he doesn’t leave, but there’s nothing I can do.
By now, you may know that our family and the Marius family are sworn enemies. We’ve barely spoken unless solving math problems together.
Anyway!
I have a few Fire Power Scrolls developed at the academy, and I’ll bring them this time.
They let you create interesting shapes, so it’ll be fun.
It’ll be good to play with Velikia and Velicus together.
I always send letters to Velicus, but I’ve never received a reply. He’s probably fine, though.
That’s all the news I have to share this time. See you soon.
—Paulus]**
I paused for a long moment even after finishing the letter.
“Is there some interesting news?”
Io asked, twirling my hair into a strange braid for fun.
“No, just… something’s bothering me.”
Marius Aquillus.
The name was familiar.
A renowned mathematician and power scholar of this era. A traitor who fled to the neighboring country Hela and supplied knowledge to the enemy.
I remembered his name so clearly because the knowledge he provided would drastically shift the balance of the Etherna war more than ten years later.
His influence wasn’t just about the Hela people being able to freely manipulate ether, but it also led to the death of Lord Abelus, who wielded Fire Power.
So that’s why he exiled himself… I can roughly understand his situation.
It made sense that he had been expelled from Etherna’s academy and moved to a neighboring country’s institution.
I have to help him.
Even if he leaves, I must make sure he doesn’t pass on his knowledge of fluid power to the enemy.
Clutching Paulus’s letter, I headed to the office. The head of the family was away, so I first consulted my close aides. But their reply was reasonable and firm:
“Aquillus… It’s unfortunate, but not supporting him is the way to keep him safe.”
“Why?”
“The Marius family is split into two factions: his family, Aquillus, and the Glaesius faction. The Glaesius faction controls the family but cannot eliminate the opposition due to familial ties. If Aquillus accepts aid from our enemy faction, the Glaesius faction would have solid grounds to eliminate him.”
“I see…”
Even though he was a potential threat to an opposing family, he was just a young boy. Deliberately putting him in danger would be unethical.
I decided to forgo helping Aquillus under the family name.
Instead, I quietly summoned Ankus, who had immense control over the family’s assets.
“Anku, I want to help Aquillus. If it’s impossible under the family name, can’t we quietly pay his tuition?”
Ankus tended to be astonishingly cold in matters like this.
“Why should we?”
“It’s a waste to ignore his talent. He was always top of his class at the academy.”
“Someone else will recognize his talent. The family’s assets are meant for the people of Ardentruina. That alone isn’t enough reason to help the boy.”
“But he will later–”
Boom! Crash!
A sudden lightning strike hit the nearby garden as if the sky itself roared.
Everyone inside rushed out at once.
“The sky is so blue… lightning?”
“It seems we’ve incurred the wrath of the Sky God.”
“I should go to the temple immediately.”
The aides dropped everything and ran toward the temple.
Was this… because of me?
Was it because I was thinking about future events?
“Oh, Anku…”
“It’s alright, Miss. It happens often. If the family strays down a wrong path, the gods sometimes send warnings like this.”
Ankus murmured, “Perhaps there was an issue with the law you were about to pass…”
I stayed silent, sweating nervously.
Using the family’s money was impossible, and I had no assets of my own to spend freely.
No… wait… I do have some.
I retrieved the money I had saved in the heir’s vault. A few silver coins occasionally given by adults and some gold coins from the elders.
“Hmm…”
I wandered around the courtyard, contemplating.
Even with just these coins, I could cover a year of Aquillus’s tuition at the academy.
Should I secure him with this for now?
But the same situation could repeat in a few years, meaning I’d have to find money again.
Then, my eyes fell on a plaque in the courtyard with news from the kingdom.
One corner reported a match held in the colosseum:
[Barbaros has won three consecutive victories. This brave boy is nicknamed the reincarnation of Achilles.]
Famous names are appearing frequently these days. Barbaros… he’s the legendary gladiator of Etherna, right?
“Hmmm…”
I stared at the word “colosseum” on the plaque.
It’s not entirely proper… but…
As I stood there thinking, the aides who had rushed out returned.
“We’re back.”
“What did the oracle say?”
“It’s fine; the oracle’s message implies no issues since the situation has been realized.”
“Oh…!”
Thank goodness.
Seems like it really was because of me.
“Does that mean the gods forgave us?”
“It seems so. Just look at that…”
The aides pointed to the sky above the courtyard.
Two vivid rainbows stretched over the Ignitus estate.
Unlike lightning, rainbows had long been considered a good omen.
“Miss, what were you doing here?”
The aides approached to get a closer look.
“Ah, nothing at all!”
I quickly stood and ran back to my room.
“Io, my loyal aide! The time has come. Let’s start our first mission.”
Io was excited like a young puppy, then quickly realized a true aide shouldn’t be so frivolous, and put on a serious expression.
“What’s the mission, Miss?”
“We’re taking this to the Forum. Of course, we don’t have permission.”
“The Forum?”
“It may not seem trustworthy, but remember the rules you must follow as my aide.”
“No, I trust you!” Io shouted.
“No matter what you say, I will believe you!”
…A green chick following a mother hen.
That image came to mind.
“Io, you know how to ride a horse, right?”
“Of course!”
“There are ponies I’ve secretly trained in the stable. We’ll ride them out. I know the way.”
Io had already placed a “Do Not Enter” sign on my door.
“We’re going out the window, right?”
…So you’ve done this sort of thing before, huh?
