“……”
Throughout the entire class, Ruslan squinted his eyes and stared at Sarka’s back.
……So that’s how you’re going to play it.
Sarka still sat with his back perfectly straight, his chin properly tucked in, gripping his fountain pen loosely with pale, beautiful hands without a single callus, concentrating on the lesson.
As always, he was neat and elegant—the kind of appearance that every professor would want to title “The Ideal Posture of an Exemplary Esteban Student” and hang in the auditorium.
While clutching his growling stomach and enduring the teasing from Bruce’s gang who mocked him for it, Ruslan secretly pouted his lips and glared at Sarka’s neat back of the head.
That back view sitting there as calm as a beautiful statue looked particularly infuriating today, but he decided to endure it anyway.
It’s okay! This much between friends is nothing. Thanks to that, I’m full of energy since morning!
When they gathered again at the central library for their group project, Sarka detestably returned to being a kind and polite boy just like usual, as if nothing had happened. It was like he’d changed his face entirely.
Sarka’s friends, who knew nothing, asked Ruslan about the gas lamp explosion accident at the scholarship dormitory that happened last night, then shrugged their shoulders when they heard Ruslan would be staying in Sarka’s room for the time being.
“That worked out well. We need to contact each other often for the group project, and the scholarship dormitory is too far from our rooms.”
“But what’s gotten into you, Hütivras? You said you’re a light sleeper and prefer not having a roommate.”
Sarka shrugged and said gently,
“It’s just temporary.”
……He had the expression of a perfect saint.
The boys seemed to think that the always generous and considerate Sarka couldn’t ignore a poor commoner in trouble and had shown him mercy.
Seeing the boys’ trusting gazes mixed with slight admiration and faint respect, Ruslan felt like he would burst, but decided to keep his mouth shut out of loyalty.
Yeah, this much between friends is nothing. I can pretend not to notice. Whatever.
While working on the group project, one boy suddenly spoke to Sarka in a casual tone.
“Oh right, Hütivras. About what we talked about during breakfast……”
“?”
When Sarka turned around questioningly, another boy pointed out as if just remembering.
“Sarka wasn’t there in the morning.”
“Hm? Oh, right. Sarka doesn’t eat breakfast, does he?”
The boys seemed already accustomed to that fact. When Ruslan paused and looked at Sarka, Sarka confirmed it with a languid expression tinged with a faint hint of embarrassment—which was creepy.
“I sleep in late in the mornings.”
……Lies. I saw him wake up at the crack of dawn and laze around in the living room during the entire breakfast time!
Ruslan was dumbfounded, but again, since they were friends, he decided to turn a blind eye to this level of lying and maintain loyalty.
Yeah, how exhausting must it be to go around putting on such ridiculous acts and pretending like that? He’d want to be alone during breakfast time. That’s understandable. I get it.
……But when he asked me to bring him breakfast that he doesn’t even eat in the first place, he had zero intention of eating it and just wanted to mess with me…… No. That could happen too. Let’s understand everything. Because we’re friends.
While Ruslan was being magnanimous and generous all on his own, the group project progressed smoothly.
Now that he wasn’t as nervous in front of Sarka as before, Ruslan’s eloquence gradually returned.
Though his pronunciation might still be a bit clumsy since his Imperial language was still poor, Ruslan was an excellent scholarship student who had been selected all the way from Frükan to the Empire.
Sarka’s friends soon noticed that Ruslan wasn’t as stupid as they thought, but rather quite clever.
Feeling the boys’ attitudes gradually softening, Ruslan also regained his confidence.
He’d always had headaches from being tormented by Bruce’s gang during every group project, but having a proper conversation for the first time in a while felt refreshing.
At least he didn’t seem to look like an idiot in front of Sarka, which was also a satisfying achievement.
After the boys scattered after setting their next appointment, Ruslan glanced around and then quietly sat down in front of Sarka, who remained in the library flipping through materials.
Sarka skimmed through several books piled on the desk, then briefly glanced toward the bookshelves as if he couldn’t find the material he wanted.
Ruslan straightened up with sparkling eyes as if he’d been waiting for this.
“Do you need something? Should I get it for you?”
“……”
Sarka turned his head and suddenly blinked. After staring at Ruslan for a moment, Sarka took a breath and slowly opened his mouth.
“……On shelf F20 there’s…… a three-volume series called <The Achievements and Understanding of the Hero El Cid>. Could you bring me volume 2?”
Ruslan’s eyes widened. Sarka’s attitude was indifferent. He looked like he couldn’t be bothered to move.
Ruslan jumped up like a dog receiving orders, then diligently ran off to find the shelf Sarka mentioned.
After checking shelf numbers for a while and climbing a ladder to the mezzanine level, Ruslan finally found the book Sarka mentioned in the most corner spot.
Clutching the book and turning around in delight, Ruslan discovered, however, that the ladder that had been perfectly fine just moments ago had completely disappeared.
“……”
When he quickly looked down, he could see the ladder lying neatly horizontal on the first floor. If that big ladder had fallen over on its own, it couldn’t have been this quiet, and the way it was lying horizontally in perfect parallel with the railing was absolutely not something that could happen from falling over, not even in a million years.
When he raised his head a bit more, Sarka was looking this way with an extremely leisurely expression, one arm propped on the desk supporting his chin.
When Ruslan looked around with an incredulous expression, the reading room was empty except for the two of them, and the librarian collapsed on the desk was fast asleep.
Having lost his words, Ruslan looked back toward Sarka.
Sarka had the expression of a circus customer expecting a monkey to perform tricks.
After snorting once toward that irritating face, Ruslan tucked the book under his arm and vigorously jumped down toward the top of the first-floor bookshelves.
Whatever. If that’s what you want, I’ll do a trick for you.
Ruslan’s small, light body landed on top of the bookshelf without much impact. Gripping the shelves as if to show off, Ruslan placed his feet here and there like a squirrel and soon triumphantly landed on the floor.
I’ve climbed down from the top of the bell tower, so this much is nothing. I originally grew up in the mountains, you know? Kanya said she should have named me Goral instead of Ruslan because I climb rocks like a mountain goat!
“……Here! Do you need anything else?!”
Ruslan ran up to Sarka with a bright smile and held out the book.
Sarka looked up at Ruslan with an interested expression, like looking at a dog that brought back a ball, then smiled without even checking the book cover.
“This isn’t the right book. It must have been volume 3.”
“……”
His voice was shamelessly sweet. Ruslan narrowed his eyes and looked down at Sarka for a moment, but soon turned around cheerfully.
Ah, fine! You can misremember! People can do that!
This time, as soon as he climbed up to the mezzanine, he grabbed the ladder and pulled it up in advance. Worried that Sarka might steal it again with his telekinesis while he left it on the floor, Ruslan tucked the heavy ladder under one side and walked while groaning.
Finally returning to the shelf from before, Ruslan put the book back and reached for volume 3 in the corner.
Swoosh!
Suddenly, the book he was about to grab flipped over as if caught on a fishing line and flew up to the top of the bookshelf, settling there with a thunk.
Ruslan stared up at the top of the bookshelf with his hand outstretched like a dog that lost the chicken it was chasing, then quickly turned his head to look at Sarka.
Sarka was now leaning back leisurely against the chair backrest, fully engaged in watching. His attitude was truly indescribably idle. Those eyes containing a subtle red glow that had been terrifying just yesterday now looked like something he wanted to punch.
……Punch? What nonsense am I thinking. I should protect and cherish him.
Suppressing his feelings and pulling up the ladder to lean against the bookshelf, Ruslan quickly began climbing up toward the top of the shelf. However, just as Ruslan barely stretched out his hand and was about to reach it, the book slid smoothly to the side.
By how much did it slide? Exactly the precise distance where no matter how much Ruslan stretched while on the ladder, he’d be short by exactly 5cm, so he’d inevitably have to climb back down the ladder, move it, and climb back up again.
His insides were boiling, but Ruslan obediently climbed back down the ladder, groaned while carrying the ladder a few steps to the right, then diligently climbed back up.
But this time too, just before Ruslan reached out, the book slid to the left. To the exact spot where it had been before Ruslan had worked hard to move positions.
Ruslan fumed and looked back at Sarka, but Sarka was leisurely observing Ruslan with an expression wondering when this stupid mutt would lose its reason and start barking.
Meeting those indifferent red eyes, Ruslan soon changed his mind.
So, you’re saying you’ll mercilessly give me dog training every time I offer to help?
You must be curious how long I’ll last while claiming we’re friends…….
I endured 7 years in a rural village in Frükan getting beaten like a dog.
This much is cute pet treatment, really!
Ruslan snorted loudly to show off and energetically began moving the ladder again.
For quite a while after that, Ruslan felt like he’d become a stupid pet cat whose owner hangs a toy on a fishing rod and waves it around, as he flailed his hands in the air.
Sarka, infuriatingly enough, never moved the book too much at once. Moving it at exactly the precise speed, angle, and intensity that would drive a person to death from frustration, Sarka seemed like he’d taken specialized classes in driving people crazy.
Eventually giving up on the ladder and clinging to the bookshelf with his bare hands, jumping here and there while floundering, Ruslan finally succeeded in grabbing his target by throwing his whole body at it, but instead fell to the floor with a crash and rolled.
The librarian, startled awake by the noise, wiped his drool and looked around, then discovered Ruslan collapsed on the mezzanine clutching a book and rushed over to scold him.
After getting thoroughly scolded while suppressing his sense of injustice, Ruslan dejectedly crouched obediently in front of Sarka as the librarian ordered.
However, as soon as the librarian returned to his spot, Ruslan glanced that way, then straightened his shoulders as if nothing had happened.
“Here! Do you have anything else for me to do?! This is actually getting fun!!”
Bang! The book he put down forcefully bounced slightly from the recoil on the table.
Even while gritting his teeth, Ruslan spoke loudly with a deliberately energetic voice. He had absolutely no intention of losing. Ruslan lifted his chin up stiffly while putting all his strength into his navy blue eyes.
Sarka, who had been watching the process like watching a performing monkey while still leisurely supporting his chin, smiled prettily with crinkled eyes without even glancing at the book cover and answered cheerfully,
“Put it back.”
