D-1
The festival that he had thought was still far away had already approached right before his eyes.
Already next week.
As expected, a day spent at Kaiserion Academy passed much faster than the time he had spent at the imperial palace. Of course, it was absolutely not because “school life was enjoyable.” It was because Kaiserion Academy kept students so busy they couldn’t even catch their breath.
Students had to not only maintain academic grades but also join at least one academic club as a requirement. And all annual events were designed to be hosted and operated by the students’ own hands.
From simple entrance parties to festivals that lasted for five whole days. They say there’s much to learn in the process of preparing for these things together, but…
‘At this rate, the budget will be woefully insufficient…’
In Nigel’s hands was a list of estimated requests from each academic department for the ‘Mardinia Festival.’
Starting this year, Nigel had obtained the real power in the student council to coordinate the budget plan for the entire ‘Mardinia Festival.’ It was something he had wanted from the start when he entered the academy and joined the student council.
Having personally felt and observed how the festival operated during his freshman year last year, he was confident enough to handle the student council’s actual work himself.
Nigel kept his expression composed without any dishevelment, but the corners of his mouth were trembling ever so slightly.
‘At the very least, it’s too little.’
Looking at the list, a strange stuffiness rose along with anxiety. He hadn’t realized it when enjoying the festival last year, but now that he was directly composing the operating budget, accomplishing all those things felt like a miracle.
At this rate, it might become a much more shabby festival than last year.
The budget had actually decreased slightly.
‘At this rate, my perfect school life that has never once left a blemish…!’
The reason the situation had become like this was not internal to the academy, but external. The empire had recently subordinated yet another kingdom to the empire’s territory.
No matter how much there was no nation on the continent that could oppose Kaiserion, it was impossible for there to be no blood shed by the empire in the process.
The academy’s budget had decreased by exactly that much. Nigel had no complaints about that.
However, he was slightly dissatisfied that such a time happened to coincide exactly with when he became in charge of the festival budget.
The ‘Mardinia Festival’ was the biggest event even within the academy. Moreover, now that he could touch the budget even though he hadn’t become president yet, if words like “more boring than expected” or “tedious” came out about the festival, it would clearly be no different from his management failure.
The migraine that had developed at some point showed no signs of improving even when he took medicine or showed it to the imperial physician at the palace.
And it was happening right now too.
“…”
He furrowed his brow and rubbed his temple with his fingers. Because of that, his neatly combed hair became slightly disheveled, but it couldn’t be helped. Nigel’s expression crumpled.
Unless he graduated, this headache would probably continue to follow him. It was fortunate that there were mountains of things to do right now.
His Majesty the Emperor said that since it was a place where many nobles and heirs gathered, the most important thing was simply to enjoy it and make final memories, but Nigel couldn’t take even one academy class lightly.
Until he came to the academy, his life had always been smooth sailing. From his attitude and achievements that satisfied everyone’s expectations, to his overwhelmingly superior succession ranking and public sentiment compared to other princes.
Everything he had wanted to do and obtain since birth, he had gotten his hands on. He thought it would always be that way.
But after enrollment, Kaiserion Academy constantly put Nigel to the test.
‘Nigel. Are you feeling unwell somewhere? Are you sick?’
‘Nigel. You should rest now. You don’t look well.’
‘Nigel.’
‘Nigel!’
Not only did he enroll in the same year as that guy who somehow knew his condition so well even though he showed no signs of it…
‘It wouldn’t look good for the empire’s crown prince to lose to a mere prince from the borderlands, would it?’
‘Wow, look at that expression. Do you want to have everything your way even at this academy? Wake up from your dream.’
There was even that guy from a neighboring country who dared to challenge and try to beat him without knowing his place, grating on Nigel’s nerves.
The only consolation was…
“Lord Nigel.”
Someone approached Nigel as he was examining the budget report. Judging from the careful yet cold tone and the way of lightly knocking on the table without directly touching it…
“Eden.”
It was Eden Lake, the most useful talent among the freshmen who joined the student council this time. An answer immediately came back from far above.
“Yes.”
A low voice that could be heard precisely even in the noisy student dining hall.
“It’s me. Senior.”
When he raised his head, he saw Eden Lake’s face, slightly relaxed. To others, it was the same sharp expression, but only Nigel, who had been right next to him for several months, could notice.
Anyway, that aside.
“Lunch?”
At Nigel’s question, Eden Lake answered as if he had been waiting.
“Not yet.”
“Really?”
It was an unexpected answer. It had been a while since morning classes ended, so what had he been doing skipping lunch until now?
Since Kaiserion Academy was a place where successors from each country and children of noble families gathered, lunchtime was also considered a social venue and was guaranteed.
Had someone interfered to prevent him from eating? Nigel furrowed his brow ever so slightly.
“This table is empty, so feel free to use it.”
It was a suggestion he would never have made to other noisy guys, but his counterpart was Eden Lake. Since he knew the guy was so quiet and only gave minimum answers, he could offer one side of the table.
As if proving that thought, Eden Lake, instead of answering, bowed his head once lightly and then took a seat one space away at the same table.
It was funny that he was still shy even though they were people who had seen each other every day in the student council for a year after enrollment.
“Why there.”
After smirking with stretched lips, Nigel tapped the seat next to him with his finger.
“Just sit here. I had something to say to you anyway.”
At Nigel’s suggestion, Eden Lake hesitated slightly but eventually followed. No matter how you looked at it, he looked like a well-trained hunting dog.
Nigel felt satisfaction at Eden’s quickly moving figure and thought. They both look like puppies, so why is that guy…
‘Nigel, I’m worried about you.’
The voice from his memory clung persistently. That guy was definitely somewhere else right now, yet it felt like he was facing those clear, blue eyes.
“…Thank you.”
While Nigel was lost in thought, Eden expressed his thanks. No need to be thankful. Nigel lightly accepted the greeting. He highly valued Eden Lake’s attitude of maintaining courtesy in these detailed aspects—blunt but not crossing the line.
He was from a country at the western edge of the continent, recently incorporated into the empire.
Sihar.
An ill-fated nation that fell into the grasp of the massive empire because it was less than 10 years old since its founding and had weak solidarity and power. He was a perfect outsider who didn’t belong to any part of this complicated power structure.
Ordinary students were reluctant to interact with Eden Lake, who was not only from outside the empire but also from a country erased from the map, but for Nigel, that very point became the reason he kept Eden Lake by his side.
Eden Lake wasn’t entangled in the complicated interests that had become complex through long history like the noble families within the empire. He had no family to pledge loyalty to, no background to lean on and display power. Having nothing meant having nothing to lose.
What he had within the academy was only his ability and the person who recognized that ability and placed him in the student council—Nigel Kaiserion. Therefore, he was the most powerful hunting dog who could stake his life on a single gesture from Nigel.
Yes, Eden was someone who had perfectly entered Nigel Kaiserion’s fence at the academy.
“Senior, here.”
“…Hm?”
No wonder it felt busy. In Eden’s hand was the medicine bottle that Nigel usually took.
“Do you carry this around every day?”
No matter how much Eden followed him around almost every day as if assisting him, there was a one-year difference between them. The fact that he handed this over even in the student dining hall, where the probability of running into Nigel was low, meant he carried the medicine around every day.
Eden Lake received a glass of water from a server and then answered with a matter-of-fact face.
“Yes, you look for it often.”
Was it because Nigel had recognized him? From some point on, Eden Lake had volunteered to do menial tasks like ordering or keeping track of Nigel’s medicine.
Though he couldn’t understand him willingly doing work befitting a servant, Nigel was letting it be, as it seemed to be his own way of expressing gratitude.
Gulp. He mixed the medicine Eden handed over with water and drank it. Perhaps because of his junior who didn’t grate on his nerves and his stable surroundings, even the headache that had been piercing his head seemed to subside a little.
In fact, the reason Kaiserion Academy gathered talents from across the entire continent was not only to teach them knowledge.
A more important reason was to imprint in advance the absolute order of the empire and the imperial family on these capable heirs who would return to their respective territories and families after graduation and grasp power.
This place was a magnificently packaged massive control zone. In fact, there was no place within the academy that showed this fact more blatantly than the student dining hall. It was because of the table arrangement that was implicitly established.
The window seats with the best sunlight were always claimed by the children of the empire’s three great ducal families, and the central hall was the domain of the influential count and marquis families that followed them.
The scholarship students sponsored by the Magic Tower gathered in quiet corner seats and formed their own league, and the knight family guys from the swordsmanship department sat near the entrance and loudly showed off their muscles.
And at the very center of all those tables, the seat closest to the head of the table, was the table of Nigel Kaiserion, the crown prince of the empire.
The only people who could sit here in the large academy were his old friend Rowen and Eden. Without Nigel’s permission, not even the academy’s professors could sit—
…Of course, there were exceptions. If the headmaster Silvanus, who was the owner of this place and a dragon no less, wanted it, no one could stop him. Even he, the crown prince of the empire, would be unable to.
But since he wouldn’t be interested in something as trivial as a seat in the student dining hall, this table could ‘almost’ only be sat at by people Nigel permitted.
Nigel’s gaze turned back to the seat next to him.
