Unexpected Invitations and Purple Gems

If I only listened to his soft, comforting voice, I might have actually believed he was worried about my well-being. But the illusion was shattered by his crimson eyes—they were bone-chillingly cold, and he made no effort to hide it. If he had truly wanted me to believe in his kindness, he would have acted the part more convincingly. Instead, the Crown Prince wanted me to feel uncomfortable and pressured rather than at ease. What a nasty personality.

“If you wish to refuse, then you must. I didn’t intend to startle you so much. If Lord Edwill finds out, he’ll surely be grumpy again.”

The Crown Prince is one thing, but my second brother… is truly something else. To draw out a cute word like “grumpy” from the Crown Prince—a man one shouldn’t even joke with—is impressive. Leopold had grumbled about me learning the sword from Edward Spelmann and hadn’t liked the word “apology” either. But I didn’t expect him to act that way in front of the Crown Prince. Leopold Edwill only acts like an idiot in front of me; he isn’t actually like that.

I remembered my second brother looking at me with sad, puppy-dog eyes whenever I returned home exhausted after training. If he wore that expression at work, it’s no wonder people asked what was wrong.

“Is it burdensome?”

“…”

“You may answer honestly.”

And what if I actually gave an honest answer? I imagined the Crown Prince’s face if I told him, ‘You are incredibly burdensome, and I’d prefer if we never met again.’ Yeah, better not.

“It’s not that it’s burdensome…”

“Not burdensome, but?”

“It’s… flustering, and it was so sudden… yes. It was just very sudden.”

“Ah.”

The Crown Prince nodded as if he finally understood.

“So, I am not burdensome, but I am flustering and sudden.”

“No, that’s not… that’s not what I meant…”

Why did he have to phrase it like that?

As I frantically waved my hands in protest, I heard a small chuckle and realized the bastard was teasing me. Do I really have an easy-to-tease face? I didn’t think so. Llewellyn Edwill didn’t look particularly “soft.” Perhaps because Kim Min-ji’s taste was “feline-like beauties,” my eyes were actually quite sharp. My bright blonde hair just prevented me from looking too fierce.

“Are you pouting?”

“No, I am not.”

“Oh dear. I was told that asking if someone is pouting only fuels their anger. My mistake. Are you angry, then?”

“No. How could I ever…”

How could a mere son of a Count without a title dare be angry at the Crown Prince? I took a deep breath, trying to suppress my annoyance. I smoothed out my ragged breathing and pulled back my protruding pout.

The Crown Prince, who waited patiently while I managed my expression, asked if I had more practice left.

“I was just taking a break.”

Though that “moment” had passed a long time ago. Come to think of it, where did Spelmann go? He still hadn’t returned. It was likely… because of him. The Crown Prince, who was undoubtedly the reason for Spelmann’s long absence, played innocent.

“I shall invite you formally next time. I hope you can spare some time then.”

An attendant standing nearby followed behind the Crown Prince as he departed. News of today’s meeting would surely reach Annette’s ears. I didn’t know how it would be framed. It would be a relief if it just stopped at “The Crown Prince appeared and they talked for a while,” but if the details got out, her gentle eyes might turn as cold as the Prince’s.

“I suppose the next time we meet will be at the banquet. I look forward to it.”

Don’t. Don’t look forward to anything, dammit.

“Llewellyn, is something wrong?”

The eldest brother stroked my head with a worried face. It was my first bit of free time in a while, and since I had been excited about touring the capital, it was only natural for him to worry when his youngest was suddenly drooping. I tried to pretend nothing was wrong, but I clearly failed.

However, all I could do was slowly shake my head. To offset his worry, I added a bright smile. My brother smiled back.

In my heart, I wanted to cling to him and wail that the Crown Prince had showed up and bullied me. I wanted to whine about how annoyed and flustered I was. He would have listened intently and comforted me. With his calm demeanor, I felt like I could act like a child forever in front of him. But I knew I couldn’t. Instead of venting my frustrations, I just acted spoiled.

So what if the Crown Prince bullied me?

If the eldest brother could have taken immediate action, he would have done so long ago. He wouldn’t have sent me to the palace at Annette’s call, and he would have refused when the Crown Prince assigned Spelmann as my teacher. Even I, who had always stayed away from political strife, could see how things were moving; there was no way the Count and my eldest brother—seasoned politicians—didn’t realize the situation.

Still, I wasn’t resentful. Their love for Llewellyn was sincere. It wasn’t easy for someone working at the Imperial Palace to commute all the way back to the estate every day just to see my face. Unlike the second brother, who clocked out the moment the bell rang, the eldest had many responsibilities on his shoulders. He was doing his best.

“I want to eat ice cream.”

I could eat other desserts in place of a meal, but for some reason, 8-year-old Llewellyn’s stomach always got upset after eating ice cream. Because of that, everything cold—from ice cream to sherbet—had been banned at home for a while. My brothers felt more sorry about my inability to eat it than I did. But I was much stronger now, so it was fine. In fact, I had already eaten it several times at Erkel’s palace.

“Ice cream?”

The eldest brother hesitated for a moment but eventually couldn’t refuse his lovely youngest’s request. He gave my cheek a gentle squeeze and promised to buy me a three-scoop cone. With berries and syrup. And plenty of other toppings! Unable to hide my excitement, I kept adding things until it reached a dangerously sweet visual that made my teeth ache just looking at it.

As the sweet, cold treat entered my mouth, my mood improved. I didn’t think I liked sweets this much before, but since becoming Llewellyn, I never skipped a snack. I wasn’t sure if my tastes changed with my body or if it was just because I was a kid now.

“Have you picked anything out?”

“Mmm… I’ve never given a gift before, so I don’t know.”

That was half-true. What would a ten-year-old girl like? Childish character goods crossed my mind, but I dismissed them. I wasn’t even sure if such things existed in the Empire, and judging by her letters, Sissi didn’t seem like the type to enjoy them.

Even after looking through the shops one by one, I couldn’t decide. I thought she might like books, but she probably read them all already. It was too late to ask what she hadn’t read yet. I also felt shy about making it too obvious that I was picking a gift. If I had known, I would have paid more attention when I was wandering around with Helena and Louis.

In the end, at the bookstore I entered to find a gift for Sissi, I only ended up buying a mountain of books for myself. While the castle had many books, they lacked the topics I was interested in. Politics, administration, history, and magic were covered enough in my lessons. I’d have to read them as I got older, but I didn’t want to touch that stuff at ten. What if my brothers started gushing again and said, ‘Our kid is a genius!’?

“How about accessories for a girl?”

“Accessories?”

“Something like a hairpin wouldn’t be too burdensome.”

True. It was a shimmering hairpin that had stolen Helena’s heart. As expected of the eldest brother. Choosing him as my companion for today was an excellent move. If it had been the second brother, we would have gone home ages ago. ‘Romance? It’s too early! Stay by my side a little longer!’ I would have been too busy comforting him as he sobbed in the street.

Holding Cale’s hand, I entered the shop I had visited before. Recognizing my face, the quick-witted clerk prepared the same juice I had chosen then. As the refreshing drink hit my sugar-numbed mouth, I hummed a little tune.

“Is there something in particular you are looking for?”

“A gift. Something suitable for a ten-year-old girl.”

The clerk led Cale to one side. Hearing my name mentioned occasionally, it seemed she was also introducing items that would suit me. She grasped the customer’s needs instantly; she really knew how to run a business.

Leaving them to it, I wandered around the shop until a necklace caught my eye. It featured a purple gem that looked exactly like Sissi’s hair; it wasn’t too large, so it wouldn’t look burdensome on a child’s neck.

“Would you like me to take it out for you?”

I nodded instinctively at her kind offer. Up close, the necklace shimmered strangely every time it caught the light.

“Gifting a gem that matches her eye color… how romantic.”

Romantic for a kid? I stared blankly at the necklace before turning red. I was only thinking about Sissi’s hair color, but come to think of it, Llewellyn’s eyes were also purple.

#25

“Llewellyn, I was thinking something decorated with pearls… Oh.”

I was caught red-handed by my brother while emptying my allowance, which I had been hoarding since I had no use for it. He, who had likely been picking out a gift with the aesthetic sense Annette praised him for, let out a hollow laugh. The hairpin the eldest brother chose was definitely pretty. Helena or Lucia would have screamed if they saw it.

But the necklace… yet, that pin would also look good. Recalling Sissi’s face, which was starting to get a bit blurry in my memory, I debated between the necklace and the pin. Last time, her hair was down without any ornaments, so I didn’t know how she usually styled it. It seemed like it would suit loose hair better than tied-up hair.

However, my dilemma was short-lived. Cale, who pulled out a gold plaque, was much faster than me as I sat there counting gold coins and comparing prices. It was the gold plaque Louis had been singing about.

Of course, it made no sense for an Edwill not to be issued one, so both the eldest and second brothers had them. But since the third brother and I weren’t adults, we could only watch their easy payments with envious eyes. At least Abel had been my comrade in this, but since he could get one after his next birthday, it was a distant dream only for me.

“I could have bought it with my allowance.”

“Please let me buy this.”

He spoke playfully, saying he couldn’t pass up the honor of giving the first gift my youngest ever picked out. He handed me the wrapped gift. Receiving it carefully for fear of wrinkling it, I promised to give him a gift next time. As I left the shop holding Cale’s hand, I heard a sincere farewell behind my back.

If I only gave a gift to the eldest, the others would surely pout, so I’d have to buy something for everyone. I’ll have to think about the items. Even if I just picked a wildflower and gave it to them, they were the type of people who would fuss over it and cast permanent preservation magic, but I still wanted to give them proper gifts.

The route I took with the second brother wasn’t bad, but it couldn’t match the eldest brother’s sense. They say if you want to find good local restaurants, go where the civil servants go. Perhaps because he had spent more time at the Imperial Palace, Cale knew plenty of hidden gems in addition to restaurants. I also liked that he didn’t try to carry me the whole time. He held me when passing through crowded areas but let me down to walk whenever the path cleared before I even had to ask.

Cale seemed to be in high spirits too, as he even handed me street food he normally wouldn’t have bought. He probably figured they wouldn’t sell such low-quality stuff so close to the Imperial Palace. The candy, which had a fascinating tingly taste, left dye behind like junk food. Cale eventually noticed my tongue was stained green and blue.

“To sell such a thing…”

Cale’s face hardened, but he eventually burst into laughter when I asked, “It’ll go back to normal, right?”

We giggled together as he told me not to worry since the color would likely fade before I went to sleep. It was unusual to see Cale—who usually maintained a serious image except when doting on me—acting like a typical young man his age, but it wasn’t bad. Someday, when he gets married and has a kid, I’ll be able to return as much as I received to my niece or nephew.

After wandering around happily for quite some time, we boarded the carriage heading for the gate. Having moved my body all morning and walked a lot in the afternoon, my eyelids felt heavy. Since I’d wake up in my own bed even if I fell asleep here, it wouldn’t hurt, right? A yawn I couldn’t hold back escaped.

Cale willingly offered his thigh as a pillow. The touch of his hand gently stroking my hair was ticklish.

“Llewellyn.”

“Yes…”

My brother’s voice drifted through my fading consciousness. The carriage, boasting a ride quality comparable to a luxury car, rolled smoothly along the well-paved road.

“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”

06. The Magic Tower

The scenery flashed past the window of the speeding carriage. The roads of the capital, Rubete, were wide and paved so smoothly that we could pick up speed without any jolts. Separate lanes for carriages were only found on the main boulevards near the Imperial Palace, so we’d usually have to squeeze through crowds elsewhere, but fortunately, the area near the gate where the Mana Stones were located was entirely dedicated to carriages.

This also meant that if you weren’t well-off enough to afford a carriage, you couldn’t use the teleportation stones either.

“I’m sure you’ll love it, Llewellyn.”

A very excited Abel fidgeted in his seat. I smiled back at his glowing face.

We were moving toward the Mana Stone Gate located to the west of the Imperial Palace. Our destination was the Magic Tower.

Since the eldest and second brothers worked at the palace, I could occasionally visit them, but Abel spent so much time at the Magic Tower that I couldn’t see him there. Furthermore, Abel seemed deeply shocked when he heard I had toured the capital with the eldest brother several times. After that, he spent every evening by the window, pretending to be lost in thought while making sure I could hear him say, ‘I wish I could show Llewellyn how cool I look while working…’ I couldn’t ignore him any longer, so we set a date.

In the process, I ignored the basic magic books and books with illusion spells that Abel sneakily pushed toward me. I only hoped he hadn’t given up on the idea of teaching me magic yet.

Rahid, where the Magic Tower is located, is physically quite far from the capital, but true to its nickname, “The City of Mages,” it had many Mana Stones directly connected to it. I heard that once you take a carriage to the Mana Stone Gate, there are various modes of transportation available in Rahid.

Whether that was an exaggeration or not, the Rahid Gate was massive. The high-ceilinged building was bustling with people entering and leaving Rahid. Considering that gates are usually simple structures with a few Mana Stones and a couple of mages stationed to use teleportation magic, this scale was enormous.

“Hello. Welcome to Rahid.”

A man in a gray suit, which appeared to be a uniform, approached and held out a palm-sized plate. Abel naturally placed his wrist against it.

“Abel Edwill, confirmed. Has your companion completed the entry procedures?”

“We need to go do that now.”

“I see. The processing desk is in the room after taking a wide turn to the left. Please refer to the map on the back of the pamphlet for the exact location, and check pages 3 to 7 for details regarding temporary seal ratings.”

The Magic Tower, the oldest structure in the Empire, was valuable in its own right. Considering it had produced countless mages before the founding of the Academy and that many mages were still achieving great feats there, it wasn’t surprising that Rahid’s security was stricter than the capital’s.

All official mages who graduated from the Academy or were recognized as disciples by a high-ranking mage of the Tower received a seal from the Magic Tower; only with that could they roam Rahid freely. Students, apprentices, and outsiders who hadn’t received a seal yet had to register their affiliation near the gate. Even then, there was a restriction that a guardian with a confirmed mage status had to remain within a certain distance.

Not just anyone could enter, but that was exactly why it was a popular place. People naturally love things that differentiate them from others.

The man at the desk greeted us with a habitual service smile. The green-haired mage had a friendly impression, but unlike his neatly dressed suit, his hair was messy and unkempt.

“Oh.”

The green-haired man’s eyes widened upon seeing Abel’s face. His messy hair already made him look restless, but with that expression, he looked like a total eccentric.

“Wow! Abel, it’s been a long time!”

“Not really. I don’t think it’s been that long.”

“Oh, come on! It’s been 19 days, 5 hours, and 27 minutes. That counts as a long time!”

Mmm. It seemed it wasn’t just his appearance.

Abel, whose personality was only “decent” compared to other mages but couldn’t objectively be called good, made his annoyance very clear.

“If you’re working, just do your job.”

“Ah, right! But Lord Tecon will be so happy to know you’re here. He said you hadn’t shown your face for a while because of family matters. He’s been acting quite cranky because of it. It got so bad that Frey calls me every lunch break to talk about retirement plans… Oops, no. Please forget that part.”

He talked a lot, and he talked fast. If I didn’t focus, I’d miss half of what he said. Abel, who had come all the way to Rahid to show off his cool, professional older brother side, struggled to maintain a smile.

“Do your job, Hans. Your job.”

“Ugh, alright. What is your name? Please fill out these forms first. Anyway, you get it, right? Abel, the Frey thing is a secret.”

“I don’t care if that guy retires or drops out.”

Abel pointed a finger at Hans and then covered his own mouth. Hans quietly shut up, seemingly understanding the gesture that meant ‘If you say one more word, I’ll shut your mouth for you.’

I carefully filled out the form asking for personal details like name, age, residence, occupation, and guardian. As I handed it over, Hans looked back and forth between me and Abel with a surprised face. He looked like he wanted to say something, but when Abel smiled “benevolently,” Hans just made an ‘O’ shape with his thumb and index finger and laughed awkwardly.

It seemed he only realized we were brothers after checking the name. I thought I looked quite a lot like Abel, aside from the hair color.

After confirming the documents, Hans stamped the back of my hand. The ink was oily and slick, but it quickly sublimated after the stamp was removed, leaving only a cool sensation. A faint mark of the Mage Association’s seal, led by the Magic Tower, remained, shimmering depending on the angle. Abel informed me from the side that the darker and more elaborate the seal, the higher the rank of the mage.

Only as we were leaving the processing desk did Hans speak up again.

“Have a pleasant trip in Rahid!”