The Great Migration and The Secret Cargo

Helena’s youthful first love remained unchanged, and Elliot’s rejection was as firm as ever. I once ran into the Marquis of Swarton while I was with Elliot, and the look on his face was far from pleasant. It seemed he didn’t like the fact that his daughter—whom he had raised more preciously than a jewel—liked this boy, but he liked even less the fact that it was a one-sided crush.

Nobles from the far reaches of the Empire were currently flocking to the capital. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it a mass migration. Rather than seeking the Emperor’s favor, they were here to curry favor with whoever was poised to seize new power.

The Academy, where many of the capital’s nobility and the bourgeoisie were enrolled, also granted a vacation to coincide with the festival. Though the break wasn’t short, after subtracting travel time, the students could only enjoy about half of the festivities.

While most of the children were returning, Erkel sent word that he would remain at the Academy. He mentioned there was something he wanted to try while the campus was empty, but he didn’t offer a detailed explanation.

“She asked us to go watch the fireworks. You’re coming, right?”

“Sigh…”

I wondered if scowling like that at such a young age would give him permanent frown lines. It was a sigh so deep it seemed scraped from the bottom of his soul. Lost in thought, Elliot couldn’t give an easy answer and simply tapped the table.

I knew Elliot didn’t act this way because he hated Helena. He had simply judged that, considering their families and the current situation, rejection was the better path. While my heart hoped things would work out for them, interfering would be overstepping. The most I could do was sugarcoat things so Helena wouldn’t get hurt.

“Don’t be like that. She’s still young. When she grows up, she won’t even remember liking you.”

Elliot let out a hollow laugh and raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t you dare call me an ‘old soul’ ever again. Sometimes I feel like you’ve lived twice as long as I have.”

I’m only a child in body; there’s an adult inside me. You’re the real kid acting like an old man. I swallowed the words I couldn’t say, and all that came out was a laugh.

The children were here, but Erkel—the one who usually handled them—was gone. Judging by the letters from our peers, they had only become rowdier, not quieter, and I felt overwhelmed at the thought of spending this festival period with them. Still, it would be a waste to miss the opportunity presented by the regional powers coming to town.

In politics, money and people are everything. People don’t strive for school ties, regional connections, and blood relations for nothing. Even if the patterns were slightly different from the modern world, the Empire was still a place where people lived. It was important to put in the legwork and spend the money to gain useful connections. The difference between having at least met someone and exchanged names versus being complete strangers was vast.

Elliot and I had the goal of getting on a first-name basis with the nobles who had come up for the festival. It would be even better if we could present them with expensive gifts. A moderate gift buys favor, but an expensive gift creates a burden—the kind of burden that stays in the back of their minds, making it hard to refuse a request from our side later.

But even that required a certain level of status. If children who hadn’t even lost their baby fat tried to act pretentious, they wouldn’t win favor; instead, they’d likely leave the impression of brats acting like hooligans relying on their family names.

That left us with two options: moving with our families or meeting our peers. Neither was easy. Cale was sharp as a blade, Leo was quick-witted, and Abel wouldn’t find it interesting. As for the Count… rather than trying to play politics while standing next to him, it would be more effective to stay quietly in my room and pray for my safety.

“The Imperial Banquet is out of the question. Prince Lykion gave a firm answer.”

While banquets are a hassle, they have the advantage of allowing one to converse with many people. Chatting with a stranger doesn’t draw suspicious eyes, and stepping out onto the terrace for a private conversation doesn’t look strange. I had hoped the rules would loosen up for children’s attendance after the Salon, but no such luck this time.

“I wish I could just close my eyes and wake up as a seventeen-year-old.”

“Don’t you think it’s about time for magic that makes you look like an adult to be invented?”

Elliot muttered a small curse and tugged at his hair again. He repeatedly scribbled something with his pen and then erased it, leaving the paper messy.

I felt a prick of guilt whenever he acted like that. Even though he was working so hard as my partner-in-crime, I was keeping many secrets. My being trapped in a book was a topic I could never bring up, but it felt wrong to feign ignorance while talking to Erkel in real-time.

“Luxteel.”

“What?”

I was startled by the unexpected name. Elliot, pressing the back of his pen against his cheek, narrowed his eyes.

“I’m talking about Luxteel. You’re still in touch, right?”

“Ah, yeah…”

I was still exchanging periodic letters with Cici. But… I looked at Elliot’s indifferent face. I could see the corners of his mouth twitching strangely. If I spoke the truth, he’d probably bring up that “first love” nonsense again.

“Is she coming to the festival?”

“I didn’t ask.”

Actually, I had. I just hadn’t received an answer yet. To be honest, I hadn’t seen Cici in person since the Salon banquet. I figured she had her reasons, and I brought it up this time using the festival as an excuse, but the result was the same. I felt embarrassed, wondering if I had made things burdensome for her.

“Surely she wouldn’t come all the way from Robenus alone? She’d be with a guardian. There’s a joke in that area that wherever there is art, a Luxteel is there.”

“Last time she came without Rebecca Luxteel.”

“So you did meet her.”

Damn it. It was a trap. I glared at his smug, annoying face, but he just shrugged.

“It would be good to meet the person with the widest network in the West while we have the chance.”

“Llewellyn! Elliot!”

Aiden, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, had grown unrecognizably. He had shot up in height, already surpassing me and nearly reaching Elliot’s level. There was a new strength in his voice; it seemed Academy life suited him quite well.

I gave his shoulder a proud pat. Do they lift boulders instead of swords at the Academy? His body already felt surprisingly solid.

“Welcome back.”

“It’s… been a long time.”

My simple, kind-hearted friend’s eyes welled with tears. I was happy to see him, but had we really been apart that long? I couldn’t bring myself to reject his tearful clinging, so I opened my arms for a hug. It was a bit embarrassing for three of us to be hugging in the middle of a crowded street.

“It would have been nice if Louis and Prince Erkel could have come too.”

“Yeah.”

“I’m just glad to see you, at least.”

Aiden seemed moved again by Elliot’s uncharacteristically warm remark, and he nodded vigorously. If there were only audiences like Aiden, you could fill two hours with a video of a puppy licking a camera and still get ten million viewers.

“Helena said she’s going to catch up on the shopping she’s been putting off first.”

“For two days straight?”

“Probably for three more days.”

I couldn’t understand that level of passion, but surprisingly, Elliot took Helena’s side. He argued that buying from a catalog in another city was different from choosing in person. As expected of someone who considered his own discerning eye his greatest weapon, he already had very clear principles.

And so, we wandered around the capital, which was fully decorated for the festival, with the long-absent Aiden.

Normally, there would have been an unspoken curfew, but even Abel—who was usually on the leisure side—had been drafted for the fireworks display, leaving the house empty. In the Empire, the fireworks didn’t use gunpowder; they used mages. They didn’t literally explode them, of course, but the metaphor fit because they were squeezed so hard to produce magic flames that rivaled CG in scale, bursting against the backdrop of the Imperial Palace. I heard it was massive enough to be seen from anywhere in the capital; it was likely an exaggeration, but I got the point that it would be large and spectacular.

Currently, the streets were decorated and every shop was working hard to attract customers, but I heard many would actually close during the actual festival period. So, we went here and there, looking at everything until the list seemed endless. By the time it was well past dinner, the circles under Elliot’s eyes had darkened, and I found myself losing my words. The only one still radiating the same energy as the start was Aiden, who was burdened with a mountain of luggage. Our stamina should be about the same, so I didn’t think it was a physical issue. Is this the true power of a child?

“So, is Llewellyn going to Elliot’s house?”

“Yeah.”

There were servants at home, but that wasn’t enough to reassure Cale. To him, someone who had lived his entire life as a noble, servants were tools for convenience, not guardians he could entrust me to.

‘Even Abel is busy, so you’d be all alone.’

There were many footmen and maids making their presence known in the mansion. Cale was a good employer; he memorized their names, helped with their family events, and even wrote letters of recommendation when they retired or changed jobs. And yet, there was a very clear line for him. It hit me that it was a good thing I had ended up in the body of his youngest brother. If I had been a commoner, I wouldn’t have received his love; I likely wouldn’t have even spoken to him my entire life.

If the most rational and fair Cale felt that way, the other brothers were likely no different. It was a realization that shocked me quite suddenly.

Well… even so, I had no intention of arguing about democracy or natural human rights to a man who was an Imperial to his very core.

In any case, Cale thought it was safer for me to stay with the Dylans and asked Lady Dylan for her understanding. There was no way the Countess of Dylan, who had given her son expensive gifts specifically to befriend me, would refuse. She treated her son’s friends very graciously.

The Rooster townhouse and the Dylan mansion were close by. We quickly hopped into a carriage that Elliot called after declaring he couldn’t walk another step.

As soon as he got into the carriage, Elliot tilted his head back and closed his eyes. It didn’t take long for him to fall asleep, his breathing becoming even and shallow. Seeing this, Aiden fidgeted and dug through a bag he hadn’t put in the luggage compartment. After nervously double-checking that Elliot was truly asleep, Aiden spoke in a voice barely above a whisper.

“This… well, the Prince…”