- Destiny
After returning from the royal capital, Adrian was finally able to enjoy his break just as he had originally planned—tending to the greenhouse and basking in the peace of the forest. Whenever he woke up in the morning and glanced at the bed next to his, Mikhail’s bed was always empty.
No one had ever pressured the youngest prince of the Rustavaran royal family to live up to the lofty title of Sword Master, after all. Shrugging lightly, Adrian headed to the dressing room. It felt oddly nostalgic slipping into the Basamiel uniform he hadn’t worn all break.
With some time still left before class, he planned to spend his free hour in front of the main building.
Breathing in the fresh scent of grass, Adrian sat down on a bench in the central garden and opened a book titled A Study on the Ecology and Habitats of Chindelini Trees. He sensed someone approaching the bench.
“Hey!”
“Long time no see. Did you have a good break?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Yushi, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, nodded at Adrian’s polite greeting, responding half-heartedly. It was a kind of signal—indicating there was something more important than the greeting itself—but Adrian didn’t pick up on it. Believing the small talk was over, he turned his eyes back to the book. But as Yushi came right up to the bench, her shoes entered his line of sight.
“……Adrian. Got a moment?”
“Yeah. What’s up?”
Is she really going to make me greet her twice? He glanced up from the book again and smiled as he answered. Adrian tilted his head slightly, watching as Yushi just smiled back, her cute little snaggletooth peeking out.
“……What?”
Despite his question, Yushi just kept grinning. What’s with that cryptic smile? With a light thwap, Adrian closed the book with one hand. Yushi plopped down beside him and began to chatter.
“Seriously, I mean, yeah, I’ll admit you’re good-looking, but… how’d you get someone to confess after just one semester? Huh?”
As she said “huh?”, Yushi jabbed her elbow into Adrian’s arm. It didn’t hurt, but Adrian didn’t particularly like physical contact. His eyes shifted from the spot where her elbow had poked him, back to her.
“Confess? What are you talking about?”
“You look like this, and yet you’re somehow totally clueless…”
With a short sigh that carried a hint of pity for her friend, Yushi looked up at the sky. It was a perfectly clear day, not a cloud in sight.
“……”
Then she suddenly whipped her head around toward the still-silent Adrian.
“I mean, after all I’ve said, you seriously don’t have any clue?”
“……Sorry, but could you explain it properly?”
He wasn’t actually sorry, but seeing the frustrated look on Yushi’s face, Adrian played along and asked. At that, Yushi plopped her bag onto her lap and pulled out a letter.
“Here.”
“Did you write this?”
“What? No way!”
Her eyes widened.
“Like I’d ever hand-deliver a love confession with zero romance!”
“Then what is it?”
Adrian looked down at the letter in Yushi’s hand and asked. Her reply came in the form of a mischievous grin.
***
Mikhail sank deep into his seat, glancing around the noisy classroom. Something had been bothering him.
…Did something happen?
He straightened slightly and scanned the room again, but it didn’t clear up his unease. After wrapping up his morning training, he had come straight to class, wearing his usual sullen expression as he propped his chin on his hand. It was strange. There was still time before class began, but even so, Adrian usually arrived early.
Not that he was worried about a guy who could probably be thrown in front of an ancient volcano and still come out fine.
Tch. Mikhail frowned. What annoyed him was his own behavior right now.
“Looking for Adrian?”
A voice came from someone seated in front of him. Mikhail’s irritated gaze shifted toward the speaker. It was Yushi.
“……”
Mikhail hesitated for a moment. Part of him didn’t want to admit he had been looking for Adrian, while the other part was tempted to hear what Yushi—who clearly seemed to know something—had to say.
In the end, Mikhail opened his mouth, pretending to fix his tousled hair.
“…And if I am?”
“He’ll be here soon. He’s probably super busy right now.”
Yushi grinned slyly. Mikhail glanced around at the other students, wearing a look that said, What’s that supposed to mean? The Garnet students all nodded subtly with knowing expressions, as if they were in on some shared secret.
“Before this class started, I passed along a letter for someone.”
A letter? Mikhail stared at Yushi, eyes narrowing.
That’s when it happened.
The sharp clack of academy-issued shoes echoed rhythmically across the marble floor. Adrian entered the classroom just in time, walking in with another student. The girl beside him, slightly flushed, was Cage Ritana.
She said to Adrian, “…I hope I’ll see you by the lion statue,” before heading over to join her friends, who were already seated. Adrian gave her a faint nod, his usual unreadable expression on display. Cage’s friends greeted her with eyes full of curious excitement.
Clack— Adrian pulled out an empty chair with a soft scrape. The one seat that had remained vacant until the last second. It was right next to Mikhail.
Mikhail watched him with a composed, mildly regal air as Adrian sat down.
“What?”
Noticing the stare, Adrian spoke while casually arranging his textbooks. Was he annoyed about the seating? But it wasn’t like there were any other open spots left.
“Where…”
“Hm?”
“No, never mind.”
What was I just about to say?
Mikhail’s lips parted briefly before pressing shut again in annoyance. He had nearly asked a completely unnecessary question without thinking. He couldn’t explain, even to himself, why he was feeling this sour.
Where did he go? And with her, of all people…
His eyes drifted to the girl who had walked in beside Adrian. Only now did he realize she was the same one who had blushed and handed Adrian cookies not long ago. The granddaughter of a prestigious scholar’s family, for reasons unknown, clearly fond of Adrian.
“Tch. Lame.”
Adrian glanced at Mikhail’s face and let out a small chuckle before looking down at his book.
Soon after, the classroom door swung open with a gentle creak, and the professor walked in. The room’s chatter instantly died down.
***
The sharp, disciplined sound of academy shoes echoed through the quiet halls of Basamiel.
If one cut straight through this corridor, it would lead directly to the fencing arena. Mikhail’s brisk pace slowed as he approached it. Today’s plan was to start with a light run, then request a match for live-blade sparring. He also wanted to try out a form he’d studied yesterday in a swordsmanship manual.
Despite attending every class at Basamiel Academy, Mikhail had rarely had a training session that satisfied him. The schedule left him almost no time—classes ran nearly all day, and after a couple quick training rounds, it was already time for dorm curfew.
His pale fingers hovered awkwardly over the hilt at his hip, uncharacteristically sluggish, while his elegant lips jutted into a slight pout before smoothing out again.
Damn it. Mikhail cursed himself inwardly for getting caught up in something so petty. He came to a halt in the middle of the corridor, tapping his heel against the floor in frustration. He didn’t have time for this kind of nonsense.
Though not quite to the same degree as Adrian, the image of the blonde girl pushing her hair behind her ear with a red face flickered through his mind.
“…I hope I’ll see you by the lion statue.”
She’d said that to Adrian just before class. The lion statue she mentioned was the one that stood clearly visible once you exited through the arched passage to the left.
Mikhail forcefully turned his body away from its natural inclination to drift left. His purposeful stride echoed once, twice—then suddenly, whip! He pivoted mid-step and passed through the left arch as if changing destinations on a whim.
“Just gonna check.”
He muttered under his breath and let out a sigh. There was no way he’d be able to concentrate on training in this state anyway. Just a quick look—he’d take a glance and then head right back to the arena.
