Chapter 35: The Wager
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 35: The Wager
"Yerika?"
[Yes!]
When I called her name casually, she answered immediately.
In some ways, she was even more of a person who did things at her own pace than I was.
"Miss Yerika?"
[·············]
"Yerika."
[Yes!]
"Lady Yerika?"
[·············]
"Yerika?"
[...Yes.]
"Your Highness."
[Honestly! Please stop teasing me!]
As I continued to mess with her, Yerika finally lost her patience and snapped.
"Ahaha, I’m sorry. Your reactions are just so fun, I couldn't help myself."
[You know, you could even just speak informally to me.]
"Using polite speech is a habit of mine, so I can't really help it."
[We can work on the informal speech slowly, then. So, what brings the Clown to call me first?]
I wondered if the day would ever come when I’d actually drop the formalities with Yerika.
"It’s not like we only call each other when something's happened, right?"
If I said something like that to Clara or Sepia, they’d either be flustered or just ignore me.
[Well, our relationship is quite special.]
Yerika’s reaction was different, though. She didn't get flustered; she just fired right back.
[Did anything happen at the Academy today?]
"Nothing in particular."
Actually, a lot had happened.
Vermin had instantly become the fool who dared to cross the Crown Prince, and every single student in the Academy knew about it.
But I didn't mention that to Yerika.
[Hmm, is that so?]
For some reason, Yerika sounded suspicious.
"Pardon?"
[Actually, I heard from my brother. I know what happened today. And I heard why it happened, too.]
Her voice was a mix of worry and mild reproach.
[I heard the Prince of the Archen Kingdom has been bullying you. Why didn't you tell me yesterday?]
"I didn't want you to worry. Besides, it’s something that will be resolved soon anyway."
I wasn't just saying that to reassure her; I meant it.
[He might be a fellow student now, but he’s still a prince of a kingdom. There’s no telling what he might do once you graduate.]
I felt like I’d heard those words somewhere before.
Where was it?
[Clown, would you like to be my guard knight after you graduate?]
Then I remembered.
Back when I first encountered Vermin in the cafeteria, Johanna had made a similar offer.
More importantly...
Yerika’s guard knight?
"But I am a clown?"
[Then would you like to be my Guard Jester?]
Wait, was she joking?
"Haha~ I know you're just kidding, but being Yerika’s guard knight... just imagining it feels good!"
[I’m being serious, though.]
She wasn't joking?
"But the position of your guard knight would require His Majesty the Emperor’s permission..."
[Father has already given his approval.]
The Emperor approved?
No way.
The Emperor, who doted on Yerika to an extreme degree, wouldn't grant permission for her guard knight so easily.
[At first, he refused when I said I wanted to choose my own knight, but as soon as I said I wanted you, he agreed immediately.]
"What?"
[Do you know what the Imperial Family looks for when choosing a guard knight?]
Yerika posed the question to the bewildered me.
If it’s about choosing a guard knight for royalty...
"Wouldn't it be strength?"
[Strength is part of it, of course, but the most important thing is trust. Whether you can entrust your life to that person—that is what matters most.]
"I’m not yet strong enough to be entrusted with your life, Yerika."
[You might not be that strong right now, but what about three years from now?]
Three years later would be when I graduated from the Academy.
[Father said that by the time you graduate, you’ll be one of the strongest people in the Empire.]
There was no way out of this now.
[You said it yourself earlier, didn't you? That just imagining being my guard knight feels good. You should be happy, since that imagination will become a reality in three years.]
Wait, what?
* * *
Having finished my morning training today as well, I was heading back to the dormitory to rest.
Since it was still early, only a handful of students were visible on the campus grounds.
Walking through the campus while feeling the cold wind, I found myself thinking back to my conversation with Yerika last night.
I had ended the call by being vague, but Yerika didn't seem like the type to give up.
In times like this, the best thing to do would be to avoid her calls for a while, but...
"I can't even do that."
I had managed to sleep without medicine again.
Yerika really had inherited that trait from the Empress.
Now that I knew I could sleep without medication because of her, I couldn't bring myself to reject her calls, nor could I stop myself from calling her.
Should I actually become a Guard Jester?
If I still couldn't sleep without medicine after graduation, becoming a Guard Jester wouldn't be a bad idea.
If I were in charge of Yerika’s protection, I’d be able to sleep soundly every night.
Let’s worry about the future later.
The situation with Yerika was pressing, but what was more urgent was getting rid of Vermin as quickly as possible.
* * *
Today, we all charged at Professor Elicia together, and we all got beaten together.
"There’s an hour left until lunch, so take a rest before you eat."
Professor Elicia delivered her usual line and left the Special Class room.
I wonder where Professor Elicia eats?
I’d seen other professors in the cafeteria occasionally, but I’d never seen her there.
"Loki, shall we have lunch together today?"
Lucas approached me as I was lying down to rest.
"I’d love to. Why don't we all go together today?"
I suggested to the other Special Class students that we all go to the cafeteria together, and everyone except for two accepted the offer.
The two who hadn't agreed yet were Clara and Sepia.
"Miss Sepia, won't you join us for lunch?"
I approached Sepia first.
Sepia looked at me and then primly turned her head away.
"Why don't you go eat with Lady Freya again?"
It seemed she was still sulking over what happened last time.
I wondered how to soothe her, but the solution was surprisingly simple.
"W-What?"
It was because her spirit said something to her.
"Why should I do that?"
Though I couldn't hear what the spirit said, after listening to it, Sepia decided to join us for lunch.
"Fine! I'll eat with you, okay!"
Now only Clara was left.
"Miss Clara."
"············"
Clara didn't even look up from her book.
It was a clear rejection, but I had no intention of giving up.
I leaned in and whispered to her so that no one else could hear.
"Clara Noona."
"You!"
Clara looked at me with an expression of pure disdain.
"If you eat with us today, I won't call you that anymore."
"Ha... fine."
And so, for the first time, all the students of the Special Class headed to the cafeteria together.
"Look over there. It’s Lady Clara."
"Are those the kids from that Special Class they just formed?"
Students whispered as we walked to the cafeteria. Since the Special Class was a new addition, it was only natural for them to stare.
"I wonder if Prince Lucas is okay?"
"What is that Rophri guy even doing?"
Furthermore, because the newspaper had reported yesterday that Vermin had splashed a drink on Lucas, every student watching us was buzzing with gossip.
The whispering showed no signs of stopping even while we were eating.
Despite all the eyes on them, the Special Class students ate their lunch calmly, as if it were nothing.
Tremble, tremble.
Actually, looking closer, one of them wasn't calm at all.
Is it even possible for a person to shake that much?
Frederick Nicholas, the sorcerer, was trembling violently, clearly uncomfortable with all the attention.
To be honest, I knew people would stare, but if I had left Frederick behind...
He definitely would have cried, thinking he was being bullied or excluded, so I just brought him along.
While I was contemplating how to look after Frederick, the cafeteria suddenly became noisy.
"Your Highness."
The reason was immediately apparent.
Vermin had approached Lucas.
"I am truly sorry about yesterday!"
Vermin immediately dropped to his knees in front of Lucas.
In a way, it was the best move he could make right now.
But even so.
He was still dancing in the palm of my hand.
"Yesterday, I mistook you for someone else and committed such an insolence against the Crown Prince!"
Lucas glanced at me.
Before coming to the cafeteria, I had asked Lucas for a favor.
"A mistake, you say? If you're saying you did that because you mistook my identity, does that mean you intended to do that to my friend?"
"T-That is..."
When Lucas referred to me as his friend, Vermin was visibly shaken.
"If you apologize to my friend, I will specifically forgive yesterday's incident."
Being forgiven for such an act against the Crown Prince with just a single apology was a massive opportunity, but Vermin hesitated.
It seemed he hated the idea of apologizing to me more than death itself.
I walked up to Vermin and spoke.
"You really don't want to apologize to me, do you?"
I don't want to receive an apology from you either.
Just the thought of you apologizing makes me want to gag.
"Prince Lucas, if I forgive him, will you forgive him as well?"
"If you forgive him, then I shall as well."
This was something Lucas and I had discussed beforehand.
Of course, I hadn't told him what would happen next.
"Would you like to make a simple wager with me? If I lose, I'll forgive you."
"A wager? What kind of wager?"
I looked around. All the surrounding students were watching, and the Newspaper Club President even had his camera out.
"Let's have a fight three days from now."
At my declaration of a fight, not only Vermin but all the surrounding students were shocked. And their shock only deepened at my following words.
"The loser gets expelled from the Academy."
I simply couldn't stand the sight of this vermin in the Academy any longer.
"Of course, if you're getting cold feet, you don't have to do it."
Though, there was no way he could refuse with all these students watching.