The Riding Exam
"That's odd. They said he wouldn't be able to ride for a while. Is he all healed up already?"
By a hair's breadth, it was Logan who arrived at the riding grounds first — before even Professor Janette. He didn't spare so much as a glance in Bayul's direction, simply taking his place at the back and standing there.
"Healed up? When did that brat even get hurt?"
"You didn't know? He strained a ligament in his wrist during sparring. That's why he's been missing riding class all this time."
"...So it wasn't avoidance?"
"Avoiding? Avoiding what?"
Schubik frowned and turned to look at Logan.
"Is there something here Logan needs to avoid? What could that possibly be?"
"Well... it's just, some of those excuses seemed a little off. The strained ligament thing too. You really believe he got hurt during a sparring match? Do you have any idea who he was sparring with?"
The more he spoke, the more suspicious it all sounded. He hated to admit it, but Logan was one of the most formidable talents in the entire Academy. House Seymour was a martial family that had produced great swordsmen for generations, and word of the heir who inherited that legacy had spread since the very start of the semester.
And yet he'd been injured in a simple sparring match?
Aidan didn't buy it one bit.
"Hmm, you mean Goran? He's in our Knight Department too, but he's nothing special."
"Do you know how he got hurt?"
"Honestly, I couldn't tell you. Why? All this prying of yours is starting to look suspicious. What is it? Come on, spill it to your big brother here!"
Schubik's eyes lit up with curiosity. The only shame was that there wouldn't be enough time to satisfy it.
"Everyone's here, I take it?"
Professor Janette swept her gaze around the gathered students and immediately moved into the practical evaluation. The order was random — she would call names, and groups of three or four students would be summoned to take the test together. With no telling when their turn would come, no one could afford to relax.
"Bayul! Where do you think you're going?"
The moment Professor Janette moved to the center of the riding grounds to judge scores, Bayul seized his chance and hurried toward his old friend.
"Logan!"
The other students stole glances at him. Ever since enrollment, Bayul had kept to the same small circle of friends, and they couldn't help wondering what on earth possessed him to approach Logan, the Academy's most popular star.
"It's me, Bayul. Do you recognize me?"
Bayul's face trembled as he looked up at Logan. The meeting he had waited for and waited for — and now that it was here, his mind went blank, unsure what words to offer.
"How long has it been? Have you been well?"
At Bayul's flood of questions, Logan — who had been standing rigid, eyes fixed straight ahead — finally moved his head.
"...Bayul."
"Yes, Logan. It's me!"
At last, Logan spoke. That voice he had missed so dearly — that deep, resonant bass — carried Bayul back to the old days in an instant.
"You came to the temple, didn't you? Why did you just leave? Do you know how much I missed you all this time!"
Until now, Logan had done nothing but avoid Bayul. The fact that he had shown up to class meant he wouldn't do so any longer — and that meant he was finally opening his heart. Overwhelmed with joy, Bayul's voice grew louder.
"...I'm sorry."
"Huh? No! Why are you sorry? If anyone should apologize, it's me."
Startled by Logan's apology, Bayul hurried on.
"I never even got to say thank you. For all the worry I caused you. I was so glad you came."
You'll never know how happy I was just to catch a glimpse of what you truly felt.
"Oh, right — they said you hurt the ligament in your wrist. Is it okay now?"
"...Yeah."
"That's a relief. Though I suppose your riding skills speak for themselves anyway?"
Logan had always ridden horses with uncanny grace, even as a child. And it wasn't just riding — he was a prodigy who showed brilliance in swordsmanship and even magic. Sharp-minded besides, he'd already been fluent in more than two foreign languages back then.
Whenever the three of them — Bayul, Bail, and Logan — learned something together, Bayul was always the one trailing behind, while Logan and Bail stood out in every regard. The two were so evenly matched that no one could say which was better, and they were friends and the fiercest of rivals all at once.
"By the way, how's Gideon? He's doing well, I assume?"
"...Mm."
"Did you bring him along?"
A nod.
"I knew it. Lucky you. I couldn't bring Jasper..."
"Gideon? What's that? Some guard dog like Jasper?"
Schubik, who had been eavesdropping from a few steps away, could no longer contain himself and barged in. He'd been curious for ages, after all — the image of Logan sprinting like a madman toward the temple the day Bayul collapsed was still burned vividly into his mind.
"You two have known each other since way back? Since when? No — more importantly, how?"
To anyone watching, they were a combination that made no sense whatsoever. A sickly, delicate boy and a genius swordsman? The only thing they had in common, as far as Schubik could tell, was rock-solid family backgrounds.
"Are you related, maybe? Different surnames, so... relatives on the mother's side?"
"Our families have simply known each other a long time. That's all. Satisfied?"
Aidan, who had been scowling ever since Logan first appeared, finally stepped forward — against his better judgment — to shield Bayul.
"Oh, Aidan. So you already knew about this?"
"Why does that matter?"
"It matters plenty! This is a fascinating combination!"
"You're the fascinating one here! Why do you care about any of this stuff anyway?"
"Because I'm curious, that's why! Does curiosity need a reason? Just like meat tastes like meat when you eat it, when something curious happens, curiosity happens. That's just how it works."
It was nonsense dressed up as logic. And yet somehow, perversely, it sounded almost convincing — which made it clear the boy's condition was beyond curing.
"Anyway, enough of that! Logan, Bayul, you two—"
"Schubik Tasserton!"
Just then — providence from above? The announcement of the next group rang out across the riding grounds.
"Whuh! Why me already?"
Schubik's face drained of color in an instant.
"You were making such a racket that the professor must've called you on purpose. I told you to rein it in from the start."
"Aaah, what do I do? I'm seriously terrible at riding!"
"That's rich, coming from a Knight Department student. Save the whining and get going already!"
Aidan gave Schubik's backside a kick with one foot.
"You're dead later! I'm getting you back for this!"
Even on the verge of tears, he must have felt terribly wronged — Schubik marched toward the test grounds vowing revenge. His retreating figure looked for all the world like an ox being led to the slaughter, and for a moment a pang of pity crossed Bayul's mind — until he remembered the boy's endless chatter, and the feeling vanished on the spot.
"Tsk tsk. Here's hoping he doesn't fall off his horse..."
"That's rich coming from someone who's never once worried about his own riding."
Riding was, for Bayul, one of his weakest subjects. If it were possible, he'd have loved to borrow Aidan's talent for a little while.
"Me? Well, I suppose I'm decent."
"Must be nice. You and Logan both. If I could ride like you two..."
"Whoa, hold on, Bayul. Since when is that guy good at riding?"
"Huh?"
"Are you comparing me to him right now?"
As if nothing in his life had ever offended him more, Aidan's eyes flashed. There were even veins standing out at his temples — he was genuinely upset.
"S-sorry, Aidan."
Bayul had no idea what exactly he'd done wrong, but he apologized first regardless. Knowing how easily the boy ignited, he needed to defuse him quickly.
"Hey, Logan! Why don't you answer this? You really think you could beat me at riding?"
The arrow of confrontation suddenly flew at Logan. Aidan's tone was practically a challenge to a duel.
And perhaps that was why Logan — unmoved by anything anyone had said until now — lowered his gaze and finally replied.
"I don't imagine I'd lose."
"Excuse me?"
Aidan sprang up like a startled cat, voice ringing with steel — no surprise there. If you had to name the one person in the world he absolutely could not lose to, it was Logan. Against him alone, Aidan had to win — even if it killed him.
"You skipped class every single day and you think you can beat me? Where does that confidence even come from?"
"Well. Would it help if I said I learned to ride before I learned to walk?"
"Hah. Is that so?"
"Obstacles like those over there? I could clear them with my eyes closed."
"So that's why you lied your way out of class! That injured arm was total nonsense, wasn't it? You weren't hurt at all!"
"Aidan, come on..."
"You were just avoiding Bayul, weren't you. Admit it!"
Shoving aside Bayul's attempts to calm him, Aidan roared.
"If you were going to avoid him, you should've stayed away for good! Running off like that, then why show up for the exam? Didn't want to get held back a year, huh?"
Blinded by the joy of seeing Logan again, Bayul alone hadn't noticed what was plain to everyone else: Logan showed no interest in Bayul whatsoever.
"You insufferable jerk! Just how full of yourself are you, to act so stiff around a friend you haven't seen in ages? Do you have any idea how much Bayul has suffered all this time? I swear, I'll—!"
"Stop it! Aidan, stop!"
Bayul shouted.
"Logan didn't do anything wrong! It's all because of me. It's my... it's all because of me! So please... stop."
Bayul's plea was closer to a scream than anything else. This was a boy who only ever raised his voice to call someone's name, and Aidan took no small shock from it.
"Is this all they can do?"
Just then came the voice of Professor Janette, thick with irritation.
"Aidan! Logan! Lanasa!"
Without warning, she called out those three names.
"All three of them at once?"
"No way!"
The scattered students came swarming toward the center. Aidan, Logan, Lanasa — the aces of the Knight Department. Outstanding in every discipline, from riding to swordsmanship and beyond, who would claim the top seat of the department was currently the hottest topic on campus.
"What are you doing? Aren't you going?"
It was Quinn who pulled Aidan — still wavering after Bayul's cry — back to reality. He tapped the shoulder of the boy who, heedless of the professor's summons, had eyes only for Bayul.
"Over there."
It was a kindness uncharacteristic of Quinn, but there was no room to question it. Glancing over, Bayul saw that Lanasa was already moving. Aidan and Logan exchanged a single look with each other, then hurried after her.
"Who's going to win? Aidan? Or Logan?"
"Why's Lanasa left out of that? You looking down on women?"
"It's not looking down, it's being realistic. In strategy or tactics exams, sure, but this is a practical evaluation. Could Lanasa really keep pace with the guys?"
"It's a riding exam, genius. Everyone's on horseback running the same course — what does being a man or a woman have to do with it?"
"You're the one talking nonsense. Riding isn't about stamina or muscle. It's about communion with the horse — communication, plain and simple. They call Lanasa the Ice Goddess, but you should see how sweet she is with horses. Pure honey drips out of her eyes, I swear. If you don't know what you're talking about, keep quiet!"
The three took their places at the starting line atop their respective horses. In the meantime, a lively debate had broken out among the gathered students, shaping up almost entirely as girls versus boys.
If the girls' hope was for Lanasa to take first place and vindicate their standing as women, the boys nursed their own greed — that Aidan and Logan would sweep first and second, repaying the pride their sex had lost to her.
"All three of you are ready, I trust?"
"Yes, Professor!"
All three nodded and answered at once. Mounted on their prepared saddles, waiting for the signal, they looked for all the world like generals on the eve of a decisive battle.
"The performance of those who ran before you was so abysmal that I called the three of you up. I trust you won't disappoint me."
Professor Janette raised her hand toward the clustered students — as if to say, watch closely and learn — and pointed to the starting point.
"Then... go!"
A moment later, at her command, the three horses kicked off the earth and tore down the course in unison.