Sapphire Villa
The villa named Sapphire that Emilia had invited everyone to was a place where the imperial family used for rest.
From Legandia, the Sapphire Villa was located in a distance reachable by carriage in less than half a day’s ride, yet it boasted an imperial splendor that felt almost out of place for the empire.
Appropriately named Sapphire Villa, its grand mansion and gardens were built around a dominant blue theme, making every visitor feel as though they had stepped into an entirely different world.
A vast, clear lake stretched peacefully in front of the villa, and inside the grand palace worthy of being called a palace, servants trained in the highest levels of etiquette attended to visitors with perfect poise.
Every small decoration atop the elaborate dishes, the refined delicacies that even those with wealth could barely afford, delighted the palate.
During teatime, one could choose from hundreds of varieties of tea to suit one’s preference, and the gentle sound of water falling from the fountain tickled the ears.
It was an excellent opportunity to indirectly experience the life of royalty, yet the expressions of those present were not particularly bright.
In total, six people had accepted Emilia’s invitation to the villa.
Five of them, including Rai, and then there was Diana.
Diana wore her usual bright smile and thoroughly enjoyed herself, while the others did not.
Asran, perhaps because of memories from his youth, harbored an extreme aversion to anything related to politics.
Thinking back to how he had trembled when he first met Joshua, it was clear he understood the terror politics held.
Having served in the military for generations and later having his father serve as a steward, which drew him into the world of politics, Asran knew all too well how powerless and vulnerable those without power bases were when they faced the political forces, and how cunningly they struck.
Therefore, he had been reluctant to befriend the weakest sixth princess, Emilia, who had no power base among the imperial family.
If they became close, he risked being marked by the cruel eyes of the Second Prince’s faction, and even living would not be living.
Philia was the eldest daughter of a central political family.
Her family had survived and thrived in the political arena.
They belonged to the largest faction, the Second Prince’s group.
A young lady from such a house mingling with the sixth princess would inevitably attract unfavorable attention.
In truth, her concern was not so much the gazes of others but the possibility that her family would issue strange instructions if she befriended the sixth princess.
The house she came from was one that did not hesitate to have her act as a spy and demand she win the heart of the sixth princess.
Abigail had found every moment at the villa painful.
This villa, which emphasized rigid and inflexible etiquette that could have been called a surveillance institution instead of a servant quarters, tormented her twenty-four hours a day.
The attendants, who could better be described as overseers than servants, attached themselves to Abigail and pointed out every single trivial thing: how to walk, how to hold a spoon, how to stand… everything.
She was furious at being looked down upon as a commoner, but no matter how she lashed out, Abigail remained silent in the presence of the princess.
Abigail was not from the empire and was acutely sensitive to the difference between noble and commoner status.
In the Bell Federation, commoners who disobeyed the words of nobles had their heads chopped off without exception.
Having grown up in such a place, she could not ignore the princess of the empire that ruled the continent.
With etiquette tightening her throat and endless conversation following, the noble society that Abigail knew only produced an endless stream of talk.
Conversation during breakfast, conversation during teatime, conversation while strolling the gardens, conversation to rest for a moment, conversation while eating lunch…
The conversation never ended, and Abigail felt as though she would burst.
She had nothing particularly to say, and the complex etiquette made it difficult to speak, so Abigail sat with her mouth shut for a long time, listening.
Originally someone who talked a lot, the inability to speak had never felt so exhausting.
Abigail wanted nothing more than to escape this stifling place immediately.
Rai, who had oddly agreed to the invitation, strangely did not focus on the conversation at all.
He kept drifting to other thoughts or displaying signs of restlessness, as if he had left something behind.
No one knew why.
Finally, Zeroa simply lived in the flow of the conversation.
When delicious food was served, he ate it with relish; when conversation began, he listened with genuine enjoyment and savored the time at the villa.
Of all of them, Zeroa appeared the happiest.
“Well then, since staying here would be boring, let’s do something fun!”
As the afternoon arrived, Diana rose from her seat and drew everyone’s gaze.
Although the invitation had come from Emilia, the one who had driven the entire event so far was Diana.
Diana paused for a moment as if savoring the stares, then glanced around the room before speaking.
“I will hold the First Emilia Hunt Tournament!”
The word “hunt” caused the eyes of those present to change.
Three of them focused more on the fact that the hunt would take them away from the stifling and awkward villa than on the hunt itself, while Zeroa, with no thought and simply happy, clapped lightly.
“Sure, the kids can play their kids’ games and I’ll enjoy the adults’ games.”
The moment Diana mentioned the hunt, Rai stood up as if he had been waiting for it, slinging a fishing rod over his shoulder.
The fishing rod, whose origin no one could guess, looked expensive enough that even a layperson would notice.
His eyes were shining as if he had been waiting for the opportunity all along.
“You’re talking about something that sounds like there’s more, but it’s just fishing, right?”
“Fishing is the adults’ game. You kids go hunting like little kids.”
“Isn’t hunting more like the adults’ game?”
Asran frowned in incomprehension, but Rai, already hooked on fishing, paid him no mind and swung the rod in the air until he was scolded by the attendants.
“Since I have no intention of competing with everyone, I will fish with Instructor Rai.”
Emilia set down her teacup and approached Rai.
Though it seemed odd for an imperial princess to be fishing, no one dared to object if she wished it.
“T-Then I’ll fish with Instructor Rai too.”
“You know how to fish?”
“Only freshwater fishing. I worked under a fishing guide before.”
“You really haven’t done anything, have you?”
While Rai and Zeroa conversed, Emilia smiled softly.
“Zeroa-kun has many talents.”
“Huh? A-Ah, thank you.”
Zeroa blushed and scratched the back of his head at Emilia’s words.
“Knowing the forest and being able to fish as well is impressive.”
“Thank you. It’s not that I’m particularly good at it…”
“No, having diverse talents is wonderful. Besides, since Diana planned the hunt, wouldn’t it be nice to compete with the others? If Zeroa-kun knows the forest well, you should be able to achieve a good result. I’m looking forward to it.”
Zeroa was at a loss for words.
“N-No, I really only know a little. I don’t have the confidence to be better than Philia-noona or Asran-kun. Still, if it’s fishing, it’s more about luck than skill…”
“Hey, let’s do it together, Zeroa.”
Zeroa tried to refuse, but Asran quickly pulled him into the hunt by slinging an arm around his shoulder.
His tone was light, but his eyes were flustered.
Asran stepped in to save Zeroa, who did not seem to understand why he should reject the princess’s gentle words.
Despite his uncharacteristic behavior, thanks to his usual easygoing demeanor, Zeroa agreed to the hunt with a completely innocent face.
“Yes, I look forward to your performances.”
Emilia answered with a kind smile and headed for the lake with Rai.
Asran watched the two depart with relieved expressions until Diana spoke to him.
“Well then, teams are decided. The Dumb-Dumb Team and the Smart-Smart Team.”
“I’m the Dumb-Dumb Team?”
“Then who else?”
Annoyed, Asran was met with a playful laugh from Diana, who then glanced at the other two members of the Smart-Smart Team.
Philia and Abigail locked eyes, their gazes gradually turning into glare, and finally they drew their faces close as if their lips would meet, each glaring at the other as if they wanted to kill.
“Let’s do the Single-Single Team and the Cozy-Cozy Team.”
“Your naming skills are surprisingly tacky.”
“Am I? Dumb-Dumb Team leader.”
“Just call me Single-Single.”
Single-Single sounded better than Dumb-Dumb to Asran, who formed a team with Zeroa for the hunt, while the uneasy Cozy-Cozy Team of Philia and Abigail both stared at different places while walking toward the same direction.
Due to injuries sustained in the martial arts tournament, Diana remained at the villa to prepare for the evening banquet.
***
Over the quiet lake, Rai’s fishing bobber dropped with a small splash.
Next to him, Emilia picked up the bait, a worm, and casually threaded it onto the hook.
Rai, who had tried to help, stared in amazement at how proficiently she did it, while the attendants nearby jumped at the sight of the worm and stiffened their expressions.
Emilia, skilled at baiting alone, did not hesitate and cast her line into the lake before sitting down.
“You’re skilled.”
“I have a bit of life experience. I don’t know if having high life energy is an advantage for the emperor’s child, but anyway…”
Emilia spoke in a slightly more intimate tone than she usually did before others.
She stuck out her tongue and smiled shyly, then returned to her usual dignified expression and instructed the attendants to withdraw.
The servants, sensing that Emilia wanted to speak alone with Rai, left with no change in expression and even cast soundproof magic.
They were nothing like the oblivious humans who had gone to hunt elsewhere.
With the two alone, Emilia stared at the lake and the fishing bobber and spoke.
“When it’s just the two of us, there’s no need to pretend.”
“Pretend? I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re the one who might have gotten confused with some foolish commander, aren’t you? My name is Rai Redford.”
Emilia chuckled upon hearing him emphasize that he was not Eliot but Rai.
“It doesn’t seem like you’re hiding your abilities.”
“Rai Redford is an outstanding person. He’s nothing like a commander who would bring down a country.”
“That’s fortunate for the empire. A great talent has been born.”
Emilia nodded, enjoying the peaceful lake without change, then asked.
“How is the academy life?”
Rai answered that this was the first time he had such an easy moment, and that he was satisfied with the current situation.
“If you wish, I can come out of the academy.”
At Emilia’s words, Rai turned his head and looked at her with indifferent eyes.
Her emerald-colored eyes, which appeared pure yet held many depths and seemed somewhat lonely, remained fixed on the blue lake.
He watched her in silence for a moment, then turned his gaze back to the fishing bobber.
“Was it you who pulled me out?”
“Hmm? Who do you mean?”
The serious question received an uncharacteristic playful answer, yet the smile without any majesty did not feel impolite.
Her true self, freed from her usual pressure, was a mischievous girl.
“Then let me change the question. Among the emperor’s children, is there anyone besides you who knows about the fox spirit?”
“… … Do you mean His Majesty the Emperor?”
“A human who has stuffed thousands of foxes in his stomach… anyone besides that human?”
At Rai’s words, Emilia’s eyes widened in surprise before she burst into laughter.
No one described the emperor in such a way.
Yet the nickname fit so perfectly that Emilia found it hard to hold back her laughter.
The servants, who could see the two’s actions despite the soundproof magic, stared in amazement at the first time they saw Emilia’s bright, unrestrained smile.
Emilia wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes and answered with a voice still carrying laughter.
“I had never seen anyone describe His Majesty the Emperor that way before.”
“There are quite a few in other countries. They get deceived all the time.”
“His Majesty the Emperor is excellent at diplomacy.”
Other countries were irrelevant, but from the empire’s perspective, the diplomatic power of Emperor Julius had provided enormous assistance.
To end the era of war, alliances were expanded, logistics centers gained from defeating the Keilen Kingdom were used to procure vast resources and goodwill from allied nations.
“To answer your earlier question, no. I doubt there is anyone else among the siblings.”
“I thought so.”
Until now, no one had come to seek him out.
At best, it had only been Joshua who had visited, and within the empire, there had been no contact at all.
Though he might not say it outright, Rai had been the center of the storm.
Whether in the political arena where he served as a commander during power struggles or as someone to be sacrificed for his position or turned into an enemy, there were countless ways to use Rai.
Yet to his surprise, he had been completely overlooked.
“It’s not that I think I was pulled out by Instructor Rai. I heard about Instructor Rai from Headmistress Celenas as well.”
“I see. Then it becomes important when I heard about it.”
At Rai’s words, Emilia fell silent.
In the political arena where cunning was the weapon, people’s speech patterns were mostly similar.
They did not lie; they based everything on truth and subtly hid the truth to inject the desired falsehood.
Rai had experienced such speech that made his teeth tremble from the central nobles of Keilen Kingdom.
Emilia never gave a direct answer to whether she had pulled him out.
Whether she had heard about Rai from the academy head before or after pulling him out mattered.
The former implied she had been instructed to pull Rai out after hearing about him, so Emilia could not answer.
Fortunately for Emilia, at a difficult timing for a direct answer, her fishing bobber shook.
Quickly grabbing the rod, Emilia pulled hard and reeled in a fish.
She held up a fish about the length of her forearm, its tail thrashing vigorously, and laughed brightly as she showed it to Rai.
Rai, meeting her gaze, declared he would not be outdone and continued fishing.
Time passed, and the basket gradually filled with fish that Emilia had caught, while she occasionally glanced at Rai.
“You… aren’t catching anything.”
“…”
All the fish in the basket had been caught by Emilia. During that time, Rai’s bobber had not moved even once.
When he retrieved the bobber and checked, the bait was still on, so Rai simply cast again without a word.
“You weren’t good at fishing? You came here looking extremely happy to fish.”
“I didn’t say I was good. This is my first time.”
Emilia nodded at Rai’s words.
To someone who had spent his entire life in war, fishing had been a luxurious hobby.
There had been no time to fish when he had wandered the battlefields of the continent with every passing moment precious.
“How many should I release?”
“No, I’m catching at least one and taking it.”
“No, if you use that magic, the fish in the lake will evaporate.”
Emilia quietly tried to stop Rai from creating the magic circle.
In the end, Rai’s first fishing experience ended with him not catching a single fish and simply staring blankly at the lake.