After that, I worked hard to secure my place in society. I accepted almost every invitation from any house that had sent me one before I entered the academy and held many tea parties of my own. I also sought out introductions to families I had never met before and made an effort to build relationships with them. In my free time, I took additional lessons with Lady Aurelia focusing on the art of conversation.
And, of course, I was still training in the blade with Father amidst all that.
I filled my time so completely that my vacation from school was over before I knew it.
“Abel never did show up…” I murmured to myself as I looked at the scenery pass by outside the carriage window.
“Did you really want to see him that much?” Anna asked.
“Yes. He’s been on my mind.” Not a single person we trained with could tell me where he was stationed now. I thought Kreuz or Verlys, my father’s right-hand man, would certainly know, but they both avoided the question.
I went and visited the soldiers myself and didn’t see Abel anywhere. I couldn’t help but wonder who he really was. My curiosity kept creeping into the back of my mind.
“I suppose it makes sense that you want to spar with him again.”
Sparring with him was thrilling. I didn’t know why he was hiding, but he was definitely the strongest out of all the people who participated in my father’s training sessions. And that was why I wanted to continue facing off with him, and for him to spar with Anna and Enarene too.
Before I knew it, I had arrived back at the academy. I got out of the carriage and looked up at the building looming before me. I felt strangely nostalgic, even though I had only been gone for a short time. Anna went and carried my things to my dorm to unpack them for me before she would get back into the carriage and leave.
After I saw her off, I sat on a bench in the garden, on the opposite side of the chapel.
“Oh, Lady Merellis. Long time no see.”
“Hello, Lord Doruna.” Suddenly Doruna emerged from the school building and came up to me. “How is Lord Pax?”
I wasn’t expecting him to ask me that, and I froze for a moment. “E-er, he’s fine, of course. He hasn’t been to the capital much lately because he’s been busy running things back in the march.”
“I see…”
“Excuse me, but…how do you know my brother?” I honestly had no idea how the two of them would be connected. My brother much preferred spending time with a strategist like Verlys rather than a big, muscular man who’d fight on the front lines like Doruna.
“I met him while participating in the royal army training at the castle. He broke my nose in the process.”
“Goodness!” I burst out laughing at this anecdote about my brother I’d never heard about before. “Forgive me for asking, but that must have shocked you, no?”
Sometimes things like that would happen. Someone would underestimate my brother, get cocky, challenge him to a fight…and then they would lose spectacularly. After all, he certainly didn’t look like he would be the son of General Gazell, and at the same time, soldiers and knights who adored our father would look down on him.
But after all, my brother was still the heir to the esteemed military might of House Anderson. He had been trained personally by my father from a young age, so he was not weak in the slightest.
“Yes. It was a good experience for me. It made me realize just how sheltered and wrong I was about a lot of things.”
“Interesting… So if I had met you back then, you would have been very different? Now I wish I would have.”
“Please… Looking back on it now fills me with nothing but shame.”
“He he. Fine, then. I’ll just ask my brother for details.”
“I surrender, good lady!” He put up both hands in surrender, making me laugh yet again. “Are you here to meet Louis, Lady Merellis?”
“Yes, of course. How about you? Are you meeting someone?”
His face began to turn red. How adorable, I thought, smiling at him.
Most people who came here did it with the intent of meeting their special someones. You could use the dormitory lounges to chat with friends of your own sex, of course, but this was about the only place you could see someone of the opposite sex. For the most part, engaged couples often met here.
In other words, I was asking him, “Are you here to meet your fiancée?” And that was why he had blushed.
“Y-yes, I am.”
“Oh! Well then, I shouldn’t keep you. Go on and hurry to her.”
“I’ll do just that. If you’ll excuse me.”
I sat back down on the bench after he left.
A few minutes later, Louis showed up. “Sorry I made you wait!”
“It’s all right. I was talking to Lord Doruna while I waited.”
“Doruna? Oh, was he here to meet his fiancée?”
“Yes, it seems that way.”
Louis took a seat next to me. I put my hand on his cheek and studied his face. Even though we’d both had an extended vacation, we were so busy we barely had time to see each other. We only met once or twice during it to discuss what we would be wearing to the party with Rimmel, and to discuss proper etiquette and such. It had actually been a while since I last saw him.
“I knew it. You’ve got dark circles under your eyes.”
“I know.” He smiled sheepishly at me, then gently placed a hand on mine. Then with his other hand he caressed my cheek. I put my hand over his, just as he had done to me.
“Wh-what is it?”
“Hm, nothing. Just feeling relaxed.”
“Don’t forget we’re in public…” I hastily glanced around. He must’ve been really tired, and I couldn’t blame him. His nerves were probably shot from dealing with all the preparations necessary for Rimmel’s visit. “I know that you’re working hard, and I know how much pressure you’re under with your job. But please, take care of your health. I wish I could just take away all your fatigue. After all, my stamina’s my best quality!”
Louis chuckled in response. “I really don’t deserve a fiancée like you.” I gave him a puzzled look, not understanding what he meant, and he continued. “I just mean, you help me so much. Just hearing you say that gives me a boost.”
His words made me so happy that I felt my cheeks flush.