“WHY did you hide, Emil?”
“I told you not to call me that. You never know who might be listening.”
Felix emerged from behind a curtain in the corner of the room.
Never could he have imagined that Mia and Henrik would come here. Or that they would ask about Chris…
They were tiptoeing around his feelings. That was sweet of them. But it made him feel pathetic. Felix was torn between conflicting emotions.
“Can I ask you the same question, then?”
Felix stared at Meyer, his gaze challenging.
Throwing up his hands, Meyer sighed.
“Are you sure you want to go there? Your little walking wonder-drug has already left.”
“…”
Felix took a deep breath, nodding. Even without Mia’s presence, he had to know.
“Chris went to talk to your father to get permission to enter the Academy.”
“My…father?”
Felix’s father was his Achilles’ heel. Ever since Felix had gotten sick with his attacks, his father had shunned him. They only saw each other face to face around once a month, if that. His two brothers were the same. Then when he’d ended up having to repeat the first year, they’d told him he was the family embarrassment and had stopped talking to him almost entirely.
Felix felt choked by his family’s presence. His uncle was the only one who’d never said anything cruel to him. He was the one warm spot Felix had left in the coldness of his family circle. He too had been the youngest prince in the family once, so perhaps he understood what it was like for Felix better than anyone.
“It was back when you were getting ready to enter the Academy. You needed a bodyguard your own age to accompany you, but there was no one suitable. There was talk of bringing back the Weiss boy, but that fell through. The other boy—Chris—acquired magical power and entered the Academy with you in an effort to compensate for his family’s low social standing and economic circumstances.”
His uncle trailed off, sighing for a moment.
“At any rate, if you want the real details, you’re going to have to ask my brother directly. Also, regarding that favor you asked me the other day…I can’t help you with that either. Again, you’d better ask my brother.”
“…”
Felix found himself unable to suppress a scowl. His emotionally absent father had given him one very firm warning—that if he was going to ask for something, it had better be something important.
Felix knew what had to be done…he just hated the thought of doing it.
Isn’t there anything else I can do, though…?
When their Grand Plan had gone suddenly missing last year, Felix had realized how little power he had over, well, anything. He was supposed to be the prince, but he was effectively useless. He couldn’t even protect the girl he loved. Apart from the royal blood running in his veins, his life had zero value.
He felt so pathetic. And he hadn’t even been doing his job as a prince properly, either.
But now there was something Felix wanted. And he knew that he would have to offer something big in exchange to get it.
Felix heaved a huge sigh.
“All right.”
His uncle’s eyes widened in surprise.
“I’ll attend an evening party. Per father’s command.”
“But…but you’ll be offered up on a platter…”
“Even so. I’ll still attend.”
“You’re really going to go? To the royal court banquet?”
Felix blinked back hot tears. He dreaded the thought of being around his father and brothers again, and no doubt they wouldn’t be pleased to see him. Not the way he was now.
“No, no, to one of the less fancy events. Tell me which one would be best. I’ll write a letter. You’ll deliver it for me, won’t you?”
“…All right.”
After hashing out the plan, Felix left the chairman’s office with a grim expression on his face.
“It sounds like this might be the real deal…”
Meyer was muttering to himself.
“Ah, the impunity of youth. The road ahead for him will be a treacherous one for sure.”
Politics and romance…it is a difficult thing indeed to balance them both.