* * *
“It’s fine. The palace is huge—there are plenty of rooms no one uses. There must be at least ten more like this.”
“…What a waste. All these books just left here like this.”
Zavad, lightly organizing the teetering towers of books, glanced sideways at him.
“You can’t even read. Since when do you care about wasting books? Planning to sell them off again or something?”
“Hey, even if I can’t eat steak, I still know it’s a waste to throw it out.”
“…You’re unbelievable.”
Zavad chuckled and picked up a nearby book.
“You’re seriously weird… but weirdly entertaining sometimes.”
“You’re no less weird, Young Master. Just not the entertaining kind.”
“If only you’d stop with the constant jabs.”
“Not like I’m saying this for your amusement.”
“Yeah, yeah. Keep running your mouth—it’s probably the only way you’ll stay sane.”
Ranshel stared at Zavad.
He was smiling—smiling—without a trace of irritation.
Turns out he was just really focused on the book in his hands.
“…Do you like books?”
Was this part of his character?
As far as Ranshel knew, it wasn’t.
Zavad was supposed to be a knight who trained in swordsmanship, not some bookish scholar holed up in a library.
“Seems like it.”
His calm gaze lingered on the pages in his hands.
“For basic education, there’s no real need for a private tutor. No teacher’s better than a good book.”
Ranshel thought Zavad was about to start reading, but instead, he flipped through the pages at lightning speed and returned the book to its place.
“Didn’t seem like you were enjoying that one.”
“Nah. I already know everything in it. No point in reading it again.”
He said it so matter-of-factly as he grabbed another book and flipped through it just as quickly. Ranshel tilted his head.
“You’ve read that one too?”
“Yeah. I’ve read all the books in here.”
Ranshel nodded—then froze.
“You mean… that stack over there?”
He pointed at the towering pile Zavad had been rummaging through.
“No. I mean everything in this room.”
Zavad said it like it was nothing.
“…You just skimmed them, right?”
“Some I skimmed. If they were interesting, I read them more thoroughly. Either way, I remember most of the content after just one go…”
His voice was as calm as ever, like it was no big deal.
Ranshel found himself recalling Zavad’s character traits again.
If Ranshel had the “assassin” trait, Zavad was a “knight.”
He had natural strength, stamina, and elite sword skills.
Not that he’d had a chance to wield a sword yet, but it was all written in his future.
Ranshel might be faster in terms of raw speed, but in a one-on-one fight, he’d lose.
The only way he could win was to catch Zavad off guard while he was unarmed and vulnerable.
Not only was Zavad strong, he had top-tier defense.
‘No wonder people call him a cheat character.’
Why would a romance game give someone this kind of overpowered setup?
The developers really made some bizarre choices.
‘Wait, no—that’s not the point.’
Ranshel had recalled Zavad’s character sheet because the idea that he also had intelligence now felt like too much.
Why did the Empire’s strongest knight have to be brilliant, too?
Wasn’t that supposed to be the scholar’s role?
‘I can’t even read!’
This was just bad game balance.
Sure, it might be silly to compare a romance target to a side character, but Ranshel couldn’t help feeling bitter.
Was it really okay for one character to have everything just because the developers loved him?
Sure, he was still young and hadn’t grown into it all yet—but Ranshel knew what kind of person Zavad would become later. It was ridiculous.
Tall, handsome, a skilled fighter and smart?
As he gazed off into the distance, full of frustration, Ranshel suddenly remembered why they’d even come here in the first place.
“Oh, so that’s why you said it’s fine for you to enter the academy now?”
“Yeah. At the very least, I’m confident I won’t have trouble with the entrance exam.”
“But… since you taught yourself everything, don’t you think you’ll need a tutor to help with application-based learning for the exam?”
Ranshel protested.
It wasn’t out of spite. Definitely not.
He just had to stop Zavad from pioneering a new route.
“I said there’s no need. Did I say it too humbly for you to understand?”
Zavad strode over and picked up another book lying on the ground.
He held up the cover for Ranshel to see.
He wasn’t telling him to read it—more like, just take a look.
“This book is ‘An Introduction to Fief Management’.”
“…Okay, and?”
“Do you know what year this is taught at Delta Academy?”
“…How would I know?”
“It’s part of the graduation curriculum.”
Ranshel was momentarily speechless.
Then he pushed back a little harder.
“…If it’s just an introduction, why is it for graduates? You’re tricking me because I can’t read, aren’t you?”
“They say understanding all things is the hardest task.”
“Why, though? There’s no course after ‘understanding’? You can’t just hand someone a diploma for barely getting the gist of things.”
Ranshel pushed back assertively.
Zavad tilted his head slightly, looking curious.
“You seem really interested in the curriculum. Do you want to go to school?”
“No? I can’t even read. What would I do at a school?”
All Ranshel wanted was for Zavad to stay in the castle a little longer.
At least long enough to delay his meeting with Frey.
The Zavad Ranshel knew from the game was the type of man who would fling himself into a blaze that burned for a thousand years if he fell in love.
Maybe not while he was still obsessed with revenge—but still, it made him uneasy.
‘What if he falls for Frey at first sight?’
Ranshel had to see this revenge through before anything else.
Love? That could wait until after he died.
Zavad seemed to think for a moment, then casually spoke.
“If you don’t know something, you just have to learn it. I’ll teach you.”
“No thanks. What’s the point in learning something I won’t use?”
“Why wouldn’t you use it? Are you planning to be a lowly servant your whole life? If you want to work alongside nobles, you need to know how to read and write.”
“Nope. I’ll stick to manual labor, like a proper commoner.”
Ranshel replied dryly. What good would literacy do him?
Just more weight to hang from Zavad’s head when it hit the wall.
But Zavad continued talking, unfazed by Ranshel’s indifference.
“My mother was originally a commoner.”
“…What?”
Ranshel frowned.
How could Charlotte Veliche be a commoner?
Sure, marrying into a duke’s family from a baron’s house was a big leap, but the floor and the basement weren’t the same height.
“She started out no different from the other servants, but by chance, she learned to read. After that, she became a tutor. Eventually, with a little luck, she became a lady-in-waiting to a noble daughter, and that’s how she managed to set foot in the Imperial Palace.”
“…And that’s where she caught His Majesty’s eye?”
“Exactly. Without that, she never would’ve had a chance. Because she caught the emperor’s attention, she was adopted into a baron’s house, married a noble, and ended up as the duchess.”
It sounded like something straight out of a side story.
Ranshel’s eyes sparkled with curiosity at the intriguing backstory, but soon a thought occurred to him.
“So, if you just learn too…”
“Wait, hold on. So your mother was in a… romantic relationship with the emperor even before she got married?”
“Of course. The duke only accepted her into his house because she was the emperor’s favored lover.”
“…Excuse me?”
* * *
