CICN 57

Chapter 57

The dormitory was noisy on Friday evening with children eager to go out.

“My mom and dad will be waiting in front of the Imperial Palace!”

“My whole family is going to a famous restaurant tonight.”

The students whose classes had ended early quickly changed clothes and headed for the palace gates.

Tired of wearing only their uniforms, the children all dressed up in fancy outfits before heading outside.

“Emily!”

“Keith!”

As the children emerged, their parents—who had been anxiously waiting outside—called their names and ran toward them.

To the parents, every child there was a source of pride.

Just the fact that they had entered the Academy for Gifted Students was enough to make them proud. And unlike those who couldn’t endure it and quit, their children were still doing well.

Some children clung to their parents, saying how much they had missed them, while others burst into tears right away.

Older students, on the other hand, were a bit embarrassed that their parents had come to fetch them, but couldn’t completely hide their joy.

And so, Friday evening passed in a lively bustle. By Saturday morning, the Academy had fallen completely silent.

It’s so quiet.

Ebi opened the window and looked outside.

Normally, the air would be filled with the sound of footsteps and children’s voices, but now only birdsong could be heard.

It felt strange—this was the first time she’d seen the Academy so peaceful.

Dressed once again in her uniform, Ebi trotted down the dormitory stairs.

It was only natural there were no students around, but even the number of staff was noticeably smaller than usual.

In fact, since the Academy reopened, this was everyone’s first real break.

After more than a month of living only within the Academy grounds, everyone had begun to feel stifled.

And those whose homes were far away or who didn’t have anywhere else to stay in the capital remained in their rooms.

They felt a little embarrassed by the fact that, while everyone else went out to have fun, they had nowhere to go.

Ebi, enjoying the stillness, sat down on a sofa in the common lobby.

I like how quiet it is.

It wasn’t that she disliked noise, but not hearing Irene’s voice right now felt a little lonely.

Irene was feeling so sorry about it.

Irene had left the Academy last night.

“I really want to go out with you, but wouldn’t you know it—our family’s townhouse in the capital is suddenly full of distant relatives. And on top of that, even people I don’t like showed up… There’s no point in taking you to a house full of people like that, so I’m going alone. I swear! It’s not because I don’t want you there!”

The one staying behind was Ebi, yet it was Irene, the one leaving, who was on the verge of tears.

Then, all of a sudden, Irene’s expression turned determined.

“Next time there’s an outing, I’ll make sure I’ve cleared all of them out so you can come with me.”

Ebi had no idea what exactly Irene meant by “clear them out.”

She couldn’t tell whether to encourage her or not.

Before leaving, Irene proudly talked about her family’s townhouse.

“There’s a big fountain and a huge garden. Even though it’s a townhouse, it has a little forest too.”

She went on to describe its history and gave a detailed account of each and every room.

“Next time, you have to come to my house. Promise.”

Hooking her pinky finger with Ebi’s, Irene had made her promise, and Ebi had nodded earnestly—almost as if she could fully understand Irene’s feelings.

With no classes and no Irene around, there wasn’t much to do.

After sitting on the sofa for quite some time, Ebi returned to her room and took out the math book Professor Malles had given her.

Arcel, you already knew all this, didn’t you?

They were ranked first and second in their class, so Ebi had assumed that she and Arcel knew about the same amount.

But there was a vast gap between them.

I want to know a lot more too.

Whenever Ebi struggled with something she didn’t understand, Arcel would quietly explain how to solve it.

He explained things so clearly, so simply.

Professor Malles was kind as well, but Arcel’s explanations were easier to follow.

The professor sometimes uses difficult words…

And besides, Malles had to teach not only Ebi, but also Irene and Ruska, so he was constantly busy.

“Ruska, you brat! You call this handwriting? I told you to write your solutions properly!”

“Argh, my ears! My ears!”

Whenever those two bickered like that, Arcel would sigh and become even kinder in his teaching.

“Sorry for bringing along an idiot.”

He would mutter that under his breath.

Thinking back to those moments, Ebi chuckled and picked up her pen.

“Ugh…”

Who knew how many hours had passed? Stretching, Ebi closed the book.

She enjoyed studying, but sitting still for too long was still boring.

This time, she pulled out a different book—Irene had lent it to her, and it was filled with illustrations of the capital.

“It’s so… big.”

Looking at the images inside, Ebi was awestruck.

The Academy itself was so large that it would take a full day of walking to make one round of the grounds.

But the Academy was only a small part of the Imperial Palace.

During a palace tour, she had realized just how vast it truly was—much larger than her hometown of Elam City.

And yet, even the sprawling Imperial Palace was just one part of the capital.

It might take a week… no, maybe a month to explore the whole city.

Ebi kept turning the pages.

The book introduced the capital’s landmarks with detailed illustrations: Central Avenue lined end-to-end with shops, fountains honoring the nation’s founding heroes, the great river flowing through the southern part of the city with its many bridges, and vast public parks.

The illustrations were even more vivid and the descriptions more detailed than the books she’d seen in the upper school library, so Ebi couldn’t take her eyes off it for a long time.

But when she finally finished it, she was left with nothing to do again.

I wonder if there’s anywhere I can go.

She couldn’t leave the grounds, but maybe she could at least explore the Academy. She thought about the places she hadn’t been yet.

Suddenly, she sprang to her feet.

“That’s right—Professor Sian!”

Ebi hurriedly pulled a slip of paper from her drawer—the one she’d gotten from the academic office staff.

“Building 21, Room 408…”

She took out an Academy map to check the building’s location, grabbed a small bag, and left her room.

The building was in a quiet location, much like the secluded classroom Professor Malles had chosen at first.

But this one had a more refined and calm atmosphere.

Perhaps because it was a day off, the doors were unlocked, and there was no staff guarding the entrance.

Feeling a bit hesitant, Ebi climbed the stairs.

“Room 408… Here it is.”

Finding the nameplate, she took a deep breath and raised her small hand to knock.

Knock knock.

As expected, there was no reply.

After a moment’s hesitation, she knocked a few more times, then cautiously opened the door.

“Excuse me.”

She peeked inside, her face lighting up.

For a moment, she’d worried she might have come to the wrong place, or that the office might be empty.

“This must be the professor’s office.”

On the desk was a nameplate reading Sian Rochen.

The room was neatly organized. The bookshelves were full, and the dark, antique-style desk had its stationery arranged perfectly.

They say a room reflects its owner—and indeed, this office suited the atmosphere of Professor Sian perfectly.

Ebi stepped up to the bookshelf.

Come to think of it, what does the professor actually teach?

She scanned the books lined up there, and soon realized the professor’s specialty.

“Foreign languages.”

The shelves were filled with books in various languages.

In addition to the empire’s common tongue, each region of the continent had its own language—named after the kingdoms in which they were spoken: Reshid, Tyril, Arsis, and Lombard.

“The professor must know all of these.”

Her eyes darted quickly across the titles.

Intermediate Reshid
Tyril Dictionary
Advanced Arsis Trade Language
Ancient Lombard

Her jaw dropped.

I only know Imperial!

It suddenly felt like a halo of light was shining behind Professor Sian.

He’s really amazing.

But why wasn’t he teaching any classes at the Academy?

If there were even one, I’d sign up right away.

Ebi looked wistfully at the bookshelf.

The rules stated that students could freely enter a professor’s office at any time.

Still, she felt she shouldn’t linger too long in a room when its owner wasn’t there.

She had confirmed that this was indeed his office, so her task was complete.

She was about to leave when she noticed paper and a pen prepared for what seemed to be a visitor log.

“To Professor Sian…”

She reached out and began writing him a letter.

An hour later.

“Hm?”

Clois picked up a sheet of paper lying on the table.