18
When the talented students of the academy entered the main palace, there, as if awaiting their arrival, were a large number of ministers and officials standing in anticipation.
"Hey! I wasn't expecting to meet you here!"
As if someone doesn't know that!
Everyone had been aware for days of the schedule of the visit to the palace today.
However, the students exchanged smiles with the ministers as if the meeting was a mere coincidence, and greeted them warmly.
“Look, that's Count Hyeres, the Minister of Foreign Affairs!”
“And there… Ser Taran, of the Imperial Knights!”
As the students recognized the characters, others exclaimed in amazement and admiration when they heard the names.
There was no one who was not a prominent nobleman whom everyone knew just by mentioning their name.
Therefore, students of noble origins took pride in greeting these nobles and conducting dialogues with them with clear confidence.
On the other hand, the students from the general public felt involuntarily shrinking in front of this scene.
“So, how is your life at the academy? Is there anything bothering you?”
They had only been admitted for two days, but the ministers who looked after them looked concerned, as if the children had been deprived of returning home for months.
“We are fine, thank you for your concern.”
In fact, there were many complaints, but no one dared to voice them in front of this crowd.
It wasn't just talking to their parents.
The students were keen to greet every nobleman they knew, to show everyone that they were members of influential families.
Remora, who was watching this scene, bit her lips in exasperation.
She believed that the academy staff treated everyone fairly, and that if she showed superiority, she would not have any problems.
But this scene made her feel like she was in an unequal position from the beginning.
Feelings of anger were boiling inside her, but she had nothing to brag about in front of them.
However, the sight of the nobles laughing and chatting made her feel exasperated.
“If I had strong relationships, I too...”
She imagined if she knew someone like the Minister of State, who was close to the Emperor, how she could have crushed the egos of these noble students by flaunting her connections.
As Remora was lost in her thoughts, her eyes fell on Evie, who was standing alone.
Suddenly, Remora's eyes became sharp.
All the way here, she was thinking hard:
“Does this girl really have nothing, or is she intentionally lying to me to avoid telling me about her relationships? I have to find out the truth.”
She had expected that Effie, when she spoke to her cordially, would boast of her relationship with the Emperor.
But when she addressed her, Evie seemed not to even know that she had been chosen thanks to the Emperor, let alone had any connection with him.
Even among friends, opinions were divided: some believed that Evie really had nothing to do with anyone, and others believed that she was feigning ignorance to keep her distance.
What was certain was that without intervention, Remora would never know the truth.
“She is small and does not open her mouth easily.”
But that doesn't mean it's hopeless. Can't she force her to tell the truth?
Remora immediately approached Evie, grabbed her wrist tightly, and then said loudly for everyone to hear:
“If His Majesty the Emperor were here, you would also have greeted him, wouldn’t you? What a pity!”
As soon as the emperor's name was mentioned, attention quickly turned towards them. Even those who were immersed in their conversations closed their mouths and looked at Evie and Remura.
"What?"
Evie looked at Remura incomprehension, unable to process what she was saying.
Even when they initially exchanged greetings, Remura asked vague questions, so why was she now suddenly talking about the Emperor?
“Why are you pretending to be humble? Everyone knows that His Majesty the Emperor chose you himself!”
Remora continued speaking, unconcerned with Evie's astonishment.
Evie was really shocked.
"What? Me?"
This was the first time she heard this. Why would the Emperor choose her?
Ilam is far from the capital, just a rural town. Even the local lord said that he did not have any connections in the capital.
So, when it was said that Evie would be joining the academy, wasn't everyone surprised?
How could it be that the Emperor chose her? This is something that only happens to the sons of high nobles...
While Evie was puzzled, Remura smiled wickedly and said in a clear voice:
“You boasted that you had met His Majesty yourself. How jealous I was to hear that!”
This was an outright lie.
“What are you going to do now?”
Even if IP6J denies saying this, everyone will think that she is the one lying.
Since everyone knew that the Emperor had chosen her, they would think that she actually bragged about it.
If Evie wants to avoid the stigma of lying, she must tell the story of her encounter with the Emperor.
“Even I admire my intelligence!”
Remora laughed secretly as she looked at Evie.
Evie was confused, looking around at the noisy crowd as if searching for someone.
This made Remora's words seem more credible. Even the common students seemed interested, waiting in anticipation for what would happen.
Remora felt confident and opened her mouth again:
“His Majesty will even continue to take care of you...”
"Enough! How much longer are you going to keep lying?"
Suddenly, another student interrupted her with a loud voice.
"I was silent because I felt pity for her, but you went too far! This girl was not chosen because she had a special connection to His Majesty. She was just her documents in the pile of rejected ones, so His Majesty took pity on her and chose her! So why do you lie and claim that she is meeting His Majesty?"
The place was silent.
The students were listening intently, as the story they had been wondering about began to unfold.
“Really…understand your position. There were a lot of things going on that day, and her choice was just a chance moment of fun, nothing more!”
After the student said that, her eyes met the eyes of her shocked guardian, and she closed her mouth.
Originally, everything that happened in the Imperial Meeting Hall was forbidden to be circulated outside of it.
If you ask where you heard this from, you will have no answer.
The student realized her mistake, turned around and disappeared among the students.
Only Remora and Eevee remained.
“What's that noise?”
One of the employees, who had moved away slightly to allow for conversation, approached, surprised by the loud voices. He didn't seem to hear the details of what happened.
Remora quickly let go of Evie's hand, then returned to her group of friends as if she didn't know her.
When Remora returned, her friends began whispering:
"Didn't I tell you? There's something strange!"
“Then she has nothing to do with His Majesty. She is just a girl who got in by luck!”
“If she had connections with a noble family, she would have mentioned a name. Didn’t you see how she stood dumbfounded without saying anything? She really has nothing!”
Then they turned to Remora and said:
"Lucky we knew that before we got close to her. You're amazing, Remora, you revealed everything so quickly!"
“Indeed, it is fortunate that we knew before we accompanied her. Did you see the nobles’ looks? They were full of dissatisfaction!”
“No wonder! Who would accept anyone claiming to have met His Majesty?”
Remora closed her mouth.
Of course, Evie said none of this. It was all made up by her.
But she didn't feel the need to correct it.
Anyway, who would pay attention to that little girl's words anymore?
Suddenly, a female student next to Remura whispered, smiling with similar slyness:
“So… there's no need to get close to her or care about her, right?”
"What?"
Remora looked at her questioningly, and the girl added, staring at Eppie:
“Why is a girl who has been lying since the beginning still in the academy? We might even be blamed because we are common people like him!”
Remora thought for a moment, then said in a low voice:
“I have a good idea.”
* * *
Amidst everyone's cold stares, Iggy stood alone, clenching her fists.
She wasn't feeling angry or sad.
The words of Remora and the noble student were echoing in her ears:
“His Majesty chose me himself.”
Whether out of pity or pure coincidence, this was an undeniable reality.
Evie didn't care what others whispered.
A smile appeared on her face.
Since entering the academy, she has been living in constant anxiety. She feared that she had been chosen by mistake and would be asked to return to the orphanage.
But what happened today removed all her doubts.
No matter the reason, the Emperor himself chose her after reviewing her documents, and here she is.
Her fear vanished.
She no longer cares what others say.
“I deserve to be here.”
This fact made Evie feel very happy.
°. • .✦ . ◌ ⋆ ° ✬ • ✫ ⋆｡ .° ◌ • .●