58
Since the morning, Cloyce had been thinking that the Imperial Palace was unusually quiet.
Although he was famous for working hard day and night, he did not force ministers to stay on holidays without a reason.
“However, it is much quieter than usual,”
muttered Cloyce.
The butler replied while pouring the tea:
“It seems that not many people entered the palace due to the Festival of Seasons period.”
“Oh, is it time for that already?”
The Festival of the Seasons was a short celebration held in the capital as the seasons changed. Since the festival of the transition from autumn to winter is the most prominent, the festival that accompanies the transition from spring to summer was, as it is now, held on a smaller scale.
Maybe that's why Cloyce forgot about him.
“Then, many of the academy’s kids must have come out as well.”
Remember a report Seraphina made a few days ago, in which she mentioned that this was the first official exit period for the children after joining the academy.
Was his awareness of the absence of children the reason?
The palace corridors seemed quieter, even though he wasn't supposed to hear any sounds at all.
Cloïs sat drinking tea alone, then announced that he was going for a walk, and headed towards the tombs of Lillian and Evpian.
As usual on his imperial outings, the butler did not dare to accompany him, so he contented himself with bowing respectfully.
Clowes entered the cemetery through the guards, where the sun's rays lit up the place, and he smiled a bitter smile.
Perhaps due to the increasingly warm days, the trees surrounding the stele were blooming with flowers, large and small.
If there had not been a tombstone, no one would have imagined that this place was a cemetery. The view would have been very beautiful.
Cloyce went about and weeded, and then Evie suddenly came to mind, and he approached the bush from which she always appeared.
The thicket (many winding trees)
“She was almost here.”
He examined the bush, but his face immediately hardened.
There was something strange. As Evie came and went, there was a path in the bush that allowed a small animal to pass without a problem.
But now, as if he had missed the sight, the passage was completely blocked, and no trace of it remained.
“She's come and gone twice, hasn't she?”
However, the path was not only accessible to children, but even the squirrel himself would have had difficulty crossing it, as the thicket had grown thickly.
“What a thing…”
In fact, he intended to block the thicket.
Cloyce was worried that Evie would keep visiting this place.
Not because it's Lillian's grave.
“But because the Evbian Cemetery is here too.”
On her second visit, as they talked, Effie pointed to the small stele and asked who was buried there.
He couldn't say she was his daughter. If he had done so, Evie would have realized the identity of the tomb's owner, and revealed that he was the Emperor.
But, more than that…
“I couldn't utter a word.”
To say that a girl of her age was buried here was more difficult for him than death itself.
Cloyce was confused, unable to understand where this feeling was coming from.
Did he hate the idea of showing a child's grave to a little girl like her?
Or does he not want his daughter lying on the cold ground to see his father laughing and talking with another child?
“Why?”
Cloyce was aware that he was treating Evie too kindly and took special care of her.
Instead of scolding the child who snuck in here, he let her go and even sent her a gift.
In fact, to continue meeting with her, he invented a fake identity and set up an office for the professorship.
“That's why everyone was putting in all that effort.”
Clouis finally understood why the nobles were trying to push their young children before him.
She's just a little girl of the same age. Her eyes just look like Lillian's...that's all.
“If it had been a little different, would I have done all this?”
Imagine Cloise Evie with a different hair and eye color.
But even if she had been, she would have seemed just as orphaned.
A girl extends her arms towards him without fear, hugs him and laughs.
When he sees her like this, he can't help but want to do anything for her.
He turned his head towards the academy.
With the weekend coinciding with the Festival of Seasons, there probably wouldn't be many kids left at the academy.
“Evie probably stayed here.”
The city of Elram is far away.
Moreover, it is difficult for the orphanage director to move for one girl.
Cloyce imagined Evie alone in the dormitory, and lost himself in his thoughts.
“I have to ask Seraphina to quickly open the academy’s library. Also, she has to properly plan other activities for the children remaining on vacation.”
The academy has also prepared an office for Professor Sian Rushen.
“All the professors who have offices there are often on overseas assignments, so Sian’s absence will not raise any suspicions.”
Seraphina said she had the office modeled after Cloyce's, and asked him to visit it from time to time.
“What did you do there?”
His curiosity, which he had not seen yet, aroused his curiosity.
“Maybe I'll go have a look.”
On a normal day, he wouldn't have thought about going.
Children may not know him, but some teachers know his face.
But today, isn't it a day when almost everyone went out?
He hesitated for a moment, then looked towards the academy with determination.
* * *
As Clowes expected.
He returned to his palace, put on the normal clothes he sometimes wore when going out to the capital, and then took a less frequented path to reach the academy.
Some of the academy's employees passed by him, but they did not recognize him, so they contented themselves with an official greeting and passed by.
He felt more comfortable as he headed toward the professor's office.
The academy was much quieter than he had imagined.
“Very quiet.”
How could the remaining children not feel lonely in such quiet?
“Well, next time out, everyone will be busy.”
Cloyce remembered the academy's schedule.
This time, everyone will be excited to go out, but next time, it won't be easy.
At that time, there will be an exam.
“So everyone stayed in the dormitory crying.”
Clowes also remembered his childhood days at the academy.
His mother sent him to strengthen his influence, so he met the children of nobles his age.
The Duke of Kilron, and the Marquis of Lagueslab, were both his friends and ministers whom he met at that time.
“By the way, Evie told me that Arcel and Ruska are being nice to her.”
Evie had been cheerfully telling him about her life at the academy lately.
She talked more about her friend Irene, but she didn't mention the two boys less either.
“By the way, when was the last time you saw these two?”
They were two children very dear to Lillian, which is why they were close to him as well.
But after he became emperor, they rarely met, and their meetings were limited to formal greetings on major occasions.
“I have to call them later.”
If he had to choose an heir, it would be one of them.
So, it wouldn't be a bad idea for him to start meeting them regularly to see how they've matured during this period.
“Maybe I will give them one of the imperial villas for the summer vacation.”
Maybe they'll take Evie with them then.
Meanwhile, he arrived at the professor's office.
He entered the office as he opened the door, and was surprised to see the interior decoration that looked very similar to his own office.
Then he saw the full shelves of books, so he wiped his face with his hand.
“So, I'm a foreign languages professor?”
If so, why did they put all these books instead of just one of the four languages he was fluent in?
“Not that I can't, but...”
While he was thinking that he might need to review what he had long forgotten to appear like a professor to Eppie, a piece of paper on the desk caught his attention.
"What is this?"
The childish handwriting was large and round, clearly visible.
“Hello, Professor Sian...”
[Hello, Professor Sian. I'm Evie Elden. I came here after learning that your office is here, but you are not there, so I will leave the message and leave. See you soon. (I didn't touch the books, just looked at them, I swear!) I'll be back!]
At the end of the letter, there was a slightly distorted drawing of a rabbit.
Seeing the drawing, Cloyce's gaze softened and became kinder.
She came here before me and left.
“How long have you waited for me?”
He felt sad as he imagined her waiting here for him long before she left.
“You'll come back again.”
When will that be?
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