Ch#136
Starting with the resumption of student admissions this year, the Genius Academy buildings had undergone renovations one by one and were being opened sequentially.
The venue hosting today's Seasonal Festival was the most splendid and beautiful among the Genius Academy buildings, specially designed from the start for academy events.
Built during the extravagant reign of a past emperor, it was a place of opulent luxury utterly unlike the rest of the Genius Academy.
When deciding on its restoration, the ministers had cautiously gauged Clois's reaction.
"Shall we gut the entire interior?"
Unlike the late emperor, Clois despised ostentation and extravagance. They wondered if he might order it demolished entirely...
"Judging by your faces, you're worried I might burn it down and raze it all."
Honestly, they were.
"How long would demolition and rebuilding take, and how much would it cost?"
"Here! We've calculated it."
Clois quickly read the documents handed over by the minister and replied immediately.
"Restore and reopen it."
It would cost less money and save time.
And above all, this place could be considered a work of the era's finest artists.
"This qualifies as a cultural treasure. Such things require preservation in their own right."
That decision now astonished every student entering the venue.
"This place is really pretty."
Evi couldn't close her mouth, gazing at the beautiful paintings covering the ceiling.
The ceiling depicted heroic deeds of the founding emperor and subsequent emperors.
The walls were adorned with gold-plated decorations and intricate silk wallpaper with elaborate patterns.
Beside the freshly painted enormous windows with new glass stood curtains embroidered with the imperial and Genius Academy crests in gold thread, and the floor was covered with a carpet of unprecedented size.
It was a space perfectly befitting the term banquet hall.
Evi now frequented not just the Genius Academy but even the Imperial Palace's Main Palace.
During vacation, she had stayed at the glamorous Terins family mansion in the capital, the Duke Kailun's Mansion exuding history and dignity, and the massive, sturdy Marquis Ragselb's Mansion.
Having lodged in what could be called living historical sites, she had grown numb to most splendor.
Yet this banquet hall overwhelmed her senses in an instant.
"There's a guidebook here too."
Irene picked up a small booklet near the entrance and handed one to Evi as well.
The booklet, practically a catalog, detailed the building's history and explanations of its decorations.
Evi immediately found the description of the ceiling painting.
"Ah, here it is."
At the center of the ceiling was the founding emperor.
Beside him was a battle scene of another emperor she had seen long ago at the imperial museum.
As suspected, all the ceiling paintings depicted successive emperors.
'Is His Majesty here too?'
With so many blond emperors and the paintings so distant, it was hard to tell which was Clois.
Before reading the explanation, Evi spotted an emperor holding a child's hand.
And in his other hand, the hand of a woman not in imperial robes.
"That's Empress Lilian."
"Huh? Who?"
"The one painted at that far end. Next to her is His Majesty Clois."
"Where... Ah, there."
Irene nodded, looking at the corner of the painting Evi pointed to.
She quickly read the booklet and explained the painting to Evi.
"When building this place, they painted the most famous battles for the deceased emperors, and for later ones, scenes they themselves wanted."
That explained why, toward the side, there were diverse non-battle scenes.
One emperor had beautiful birds perched on his hand and shoulder while playing a flute.
He must have loved birds and music.
Another emperor gazed at endless mountains from a high cliff.
And Clois...
"...He had the late empress and princess painted."
Clois had simply depicted himself with his wife and daughter.
Just wanting to be with his family.
'If I became his daughter...'
Would he paint me there too?
As Evi stared blankly at the scene, someone suddenly placed hands on her and Irene's shoulders from behind.
"Wah!"
Startled by the sudden action, the two turned around.
There stood Ruska, grinning mischievously.
"Hey! You scared us!"
Irene jabbed Ruska's stomach with her finger in annoyance.
But Ruska dodged sideways as if expecting it and stuck out his tongue.
"You two didn't respond when I called and were just spacing out, so I did it to snap you out of it. More than that, you both look really pretty today. I only saw you two when coming in."
At Ruska's sudden praise, both Evi and Irene blushed.
"Thank you! Ruska looks cool too!"
"Of course. I've always been cool."
Irene shook her head in exasperation at Ruska's confident reply.
'So full of himself!'
Yet she couldn't deny he looked more handsome than usual today, as Evi said.
He had been like a potato rolling around together all summer vacation, but somehow the clothes made him look dashing.
'Did I not sleep enough yesterday?'
Thinking that, Irene shook her head. She was clearly not in her right mind. Otherwise, Ruska looking good was impossible.
"By the way, I thought you two would wear matching dresses, but they're different?"
"Well..."
Irene rubbed her forehead.
Yes. She had originally planned that.
How great would it be to wear matching dresses with Evi!
Look! This perfect couple look!
But things didn't go as Irene planned.
"In the end, yellow suits Evi so much better..."
No matter what they tried on, yellow suited Evi insanely well.
In comparison, purple suited her silver hair far better.
Still reluctant to give up matching dresses, she wrote to Madam Crevel for advice, and a swift reply came.
[Give up.]
Such a sharp response.
So in the end, Irene tearfully decided on the outfits that suited each best.
'She's cute, though.'
She had worried her sun-scorched face might make the dress float awkwardly.
But Evi had returned to her soft, white face faster than expected.
Her neck and back, which had peeled badly, healed back to normal quickly.
When asked how, Evi said she had no idea.
"I just napped in the shade under a tree."
She had only fallen asleep studying in the shade behind the dormitory—how could that heal wounds?
It was miraculous.
"By the way, why are you alone? Where's Arsel?"
"He'll be here soon. He was getting swarmed on the way. More than that, want to go eat? Food's all set up in the corridor right next to us."
Saying that, Ruska led the two aside.
"This is banquet food?"
The banquet hall had been full of wonders, but the food astonished even more.
"Since His Majesty the Emperor is attending, it's the most splendid and varied among Imperial Palace banquet foods. The book said so."
As Ruska explained, Evi sneakily picked up tongs and placed a prettily made canapé on a plate to eat.
Nom nom.
She expected it to taste as amazing as it looked...
"Hm."
Evi made an ambiguous face, and Irene quickly grabbed a canapé too.
And made the exact same expression as Evi.
"What's up?"
At Ruska's question, the two answered simultaneously.
"Yours tastes better..."
"What you make is better."
It wasn't just this dish. Before, the dormitory cafeteria food had tasted great.
Of course, it still did, but somehow it felt a bit lacking now.
Evi mumbled sullenly.
"I want to eat more of what you make, Ruska."
"Me too."
"Glad you think it's tasty... Then want to come to my house next weekend? My brothers are already clamoring for you all to visit again."
"Really? Can we go again?"
"Yeah. In autumn, we always hunt wild boars in our territory's hunting grounds. Let's catch some and roast whole."
Gulp. Whole roast wild boar. How delicious would that be?
Ruska went on at length about how fun outdoor barbecues were.
While doing so, he subtly glanced toward the entrance without Evi and Irene noticing.
'He's doing as told, but is the other side going well?'
There was a reason Ruska was eating with the two and chattering about the banquet today.
His mission today was simple.
Don't leave Evi's side.
After Ruska and Arsel secretly stole a map and pinpointed likely inn locations, Duke Kailun had immediately sent people there.
Within less than a week, reports came back from each spot.
Three said no inns matching the conditions nearby.
The problem was the last one.
"We believe we've found the place you mentioned. However..."
