Chapter 10: The School of the Doomed (5)

Mr. Adrissant was late.

Simon found that quite unusual. He had been attending the Tribal Studies course for nearly three weeks now and the teacher always arrived on time—something that couldn’t be said about many people among the faculty. Simon had been obsessively checking the door for over fifteen minutes, expecting Mr. Adrissant to come in anytime now.

Two surprising guests showed up in his stead.

“Disappointed?” Anna teased him as she walked up to Simon with Tiella in tow. The princess carried a small newspaper in her hands. “Were you expecting someone else?”

“I’m always happy to see you, Anna,” Simon replied warmly as she and Tiella sat next to him. “I’m just surprised. I thought you didn’t take this course?”

“I don’t follow this course, but I figured I should check for myself what was so interesting about it that you would never miss a class. That and I wanted to ask about that handsome blonde guy you’ve been hanging out with lately.”

“Casval?” Simon raised an eyebrow. He knew the two of them had spent the last week or so together to study the Kish now and then, but he didn’t think others would have noticed. “Handsome?”

“Well, he’s more handsome than you, but only because you don’t dress well.” Anna stroked her chin and pretended to study Simon. “What do you say, Tiella? Would you prefer him naked or in a uniform?”

“Anna!” Tiella’s cheeks flushed red. “That isn’t funny!”

“Ignore her,” Simon replied. He had spent enough time around Anna to not let her teasing get through to him. “The woman feeds on shame.”

“Nonsense, I only feed on embarrassment.” Anna smiled upon spotting Casval entering the room. “Ah, here’s Simon’s boyfriend.”

“I would know if I was, Your Highness,” Casval replied with absolute calm and nerve, which only pleased Anna further. The young man walked to Simon’s side. “May I?”

“Of course,” Simon replied while doing his best to ignore the leers Anna and Tiella sent Casval. Was he really that handsome? “Unfortunately, the teacher’s late.”

“I’ve heard the teachers are holding a faculty meeting,” Casval replied. “To discuss a letter from the capital or something.”

“Doesn’t surprise me.” Anna tossed Simon her newspaper. “Check for yourself.”

Simon did so. The Empire’s Voice was the imperial heartland’s main newspaper—since authorities tightly censored all information—and generally reported government-approved weekly news across the land. His brow furrowed as he browsed the title.

Is Ser Richard of Lore the new Paladin?

Renewed calls for the Linconnu families to come forward to settle their inheritance.

Empire in mourning after the death of Patriate Malphas, our beloved Treasurer.

“Patriate’s dead?” Simon immediately checked the appropriate article, paling as he did. “His daughter Elaine, too?”

“She was supposed to attend this year,” Anna confirmed with some sorrow. “A shame. She was around our age.”

The article said Patriate and his daughter died of natural causes, but only fools would believe that. Simon could only think of one explanation: the knives had left their sheaths and factions at the palace had begun to take each other out.

While Patriate himself was only a baron, his sisters had married Duke Flauros and Duke Eligos, both of whom belonged to Louis’ War Party. They were sure to retaliate against whoever struck down their kin.

Thank the Light Simon moved away from that mess. What happened to Patriate and his daughter was sad, but better them than him.

“I wanted to introduce you to Louis’ fiancée, but she’s gone too. She left the city without a word a few days ago.” Anna stared straight into Simon’s eyes. “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”

Simon bristled upon setting the newspaper aside. “Why would I?”

“Father was recalled to the capital around the time you left, and he hasn’t sent me a letter since.” Anna leaned closer to him. “Come on, you shouldn’t keep secrets from your beloved honorary cousin.”

Casval thankfully came to Simon’s rescue. “The only secret we’re working to uncover is that of the Kish treasure, Your Highness.”

“Treasure?” A spark of interest glinted in Anna’s gaze. “Simon, what have you been keeping from us?”

“It’s just a rumor,” Simon replied. He didn’t particularly want Anna to put her nose into his affairs. Better to stay evasive–

“We’re investigating the ancient treasure of the Kish Empire and their palace to the east,” Casval said. “Would Your Highness be interested in joining us on our quest?”

Damn it, Casval!

“A treasure hunt, now that’s interesting,” Anna said with a wide grin. “How about we discuss it tonight at my place? We can hold a study session and then talk about treasures all night long.”

Simon sent Casval a silent glare, who pretended not to notice. Did he have any idea what he had done? Anna couldn’t hold her tongue to save her life!

This class couldn’t start any sooner.

Unfortunately, the wait stretched on for several minutes until the noise of a commotion erupted outside the classroom. Simon was about to check it out when a most unwelcome lot entered the classroom.

“What did I tell you, Anna?” Thalas said, glaring at a shocked Simon. The prince’s posse had grown to include his fiancée, half a dozen dukes’ sons, and other noble opportunists. “You deserve better than hanging out with trash.”

“Thalas?” Anna asked, taken aback. “Don’t tell me that this course struck your fancy, too?”

Thalas let out a bellowing laugh. “Why would I care about the lives of human animals?” he sneered at Simon in disdain. “I just came to personally inform the bastard, out of the kindness of my heart, that this course has been indefinitely suspended by order of High Confessor Mastemo.”

“What?” Simon blinked in shock. “Why?!”

“The study of the Tribes has been folded into the Divine Mystery course so that students can receive an education fitting the tenets of the Light. My mother, the Empress, found this academy’s lack of faith most concerning and decided we should reignite it in our youth’s hearts.”

Simon scowled in annoyance. Did Thalas pull strings to cancel the course simply because his hated half-brother attended it? While Simon knew Thalas might be petty enough to do that, the order apparently came from High Confessor Mastemo, and he wasn’t the kind to bend to a prince’s caprice.

It was more likely that the academy’s leadership had folded to the Church Party and let them take over. That didn’t bode well, both for Simon’s investigation into the Kish and his personal safety. Dassein ruled the city and was a War Party supporter; he couldn’t take this challenge lying down. The crossfire would be something to behold.

No wonder Louis’ fiancée was gone. He had likely recalled her for her own safety now that Euphemia was taking steps to secure the Academy for herself.

Simon cursed his rotten luck. He had traveled countless miles from the capital to escape his home’s politics, only to have them catch up to him.

The day had already started badly enough, and now Thalas decided to worsen it by putting salt in his half-brother’s wounds. “I am disappointed by the company you keep, Anna,” he said. “I’ve heard you insisted on keeping the bastard’s room next to yours.”

She did?

“What does it matter, Thalas?” Anna replied without denying it. “He’s family too.”

The scowl on the prince’s face grew dark with cold fury. “Family?” he all but spat the word. “His peasant mother’s only grace was that she was pretty enough for our father to rape.”

Simon had grown so used to his half-brother’s mockery that most of them slid off him like water on a rock… but that lie, that calumny which had pursued all of his life, was the exception. His blood boiled in his veins, and he glared at Thalas with all the hatred that the princeling inspired in his heart. Tiella sank into her chair, trying hard not to be noticed, while Casval watched the scene with an unreadable expression. Only Anna appeared as outraged as Simon.

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“Thalas, apologize immediately,” Anna said coldly.

“For what, saying the truth?” Thalas’ smile had all the sweetness of rancid butter. “Besides, it must have been the only noteworthy day in her life. The bastard should thank me for keeping the memory of her alive.”

Some members of his posse laughed despite there being nothing funny about his words, because the wise and the ambitious always found princes witty. Anna was gritting her teeth in cold fury so hard that Simon could hear them from his seat. He could have fallen in love with her on the spot for that gesture alone.

Every fiber of his being demanded that he punch Thalas in the face, break his nose, and make him pay for his words. Yet not only did Simon know he was more likely to break his hand than inflict any damage on Thalas, he could tell the prince wanted him to do so. He was baiting Simon to try his luck and fail so he could demolish him in return and impress his posse.

So he used a deadlier weapon instead; the truth.

“Every time I look at you,” Simon said coldly, “I remember why Father didn’t choose you.”

That hurt him more than any punch, mostly because he knew Simon was right. Thalas froze, first in shock, then in impotent rage. His posse continued to laugh for a while until they noticed his shaking hands, at which point they began to nervously shut up.

“What did you say, bastard?” Thalas asked with a dangerous tone, trying to intimidate his half-brother into silence. It might have worked if he hadn’t just insulted Simon’s mother and her honor.

“You disappointed him the moment you emerged from the empress’ thighs without her third eye and summoning power,” Simon replied. “You have none of Louis’ talent, Lauriane’s intellect, Dassein’s valor, or even Norbelle’s affinity for magic. Maybe if you had an ounce of their skills, then he would have chosen you as his successor instead of a stranger.”