A Gentle Noble's Vacation Recommendation

The white royal palace, Astarnia’s pride. Within it, deep inside where only a select few dare to tread, Rizel was in the royal palace library, located just down a short flight of stairs.

In the cramped space cluttered with various bookshelves haphazardly arranged, a desk sat in the open area at the center—a recent addition, not present when the library was first established. Seated in a chair by that desk, Rizel maintained an impeccably beautiful posture while engrossed in reading.

Beside him, Jill sat emotionlessly flipping through a book Rizel had brought from somewhere, while opposite them, Arim was absorbed in reading the only existing book on ancient language, pen in hand. The pen occasionally paused as he jotted notes on sheets stacked beside him, deciphering the text with evident effort.

Rizel would occasionally glance at Arim’s work with just his eyes, then suddenly lifted his face, tilting his head slightly in thought. Jill next to him glanced briefly at Rizel’s expression before returning his gaze to the book.

“It seems you’re about ready,” Rizel said calmly.

Jill remained impassive, but Arim stopped his pen mid-air and slowly looked up. The fabric of his clothing rustled softly as he shifted.

“Is that so?” Arim muttered quietly, clearly understanding the meaning behind Rizel’s words.

It marked the end of Rizel’s ancient language lessons. While conversational use of the ancient language remained impossible, Arim had reached the point where he could read the characters—unless the content was exceptionally complex.

In other words, this was enough to open the door to the deepest layer of the Mermaid Princess’s Cave, fulfilling their original purpose. Rizel had no obligation to continue teaching beyond this.

But that didn’t mean Arim was ready to simply accept this and let him go without question.

“Sensei, I’ve finished reading all the books.”

“No, actually, not yet,” Rizel replied with a wry smile, and Arim relaxed his shoulders.

So Rizel still had reasons to visit the library. For Arim, too—being much like Rizel when it came to books—there was no choice but to read the books in front of him. That was reason enough.

So Arim concluded there was only one thing he needed to do: provide Rizel with a solid justification to keep visiting the library.

“In that case, you are free to use the library as you wish,” Arim offered.

“Really?”

“Heh heh,” Arim smiled.

The justification was already prepared, so all he had to do was understand Rizel’s intention.

Could it be that this gentle command was a form of kindness? Or was he imagining too much, hoping Rizel would say, “If you can’t fulfill this, then you don’t need to”?

If he were just a person who approved without noticing what was laid out, then to this calm person before him, even a royal wouldn’t be a necessary presence.

“We can’t just let someone who knows state secrets roam free,” Rizel said with a hint of praise in his narrowed eyes.

Arim instinctively clasped his hands on the desk. His fingers slowly intertwined—a simple gesture, yet somehow it felt like an offering of something. Even he couldn’t quite understand what.

Yet, born as royalty, this was a sensation he should never have experienced in his life—and he felt no discomfort or doubt about it.

“You speak quite clearly,” Arim commented.

“Because sensei notices even if I hide it,” Rizel smiled, tucking his hair behind his ear, and Arim returned the smile, thinking how typical that was of him.

The state secret was the method to command the demonic birds that formed the core of the demonic bird cavalry, the nation’s backbone.

Arim had been curious—what advantage was there in Rizel revealing this to him? Rizel’s reasons were unclear, but it seemed that he simply wanted to know the answer for himself and shared it with Arim as a confirmation.

That might not have been wrong, but the primary purpose was likely for this very moment: to create a reason to keep visiting the library after the lessons would end before Arim finished reading.