CPG | Chapter 12

The man who followed the black-haired boy, said to be the castle’s only attendant, was a researcher from the Imperial Palace named Rishman. The palace housed several research institutions, and Rishman belonged to the one focused on studying Espers and Guides, which was considered the core. He had once been in charge of Ternnis.

Since Ternnis entered Sanges Castle, Rishman hadn’t had any reason to leave the lab. He had hurriedly packed a few things upon the sudden summons.

Facing Ternnis unexpectedly, Rishman wiped the sweat from his hands, pretending to adjust his lab coat. They said he was on the brink of death, yet the oppressive aura remained unchanged.

“It’s been a while, Your Highness.”

Rishman bowed. Ternnis, watching him, casually spoke.

“Why do you think I called you?”

Ternnis’s relaxed question was why Rishman found him difficult. Unlike other princes who gave direct orders, Ternnis never got straight to the point.

Each time, Rishman had to rack his brain to find the right answer. It was fine if the answer Ternnis wanted came to mind immediately. However, that was rare, and sometimes, while guessing, he inadvertently revealed his thoughts.

Unable to brush it off with an apology, Rishman cautiously voiced the hypothesis he’d considered all day yesterday.

“Is it for the regular check-up of Your Highness?”

Though a researcher, Rishman was also qualified as a doctor due to the nature of examining people’s bodies. He assumed it was to check on the prince’s condition.

Ternnis’s expression turned irritated at Rishman’s answer.

“You know that being in this castle means I’m at my worst, right?”

Rishman bowed his head at the rebuke, as if asking if he didn’t know. Wrong again.

“What you need to examine isn’t me.”

At Ternnis’s subtle hint, Rishman was momentarily flustered but quickly thought of someone. It wasn’t difficult. Only the prince and the black-haired attendant resided in the castle.

“The attendant?”

At Rishman’s question, Ternnis’s eyebrow twitched. Earlier, it was because his guess was wrong, but this time, Rishman couldn’t tell what had irked him. He was dealing with a child not even half his age, yet he was shaken by every expression, suppressing his complicated feelings.

“Rayyan.”

“…I’m sorry. Should I examine Rayyan?”

Ternnis nodded slightly, and Rishman’s mind started racing. How old was the attendant again? As he recalled, he quickly grasped what kind of test to conduct.

“Should I do the second test?”

“There’s something you need to be careful about before the test.”

Ternnis sank deeply into his chair. Rishman swallowed nervously, not even having time to be pleased that he was right.

“Whatever the result, you bury it here. If not, your neck might be buried.”

It wasn’t something a child would say. But it wasn’t something to be taken lightly either. The one before him was a prince who might have risen to any position if not for his illness.

Rishman bowed his head.

“Understood.”

Now that he knew why the prince had called him, Rishman had only one task: to do his best in examining the attendant.

***

While the prince met with the man from the main castle, Rayyan busily cleaned. The prince usually didn’t let him go, so he couldn’t miss this chance. Rayyan’s room was still small and dirty, but he had even less time now, so he gave up on it entirely.

“Rayyan.”

Rayyan, who was cleaning frantically, straightened up at the sound of someone calling him. Turning around, he saw the man who had entered the castle with him. The man gestured for him to follow, and Rayyan did so immediately. The man led him to the reception room, where he confidently placed his bag on the wide table.

Rayyan stood in front of him without taking any other action. In the palace, one had to serve with discretion and avoid touching certain things.

As expected, the man didn’t entrust anything from his bag to Rayyan, placing everything on the table himself.

“Did you have the first test?”

“Yes.”

“Seems nothing came up.”

Rayyan couldn’t respond to the implication that if anything significant had been found, he wouldn’t be serving as an attendant. The man was right. Rayyan hadn’t been identified as a Guide in the first test, was pushed out of the succession line, and was now on the run.

“How old are you now?”

“Fifteen.”

“Of course.”

Rishman nodded.

“That’s why His Highness called me. He wants me to conduct your second test.”

“Me?”

“Yes.”

Rayyan couldn’t help but ask again at Rishman’s explanation about the second test. Even though he was alone with the prince, questioning in the palace could displease superiors. Fortunately, Rishman let it slide, and Rayyan bowed his head to hide the many questions still on his face.

‘Why me…’

He knew the prince had called Rishman, but he still couldn’t understand why. He was just a lowly attendant serving the prince. Why had he summoned someone to conduct a second test?

“Are you curious?”

Rayyan thought he had hidden his expression, but he couldn’t fool Rishman. The seasoned researcher, while setting down various tools, addressed Rayyan’s curiosity.

“His Highness likes certainty, so he must be curious about your results. He must suspect you’re different, whether as an Esper or a Guide, which is why he called me.”

At Rishman’s explanation, Rayyan’s fingertips twitched. The subtle sensations he felt when touching the prince could be the reaction between an Esper and a Guide, offering a clue to his complex feelings.

“What happens if I’m a Guide?”

“That depends on His Highness’s thoughts.”

Everything about the attendant was in the prince’s hands.

“I can’t fully guess His Highness’s intentions either. But from my experience, I’ve realized a few things.”

Rishman had been by the prince’s side since his birth. He had seen the young prince writhing in pain and screaming in agony. He had also observed the prince’s expressions diminish over time.

Though he could no longer guess the prince’s thoughts, he had never crossed him. That was because he had done his best to understand the prince’s hidden emotions.

Rishman, who had been moving without looking at Rayyan, stopped everything. Standing straight, he looked at Rayyan with a serious gaze.

“If you intend to hide something, hide it thoroughly. I will do my best to examine you.”

***

“Slow as ever.”

Ternnis grumbled discontentedly as he watched the sun set. It had been half a day since he instructed Rishman to conduct the test.

Shouldn’t the test be done by now? He muttered but didn’t go looking for Rishman. The test usually took a week, so it was fortunate that half of it was already done.

It was all due to Ternnis’s impatience. Feeling frustrated, he got up from his chair. Having spent most of his waking hours with Rayyan lately, being alone felt awkward.

Unlike before, when he was too sick to think of anything else, today, all sorts of thoughts filled his mind.

“Boring.”

He didn’t feel like going to the study alone, nor did he want to bring Rayyan back from the test. He considered watching the test but quickly dismissed the idea.

In his first bit of free time, Ternnis paced around his room in circles, his attention suddenly drawn to his room. The dust-covered appearance from before was gone, leaving it tidy and clean, if not luxurious.

Ternnis’s gaze landed on the bed. More precisely, the wall behind the bed. He alternated between looking at the bed and the wall, contemplating.

He had chosen this room initially because of the study the Emperor had created. The only passage to that study was through this room. If the Emperor had connected this room and the study, the Empress had left traces in this room.

He had entered the study to pass a dull day, but he hadn’t been interested in the Empress’s secrets. He had assumed his life would end before then.

But now that his curiosity was piqued, he couldn’t let it go. Having made up his mind, Ternnis unhesitatingly reached between the bed and the wall.

His fingers found a blunt bead on the wall. He wedged it between his fingers and pulled it out. It looked like a necklace that had fallen behind the bed, but the thread attached to the bead continued without breaking.

Ternnis pulled the thread sharply, as if to break it. The thread strained under Ternnis’s pull until it snapped with a small sound. It was just a thread breaking, but immediately, changes began. The bed moved, widening the gap with the wall.

Seeing this, Ternnis tossed the bead aside and watched the transformation. When the bed stopped moving, the wall shifted. A section of the flat wall popped out. Ternnis, observing this, retrieved a hidden box from the wall and turned around.

As a signal, the bed returned to its original position, and Ternnis returned to where he had first sat.

“How amusing.”

To think he had uncovered the first Empress’s keepsake out of boredom. How would his siblings at the main castle react if they knew?

“Would they come to take it?”

His greedy siblings, unable to set foot in Sanges Castle, would try every trick to claim it. Watching that would be entertaining… Leaving the future enjoyment for later, Ternnis opened the box.