A few days later, in the Redwing palace, in the royal bedchamber…

Cycelia is lying on Straf's bed on top of his blanket, wearing her usual clothes with the thin nightgown as underwear. Her head rests on Straf's shoulders while her sullen face blankly stares at the darkness surrounding them. She lets out a soft, quiet sigh and raises her chestnut head to look at his serene sleeping face.

「…When are you going to wake up, Straf?… You are going to wake up, right?」

She asks in a soft voice while her gloomy emerald eyes stare at him.

「I'm starting to wonder if I really shouldn't try sleeping with you… Just to see if it could help. It might sound desperate… But I am getting kind of desperate, Straf…」

Cycelia sighs again, then shrugs her shoulders as she sits up to speak, furrowing her brows at him.

「…It's a story for children, but surely it didn't come from nowhere, right? Maybe there was such a thing, once, somewhere?…」

She adds, leaning in slightly on her arm.

「…And then there was that other story, with the kiss. I'd really prefer if you were awake for that, but… It might be worth a try, right?…」

Cycelia leans in closer, speaking in a hushed voice while looking at Straf's lips. She brushes her hair away behind her ear with her dainty fingers.

Knock knock knock!…

Loud knocking comes from the oaken doors to the bedroom, and Will enters. He adjusts his glasses after shutting the door behind himself, and turns his gaze to the enormous bed.

「Hm?…」

He tilts his head and furrows his brows gently when he sees Cycelia still scrambling to get back into the bedside chair. Once in it, she straightens stiff out and remains perfectly still.

「…Your highness?」

Will calls out, and stops a few steps away from the bed with his hands behind his back.

「Ah, Will!… What brings you here?」

Cycelia turns her blushing cheeks and tight-lipped grimace to Will, speaking with a blatantly feigned surprised tone.

「…I've come to report… That I have nothing to report, your highness.」

His brows furrow a little more, and he shrugs his robed shoulders as he replies.

「Nothing to report?」

Cycelia asks, tilting her head as her grimace slowly fades to a very mild confusion.

「Yes… Greaves simply just doesn't have much left to do, and he categorically refuses to do helpful things for the villagers… Like fix roof tiles, or chop firewood…」

Will nods and adjusts his glasses, briefly shrugging his arms as he reports.

「…But, they're no longer complaining about monsters pestering them. The capital and its vicinity have been cleared of anything but menial tasks…」

Cycelia listens as Will continues. His bespectacled eyes idly drift upward and aside above his glasses while he thinks.

「…The countryside in general is growing quieter too… To the point where Shien got to a rampaging chimera just before the reaction force did.」

He grimaces slightly, then shrugs his shoulders with his hands held behind his back.

「A chimera?…」

She echoes back with her brows lightly furrowed.

「Ah, it's uh… Well, it's hard to call a beast. It's more like multiple. Chimeras are a little like a monster made up by a child, but they're real, and they're dangerous…」

Will adjusts his glasses as he thinks intensely on how to explain chimeric beasts. His eyes wander around the dim room.

「…Wings, horns, antlers, tails… Paws, hooves… Fur, scale… They can have anything, really. This one had the body of a bear, antlers of a deer, wings like a dragon, and tail a little like an ox.」

「What a strange creature…」

Cycelia remarks as her head perks up in surprise, and she briefly glances over to Straf.

「Indeed. It was pestering Rankor Kingdom for days until it crossed the border, and started harassing merchants on our side. At least it's gone now.」

Will nods, and shrugs again.

「…Come to think of it, chimeric and aberrant beasts are one of the topics for the Academy of Magic this year.」

Cycelia thinks briefly before turning her emerald eyes back to Straf's sleeping face.

「…Are you planning to go with Straf again, your highness?」

Will asks hesitantly after a brief pause, and awkwardly adjusts his glasses.

「I'd really like to…」

She nods her chestnut head in reply while her face grows sullen.

「…But you know what it's like when he's not around to handle things here. And…」

「Yes, of course…」

Cycelia shrugs as she continues, and Will nods along quietly. She pauses for a long, silent moment while staring at Straf.

「…He could just not wake up in time for the next term, could he?」

She asks in a barely audible voice as her gloomy eyes drift down to her lap.

「…There is a possibility. But he might. In face of a large unknown like this, I think it's best to remain positive.」

Will concurs with a nod and adjusts his glasses, but then shrugs and fleshes out his previous thought.

「Mhm… That's right. There's nothing else I can do, after all…」

Watching Straf, she helplessly shrugs her shoulders with a sullen expression.

「…Will, if that happens, why not come with me then?」

Cycelia asks, turning her sullen emerald eyes to Will's stunned face.

「Eh? Ah, uh… I can't. Greaves would do something stupid sooner or later.」

Will blinks at her before composing himself and adjusting his glasses, returning a shrug.

「What if I… I don't want to say ordered, but strongly suggested that he stays put until he's personally sent to handle something?」

She briefly searches for words, then tilts her head.

「…It could work. To be honest, I'd like to learn Academy-level magic, but with Greaves insisting on running around and swinging his sword at everything aggressive…」

He nods back, shrugging his arms before rejoining his hands behind himself. He lowers his head as he thinks.

「…I'd also feel bad leaving Lian and Alicia behind.」

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He adds, and adjusts his glasses.

「Alicia could come too, if she'd want. They teach healers as well.」

Cycelia smiles a little with a small shrug of her shoulders.

「I am aware… But I don't think she'd leave Greaves. And I don't think Lian knows magic either, so…」

Will nods, and awkwardly explains with his hands spread.

「…Thank you for the offer, your highness… But I can't. That ship has already sailed for me. I'll never match Straf, and I've already accepted I'll remain a mediocre mage. It can't be helped.」

He adds, and politely bows his head.

「Hmmmh… It'll be a really lonely term if Straf doesn't wake up soon. I suppose there will be Tisha and Neela, but…」

Cycelia's face gains a disappointed frown as she lets out a quiet, troubled groan.

「Um, your highness… This isn't really a part of my report… It's just an aside, but…」

「Yes?…」

Will hesitantly calls out towards Cycelia, adjusting his glasses with an awkward grimace.

「…I am a little concerned about the situation with the foreign workers. I've talked with some of them out of my own interest, asked them how their life is here, their wages…」

「And?…」

She tilts her head as she listens. Will adjusts his glasses again.

「…Well, your highness. The other day I saw a band of children abusing one of the workers from Parnatau Kingdom. They were adamant that they were in their right to do so…」

He continues, shrugging his arms as he goes on. Cycelia's brows furrow in worry.

「…I intervened and gave them a talking to, but one of them mentioned that this new school is teaching them that they are a part of the great Redwing nation, and others are beneath them.」

「That's…」

Will adds, and shrugs his arms with his mouth scrunched aside. Cycelia's brows furrow further.

「…That's not how it should be. Redwing's Empire was grand, mighty, and had many unique little kingdoms. Only the empire is above all, but it's all equal people.」

She replies with a greatly concerned face. Her words make Will's head perk up momentarily, and he adjusts his glasses.

「Well, um… I also talked with other workers and asked them how they're being treated. They're either met with indifference or disdain, but the children are almost universally cruel…」

Will moves onto another point with a tight-lipped grimace.

「…And what I found out was, they're all terribly underpaid. By a half, or even up to a tenth of a normal wage. Most of them aren't even aware, and they feel that the wages are high.」

He adds, apologetically spreading his hands as he explains.

「Mnhhh… That's not good either… It was Straf's plan to get cheap workers over, but this is a little too much…」

Cycelia's face only grows more troubled the longer Will's aside grows. She lowers her chin between her thumb and finger as she thinks.

「I think so too, your highness. Forgive me if I'm speaking out of my place, but perhaps it would be a good idea to introduce a lower limit on wages?…」

Will adjusts his glasses and asks with his brows furrowed.

「A lower limit?…」

She tilts her chestnut head, blinking her emerald eyes at him. He nods in reply.

「Yes, your highness. As a mage, I know how much time learning magic takes, so I know how valuable time is. Work is, ultimately, trading a man's life for money…」

He explains, shrugging his arms again, grimacing slightly as he thinks with his gaze turned aside.

「…Even something simple, like just digging a hole… That takes a man's time and effort. Time and effort that could be put into something else, your highness…」

Will continues, and Cycelia silently nods along in agreement.

「…That's why I think there should be an established standard for the value of a portion of a man's life. Ah! Nothing too high, of course!… That'd make hiring workers simply too expensive…」

He quickly raises his hand with his eyes widened to correct himself, before joining them back behind himself.

「…It should probably be something that can afford a worker at least a few days of life. Since Straf is unavailable, I think you should discuss this with the steward, your highness…」

Will adjusts his glasses as the briefly two glance at Straf's peaceful, sleeping face.

「…But I think to preserve human dignity, one imperial dragon for work from morning until the evening as the absolute bottom limit, no matter the work, is a good starting point.」

He adds with a shake of his head for the emphasis, and bows his head lightly.

「…Yes, that makes sense. I think so too. Thank you, Will.」

Cycelia nods in agreement, smiling softly at Will.

「Ah, no… I haven't done anything, your highness. It's just my random thoughts-」

With his head bashfully lowered, Will adjusts his glasses.

「You know, you remind me of Otto a lot.」

She remarks with a warm smile, tilting her chestnut head a little.

「…Otto?」

Will furrows his brows at the oddly familiar stranger's name.

「Yes. My little brother.」

「Ah. Otto ridges…」

「Yes, exactly…」

Cycelia nods with a smile as Will recalls why the name is familiar, and adjusts his glasses.

「…But the difference is, you put a lot of thought into what you say and your ideas. It's the result of you thinking a lot, and your intelligence…」

「Ah, no…」

She turns her emerald eyes to Straf as she continues, while Will lowers his head again.

「…On the other hand, Otto would say some genius off-hand remark that would stun everyone. He had the tendency to do that a lot…」

Cycelia shrugs, smiling a little while idly staring at Straf's handsome face. Will adjusts his glasses as he raises his eyes.

「…My father was anguished by coin clippers once. The penalty was already death, and it didn't stop them. He briefly considered devaluing the coins, but that'd have diplomatic consequences…」

She continues, glancing briefly at Will while he listens.

「…Well, why don't they just make it so you can see when they're clipped? I'd know if someone would clip my desk! It has ridges!…」

Cycelia says and stifles a giggle.

「…He then nonchalantly left for his room, without knowing how much headache he spared my father. He was sitting in his throne with his jaw dropped for a few minutes.」

She adds, causing Will to smirk a little too. After a second, she takes a large breath and lets out a long, sullen sigh. Will's faint smile fades away.

「Well, that's all from me, your highness. I'll be heading back now, if I may.」

He says, adjusting his glasses with a somewhat gloomy face to match hers.

「Yes, of course. Thank you again, Will.」

She returns a quick nod of her chestnut head. Will bows, and heads for the door. She briefly watches Will while he departs, before turning her sullen emerald gaze back to Straf.

Cycelia takes another deep breath, and pairs it with a long, wistful sigh…