Kingdom of Lies

by Yuri Kitayama

  It was evident at a glance that Christina and Flora were siblings — both young girls were beautiful and had lavender hair. Yet the aura they exerted were extreme opposites of each other. Flora’s large, round eyes sparkled a lovely purple, and her pale skin was tinted with a faint blush. Conversely, Christina had her brows furrowed in displeasure, turning away with a huff when she made eye contact with Rio.

  “On this occasion, I commend you for saving my daughter. You have done well — I thank you.” Philip III extended his thanks to Rio with his grandiose way of speaking.

  “I am wholly unworthy but humbly delighted to receive your praise, Your Majesty,” Rio replied respectfully.

  “You carry yourself quite capably in this setting. Did you study the etiquette of royal audiences?”

  “Your Majesty, I am beyond words. This is but hastily acquired knowledge that my attendants assisted me in preparing, in the hopes that I would not act disrespectfully in your lofty presence.” Rio’s way of speaking made the king peer at him with a look of admiration.

  “I did send a message not to worry about the finer details of ceremonious etiquette, but your efforts are quite admirable. I heard you were living in the slums, but were you born in this country?”

  “Yes, Your Majesty. I was born and raised in the capital.”

  “I see. And your parents...?”

  “I have been told that my father and mother were adventurers that traveled from country to country. They emigrated from the far east and had me once they had settled in this kingdom, but both of them are gone now.”

  “I see. Immigrants from the far east... So that is why you are living in the slums. That’s quite the tragic past you have for your age, however... I do apologize for asking such difficult questions. Do forgive me.”

  “It is no trouble in the least, Your Majesty. It’s all in the past now,” Rio said with a troubled expression.

  “I see. Incidentally, I was thinking of rewarding you for your actions...” Philip III started to speak, then paused to look at Rio.

  “What are your thoughts about enrolling into the primary school division of the Royal Academy of Beltrum? If you wish, it will lead to favorable employment opportunities in the future. If you produce satisfactory results, we will also support your advancement into the Academy’s secondary school.”

  The king explained the details of the reward, and Rio’s eyes widened at the offer suddenly placed before him.

  “That... is far beyond what I had wished for,” Rio said, a look of indecisiveness faintly appearing on his face.

  It was true that as an orphan, Rio completely lacked the education and social etiquette of this world, making the opportunity to enroll in a specialized educational institution not a bad offer at all. But based on this place’s cultural standards, it was easy to picture the students attending the Royal Academy of Beltrum as all royalty and nobility. What would happen if Rio went to such a place with his complete lack of any kind of social stature?

  Just the thought of it made his spirit heavy.

  Even so, Rio had no other choice right now. It was hard to imagine them letting him go freely if he refused, and he had no plans on how he was to live from tomorrow onwards either. After quickly calculating everything in his head, Rio said:

  “If Your Majesty would allow it, then I shall gratefully take you for your word and accept this kind offer,” he said quietly, deciding to receive the reward. Philip III nodded approvingly.

  “Then it has been decided. We will fund all of your expenses from enrollment until graduation. I shall also bestow upon you a separate reward of 100 gold coins.”

  The room stirred again — that was an extraordinary amount.

  The currency in circulation in the markets consisted of six types: small bronze coins, large bronze coins, small silver coins, large silver coins, gold coins, and enchanted gold coins. The exchange rate of each coin to the next in value was ten to one. For example, ten small bronze coins were equivalent to one large bronze coin, and ten large bronze coins could be exchanged for one small silver coin. However, enchanted gold coins were the exception: the number in circulation was extremely small, thus making the standard gold coin the highest value of coin in use.

  The enrollment fee into the elementary school division of the Royal Academy of Beltrum was 10 gold coins, and the yearly tuition fee was 30 gold coins. In other words, the first year of schooling cost 40 gold coins in total, and every year after would cost 30 gold coins.

  To put it into context, the average yearly income of a noble without land was roughly 40 gold coins.

  First and foremost, the royalty and nobility classes were too fixated on their prejudiced views to welcome a lowly orphan into their ranks at the Royal Academy — to watch him receive such a large value reward on top of that would definitely generate animosity.

  Rio noticed how the atmosphere in the room had changed, but ignored it.

  “...Please accept my deepest gratitude for your overwhelming hospitality, Your Majesty,” he said instead, bowing his head low.

  ◇◇◇

  The director’s office of the Royal Academy of Beltrum was located on the top floor, which was the steeple of the school building. Director Garcia Fontaine had summoned the elementary school teacher in charge of the first-years, Celia Claire, to his office. Once Celia entered, Garcia lowered himself into a regal-looking desk chair at the back of the room. Behind him was a balcony that overlooked the capital of Beltrant.

  “Excuse me, Director Fontaine. Did you call for me?”

  “Indeed,” Garcia said, nodding at Celia’s greeting. “Thank you for coming.” Despite his old age showing through the wrinkles on his face, Garcia still had a youthful vigor about him.

  “I have called you here today to discuss the enrollment of the orphan from the royal assembly the other day.”

  “You mean Rio?”

  “That’s right. It has been decided that he will join your class.”

  “I see. That shouldn’t be a problem,” Celia replied. A normal professor would have felt a sense of aversion to having a controversial orphan lumped into their class, but Celia readily agreed without any objections.

  “You’re still a young and upcoming professor, so I have great expectations of you. Do well.”

  “Yes, I will do my best to meet those expectations,” Celia replied, straightening her stance proudly.

  “Good. Now, for the real issue at hand... What did you think of the orphan when you met him? I’d like to hear your honest opinion.”

  “Let me see... I found him to be an intelligent child that was rather mature for his age,” Celia answered after thinking carefully.

  “Oh? What exactly made you think that?” Garcia asked with great interest.

  “First, the fact that he seemed to clearly understand the situation he was in. On top of that, he had an ambitious attitude that always sought to make up for his shortcomings. His critical thinking, adaptability, and learning speed were all exceptional, too,” Celia responded with her well-organized impression of Rio.

  “Hmm. He was dragged into the Princess’ kidnapping case, taken to the castle, endured an interrogation that was more torture than anything, then was ordered to enroll in the Royal Academy under the auspices of a reward. Did he seem to have any complaints regarding any of those points? Ignium,” Garcia asked, then chanted a spell. A small magic circle appeared at his fingertip, followed by a flame. He brought the flame towards the pipe he held in his mouth and inhaled, releasing puffs of smoke into the air.

  “He seemed reluctant in some ways, but he never voiced any complaints out loud.”

  “I see...” Garcia said, exhaling a puff of smoke and watching it waft through the air in contemplation.

  “Umm, is something the matter with Rio?” Celia asked, uncertain of where the conversation was going.

  “Oh, it’s nothing. It just isn’t a very childlike reaction, that’s all,” Garcia answered vaguely.

  “A childlike reaction
?” Celia tilted her head in confusion.

  “Indeed. For example, let’s say you were suddenly thrown into a cell where a bunch of unknown men violently abused you. What would you think once you were released without a word?”

  “...That sounds horrible. It’d definitely cause some kind of trauma... I might even lose trust in other people,” Celia replied with a pained expression. Imagining herself in that position made the situation feel all the more wretched.

  “That’s exactly what I mean. It may seem even more repulsive from your perspective as a girl, but isn’t that the normal reaction as a child — no, a human? You would hate the people who treated you unjustly, perhaps mutter a curse or two about them. There may be some who take into account their position and hold back their emotions, but those people are few and far between, even among adults,” Garcia stated, sounding strangely profound.

  Celia narrowed her eyes immediately. “...What do you mean by that?”

  “Nothing. I’m just saying he hasn’t shown very childlike reactions based on what you’ve told me. The royal audience etiquette he showed in the hall was unbelievably smooth for something acquired so hastily.”

  “That’s because I taught him the necessary etiquette. He didn’t know anything at first,” Celia said. She herself hadn’t realized that she was feeling a little offended for Rio and had answered in his defense.

  “Hmm. I heard that boy was the one who requested you teach him the etiquette. A normal child would not consider things that far ahead.”

  “That’s why I thought he was an intelligent child,” Celia replied stiffly to Garcia’s roundabout way of speaking.

  “True, he could just be an intelligent child. There are people like Princess Christina or exemplary child prodigies like your twelve-year-old self that exist. It wouldn’t be odd for him to have been raised that way in the harsh streets of the slums. Either that, or—” Garcia paused, his face falling devoid of expression.

  “Or... what?” Celia asked gravely.

  “No, it’s nothing. He’s going to have a lot of struggles from here on out. As his teacher, I would like you to pay special attention to him. If anything concerning happens, report it to me. This is something I can only entrust to you,” Garcia said with a calm smile.

  “I am certainly more than willing to do that, but...” It felt like there was something more to the issue, so Celia’s expression wasn’t fully convinced.

  “Of course, I am aware of how busy you are with your research as well. You must have fallen behind with all the travel in and out of the castle these last few days. You only need to do as much as what will not affect your research.”

  “...Very well, I understand. Is that all for today?” Celia was a little curious about what he was thinking, but it didn’t seem like he would answer her if she asked. She just wanted to leave as soon as possible.

  “Yes, you may leave now.”

  “Thank you. Please excuse me.” Celia bowed once, then turned on her heel and left.

  I’m not very good at dealing with him... she thought with a small sigh.

  ◇◇◇

  Rio threaded his arms through the sleeves of the Royal Academy of Beltrum’s school uniform as he walked down the hallways that his teacher, Celia, was leading him through. He followed after her, noting that her frame appeared quite small and lacked strength.

  “How does your new uniform feel?” Celia asked, looking back at Rio as they walked.

  “It’s not bad. The fabric is sturdy and easy to move around in,” Rio replied, lightly moving both his arms in his uniform as though to test the feel.

  “It’s been custom-made based on the requests of many generations of students, after all. It can also act as a military uniform.”

  “I see... So that’s why the design is like a knight’s uniform.”

  “Right! Isn’t it cool? The girls’ uniform is cute too,” Celia said with a playful smile.

  “Ahaha...” Rio laughed awkwardly. Setting aside whether or not he looked forward to seeing the girls’ uniform, the Royal Academy’s uniform really was stylish. As Rio had said, the design was like that of a knight’s uniform. The boys wore pants, while the girls had skirts; while there were some minor differences in design here and there, the overall functionality of each uniform was the same.

  “We’ve arrived.”

  Chatting while they walked, they reached Celia’s classroom. The noisy class could be heard on the other side of the door; inside, the spoiled children of royalty and nobility were enthusiastically talking to each other before homeroom started.

  This is it.

  Rio had been keeping track of the route he took through the school as they walked and had memorized the path to this classroom. From tomorrow onwards, he’d be able to make it here by himself.

  “You don’t seem that nervous,” Celia noted.

  “That’s not true.” Rio gave a small shrug.

  “Really? You look fairly composed to me.”

  “I’ve been told that my emotions don’t show easily on my face because I lived in the slums,” Rio answered with a bitter smile.

  “Is that so... Well, alright. Let’s go inside,” Celia said and opened the door. A hushed silence fell over the hustle and bustle of the classroom.

  “Good morning, everyone,” Celia said. “A new student will be joining our class today. Rio, come inside.” She walked into the classroom and stepped up onto the teacher’s podium.

  “Excuse me.” With a quick bow, Rio followed Celia into the classroom.

  The inside of the classroom was spacious, almost like a small hall. The teacher’s podium sat at the front of the room, facing the desks that were fixed to the tiered floor that elevated those at the back of the room. There were roughly forty people in the class, with three classes in each year. Rio stepped up onto the podium and felt the stabbing looks of all the students in the room. Soft whispers spread from every corner.

  “Huh, so that’s the orphan being admitted.”

  “An orphan? Someone like that enrolled into this prestigious academy?”

  “Yeah, I heard from my father that he was enrolled as reward for a commendable deed.”

  “...Are you sure it isn’t some kind of mistake?”

  And so on. The male students conversed curiously; it seemed like the rumor of an orphan enrolling had already spread. As for the female students’ reactions...

  “Black hair is a rare sight.”

  “Yes, I was wondering what kind of animal would show up, but...”

  “He has a surprisingly cute face.”

  “He’d look like a girl if he put on a wig and a dress.”

  “Hmm... Well, his face isn’t bad, but he’s still an orphan.” His classmates added more comments about his appearance in their evaluation. Both sides were fairly ornery in their reactions, having already been instilled with the values of nobility that thrived on social standing.

  The looks they sent Rio were filled with prejudice.

  “Okay everyone, quiet down. He’s going to introduce himself,” Celia said with a small sigh as she looked around the room. Once the students had stopped whispering, Rio took a step forward.

  “My name is Rio. By the grace of His Majesty the King, I have been immeasurably blessed to attend this honorable learning space. I am lacking in more than several aspects, but I will do my utter best not to cause any inconveniences to anyone here. I humbly beg your tolerance.”

  He finished his introduction and greeting with a deep bow. It was a satisfactory introduction that bordered on being too polite for a seven-year-old, but this level of humility was probably just right when it came to introductions in front of royalty and nobility; Celia had helped him create this greeting as well.

  Sure enough, Rio and Celia’s predictions as to how the class would react were not wrong.

  “Well, it seems he has the right level of respect, at least.”

  “Yeah, he can speak as adequately as a servant, at least.”

  “So
orphans can talk like that...”

  At the very least, his speech hadn’t brought about any dissatisfaction. That being said, no one applauded him, either — they spoke as though they were observing a rare animal, clearly looking down on Rio. Though he might be a student of the Royal Academy from today onwards, Rio had been an orphan until recently, and his existence was far beneath them.

  So I have to spend at least six years here... He sighed wearily in his heart at how uncomfortably out of place he was. While he would no longer be troubled to find food, clothes, or shelter, the thought of his future life was rather depressing.

  But it’s still better than the slums. I’ll learn everything and anything that seems useful. Otherwise, there would be no point in coming to this school, and Rio already knew how important it was to obtain a proper education after all. Without knowledge and skills, his future job opportunities would be extremely limited, though he didn’t know what would be useful in his life anyway.

  As long as he was being made to attend this school, he had to make the most of his situation.

  Rio raised his head after bowing and looked around the room. Then...

  ...Hm? He spotted a familiar face among the students staring at him. Seated next to a window at the back of the classroom was someone with long, lavender hair that was tied back with a barrette. Beside her sat a cute girl with blonde ringlets. The lavender-haired girl — Christina Beltrum — glared at Rio before turning her nose away with a huff. The thought had passed through his mind in the audience hall too: she seemed to really hate him, although that was understandable considering how they met.

  Well, it’s probably best not to get involved... She probably thinks the same.