Ghost sat at one of the tables in the cafeteria.
Of course, he sat alone, just like always.
He sighed, looking toward another table where a group of Sleepers had gathered around a single person.
And who else could that person be but Caelia of Valor?
Though he had never met anyone from the Valor clan before, he'd always thought of them as heartless beings ruling with an iron fist.
But it seemed he was wrong. Caelia was... surprisingly sociable.
Over the past few days, he'd squeezed his mind trying to figure out how to approach her. However, it seemed he didn't have to—at least, not directly.
Because she would approach him instead.
The first thing he'd done was enroll in every course she chose. The second thing was bullying—specifically, paying a group of students to bully him whenever possible, especially in front of Caelia.
The other Sleepers wouldn't care about him, simply because he was from the slums. This was already well-known throughout the academy, mainly because he'd made sure of it himself.
Everything he'd done had the sole purpose of drawing Caelia's attention. It didn't matter whether she was genuinely kind-hearted or merely pretending.
The Valor clan was one of the three great clans, the protectors of humanity. Everyone from the Valor main family had to maintain the image of "protectors."
But how could you call yourself a "protector of humanity" if you couldn't protect someone from mere bullying?
It was a trap that Caelia would willingly walk into.
Behind him, three Sleepers approached. They were the bullies he'd hired.
The largest placed his hand on the back of Ghost's head and pushed him down into his plate of food.
"Aghhh!"
"Hahaha! Look at this slum rat! He cries from pain even though he's a Sleeper!"
The other two laughed as Ghost gritted his teeth, tears streaming down his face.
With the bully's hand still pressing down, Ghost spoke loudly enough to be heard. "What did I do to deserve this? I've done nothing to you three—so why are you doing this?"
The bullies exchanged glances, then laughed again, striking him repeatedly.
"Reason? Your mere existence is reason enough!"
The three continued hitting him.
Caelia watched the scene unfold, her anger rising. She already noticed how others looked at her, waiting for her response.
Gritting her teeth, she stood and approached the group.
Seeing her move, Ghost allowed himself a brief hidden smile.
'She took the bait.'
There was a third critical step to his plan: his own act. How he presented himself in front of Caelia when confronted by bullies mattered greatly. There were many possibilities, but he'd chosen the one most likely to ensure prolonged interactions.
It was the classic scenario of a knight saving a princess—though in this case, it was a knightess rescuing a prince.
Of course, he was no prince, and she was no knight. Yet just as the knight always rescued the princess in fairy tales, Caelia would continuously rescue him, causing him to seemingly fall deeper in love until he finally confessed.
And the perfect moment for that confession would be the Winter Solstice, when she would be at her most vulnerable.
Caelia reached them, and the bullies turned, their expressions shifting to shock and fear.
"L-Lady Caelia!"
"Go," she commanded calmly.
The three bullies quickly nodded and rushed out of the cafeteria.
She turned to Ghost, whose nose was bleeding as tears continued to fall.
'Pathetic,' she thought.
Smiling gently, Caelia asked, "Are you alright?"
He stared at her, seemingly stunned.
Regaining his senses, Ghost finally replied, "Ah! Y-yes. Thank you, Lady Caelia!"
He hurriedly got up and ran out of the cafeteria.
Caelia sighed, returning to her seat. Sleepers around her praised her kindness, calling her an angel and other flattering titles.
Caelia remained silent, only smiling quietly in response.
***
A month passed, and Ghost now sat directly across from Caelia.
This didn't happen without reason; it had taken an entire month of bullying to reach this moment.
No matter how patient someone might be, they would eventually tire—and Caelia, having to "protect" him nearly every day, had indeed grown tired.
So, she'd simply invited him to join her table.
He wasn't the only one at the table, of course. Several other clan children also sat there.
Ghost quietly ate his food without making a sound.
"Have you heard about what happened in the slums?"
Ghost paused, looking toward the speaker.
It was Alex, a tall young man with blond hair and blue eyes from one of the Valor clan's lesser branches.
"You mean the government taking control?" asked Cecilia, a girl with brown hair and eyes.
Alex shook his head. "No, I heard there was some kind of war, though I'm not entirely sure what exactly happened."
Alex turned his gaze toward Ghost. "You're from the slums, right? Do you know anything?"
Suddenly, all eyes were on him—including Caelia's.
"Ah... well, I don't know much."
"Just tell us anything," Cecilia encouraged gently.
Ghost scratched his head awkwardly. "Well, a group controlled the slums for the last ten to fifteen years. Initially, they weren't too bad, but in the last three years, things got much worse. That group kidnapped men and forced them to work for them. They took women and children from their homes as well.
Angered by this, another group—calling themselves the Revolutionary Army—fought back against the original group, who called themselves Loyalists."
Alex rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "So the Loyalists won?"
Ghost shook his head. "No, the Revolutionary Army won."
Alex's eyes widened slightly.
Caelia listened quietly, watching Ghost carefully. As someone from the great Valor clan, she naturally knew about this conflict. Minor struggles between lesser clans and the government didn't escape the attention of the great clans—but such small matters rarely concerned them.
Caelia sighed inwardly. If she could, she'd leave immediately and return to the Valor clan.
'Sister Morgan… why did you give me this job?'
Her entire reason for attending the academy was to enhance the Valor clan's image in preparation for the coming war with Song. And what better place to do that than the academy?
She glanced at Ghost and smiled gently. "It must have been hard for you..." After a brief pause, she continued, "By the way, you haven't told us your name yet."
The table fell silent.
Caelia frowned, sensing something wrong.
"Did I say something inappropriate?"
"I-I don't have a name, Lady Caelia," Ghost answered quietly. "My parents died when I was very young."
"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that."
Ghost shook his head. "No, it's fine. I don't even remember them."
"Hmm. But talking to you without a name feels strange."
Cecilia nodded, looking at Alex. "You're right… Lady Caelia, what about giving him a name?"
Caelia frowned slightly.
'Where did this idea come from?'
"No, I don't think that's appropriate."
Alex laughed, looking at Ghost. "Hey, what do you think?"
Ghost looked away shyly, blushing slightly.
"If it's Lady Caelia… I wouldn't mind."
Caelia cringed internally. It was impossible not to notice his obvious crush on her.
From classes to training sessions, and even now in the cafeteria, he constantly stared at her.
"Are you sure about this?" she asked hesitantly.
Ghost nodded.
Sighing inwardly again, Caelia considered a name. Suddenly, a name appeared in her mind—a name she desperately wanted to forget, but couldn't.
She gazed at Ghost's anticipating eyes.
'If he were still alive... he might look exactly like him…'
She gritted her teeth, finally speaking, "What do you think about… Mordret?"
***
I swear writing this chapter is one of the worst things I did in my life. It took me two days to complete it!
Leave a review on this fanfic, chapter and some power stones, so more people can read it.
And see you again tomorrow.