My Husband Picked Up a Woman - Chapter 6

As Briseis stood frozen in shock, Calisten glanced at her and smiled.

“I’ll be in your care for the day. I understand we don’t observe ranks here, so please, treat me comfortably.”

He spoke and then looked toward the professor’s fingertips.

“You may take that empty seat over there,” the professor said.

“Are there assigned seats?”

“No. You may sit wherever you like.”

With a smile that reached his eyes, Calisten made his way over to sit next to Briseis. She was someone who always occupied the very front row, studying more diligently than anyone else.

“I’m sitting there. Whether you’re Saturn, Evice, or Peril.”

“E-Evice! I’ve got it!”

Saturn and Evice were identical twin brothers. Unlike the tactless Saturn, Evice was quite close to Briseis. Ironically, Saturn and Evice were the ones who were awkward around each other.

“Much obliged.”

“…You…”

“It is so good to see you again, Brie. It must be destiny.”

He beamed at her. Briseis stared at him for a moment, shook her head, and turned her gaze back to the front.

“There are no special announcements for today’s assembly. However, since the wars with the Kingdom of Mervenia and the Viathen Empire have concluded, the students who were deployed must attend makeup classes.”

Groans erupted from across the room. After barely making it back alive, the students felt as though they were being sentenced to death by studying.

“It is necessary for graduation, everyone,” the professor said with a hearty laugh. Briseis, meanwhile, was staring at the empty seat where Damian had sat yesterday.

“There will be a victory parade this evening. If you are of noble birth, please ensure you attend and grace the occasion with your presence.”

The mundane assembly continued. Briseis remained tight-lipped until the start of the first period.

“Now, everyone, focus on your studies.”

The professor in charge of Class 1 spoke and exited. The students, who had been looking at Calisten with curiosity, continued to steal glances but did not dare approach him.

It was impossible not to know. Calisten had annihilated the Viathen Empire and brought back the head of its Emperor. It was a monumental feat. However, his reputation as a Crown Prince was equally famous.

He was a man who had secured the position of Crown Prince on his own after his mother’s death. While he pretended to be neutral, he was essentially a wild colt, emboldened by the support of the House of Philia and his mother’s homeland, the Duchy of Pendleton. Not only was he a rogue, but he was also a man of immense talent who had proven his capabilities time and again.

Most people preferred not to catch the eye of such a competent madman.

“How did you get permission to observe? It isn’t even the observation period.”

“Is there anything I can’t do if it means seeing you?”

“Why on earth did you come?”

“I told you, I came to see you, Brie.”

He was a brilliant delinquent. He possessed a photographic memory, never forgetting anything he had seen once. Moreover, he was a monster on the battlefield who brought back nothing but victory. His strategies were notoriously eccentric; he used strange, unpredictable methods that never failed to succeed.

Everyone had predicted he would lose this war. Yet, as if mocking those predictions, he returned with a historic victory that should have been impossible with the number of soldiers he had taken—an achievement successive Emperors might not have accomplished in a lifetime.

And he did it at the age of twenty.

“Brie.”

“…”

“Look at me. If you don’t, I’m in so much pain that it’s hard to bear.”

Briseis reflexively glanced at his lap, her face flushing at the faint metallic clinking sound that occurred whenever he moved.

“Sit somewhere else.”

“Should we sit somewhere else together? Who should I tell to move?”

“You. Go somewhere else alone.”

“I’m not going unless we go together.”

He leaned his chin on his hand, watching her with the relaxed smile of a fox. Briseis’s face was so hot she found it difficult to keep looking at him.

“Brie.”

Thinking he would only continue to pester her, she finally looked at him. He gave her a beautiful smile.

“It hurts even more now.”

“Then close your eyes.”

At her words, he closed his eyes immediately, like an obedient dog.

“Since my eyes are closed, I can smell your perfume better.”

“Please, just don’t speak.”

“Do you prefer the silent type? Then I’ll be just that.”

He opened his eyes and continued to watch her with a smiling face.

The first period began.

“Hello, everyone.”

The professor for Law and Punishment entered the room.

“Given that there have been two consecutive wars, I intend to conduct this lesson on a topic relevant to all of you. After all, the Cropus Empire is an empire where war is frequent.”

At the professor’s words, Briseis picked up her fountain pen and began taking notes.

“As usual, I will award one bonus point to the student who provides the best answers.”

She placed her book on the left and her notebook on the right. To her right, Calisten sat with his desk pressed tightly against hers.

“Do you know what the first thing to be done is when a war ends?”

Briseis raised her hand.

“One demands reparations when a war ends.”

“Correct. When a war concludes, reparations are demanded. If a reconciliation occurs during the war, neither side is clearly the victor or the loser, so the outcome may favor one side slightly. However, if there is a clear distinction between winner and loser, the settlement does not end with mere favoritism.”

Briseis was quickly transcribing his words, having already prepared for the lesson. Calisten, who had been watching her write, scribbled something in his own notebook with his fountain pen and slid it toward her.

You look beautiful when you’re studying.

She pretended not to see it and looked forward to focus on the lecture.

“Once the war is over, war criminals are punished according to the reparations process.”

While Briseis was mentally recalling rulings on war criminals, Calisten slid a new piece of paper over.

Watching you concentrate makes my heart flutter. If I were a book, would you look at me like that?

She ignored him again and looked at the professor. The professor pinned a map to the blackboard and resumed speaking, pointing to a specific location.

“A war occurred in this region in the past. Does any student know of it?”

Briseis raised her hand again.

“The Lamerdin War. It began as a rebellion by the local populace after the Lord of the Lamerdin territory abandoned them and fled.”

“Correct.”

The professor smiled proudly at Briseis. He looked at her as if she were exceptionally talented but refrained from praising her further. It was obvious she would take the bonus point for this class anyway.

“Can you tell us what became of the Lord of Lamerdin who fled, Student Briseis?”

“Because he abandoned his people, he was forced to return his fief and his title was confiscated. Furthermore, as there was evidence the rebellion was sparked by economic hardship, the Baron of Lamerdin was demoted to commoner status and exiled to Resis Island.”

“Correct. Perfectly accurate.”

Suddenly, Calisten noticed the gazes of several young men fixed on Briseis. The atmosphere in Class 1 had shifted subtly. Briseis was the only one who hadn’t changed. Now that it was known Damian was parading a mistress around, the young lords who had harbored feelings for her no longer felt the need to hide them.

“As this example shows, as masters and lords of a territory, you must never abandon your land, even if it means losing your head.”

The ratio of young lords to ladies at the Academy was not equal; it was roughly nine to one.

“You must submit a report on today’s lesson in two weeks. I will only accept reports exceeding twenty pages. This is a two-point report, so please ensure it is written and submitted without issue.”

The first period ended.

“Where are you going?” Briseis asked.

“To prepare for the victory parade.”

Calisten stood up as soon as the professor left.

“I only came because I wanted to see you.”

“…”

“Now that I’m leaving, I want to see you again. Won’t you tell me not to go?”

“Go, please. Go and don’t come back.”

Calisten laughed brightly at her words.

“I’ll be back, Brie.”

She didn’t answer, and Calisten waved at her as he headed toward the parade preparations.

❖ ❖ ❖

Damian and Delilah returned around the start of the third period.

“Hello, Brie?”

Delilah greeted her with a feigned friendliness. Briseis replied with an elegant smile.

“Yes, hello, Miss Delilah.”

“Your husband arrives late, and you aren’t even curious about where he’s been?”

Damian spoke sharply as he sat in an empty seat with Delilah. As he sat, he tapped his thigh, gesturing for Delilah to sit there. Delilah, pretending to be hesitant, sat on his lap.

“I’m sure you handled yourself well, Your Grace.”

“How narrow-minded. I see you are still angry.”

Briseis hated how his words continued to hurt her, so she chose not to engage him further.

“Oh, right. Brie. I heard you are ranked first in the fourth year?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Delilah smiled and said, “That won’t be the case this time. I’m going to take the first place.”