"Looks like the work here is all finished" Cassius smiles, lightly dusting his hands on his sleeves before looking over at Emily, his voice gentle and relaxed as usual "Do you want to go to the library now?"
Emily shakes her head, the thin veil on her hat swaying slightly with the small movement. She looks down at her clothes, her hand lightly pulling the fabric at her chest forward so Cassius can clearly see the dirt stains on it.
"Before we do that, we should take a bath first" she says, her voice even. "We're about to enter a noble's house after all"
Cassius follows her hand, then looks down at his own clothes, which are not much better. He nods in agreement.
"Yeah, you're right. It's better to bathe first"
After saying that, he reaches his hand forward.
"Let's go"
Emily looks at that hand for a moment, says nothing, then reaches out and takes it.
Together with Thomas, the three of them return to their room. The atmosphere on the way is quite quiet, with only the steady sound of footsteps on the stone ground. Emily walks close beside Cassius, her head slightly lowered.
When they arrive at the room, Emily is the first to go into the bathroom. She closes the door, standing under the steady stream of water, letting it run through her hair and down her shoulders. Her hand moves up to brush her hair back, slowly. She does not look into the mirror. She has never liked doing that; just by touching her face, she already knows those veins are still there.
She lets out a soft breath, not long, not heavy, then continues washing herself until she is done.
After changing, Emily puts on a simple white shirt and a black skirt, the fabric not new but clean. She adjusts her collar slightly, then opens the door and steps outside.
As soon as she leaves the bathroom, she sees Cassius sitting on the bed, already holding a comb in his hand. He looks at her and smiles, as if he has been waiting.
"Come here, sit down"
Emily does not protest, only walks slowly over and sits on his lap, her back lightly resting against him.
Cassius begins to comb her hair. His movements are not very skillful, but very careful, gently untangling each knot. Emily sits still, her eyes lowered, showing little reaction, but her body relaxes.
When he finishes, Cassius puts the comb down and gently adjusts the back of her hair neatly. Emily still says nothing, only quietly stands up, giving him space.
It is Cassius's turn to go into the bathroom. While waiting, Emily lies on her back on the bed, looking up at the ceiling, not thinking of anything clearly, just letting time pass.
After a while, Cassius comes out. He is wearing a white shirt like Emily's, the sleeves slightly rolled up, along with black shorts. His black hair is still slightly damp, wiped but not fully dry, a few strands falling over his forehead, a bit messy but very natural.
After washing away the dirt, his face looks brighter, his features clearer, his golden eyes still calm and gentle as always. There is nothing overly striking, but looking at him feels very comfortable.
Emily looks at him for a moment, then asks softly
"Do you want me to comb your hair?"
Cassius raises his hand and lightly rubs his hair, then shakes his head.
"No need, I think it's fine like this"
He stands up, stretches a little, then turns to look at Emily.
"We should go to the mansion now"
Emily nods, saying nothing more. She follows behind Cassius as they leave the room, keeping a very small distance, like a habit.
The two of them then hold hands and walk toward the Prisce family's mansion. In front of the gate, Eliana is already standing there. Today she is not wearing her usual yellow dress, but a blue one instead, simple and neat, yet still very well-tailored, every fold straight without a single wrinkle.
Seeing her, Cassius pulls Emily and runs over without thinking much.
"Have you been waiting here long for us?"
Eliana crosses her arms, glancing at the two of them, her voice still calm.
"I just got here"
Cassius tilts his head slightly as he looks at her, then smiles, as if he doesn't completely believe it, but doesn't ask anything more. That expression makes Eliana a little annoyed, and she turns her face away.
"Why are you still standing here, go inside"
"Alright!" Cassius replies immediately.
The three of them walk inside together, Eliana in front, with Cassius and Emily right behind her, their hands still holding each other. As soon as they step past the large door, Cassius pauses for a moment. The inside is wider than he expects, the ceiling high, light shining through large glass windows makes the whole space bright without needing too many lamps. The floor is paved with smooth stone, so clean that a faint reflection can be seen. Along both sides of the hallway are neatly hung paintings, wooden frames carved carefully, not too flashy but clearly expensive.
Cassius looks around for a while, unable to hide his curiosity. Emily is the opposite, she walks closer to Cassius, her head slightly lowered, not wanting to look too much.
As they walk through the hallway, just like in the servants' cafeteria, a few servants nearby can't help but glance over. Their eyes stay longer on Cassius, clearly drawn by his face. Cassius doesn't really notice, still looking around like a child entering a big place for the first time. Eliana notices their gazes, her expression changes slightly, she glances at the servants, then walks a bit faster, as if wanting to finish this part quickly.
After a while, they meet Marquis Leopold Prisce.
He stands near the staircase, posture straight, clothes neat, not too extravagant but still showing his position clearly. When he sees the three approaching, he smiles lightly.
"You are Eliana's friends, right?"
His voice is low and steady, not giving a sense of pressure. Cassius nods immediately.
"Yes"
Eliana stands beside him, says nothing more, only tilts her head slightly as confirmation.
Leopold looks at Cassius a bit longer, his expression doesn't change much, but his thoughts are very clear. A striking appearance, black hair, golden eyes, along with the name Cassius… it isn't hard to connect. If someone pays attention to information about the Eclipse family, almost anyone can guess. What catches his attention more is the way the boy acts, too natural, with no awareness of his own identity. That is not pretending.
'It seems like the boy doesn't remember anything'
He doesn't say it out loud, only keeps his smile. For someone like him, observing and keeping thoughts is normal. Moreover, the fact that someone from the Eclipse family came to warn him a few days ago already confirms that this is not simple. Someone is watching, and it is best to act as if he knows nothing.
"The library is this way" he says, his voice still gentle.
Eliana nods and leads the two forward.
When they enter the library, Emily is the one who reacts most clearly. The space is wide, many bookshelves arranged in rows, each shelf clearly categorized. Books of all kinds, from history, education, to novels and adventure stories, all neatly arranged. The atmosphere is quiet, only the soft sound of pages turning.
Emily lets go of Cassius's hand and walks a bit faster toward a nearby shelf. Her eyes stop at each title.
'The history of the empire's founding'
'Everything about beastkin'
'The love of two people who do not belong together'
She pauses at that title for a moment, then moves to another.
'City Of Gods'
…
…
'The Beloved Prince'
Emily takes that book out. It is quite thick, the cover simple, only showing two hands holding each other. She hugs it to herself, then walks to a table in the corner, sits down, and starts reading.
On the other side, Cassius and Eliana stand next to each other.
"What kind of books do you like?" Eliana asks.
Cassius shakes his head lightly.
"I don't read much. Usually Emily reads to me. Mostly adventure stories."
As he speaks, he points his thumb toward Emily, like a habit.
Emily, who is reading, also glances over, her eyes slightly raising under the veil.
Eliana follows his gaze, then nods lightly.
"That's not bad"
She stays silent for a moment, then as if thinking of something
"Hey Cassius"
"Hm?"
"Follow me."
Cassius doesn't ask more, stands up and follows her. Eliana leads him to another section.
"There are more adventure books here. Don't just stand around and say you're bored."
Cassius scratches his cheek.
"I'm not sure I'll finish them."
Eliana starts looking through the titles, her hand lightly brushing over each book.
Meanwhile, Cassius also looks around. His eyes stop at a book titled 'The art of optimizing mana usage'. He takes it down and opens a few pages.
"Streamlining… mana circulation… conversion ratio… efficiency..."
He reads each word slowly, then frowns.
"It's hard"
"What are you reading?" Eliana turns back and asks.
Cassius closes the book immediately.
"Nothing, I took the wrong one"
He puts it back in place.
Eliana doesn't ask further, hands him another book, thinner.
"Read this. It's easier"
Cassius looks at the cover, then nods.
"Okay"
The two return to where Emily is. She is already sitting at the table, reading very attentively. Cassius sits next to her, while Eliana sits opposite.
While Emily and Eliana are both focused on their books, Cassius sits there silently, holding a book but only reading the first few pages before stopping. The content isn't difficult, but he doesn't find it interesting. His eyes stay on the page, but his mind has already drifted elsewhere. Even so, he keeps the same posture, occasionally flipping a corner of the page lightly as if he is still reading, just to avoid disturbing Emily.
Right now, his thoughts return to the book about Mana from earlier.
He knows he can use Mana, but everything only stops at the level of "knowing it exists" Everything he can do comes naturally, without needing to learn or understand. Meanwhile, others are completely different. Cassius has heard that mana users can create fire, water, or many other things just from their hands, but to do that, they have to study, practice, and remember things that he doesn't understand.
'That sounds really cool'
He thinks, his eyes still on the page but not actually reading.
But then he remembers those confusing lines in that book.
Just reading a few words already makes him feel tired. The thought of learning all that by himself almost disappears immediately.
'I wonder if it teaches how to create water in there.'
He isn't sure, and doesn't want to go back to check.
His thoughts slow down a little, then shift back to himself.
His ability… to be honest, it isn't useful in combat. He can't create fire, can't attack anyone, the only thing he can do is make plants fresher. Thinking about that, Cassius tilts his head slightly.
'What if I can control how fast flowers grow?'
This thought catches his attention a bit more.
'If flowers grow faster… then there will be more flowers… and I can sell for more money.'
He nods lightly, as if convincing himself.
The idea is simple, but reasonable.
"Cassius"
Eliana's voice comes, pulling him out of his thoughts.
Cassius flinches slightly, then looks up.
"What is it?"
Eliana looks straight at him, then points at the book in his hands.
"Why are you staying on one page for so long?"