The next morning, Ryan woke up quite early and got dressed in the clothes he had. Somehow, they were all pretty much the same. Elegant dark blue suits with embellishments on the seams, so he was sure that clothing would be something he wouldn't have to worry about.
In any case, they were all pretty much the same.
His books were ready in his room, and everything he would need for class was there. Although he could have had maids prepare everything for him, he didn't like them rummaging through his things, so he preferred not to have any and sent most of them away, leaving only those in charge of cleaning.
He put all the books in his inventory and then left.
The moment he stepped outside, Captain Garner, who was standing faithfully in front of his room, looked at him and greeted him respectfully.
"Ninth Prince." He bowed.
Ryan looked at him strangely. "Is my father calling me?" he asked.
"No." He shook his head. "I am here because I will be your personal guard on the days when I am not on guard duty at the Castle, so allow me to accompany you to the University. I have already prepared a carriage for you."
"Did my father entrust you with that?" Ryan asked. Since when did his father care about him? Had that crazy old man changed now that he had become a Walker?
But Garner shook his head, disappointing him. "It was the First Prince who ordered me to do so."
That was more understandable.
Ryan nodded. "All right. Let's go."
Garner led Ryan down the castle steps. From the courtyard, a royal carriage drawn by beautiful white horses pulled up, with both of them inside. They were escorted by about 12 knights in heavy armor and an impenetrable security cordon.
He didn't have to do anything but enjoy being treated like a prince. 'Even as a demigod, I never had such wonderful treatment.' He smiled.
Not having to drive carriages felt really good. He could relax, meditate, talk nonsense with his companion—who wasn't used to a prince wanting to talk to him so much—or simply sleep.
And even though Alterian University was located within Blue Eden, the distance was so great that the trip usually took an hour with horses trained to run continuously for hours.
So Ryan took advantage of the time to try to sleep in this comfortable place.
A certain amount of time later, unknown to Ryan as he was not counting, the neighing of the horses as they suddenly stopped woke him up.
Ryan frowned and rubbed his eyes. "What is it? Don't they know how to brake now?" he complained.
"Sorry, Prince." Captain Garner apologized sincerely as he looked out the window ahead. "Someone got in the way."
"Hm? Don't hit them, eh." Ryan said, ensuring his subordinates weren't as dictatorial as his brothers'. "That'll make people think badly of me."
"Even if we wanted to..." Garner smiled sheepishly and looked at him. "We couldn't do it. Only you can do something this time, Prince."
Ryan looked up and stared out the window, puzzled by what Garner had said.
Did anyone in the city dare to get in the way of a Royal Family carriage and not move after a warning from the royal knights?
As he looked, he saw a beautiful woman walking toward them, escorted by an elderly man who seemed to be trying to keep up with her and perhaps talk to her, but she wasn't listening to him.
She was elegant and incredibly charming. She wore a lace dress with wide boots and a slit up the thigh that went all the way to the bottom; it was colorful, like a beautiful starry night or a rainbow.
It didn't have a defined color, as it seemed to have been made with many colors simultaneously. On one side, it was a little lighter and on the other a little more purple, but the contrast was beautiful, with the starry blue giving a peculiar touch to the delicate golden lines.
Underneath the dress, she wore black tights with fine gold lines and gold high heels that complemented a beautiful ensemble of elegance.
A blue band with gold lines adorned her delicate waist, while the top of the dress was white.
She walked delicately but quickly and seemed a little grumpy...
Ryan tensed up when he saw her, but she was already knocking on his door by then.
Garner stepped forward to open the door without his permission, but that was because he saw her looking angry on the other side and enduring the sun.
When he opened it, Ryan looked at him reproachfully, but he didn't have time to complain.
"Ryan, I knew it was you!"
The melodious and strangely annoyed voice reached Ryan's ears, causing him to force a smile.
Of course, if anyone could stand in the way of a royal carriage and prevent the knights from doing anything, it had to be someone of great stature.
This girl is one such person. As the daughter of a renowned Marquis and sister of the First Prince's wife, she has an astonishing status.
"Cecily, long time no see." He greeted her and withdrew his hand, which was about to close the door.
She looked at Garner without respect and motioned for him to get down. Then she jumped into the carriage and closed the door, leaving Garner and his butler outside, looking in shock.
But she didn't care. She sat down where Garner had been sitting, stared at Ryan from head to toe, then nodded.
"I was going to scold you for skipping class, but I see that the rumors about you aren't false. Which path did you choose?" she asked, strangely happy.
Ryan sighed and recovered from the sudden change in his carriage. If he looked at the road, he would realize that he was still halfway to the university, so it was impossible to get rid of this woman now.
'I don't need to get rid of a beautiful woman, but how should I treat her? I'm not the old Ryan.' He wanted to sigh several times, but forced himself to smile.
"Cecily... I understand that we are good friends, but I don't think I have to tell you something as private as that," he replied. "But it's a good one."
"Tsk, taciturn as always. That won't change even if you become a Walker, huh?"
"I don't think becoming a Walker will change who I am."
"Well, I guess I'll find out the more I see you, so I hope you feel comfortable with my presence this last year." She smiled at him. Her words were referring to both things.
If becoming a Walker changed who he was, she would notice it if she saw him more, and of course, if she did that, she would also notice the kind of path he had taken.
'Tsk, as good with words as ever.' Ryan complained inwardly. He would have loved to be as good as her in this regard. Maybe he would have someone supporting him if that were the case.
But suddenly, he saw her lean back in the carriage, still looking at him.
His gaze involuntarily drifted downward, drawn instinctively by the movement. For a moment, he was stunned by the sight of those beautiful legs and tempting figure, slightly exposed.
He quickly looked away to avoid disrespecting her, but Cecily had already noticed.
"See? It did change you. You couldn't do that before, hahaha," she said excitedly, getting up to sit beside him. Then she held his arm and looked at him. "How about it? I chose this outfit because you once told me you thought it looked pretty on me. Do I look good?"