Chapter 27 “ Outing or Capital” part 1
Nox walked toward the academy stables as the evening wind brushed past him.
The place was quiet, filled with the smell of hay and iron.
He carried a small basket filled with carrots and dried feed.
Stopping in front of one stall, he sighed.
Inside stood his horse.
Disobedient. Proud. Clearly unhappy to see him.
The horse snorted and turned its head away.
“…You again,” Nox muttered.
The horse stomped once, clearly annoyed.
Nox placed the basket down.
“I brought food.”
No reaction.
Nox stared at the horse for a moment.
“…Should I put magic on you again?”
The horse’s ears twitched, but it still refused to look at him.
Nox sighed deeper.
“I’m only doing this because of Liora… and because that sly fox used me as an escape last time, to cheer up Liora.”
He rubbed his temple.
“If it were up to me, I would’ve already sold you.”
The horse finally glanced at him. Its eyes were full of offense.
“Tch. Don’t look at me like that. You bit me first.”
Nox picked up a carrot and held it out.
“Peace offering. Eat, okay?”
The horse leaned forward—then stopped.
It huffed and turned away again.
“…Unbelievable.”
Nox dropped the carrot back into the basket.
“Fine. Starve.”
Just then—Hoofsteps echoed from the other side of the stable.
Nox paused.
He glanced sideways.
On the opposite end stood another stall.
A large, elegant horse with a snow-white mane.
Its posture was straight.
Its eyes sharp.
Nox recognized it instantly.
“…Princess Ophelia’s horse,” he muttered.
That was the one. The horse he originally wanted.
The white horse lifted its head and looked directly at him.
Calm. Dignified.
Unlike his own.
Nox looked back at his horse, now chewing hay loudly, pretending he didn’t exist.
“…Why are you like this? Are you jealous I’m looking at your mate?”
The white horse snorted softly, almost amused.
Nox felt irritation rise.
“I know. You’re better.”
He glanced around the stable.
No knights. No attendants.
Just him, two horses, and bad luck.
Nox stepped closer to the white horse’s stall.
“…If fate wasn’t so cruel, you’d be mine.”
The white horse tilted its head slightly.
Nox froze.
“…Don’t tell me you understand.”
The horse blinked once.
Nox straightened.
“…Right. I’m officially exhausted.”
Behind him—
CLACK!
His own horse stomped again.
Nox turned.
“What now?”
The disobedient horse was staring at the white one. Its tail flicked sharply.
“…Don’t tell me you’re jealous again.”
The horse snorted loudly.
Nox stared, then laughed quietly.
“So you do care. You’re a gentleman horse, at least for your mate.”
He picked up another carrot and tossed it gently.
The horse caught it mid-air.
“…Idiot,” Nox said softly.
Outside the stable, unseen by him,
a pair of calm eyes observed the scene in silence—
Princess Ophelia stood still, her expression unreadable,
watching Nox talk to horses like the world made perfect sense.
Ophelia lingered a few seconds longer.
Her eyes quietly followed Nox as he argued with the horse like it was a person.
“…He’s strange,” she murmured under her breath.
Inside the stable, Nox brushed the dust off his hands.
“Eat properly,” he warned the horse.
“And if you bite me again, I’ll really sell you.”
The horse snorted.
“…Though you’re headmaster property,” Nox added with a sigh.
“So I don’t think I’ll even get any money.”
The horse kicked the ground in protest.
At that moment, Ophelia stepped inside.
Her footsteps were light, but her presence was not.
She stopped behind him.
“Is this some new magic?” she asked calmly.
“Talking with animals?”
Nox stiffened.
He turned around slowly. For a few seconds, he simply stared at her face.
Then—
“Ah—Your Highness,” he said hurriedly.
“I didn’t know you were here.”
Ophelia’s gaze shifted away from him and toward the horses.
Her expression returned to its usual calm.
Nox followed her eyes.
“…Oh,” he muttered.
Only then did he remember.
‘Our horses… They’re mates.
Of course their stalls are next to each other I'm glad Liora didn't come here with me if she found out it Will be a problem… The sly fox doesn’t know about this also. I hope they both don't find out… this ’he thought.
He turned back to his own horse and gently patted its neck.
“Behave.”
The horse huffed but stayed still.
Behind him, Ophelia stood quietly.
She tried to act calm, but her thoughts were anything but.
‘Why does he talk so naturally…? To horses, of all things… does a commoner act like this?’she thought.
She wanted to ask many questions—too many.
But the words stayed stuck in her throat.
The atmosphere grew tense. Heavy. Awkward.
Nox sensed it and cleared his throat.
He focused on calming the horse, pretending nothing was wrong.
“Easy,” he said softly.
“Don’t embarrass me.”
The horse finally relaxed.
Ophelia watched the scene in silence.
Her eyes unreadable—but her attention never left him.
Nox continued cleaning his horse. Slow strokes. Calm hands.
But—
‘Why is she staring at me like that…? Did I do something that offended her?’ he thought.
He could feel it.
An intense gaze on his back.
‘Is it because I talked to the horse? I know that would be embarrassing, but… don’t look at me like I’m nine hell or something else…’he thought.
He finally turned around.
“Your Highness,” Nox asked carefully.
“Is something wrong? With the horse?”
Ophelia flinched slightly.
“Ah—no,” she said quickly.
“Nothing is wrong.”
She paused, then added a little too calmly,
“It’s just… you seem close to that girl lately. What happened in class? She stops you like you are her servant.”
Nox froze for half a second.
Then—
THUD!
He gently slammed his forehead against the horse’s neck.
“Ugh…”
‘Why does everyone think that…? It’s not wrong, but I really don’t want to hear it. And what servant? I never worked for her.’ he thought.
He straightened up and looked at her.
“Your Highness,” he said slowly.
“If you want an answer—yes.
We’re close now.”
At that moment—
CRACK.
A small breaking sound echoed.
Nox looked around.
“…Did you hear something?”
Nothing seemed broken.
Ophelia calmly hid her hand behind her back.
A small carrot was crushed in her palm. Her expression didn’t change.
“I see,” she said.
She looked at Nox directly.
“But I think she’s just taking advantage of you.
Because you’re a special admission.”
Nox blinked. He didn’t understand anything.
She’s jealous…? She—doesn’t even realize it?
Ophelia continued, her voice sharper now.
“You don’t see it. She’s cunning. And very selfish. She is full of secrets, and I bet she just thinks of you as a tool—nothing more, nothing less.”
She frowned slightly, searching for the word.
“Yes… that’s what you say to her. She’s a sly fox, and the most annoying person in my life.”
Nox stared at her.
“Princess,” he said calmly.
“Don’t take this the wrong way.”
His eyes were empty. Cold.
“But you’re not that different from her.”
Ophelia stiffened.
Nox continued, his voice low.
“I don’t know why you two hate each other.
And honestly, I don’t want to know.”
A faint ripple of magic leaked from him. Cold. Controlled.
“But everyone hides secrets. After all, everyone in the world is a liar like me. So I can’t judge anyone,” he said.
“Don’t you think?”
He clapped his hands once. The magic vanished.
“Well,” he said, turning away,
“excuse me, Princess. I think I should go now. Have a great day.”
He took one step—
And stopped.
Ophelia grabbed his sleeve.
Her grip was tight.
Nox stopped walking. He didn’t turn around.
‘I’m doomed. This is exactly why I didn’t want to get involved with her. And why are all girls holding my sleeve today? Does my sleeve have a charm or something?’ he thought.
Behind him, Ophelia spoke.
“If you want to go, I won’t stop you,” she said.
“But… about what you said last time about the Royal Faction…”
Her voice softened.
“I investigated it. And on behalf of the Royal Faction…”
She paused, then bowed slightly.
“I apologize for what those people did to your friends.”
Nox finally turned back.
‘Why are both of them so troublesome…? And why are they so similar? It’s a mystery why they hate each other so much.’he thought.
He let out a quiet breath.
“No, Princess,” Nox said calmly.
“You don’t need to apologize. It was their fault, not yours. The matter is solved now, so I don’t want to say anything.”
He stepped back.
“Now, please excuse me.”
Without waiting, he turned and left.
Ophelia stood there, frozen.
‘What does he mean… don’t apologize? I said something rude. And when I mentioned secrets… did he find out I did background checks? Well, that’s not possible.’she thought.
She shivered slightly.
“Why did he feel so scary? That magic also feels something like death. Even Dragon King’s blessing… with me, it's because I’m weak.”
Her horse nudged her gently.
Ophelia sighed and patted its neck.
“Let’s forget about him,” she murmured.
“I can talk to him again later. After all, he’ll come to my side soon.”
On the other side of the academy, Nox walked toward his dorm.
He exhaled slowly.
“I’m glad I left,” he muttered.
“If I stayed, I might have said something unnecessary.”
‘An apology from the Princess on behalf of the Royal Faction… Is she trying to look good in front of me? Or is she really like that?’ he thought.
He shook his head.
Nox reached his room. Alber wasn’t there.
He dropped onto his bed and stared at the ceiling.
‘The Moon family can’t get close to the Royal family. It’s custom. Especially anything related to the Three Heroes. We’re not allowed to approach them. But she approaches me first… and I’m already breaking many rules.’he thought.
“And she has the Dragon King’s blessing… at the ceremony. I know that I need to be careful.”
He clenched his fist lightly.
‘Maybe that’s why my power reacted now to her blessings. Because my necromancy and her blessings… both are given by the Three Goddesses.’he thought.
From the first day, he had known it.
“I should avoid her.”
He closed his eyes.
“But…”
“…It looks like I’m breaking rules too. Just like my brother.”
Meanwhile, in Scarlet’s personal garden, Scarlet told Sisbell and Alber what had happened.
Both of them were curious from the start, so she didn’t hide anything.
They walked together through the academy path, the evening air calm and cool.
“So… basically,” Alber said, stretching his arms.
“We’re all going out tomorrow, right? It’s the weekend, and you, Nox, decided that.”
Sisbell nodded.
“Yeah. We should enjoy it a little. But Scarlet, are you sure it’s all right now?”
Alber added quickly,
“Yeah, don’t forget. After the weekend, we have a test. We all need to clear that exam.”
Scarlet crossed her arms and looked ahead.
“You’re right, Sir Alber,” she said.
“But a short outing is good for the group.”
She hesitated, then added,
“I asked Liora, but she said she has work in her garden.”
Sisbell sighed.
“That’s very like her. She told me about her botanical club activities.”
Alber nodded.
“True. Compared to us, she’s innocent… and naive.”
They stopped near the gate.
Sisbell tilted her head.
“But… where are we even going? Please don’t tell me it’s far from the academy.”
Alber frowned.
“We all live in the capital. It’s not like we can travel far.”
Scarlet thought for a moment.
Alber suddenly snapped his fingers.
“How about the market?”
Sisbell immediately turned on him.
“The market?”
She narrowed her eyes.
“What are you planning to waste money on this time? You always waste money—even in childhood, you wasted five gold on a rock!”
Alber raised his hands.
“Hey, hey. That’s rude.”
“You always say that before buying useless things,” Sisbell shot back.
“That one magic tool was not useless,” Alber protested.
“It broke in one day,” she replied coldly.
Scarlet watched them argue, then let out a small laugh.
“Looks like our outing is already lively,” she said softly.
The two stopped and looked at her.
Alber shrugged.
“Well, at least we agree on one thing.”
Sisbell nodded.
“We’re going out together.”
Scarlet smiled faintly.
‘Tomorrow… Surely, it’ll be fine if they both don’t fight again.’she thought.
