Study.
If ever there was a single word that went against the very idea of youth, that was it. At eighteen years old, he should have been using the boundless energy within himself to do something fun and make use of his short time on this earth. The rest of society, however, had different ideas.
It was already late in the evening, though it was impossible to tell within the windowless classroom lit only by glowing blue stones. This was the great academy of Mount Moore Monastery, a place where the rich and affluent sent their children to become excellent subjects of the empire under the tutelage of the brothers of the Mortian faith and the Priestess herself.
One would expect to witness the very image of imperial excellence and knowledge at work here, but as Dean looked around the lecture hall, all he saw were tired and defeated looks. Some had even abandoned their studies altogether and were chatting with friends at the back of the class. Brother Kasius had left about an hour ago, telling them to study by themselves until dinner. It had been hours since lunch, and Dean knew he had no more energy to study.
Closing his book, he turned to face the two students behind him. Rosetta was fast asleep, using her book as a pillow, while Nicolas sat there, glaring a hole in his notebook.
Sensing an opportunity to liven things up a little, Dean opened his linen bag and removed a small object from it. It was a spider, or rather a model of a spider, made to look exactly like the real thing. It was rather large and looked lifelike. Just something he had found in a toy shop the last time he had visited home in the capital.
Carefully, he placed the spider on Rosetta's arm. This action did not escape the notice of Nicolas who sighed with annoyance but didn't stop him and only slightly nudged his stool away from Rosetta. Once the toy was resting comfortably on her arm, Dean leaned forward and whispered.
"Rose, hey Rose."
She stirred slightly.
"What?" she grumbled.
Her blue eyes, tinted red from exhaustion and with dark bags beneath them, looked up at him in annoyance.
"Don't move. There's something on your arm."
Rosetta slowly raised her head, blinking as she got used to the light.
"What? My arm?" She asked, looking down to where Dean was pointing.
There was a moment of silence as Rosetta stared expressionless at her arm. Then, her eyes widened with a snap. Bolting from her stool so fast that it fell backwards, she let out an ear-piercing screech that caused the entire class to look her way.
With sticky legs, the toy clung to her arm as she stood up.
"Get it off, get it off!" She cried as she shook her arm violently. Her hand slammed against a large wooden mug of water, which subsequently went flying into Nicolas, who had. apparently, not distanced himself enough.
"Hey careful!" he yelled as he also got to his feet to avoid the water that was now flowing freely down his desk like a waterfall.
By now, Rosetta was almost in tears as she performed a strange dance Dean had never seen before.
Dean smiled at the chaos he had created. He could feel the stress of the day falling away as he watched them both with satisfaction. However, it was probably time to calm Rosetta down. Any more, and he would start to feel bad.
"Hey, it's fake. Rose? Can you hear me? I said It's fake! You can calm down now."
For a while, Rosetta didn't hear him over her own cries. Sighing, he got to his feet, walked over to her and grabbed the toy.
"Rose, it's ok. It's gone now."
Taking a moment to check her arm, Rosetta looked up at him with tears in her eyes.
"Thank you, Dean." She whimpered. "Thank you so much."
Surprised, Dean came to a realisation. She thought he had helped her. Not only could he have a little fun, but he also had a chance to get on her good side. All he had to do was play along.
"Hey no problem. Those things can be horrible, can't they?" He said with a confident smile, keeping the hidden within his cupped hands which were now hidden behind his back.
Rosetta nodded.
"Yeah, awful." She agreed breathlessly.
"I'll just go and toss it outside." He said as he turned and began walking away.
"No, you don't," Nicolas said as Dean felt someone grab his arm.
Dean's heart sank a little as he turned to face a wet and furious Nicolas.
"Hey, Nick. What's up?" Dean said, giving him a meaningful look.
"Don't give me that. You got me caught up in that and ruined all my notes. I was happy enough to let you away with it, but you've just ruined days of work. I can't in good conscience let you go without suffering punishment for this."
Rosetta was looking at the two of them in confusion. Nicolas quickly grabbed Dean's hands and yanked out the toy spider.
Rosetta flinched but relaxed slightly as Nicolas held it up to her.
"It's fake. Dean was the one who put it on your arm in the first place."
"Nick, you traitor," Dean moaned.
"The moment you destroyed my notes, you became my enemy too." Nicolas replied with a cruel smile.
Rosetta looked at the toy spider and then back at Dean before looking at the toy spider again.
"Oh, I just remembered. I think Addi wanted to talk to me about…something." Dean said as he turned and ran towards the door.
"Hey, get back here. Dean!" came Rosetta's furious voice from behind him.
Dean looked back over his shoulder as his heart skipped a beat. Luckily, Rosetta wasn't following him. Unfortunately, fate had its own punishment in store as he failed to notice the lecture room door swing open in front of him.
There was a loud banging sound as Dean's shoulder struck the side of the doorway. He lost his footing and ended up sprawled on the floor, crying out in pain. It felt like an arrow had pierced his shoulder.
"Wow, wasn't expecting you to be that happy to see me!" came a voice from above.
Stunned, it took Dean a moment to recognize that the voice belonged to Maria, who had stepped inside, along with Addi of all people.
Addi tried and failed to hide a giggle as she watched his suffering unfold on the floor. Maria simply looked down at him with a fond smile. He struggled to get to his feet. Why weren't any of his friends helping him?
He heard slow and heavy footsteps approaching him from behind, and he turned slowly to see who it was, his chest filling with a sense of dread.
"Ah Rose, you're here to help me up, right?" He asked desperately. "Your a kind soul."
Rosetta returned an icy glare and raised her hand up above his face. In her hand was Nicolas' mug, still half filled with water.
"No, don't…"
Too late, she turned it over, and the remaining water fell onto his face. Dean coughed and squirmed but couldn't avoid it. After all the water had emptied, she dropped the empty mug on his face.
"He screamed as it landed square on his nose.
"You stupid fool!" Rosetta cried as she turned on her heels and walked back to her seat.
Pain — there was so much pain. Surely he didn't deserve such severe retribution. It was only a simple prank.
Addi walked over and knelt beside him. With a smile she grabbed his hand and pulled him up.
"Thanks, Addi, my beloved apprentice." He said, almost in tears.
"So what happened?" Addi asked, turning to face Nicolas.
"He pranked Rose by putting a toy spider on her arm." Nicolas replied, his arms crossed. "He traumatised her and managed to make a mess of my notes in the process."
"Oh, is that right?" Addi said as she promptly let go of Dean's hand and pushed him hard on the chest, causing him to slip on the water and fall backwards once again.
"You ok, Rose?" Maria asked, walking over to where Rosetta stood.
"I'm fine. I'm just angry now, furious." Rosetta replied, her face still beet-red as she cast glances towards the rest of the students in the class, who were pretending not to stare.
"Don't worry, I've got a few things lined up for Dean today that's bound to make him regret his evil actions." Addi said, walking past Dean and joining up with the other two girls.
"Haven't I suffered enough?" Dean moaned as he slowly struggled to his feet.
Soaked through and with an aching shoulder and nose, he could do little other than consider his most recent prank a total failure.
All his friends looked at him with blank stares.
"Serves you right for messing around. Maybe you can take some time to reflect on your actions." Nicolas said angrily.
"Oh now, this is unusual, coming from you." Maria said, walking up to Nicolas. "You rarely get angry for someone else, Nick."
Nicolas' eyes widened.
"Well, I uh. Yeah suppose not." He said as he eyed his notes, ruined by the water.
"Oh, those were your biology notes, weren't they? No wonder you're angry!"
"I'm not angry, just a little frustrated." Nicolas said as he blushed.
"Awh, you're so cute when you're all self conscious like that." Maria teased.
"Enough! Stop treating me like a child, Maria."
The two scuffled for a while and Dean could only look on in confusion. Maria tried to embrace Nicolas and kiss him on the cheek as he weakly resisted. There was something strange about seeing them together like this. He didn't know why, but it made him feel uneasy.
That doesn't matter. Just leftover information from last time. Pay it no mind.
Dean felt it strange that the two were suddenly acting so close, but it wasn't anything unsettling, simply amusing.
"Since when were you two so close?" He asked.
Surely they weren't seeing each other? Dean couldn't imagine a more odd couple than those two.
Nicolas ended up with Maria's arm around his shoulders, blushing slightly.
"We're not close. She's just being pushy." Nicolas muttered.
"Oh stop, I know you love me." Maria teased. "He's just too shy to admit it."
Dean laughed, turning to Addi, whom he expected would be enjoying the exchange as well. Strangely, Addi was looking at them with a complicated expression.
"Hey apprentice, what's wrong? You jealous that Nick's taken your Maria away?" He asked.
Addi seemed to snap out of her thoughts and looked up at Dean.
"Ah, uhm, yeah. Don't they look cute together?" She said, hiding her nervous tone with a short laugh.
Dean pursed his lips and looked back at the pair.
"No, cute wouldn't be the word I'd use."
"Oh, right." Addi replied quietly.
She clearly didn't have any interest in pursuing the conversation and continued to watch the pair in silence.
What was wrong with her? He would be sure to ask about it later. Perhaps she was having issues related to her position as a priestess. Maria was her acolyte, so the two had a close working relationship. Remembering that, he looked around. All the other students were silently staring at their notes and textbooks. He hadn't noticed because of all the messing around, but the atmosphere had grown heavy enough that the other students were doing their best to make their presence as small as possible.
"How's the all important study session going, you lot?" Maria asked them as she peered around the room.
"It's…going," Dean replied.
"It was until you got in everyone's way!" Rosetta hissed.
"Thanks to you, I'll have to work well into the night," Nicolas added.
Dean flapped his mouth like a drowned fish. He couldn't believe the insensitivity these two were displaying.
"Rose, you were sleeping on your book, and Nick, you hadn't turned a page in ages!" He retorted.
Rosetta's stern eyes softened slightly as she let her gaze fall to her shoes.
"I just hate studying so much. Nobody expects anything of me anyway, so I might as well just stay in my room."
"Yeah, they really make your noble lives so difficult with all these exams. Bet you wish you were born a commoner now, eh, Rose?" Maria laughed.
Both Nicolas and Rosetta looked absolutely drained of willpower. They hardly even reacted to Maria's teasing.
"I'd probably go easy on them as long as they're preparing for the exams." Addi whispered to Dean.
Dean nodded. He was starting to regret messing with Rosetta. The final state exams were just around the corner, so it made sense that everyone was on edge. He promised himself to make it up to them later. He could buy Rosetta something pretty. As for Nick, well, he wasn't so sure, but perhaps a bottle of wine would be a good start.
"You're right." Dean said quietly, feeling worse by the second.
Addi smiled.
"Don't worry, I still think your efforts to lighten the mood are needed. Just ease up a little until after the exams. Then, you can go all out again, yeah?"
Dean sighed. Here he was getting life advice from a girl one year younger than him and his apprentice no less. Perhaps the looming exams were having an adverse effect on him too. He'd have to find some way to get his pride and dignity back.
While he had been whispering to Addi, Maria continued to tease Nicolas and Rosetta about their struggles. She seemed oblivious to the fact that they clearly wanted to talk about anything else.
"To think you can study at all with all those snooty nobles looking over your shoulders. You reckon you're all gonna pass?" She was saying with a smile.
Rosetta, Nicolas and Dean all looked at each other while she spoke. They knew there was more to this exam than just a grade. The scores would determine who would be qualified to take actual political power in the future. Not only that, but high ranking positions amongst the courts of the counts were filled only by those who excelled in the exams. Those who failed would be cut off from most worthwhile positions for the rest of their lives. Yes, the Talabasian empire was just one massive meritocracy with a tyrant in charge and a religious cult scheming in the shadows.
"We're 'snooty nobles' too, you know," Nicolas muttered under his breath.
"I think Dean has an excellent shot at it!" Addi, the head of that very cult, said encouragingly.
Maria snorted.
"What, this layabout? I know you've always looked up to him, Addi, but try not to forget that love is blind."
"You wound me, Maria!" Dean said with mock hurt. His eyes could still produce tears thanks to the beating he took earlier. "I'll be sure not to make a complete fool of myself at least."
"You're not exactly aiming for the top, are you though?" Nicolas asked.
Dean shook his head.
"That's a surefire way to be locked in a cage for the rest of your life. I'd rather not draw that kind of attention."
"So you've been scoring low on purpose then? You really are thinking outside the box," Addi said, an air of hope in her voice.
There was an awkward silence as the other three looked at Addi with a hint of pity. Dean prayed silently that they wouldn't try to destroy Addi's image of him. There was a hint of truth in what he was saying. His aim for the exams was to get a good enough score so as not to cause a fuss while avoiding a high score. He didn't want too much responsibility. Getting top scores was really out of his reach, though. That wasn't something he could so easily hide.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Addi asked.
"Oh, no reason." Maria replied. "Anyway, I'd put my money on Nick here. He'll pass with flying colors, no problem…."
Dean thought he saw a smile appear on the dour young man's face. It could have been his imagination, however.
"…is what I'd like to say but…" Maria continued, turning her head to the front corner of the hall.
Everyone followed her gaze, and Dean saw who she was referring to. Sitting in the corner with barely any presence at all sat a young man with curly red hair and spectacles. He was scribbling down notes at a speed Dean thought was impossible without some kind of magic spell.
Throughout all the chaos that had just happened, he had not once paused in his study. Dean wasn't even sure he had noticed the prank or Addi and Maria's arrival.
"I wish I had that kind of focus." Rosetta said wistfully.
"Yeah, but it ain't natural I'm telling ya." Maria added.
Matin didn't even seem to blink as his eyes scanned the information written on the parchment.
Nicolas was looking at Matin with a complicated expression. Something Maria noticed straight away.
"Relax, Nick. You can still claim the top spot. You know Matin usually crashes and burns when it really matters."
"I'd rather beat him while he's at his best." Nicolas replied sullenly.
"Men, am I right?" Maria said, nudging Rosetta in the shoulder.
"Come on, you know it's because of their parents that they're trying so hard," Rosetta said, moving away slightly to avoid Maria.
Nicolas was Oscar's bastard son, and Matin was of course the son of Countess Evelyn, the most ambitious and insufferable noble in the entire Empire.
Nicolas clicked his tongue and looked away.
"What about you, Rose? Have your parents been giving you trouble about this as well?" Dean asked.
Rosetta's stern expression fell away almost instantaneously as her lips curved upward in a sad smile.
"No. They don't really care one way or another." She replied softly.
"That counts for both of us then!" Dean replied, understanding that he might have asked an awkward question.
Rosetta had never told them who her parents were, and it was clear that she likely never would. Dean, on the other hand, was the fourth son and thus his parents didn't need him to score high on the exam. He just had to score well enough so as not to bring shame to his family. That suited him just fine, though it was clear Rosetta's feelings were quite a bit different from his.
Their conversation had died down somewhat after Dean's remark, but thankfully Addi came to his rescue once again.
"Well, Matin's not the only one who's in the running for top spot, look." Addi said, pointing again towards the front of the classroom.
A female student with large spectacles, brown hair and pigtails was making her way over to Matin.
"What was her name again?" Dean asked.
"Sophia," Rosetta replied. "Haven't you been paying attention at all Dean? She's currently top of the class."
The group watched as Sophia tried to get Matin's attention.
"Matin? Hey Matin?" She asked in a slightly timid voice. She was clearly trying to balance being loud enough to get his attention while not disturbing the other students.
Matin didn't react at all. His eyes were still glued to his notes. Sophia looked around awkwardly, her cheeks slightly red. Dean and the others looked away, sparing her further embarrassment.
"That's so rude of Matin," Rosetta muttered. "She's doing her best to talk to him, and he's just ignoring her!"
"He's not doing it to be mean or anything." Addi said.
"He's really got no social sense." Dean agreed, shaking his head.
They watched with a little more discreetness as the poor girl did her best to get his attention. Thankfully, after ten or so attempts, Matin jumped slightly and looked up.
"Ah, Sophia?" He said in surprise. "D-Did you need something?"
By this stage, she was red in the face and had clearly lost her train of thought.
"Uh, hi Matin, I was, um."
Clearly flustered, Sophia stumbled over her words. Matin fared no better and looked completely confused.
"They're so cute together." Maria said with a giggle.
"Come off it." Nicolas muttered. "Just because they're both intelligent and wear spectacles is no reason to let your imagination run wild, right, Rose?"
Nicolas looked over at Rosetta, but she didn't seem to notice his words. She was looking over at Matin and Sophia with a somewhat enamoured and curious expression.
"Cute? It feels like I'm watching the imperial palace burn down." Dean added as he watched the ongoing social disaster.
"I-I was wondering if you still had time to work together later. I think I've come up with some new arguments for the logic and debate test." Sophia was saying in a hurry.
Matin was still recovering from his earlier trance and took a moment to form his response. It was too long for Sophia, by the looks of it, who likely mistook his silence for hesitation and began to apologise.
"I'm sorry. I know you're busy. I shouldn't have bothered you. Sorry!"
With a deep bow, she fled from his desk. Matin almost got to his feet, his hand outstretched but she was already at the other end of the lecture hall.
"Wow, that girl can move fast." Maria said, sounding impressed.
"What a sorry sight." Nicolas said, shaking his head.
"I'll have to have a talk with him later." Dean sighed.
If left untouched, Matin would probably avoid talking to Sophia for the rest of the day. He wasn't interested in playing matchmaker or anything. He simply knew that working with Sophia had allowed Matin to climb to far greater heights than he ever had studying alone. While she may have overtaken him regarding the top score, Matin continued to break his own records ever since they had grown close. It was a shame the man himself hadn't noticed.
"Hey, hold up." Maria said, rounding on Dean.
"You gotta understand that it's a bit more difficult for them. He's the son of one of the most powerful nobles in the empire, and she's common born. Not only that, but she's set to take the top spot in class. They can't just be normal classmates. This rotten, scum-filled place won't allow it."
Dean looked over at his friend, who had returned to his study. Maria was right. Things were a lot more complicated than one would expect for a typical examination.
"But Sophia is so talented. I'm sure that's enough for people like Marianne to accept her. She'd be a great asset to whatever family employs her," Rosetta said, her voice becoming lower as Maria gave her a piercing look.
"That ain't how the world works, and you know it, Rose. I dunno where you're getting your backing from since you haven't ever told us who your parents are, but the rich and powerful will always push the less fortunate down to get what they want." Maria hissed.
As she spoke, she looked at Rosetta, Nicolas, Dean and Matin in turn. There was a dangerous glint in her eyes. Dean had seen it before whenever she spoke about any topic relating to nobility.
"It isn't their fault, Maria. They didn't get to choose their parents." Addi said sternly. A little too sternly in Dean's opinion.
Both Maria and Addi were the only ones in their group not taking the exams. It made sense in Addi's case. She was the Priestess and already had her duties. Maria was a common-born servant at the Monastery without exceptional academic ability, so there was no way she was permitted to take it.
"I ain't blaming them or nothin'." Maria said evenly. "You just all have to know poor Sophia over there doesn't stand a chance. They'll tear her and her entire family apart before they let her get the top score."
Her teeth were now grinding against each other as she watched Sophia. All the while Addi was looking at her with what Dean could only guess was concern mixed with a little suspicion, though she seemed inclined to keep her feelings to herself. Dean wondered what that look was about. He agreed with Maria's opinion, and he knew Addi would as well, so the look on her face made little sense to him.
Dean looked over at Sophia, who was now writing her own notes. He noticed a small tremble in her hands.
"She's been at the top of the class for the last few tests, right?" Dean asked.
"Yeah." Nicolas replied. "Matin's been going through a bit of a slump."
"I'm telling you, if this keeps up, someone higher up is gonna…"
Just as Maria was finishing her sentence, the door to the classroom opened, and two people entered.
The first was an older woman wearing the black robes of a sister. She had an old but kindly face, though it was now twisted with concern. That would be sister Layota, head mother of the orphanage and part-time instructor at the academy. She was followed by a middle-aged woman wearing a silver embroidered purple gown and a large brimmed hat with adorning yellow flowers. Carefully styled strands of red hair framed her sharp face. She looked around the room with a hint of distaste.
"Countess Evelyn, this is not necessary. If you come to the headmaster's room we can discuss…"
"And have Methaeus lie to my face? No, Layota. I've traveled all the way here to see the situation for myself, and that is what I will do."
Marianne Evelyn, Matin's mother and the most powerful woman in the empire, cast her sharp gaze around the classroom and settled on Dean's group, who were loitering at the back of the class. Her eyes sharpened further, if that was possible.
"And good thing I did," Marianne continued. "I am not at all impressed. Just what in the name of the Goddess is going on here? The exams are in less than two weeks!"
Dean felt his heart sink. His opinion of the word study was about to plummet even further.