Rudura woke up later than usual.
For a few seconds, he just stared at the ceiling without moving.
No training schedule.
No sword drills waiting before sunrise.
No examinations.
The strange part was
His body still felt like it expected pressure anyway.
"…Haaah."
He rubbed his face tiredly and sat up slowly.
Everything ached.
His shoulders felt stiff from the command evaluation, and his legs still carried that dull heaviness from standing around the arena for hours yesterday.
Outside the window, pale winter sunlight stretched across the palace rooftops.
The sky looked clear today.
Cold, but clear.
Rudura stood and stretched his arms.
Crack.
"…Okay, that actually hurt."
After washing and changing clothes, he stepped into the corridor.
The palace already felt alive.
Servants moved quickly between halls carrying trays and scrolls while guards changed positions near the stairways.
But almost immediately
Rudura noticed something annoying.
People kept looking at him.
Not staring openly.
Just…
Looking longer than usual.
A pair of trainee soldiers passed nearby carrying practice spears.
One of them recognized him instantly.
"That's him."
The other lowered his voice immediately.
"I know."
Rudura kept walking.
"…Great."
By the time he reached the western staircase, he overheard another conversation.
Two servants near a brazier were whispering while arranging folded cloth.
"I heard the strategy evaluation lasted almost an hour."
"No, longer. My cousin works near the arena entrance."
"Apparently one of the commanders said the prince stayed calmer than actual officers."
"That part's probably exaggerated."
"…Hopefully."
Rudura muttered under his breath while walking past them.
Both servants nearly jumped when they realized he heard them.
They bowed quickly.
"Y-Your Highness."
Rudura waved one hand without stopping.
"It's fine."
Honestly, this was exactly why he hated attention.
One day passed and suddenly the entire palace acted like the examinations were some giant battlefield campaign.
He entered the dining hall a few minutes later.
Chandragupta was already there reviewing documents while eating breakfast. Queen Devi sat nearby speaking quietly with one of the attendants.
The emperor looked up briefly.
"You slept late."
"I was tired."
"That usually happens after examinations."
"…Everyone keeps saying that."
Queen Devi smiled slightly.
"Because it's true."
Rudura sat down heavily in his chair while servants began bringing food.
Warm bread.
Rice.
Stew.
Tea.
Honestly, the smell alone improved his mood slightly.
For a while, breakfast stayed quiet.
Then Chandragupta finally spoke again without looking up from the document in his hand.
"The military wing is discussing your evaluations."
Rudura immediately groaned.
"…Please tell me they'll stop soon."
"No."
"…Fantastic."
The emperor folded one scroll shut.
"You handled pressure better than I expected."
Rudura blinked once.
That was probably the closest thing to direct praise he was going to get.
"…Thanks."
Queen Devi glanced toward him.
"You seemed calmer yesterday evening."
"I was exhausted yesterday evening."
"That too."
A servant poured more tea quietly while Chandragupta continued.
"The command evaluation caused the most discussion."
Rudura frowned slightly.
"…Why?"
"Because command pressure reveals people quickly."
That actually made sense.
Swordsmanship was measurable.
Reaction speed too.
But leadership?
That was messier.
More personal.
Chandragupta leaned back slightly.
"Several commanders expected you to become defensive once they challenged your decisions."
"…They were doing that on purpose?"
The emperor actually looked amused now.
"Of course they were."
Rudura stared blankly for a second.
"…That's annoying."
"Leadership usually is."
Apparently everyone in this palace shared the same personality disorder.
After breakfast ended, Rudura headed toward the outer training grounds.
Not for serious practice.
Honestly, his body still hurt too much for that.
He mostly wanted fresh air.
Winter wind moved across the courtyard while soldiers trained in smaller groups nearby.
Wooden swords clashed rhythmically.
Tak! Tak!
The moment a few trainees noticed Rudura walking past, their movements became visibly more awkward.
One of them nearly dropped his practice sword.
Rudura sighed internally.
This was getting unbearable already.
He eventually stopped near one of the quieter side courts.
A few older soldiers stood nearby speaking casually while checking equipment.
One of them noticed Rudura and gave a respectful nod.
"Your Highness."
Rudura nodded back.
The older soldier hesitated briefly before speaking again.
"…Your retreat decision during the strategy evaluation was correct."
Rudura looked slightly surprised.
The soldier shrugged.
"Most younger commanders chase victories they can't sustain."
Another nearby soldier laughed quietly.
"I did that once."
"And nearly got your unit surrounded."
"Details."
Rudura actually smiled a little at that.
The conversation felt normal.
Not stiff.
Not ceremonial.
Just soldiers talking.
The older soldier continued adjusting a leather strap on his armor.
"Preserving an army matters more than looking brave."
Rudura nodded slowly.
"…That's what I thought too."
The soldier glanced toward him briefly.
"Good."
Simple.
Direct.
Honestly, conversations like this felt better than all the formal evaluation atmosphere yesterday.
After leaving the training grounds, Rudura wandered through the palace for a while without much purpose.
And unfortunately
That gave him too much time to think.
More specifically
To think about one thing.
Échecs Humains.
The private library.
The promise.
"Pass with perfect grades…"
Malavatas' words replayed again in his head.
Rudura exhaled quietly.
He still didn't even know if he passed.
And somehow that made waiting worse.
By midday, he found himself near the private library corridor almost unconsciously.
The moment he realized where he was, he stopped.
"…Seriously?"
At this point his feet apparently made decisions on their own.
The corridor looked quieter today.
Only two guards stood near the large wooden doors now instead of the heavier security from before.
The atmosphere felt calmer.
Less tense.
But the library itself still carried the same strange feeling.
Heavy.
Silent.
Important.
Rudura stared at the doors for a moment.
Yesterday, the thought of entering still felt distant.
Conditional.
Now
It almost felt close enough to touch.
One of the guards noticed him standing there and bowed respectfully.
"Your Highness."
Rudura nodded.
"…Busy day?"
"Mostly record movement and restricted archive checks."
Restricted archive.
That definitely sounded like the kind of place Échecs Humains would be stored.
Rudura looked toward the doors again briefly before forcing himself to walk away.
Standing there staring at the library like an obsessed idiot probably wasn't helping his image.
Still…
His curiosity only got worse afterward.
By the afternoon, he tried distracting himself with ordinary reading inside one of the smaller palace study rooms.
Didn't work.
He reread the same paragraph three times without remembering any of it.
"…Hopeless."
He shut the book and leaned back in frustration.
Every thought circled back toward the same thing.
The examinations.
The results.
The book.
A knock sounded against the half-open study room door.
Rudura looked up.
Malavatas stood outside.
"…You look irritated," the old instructor observed immediately.
"I wonder why."
Malavatas entered calmly.
"You're distracted."
"Because nobody tells me anything."
"That sounds difficult."
Rudura stared at him flatly.
"You enjoy this."
"A little."
At least he admitted it.
Malavatas picked up the closed book from the table.
"You stopped reading halfway through."
"I stopped understanding halfway through."
The old man placed the book back down.
"Impatient?"
"Obviously."
Malavatas folded his arms.
"Good."
Rudura blinked once.
"…Good?"
"Means you still care."
"That doesn't make the waiting less annoying."
"It isn't supposed to."
Of course.
Everything with this man turned into a lesson somehow.
Rudura rubbed his forehead.
"So when are the results announced?"
"The evaluation council is still discussing the reports."
"That tells me absolutely nothing."
"It tells you they're still discussing the reports."
"…You're impossible."
Malavatas ignored the comment smoothly.
"Your command evaluation caused more debate than the others."
Rudura immediately straightened slightly.
"…Debate in a good way or bad way?"
"Yes."
"…I hate talking to you."
"That's normal."
Rudura groaned quietly.
Still
The fact that there was actual discussion happening made the whole thing feel more real suddenly.
These weren't simple training scores.
Military commanders were genuinely evaluating him.
Arguing over decisions.
Judging performance.
That thought felt strangely heavy.
Malavatas turned toward the door again.
"I'll inform you once the council reaches a conclusion."
"…That sounds important."
"It is."
And with that, the old man left.
Just like always.
Rudura sat there quietly for a while afterward.
The study room had grown dimmer now as evening approached outside the windows.
Lantern light flickered softly against the shelves.
The waiting honestly felt worse than the examinations themselves.
At least during the tests, he could do something.
Now?
He just had to sit around while other people discussed his future.
By evening, the palace atmosphere grew quieter again.
Servants lit corridor lanterns while winter darkness settled over the outer gardens.
Rudura eventually returned to his room feeling strangely restless.
He placed a hand against the cold window frame and looked outside.
The palace grounds stretched quietly beneath the night sky.
Guards patrolled along torchlit walls.
Snow still hadn't arrived this winter.
Just cold wind.
For a while, he considered training again just to distract himself.
Then immediately rejected the idea.
His body still deserved mercy after yesterday.
So instead, he sat near the edge of the bed and waited.
Which somehow felt even worse.
Then
A knock sounded against the door.
Rudura looked up immediately.
"Come in."
The door opened.
One of the palace guards stepped inside and bowed.
"Your Highness."
Rudura stood slowly.
"…What is it?"
"Master Malavatas has requested your presence."
For one second, Rudura stayed completely still.
Then he immediately grabbed his outer coat.
Finally.
(Continued in Chapter 60)