Let’s Go Together

The bed and bedding provided by the royal academy dormitory were exceptionally comfortable. It had been a long time since Adrian Heather last experienced the simple pleasure of having someone else diligently tidy up his living space. Though Rare kept their surroundings clean using magic, this was a different kind of satisfaction—one that soothed the mind.

It was a peaceful morning.

Shhhhk—

The dormitory curtains were suddenly yanked open with force. Sunlight poured directly onto Adrian’s face, rudely interrupting his deep slumber. His once-serene expression instantly contorted into a deep frown.

There were only two people in the room.

And Adrian was most certainly not the one who had pulled the curtains open.

It was Mikhail.

That bastard was scurrying around like a dog about to shit first thing in the morning.

He had woken up at the crack of dawn, left the dormitory, and then returned hours later, stomping through the door with his heavy footsteps.

“It’s ten o’clock, so I’m opening the curtains.”

The statement should have ended as a question, yet the intruder in the room acted without waiting for any reply.

Mikhail yanked open the heavy curtains covering an entire wall.

In response, Adrian muttered a curse under his breath and pulled his blanket over his face. But the precious warmth of sleep had already slipped away. Frustrated, he tossed the blanket aside.

From the way the prince boldly flung open the curtains and let in the glaring daylight, it was clear he believed all humans should be awake by ten in the morning. As if that wasn’t enough, he even threw open the window with equal enthusiasm.

Adrian had indeed overslept past his usual wake-up time. It was already ten. He had no real grounds to complain about someone pulling the dormitory’s central window curtains open at this hour.

A fresh breeze drifted in through the open window, carrying the sounds of chirping birds. Adrian sat up in bed, looking for the idiot responsible for this mess.

Mikhail was already on the floor, casually doing push-ups. The academy dormitory rooms were spacious enough to allow a few people to move around freely, and Mikhail seemed to have taken full advantage of that.

So that’s why the prince woke up early.

Adrian’s groggy voice, still thick from sleep, escaped weakly. It was the first time he had spoken to Mikhail since their childish fight on the first day in the dormitory.

“…The training grounds aren’t open?”

He was too lazy to voice the real question: What kind of old man wakes up at this hour?

The Royal Academy had produced countless knights. There was no way such an institution wouldn’t have a training ground tailored perfectly to the standards of royalty and nobility.

“I checked. Since the semester hasn’t started yet—”

Mikhail replied while casually doing push-ups on the dormitory floor. After reading the sign in front of the training grounds, he had turned away and instead gone for a quick run along the academy’s forest trail. But that light jog was nowhere near the amount of training he was used to in the mornings.

“—it said new students aren’t allowed to use it.”

His breathing matched the rhythm of his movements. There was still about a week left until the new semester officially began, and during this period, first-year students were free to enjoy their last days of leisure. Mikhail was likely the first to even consider sneaking a peek at the training grounds.

“…This is exactly when you should be throwing around that fancy authority of yours.”

It seemed that after reading the sign, the prince had given up without even knocking. Adrian found that surprisingly naive. If Mikhail had truly wanted to get in, any staff member on duty today would’ve gladly let him inside—or at the very least, wouldn’t have dared to stop him. It was obvious that the entire faculty and staff of Basamiel Academy had been meticulously preparing for the prince’s enrollment this year.

Mikhail, however, ignored Adrian’s muttered complaint. Not that Adrian cared—he was already wide awake at this point. He sat up in bed.

Half-raised from his sheets, Adrian glanced at Mikhail.

Every time Mikhail moved, the well-toned muscles across his body flexed subtly beneath his light workout attire—clear proof that he had never slacked off in his training.

“So, you’re planning to do this every day?”

A person passionately devoted to their goals was admirable. However, Adrian thought such dedication was much more beautiful when practiced out of sight.

“‘This’? I work out every day anyway.”

“…Forget it.”

And so, the number of first-year students eagerly awaiting the opening of the training grounds increased to two. A record-breaking figure.

If Adrian’s current amusement had been an adventure alongside a Swordmaster, this would have been an ideal situation. Perhaps in that case, he too would be training alongside the prince right now.

Training, huh…

His gaze drifted toward the prince’s cherished sword sheath. Intricately set with flawless gemstones, it was free of even the tiniest speck of dust.

Whenever he saw such an extravagant sword, he couldn’t help but think of someone.

Adrian frowned, running his fingers along his cheek, still warm from sleep. It was a person he hadn’t thought of for centuries. Someone who used to casually ruffle hair exactly the same shade as the prince’s brilliant silver locks.

As Mikhail continued his exercises, his silver hair swayed naturally, revealing glimpses of his striking red eyes.

***

A man with those same crimson eyes had once turned toward a dragon with a bright smile.

“Look! I can finally wield aura now!”

Seated against the training hall’s wall with a book in hand, a beautiful blond man lifted his gaze at those words. With an indifferent expression, he glanced at the man standing confidently at the center of the training ground, gripping a massive longsword.

The tip of the sword flickered with a faint, unsteady glow, as if it were about to disappear at any moment. It was aura, without a doubt…

But the fact that it looked like it could vanish at any second was crucial.

…Calling that level of aura ‘sword mastery’ would be embarrassing.

“Puhaha, is that so?”

The man in knight’s training gear stretched his beautiful lips into a bright smile.

He was wielding a longsword nearly as tall as himself, grinning widely at the dragon who remained as expressionless as ever. He hadn’t expected praise, but the dragon’s completely indifferent reaction was still unexpected enough to make him laugh out loud for a while.

And that was when it happened.

Perhaps his concentration had wavered, because the faint glow surrounding his blade completely dissipated. Clicking his tongue, the man muttered, “…Damn,” before swinging his longsword a few times in quick succession.

The blond man, however, had no interest whatsoever in the knight’s sword training. Without even sparing him a glance, he returned his focus to the book in his hands.

Carlo sheathed his sword and plopped down beside the gold dragon, who remained seated on the ground.

“Ah, I’m exhausted. I think I’ll stop here for today.”

After finishing his grueling training, he settled comfortably next to the dragon and asked another question.

“How do you know so much about swords when you’re a mage?”

The gold dragon found Carlo’s endless questions exhausting, yet as always, he answered them properly.

Carlo wouldn’t have liked to hear it, but the dragon had mastered swordsmanship long ago. To him, Carlo’s training was no different from a child awkwardly struggling to hold a sword.

“A Swordmaster manipulates aura by channeling mana.”

The dragon responded curtly, as if the answer should have been obvious. It was the kind of explanation one would expect from a mage.

“Hah, yeah, that’s true.”

Carlo de Inehart ran a finger along the edge of his blade. His swordsmanship had already surpassed that of most humans. But the realm of a Swordmaster was beyond human limits.

“I have to become a Swordmaster as soon as possible.”

Carlo de Inehart made his vow.

He was the type who spoke his convictions out loud to reinforce them—an exhausting habit.

“I know.”

The gold dragon murmured as he gazed at him.

But he had no intention of interfering with human lives. He wouldn’t say anything.

Even though he knew that Carlo would never become a Swordmaster.

***

“Why?”

A sudden voice snapped Adrian back to reality.

Mikhail had paused his workout beside Adrian’s bed, wiping sweat from his face as he stared at him. Judging by his expression, he seemed to think Adrian had something to say.

“…What.”

“You keep looking this way like you have something on your mind.”

“Don’t mind it.”

Adrian flopped onto his bed with a sharp motion.

He wished the semester would start already.

He just wanted to focus on his studies.