Upon hearing that the guards detected mana usage within the premise, more precisely, in the drawing-room where Elaine and her brother met, King Kelvion left Duke Gustova alone. The Duke came as expected, but the King did not inform him of his son's mistake. Of course, it was illegal to use magic without permission, but the King doubted that Gerard would use it to harm people.
"Ah, I summoned my spirit to send a message to my brother, Your Majesty," Gerard explained, embarrassed. He forgot that it was not allowed to use magic in the Royal Palace. "Forgive me for violating the law."
"I see." King Kelvion smiled. "It is all right."
"Is Your Majesty busy?" Elaine asked. "Brother Gerard offered to bring me to the Academy. Would Your Majesty like to come with us as well?"
"What coincidence. I was planning to go there as well." The King nodded. "We can depart with the Royal carriage."
As soon as the King agreed, the three of them left the Royal Palace. When some noticed that the Royal carriage passed the road, their eyes would sparkle at the luxurious vehicle, and the sea of people would part and bow in respect. Elaine peeked through the carriage window along the trip, interested in the trade between the citizens and business people occurring around her as well. The King and Gerard could only observe her with caring eyes, finding her reaction adorable.
"Welcome to the Academy." The King stepped out of the Royal carriage first, offering his hand to the young lady of the Gustova Dukedom. Elaine took King Kelvion's hand gladly, curiously looking around, and Gerard followed behind.
"It is like another castle in the kingdom," Elaine said in awe. "Our kingdom is not the typical kingdom, is it, Your Majesty?"
King Kelvion laughed at her compliment. "I am delighted to hear that."
"They built the Academy on a huge and isolated plot of land." Gerard smiled. "It is also said that it is vaster than the Royal Palace. The Academy has many uses, after all, ranging from studies to sword and magic training."
"Well, let us greet the Headmaster." The King suggested. "He is one of my closest confidants, so I trusted him with the information regarding your condition, Elaine."
Lady Elaine nodded.
They walked up the stairs to the Headmaster's office and met his secretary.
"Blessings and Glory to the King of Athelis." The secretary was surprised by His Majesty's sudden visit, along with Lord Gerard's and Lady Elaine's. "Greetings to the young Lord and Lady of the Gustova Dukedom."
"Is Exarion busy?" His Majesty asked.
"No." The woman in glasses searched for the Headmaster's schedule, answering the King immediately. "He is in his office, Your Majesty."
"Thank you." The King nodded and knocked on the Headmaster's office. Then, without even receiving a response yet, His Majesty opened the door.
"Your Majesty?" Headmaster Exarion took his spectacles off and jumped off his seat. "I apologise for not greeting Your Majesty properly as I was not informed of this visit."
Headmaster Exarion looked younger than the King, but he looked as worn out as King Kelvion. Dark circles covered his bright blue eyes, and his glimmering silver hair was messy. If he were not wearing such a grand white robe, the Headmaster would look like an overworked and abused worker.
"I did come here suddenly." The King said, telling his old friend to be at ease. "I brought Gerard and Elaine with me."
"Greetings, Headmaster." Gerard bowed. Elaine followed Gerard and curtsied.
"Yes, yes." The Headmaster ushered the teenagers to take a seat. "What brought Your Majesty here today? Is it about the progress of the cure for Lady Elaine's memory loss?"
"Pardon me?" Elaine blinked, tilting her head. "A cure...?"
"I requested Exarion to develop a cure for you." His Majesty explained. "The Academy's people are competent, so it should not be an impossible task."
"Well, it has only been a couple of days since your request, Your Majesty." Headmaster Exarion rubbed his eyes. "I have been losing sleep due to researching for this particular case, as you can see."
"Interestingly, Lady Elaine lost her memories but was able to remember certain practices." The Headmaster's eyes lit up. "I have never heard of such a circumstance."
Gerard was thankful to the Headmaster and His Majesty's effort to help Elaine, smiling to himself. "She also regains her knowledge immediately after reading a sentence from a book, Headmaster. However, she still could not remember whose faces belong to whom after reading the Royal Family's tree."
"I see..." The Headmaster stared at Elaine with curiosity.
"Brother..." Elaine held him back, overwhelmed by the conversation regarding her health. She was grateful, but at the same time, conflicted. Looking at the Headmaster's tired appearance made her feel guilty.
"Your Majesty, please take back the request," Elaine said.
"...Why?" The King questioned. The Headmaster and Gerard frowned as well.
"The cure is indeed a tempting offer, but if it means that I would be troubling more people..." Elaine felt uncomfortable.
"It is not troubling at all, Lady Elaine." The Headmaster reassured the young lady. "I just get too invested in my research, you see. It is an awful habit of mine, so please do not be disturbed by it."
"Still..." Elaine clenched onto her dress. "The pressure to complete the cure as soon as possible must be stressful, not only to the Headmaster but others that are helping to develop the cure."
"Furthermore, I believe I am the only person who experienced this illness amongst the people in the kingdom," Elaine stated. There was never a record of medicine to cure memory loss of the medical books she read. She was the very first case. "No matter how much the Headmaster searches, it would be a dead end."
"We do not know unless we try, Elaine." Gerard tried to convince his little sister. "It would not hurt to put an effort. There is no telling what the result would be."
Elaine pursed her lips.
"If you do not wish for it, then I will do as you say, Elaine." The King did not want to press Elaine into accepting the development for the cure. It does concern her, after all. Exarion and Gerard opposed the idea, however, looking at His Majesty with puzzled expressions.
"Then, please stop the research and development for the cure, Your Majesty."
Gerard had no idea what was going through his little sister's mind. Perhaps it was because he had not experienced memory loss. However, even he understood that they had lost the opportunity to help Elaine regain her memories.
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