The Price is Everything of Yours (76 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 5
Neris, too, was naturally watching the silver-haired boy. Neris murmured briefly, inaudibly to anyone except Diane.
“Yes. You’re the young duke.”
The very person who had made Neris hate the name “Nel.”
The man who had killed her mother to lure the owner of the Zaan.
The one who had used Neris her entire life and then cruelly discarded her when she was no longer useful.
“Why did you have to go that far?”
Neris wanted to run over right then and ask him that. She longed to bare her heart full of unspoken bitterness. She wanted to ensure that he—still only sixteen—would never again feel such cruel satisfaction.
She wanted to rush over, snatch the dagger at his waist, and stab it straight through his throat.
She might die for it herself, but she didn’t care. She was already someone who had died once.
But would that even be punishment enough?
“Yes, I must be patient for now.”
Neris whispered to herself. By coincidence or fate, her eyes met Nelusion’s.
This Nelusion, too, had met Neris before—just a few months ago by current reckoning.
When Neris’s mother had requested a loan for her academy tuition, the Elantria ducal family had invited mother and daughter once to their estate for dinner. The atmosphere had been pleasant enough at the time.
Back then, Neris had simply thought something along the lines of, “A relative elder is even treating us to a meal—I must become a fine adult and repay their kindness someday.”
“They must have wondered whether it was truly true that a child of the Zaan had been born.”
They confirmed it and lent the money. It was highly likely they had already begun plotting to exploit the two of them thoroughly from that very moment.
Nelusion probably remembered the innocent, guileless Neris of those days—a child yet untouched by darkness.
“It was you who ruined that, Nelusion.”
So when the time came, Neris intended to shatter that smiling face of his into countless pieces.
Nelusion, who had volunteered to run an errand to the female freshmen’s classroom, felt satisfied with his clever choice.
Nelusion Elantria lacked nothing. Born the heir of the most illustrious house in the Empire of Vista, outranked only by one imperial family and one grand ducal house, he also enjoyed the trust of Crown Prince Abelus.
In the Politics Department, he had skipped grades repeatedly to study alongside older students, and everyone admired him for his handsome looks and fairness.
Kind and just.
At the thought of these two words, a smile appeared on his face. Such was the reputation he held.
Yet he had no intention of using his remarkable talents merely to become a fine duke and serve the Emperor. A man as clever as he deserved greater ambitions.
And precisely what he needed to realize those ambitions was right inside this classroom of freshmen.
He had already seen the expressions of awe and curiosity on new students’ faces for several years now. Just before reaching the center of the auditorium, Nelusion feigned indifference and scanned this year’s freshmen.
It wasn’t hard to find the face he already knew—the sharp Zaan and mysterious platinum blonde hair drew his gaze irresistibly.
Neris Trude.
It had never mattered to Nelusion’s family which daughter a distant, impoverished branch—so fallen they’d married off to a low-ranking knight—might bear.
But to their surprise, this cousin’s daughter possessed the precious Zaan, and upon confirming it, the duke immediately decided to invest. A young lady bearing the Zaan would prove excellent capital in noble society.
Nelusion knew it had been over a century since anyone in his house had manifested the Zaan. This situation in House Elantria was indeed cause for concern.
After all, one reason House Elantria received such esteem was precisely because, like the Imperial House, they descended from the legendary Three Heroes.
Though little Valentine had sulked, Nelusion believed his parents’ decision had been brilliant. In noble society, where dignity mattered deeply, symbols carried great weight.
Thus, he had offered the mother and daughter kind encouragement when they came to thank him for the tuition loan, leaving a favorable impression.
“Hmm?”
But had that child felt like this before?
The Neris Nelusion remembered had been innocent and gentle, but the girl whose eyes now met his was nothing of the sort. Her gaze was sharp like a seasoned politician’s, piercing through him so intensely that even he couldn’t help but be startled.
Fortunately, Neris smiled a moment later—a pretty, gentle smile. He soothed his own surprise and stepped into the center of the auditorium.
It must have been a misperception. No one could change so drastically in just a few months—especially not a twelve-year-old child.
Yet his smile had already twisted awkwardly with flustered uncertainty. Realizing this, Nelusion quickly restored his usual kind expression.
If the girl proved smarter than expected, that was all the better. She was still just a child, after all; with a bit of skillful coaxing, she’d yield easily enough. The difference in what a knight’s daughter and a duke’s cousin could enjoy was simply too vast.
“Everyone, Madame Alex will soon arrive to supervise a test assessing your mathematical abilities. I am Nelusion Elantria, and I’ve been assigned to explain the exam beforehand.”
Even children who hadn’t known Nelusion’s name gasped audibly. He glanced once around at all the students.
He had already memorized the names and faces of those worth noting, but outwardly, he had to appear impartial toward everyone—you never knew which of them might prove useful.
“In the Cartak Institute, to which I belong, there are Departments of Swordsmanship, Magic, Politics, and Theology. Similarly, your Aine Institute has a General Department and a Theology Department. Since you all belong to the General Department, you are here now.”
Though any class could technically be taken regardless of gender, by custom most boys chose one of swordsmanship, magic, or politics in Cartak, while most girls focused on etiquette and general education in Aine’s General Department.
This separation between institutes—and especially the fact that both maintained their own Theology Departments—was a remnant of the old conservative tradition when students of opposite sexes weren’t even allowed to see each other’s faces.
Among noble boys, those destined to be knights chose swordsmanship, aspiring mages chose magic, and everyone else chose politics.
For girls, it was simpler: anyone not entering the Theology Department automatically belonged to the General Department.
This was why, in essence, Cartak’s Politics Department and Aine’s General Department were so similar.
“The General Department includes Music, Languages, and Literature. As first-years, you’ll all take foundational courses together. However, some of you may have already studied certain subjects at home. Wasting time listening to material you already know contradicts our academy’s highest value: the pursuit of improvement. Thus, based on your exam results, some students will attend major-specific classes alongside upperclassmen in advanced sections rather than with other freshmen.”
Megara Rikeandros, who had already quietly become the center of attention in the classroom, brightened visibly. Nelusion, knowing she’d shown talent in various fields since childhood, understood her reaction perfectly.
Students who’d hired famous tutors from an early age would naturally produce different results from those who’d only just learned to write. Neris Trude had probably received no proper education at all.
If she found it difficult, it would be nice if she came to him for help.
Then he could easily win her favor. Neris had struck him as unusually memorable, and he attributed this impression to her usefulness.
Originally, he’d only meant to glance at her once among the other students in this classroom.
But seeing how lovely she was—and that she’d already made friends—he decided she deserved a bit more attention.
[This is the timeline separator]The results of the mathematical assessment were posted near the entrance of the central auditorium before the first-year common etiquette class began.
Students gaped, unable to close their mouths, as they read the brutally clear list displaying names, houses, and scored results ranked in order.
Children checking their scores with either hope or fear widened their eyes in shock. Smaller students, after quickly confirming their own results, hopped up and down trying to peek at others’.
Though the Cartak and Aine students had taken separate exams for administrative convenience, the content had been identical. Thus, the abilities of all thirty or so first-years were laid bare in that one spot.
Boys visiting the central auditorium—located at the heart of Aine Institute—for the orientation of the common etiquette class chattered indignantly, their pride wounded.
“Where’s House Trude from?”
“Neris Trude? Never heard of that name.”
At the very top of the entire first-year class—regardless of gender—and as the sole perfect scorer, Neris’s name stood clearly posted.
Neris stood quietly at the back of the crowd, her gaze cold. Among the still-chubby-faced boys were, of course, those who had bullied her.
Some of them, even now at an age when others had stopped overt bullying, still delighted in humiliating Neris publicly as a form of entertainment.
The boys who’d tormented her most were generally of two types: either their own scores in Cartak were poor, so they took out their frustration on someone else, or they believed acting arrogantly in front of girls they fancied would impress them.
Unsurprisingly, the former already had their names listed near the bottom.
Neris had always been the type to score highly without much effort, so she’d never before cared about others’ rankings. Now she realized that some of the boys she’d despised most couldn’t even read properly—their scores were pitiful.
It seemed she’d be spared seeing their faces in any advanced classes, which was a relief.
“You got first place, right? That’s amazing.”
A few quiet girls approached Neris to speak to her. Neris hesitated in her reply.
Back when she’d been relentlessly ostracized, anything she said had been met with criticism, so even now she didn’t know how to respond appropriately to such remarks.
“…I just got lucky.”
“You must have studied really hard beforehand, though? Hey, which Trude family are you from? The Trudes of Lockaster?”
“Lockaster is the Truss family. I’m Trude. My father isn’t a lord—he’s not from anywhere important.”
Nearby children leaned in with “Wow!” eager to hear Neris’s voice clearly. Since this was her first time experiencing such attention, Neris felt slightly flustered. Just then, the group of children around her suddenly parted.
The girls who had been speaking to Neris quickly stepped aside as Megara appeared through the gap. Megara approached with elegant steps and said,
“You’re incredible. You must have had excellent teachers before coming here.”
“Not really.”
The dark-haired girl beside Megara made a resentful face. Neris recognized that expression well—it was Rianon Berta.
Rianon had always looked at her that way, even when Neris merely breathed.
As if to say, “How dare you breathe the same air in front of me?”
How dare you breathe so boldly, score so well, lift your head, and look at me—utterly forgetting your place.
True to form, Rianon immediately launched into a sharp accusation.
“You’re really funny.”
“What’s so funny?”
Neris asked, amused anew by the realization that even at this age, Rianon was already trailing after Megara.
This was easier to handle than the earlier girls whose motives were unclear—she understood exactly why this one reacted as she did.
There was only one reason Rianon spoke ill of Neris.
“Because people around her always agree.”
When younger, she hadn’t understood that. She’d once tried hard to become someone “not funny.”
But what was the point? Even when she fulfilled everyone’s requests and always smiled during conversations, she still earned remarks about her “odd personality.” Her efforts had been utterly hollow.
But Rianon was still just a child, and currently, Megara was the only one who actively agreed with her.
Annoyed by Neris’s calm question, Rianon retorted impulsively,
“You did great on the test! There’s no way you could’ve done that without a good teacher. Why lie? Are you hiding your teacher from everyone else?”
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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The male lead being so proud of his wife is honestly adorable, even when he gets jealous.
And the female lead is so elegant and beautiful—I can’t wait to see this scene illustrated
Haha, did the ML really just say that to the FL? He’s so cute when he gets a little jealous.
Can’t wait for next chapter
The ML is so considerate of his wife. He treats her with so much care and gentleness, even when she doesn’t say a word—he just understands her. He’s honestly so perfect, I can’t 😭
I really hope the FL can overcome these painful feelings soon. I can’t bear to watch her suffer this much. 💔