Chapter 16: A Fragment of Emotion

Chapter 16:
A Fragment of Emotion

 

YULAN DIDN’T KNOW how to act.

He couldn’t ignore the prince. He had to speak to him with humility and courtesy. He forced his face into a smile and let loose a quick bow. But since the prince called him out in the hallway, he could probably forget about any more formalities for now, right? Claudia wanted to talk to Yulan, not as a prince to a lower noble, but man-to-man, two people with a complicated history. That was why he’d used Claudia’s title—under the circumstances it felt like more of a hindrance than a sign of respect.

“To think that Prince Claudia would deign to speak to me. I’m surprised,” Yulan said flatly, smile still plastered on his face. He was pretty sure he knew what was coming, and it wasn’t a conversation for the middle of a hallway; in unison, they moved to a nearby secluded spot behind some decorative architecture.

“Wipe off that smile,” said Claudia.

Yulan remained silent.

“I’m not talking to you as the prince. I need to talk to you.”

“Fine,” Yulan sighed, and as the fake smile faded from his face, the very air between them changed. Yulan’s calm, soothing aura evaporated. His eyes were still gentle, but the light in them dimmed. His face was as lifeless as a theater mask.

“I don’t have time for you, so can you hurry up and get to the point?” he said. The longer this took, the more likely Violette would end up somewhere difficult to find and he’d miss her entirely. He still had to get his lunch, too—he wouldn’t mind skipping food to see her, but it would make her worry.

“If this is about what happened the other day, I don’t think there’s anything to talk about, especially between you and me,” Yulan continued.

“I thought about what you said,” Claudia stated.

“What an honor. So, what? Did I make you angry?”

“No! I really thought about it…” Claudia looked at the ground. None of his usual royal confidence and charisma, so alluring to everyone, was on display now—but why bother in front of Yulan? He was the one who knew where that confidence came from, and where it ended. He didn’t take any particular pleasure in knowing the prince that well, but at least it meant Claudia was usually straight with him.

“At the party, the last thing you said was…that outsiders shouldn’t get involved,” Claudia said. Yulan had meant it as a sarcastic parting insult, but apparently Claudia had taken it seriously.

In any case, it didn’t matter to Yulan what Claudia thought. The only thing that mattered was finishing this conversation as soon as possible. No more useless remarks.

“Yes, I said that. Is there a problem?” said Yulan. He wasn’t the kind of person to think his words over that carefully, anyway—they were just daggers to throw at his opponent and help Violette escape. Why would Claudia think so hard about them?

“I wanted to understand what you were thinking, so I gave it some serious thought…but no matter how hard I tried, I didn’t understand,” Claudia stated. That wasn’t a surprise to Yulan—the two of them were polar opposites. Claudia was driven by a deep sense of justice, but Yulan was led by his protective impulses. Those core beliefs were incredibly different in reasons, actions, and results.

At the tea party, Claudia saw a chance to stand up against evil and protect a defenseless girl from harm. Crowding around one person to throw stones was inhuman—Yulan wouldn’t disagree with Claudia on that. But Yulan would choose protecting Violette every single time.

“You don’t need to understand. I was just doing what I wanted—there’s no right and wrong about it. I didn’t have some grand purpose in mind,” Yulan said.

“But you were obviously doing something you believed in.” Claudia stared into Yulan’s eyes, almost identical to his own. The shape of their eyes and the color of their eyebrows were different, but to Yulan, it still felt like looking into a mirror in a deeply uncomfortable way. Claudia’s straightforwardness and beauty were both endlessly frustrating.

“Please, just tell me…why do you think I was wrong?” Claudia asked. Yulan wanted nothing to do with this. He hated the prince, and yet the prince kept getting closer. He looked at this moral, righteous man, so obsessed with doing things right, and only felt one thing.

“Disgusting,” Yulan muttered.