"All this time, I've been here watching over you. Won't you spare me a glance, my lady?"
-Leonardo Cassius to Viola Adelais; Secret Route
***
Leonardo Cassius has a simple wish.
As an orphan, he didn't dare hope to raise his status in life — he was content to have the necessities, be able to provide for himself, and hopefully die with a proper grave and a tombstone. The folks in the streets called him too pragmatic: with his looks, they said he would grow up handsome enough to be able to marry anyone, and if he wanted, he could apply at the local brothel and make a fortune there.
Too bad little Leonardo was too young to understand what that meant — and quite fortunate too. Begging on the streets may be hard, but had he gone and done as the locals told, he wouldn't have met his mistress, Viola Adelais.
Since then, Leonardo Cassius has only ever held one, simple wish:
To stay by his lady's side for as long as he could, and to do whatever it takes to make her happy.
***
However, a simple wish doesn't make it any easier to grant.
As a servant of the Adelais, he cannot exactly stay by the young lady's side at all times — even though they were the same age and Leo was every bit of a child as she was. When the young lady played in the drawing room, Leo had to stay at the servant's quarters and help with the errands. He would spend the whole day running around the mansion and only ever got to see Viola a few times as her tutor allowed.
It was only understandable. Between a servant and his mistress, everything was as it should be. Leo was lucky enough to be allowed to play with the young lady; luckier still that the household didn't treat him like a slave. Although there were times when he wished that things were different, Leo didn't dare ask for more than he was blessed with...except for the times that the Crown Prince visited.
Damian Vespera, the heir to the throne of Calix, was a dear childhood friend to Viola, perhaps even more so than Leo. Whenever the Crown Prince visited, Viola would drop everything in a heartbeat just to meet him, whether it was her tutoring sessions, discussions with her parents...and the rare occasions she got to play with Leo.
Leo was never invited to these "play-dates". According to the Adelaides, these are perfect opportunities for the young lady to get closer to His Highness, meaning, servants like Leo need to know their place.
And Leo did.
Doesn't make it hurt any less, though.
"I wanted to give him a flower," the young lady said one day, holding up a beaten-down rose in her hands. She was a little teary-eyed, her green eyes shining but refusing to let the tears fall. Instead, there was a smile on her face, completely at odds with her shaking figure.
It didn't take long for Leo to figure out why—Viola's hands, who gripped the stem as if hanging on for dear life, had been pricked by thorns.
Most people usually called Viola Adelais a haughty child. Spoilt and prickly, much like a thorny rose, except she bit even those that simply dared to look. The other children of the aristocrats hated her, but they couldn't exactly retaliate in her face, lest they face the wrath of the Adelais household. The young lady pretended that this didn't bother her, but Leo knew how the young lady often sent out invites for tea parties. How she always put on her best dress and waited for people to come.
How nobody did.
Nobody ever saw this side of her — the side that clung to any form of kindness or companionship, even if it hurt. Young Leo thought it was rather unfair. He hated the nobles that judge books by their cover, he hated the Crown Prince that wouldn't accept Viola's flowers, and he hated himself most of all — for letting his lady be hurt just like this.
If Leo could, he would hold all the prickly flowers in the world for her.
***
"I-I'm joining you at the Academy, my lady." He said as he poured the young lady her tea. Viola had choked on her pastry, wiped her mouth like it didn't happen, and stared at him like he'd lost his mind.
"Come again?"
It had taken Leo years to get the household's blessing. Years of proving that he wouldn't ever sully the family name nor his lady's honor, and proving how he could simply lurk in the shadows. The Adelias household didn't mind sending a servant to school — what they minded was Leo attracting unwanted attention. As if a mere butler like him could somehow turn this empire in on its head.
"I'm joining you at the Academy, my lady." He repeated, firmer this time. "I've talked with Your Grace, he said I'll be allowed under two conditions. And of course, provided that I pass the exams..."
He was blabbering, and almost poured the tea over his lady's dress. Leo didn't understand why he was shaking. He knew it was a selfish request — perhaps the young lady didn't want a pesky servant tailing her at school, but...
"Why?" The young lady asked.
It was a simple question, yet Leo felt as though all the words somehow died in his throat.
I need to save you.
I need to protect you.
I —
"I...don't want to be left alone, my lady." He said, ever so softly. In the past, he had played the role of a loyal butler down to the letter — always waiting for one-step behind, ready to obey any orders. But this time was different.
He bowed his head. "I understand if this is presumptuous of me. After all, my lady has already given me so much. But whenever I think about you leaving...I get sad. I want to continue serving my lady. I can help you get settled! I'll keep those annoying nobles away. I promise I'll behave—"
"Leo, shush."
Leo had been aware that this kicked-puppy dog act could only get him so far. He looked up, expecting the young lady to be mad.
But Viola Adelais was smiling, in a way that made her sharp features soften and her permanent scowl disappear. She patted his head.
"Say no more. I get it already." She gave a little laugh. "You're worried about me, aren't you?"
Leo felt a lump constricting at the back of his throat. To think he'd live long enough to have the young lady pat his head again...the world truly was too kind.
He smiled back at her. "Worried is an understatement, my lady."
***
The day before the examinations, the Adelais household held a party in Viola's honor.
On times like this, Leo usually snuck around to steal a glance from his lady, taking note of the boys who ever had the honor of dancing with her, the girls who talked behind his lady's back, and the nobles who planned to worm their way into the Adelais' graces. It had been a childish habit — keeping tabs on every single person that may take his lady from him — but Leo knew better now.
There were better uses for this skill.
Due to his many years of living on the streets, Leo was no stranger to information-gathering. It allowed him to track newcomers and tourists in the city, learning which supply cargos were on their way to the market, which new smuggles, and whose political faction now ruled a particular area. It was easier to find jobs this way — especially for orphans such as Leo.
And if Leo just happened to be lying on the street on the day the Adelais moved to the city of Rumpia, well, that was his own business.
Tonight, he'd set out to gather information about the movements of the nobles, and get a feel for the brewing storm that was sure to explode in their faces later. It was no secret within the household that they planned to have the young lady engaged with the Crown Prince, but the Adelais household was not the only one.
"My daughter Josephine will be applying too," the Baroness of Frausia sneered. Frausia was a neighbor city, about a few miles east off Rumpia. It must have taken the baroness and her family a few days to get here.
"The Crown Prince will be there too, right? Along with that Mirande heir." Said another noble.
Leo fought back a grimace at the mention of those two. The Crown Prince's existence, although celebrated, remained a forbidden topic within the aristocrats. For starters, only those within the Queen's inner circle knew who he looked like, as the Crown Prince faced several assassination attempts in the past. Anyone who dared whispered a word about the Crown Prince was suspected of treason, shutting down any rumors about his appearance, capabilities, and even identity - especially after one particular noblewoman dared to imply that the Crown Prince may have been a bastard child.
Said 'bastard child' with the emperor's trademark purple eyes had laughed as he told Viola and Leo the story:
"Mother had me stand under father's portrait in the Sky Throne. She made the lady play spot the difference. If she could prove that I am not my father's child, mother would give up her position as empress. However, if she cannot..."
Leo shivered. He'd heard news on the streets that someone had 'lost their head' trying to appease Imperial Family, but he didn't imagine that they meant literally. And as for the Mirande heir...Leo would rather not remember.
"It's too bad the Maures couldn't send in one of their own," one of the Lords, Sir Reynard, said. "I heard Lady Felicia wanted her sons and daughters to attend the Academy, but you know the entrance examinations. Ranks don't matter there."
They definitely do, Leo thought but kept to himself. It's easy to eavesdrop from where he hid, but any more and he would actually get caught. He had instinctively grabbed a trolley from one of the servants, so he could pretend he was only delivering food the moment one of the nobles opened the doors.
"The Adelais definitely plan on using their connections, that's why they're celebrating already." The baroness added. "They're heavily favored by the queen, one word in and that daughter of theirs can easily get admitted. I feel bad for my dear Isabella — I hired the best tutors for her already, but in the end, it all comes down to the network."
This made Leo grip the handles of the trolley tight — the baroness sure had a way of twisting words. She was the one who tried bribing the Academy Headmaster, only to be turned away and shamed for thinking admissions could be bought. Her daughter, Isabella, couldn't study for a day in her life, and her family had accepted that she would never get in.
Meanwhile, Viola had studied day and night for it. Endless tutoring sessions, homework, and additional readings — all to have a fighting chance among the sea of scholars fighting for a spot in the Academy. Leo had been there the whole time Viola made her preparations, burning the midnight oil because that was the only time he ever got to spend with her lately. And now this woman dared to accuse his lady of cheating?
Leo dug in his pockets and pulled out a vial. Then, with a practiced hand, he poured it all over drinks, making sure each cup held a drop.
He knocked on the door and pushed the trolley in with a smile.
"A pleasant evening, my lords and ladies. Your humble servant is only here to deliver some refreshments, on the house."
If shit keeps coming out their mouth, he thought, then it was only fair it came out of their asses too.
And if some nobles happened to contract food poisoning, well, he could just say he'd been sleeping at the servants' quarters the whole time.