At The End Of The Hidden Greenery

y are you crying in a place like this?”

That was when she first met him.

She didn’t even get up from her spot and turned her gaze to where the voice was heard.
He was a stranger who was accompanied by a couple of knights.
A face she had never seen in the temple where she had lived for over a year.

He seemed to glow as he stood with his back to the sun, and she couldn’t even look straight ahead at first.
He was a beautiful person.
He had impressive vivid black hair despite the light, and his neat forehead and bright red eyes under the thick eyebrows gave a reliable impression like the sun.
His high nose bridge and angular jawline even made him look elegant.

Jiwoo rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand.
She thought the man was saying some weird things, but it really brought tears to her eyes.

“…Thank you.”

“Hmm?”

The man was not offended.
He just looked curious.

Jiwoo didn’t know how to speak formally so she was sweating all over.
The man did not question anything, but the knights behind him looked more surprised.

Jiwoo was restless during the bizarre meeting.

The person who ended this was the servant of the temple who was looking for Akarna.

“Ack, Akarna! You’re here!”

The servant rushed to Jiwoo’s front, as she was stunned.
He noticed the situation and gave some excuse.

“Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince.
The A-Akarna doesn’t know much about the earthly words yet.”

“Akarna? This one?”

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The Crown Prince, who looked down at Jiwoo, smiled picturesquely after a while.

“If she doesn’t know the words yet, does that mean she is still in the process of learning?”

“Yes, yes.
That’s right, Your Highness.”

“Then, Akarna, would you like to learn to read and write from me?”

Jiwoo and the servant were surprised at the same time.
The crown prince did not stop smiling and held out his hand to Jiwoo, who was wary.

“Nevertheless, I came to meet the Akarna of this generation, and it seems that I came to the right place.
The Empire is receiving a lot of help from you, Akarna, so I also want to be of help to you through this opportunity.
I will be staying in the castle for a while, so spend some time with me.”

For Jiwoo, she desperately needed to learn the language that she could only understand.

In the temple, she was given just two choices—yes or no.
Even if she occasionally tried to express a different opinion, she was usually rejected because the Akarna had to be the model of the temple.

Whether dispatched to the inside of the temple or to another area, they always had an attitude of supporting Jiwoo as the Akarna with such a burdened countenance.
It was also because she didn’t make progress even when she tried to learn.

It was the first time anyone had approached the Akarna like that.
Jiwoo yearned to form any human relationship at all, and so she took the Crown Prince’s hand.

His name was Aleph.
Crown Prince Aleph of the Kaarbaude Empire.
The largest and most powerful country in the world.
He was the crown prince of the empire and a hero who led the war to victory.

He seemed to be the same age as she was, but he had already gone on the battlefield and led his army to victory.
She was curious as well as longing to listen.

He was a good teacher to the Akarna.
She had no problem understanding speech, and as she was determined to learn words and letters, the rest was easy.

“Akarna, you’re a fast learner, aren’t you? Have you ever studied before?”

Rather, when the crown prince offered to teach, he was amazed at Jiwoo as she learned quickly.

“I’ve been going to school since I was little.”

“Since childhood.
Having an opportunity to learn at a young age is not an easy task even in the Empire… It seems that you have experienced it for a long time?”

The crown prince suddenly grabbed her hand.

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Jiwoo thought her heart was pounding, but he only looked at the traces that remained deep in her hand after holding the pen too long.
Jiwoo tried to calm her noisy heart and said.

“Yes, um… About 16 years?”

“You look young.”

The empire developed faster than other places and was ahead in every way, but public education was not as developed as in modern Korea.
How could this place compare to a country in her world? Looking at people’s appearance and lifestyle, would it be correct to say that she was in medieval Europe?

In the end, Jiwoo chose her words and gave an answer.

“It’s common in my birthplace.”

“Anyway, it’s delightful that you’re fun to teach.”

The crown prince not only lived in the court, but also traveled around the battlefield and met a lot of people.
So, Jiwoo was able to learn not only one language but also many kinds of languages ​​and accents through him.

But that wasn’t the point.
While Jiwoo was being dragged here and there, the crown prince appeared and not only gave the Akarna a tight schedule, but also gave her a moment’s reprieve.

In fact, Jiwoo, who was accustomed to Korea’s overtime culture, lived her life without realizing that it was difficult.
No, actually, even if she knew it, it would have been of no use.

The temple did not actively try to solve the Akarna difficulties with communicating.
To the extent that she thought it’s intentional.
So, although it may not have been a big deal for the crown prince, Jiwoo felt great gratitude to him.

Then one day, during class, he said,

“You can’t always study like this.
Why don’t we go out together?”

“How? Where…”

“Follow me.
The temple imposes a rule on you that’s too old-fashioned.”

“But…”

“Right now, at a time like this, just say ‘Let’s go, Your Highness’.”

He led Akarna, speaking like a good teacher.

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