Clive Midstern, now in his final year at Sherk University, was enjoying a relatively leisurely season. With plans already secured to work under Mr. Benhauer—the head of the business faculty and a long-time friend of his father—beginning in the fall semester, he had fewer worries about his future.

Of course, few business students at Sherk University ever faced bleak prospects.

This semester, Clive was taking only a single core class. That didn’t mean he spent his days idling at home.

He was a distinguished member of the investment club Elite. Unlike other clubs that used study as an excuse for mere socializing, Elite was serious about both—learning and camaraderie.

Most of its members were “noble” friends he had grown up with in the same neighborhood. Today, he was to meet Damien Roderwell and several of the others for lunch.

‘Maybe I’ll leave a little early and stop by Greenbird Bookshop on the way…’

Clive had just finished dressing and was hurrying out the door when—

“We are passing through the navel of summer.”

A voice, carried on the gentle breeze, beat against his heart like a small drum.

“On the fresh green grass, the sound of a harmonica…”

It was Henry Milton’s sonnet, The Navel of Summer.

A self-professed man of letters, Clive had read Milton’s sonnets until the pages were worn. That clear, radiant voice, so perfectly matched to the bright sky, drifted from beneath the cherry tree.

There sat his youngest brother in a wheelchair. And beside him stood a woman.

“A new tutor has arrived.”

The “new tutor” Oscar had mentioned could only be this woman.

Greenbird Bookshop could wait. But this moment—the sonnet carried gently on the breeze—was fleeting.

“…Lay your head upon dahlias, and rest awhile…”

Unconsciously, Clive murmured the lines himself as he drew nearer to the cherry tree.

Rio and the tutor both had their eyes shut tight, as if by prior agreement. The tutor, absorbed in her recitation, didn’t notice Clive’s presence, but Rio sensed his brother’s approach and his eyes flew open.

“…!”

Just as Rio was about to cry out, “Brother!” Clive pressed a finger to his lips and shook his head.

Rio glanced from his tutor to his elder brother, then obediently closed his mouth, though his whole body quivered with the joy of seeing him.

“…We are passing through the navel of summer.”

Mia finished the final line and slowly lifted her eyelids, smiling.

“How was that? Doesn’t it feel like your heart’s been freshly polished?”

“Yes. As if a window I’d been carrying in my chest has suddenly grown clear.”

“Ah!”

“Forgive me for startling you. I didn’t want to interrupt your recital.”

“Oh… I-it’s all right.”

“You must be Rio’s new tutor.”

As Clive offered his hand in greeting, inclining his upper body slightly, a few fine strands of golden hair spilled across his brow. His green eyes, alive with the vitality of spring itself, shone warmly. Dimples deepened at the corners of his smile.

“Clive Midstern.

***

“You haven’t met our big brother yet, have you?”

After just five minutes of conversation with Clive, Mia understood why Rio had said that—and why he had looked her over with such mistrustful eyes.

Clive was the very picture of a “prince on a white horse.”

Having broken the ice with a sonnet, he had, with effortless ease, taken over pushing the wheelchair and guided Mia out into the garden.

The flowerbeds were bursting with spring blossoms; white butterflies and bees busied themselves in the air. At first, Rio had thrown a tantrum, insisting he didn’t want to go out, but he made no complaints as the stroll lengthened. In fact, he seemed so delighted that Mia thought he might have been disappointed if they hadn’t taken him out.

While his youngest brother was absorbed in the flowers and butterflies, Clive struck up a friendly conversation with Mia.

“Of Henry Milton’s sonnets, I like The Swan best. What about you?”

“I like that one too. At first only because it was my sister’s favorite, but… now I truly mean it. By the way, young master, please just call me Mia.”

“Shall I? Very well then—Miss Mia. So, you have a sister.”

“Yes. Ah, and you may drop the formality in your speech as well…”

“I find it more comfortable to speak politely. But in that case, would you call me Clive?”

Then, lowering his voice and leaning closer, Clive tilted his face toward her.

Without realizing it, Mia tensed, her clasped hands tightening just above her navel.

“By the way, you managed to bring this one outside. I’ve tried coaxing him more than once, but he’s so stubborn… May I ask your secret?”

“Oh… I think he only listened because I’m his tutor. He’s a clever and kind student.”

Clive’s eyes widened.

Clever and kind student.

Of the six tutors who had passed through the Midstern household before her, not a single one had ever praised Rio in that way.

All the former tutors had done was point out Rio’s shortcomings.
He’s always distracted. He has no interest in studying. He never completes his homework properly…

Clive leaned in, whispering like a girl sharing a secret.

“Doesn’t he keep getting distracted with you, too?”

“He’s thirteen now. At that age, even ten minutes of focus is hard. In fact, Master Rio is quite good at concentrating—when it’s on something he’s interested in.”

“And what might those interests be?”

Mia tilted her chin toward Rio, who was staring intently at a butterfly resting on a forget-me-not.

Without realizing it, Rio stuck his tongue out a little and furrowed his brow. Holding his breath, timing it carefully, he suddenly shot out his hand and caught the butterfly between his thumb and forefinger.

Mia clapped her hands together.
“Success! What’s its name?”

“It’s a cabbage white. Don’t you even know that?”

“Rio, you must be polite to your teacher.”

“S-so… teacher, you didn’t… know that?” Rio muttered, pouting. His round cheeks, still soft with baby fat, bulged adorably.

Mia’s eyes curved with amusement. She had the sudden urge to poke one of those plump cheeks.

“Master Rio is very interested in insects,” she explained.

At Clive’s look of surprise—as if to ask how she knew—Mia answered calmly.

“His textbooks are covered in insect doodles. Butterflies, beetles, mantises… all sorts, drawn with such detail. I could tell he was passionate about them.”

“…He doodles in his textbooks?”

“So what? It happens when a lesson feels dull. I did it all the time when I was a student. If there was a picture of a boy, I’d draw braids on him and turn him into a girl. What about you, young mas—ah, Clive? Haven’t you ever done something like that?”

“…Come to think of it, I used to fill in circles. Whenever I saw one, I’d blacken it completely.”

“There you go. All kids do it, don’t they? And if Rio does get distracted, that’s my fault for making the lesson boring.”

Clive was taken aback.

Insects?

He had known that Rio liked naval warships, but insects? That was new. Rio had never mentioned them once.

And Mia—not only did she overlook a student doodling in his textbooks, she even defended it.

Clive pressed his lower lip thoughtfully, lost in his own reflections.

Meanwhile, Mia had crouched down, chattering with Rio.

“Teacher! Don’t you have something like a container… to keep the butterfly in?!”

“Let’s see. I do have a pencil case… will it fit inside, I wonder?”

“That’s perfect!”

“Careful not to hurt it. And promise me—you’ll let it go tomorrow.”

“Yeah. Once I finish drawing it…”

The two of them chatted back and forth so naturally they looked like close siblings.

‘Just a week ago, he was sulking at every turn.’

He had called her ugly and annoying, yet now he was grinning ear to ear, begging her to come again tomorrow for another lesson.

“…Br—? Clive?”

“Ah. I was lost in thought for a moment… Anyway, what time is it?”

“It’s nearly twelve.”

“Oh dear. I’ve an appointment, so I’ll have to be going. It was a pleasure, Miss Mia. And Rio, make sure you listen to your teacher, all right?”

“You needn’t worry about Rio.”

“Brother, let’s play chess today too!”

“Sorry, Rio. I’ll be late tonight. Why don’t you ask Oscar to play with you instead?”

At that, Rio swung one foot in protest, pouting.

“Tch… But my second brother hates chess. He says it makes him use his brain too much.”

“Even so, Oscar’s a step ahead of me.”

“Really?!”

“Oscar beat me when he was only fifteen. If you pester him for just one game, he won’t be able to refuse. You know how he is…”

“Always pretending to be mean.”

“You know him well, Rio. My clever little brother.”

Clive affectionately ruffled Rio’s brown hair. Then, straightening his knees, he turned to Mia with a polite bow.

“If it isn’t too much trouble, Miss Mia, I’d love to join you for the next outdoor lesson.”

“Yes, of course.”

“Then it’s a promise?”

Mia nodded, though she thought it unlikely such a day would actually come.

After Clive rode away on his bicycle, only the quiet murmur of daily life and the whispers of nature returned to Braid Hills.

“How was that?”

Rio tugged at her sleeve. Seeing Mia’s cheeks flushed pink, he gave a mischievous giggle and crowed proudly:

“My big brother’s amazing, isn’t he?”