"Even drinking tea comes with an elaborate set of rules. You have to raise three fingers when you lift the cup, hold it with only your thumb and forefinger, and keep your head at a fixed angle. And those are just the rules for ordinary nobles. If you're a great noble, a merchant, a commoner, or a slave, you need a different set."
"Isn't that formalism?" Annan asked.
"What's formalism?"
Annan chose his words. "Following the outward form while ignoring the original purpose."
"That's exactly what it is..." Prince Aidan murmured. "The Kingdom is gravely ill. The only way to cure it is to break every rule and cleanse it completely."
"That's too extreme."
Prince Aidan looked at Annan. "Compared to the Kingdom, am I really extreme?"
Annan thought for a moment. "There's something more frightening than order: a society without justice or rules."
Disappointment showed on Prince Aidan's face, but Annan continued, "That reminds me of a story."
"What story?"
"Faster is always bullying Martin. They're both your friends. On the surface, you have three choices: side with Faster, stay neutral, or side with Martin. But you really have only two. Siding with Faster and staying neutral both mean standing by while Martin keeps getting bullied."
Annan shrugged. "I'm not from the Kingdom, and I don't know how bad things are there, so my opinion doesn't matter. But I certainly don't like the rule that a farmer's son can only become a farmer."
Prince Aidan smiled again. "An interesting way to put it..."
"Speaking of which, do you think the attackers are connected to the Paem Kingdom?"
"I'm afraid... not." Prince Aidan looked utterly sincere. "The Kingdom has no reason to reignite the conflict."
Annan distinctly remembered Prince Aidan saying that the Kingdom had once fought a great war