It had been some time since Inglis and her friends started rehearsing for the Weissmall Troupe. The big day was approaching. In the meanwhile, the troupe prepared the meals for Inglis and Rafinha, which they couldn’t be thankful enough for. And, finally…
「F-, finally, this day has come, Glis!」
「Yeah. It has been long, Rani!」
Both Inglis and Rafinha were teary-eyed.
「We’ve persevered so hard, didn’t we!」
「Yeah. I even want to praise myself for all the hardships!」
They hugged each other tightly, praising their brave struggle, thinking of their now-past days of endurance. The reconstructed, new building of the Knight Academy stood before them. While there were still many segments under construction, it will be the reopening of the cafeteria today. They couldn’t bear sitting still, and so they had been waiting there even before it was effectively open.
Soon……soon the time we’ve been waiting for will come!
「No, is that something to cry about?!」
「To begin with, haven’t you two been eating a lot of bribes from the troupe while the cafeteria wasn’t open?」Leone and Liselotte were a bit exasperated by the two’s reaction.
「They don’t have much variation, so we had to put up with it!」
「We also had to each so much less so we wouldn’t wolf down the whole troupe’s portion!」
「「L-, less……?」」
The people in charge of cooking for the troupe were scratching their heads, wondering if having Inglis and Rafinha in the play would be profitable at all. However, Count Weissmall seemed not to mind it much, as long as they could give him an excellent performance.
The door of the cafeteria was thrown open with a light bang.
「My? You’ve been waiting together here? Sorry for the wait! The cafeteria is back open!」
The diner lady, whom both Inglis and Rafinha had known very well, welcomed them with a smile.
「Kyaah! Yaay! The Double Extra-Large All Topping Super Spicy Pasta awaits me!」
「Me too! I wonder how much I can eat……?!」
「No……We have another rehearsal just after this, don’t we?」
「If you eat too much, you won’t be able to move as much.」
「「You can’t fight a war on an empty stomach……!!」」
Inglis and Rafinha spoke in the same breath. It seemed all they could think about was food. But then…
「Aah, I knew you two will be here, Miss Inglis, Miss Rafinha!」
「Ah, Principal!」
「This isn’t time for you two to idle around here!」
「Eh? What’s wrong?」
「There should be some time until the rehearsal with the troupe…」
「It’s not that! You have some important guests!」
「Huh?」
Were they really that important, even more important than the Double Extra-Large All Topping Super Spicy Pasta? Wouldn’t it just be a tragedy if they once again missed the huge feast because they were summoned to the castle and offered another troublesome position they had no interest in? To be honest, Inglis wasn’t in the mood to deal with it.
「Can’t they wait until after we’re done eating?」
Rafinha seemed to be of the same opinion.
「That’s not good! It’s rude to make your guests wait!」
「Hmm, there’s no other way then……」
「Let’s just give a brief greeting then run back here, Rani.」
「Yeah. Let’s.」
「They are waiting in my office, so let’s go right away.」
Inglis and Rafinha decided to leave the cafeteria behind them and headed towards the Principal’s Office.
「Phew~ Thank goodness I reached them before they could eat in the cafeteria, our budget is tight no thanks to the reconstruction, so we gotta save where we can……」
Muttered Principal Miliera under her breath. And, as they reached the Principal’s Office…
「Inglis!」
「Rafinha!」
What awaited them there were two mature, beautiful adult women…
「Mother!」
「Mother!」
It was Selena, Inglis’ mother, and Irina, her aunt.
「Mother! You’ve come! I’m so happy to see you!」
「Fufufu… You’re still such a spoiled kid, Rafinha.」
Rafinha rushed to Aunt Irina and threw a tight hug to her.
「Little Inglis! Have you been well? Your mom is worried!」
「I am, mother. There’s no problem. I’m glad to see you.」
Inglis didn’t behave as childishly, but she didn’t resist the hug Selena gave her either. This nostalgic warmth was certainly comforting. For a child, their mother would always be their mother, no matter how old they had become. For Inglis, who had been an orphan in her previous life, the value and gratitude of having someone to call as a mother was something she could feel more deeply than anyone else.
「No problem, huh? No, but, well…」
The Principal groaned.
「Pardon me, has my daughter causing you any trouble at all?」
「Ah, no, no……they never! They are both excellent students and have helped me a lot.」
「Is that so? That’s reassuring.」
Mother Selena smiled.
「However, why have you come, mother?」
「You know how the Marquis pays the tax to His Majesty the King, don’t you? Starting this year, umm, those flying boats……」
「Flygears and Flygear Carriers.」
「Yes, that. An official from the Capital will come riding it and help us transport the fares.」
「That’s great. It’s safer than transporting them overland that way.」
So far, goods and taxes would have to be transported by land all the way to the Royal Capital. Not only would it be a long journey from the remote town of Ymir, but there was also always the threat of Magic Stone Beasts along the way.
It would be safer and faster if the Royal Capital could send Flygears to collect the tax. Not only would they be safe from the assaults of land-bound Magic Stone Beasts, but there was also a huge chance they could shake off flying Magic Stone Beasts.
Normally, it was the feudal lord’s role to arrange the means of transportation and the people, but Flygears were state-of-the-art weapons. It wasn’t widely used in a rural area like Ymir. Therefore, it was the Capital that made the dispatch. It was a flexible response to an advance in technology. How very thoughtful.
「Yes. And so, since the Marquis was riding the Flygear that went back to the Capital to greet His Majesty, he brought us along with him. We wanted to see your faces, after all. Although, it was regrettable that your dad has to stay.」
「Is that so. That was unfortunate, I wanted to see Father too.」
「Wah! So Father is here too! Yay!」
「Rafinha. Don’t get too merry, you hear me? Be thoughtful like Glis.」
Aunt Irina rebuked Rafinha.
「I don’t mind. I’m happy to see the Marquis too.」
「Really? You sure are reliable and mature, little Glis. I don’t have anything to worry about as long as Rafinha has you by her side..」
「That’s not true, I still have a long way to go. Please, tell Rani to not chase after illicit relationships and focus solely on her training as a Knight candidate.」
Perhaps because Inglis was mentally a man, she couldn’t stop Rafinha from saying things like which men had the handsome face or which one she had a crush on, or how wonderful Special Envoy Theodore was, etc.
She would like Irina, Rafinha’s own mother, to be the one to drive those points into her, but…
「Eeh?! What, Rafinha, you got a boyfriend? Isn’t that great! What is he like, what is he like? Will you introduce him to me since I’m here?」
Irina’s eyes shone brightly. At times like this, her eyes were just like Rafinha’s.
「AAAUUNNNT!! That’s not it, that’s not what I meant! Rani needs to focus on the things necessary for her!」
「Oh my? Falling in love while young is also an important lesson, you know? So, how is it, Rafinha?」
「Eeh. I don’t have a boyfriend. I mean, of course, I want to have one, but…」
「Then, is there someone you have in your heart?」
「Eeh? Ehehe…」
What do you mean “Ehehe”?!