The next day, fully recovered from my illness, I began my day admiring Yulia’s Divine Power. I showed a peace sign to Lilian and Yulia, who were looking at me with worried eyes, assuring them that I was completely okay. My expression was so lifeless that I didn’t look very healthy, but Yulia and Lilian headed to school, feeling relieved.
Thinking back, the princess had visited me while I was sick. I’d better thank her separately. With that thought, I tackled some overdue household chores and finally got a little break after hanging up the laundry. But just as I settled in for my rest, lunchtime was approaching, so I quickly packed a lunchbox and headed toward the lecture hall where Lilian and Yulia were in class.
“Thanks!”
“Oh! Is this my lunch too? Thanks!”
I handed a specially prepared cheap lunchbox to Yulia as a thank-you gift and quietly waited for them to eat. Sitting on a mat in the nearby grass, Lilian tilted her head at me while munching on the lunch.
“Huh? Aren’t you eating, Catherine?”
“Me? Oh, I already ate. You know I do that all the time, right?”
“Then what’s that lunchbox for?”
“Uh, um…”
I silently shut my mouth as she glanced at the lunchbox in my hand. Realizing that I didn’t want to talk, Lilian dropped the subject. Yulia looked between her lunch and me, slightly frustrated, and stuffed some food into her mouth. Hmm, it seems like it’s not bad.
“Catherine, are you in a hurry? You can go ahead. I’ll pack up the lunchbox.”
“…Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Honestly, I don’t want to send you off, but whatever.”
Watching Lilian nod with a small smile, I sighed. Well, I’ve seen the princess skip lunch before, so it wouldn’t hurt to wait a bit. I settled between Lilian and Yulia and quietly spoke up.
“By the way, may I request an outing soon?”
“Huh? Why?”
“Ladies, you’re going on an outing soon, right?”
“Oh, right. Is it next week?”
“Yes.”
Following the midterm ball, the Student Council was busily preparing for the excursion. Since the princess’s help wasn’t particularly needed, she was quite free. That was likely why she could visit me yesterday.
This outing location was Tarakan Free City, just a day’s carriage ride from the Albius Free City where Apatem Academy is located. Unlike Albius, Tarakan was a city famous for its entertainment—particularly its casinos.
“Tarakan Free City, huh… I’m curious.”
“Yulia, you’ve never been there, have you?”
“Nope. They usually check your identity pretty thoroughly at Tarakan…”
“Ah, right.”
Tarakan Free City was a place that enforced checks for safety, meaning if you didn’t have a solid identity or a lot of money, you wouldn’t get in. Here, “solid identity” meant someone backed by three or more nobles or a high-ranking noble like a Count and their immediate family.
In that sense, it made sense that Yulia, who hadn’t yet received a title, wouldn’t be allowed in. Of course, not everyone at Apatem Academy was a high-ranking noble, so the Student Council was negotiating on this matter. After all, a solid identity guarantee was essential for entering Tarakan.
Three nobles—usually, even commoners would have friends who’d vouch for them unless they were extremely odd, but Yulia’s friend count was lacking. From what I could see, Lilian was her only friend.
‘That’s definitely weird.’
Yulia was stunning and had a great personality. She also had good grades, so why didn’t she have more friends? With all those qualities, people would typically gravitate toward her. But, since Yulia was the only commoner who entered Apatem Academy this year, she’d be guaranteed some support.
“Hold on, has Lilian been to Tarakan?”
“Of course I haven’t.”
“What? Really?”
Looking at it this way, their conversation felt just like ordinary high school girls. I mean, Lilian and Yulia were the same age as high school girls back on Earth. And while I wasn’t sure about Yulia, Lilian had no friends. Well, that was true in the sense that “the lady” had no friends.
Thinking about it, I realized I didn’t know much about Lilian at all. I had all the details about the “lady”—like her height and weight, likes and dislikes, simple stats, as well as her stride, habits, and even her breathing patterns.
When we ate together, the lady ate gracefully and savored her food slowly. Even when sitting on a mat, she maintained perfect posture, arranging her utensils as neatly as possible. She’d take three bites, pause to enjoy the flavor, and if it was good, she’d start eating faster; if it wasn’t, she’d slow down.
Through these meal times, I was able to compile a list of her favorite and least favorite foods.
But Lilian was the complete opposite. While she didn’t eat ravenously, she certainly didn’t match the lady’s elegant dining style. When sitting on a mat, she relaxed and tossed her utensils aside haphazardly, and her eating pace didn’t really change with the food’s quality.
Lilian was practically indifferent to food. Although she seemed to have a fondness for fried chicken—probably a cultural thing.
Before I knew it, I’d grown accustomed to Lilian’s habits and adjusted my schedule around hers. Normally, a lady would eat right at one o’clock, but Lilian would dive into food the moment class ended. The lady disliked talking while eating, whereas Lilian enjoyed chatting with Yulia through meals.
As I discovered these differences, I also tried to find similarities. I felt a bit ridiculous doing that.
I sighed lightly and packed up the lunchboxes of the two who had finished eating. There were still about thirty minutes left in lunch hour. Once I wiped down the mat completely, they turned quietly to look at me.
“Are you heading out?”
“Yes. I’ll be off now.”
“Okay. Oh, say hi to the princess for me.”
“…I didn’t actually say I’d go see the princess, though.”
“Oh, come on, we all know each other.”
Lilian waved me goodbye with a smile. Meanwhile, Yulia looked at me with a slightly dissatisfied expression.
“Did you want to say something?”
“Ah, Catherine. Can we meet for a moment during dinner?”
“…I’ve finished everything I needed to do today, so I can.”
“Great! So I’ll see you then. I have something important to discuss.”
“Sure.”
Nodding along, Yulia beamed and left with Lilian. I quietly watched them go before turning toward a place where the princess might be.
***
Knock, knock. As the sound of knocking echoed, Princess Chloe stretched. In front of her loomed a gigantic mountain of paperwork. Fortunately, all of it was finished, at least. My stomach grumbled as hunger set in, but Chloe absentmindedly opened the next paper.
“Come in.”
Even though she left the Imperial Palace, why was there more work here than there? Chloe had a rising curiosity but soon pushed it aside when the person entered. The girl who walked in had long, neat, ebony hair and striking crimson eyes—Catherine.
Seeing Catherine in the maid uniform she crafted out of fairy fabric brought a pleased smile to Chloe’s face.
“What brings you here?”
“Have you eaten?”
“Hmm, not yet. Oh, are you here to eat with me? You’re always welcome.”
“Unfortunately, I’ve already eaten. Instead… would you accept this?”
As Catherine set down something on the swath of papers, Chloe peeked and grinned. That shape—definitely a lunchbox. Catherine had taken to preparing lunch for Lilian every day.
“This is to thank you for visiting me yesterday when I was sick.”
“No need for that. I just went because I felt like it.”
“…Um.”
Noticing Catherine quietly staring at her, Chloe tilted her head while retaining her smile.
“Do you have something to say?”
“Um, once you finish eating, I’ll have to take the lunchbox back… So could you eat it now?”
“Sorry, but I can’t do that. I’ll take the lunchbox and visit you later, so you go ahead.”
“…Is that really okay?”
Upon receiving her question, Chloe drew a playful smile and tapped her pen lightly.
“I’m just using it as an excuse to meet you. I learned it from Count Casano.”
“…”
Catherine, usually expressionless, showed a hint of fluster, which made Chloe chuckle softly.
“In that case, I’m busy now, so drop by later. Oh, don’t worry. I’m not picky about food, and I’m confident I can enjoy whatever strange meal you bring me.”
“…Sure, then I’ll take my leave.”
Catherine, unusually flustered, received a big wave from Chloe as she responded politely and exited the room.
