## Chapter 106: The Girls’ Little Thoughts
“Ah, waffles!” Sarah unwrapped one from the brown paper without hesitation, took a bite, and exclaimed, “…So sweet! And still warm! Where did you get this?”
Seeing her enjoy it so much, I couldn’t help but squint and chuckle.
“From the street on the left side of the academy.” I then turned to the other two, handing over the brown paper, “You both should try it; it’s really good.”
“Thanks…” The girl named Daisy shyly pinched a piece of waffle, covered her mouth with her left hand, and took dainty little bites.
“Sophia…”
“Thank you, but I’ll pass. It’s too late for me to eat something so sweet; I’m afraid of gaining weight.” Sophia replied.
Afraid of gaining weight… that’s certainly a dilemma.
Hearing Sophia’s words, I unconsciously placed a hand on my flat stomach and felt the firm surface beneath my palm. Even through my skirt, I could feel the delicate smoothness of my skin, which made me breathe a sigh of relief—thank goodness I don’t seem to gain weight!
Otherwise, that would be a real struggle.
“Occasionally indulging is fine.”
I smiled at Sophia, but her stance was rock solid.
“No way, discipline is the secret to a woman’s beauty, you know~”
Just then, I noticed Sarah, who had been munching quickly, slowing down her chewing.
Wiping crumbs off the corners of her mouth, she glanced at the small half of the waffle left in her hand, looked over at Sophia’s slender waist, then pinched her own little belly… Her face instantly fell, and when she looked back at that half piece of waffle, it became a daunting challenge to eat.
After debating for a moment, Sarah turned to Daisy, who was sitting next to her, savoring her food slowly, her curiosity piqued.
“Daisy, you… you don’t care about gaining weight?”
“Hmm…” Daisy lifted her head with a subtle smile, “It’s fine. Peilo specially got these for us, and besides, I’m the type of person who just can’t gain weight.”
“…How nice.” Sarah sighed, then as if venting her frustrations, she stuffed the remaining half of her waffle into her mouth in two or three big bites, mumbling through a mouthful, “Just one little bite. No joy left.”
“Swallow before talking!” Sophia said crossly as she walked toward the bed. Gently pressing down on the wooden bed frame and tapping it, she frowned in dissatisfaction: “…The quality is terrible; it doesn’t compare to my Marcelles wood bed… Honestly, this is the Royal Academy; can’t they use a bit more expensive wood? I feel like I’m going to have insomnia tonight.”
She then turned her gaze to the bed I had already made and began stroking the soft duvet with her hand.
“So many layers… You’re clever. Wow, this feels… goose down… You bought it at the silk shop in Merseville, didn’t you?”
“Uh-huh…”
I fixed my gaze on the last piece of waffle in the brown paper—seems like no one else is going to eat it?
Should I ask if anyone else wants it… but it smells so good… never mind, I’ll just eat it.
Just then, I caught sight of Sarah swallowing her morsel, and… she suddenly frowned and looked my way!
I hurriedly took a bite of my waffle with an “ah-woo.”
“That place must be expensive… Peilo, does that mean your family is wealthy?” Sarah asked.
Huh? What’s she asking? I’ve already taken a bite of the waffle!
“Please, Miss Sarah, what kind of silly question is that? Her last name is Winter Moon! Didn’t you hear? …Daisy, I’ll sleep below Peilo; you and Sarah can take the other side, okay?” Sophia chimed in.
Daisy was busy wiping her mouth with a handkerchief, and upon hearing Sophia’s question, she quickly replied, “Yeah, that’s fine.”
“Winter Moon… I know that’s an imperial noble, but I’m not too sure about the details.”
Sophia paused her movements, and when she looked at Sarah again, her expression was one of astonishment.
“How… how did you grow up not knowing this? What have you been doing all these years?”
“Practicing swordsmanship!” Sarah retorted, raising her fist defiantly and baring her teeth at Sophia. “I’m going to be a knight one day; my dad is a super impressive knight!”
“How impressive? Like the Pope Knight?”
“…That’s impossible… But he’s really impressive! I’m good at swordsmanship too!”
“Good enough that even the Winter Moon hasn’t heard of you?”
“I have heard of them! I said I know they’re nobility…”
“Honestly, people as simple as you are quite rare.”
“…Are you looking down on my swordsmanship?”
“What does that have to do with swordsmanship?”
“Then what do you mean?!”
Sophia shook her head helplessly and stopped engaging further, bending down to make her bed. Sarah then redirected her gaze to me.
“Peilo, is your family really amazing? Like, big nobles?”
“Um… how to put it…”
This question put me in a bit of a bind.
Saying something like “I’m royalty” or “My father is Duke Skarlick” feels a bit too much, like I’d be making the same headlines as those who went viral for the wrong reasons. But then again, if I said “Actually, we’re not impressive at all,” that would come off as quite hypocritical… Just as I was caught in this mental tug-of-war, Daisy finally spoke up after finishing wiping her mouth.
“Sarah, Winter Moon is the imperial royal family.”
Sarah nodded, slowly processing it.
“Oh, the royal family.”
After a moment, it seemed like she finally understood, her pretty eyes widening in surprise as she stared at me, dumbfounded: “Wait, what? Royal family!?”
She suddenly looked flustered, her hands gesturing in front of her chest as if she were a toddler trying to figure out how to walk: “Royal family means… Peilo, are you…are you a princess? Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I’m sharing a dorm with a princess of the empire…”
“Not exactly.” Before I could deny it, Sophia calmly interjected, “I’ve met the two princesses of the empire; they’re much older than her… They must be your sisters, right?”
The last part was directed at me, but I had no idea who the princesses Sophia mentioned were… Was one of them Edward’s sister? No, it should be the other way around… I had no clue.
That didn’t concern me at all.
“I only have two older brothers.”
The plain revelation left Sophia at a loss for words.
“No way? You’re Winter Moon, and you don’t know about the two princesses?”
“Nope.”
Finishing the last bite of the waffle, I tossed the brown paper into the corner trash bin and tilted my head, questioning Sophia: “Why should I know about them?”
Sophia rubbed her forehead.
“Well, they should be your sisters. But then again, the collateral relatives of Winter Moon are far too many; it’s not surprising you haven’t met them… I’ve heard there seem to be some problems with the imperial family now; is everything alright with yours?”
