My Stepmom is Too Pretty, and It’s Troubling Me – Chapter 102

“It’s snowing.”

“That’s because Central is cold in winter.”

“Definitely feels different from the South.”

The scenery outside the carriage was certainly unlike anything in the South.

Though it wasn’t even February yet, the temperature was noticeably lower compared to the warm South.

Unlike the South, the view outside looked distinctly like winter.

When I spent winter in the Southern cities, it felt more like autumn than winter, but here it was clearly winter.

“I want to go outside.”

“No, you can’t.”

“I know. How can I get out of a moving carriage in the first place?”

The carriage was currently speeding toward Central, the Academy—not just my carriage with Rize, but many others carrying the young nobles of various families.

In a situation where diverse carriages were lined up on the road, it honestly wasn’t anything special.

There were several carriages racing along, but we still had a way to go until we reached the Academy.

“I hope we get there quickly.”

“Today, we will be traveling for another three hours or so, then stopping at an inn.”

“Ugh… Still so far to go?”

“Yes.”

“…Can’t we just travel all night?”

“Won’t the horses get tired?”

“Well… that’s true.”

Back when I traveled with Rosalyn and others to the villa, it was so convenient.

The horses were much better back then, and the carriage was good too, but now it wasn’t like that at all.

Anyway, because of that, we needed an extra day to arrive at the Academy… it was a bit disappointing, but it couldn’t be helped.

“This is frustrating.”

“How about some candy?”

“Just open one and give it to me.”

“Yes, Young Lady.”

Anyway, since there was nothing else I could do, I received Rize’s candy.

So sweet and delightful.

When you’re feeling down, eating something sweet is definitely the best.

And since I wasn’t even opening it myself but Rize was doing it for me, it tasted even better.

“Rize.”

“Yes, Young Lady.”

“Can you scoot over a little more?”

“…Huh?”

“Just move over a bit.”

I directed Rize, who was sitting normally.

Since I had nothing to do and it was dull just sitting still, I said that to Rize.

She might feel a bit uncomfortable, but I wasn’t the type to worry too much about that.

“Young Lady, why out of the blue…”

“I want to lie down here.”

“…Huh?”

“Just sitting still is uncomfortable. Plus, resting my head on the window is too, so I’m going to lie on your thigh.”

“…I’m not a pillow, you know.”

“Oh, come on. It’ll be fine. I’m not heavy, right?”

“Well, that’s true…”

So it should be fine, right?

After all, she would just be sitting there, and me lying on her thigh shouldn’t be a big deal.

“Is that alright?”

“…Do as you like.”

Rize really is accommodating with my requests.

Of course, it was a bit forceful, but if she really hated it, she would’ve said so.

Anyway, I comfortably laid my head on Rize’s thigh.

It was definitely comfortable. Yes, Rize’s thigh felt amazing. It wasn’t that Rize had put on a lot of weight, but there was that unique softness to it.

Honestly, I could have even laid my face down there, not just my head.

Of course, that would be a bit perverted, so I wouldn’t actually do it, but it was that good.

“Ah… I’m so tired…”

“Is that so…?”

“Yeah, tired.”

Lying on Rize’s thigh was definitely way more comfortable than sitting in the carriage seat.

“Are you alright? It must be worse than staying at the mansion.”

“I can manage.”

“Got it.”

“…And personally, the food at the inn was really bad.”

“I agree. It was truly awful.”

“It was just so different from what we get at the mansion for the servants.”

For Rize to say that, it must have been really bad.

In fact, I also thought the food was pretty disappointing.

Originally, I had eaten breakfast and lunch, but we ended up ordering food from the inn for a very late dinner, and I had no idea it would be that bad.

They served fried potatoes, and I never expected them to taste so terrible…

“…The Academy must be better than that.”

“I hope so.”

“Right.”

I had no clue how the Academy dormitory, restaurant, or shops were set up or what they would feel like, but I was really hoping the quality would be decent.

“But it’s supported by the Empire, so it should be good, right?”

“It seems like it should be…”

“Thinking about the inn, it does make it a bit uncertain.”

Neither of us had any idea that the inn prepared by the Academy would be like that.

It was a concern.

But the Academy itself was certainly supported by the Empire, so it should be fine, right?

Plus, being in Central must mean the food would be much better than in the South.

“You have quite the refined palate as well.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t mean it like that; I was just saying it.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yeah. You’ve always had that tendency when eating, Rize, remember?”

Having spent time with Rize, I couldn’t help but notice.

Since childhood, Rize had more delicious food compared to the other maids and servants, and I had seen her reactions plenty of times.

“Remember when we went to that fancy pasta place together and how it was so different from that shabby one near our house?”

“Ah…”

“Did you not realize you express it more than you think?”

“…Is that so?”

“Yup.”

Rize has always been somewhat expressive about it. Of course, she was somewhat aware of it, but… she tended to show it more than usual when it came to food.

Her lips would lift, and her eyes would look sad when she ate something awful.

“Right now, your face is a bit red because you’re embarrassed, isn’t it?”

“Ugh…”

I raised my hand and gently caressed Rize’s cheek.

Definitely more noticeable than usual, her slightly flushed cheeks were quite obvious.

“How have you been so shy all this time when you’ve been like this from the start?”

“…I’m sorry.”

“You’re really cute, you know.”

“…You’re taking it too far with the jokes.”

“I’m being serious! Do you think I’m lying?”

“……..”

I always complimented Rize, but she seemed quite embarrassed whenever I did.

Personally, I felt like Rize lacked self-awareness regarding her own looks.

I always thought she should have a bit more pride in her appearance… but she really seemed to lack confidence.

“Young Lady, um… your hand…”

“Should I let go?”

“…Yes.”

“Were you uncomfortable?”

“Not exactly, but a bit embarrassed…”

“Okay, okay, I got it.”

I complied with Rize’s request. While it was amusing to see her reactions, I felt like if I continued, she might dislike it, and it was easy enough to read her responses without touching her cheeks.

Plus, keeping my arm raised and caressing her cheek was slightly tiring.

Guess I really need to exercise more?

*

“Yawn… Ah… uh… uhh…….”

I stretched and stepped outside the carriage.

As soon as I opened the door and stepped out, the refreshing air greeted me along with dazzling buildings.

This really was a place worthy of the name Solkemia Empire.

“Phew… Nice.”

I had spent days in a dreadful inn, traveled for two straight days in a carriage, and finally arrived.

Honestly… I thought the Academy’s exterior looked nice, but right now, I was in the mood to just relax.

“Rize.”

“Yes, Young Lady.”

“Give me some candy.”

“Yes.”

There were many young nobles still in the carriage and some getting out.

We were among the first to disembark.

Not far away, I saw a well-dressed adult man, but it seemed he wasn’t planning to do anything immediately.

“Hmm…”

As I rolled the candy Rize gave me in my mouth, I quietly surveyed the area.

The spot the carriage had stopped was just a reasonably spacious open space.

To be accurate, it was inside the Academy; it was actually part of the campus, but somewhat distanced from the main Academy building.

The actual Academy building was surely a bit further away… hmm.

Surrounding the open space were various shops and bookstores.

“…Rize.”

“Yes, Young Lady.”

“Do we have to carry our luggage all the way over there?”

“…….”

“Why is the Academy building so far away? This is clearly the outskirts, even though it’s technically still inside the Academy…”

“I’m not sure.”

“The Academy dormitory should be nearer to the main Academy building over there.”

You could clearly see that the main Academy building and the dormitory were located with some distance between them.

What could it mean?

“Um… shouldn’t they just take care of bringing the luggage to the dormitory on their own?”

“…I think they will.”

As I stood there pondering, waiting a bit longer, more young nobles got out of their carriages, and the person from the Academy who had been standing at a distance started heading toward us.

I had some worries about moving our luggage, but thankfully. Really thankfully.

We didn’t have to move our luggage ourselves.

As I expected, someone from the Academy told us they would take care of moving the luggage from the carriage to our individual dormitory rooms.

“…Hmph.”

With that, we truly began heading toward where the Academy buildings were located.

While we headed in that direction, the staff provided explanations about various shops and buildings on the Academy campus, as well as the Academy itself, but… there was nothing particularly special.

Honestly, we could figure most of it out without their explanation, right?

Crossing the bridge into the campus led to student dormitories and various facilities, and before that, there were several stores and different buildings.

The structure was straightforward enough that we didn’t need any additional explanations.

“…Hmm.”

After hearing all the explanations, we arrived at the dormitory. Upon arrival, I received a single room, just like William mentioned before.

And it wasn’t just any single room; it was a C-rank single room.

I didn’t understand why there were different ranks for single rooms in the dormitory, but surprisingly, there were.

“…Rize.”

“Yes, Young Lady…”

“…What is this?”

The dormitory room was confusing in many ways.

I had heard that most nobles were assigned single rooms, but what I received seemed more like a studio than a single room.

“First off… I think I need to sort this out before writing a letter to mother.”

…I had planned to write a letter right as I arrived and send it to Rosalyn, but it was difficult given the current situation.

Was it really appropriate for two people to live in such a small room?

I didn’t think so. And since they said it was C-rank, there were likely B, A, S, SS, SSS, and even SSSSSS ranks!

“Money should fix this. It’s simple.”

It was really straightforward, convenient, and the best solution, right?