C144: Preparations for the Festival (3)
“Wait, Rene! If you suddenly accept it like that……!”
“Wow, you’re a reliable person junior Rene! Thanks! I’ll let you know the details later!”
Henry thanked Rene before Erendir nagged him again and left as if he was running away. Erendir shouted to his back, but Henry had already disappeared from sight.
She bit her lips and swung her head toward Rene. Her long blonde hair moved with it.
“Rene! Why did you take that suspicious person’s suggestion carelessly?”
“What? But……A part-time job with a good income. I have no choice but to receive it.”
“Why? Didn’t you get a scholarship?”
Erendir did not understand Rene’s decision.
“Why? Of course it’s because I’m in need of money. Even if I get a full scholarship, it doesn’t support the cost of teaching materials and purchasing magic materials, so I have no choice but to earn that money through a part-time job.”
So, while reducing the cost of food, for a while, she only ate three meals with baked potatoes.
“Really?”
Erendir was surprised as if she had never heard such a thing before while Freuden, who was watching from the side, sighed and shook his head.
“You didn’t know about such small things because the Third Princess is rich enough, but the common people who lack money have no choice but to make money that way.”
Erendir was even more shocked to hear this from Freuden, not anyone else.
“I’m sorry, Rene. I spoke without knowing anything.”
“I know it’s because you’re worried about me so I don’t really care.”
Erendir blamed her lack of knowledge, but in fact it was natural that she didn’t know. Theon full tuition support system seems to work well on the outside, but there were many shortcomings in the details.
Freuden added an explanation.
“Since the department in charge of finances is full of nobles, the common people do not enjoy all the proper benefits.”
The tuition support system, which had been present just in name before, was able to come this far thanks to the strong push by Elisa Willow after she became president. However, there were a lot of things that had to be fixed.
“I can’t believe that happened.”
“I’m glad you know now, Third princess.”
“Freuden, how do you know this in detail, then? Wasn’t it that you weren’t interested in the commoners at all?”
The externally known image of Freuden Ulburg is the leader of the aristocratic students’ faction. For the commoner students, he was the head of aristocrats who looked down on them and bullied them.
Who would’ve thought that he had an unexpected hobby such as cultivating flower beds, but even so, his actions were bound to seem strange for the Third princess.
At least so far, Erendir thought so.
“You had an unexpected aspect of caring about the common people.”
“Think as you please. I just said what I knew.”
Freuden turned his back as if he didn’t want to talk any more.
“Oh, Mr. Freuden, are you leaving?”
“I just stopped while passing by. I have an appointment, so I have to go now.”
“If that’s the case, why are you here?”
Freuden lightly responded to Erendir, who was grumbling.
“I’m a busy person because I’m very popular unlike others.”
“What?! So who’s the proud Prince Ulburg going to see now?”
“An annoyance.”
Freuden said, lightly loosening the collar of his tight school uniform with one hand.
“I got a request for marriage.”
After saying so he left his seat.
“Marriage? Who could it be?”
“What? Are you interested?”
“No way.”
Rene shook her head as if it was nonsense.
“I’m just amazed that such things really happen among the nobles.”
As a commoner, it was astonishing that something she had only seen in her novels actually happened.
* * *
“You’re here.”
“Did you wait?”
Henry, who was waiting for Freuden outside the garden, found him coming out and asked nicely.
“Where are you meeting?”
“The third floor of the cafeteria. I made an appointment in a hurry, but I succeeded in renting a whole floor.”
“You did something unnecessary.”
“What. The fewer the eyes, the better, right?”
Henry shrugged his shoulders and sent a sly gaze to Freuden.
“So, what’s your relationship with the kid named Rene?”
“There’s nothing going on.”
Without stopping, Freuden replied casually. Of course, Henry, who had known Freuden for a long time, did not believe him.
“You don’t expect me to believe that, right? You were indifferent to the nobles showing interest and suddenly started taking care of a commoner girl?”
“You talk a lot today.”
“I have a lot of questions.”
It was a frivolous remark and action that an Ulburg vassal shouldn’t do, but Freuden did not bother to point that out. Their relationship has been like this for a long time.
“I’m just interested.”
“Oh, what’s your interest? Appearance, right?”
“Let’s stop chatting. We’ve arrived.”
At the entrance of the cafeteria not far away, a woman stood still. She has a name tag that symbolizes the second graders and lemon-colored bobbed hair. It was Cheryl Wagner, the darling of the Wagner family, who had long served the Lumos family.
Freuden, who recognized her, had a rare wrinkle on his forehead.
“Tsk. Lumos again?”
“I couldn’t help it. The instructions came out before I realized the situation. It seems that the family is trying to achieve this condition as quickly as possible.”
“It must be the will of the family head and the old man. To strengthen the family alliance, they don’t care what the parties’ opinions are.”
“Well, this hasn’t happened once or twice, has it?”
“For something like that, this time it’s pretty blatant.”
“I think it’s because the festival has been moved forward.”
“Festival?”
Henry continued his explanation.
“It seems that the heads of both families are going to visit Theon during the festival.”
“So what?”
“That’s not what I’m saying. You’ve been putting off all the wedding talks before, haven’t you?”
“I didn’t put them all off.”
“You turned down more than half so the old people in the family are in a hurry since the lord will visit Theon during the festival and want to show a good performance.”
“Hmm. That’s silly. A wolf can never be with an eagle. What did they think would change if they came to Theon?”
“It’s a problem because you don’t think so.”
Just in time, Cheryl also saw them and waved. Henry also whispered to Freuden, smiling and waving his hands.
“Anyway. Just do whatever you want.”
“You acted as if you were going to make this marriage happen, but you changed your mind?”
“What do you mean change?”
Henry smirked and tapped Freuden on the shoulder instead of his usual pretentious smile.
“I’ve been saying this for a long time, I’m always on your side. That’s what I’m going to do as a servant.”
“……Yes, I see.”
“Oh, come on, both of you.”
Henry waited at the entrance with Cheryl and Freuden went up to the third floor of the restaurant alone.
Inside the restaurant where the soft light shines from the window he saw a woman sitting high at the table in the center so Freuden naturally approached and sat opposite her.
Freuden Ulburg didn’t want to come here, but he could tell by her face that his opponent was the same. Flora Lumos kept staring out of the window without giving him a single glance even though he sat down.
As if they were used to this kind of thing, the behavior of the two was natural.
The chef approached the two silent people.
“Here’s the food.”
He wanted to run away quickly in this breathtaking atmosphere, so he quickly withdrew after he left the food.
When the dish came out, the two people who were still moved at the same time and naturally grabbed a fork and knife and cut the meat.
It was Freuden who opened his mouth first.
“You don’t usually show your face. What’s going on?”
Flora Lumos, who cut a piece of cut meat with a knife, wiped her lips with a napkin.
“I was tricked into coming.”
“I see.”
Then again, the meal continued in silence. Normally, he wouldn’t have said anything until I finished eating here, but today was different.
“Recently.”
Flora’s knife stopped cutting the meat. Suddenly, a questionable gaze flew toward Freuden, who opened his mouth.
“I hear the name Rudger Chelici a lot.”
“……So?”
“Do you take his classes, too?”
“I don’t know why you’re wondering about something like that.”
“I was just curious. I’ve heard the teacher’s name so often lately.”
Freuden stared intently at the plated vegetables and stabbed them with his fork.
It’s been a long time since I gave up expecting a normal reaction from Freuden anyway, so Flora opened her mouth with a half-gave-up look.
“It’s a manifestation class, a common subject for first and second graders.”
“What do you think?”
“What do you mean?”
“The teacher. Did he say something special?”
Special?
First of all, at least for Flora, Rudger Chelici is a very capable man. The same goes for everyone else.
“I don’t know.”
“Well.”
“What’s going on?”
“It’s not your usual reaction. Weren’t other people good objects to make fun of whether they were teachers or not?”
She tried to pretend she wasn’t interested, but Freuden, who was sharp, immediately noticed her strangeness.
“You seem to be interested in something, right? The wolf of Ulburg I know was never a person that took interest in others.”
Freuden responded calmly, and Flora, who glared at him. From the perspective of a third party, they were a pair of a handsome man and a beautiful woman who fit well with each other, but under their appearance they had never understood each other.
“I can see that Mr. Rudger is not ordinary just by your reaction.”
“Oh, is that so? So what are you going to do now?”
“What do you want me to do?”
“With what excuse are you going to break up the marriage this time? Isn’t that why you’re here anyway?”
Flora talked as if she was used to it by now and Freuden put his fork and knife on the table.
“Don’t worry. As always, it is my job to cancel this wedding.”
“What’s the reason? Wasn’t it you who said that if you cancel the marriage without any reason, there would be a problem?”
The weather was gloomy last time. He didn’t like the place before. And before that, he was in a low mood.
Freuden broke the marriage with Flora several times with all kinds of excuses and avoided it.
“The reason.”
Freuden pretended to be a little troubled, then looked at the dish he had left half-eaten and said:
“The food doesn’t taste good.”
Then he got up from his seat.
“That’s what I’ll say.”
“Hmm. Suit yourself.”
He’s an unlucky man. Flora’s assessment of Freuden has been consistent in the past and now.
Normally, Freuden would have left here first, and Flora would have stayed. It was to remind people that it was Freuden who unilaterally broke the marriage. However, unlike usual, has she also experienced a strange change of heart?
“Hey.”
Flora called him as he left.
Freuden stopped and turned his head half way, asking what was going on. His gaze contained the meaning of ‘Why are you calling me?’
Maybe she shouldn’t have talked to him. Although she regretted her unknowingly behavior, Flora decided to go on shamelessly since it happened.
“I want to ask you a question.”
“You? Well, let’s hear it.”
It’s not a big question or something to do with the family anyway.
“Do you know where I can get dried mandragora?”
Freuden’s face frowned at the question as if it was difficult to understand.
* * *
Preparations for the festival were in full swing. Unseen barracks came up everywhere, and Magic Golems eagerly carried heavy loads. The students who were completely free after the second test were also working hard.
The <Magic Festival>, one of Theon main agendas and there were only a few days before it began.
I was lost in thought as I watched the scene below the teacher’s office window.
‘I wondered if the Black Dawn Society would show some suspicious movement during the festival preparation, but they haven’t.’
I asked Sedina, but she also replied that there was nothing much going on yet. Considering that there are quite a few orders under Esmeralda, it wouldn’t have been strange to have already been ordered to move by now.
‘What the hell is Esmeralda going to do?’
It’s too late now to suddenly plan something. So she’s not going to do anything?
‘Or will you act alone without telling your subordinates?’
Isn’t that too reckless?
At that moment, a voice came from the lab next door.
‘The crystal ball. Is it Hans?’
I’m glad I left another crystal ball in the lab just in case.
Entering the lab, I operated the crystal ball by using sound blocking magic around it.
“Hans, what’s going on? Did you earn any money?”
[Money? Of course I have.]
Hans’ voice from beyond the crystal ball seemed excited as if he had found out a pretty surprising fact.
[What you asked me to find out. I finally found it]