CH 319

I had a lot of fun the other day, and I’m starting a new school year at school today. Today marks the beginning of my sophomore year, but there will be no class changes. Classes are assigned according to family status, and even if there are vacancies along the way, there is no filling up or moving around. If it goes down, it stays down.

“Then I’ll be heading out now,” I said.

“”””Have a nice day,”””” the House Servants of the Carruthers Residence say before I board a carriage and head for school.

Only Mikoto, Alexandra, Christa, Katarina, and Helmut are on board together with me. Since I’m just going to school, the escort is minimal, and the attendants are also minimal. I don’t ride with anyone other than someone who’s a student like me or expected to be with a student.

By the way, even after returning to the royal capital, Christa is still clinging to Helmut, and they live together in the Carruthers Residence. Karl and Marianne have returned to Manor Reingen. I don’t know if it’s just now or forever. Since Christa is Helmut’s fiancee, it wouldn’t be strange to say that they would live together from now on.

For the time being, after returning to the royal capital, we lived together at the Carruthers Residence for a few days, and then we went to school together.

“It feels like it’s been a while since we went to school, hasn’t it?” Christa asked.

“Indeed it has… Ah! Speaking of which, I witnessed Simon and Lady Valtek dining together at the crepe cafe the other day,” I said.

“Heh! Is that so?!” Christa cried.

The carriage rocks while I speak with her. Well, it doesn’t shake much, but it does shake a little because the road surface is rickety in the royal capital. If this was the Caan Knighthood, I wouldn’t be rocked like this…

Christa seems completely healed from her trauma and no longer reacts in any particular way to names like Valtek… that is, the members of the Bayen Faction. She may still be terrified of Helene, but she may be less reluctant and fearful of Emma, who now seems to be converted.

While we were talking about trivial things, we arrived at the school in no time. It’s in the aristocratic district, so it’s a distance that you can get to even if you walk. It wasn’t crowded yet because I left early as before. Almost without waiting, I entered the school immediately.

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“Alexandra, see you later,” I said.

“Yes, see you soon,” Alexandra replied.

We parted ways with Alexandra as she was in a different class, and the remaining three of us entered our classroom together. It’s a new classroom from today. This school has different buildings depending on the grade. We’re in the same class, but when we became second-year students, we moved to the second-year school building.

The first-year students have already finished the entrance ceremony. Current students also participate in the entrance ceremony, but it has nothing to do with us. If I have time to participate in the entrance ceremony, I have a lot of other things to do with that time. I know that, so I wouldn’t be chosen for that role. Normally, I would think that they would be chosen from among the student council, officers, and those with excellent grades, but…

Ludwig, Rutger, and Wilhelm would have attended again and caused a ruckus. This year will be the last time the Crown Prince and relatives of the royal family will be attending the school, so this will be the last special school year where royalty will be present at that ceremony.

If the next royal family member enters school, will it be Princess Eleonore’s time? That would be a long way off.

Well, that kind of thing has nothing to do with me, so I’ll do what I have to do. It’s not like I’m free just because I’ve arrived at the school, and I have to deal with work that doesn’t matter if I do it here during my break. I can’t do confidential work or work that I don’t want people to know, but I can at least check a few documents.

While I was talking to Mikoto, I processed the documents, and Sophie and the others were there, but they didn’t seem to care about me. And Helene still doesn’t seem to come to class. There was an entrance ceremony for first graders, but we’re going to start school from now on. I headed to the auditorium to participate in the opening ceremony with a fresh feeling for the new school year.

When I came to the auditorium, Wilhelm was there. Isn’t he busy as a king? He must have attended the entrance ceremony for first-year students. Despite that, I can’t help but think that he is quite free to come to the opening ceremony of a new school year.

“Flora… why are you in a place like this…?” Wilhelm asked as he approached me.

“Huh?” I asked, taken aback.

… All was quiet around us.

What is it? Did I get expelled from school? Is this the place I must go to? I think I was a sophomore from today…? Am I repeating a year… can’t be, because it doesn’t exist in terms of the system… am I still dropping out?

Thoughts run through my head, but I can’t get it all together. I think something is wrong and get a little panicked.

“What happened to the management of the territory? Besides, I’ve heard of the neighboring country’s suspicious movements… Is it okay to be here in a time like this?” Wilhelm asked.

“Aah… ah~…” I said.

I finally understood after listening to Wilhelm’s explanation. Rather than saying that I shouldn’t be here, is it okay for me to casually attend the opening ceremony at a time like this? That seems to be why he’s worried. Was I expelled from school? I seriously thought that.

“My parents are suppressing the threat at the Knight’s Nation,” I said. “There are no problems except for the movements of some neighboring country taking advantage of the confusion.”

“Fumu… It’s fine if you say so… This is a place for inexperienced people to learn,” Wilhelm said. “I don’t think this is a place for you to bother with, with the track record you have…”

“Huh!?”

Hey! Does that mean I don’t have to come to school? If so, why didn’t you say something sooner!? Even I never wanted to come to school! I had a lot of things to do, and I wanted to drop out.

But I had been patient because I thought that if I quit, it would damage the name of House Carruthers…

“Father! What are you saying!? Flora is here to see me! Please don’t steal time from us two!”

Uwah……. Ludwig… you did it… In front of such a large crowd… you ended up shouting something stupid. The lecture hall turns white with shock. Are you looking at me with such surprised eyes?

“… Ludwig, calm down a little and see the reality… No matter how blinding love is, don’t lose your cool…” Wilhelm said.

What the…? Wilhelm put his hand on Ludwig’s shoulders with a “pon.” I don’t know anything about this, alright!

“Ah……, Your Majesty Wilhelm, I think it’s rude to be talking so casually in a place like this…… I would like to have an appointment to meet you, but when should I meet with you?” I asked.

Normally… you can’t verbally and casually make a promise to meet Wilhelm in a place like this. It’s unmistakably disrespectful. But it is good. I’m sure Wilhelm would approve. I hate trouble, I want to quickly decide only what is necessary rather than spending extra time each time I get roped into something.

“Oh! I see,” Wilhelm said. “Then come visit me after school today.”

“Right. Thank you,” I said.

Hooray. This saved me a lot of time. It’s troublesome to go to the royal castle today to make an appointment, make an appointment at a later date, then visit in the future. I was lucky that decided here and now because we met face to face.

After a short talk, Wilhelm and Ludwig went back. It won’t be long until the opening ceremony, so if Wilhelm is here forever, the ceremony can’t start.

“Floto, you are… really insane, aren’t you?” Mikoto asked.

“What do you mean by that?” I asked.

Mikoto has no standing to call me insane, can she? Rather, isn’t Mikoto’s common sense like the world’s definition of insane?

“Haa… you’re not going to make an appointment to meet with a friend, so who would decide to meet face to face with Wilhelm in a place like this, and with that manner of speaking…” Mikoto explained. “Normally, you’d get arrested for lese majeste, wouldn’t you?”

“That may be true, but… His Majesty won’t like it if it’s too formal, and it would be better to make a decision while we’re already face-to-face, wouldn’t it?” I asked.

It’s not like I don’t understand what Mikoto is saying, but Wilhelm doesn’t like being too formal, and it’s easier to make a promise to him now than to make a promise through another person later. Nothing wrong with that.

“Well, it’s fine… that is just a part of you as well, Floto…” Mikoto said.

“Haa?” I asked

Even Mikoto is generally insane… I’m not satisfied with the fact that I’m the only one who’s been called insane, but there’s no point in arguing anymore, so I decided to keep quiet.

When the opening ceremony is over, I listen to the warnings and notifications in the classroom and disband. There are no classes from the first day. Japanese schools might have a tighter schedule, but this school is pretty lax. The curriculum is simple and the class content is small, so I don’t think it’s necessary to cram classes every day.

We were talking about going to the royal castle after school, but we can’t stop by on our way home right now. It’s because I didn’t bring anything important with me. That’s why we all go back to the Carruthers Residence once and prepare before heading to the royal castle.

Christa seems to be going home from today, and it seems that the time she was at the Carruthers Residence flirting with Helmut was only before school started. Seriously… that passionate stupid couple stuff is so embarrassing to watch. It’s not just Emma and Simon, and it’s frustrating to see so many couples here and there.

Christa seems to act like I’ve recommended that… but I didn’t care about it.

Anyway, after returning to the Carruthers Residence and preparing, I head to the royal castle with only Katharina. I was let in as soon as she told the receptionist that she had an appointment.

“I’ve been waiting for you. What do you wish to discuss today?” Wilhelm said.

“I suppose it’s a big deal because Princess Flora even went out of her way to talk with us after school,” Dietrich said.

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“Good day, Your Grace Dietrich,” I said.

Dietrich was also present, so let me say hello to him. I mean, it’s dangerous… I wonder if the two of them thought that it might be about the Principality of Moscove or the Kingdom of Polsky, so they rushed to listen in to my report.

It’s very bad if that’s the case. My business today isn’t that big of a deal. Apart from that, I haven’t heard any reports about the Principality of Moscove’s provocations since my parents went there, and no other problems have arisen. I can even say that everything is going well. It would be bad if you waited for me thinking that something had happened and I came to report it…

“I’m here today to offer you something… I think the safety inspection will be over soon…” I said.

“I don’t need to have what you bring inspected for anything, Flora,” Wilhelm said. “Bring it to me right away.”

“Right. Well then…” I said.

Hearing my words, Wilhelm gave instructions, and Dietrich stood up and called out to those servants who were waiting outside. What is going on here? What would you do if I brought in poisonous or dangerous substances…?

After a while, there was a knock on the door, and Katharina who pushed the trolley, and servers from the castle came. The servers stare dumbfounded at Katharina’s skillful preparations.

“What I brought you today is a new type of tea,” I said.

“A new tea?” Wilhelm asked.

“Hou……” Dietrich went.

Katharina warms up the tea vessel by pouring in hot water then throwing it away and then brewing black tea in it. With that alone, a nice scent was already starting to drift into the room.

“It’s a scent I’ve never smelled before,” Wilhelm said.

“Here you go,” I said.

I will show them a model of behavior after everything is ready. First, enjoy the aroma of tea without adding anything, then take a sip. After that, it’s a matter of taste. You can add sugar, milk, or even honey. While explaining some of the prepared items, I put them in front of them.

“Fumu… well, then… hmm!?”

“This is……”

The two of them first confirmed the scent and looked surprised. Then they immediately check the taste.

“It’s a tea I’ve never had before. I can’t imagine anything like it…” Wilhelm muttered.

“Pr-Princess Flora! Where can I get this tea?” Dietrich asked.

They drank it straight and immediately raised their voices. Also, I’m experimenting. Since I only brewed a small amount for tasting, I had them check several types by changing the way they took them.

“This is a new tea, black tea, newly developed in our territory,” I said.

“A new development your territory…?” Wilhelm said. “Im-Impossible! You’re saying you can grow tea?!”

“And it’s completely different from the tea we’ve had so far… Are you saying you’ve created a completely new variety of tea…?” Dietrich said.

Well, I didn’t make it, but… I just remade it from what I knew of my previous life. I didn’t invent it.

“This black tea is made by cultivating tea leaves in our territory and using our manufacturing method,” I said. “We are thinking of selling it at Caanza Trading Firm, but we are not yet in a position to sell it on a large scale… First of all, I brought this as a present to His Majesty Wilhelm.”

““…………””

Wilhelm and Dietrich looked at each other in silence. Did something go wrong?

Ah! That’s it. Anyway, the tea was connected to it, so let’s talk about the Demon Country

“This is a separate matter, but the other day I actually had the opportunity to go to the Demon Country, where I discussed the conclusion of a peace treaty with the demons,” I said. “Therefore, as the Lord of Goslant Island, which is in the sphere of influence of the Kamaal Alliance, we have signed a peace treaty with them. Hence, I propose Kingdom of Ploiss to also negotiate with the Demon Country, and conclude a peace treaty with them as well.”

““………………””

Once again, Wilhelm and Dietrich looked at each other and fell silent. After all, was it wrong to do diplomacy on my own?

“Fu… fufu…” Wilhelm laughed dryly. “Did you conclude a peace treaty with the Demon Country? I thought I’d had enough surprises from you, but now… how can I not be surprised?!”

“Princess Flora, your insanity is at its peak here!” Dietrich yelled.

“Hey!” I yelled, surprised by their sudden shouting.