Chapter 514

Onward To The Equestrian Kingdom!

With Abel’s arrival and Bel’s timely return with Sion and Keithwood in tow, Mia and all her friends gathered for breakfast together in the inn’s cafeteria. Interestingly, Bel’s return was so well-timed that she showed up exactly when the freshly baked bread emerged from the oven. Even Mia, who had anticipated the girl’s return for breakfast, couldn’t help but be impressed by her granddaughter’s ability to follow her nose.Ne/w novel chapters are published on no/vel(/bin(.)co/m

Not that Mia’s own fondness for eating paled in comparison, mind you. Whether it was morning, noon, or night, she indulged whenever and wherever she pleased. Like grandmother, like granddaughter.

Furthermore, Rafina seemed to be aware of this fact, as evidenced by the generous portions brought to the table for breakfast. One plate held a substantial heap of freshly baked bread, accompanied by a large bottle of jam.

The sight pleased Mia, prompting her to reach for the bottle when Rafina interjected, “The jam is very good, of course, but the butter is no slouch either.”

Rafina’s comment made her reconsider. Though she initially intended to have some bread with jam—note the sequence of wording—perhaps...

“Oh? Is that so...?” she murmured.

After some thought, she spared a final longing glance at the jam before complying with Rafina’s suggestion and spreading the butter over the bread instead. The butter immediately began to melt on the hot bread, emitting a tantalizing, sweet aroma.

“Oooh... This is...”

Her appetite fully whetted, she took a big bite. With a satisfying crunch, a mouthful gave way.

“Mmm!”

The rich fragrance of milk wafted through her nose as creamy goodness filled her mouth. Every successive bite produced another crunch of bread, each followed by a delicious burst of butter. She let out a sigh of pleasure.

“This... is a marvel of gastronomy.” She devoured the rest of the bread and turned toward the innkeeper. “Please accept my compliments, master. The bread was baked to perfection, of course, but it’s this butter that truly stands out. I’ve never had butter this good...”

“I am overjoyed to hear that it was to your taste. This butter was, in fact, made with sheep milk.”

“My... Sheep, you say?”

“Yes, and it is procured from the Equestrian Kingdom. Their sheep produce extremely fine milk that tastes richer than milk from cows.”

“Really? I had no idea...” Mia nodded with fascination as she reached for another slice of bread and spread a thick layer of butter over one side. Then, she turned to Abel. “So, Abel, what brings you here so early in the morning?”

“Right, about that. Since we’re all here, I figured that we might as well head back together, though I won’t be able to join you for the whole trip.”

“Oh? What do you mean? Aren’t you heading back to Saint-Noel?”

“No, I’ve got some business to attend to. I’m thinking of paying Malong a visit.”

“My, Malong... So you’re going to the Equestrian Kingdom?” Mia frowned. Crunch. Crunch. “Speaking of which, the Kingdom of Remno has some ties with the Equestrian Kingdom, right?”

“Miss Tiona, you see, wasn’t feeling too well. She... was exposed to some chilly air, and I suspect she might have caught a cold.”

“My, is that...? Hm? But wait... Then why do you owe me an apology?” Mia asked with unwitting pointedness. “I was going to ask her to join us for our girls’ party last night, so I went looking for her, but she was nowhere to be found. Are you telling me she was at your place?”

“Hm? Oh, uh, well... I suppose so. Father wished to thank her in person, so he asked her to stay,” Sion answered with an odd sense of nervousness.

“Huuuuh.” Mia’s gaze lingered curiously on Sion for a second. “I see. So that’s why.”

“Anyway, the point is that she’s a little sick, so we figured we’d have her stay a little longer. It’ll give her time to recover, and we can treat her to some more of our amenities as both an apology and thanks. I don’t want to keep the rest of you, though, so I’m planning to arrange for a ride back to Saint-Noel for everyone at Sunkland’s expense.”

“Hm...”

If Tiona wasn’t feeling well, it would be unreasonable to force her to come along to the Equestrian Kingdom. At the same time, Abel had matters to discuss with Malong, so he couldn’t afford to linger in Sunkland. As Mia weighed her options, her wandering gaze stopped on Bel, who was munching on bread like she didn’t have a care in the world. Despite having left Ludwig in charge of Bel’s education, she didn’t seem to have done much studying since coming to Sunkland.

I can already see her struggling on her future exams. I’d better get her out of Sunkland as soon as possible.

Her mind made up, Mia nodded. “Very well. In that case, I’ll leave my dear friends in your hands. Do make sure they are taken care of.”

“Of course. They will be afforded every luxury,” Sion answered with a nod.

Just as they thought they had concluded the discussion, Rafina interjected with her own comment. “If you’re planning to make a stop at the Equestrian Kingdom, then I’ll join you.”

“Miss Rafina, you will?”

“Now that I’ve discussed the Sunkland issue with His Majesty, I need to inform the Equestrian Kingdom of our conclusions. There’s a lot of information I need to communicate, including the situation with the potential Serpent, so I’d prefer to speak to them in person.”

“I see. It looks like we’ll be showing up in a big group... Oh, in that case, why don’t we get some horse riding practice on the way there?” Mia suggested in a flash of inspiration.

“Huh? B-But that’s...” Rafina stammered, caught off guard by the sudden idea.

Mia couldn’t resist a private grin at the sight.

Oh, Miss Rafina. I bet she’s scared of getting on a horse. Oho ho, I never knew she could be such a child. How adorable.

Feeling a sense of duty as the veteran equestrian, she put a fist to her chest, determined to allay the fears of her new apprentice.

“Oho ho, don’t worry. I’ll show you the ropes. As long as you follow my instructions, you’ll be riding in no time.”

“Well, if you so strongly insist... I’m looking forward to learning from you then,” said Rafina, who played with her fingers as a faint sheen of pink engulfed her cheeks.

Why was Sion oddly nervous in mentioning that Tiona stayed at the castle overnight...

Rafina to Mia, is like Citrina to Bel.