Volume 3 - CH 5

After school that day, I made my way to the Student Council meeting room with Lady Sophia. When my Lady entered the room the same way she always did, she let out a breathless ‘Whoa!’ But, I had confirmed that there was no hint of anything odd inside the room, and most importantly, Lady Sophia’s reaction—if anything—was that of delight, so I didn’t feel any sense of urgency. Therefore, I checked the room in a calm manner before unconsciously turning my head away.

On top of the main desk in the Student Council’s office, dolls made by the Dollmaker of Frau were– 

No, I shall state it clearly. The figurines of Fol and I from when we performed in the play,  ‘Espressivo of Light and Darkness’ were on display there. 

Apparently, Fol had acquired them after finding enjoyment in them.

A figurine of me, substituting the role of the prince, and another figurine of Fol, who had been playing the part of the princess from the Festival’s second day onwards. These two figurines were arranged as if they were in the middle of performing together on stage.

“It’s you, Cyril, it’s you! … Why are your eyes locked with Fol’s?”

“My Lady, that’s a doll, not me.”

I wished she would stop questioning me like this while looking like she was about to fall into darkness. While I was being careful so that my Lady wouldn’t do exactly that, I wouldn’t go as far as to take responsibility for the actions of a figurine.

“Hehe, I knew you’d be interested, Sophia.”

“They seem to be quite elaborate dolls, Fol. What are they?” My Lady asked Fol, who was leisurely sitting on the opposite side of the office desk. Or to be more precise, she was smirking.

“The Dollmaker of Frau made them. Truth be told, she wanted to make figurines of the entire cast of ‘Espressivo of Light and Darkness’ but since she can’t get the permission to create the dolls of nobles, she’s unable to.”

“I see. So, in other words, she would like my permission.”

Perhaps because she hit the nail on the head, Lady Sophia was smiling rather meaningfully.

“As she is only a commoner dollmaker, she cannot really compensate you much…But she said that she would be able to at least gift you all the figurines from the ‘Espressivo of Light and Darkness’ series as a thank you.”

That was also quite bold. Something like a mass-produced article didn’t really exist in this world. Since each of the figurines would be handmade, making even just one would take up a considerable amount of time. And yet, she said that she would gift her the whole series. How great a price did she anticipate Lady Sophia’s figurine to have…?

…Well, I had an inkling on which people were likely to buy it, even for its weight in gold. The issue was how Lady Sophia thought of herself as a figurine being sold, but–

“Yes… that’s right. Under normal circumstances, I don’t think that I should be giving my permission for something like this but as it will also serve as a way to remember the play so I shall give her my permission, just this once.”

It was a relatively predictable answer. Fol was lying about her social status, but she was actually a member of  the Royal family. While she did hear out Lady Sophia’s wishes, since the Royal family had already given permission to produce the figurines, it wouldn’t be advisable for Lady Sophia to refuse at this point. Her response was likely the result of my Lady taking this into consideration. Even if I was wrong about this, I was sure that she wouldn’t have just been lured in by the figurines… probably.

That being said, as I was pondering these things, Fol fetched a contract. Since she was thoroughly prepared, everything was in order and the only thing missing was Lady Sophia’s signature. After I scanned the contract and confirmed that there weren’t any issues with it, Lady Sophia signed it with ease.

Incidentally, in addition to Lady Sophia’s contract, Fol also had Alicia’s and Prince Alforth’s contracts with her. It seemed that Lady Sophia’s was the last one.

“Seeing that there are already figurines of Cyril and Fol, does that mean that they had given their permission beforehand?”

After signing, Lady Sophia slightly tilted her head to the side.

“No, it seems that she created the figurines of commoners without permission,” I suggested in reply to her murmur. 

“Ah, so it’s like that.” Lady Sophia immediately expressed her understanding.

While Fol was believed to be a commoner that had the backing of a noble family, her true identity was unmistakably that of a Royal. If it was discovered that the Dollmaker had created her figurine without permission, she wouldn’t escape getting reproached. It seemed that Fol was aware of this and it was the exact reason why they proceeded to get permissions.

“Yes, I decided to give them my permission retroactively. By the way, Cyril, you should also decide which figurine you want in compensation.”

When she told me, I suddenly remembered…. 

Come to think of it, I was also told that I could choose as many figurines as I wanted as a token of gratitude. I had thought that it wasn’t necessary but… I just thought of a perfect way to put them to use. Later, I would order a figurine of my Lady…as well as Fol and Alicia.

A short while after, the Student Council members met up. From day one, the Student Council served as a faction for the Royal family. Therefore, now that the School Festival was over, even if the current Student Council met up, there really wasn’t anything for them to do.

However, it was still necessary for Fol to learn the technique of releasing her own magical power, as a measure against her Magical Overcharge Illness. Thus, we decided that the Student Council members would gather once every three days and use the meetings as a front. 

So, it could be said that mingling with everyone as a member of the Student Council was inevitable. While that could be said, I would always end up recalling Prince Lancelot’s warning.

The Princess and a butler of another household. Normally, it was impossible for two such people to interact with each other as an upperclassman and an underclassman. If this sort of relationship were to continue, it was likely that I would truly make Prince Lancelot my enemy.

Being cautious in this way probably showed in my behavior. Right before the end of the day’s meeting, Fol ended up ordering me to stay behind claiming that she had something to talk to me about.

“…Well then, what did you want to discuss with me?”

Besides Fol and I, the other Student Council members had already left. Of course, since Fol’s servant stayed behind as well, it wasn’t like it was just the two of us, but, in a sense, it could also be said that it was just the two of us. Lady Sophia didn’t seem to be bothered by it but Prince Lancelot would probably see it as such.

As I was thinking along those lines, this was a situation that I really wanted to avoid for a while.

“Why are you acting so guarded?”  Fol asked me, puzzled.

Apparently, she discovered that I was avoiding her.

“Ah no, I’m not particularly cautious of anything…”

“Do you think that I would be fooled by that?”

“I didn’t think that you’d be fooled but I thought that you might let it go.”

I shrugged. ‘I don’t want you to ask.’ 

She must have understood my intentions, right?

“It seems that you’ve forgotten but you saved me once, you know? How could I be fine with the person who had saved my life avoiding me? Have I caused you trouble somehow?”

Meaning: ‘If I did, I will rectify it so tell me.’ 

It wasn’t like Fol caused me any inconveniences, but if I explained the situation to her, it would be the same as tattling on Prince Lancelot.

“Truth be told, I met His Highness, Prince Lancelot a few days ago,” I revealed.

It wasn’t such a secret talk that I would mislead Fol because of it.

“You met Lancelot? Don’t tell me that he caused you some troubles…?”

“No, he expressed his gratitude to me for saving you. However, he seems to be on his guard with me, for he thinks that I might have set my sights on you, Fol.”

“You, on me? Hehe, Lancelot is saying some funny things, isn’t he?”

Fol letting a little bit of her laugh seep into her voice which was completely understandable. A commoner butler yearning for a Royal Princess was way too unrealistic, even for fairy tales.

“Of course, I denied any such discourteous thing and he has accepted it for the time being.  But it doesn’t seem like I’ve been cleared of his suspicions entirely, despite it, so…”

“So, you were avoiding me just to be on the safe side.”

An expression of relief appeared on Fol’s face, who now knew of the entire situation. She probably felt relieved because she understood that she wasn’t the reason why I was avoiding her. Apparently, I had caused Fol unnecessary worries.

“I apologize, I should have consulted you first.”

“Yes, it would make me happier if you were to do so in the future. But, you have nothing to apologize for. One would immediately understand who you think of, even if they spent just a little bit of time watching you to begin with.”

“…That’s because I am Lady Sophia’s exclusive butler.”

I expressed that it was only natural for one to think of one’s master.

“Oh, but I haven’t really said that I was talking about Sophia?”

“No matter who you would speak of, Fol, it doesn’t change the fact that the one I must devote myself to is Lady Sophia.”

“What a perfect answer. How boring,” she replied, teasing.

In a sense, that was just like her but I had to warn her this time.

“I apologize but please refrain from teasing me like this as well. As a matter of fact, I am being suspected by Young Master Ernest of setting my sights on Lady Sophia too.”

“….”

Looking as if she would burst out laughing any second, Fol hid her mouth behind her hand,  while her shoulders shook uncontrollably. I would have liked to say that this was a blunder that a Princess mustn’t do, but even the maid standing behind her turned her face away, her shoulders shaking as well. Apparently, they found pleasure in my misery.

“So Lancelot suspects that you’re pursuing me and Ernest suspects that you’re pursuing Sophia, huh… geez, you’re really one interesting butler.”

“…I am extremely delighted to have amused you,” I remarked, cynically.

‘I’m not doing it for your amusement, dammit!’

“I’m sorry. But I wasn’t really making fun of you? To have two people who understand the weight of social status very well be wary of you is proof that you’re being appraised quite highly, isn’t it? I’m impressed.”

“…That’s…certainly true.”

This wasn’t on par with the Elitist faction or the Commoners’ faction. In this country, for a mere butler to be wedded to a princess or a daughter of a Marquis was something incredulous. And the two people who knew of this were both wary of me, a mere butler. Looking at it from a different standpoint, that was how high of an opinion they had of my abilities.

…Or, that was how little trust they had in me.

“I’m happy that my savior is being recognized…but, you’re quite troubled by it, aren’t you? Alright, I’ll talk to Lancelot.”

“…Please.”

‘Please don’t say anything unnecessary or it’ll just get worse.’

At the last moment, I swallowed these words that rose up all the way to my throat down. It seemed like it would just become more troublesome if I were to say them.

“Nevertheless, things have become quite interesting, haven’t they? It’s very different from the events Teacher Tristan told me about.”

“…That’s…”

Unconsciously, my eyes widened in surprise. 

‘It’s different from the events that Teacher Tristan told me about.’ 

My eyes widened because, in other words, it was the same as Fol implying that she knew about ‘The Eve of the Festival’.

She knew that in his previous world, Teacher Tristan was a girl. And perhaps, she might have even known that I was a transmigrator, and that in my previous world, Teacher Tristan was my older sister.

“Fol, how much do you know?” I asked, and Fol smiled as she gestured for her maid to step back a little. Naturally, going back so little didn’t put her out of hearing range but it sent the message that this was a conversation that Fol didn’t want overheard.

“I know a lot about Teacher Tristan. But, I don’t know my own fate. If we think about it that way…I wonder if there might even be a future where you and I are married?”

That confirmed it. If someone who didn’t know anything about this heard what she just said, they would probably think that by saying: ‘I know Teacher Tristan well but I don’t know my own fate,’ she was just stating facts.

But the meaning was completely different to someone like me, a transmigrator. It meant that she even knew that Teacher Tristan was a transmigrator, and that this world was based on an otome game. Moreover, it meant that she hadn’t been told of her future. 

“I didn’t even imagine such a discourteous future.”

I indicated that such a scenario wasn’t in the original game while also suggesting that the current developments already greatly differed from the original game’s scenarios at the same time.

“I see… then, it really is thanks to you all that I am here now, isn’t it?”

She got a little sidetracked. ‘I didn’t even imagine.’ 

The nuance in the words I just uttered suggested that me saving Fol was abnormal. Therefore, she probably concluded that she was destined to die. As expected from Teacher Tristan’s disciple to be able to understand so much from such a short conversation.

“I was simply fulfilling Lady Sophia’s wish. So, I believe that you were saved because you didn’t give up and continued in your efforts.” 

“Nevertheless, I am thankful to you all.”

“I’ve already received more than enough gratitude… More importantly, are your attempts at releasing powers going well?”  

It was difficult for others to absorb Fol’s magical powers as her magical resistance was exceptionally high. Therefore, she was learning a technique to release them on her own from Lady Sophia.

I asked her if she had any issues in that regard. Although my Lady did tell me that it was going well, I asked intentionally, as I wished to change the subject. I didn’t know if Fol noticed or not but she went along with the topic change.

“…Yes. I’m able to consume my powers more easily than before but there’s still a bit of burdensome excess remaining. It goes without saying that I can’t match up to you but I cannot release my powers as skillfully as Sophia either.”

“That’s because Lady Sophia has been practising since early childhood. It will take a while for you to get as good as her, Fol.”

“Well…that’s true,” Fol said, and forced particles of faint light to rise up from her palm. Considering that Lady Sophia could release her powers from her whole body, it certainly  looked very inefficient. It seemed that her magical resistance might have been affecting even Fol releasing her own powers. That in itself seemed to put quite a burden on her, even if she wasn’t using her powers nonstop.

“Shall I draw out some of your magical powers?”

“Ah, really? It would be of great help if you would.”

For some reason, Fol looked really happy. She must have been still considerably burdened by it. It was difficult to stop because she was just as good at hiding it as Lady Sophia.

“Since I am already here, let us make it a training exercise for you as well.”

We both left our seats and faced each other. Then, standing right in front of her, I grasped both of her hands.

“Focus on releasing your powers not only from one hand, but from both of them. In order to help you with that, I will draw out your powers from both hands.”

It was unexpectedly difficult to release powers from both hands. Up until now, she only had to focus on one hand. But now, she would have to split her awareness and focus on both hands. 

For example, it isn’t that hard to write with one hand, be it one’s right one or left. But, the difficulty skyrockets when writing with both hands at the same time. This was the same thing.

Also, it wasn’t as complicated as writing separate letters with the right and left hand. Fol had always been using magic continuously in order to consume it so she became able to use her powers unconsciously. Therefore, she would be able to do this if pushed in the right direction.

And just like I had expected, when I lightly drew out her powers, Fol began releasing them on her own. She would still release them faster if she were to do so from one hand, but she was without a doubt releasing them from both of her hands.

“…Ugh. This is…fairly difficult, isn’t it?”

“It seems that way in the beginning. However, once you get used to it, it becomes easy. Moreover, if you’re able to release your powers from both hands, the principles of releasing them from your whole body are the same. Give it your best,” I encouraged her as I absorbed the magic she was releasing. I was drawing it out at first but now I was just absorbing the amount that Fol was letting out.

“I certainly am able to release them but…the released amount is negligible. How do I become able to release a huge amount at once like Sophia?”

“I cannot say anything else but that you have to practice. It’s exactly like building muscles through training. Of course, there are exercises to train efficiency but…”

To suddenly let out large amounts of magical powers was difficult. To begin with, the veins through which magical powers flowed were narrow. Normally, they would only let a small amount of magic through so the paths wouldn’t expand on their own. There was no choice but to slowly widen them bit by bit.

“I’ll help you release magic all at once for a bit.”

As it would also serve as practice for letting out a large amount of powers at once, I went on to absorb her powers in one go. 

“Ugh.”

Perhaps startled by the feel of her powers being drawn out, Fol jumped. And as I was draining her powers this way, there was an unexpected knock on the door. Alicia’s voice resounded at the same time. She had probably forgotten something. If so, the maid would handle it. Thus, I continued to absorb Fol’s powers unconcernedly.

And then–

“What are you two doing…?”

From behind me, Prince Lancelot’s penetratingly cold voice echoed.