The Tutor's Guest Arrives
After finishing my duties, when I returned to my room, a letter lay waiting on the desk.
It had to be from that woman.
My mother never bothered to send me proper letters.
"Where... shall I take a look?"
I tore open the envelope without much ceremony.
It wasn’t the kind of letter that needed to be preserved, so casual was fine.
"Hmm..."
It looked short even from a glance.
Fortunately, the contents were simply that she had accepted the offer to teach Kyle magic.
I hadn’t worried about it, of course.
The woman was the type who would do anything if it looked fun.
"Let me see..."
When would she arrive in Eristirol…
No matter how mad she was, I had to treat her well when she came.
Even though she was close to me, she was the first magic instructor for our young master.
I had to give her a lavish welcome once, at least, so I could teach Kyle better.
She’d probably be thrilled with just one delicious steak, but Eristirol wasn’t just about steak.
"Only three days…?"
It was supposed to take only three days?
She wasn’t staying in the capital?
It was impossible to reach here from the capital in three days by carriage.
I had once taken nearly two weeks to come up to Eristirol myself.
Was she coming by magic?
What kind of magic allowed someone to arrive in just three days?
"First… I should let the other servants know."
Even if the notice was short, I could prepare enough.
A celebratory party with the usual food would be more than enough.
"..."
I had wanted to give her a lavish welcome, but with only three days, there was nothing I could do.
I would simply let her eat and enjoy herself on her own.
*
"So… you’re coming from the Magic Tower soon?"
I walked down the corridor while chatting with the maid.
After all, the news that that woman was coming had already spread throughout the town.
Since she was going to be Kyle’s teacher, the rumors would spread quickly.
"Yes. The letter mentioned three days, so she might arrive even sooner."
I had expected the crazy woman to send the letter and then take her time, but now that I thought about it, even the fastest delivery took at least two days.
Even with teleportation magic, it would still take time.
So the three days written in the letter probably meant today.
The woman I knew would leave immediately after sending the letter.
"Maybe today or tomorrow."
"Hmm… What kind of person is she?"
"Her skill is excellent. She’s cheerful and loves anything fun."
Her appearance is pretty as well.
The world simply has high standards for looks.
I have pretty looks myself, and when I look at Kyle, Catherine, and Elin, they’re all stunningly beautiful and handsome.
Thanks to that, I sometimes feel I’m the ugly one.
Of course, since I have no intention of dating, it doesn’t matter.
"I hope Kyle finds someone nice to date…"
Whether it’s Catherine or Elin, it would be good if she ends up with a good person.
By then I’ll be living elsewhere and won’t be able to see it anyway.
"Hmph…"
I stood in front of Kyle’s door, straightened my clothes, and cleared my throat.
As his direct servant, I had to present a neat and proper appearance.
*Knock knock*
"Master, I’m entering."
I opened the door and stepped into Kyle’s room as usual.
There was a strange scent in the air.
Something sweet…?
I didn’t recognize it.
It was a scent I had never smelled before.
It was faintly fragrant.
"Huh…"
For a moment I nearly lost my senses to the smell.
Instead, I opened the curtains as usual and ventilated the room.
There was definitely a pleasant scent somewhere, but ventilation was a daily necessity.
"Hmm… what kind of scent is this?"
"Uh… uh…"
Because I had been ventilating, Kyle had woken up.
Since it was already time to get up, I didn’t feel any guilt.
"Master, it’s time for breakfast."
"Yes…"
Kyle rose still half-asleep.
I changed his clothes.
While changing them, I examined his body.
Kyle’s sculpted physique still gleamed today.
By using good medicine to wash with, his skin was naturally flawless.
"Master, you need to change your pants. Please stand up."
"Hah…"
Kyle sighed.
He was only going to eat breakfast, yet he had to change clothes first. Was that so bothersome?
I had done this for years, so I didn’t expect him to suddenly find it tiring.
After helping him out of his pants, I helped him into the freshly prepared ones for today.
"Done. You may move freely."
While he moved, I gave him a brief overview of today’s schedule.
Compared to other nobles, Kyle had surprisingly few engagements.
He occasionally went down to tour the territory, but that was rare.
"After breakfast, there will be a tea time with Lady Catherine, morning lessons, lunch, and then swordsmanship practice with Lady Elin."
"I see."
Excluding the tea time with Catherine, it was a routine I had followed for years.
The swordsmanship lessons with Elin weren’t much different from the exercise I used to do.
After all, both involved physical movement, so the difference was minimal.
Only the difficulty level changed.
"And today, it seems the instructor who will teach Master magic is arriving. Probably… sometime in the afternoon. When she arrives, I will welcome her first."
Since Louise and I knew each other, it was only natural that I would greet her.
Other people would see her for the first time, so I had to take care of it.
Although the time was shorter than expected, I couldn’t give a perfect welcome, but I could at least make a good impression.
"Prince Kyle, good morning."
"Lady Oldenburg, good morning."
By the way, when exactly would Sebastian and Catherine be leaving?
I still didn’t know the purpose of their visit to Eristirol.
Kyle hadn’t explained.
"Prince Kyle, I’ve heard you’ve been learning swordsmanship lately? The news has spread through the town."
"Yes."
The fact that Kyle was learning swordsmanship had already reached Catherine.
It must have leaked from the knights.
It wasn’t a problem, but it surprised me that she knew even though I hadn’t mentioned it.
"Hmm… Then, may I come to watch you learn swordsmanship next time?"
"....."
Kyle suddenly looked at me.
Ah, yesterday I had been uncomfortable because of me, and with Catherine present it would be even worse. She was asking me to handle it.
It seemed I was still needed.
For Kyle who couldn’t even say such simple words, I opened my mouth.
"Master hasn’t been learning swordsmanship for long. If Lady Oldenburg sees it from nearby, she might make a mistake, so it would be better to watch later."
"…Then there’s nothing I can do. Prince Kyle? Please let me see it next time… definitely."
"Yes."
After that, the breakfast continued in silence.
Sebastian and I had no position to start a conversation, so we sat quietly and focused only on eating.
*
"Sophia, a guest has arrived."
"Ah."
While I was away for Kyle’s swordsmanship lesson, one of the servants told me a guest had come.
The only guest was that woman.
"Thank you."
I thanked the servant and headed to the reception room.
I wondered how many years it had been since I last saw her.
It had been about four years now?
Time really had flown.
When I opened the door to the reception room, there was the long-awaited sight of her long, wavy purple hair.
And those unique, strange eyes.
"Sophia!"
"Long time no see."
"What? Why has your hair gotten so long!? You’re not Sophia, are you!??"
"What?"
We hadn’t even faced each other for thirty seconds and my head already ached.
Crazy woman, could you speak a little more quietly?
"By the way, it really has been a long time! Since when I was an adventurer, this is the first time, right?"
"Yeah. First time."
As Louise said, it really had been a long time.
Since we rarely contacted each other, it felt even longer.
"Haa… It seems living in Eristirol suits you? Your skin looks even better than four years ago?"
"What…?"
You’re even prettier.
Is this a joke?
Although she was crazy, just having purple hair was already a scam.
Purple was prettier than the common black hair.
Her eyes were a bit strange, but she looked unique.
How did people’s eyes have concentric circles?
How could there be a circle inside another circle?
When I first started working as an adventurer and met Louise, I saw those eyes and fell over in surprise.
I had met many people since then, but how could anyone’s eyes have circles outside the pupils…
"By the way, where is that young master guy? If he’s useless, I’ll leave right away."
"He’s in another lesson right now. Just wait a little."
"Really? Then, shall we have coffee together since it’s been so long?"
"Sure."
In the adventurer days we drank beer, but now I was working, so no alcohol. I had no choice but to drink coffee.
Drinking coffee wasn’t a problem at all.
I couldn’t sleep at night, but if I lay down for an hour and traced the ceiling patterns, it was enough.
"Ah, right. But how much is the salary here? I lost everything in a bet a while ago."
"…You’re really a crazy woman…"
A mage who gambled with the salary she received from the Magic Tower.
Most mages used it all for research, but this woman really…
"Hahaha… If I had won there, it would have been really fun…"