The Seventy-Second Flower
"Whoa... it's Ramnusia..."
"She's seriously still attending the academy?"
"If I were her, I would've crawled back to my family estate..."
What kind of girl was Ramnusia Yuno? One thing was for sure: her reputation was so utterly abysmal that simply walking into the cafeteria, grabbing some bread and a drink, and sitting down was enough to set every passing noble girl whispering.
How should I put this? Honestly, this atmosphere was quite familiar to me. It wasn't much different from the looks the villagers used to give me back when I was busy living under a bridge, digging up tree roots, and picking young poisonous herbs to roast and eat just to survive.
"How shameless..."
"Is there even any reason for her to keep coming to the academy?"
They could badmouth me as blatantly as they wanted. When I lived under the bridge, I heard insults far worse than this. On top of that, there were always those young noble brats who would show up, brimming with useless courage and hostility, wielding tree branches to beat me half to death...
The original Ramnusia Yuno might not have been able to bear it, but to me, this situation was wonderfully familiar and barely even a nuisance. Thanks to that, I was able to enjoy my meal in perfect peace.
"This is so annoying... Tsk."
Even when Aria, a girl who practically radiated her foul mood for everyone to see, stormed into the cafeteria, I didn't feel the slightest bit of tension. But what was up with the clothes Aria was wearing? While the other students wore pristine white blouses, black skirts, and ribbons of various colors tied around their necks, Aria's outfit was completely different. It looked a bit loose—incredibly comfortable, actually. What was that? Anyway, seeing her in pants made me want to try wearing them too.
"Ha, it's Ramnusia. Since when was she sitting there?"
"Uh... I heard she just came in right after breakfast..."
"I don't like her face..."
Scratching her reddish hair, which had a strange hint of pink mixed in, Aria marched straight toward me. Needless to say, I had absolutely no intention of just taking it like last time.
"Ramnusia! I told you last time, didn't I? You're an eyesore and you piss me off...!"
Aria stomped over, clearly looking for a fight. To humiliate this tall, athletic-looking girl, I lightly cast my Command Magic. Naturally, the target wasn't Aria herself, but an nameless girl standing right in the path of her approach. I didn't even need this girl to attack Aria. All she had to do was casually stick out her right foot and trip her.
"Huh?"
Just as planned, as Aria stomped forward, the girl carrying food turned around and took a step, catching Aria's leg. Perhaps because Aria had surprisingly good reflexes, she didn't immediately faceplant onto the floor with a loud crash as I had hoped, but this was more than enough.
Zzzt!
This time, I commanded the girl following behind Aria to grab her as she stumbled. I directed her hands not to Aria's waist, but lower—right toward her rear, grabbing her pants.
"Wait! Where are you touch—?!"
"Lady Aria! Be careful, you're going to fall!"
Crash!
Startled, the girl pulled her hands back, and Aria tumbled forward, burying her chest right into the face of the girl standing in front of her. The nameless girl was pinned beneath her, and in the process, Aria's pants were pulled clean down, exposing her rear covered only by a pair of black cotton panties.
"O-Oh my goodness..."
"Lady Aria..."
Countless students who had been eating turned their gaze toward Aria. That's right, this academy didn't just house 'young ladies.' There were plenty of young gentlemen here as well.
"Whoa, Aria... I guess since she's a knight-in-training, her butt is really..."
"You idiot! If she hears you, getting bullied like Ramnusia will be the least of your worries!"
Hearing the young noble boys' blatant admiration, Aria's face flushed a brilliant crimson, just as I had hoped. She frantically grabbed her pants and yanked them back up.
"Are you crazy?! Crazy! Crazy!! You... you!"
"Lady Aria! I'm so sorry! But I thought you were going to fall!"
Facing the panicked girl, Aria trembled with rage, steam practically rising from her head. Unable to cool her temper, she glared as if she wanted to devour her alive before fleeing the cafeteria in utter humiliation. Ha! That felt amazing. That was payback for when she happily smacked me on the head last time!
"Lady Ramnusia?"
While I was cheering inwardly, Keres suddenly appeared beside me, calling my name with a gentle smile.
"K-Keres. I-I'm all done eating."
"You have done well, My Lady. The preparations I mentioned have all been completed."
Hearing Keres's words, I licked the leftover jam off my finger and stood up.
"You may enter through here, My Lady."
"T-This is a wardrobe, though?"
Keres—how should I put this—pointed at a wooden wardrobe with an incredibly serious expression, her eyes sparkling. Sure, I used to live under a bridge, but I'm no idiot. Well, maybe by the standards of these academy students I am! But even I know that a wardrobe is not a door!
"Yes, it is indeed a wardrobe."
"Y-You want me to g-go inside a wardrobe?"
Keres nodded solemnly. She looked so dead serious that I began to wonder if I was the one who had confused a wardrobe for a door.
"...Ah... Uh-huh."
Feeling like a complete fool, I had no choice but to reach out and grab the wardrobe handle.
Zzzt!
"Huh? Is this... magic?"
I knew it instantly. There was magic woven into this handle. I wasn't smart enough to know what kind of spell it was, but it was definitely magical.
"Whoa..."
The moment I opened the wardrobe, a flight of stone stairs leading downward appeared before my eyes. "H-How is this... Huh? How?" The room I was using was on the tenth floor. Since it was the very top floor, I couldn't really complain if someone told me there was a secret space below it. But I knew for a fact that directly beneath this room was just another ordinary student's room. So how on earth could there be stone stairs leading down?
"It is magic, My Lady."
"M-Magic..."
Seeing Keres state it so confidently, my brain was forced to accept the situation. Ah, I see. It's magic. A spell that lets you descend into some secret space. Let's just leave it at that.
"B-But Keres, I told you I n-needed information on Laura..."
"Lady Ramnusia, do you happen to recall what kind of jam you ate yesterday?"
It was a completely random question, but I tried my best to remember.
"It was... a very sweet and refreshing... fruit jam. I don't know exactly what fruit it was, though."
"You have done well. Then, do you remember what you ate a week ago?"
"...Um."
Unlike the meals at the academy, my past life consisted of eating nameless scraps, scavenging whatever caught my eye... "I-I don't remember, do I?"
"Precisely, My Lady. When information is passed solely by word of mouth, it inevitably evaporates or becomes distorted. Therefore, information must always be recorded."
Smiling, Keres lightly pulled open a heavy, massive-looking door.
"Whoa..."
It was a much larger space than I had expected. In the center sat a fairly large round table made of pure white stone. "I-Is this... a map?"
"Indeed, it is a map. I am surprised you recognize it, My Lady."
"I-I've occasionally... heard the nobles chattering about them."
A truly massive map hung on the wall. Of course, I had no idea what region it depicted. I only knew the basic concept of what a map was. Honestly, my knowledge was limited to knowing that maps were incredibly expensive. At any rate, three huge maps hung on the walls. There were also four bookshelves packed tightly with books. And to top it off, there were three doors leading to who-knows-where.
"I-It feels... kind of amazing."
"It is nothing, My Lady. I have merely prepared the bare essentials."
Keres smiled and walked over to the white round table. "If you would tell me what information you desire, I shall retrieve, record, and explain it to you."
"U-Uh... Really? I can just... ask?"
"I should be able to provide most information immediately, though acquiring entirely new data or conducting fresh investigations will naturally require some time."
Just how far does 'most information' go? Still, isn't this already mind-bogglingly impressive?
"T-Then... I was wondering what basic things I s-should know about Laura."
Keres briefly covered her mouth with her hand, then lowered it and nodded. "Understood, My Lady."
With a gentle flick of Keres's finger, an image materialized in the center of the white round table. The projection depicted Laura's face with astonishing, flawless accuracy, matching my memories perfectly. Her slightly shimmering pink hair, her haughty expression, and even her sharp, elegant nose. The only difference was that she was wearing the Cosmos Academy uniform.
"Laura Arnold. Like yourself, Lady Ramnusia, she is a second-year student in the high school division of Cosmos Academy. While her specialty is officially listed as magic, she possesses no genuine interest in the arcane arts, and thus her actual skill is quite unremarkable." Keres pointed her finger at Laura's image.
"Laura Arnold is the eldest daughter of the Arnold family. She has a younger sibling, but due to their significant age difference, they are not a factor you need concern yourself with."
"I-Is the Arnold family really that amazing? You know, like... among the nobles..." I swallowed hard. "Whenever someone mentions certain family names, even those high-and-mighty nobles shut their m-mouths."
"Indeed. The Arnold family goes far beyond merely being famous; their name is one that any member of high society must know as a matter of course."
A girl from a family that prestigious has a personality that trashy?
"The Arnold family has produced exceptional Prime Ministers for generations. Currently, Duke Arnold—Laura's father—serves as the Prime Minister."
"P-Prime Minister... What is that?"
"The Prime Minister is the official who assists His Imperial Majesty and oversees the duties of all vassals. It is the highest position within the Imperial Council."
"W-What is the Imperial Council?"
"You may think of it as a gathering of the most preeminent figures in each field, convened to offer counsel to His Imperial Majesty."
I don't know exactly what that means, but her father is basically an incredibly big deal, right?
"For the daughter of such an incredibly powerful man to..."
"As the saying goes, one reaps what one sows. However, young lords and ladies who are excessively coddled from infancy are highly prone to becoming utterly insolent."
That sounded like an incredibly sharp insult delivered without a shred of mercy. I'm not imagining things, right?
"I-If she's from such a... powerful family, it'll be h-hard for me to do anything to her by force, right?"
"While there are many definitions of 'force,' you are correct in assuming that conventional physical coercion is out of the question."
"S-She must have a l-lot of friends too, right?"
Keres pondered for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. "If you are asking whether there are many within the academy whose influence she can leverage, the answer is yes. However, if you are asking whether she possesses any true friends, that is highly doubtful."
"I-I guess... there are just a lot of students around her who want to r-ride the coattails of Laura's father."
"Indeed. Furthermore, Laura Arnold is the Twenty-Fourth Flower. With her father serving as the Prime Minister, it is only natural that aphids would swarm to taste whatever sweet nectar might drip from her."
I understood most of what Keres was saying. Except for one thing.
"W-What does the Twenty-Fourth Flower m-mean?"
"In the Empire, the Imperial Princess is referred to as the First Flower, and the numbers following designate the order of succession to the throne. It is also proof of bearing the blood of His Imperial Majesty."
"Imperial Princess?"
"Yes, My Lady. An Imperial Princess is one who stands next in line to become the Emperor. In other words, an heir to the Empire."
"Which means there are twenty-three girls ahead of Laura Arnold..."
"Yes, you may view it as the order of succession. Though it can shift should one achieve great deeds or inherit a higher title."
Laura is the twenty-fourth...
"T-T-Then what about me? What about Ramnusia Yuno?"
"Given your current circumstances, My Lady, it is practically irrelevant to—"
"I want to know! H-How strong am I? Or is it 'high'...? Anyway! Having a higher rank is better, isn't it?!"
Keres gazed at me with a momentarily distant look in her eyes, then covered her mouth and cleared her throat.
"Lady Ramnusia Yuno is the Seventy-Second Flower blooming in the beautiful garden of the Empire on which the sun never sets."
Laura was 24. I was 72.
Even without Keres explaining any further, I could tell I was light-years away from ever sitting on the throne.