Chapter 140
Chapter 140
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: A Leisurely Carriage Ride
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For the trip, there were a few days of preparations... but honestly, I didn't do anything special.
Just packing a few clothes in a bag and deciding who to travel with—that was the extent of it.
Even that much: Ella had handled the clothes, and the people coming along were already set without needing to decide, so I just went about my academy days as usual.
"All academy students have to ride carriages?"
"That's what they say. The capital and the academy are too close anyway, right? It'd be a waste to use any other means of transport."
Leaning back in the carriage, I was chatting with Grace.
In reality, the trip to the capital didn't take much time anyway.
There was no need to use some other method; it would just be extravagant.
Of course, with so many students traveling together, it would still be a massive procession.
"Young Lady, all the ladies' luggage has been loaded onto the carriage."
"Sorry for making you work so hard. Want to head inside and rest first?"
"No, ma'am. I'll stand by here."
With those words, Lize came to my side and quietly waited.
She'd just been hauling luggage for me and the group, so I wondered if she really had to stand like this.
I wished she'd just relax inside the carriage...
"Well, if that's what Lize wants, no helping it."
Usually, it was best to just let Lize do as she pleased in situations like this.
Of course, if I insisted she rest inside... she probably would.
But it wasn't worth overriding her when she wanted to be here like this.
"It's good we could group up with other grades."
"Hehe, yeah."
"More than that, when are the rest coming? Assembly's at 10, and only three of us are here? Including one maid, barely three people."
"Yeah, when do you think they'll show?"
Still leaning in the carriage, I replied to Grace.
Well, there was still time left, so no need to worry about everyone gathering right away.
Plus, Karen had told me she was stepping out to the bathroom, so I wasn't too concerned.
Ella and Ivana didn't strike me as the type to be late anyway.
They'd probably arrive just fine on their own.
"So. How are we assigning seats in the carriage?"
"Hmm... what do you think? Grace, do you have any ideas on seating? I was just gonna let everyone sit wherever."
It was only a few hours' ride, so no need to get too meticulous.
I figured we'd just board in whatever order and sit wherever.
Honestly, I didn't care who I sat with.
"Big Sis will sit with me, obviously."
"Yes, go ahead."
"You... well, sit wherever you want."
"Shall I? Actually, sitting up front with Lize and enjoying the breeze sounds fun."
"...Ha."
Spending time up front with Lize driving the carriage seemed more interesting than just sitting quietly inside.
Of course, I'd probably doze off halfway through.
*
"Ella, could you draw the curtains?"
"It's a rare trip out—wouldn't it be a waste not to see the scenery?"
"That's true, but..."
...the sunlight's too bright; I can't sleep.
The carriage was moving slowly for now, and we were just sitting quietly inside.
With so many students in carriages, it was impossible to go fast.
As a result, the same scenery dragged on very slowly outside.
"The speed's so slow anyway. Do we really need to keep looking? In thirty minutes, it'll probably look different."
"You're just saying that because you want to sleep."
"......"
Not wrong.
I said that to Ella sitting across from me, but she wasn't budging.
Did she secretly enjoy sightseeing like this?
I'd never pegged her for having that hobby.
One thing was clear: no nap for me in the carriage today.
"Sigh... Anyway, Ivana, have you been to the capital before?"
"Yes, quite often."
"Ooh... figures, rich family."
I just blurted it out honestly.
Going from the Northern Region to the capital definitely took a lot of time.
That meant a lot of money, and most people didn't have frequent reasons to go.
Excluding capital nobles who worked there or those from territories nearby... how often did anyone visit the capital in a year?
Sure, for business or contracts, maybe, but that wasn't Ivana's reason.
"So, what did you do there? The capital has all sorts of art galleries and museums. Did you go for that?"
"As a kid, I went with Father. Once I was older... after cleaning up monsters in the north, I'd go alone for vacation."
"Yeah... definitely a comfy spot to relax."
Really was.
The capital was the cultural hub in many ways, not just the empire's center.
I'd heard plenty about the Northern Region's monster cleanups—massive hunts.
Spending one or two months of winter focused solely on hunting monsters sounded exhausting just hearing about it.
"Still way better than academy classes. Sitting here like this..."
I thought for a brief, very brief moment.
It popped into my head mid-sentence... well...
"...Somehow it feels like we sat around doing nothing in the academy all the time anyway."
The thought hit me suddenly.
Sitting here quietly relaxing wasn't weird or bad... but academy life was always like this.
I hadn't felt anything particularly special yet.
The most unique thing? The scenery outside moving slowly, ever so slowly...?
"At this speed, it'll take forever to arrive."
"Probably. They said it'd take hours anyway, right? Didn't you hear the teachers?"
"I did, but I didn't think it'd be this slow. Even when I take carriages for business, it's not this sluggish."
"The number of carriages is way more than when you do business."
Even Ella—and Ivana next to me—agreed there were a ton of carriages.
And that was jamming up the roads, naturally.
"We'll probably arrive around dinner time."
"Honestly, if it's gonna be this slow, I'd rather have stayed in class listening to lectures."
"Ella, come on, that's not right. No matter what, wanting to attend classes..."
Isn't that kinda weird?
How could anyone prefer sitting through classes?
Any normal person, any average student... wouldn't they want to ditch academy classes every chance?
"Why?"
"Nothing..."
I decided to drop it, lest Ella start lecturing me.
She'd definitely give me an earful—from why I slept in class to why I kept putting off assignments... all sorts.
Lize's morning nagging was enough scolding for one day.
"By the way... Older Sister Karen."
"Y-yeah?"
I called out to Karen in the back seat, and she answered softly.
I kept my voice low when calling her too, and there was good reason.
Normally, it'd be the volume I'd used chatting with Ella and Ivana earlier, but now it was half that.
"When did Grace next to you fall asleep?"
"Hmm... probably about ten minutes ago...! She was talking to me, then kept nodding off without realizing."
"Ah."
"She got up super early today and came to my room to help with breakfast prep. That's probably why...?"
Grace, leaning peacefully on her big sister Karen's shoulder, sleeping soundly.
Unlike her usual self, she was so quiet—I watched her quietly while chatting with Karen.
It was fascinating because it was so different from normal.
Not her usual fidgety personality... right now, dozing on Karen's shoulder, she looked so gentle.
"Hmm..."
If she acted like that around me normally, it'd feel super awkward in all sorts of ways.
The way Grace treated me versus Karen was night and day.
If she treated me like she did Karen... I'd seriously ask if she was crazy or had a bad headache.
"But thanks to the slow speed, she can sleep without much discomfort."
"The slow pace does mean less shaking in the carriage."
Ivana, sitting beside me, chimed in agreement.
It really was a good carriage going slow, so there was almost no jostling.
"Hm... Camellia. If you're sleepy, how about leaning on my shoulder?"
"Pardon?"
While gazing at Grace and out the window, Ivana beside me made the offer.
Inspired by Karen and Grace, maybe?
I'd just complained to Ella about wanting to sleep, so perhaps that's why she suggested it.
"Shall I?"
It was sudden, but I wasn't the type to pass up a comfy spot to nap. Better than sleeping upright, for sure.
Ivana was taller than me, but leaning on something beat sitting straight any day.
And from Ivana Nordal, of all people...? Totally unexpected.
"'Scuse me."
With that, I leaned my head on Ivana Nordal's shoulder—well, her arm—and gently closed my eyes.
Pressing a bit closer, her signature cool, sweet scent wafted clearly.
I'd caught it occasionally before, but this close... it was sweeter than I thought.
Sweet enough that I could've stayed awake just savoring it.