Chapter 179
Chapter 179
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: A Cozy Night with Mother
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Quite some time had passed, and before I knew it, night had fallen.
After finishing dinner, I'd just been idly passing the time... and now it was truly night.
"Phew..."
I was slowly descending to the floor where Rozalin's room was located.
Rozalin had probably just called me to spend some time together before I headed back to the academy.
Personally, I liked that reason.
Even though I hadn't arrived at her room yet, I was already looking forward to it.
"Mother, it's me."
"Hehe, you're earlier than I expected."
"I came early because I wanted to hang out with you, Mother."
"It's just a late-night snack and relaxing—nothing special, even if you say it so nicely."
"Phew..."
When I entered Rozalin's room, she stood up from her seat to greet me.
And perhaps because it was nighttime,
She was wearing something a bit thinner than her usual attire.
It was her own room, after all, and at this hour, no one else would come by except for me.
So that's why she was dressed lightly.
"Despite what you say, the food's already prepared."
"Hehe, I asked the chef to prepare something for a night snack with my daughter, and they made it way tastier than I thought."
"I can see that. It looks amazing—the fried foods, chicken, pizza... everything looks great."
The table in the room was already set with food.
For a late-night snack, the variety and quality were impressive enough to make my mouth water.
"Hehe, sit down first. We're not eating while standing, are we?"
"Yes, got it. You should sit too, Mother."
"I'll sit in a moment... I need to grab something."
"...Pardon?"
I sat down, but Rozalin didn't.
She'd told me to sit, so why was she suddenly heading to the dresser instead of sitting?
I watched her back as she moved toward the dresser, wondering what was up.
"Hehe, on a night like this, it feels a bit of a waste not to have any drinks."
"You're... going to drink alcohol?"
"Hehe, with all these great snacks? It'd be a shame not to."
"Well... that's true."
Rozalin fetched one of the bottles from the display case on top of the dresser.
I hadn't expected this.
The table already had sparkling water and orange juice, after all.
I'd really never imagined she'd bring out alcohol.
"This is a white wine—my personal favorite."
"It's different from what you had at the Rose family before."
"Hehe, of course. That was red wine, not white. The color's different, naturally."
"Ah..."
I knew a fair bit about alcohol and had some interest in it, so
Distinguishing between red and white wine was no problem for me.
It was just a different type from before, and with Rozalin wanting to drink, I had no real objection.
"Hehe, I'm just having it as a palate cleanser."
With those words, Rozalin returned with the wine and sat down.
To be honest, the last time Rozalin got drunk was... well, quite a handful in many ways.
She'd been pretty troublesome when she got wasted back then.
If it had been anyone else, I might've looked at them poorly.
"Hehe, it feels exciting to spend a late night with Camellia after so long."
"I feel the same."
Back then, her mood was already soured by those Rose family idiots, which played a big role.
Today, even if she got drunk, it shouldn't be an issue.
With that in mind, I continued chatting with Rozalin.
"I'm glad you'll be able to travel comfortably in the carriage on the way back. You suffer in the heat so much, Camellia, but learning that spell from your teacher was a real stroke of luck."
"I'm not as good as Teacher yet, but being able to stay comfy at the academy is nice."
"Even aside from the heat, you seem to struggle with it a lot."
"That's... something I can't help. Phew..."
"Hehe, you're right about that, Camellia."
We were having a casual conversation with Rozalin.
We picked at the food on the table with forks, chatting away—it was more fun than I'd expected, so the talk kept flowing.
Part of me wanted to try the alcohol too,
But I was underage.
Not only that, I was alone with Rozalin, so there was no way it'd fly.
If I drank in front of her, she'd probably nag me endlessly.
"Phew..."
"What are your plans for this fall?"
"Fall? Probably just the usual routine...?"
"You mentioned redoing the garden, so I wondered if there were other plans."
"Hmm..."
I just ate some food and sipped my sparkling water.
But Rozalin, chatting with me, had been steadily sipping her wine since earlier.
I was a bit worried since her tolerance wasn't the greatest, but she didn't seem drunk yet.
"Camellia, when you're at the academy... get along well with your friends, okay?"
"Hehe, of course."
"And, um... when hanging out with the other academy students, don't get too close. It might cause headaches in high society later..."
"I don't plan to attend society events much anyway. Shouldn't be a big deal, right?"
"It's not just that... You need to be careful even when building basic friendships..."
Even while just eating snacks, she was nagging as usual.
She'd always said to watch my behavior while at the academy.
It was truly just an ordinary conversation time.
"Even when you're with the other girls at the academy, watch your words carefully."
"So no rumors start in society?"
"Yeah."
What can I say...
She nags a lot.
Not that I disliked it—it just felt like there was genuinely a ton of it.
It really seemed like nagging was the main thing I heard during these relaxed times with her...?
"You've always done things without thinking about others sometimes, Camellia... It'd be good if you were more careful about that."
"Uh..."
"Most kids wouldn't mind since our Camellia's so pretty... but still?"
"Is that so...?"
Was it praise?
Or criticism?
Hard to tell.
"When you first went to the academy, I was really worried you'd struggle there..."
"Thank you."
"But you've been doing so well and comfortably that I'm grateful... and a bit surprised it's different from what I expected..."
...
Hmm.
Her flushed face.
Her deeper breaths compared to before.
Her eyes slightly unfocused.
Seeing those signs told me Rozalin was gradually getting drunk.
"You're... so pretty, Camellia...? I worried other academy students might take weird interests in you..."
"Haha..."
"Of course, you're clever in your own subtle way, so I figured you'd manage..."
Most of the talk boiled down to my academy life.
She worried about it, and that worry filled nearly all her stories.
Personally, I loved hearing it, so a smile crept onto my face unbidden.
Rozalin, a bit tipsy, was just rambling on her own.
"You grew up... so beautifully, Camellia..."
"Hehe, yeah?"
"You were gorgeous even as a kid, but now you're... really stunning..."
"Phew..."
This time, it wasn't nagging—it was pleasant talk.
It was simple praise, but hearing it still felt great.
Especially coming from someone as stunning as Rozalin.
"You're incredibly beautiful too, Mother."
"That's not what I mean. You're... how should I put it, a bit more..."
Well, if I'm pretty, just how pretty was she trying to describe?
"Pretty" was compliment enough already.
I smiled watching Rozalin ponder it intensely on her own.
"Somehow incredibly... um... uhh... incredibly seductive, I guess...? Yeah..."
"Seductive...?"
"There are pure, innocent types and cute-pretty types. You're somehow like that. Yeah."
"Aha...?"
This was way,
Way out of left field.
I wasn't sure if "seductive" was a compliment, but if she said so...?
I had trouble fully agreeing I was seductive, but it was Rozalin speaking.
"Thanks...?"
That was my response for now.
Personally, Rozalin looked far more seductive right now.
"You've grown a lot taller too, and if you keep this up, society might call you a peerless beauty?"
"Isn't that overhyping it?"
"Hehe, I think you'll be that beautiful, Camellia..."
Hmm.
She was definitely drunk, spouting these odd compliments nonstop.
Not just a little tipsy—starting to lose her judgment...
"Phew... It's been ages since I had wine. Feels great. You shouldn't do this, Camellia?"
"Even without you saying it, I won't drink till I'm of age."
"No. How about just one glass this time?"
"...Pardon?"
...
Huh.
...
This was another total surprise.
....Seriously.