I Don't Know Such a Person - 1
The road from the Imperial Capital to the Academy was smooth. There were no tedious ambush events, and unlike my first journey to the Academy, the roads themselves were in decent shape, so we made the trip in comfort.
Just thinking back to how wrecked those roads used to be still makes me furious. They siphoned off funds in the name of road maintenance, and that was the state of them? Of course, I recovered the money that had vanished into thin air by cleaning out the local officials' assets.
At any rate, we raced along without a single problem and arrived at the Academy. I didn't particularly miss the place.
Quiet.
The moment we entered the Academy grounds, a stillness hung over everything that felt almost awkward compared to the lively energy of the school term.
It made sense once you remembered it was still vacation. Most of the students had gone home, and without those student customers, the commercial districts had lost some of their spark as well.
If the Academy were the kind of den that kept students locked up even during vacation, it might have been different—but fortunately, it was no such den.
"The Academy can be this quiet, huh."
I turned toward the voice coming from across from me and found Margeta gazing out the window.
She looked purely curious. It was nothing special, yet a smile rose to my lips of its own accord.
"Is this your first time seeing it like this too, Mar?"
"Normally I just teleported in for the opening ceremony. I never had reason to see what it looked like during vacation."
True enough—Margeta was no rural noble. There was no need for her to endure long carriage rides when a teleportation mage could handle the trip.
"It feels like I'm putting you through unnecessary hardship when you could have gone back so comfortably. I'm sorry."
"It's fine. Traveling by carriage is part of the fun of a journey, isn't it?"
Margeta smiled softly, rose from her seat, and slipped into the place beside me.
"Besides, it means more time I can spend with Karl. That's good for me."
"Then I'm glad."
I gave her an awkward smile at her words. She really said things like that so casually now.
Ever since I opened my heart to Margeta at the mansion, she—who had already been rather forward—had grown even more aggressive.
"Since Karl was honest with me, I'll be honest with Karl too."
A few days before we returned to the Academy, Margeta's bold declaration had genuinely startled me. Even when I had been trying so hard to look away from other women, Margeta was the one I simply could not ignore.
When someone showed you that much open affection, you would have needed to be missing either your eyes or your ears to pretend not to notice. And yet she had been holding herself back and hiding that much?
Unleashed, Margeta was truly something else. In the past, even a slight approach from me would turn her face red and send her into a fluster—now she came close first and said embarrassing things with complete confidence.
Or maybe not.
Looking closely, a faint flush still colored Margeta's face. Her pupils were trembling hard as well. So she wasn't completely unfazed after all.
Her tolerance for embarrassment had simply increased. That alone was remarkable progress.
"Thank you for spending this precious time on me."
I lightly took Margeta's hand as I spoke, and the faint red that had spread across her face deepened by degrees.
I knew full well this was practically teasing her. And yet—somehow—I found this flustered look of hers familiar and endearing.
"F-for Karl, I could spend my wh-whole life."
Watching her open her mouth even while stumbling over the words warmed a corner of my heart.
The rest of the party had all gone to the lodgings, but I had someone to meet, so I headed for the main building. Even with the students gone, there were always people who held their posts with stubborn resolve.
"It's been a while, Audit Department Chief. Have you been well?"
"Of course. I'm relieved to see the Headmaster looking healthy as well."
In particular, the man who ruled the Academy had his home here as well. Workplace and residence as one—was that not a combination terrifying enough to appear in nightmares?
Looking at the Headmaster filled me with involuntary pity, yet he himself seemed unmoved. If he was fine with it, I supposed it was none of my business.
"I'm glad nothing serious happened. There is nothing more regrettable than something befalling the students."
"I agree completely."
I nodded in agreement as the Headmaster stroked his long beard. Though not as much as Villar or myself—who had rolled through it all on the ground—the Headmaster was surely one of those who had felt his heart race over the Baking Club's trip to the Imperial Capital.
Having a prince and a candidate for sainthood remaining at the Academy was already enough to grab the back of anyone's neck, and then they piled a capital excursion on top of it? Enough to drive a man mad. If any of the Baking Club members—students, after all—had been injured, the Headmaster would have had to take responsibility as well.
Getting hurt while toddling about outside the Academy would have been unfair, but what could you do? When responsibility fell, even the unfairly caught were dragged in—that was the role of high office.
"Indeed. The Audit Department Chief's efforts were truly considerable."
Of course, he would not have to shoulder responsibility as fiercely as I had—both high official and on-site commander. The Headmaster knew that, which was why he offered this word of consolation.
"Ah, Audit Department Chief."
After a few more exchanges of greetings and recent news, the Headmaster spoke as if something had just occurred to him.
"There was a rather unusual figure among the personnel of the Three Kingdoms this time."
"Is that so? How interesting."
Shit.
Outwardly calm, I instinctively cursed inside. Until now, thanks to Villar, I had never clashed with the Three Kingdoms' forces—but I had heard that during this vacation, every member except Villar had been replaced.
If among those replacements there appeared some contrarian type who would challenge Villar's authority, both he and I would be exhausted. So I had hoped it would pass quietly.
But if the Headmaster is bringing it up…
Just how flashy a figure was this, that the Headmaster would mention them in person? Anyone who drew the Headmaster's notice had to be either quite high-ranking or exceptional—and perhaps a heavyweight who would question Villar's authority.
That would be troublesome. Villar was a decent negotiating partner; I wanted him to stay until graduation.
"Here is the list of replacements. I received it two days ago."
The Headmaster pulled several sheets from the stack of documents on his desk and held them out. Two days ago—right when we had been spending our time in the carriage.
I took the papers and scanned them quickly. Villar ranked among the top five even within the Armein Royal Knights. If someone could threaten a man like him, I ought to know the name at least.
This is going to be a headache.
The simple thought was that it was someone higher in the Royal Knights' hierarchy than Villar, but the odds were low. If they were going to send such a person, they would have recalled Villar in the first place.
Then had the Uven Alliance sent a high-ranking mage? Or had the Holy Kingdom dispatched someone of cardinal rank?
Either way, it was a nuisance. If the position was too high, it would be hard for me to crush them in an emergency—
What was that just now.
My eyes, drifting down the page, snapped back upward. I thought I had just seen something strange.
A name I had never seen before. Not a high-ranking figure I would know.
But the family name was familiar.
Ferosa Garineli
What.
What the hell is this. Why is a Garineli showing up here.
Faced with a completely unexpected presence, I checked again several times. Maybe it was Gadeli or Ganaeli and I had misread?
No.
The result was the same. It was Garineli.
Stunned by the sudden shock, I could only stare blankly down at the document. Ferosa Garineli, seventeen years old, nationality Armein.
Under the name, the special notes clearly stated she was the daughter of Villar Garineli. It was no coincidence of surnames. She really was Villar's daughter.
Why?
Why was Villar's daughter here?
No—regardless of the country on the continent, it was not the custom to dump blood relatives onto the same mission. And this escort duty was hardly so urgent that it needed to break even that convention.
"Isn't it unusual? I was quite surprised myself at first."
"Ah, yes. Truly unusual."
Seeing my expression, the Headmaster spoke. Right—anyone would react the way I had.
What was so wonderful about this mission that a daughter would follow her father all the way to a distant foreign land? Filial piety was touching, but there was no need to express it like this.
No wonder his face was dark.
Throughout the return to the Academy, Villar's expression had been strangely gloomy.
I had wanted to ask what was wrong, but Villar and I had only gotten to know each other through work—we were not privately close.
There was a certain internal closeness built up from rolling through hardships together, but Villar might not feel the same. So, not wanting to invade his private life for no reason, I had simply let it pass.
"…It's astonishing."
That was all I could say. It really was astonishing.
Villar might miss his family because he could not return home. When you live far away, you miss your family—that was natural.
But sending that family out to a foreign land—what kind of solution was that? He would have wanted to see the family at home, not the family who would suffer with him.
So Armein is not normal either.
Armein was a Black Country too. The first- and second-ranked powers on the continent, both Black Countries side by side—the future of the continent looked bleak.
Could this be the continental average? Was every nation at this level and I just didn't know?
Then was the Empire the good option after all? If everything was Black anyway, better a major power than a minor one.
Horrifying.
A continent where the Empire counted as a fairy. Just what kind of world had Enen created.
The next day, the new Three Kingdoms forces arrived, and the quiet Academy grew a little noisier.
Receiving them was the Three Kingdoms' concern, not the Empire's, so it had nothing to do with me—
"If you have the time, please come to the club room. How about we have some tea together?"
— Understood. Thank you for the invitation.
Remembering what the Headmaster had told me yesterday, and picturing Villar about to meet his daughter today, I simply could not stay still.
Even if a complete stranger were thrashing about in the water, you would feel the urge to help. For Villar, whom I had known for months, there was no question.
There was nothing I could actually do for him, but I could at least offer some comfort.
— Um, Audit Officer. I'm sorry, but would it be all right if one more person came along?
And not long after, when I received the contact from Villar, I realized.
Villar was weak to his daughter…
"Of course. A tea party is more enjoyable with more people."
Hang in there, Villar.