Summer Break Plans
“Woohoo! It’s finally over!”
The moment I handed in my answer sheet and stepped out of the classroom, Ann—who had been the very first to escape—greeted me with a shout. Her interest had nothing to do with how many questions she’d gotten right; all that mattered was that the exam itself was finished.
At times like this, pointing out her carelessness would only be pointless. Better to simply pray that she’d managed to scrape by with at least one more correct answer and avoid failing.
Cielian and Yuri, who had been waiting with Ann, seemed to share the same thought. They simply watched her without saying a word.
Both of them had submitted their papers and left the classroom far earlier than I had, still wrestling with the last few answers until the final moment.
If anyone asked what difference there was between Ann, Cielian, and Yuri—all three of whom had finished early—it would only prove they didn’t know Ann at all.
At any rate, just as Ann said, every last schedule of the first semester was finally behind us. Until the second semester began in September, there would be no classes, no assignments, no exams—nothing but free time. Outside the windows I could already see a few students lugging their belongings out of the dorms, heading home. They certainly didn’t waste any time.
Of course anyone who wanted to stay could remain in the dorms, but with no official duties left, almost no one would bother lingering at the academy.
“So everyone’s heading home, then? When are you leaving?”
All three of them were direct heirs of noble houses, so during the break they would return to their families—either to rest or to follow whatever schedules their houses demanded.
“I’m taking it easy today and heading back once Ian finishes getting everything ready. Tomorrow or the day after, probably.”
I was certain Ian’s “preparations” involved a mountain of chores on Ann’s behalf, but I kept that observation to myself. I could already picture him grumbling the whole time while he handled every last errand for her.
“My family’s already sent people. I’m leaving first thing tomorrow morning.”
Yuri’s house, on the other hand, had clearly timed everything to the academy calendar and dispatched a carriage and attendants in advance. Professor Selen had once mentioned that Yuri’s father doted on her. I couldn’t be sure from second-hand accounts alone, but the fact that they had sent people so promptly suggested he simply couldn’t wait another day to see his daughter.
“As for me… probably next week, I think… More importantly, what about you, El?”
Of the three, Cielian would be the last to return home. And why only three? Because I had no hometown to go back to. Kidnapped so young that I retained no memories from before the assassin’s guild, I didn’t even know where I had originally come from. As for the identity I currently used—Elicia’s—her family territory had been destroyed by demons. Even if it had been partially restored, there was no way I could simply show up there.
If I ran into someone who actually knew the real Elicia, things could get extremely awkward. I had somehow muddled through it with Yuri last time, but I couldn’t count on that kind of luck twice.
So I had no intention of going “home.” Instead, I planned to pay another visit to the old hideout of the assassin’s guild where I had been raised. Months had passed; whatever remained would be sparse, but the security would be just as lax. If any of the secret caches had still gone unnoticed, they might prove useful—money, supplies, anything at all.
“I’ve got nowhere particular to go, so I’m staying in the dorms the whole break.”
Of course I couldn’t tell them my real plan, so I settled for a convenient lie. I felt no guilt over it; the guild hideout was only a day’s round trip from here. The search itself wouldn’t take long—two days at most. Out of a two-month vacation, two days was nothing more than a quick errand.
“Then you’ll come visit us like we talked about last time, right?”
After midterms we had already discussed it: since I had nowhere to go for the break, I should visit each of their homes. I hadn’t forgotten. I simply hadn’t wanted to bring it up first, given that I would be the one imposing.
“Of course. You’re not going to scold me for showing up uninvited, are you?”
“As if we would.”
“Then how about coming with me tomorrow? We’re both heading out anyway—might as well travel together.”
“Sounds good. So Yuri’s place first, and then where next?”
Ann’s hand shot up at once.
“My house!”
“All right. Then please save my home for last. You can relax there at the end before heading back to the academy.”
“Looks like the rough outline’s settled. Want to work out the details over lunch?”
Out of consideration for students leaving that same day, the final exams always finished by noon at the latest. Whether that truly counted as consideration was debatable—anyone could simply leave the next morning even if exams ran into the evening—but if the higher-ups wanted to look generous, we might as well let them.
We all ate lunch together and sorted out the vacation schedule—more precisely, the schedule of carting me around from house to house.
“So I wanted to let you know I probably won’t be able to stop by for a while during the break.”
Magic Building, Room 707. Just like last time, I sipped the tea poured by the teddy-bear servant and asked Freesia for understanding.
“What about you, Boss? Going anywhere for the vacation?”
“Not really…”
Mm… I could already picture it. Freesia would spend the entire break locked inside Room 707, sprawled on the sofa sleeping the days away. Right now the higher-ups still tossed her the occasional job, and I dropped by now and then for experiments, but once vacation started everyone would scatter to their own estates—and I would be gone for a while myself.
“Ah…!”
I had been seriously considering whether I should just stay in the dorms instead of visiting my friends’ houses when Freesia made a small sound of sudden recollection.
“Come to think of it, the Emperor told me to visit the palace once during the break. Almost forgot.”
“…There are things you’re allowed to forget, and then there’s that. How do you almost forget something like that?”
Still, the fact that she had an actual schedule meant I no longer had to worry about her rotting away in the lab for two solid months. And a visit to the Imperial Palace wouldn’t be a one- or two-day affair, so that was even better.
Though I did wonder whether she would simply sleep in her guest room the entire time except when she had to meet the Emperor…
Surely not. Even Freesia wouldn’t dare do that in front of the Emperor.
Probably.
Since I would be leaving the dorms starting tomorrow, I made sure to tidy everything thoroughly. No one was likely to barge into my room, but just in case I packed a few suspicious items into my bag and hid a few others carefully away.
Once I had gathered spare clothes, personal effects, and everything else I might need, roll call time was already approaching. Yet no announcement came. Plenty of students had already vacated the dorms, and with the final morning exams the semester was officially over, so they were giving us a little extra freedom. Come to think of it, on the very first day of the semester I had skipped roll call without even knowing it existed and gotten an earful for it.
Tap. Tap.
While I was lost in that old memory, a soft knocking sounded against the windowpane. Without so much as a flinch I opened it, and the familiar little figure of Meow padded inside on silent paws. Ever since the first night she had slept in my room, she had taken to dropping by every so often to claim the bed.
“Hey there, Meow.”
I stroked her as she hopped onto the mattress and began kneading the blankets into a perfect loaf. She answered by giving her tail a lazy flick up and down.
If she was going to answer so half-heartedly, I had my own methods.
Paf.
With the same hand that had been petting her head—and the free one that had been idle—I gave her rear a light smack.
Paf-paf-paf-paf-paf!
Naturally I didn’t stop at one. Using quick little snaps of the wrist I kept the barrage going.
Instinct, it seemed, was impossible to escape. Meow couldn’t pull away; instead she raised her hips higher as if begging for more. I obliged with even greater enthusiasm, thoroughly enjoying the buns-buns-buns session.
There was a time when a single tap on the rear had made her leap in pure outrage. Now she had grown so used to it that she practically melted with delight whenever I started.
Thwack.
One thing never changed, though: the moment the session ended she always delivered a single solid swat to my cheek. All that aloof dignity, and she still got embarrassed the second she let herself enjoy something.
Both of us thoroughly satisfied, we flopped onto the bed side by side.
“But starting tomorrow I won’t be in the room. What am I going to do? Meow, don’t get mad if the window stays shut, okay? It’s not that I won’t open it—I just can’t.”
I still had no idea how she always found my room, but from tomorrow onward I simply wouldn’t be here. The thought of her arriving only to sit outside tapping at a locked window already made me feel guilty.
“Mrrrow.”
Meow gave a short reply as if she had understood every word, then closed her eyes again. Come to think of it, she had always seemed to understand me perfectly. There were circus goblins that could read, after all; a cat that understood speech wasn’t so far-fetched. I didn’t need to worry about her.
Still, when I came back I would have to bring her a little present.