Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Intruder in Daily Life (4)
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For now, that student—no, first off, it's not like someone from the far-off Royal Academy would normally have any reason to come all the way here, so I'm doubtful she's actually a student, but assuming she is, she just stood there bawling her eyes out in the pouring rain, completely drenched, without doing a thing.
I'd had a similar experience in my previous life. It was well past closing time, and after suffering through overtime, I barely caught the last subway train. It was fine when I got on, but when I got off, there was a woman standing all alone in front of the station exit. She had only one shoe on, her hair was a tangled mess like she'd been tearing at it, her face was scratched up with dried blood and smudges of grime, and she kept staring at her reflection in the silver wall, using it like a mirror.
Freaked out, I called a station attendant, who said she'd already been there for thirty minutes and wouldn't listen to a word.
I had to bolt out the opposite exit like I was fleeing for my life.
And now, there's no exit or anything like that here.
Alright. Let's sort this out. If that girl is a Royal Academy student, she's either a noble, from a wealthy family, or some prodigy with a sponsor.
So why the hell would someone like that come to the heart of a foreign country and collapse in tears?
"...Do you need anything?"
"...Muuul."
"Something cold?"
Nod, nod.
Good. I filled a cup sized just right for her small hands with cold water and plenty of ice floating in it.
She drank the water I brought her, sniffled back her tears, and started eating again.
"Feeling a bit calmer now?"
"...Yes. I'm sorry."
At least she knows she's sorry, this one.
Anyway, she'd calmed down, and I'd provided food and drink, so I returned to my seat. If I started asking right then how she got here in her Academy uniform, we'd probably end up with a whole novel's worth of sob story.
As a cafe manager, I'm prepared to hear customers' little tales, but Academy drama might as well be dogshit—I'd rather not hear it if I can help it.
"...You're not asking anything."
"We listen if you feel like talking casually, but we don't pry into customers' personal business."
"Then... if I tell you, will you listen?"
"...Sure. Why not."
I don't want to hear it. I'd sworn never to get involved with the Academy, not even in my dreams.
But I wasn't thick-headed enough to leave someone practically begging "hear me out" in my shop while chatting away with my regulars.
Seeing me let out a light sigh, Dras beat me to the punch.
"Our cafe manager here is sneakily good with people, you know. He'll listen to anything you say."
Sniffle.
"Yeah, he's super kind. Even when I'm swamped with work and snapping at everyone, he takes it all in stride."
"Why are you guys telling her that?"
I lightly bonked Dras and Big Sister Leimi on the head with a spoon each and approached. My hand trembled a bit at the sight of that uniform, but I couldn't back down now.
"If you want someone to hear you out, anyone will do."
I placed my right hand over my chest in noble courtesy—the formal kind from the kingdom that I hadn't bothered with once since leaving the Academy.
"I'll volunteer for the role."
**
The girl who had entered the Royal Academy as a freshman this year, Karin Udette, could only stare at the man who bowed to her with noble etiquette—the kingdom style she specialized in, no less.
She had successfully escaped the Academy to a sufficiently distant place using her specialty, spatial magic, but the rain had forced her into the shop right in front of her.
What kind of situation was this, where the cafe manager knew noble etiquette?
But she hadn't come to pry into that, so she swallowed her questions and explained her circumstances.
The Udette family were merchants. Not just any merchants—they supplied goods from the capital, the kingdom's transportation hub, to the border nobles guarding the frontier territories. They had every right to take pride as loyal subjects of the kingdom.
That was why they spared no support for talent cultivation or requests from their trading partners among the frontier barons.
One recipient of that support was the Sun Saintess, Ermina Cassias, who had burst onto the scene in her third year like a comet.
But talk about bad luck. The moment Rias Calamity, the top villainess of the third years, learned that most of Ermina sunbae's sponsorship came from Karin's family, the harassment started right after orientation.
Unable to touch Ermina sunbae directly due to a series of incidents over the past couple of years, she vented her grudge on Karin with every form of bullying imaginable.
Assaults, theft, curse spells, even pressuring other freshmen to isolate her.
Before classes even started after enrollment, during the social period to get to know each other, her spirit had already been thoroughly broken.
In the end, using the very spatial magic talent that had gotten her into the Academy, she fled to a place where no one knew her—and wound up here, in Labyrinth City Astraea.
"Good grief. Some girls are just rotten to the core."
"Well, as someone from the Magic Tower, I wasn't a kingdom citizen, but I've heard all sorts of rumors. They say the Calamity's second daughter has no manners, treats her duke family's fiancé like dirt, and even set her sights on the kingdom's second prince."
"What Big Sister Leimi said is mostly true."
"What? You didn't mention your background once in a year, and now you reveal you're from the kingdom?"
"You pretty much knew already. You've seen the sword I use, sis."
The two who shared a laugh across from each other turned serious again. The cafe manager crossed his arms, sighed once while pinching his brow, sighed again while looking at the ceiling, then slowly spoke.
"You want the bullying to stop? Well, that's a given. Do you prefer quietly resolving it, or making it known far and wide?"
"...Quietly, if possible."
"Any urge to get revenge out of hatred?"
"No. Of course I'm angry about what happened to me, but I heard that Rias sunbae has gotten really skinny over the past year. Apparently her fiancé dumped her and vanished, and her nightly crying was so bad everyone had to move out of the dorm."
"...Aigoo. Not exactly the story I wanted to hear. Well, quietly wrapping it up isn't too hard, so just wait a sec."
He ducked behind the bar counter, rummaged around noisily for a bit, then returned hugging boxes in both arms and set them down next to her table.
"Take this back and find the cooking sorority in the Academy social clubs. Give it as a gift to the leader there, explain your situation, and ask for help."
"Oh, what's this? You know a lot about the Academy?"
"I'm from the kingdom, you know. Even as a freeman, anyone famous there is known."
"Huh? Is the leader famous?"
"Yeah. Namei Christe, one of the top authorities in ice magic and the kingdom's youngest court mage ever. Cooking's her hobby, and since I do it too, we've crossed paths a few times. I've even cooked at the palace."
"Why's a guy like that doing coffee instead of cooking?"
Hahaha. Laughing it off, he said he just does what he likes and began sorting the items in the box one by one. Inside were various tools and ingredients, including things Karin had never seen before.
"But if she asks where you got it or from whom, say you don't know. Oh, you could say a merchant you randomly teleported to in an empire border village gave it to you, and you don't know the location so you can't go back. No problem."
"Wh-why hide it?"
"I messed up something back in the day. If you say the wrong thing, I might end up as an icicle-pierced corpse the next day."
Chuckling as he said something ominous, he asked if she wanted to try coffee. As a merchant's daughter, she'd heard the name in pre-battle stimulants, but never tasted or seen it, so curiosity won and she ordered one.
What came out was a steaming black liquid with a nutty aroma. It looked hot, so she sipped cautiously—a subtle bitterness followed by a sweet aftertaste. She enjoyed the aroma, the bitterness wasn't overpowering, and paired with the food from earlier, it cleanly washed away the stimulating sauce and greasiness.
"It's good. Might be an acquired taste, though."
"That's why only those who like it come."
"Mm-hm."
The elf nodded. She must be a regular too.
The tables and chairs seemed spacious enough; adding one or two people wouldn't be an issue.
"Um, that."
"Yes."
"Can I... come sometimes? For coffee?"
"...Getting from the Royal Academy here isn't a simple trip."
While she'd been spilling her story, the clouds had cleared from Labyrinth City's sky. Maybe because of the surrounding desert—the sky had completely changed in no time. Lowering her gaze from it, she saw the vibrant streets, so different from the Academy's orderly atmosphere.
And in this quiet nook, the three regulars chatting casually with the cafe manager over their coffee.
"I'll come again."
"Haha. Sure. See you next time."
Imagining herself joining in those relaxed conversations, Karin smiled without realizing it.
**
"So. How much of that was bullshit?"
"Mostly fiction based on facts."
"All of it grounded in truth, but made up?"
"Pretty much. Can't do business if I tell it straight."
"That'd be bad."
"Ow, Mina. Stop picking on the manager and spin around!"
"Gotta protect my future husband."
"Heh heh, not getting married."
"I've seen exactly two humans married to elves in my dwarf lifetime, and they were doing fine."
"Sigh. More coffee, anyone?"
"““Me!”””