Chapter 83 – Field Training to Decide the Winner (1)

On the way back to Parencia, I was the only one in the chariot. The reason is that Liv has not finished her magic training yet.
In addition, the method of succession of Phantom Ball’s unique magic was unclear, so the Magic Tower was in doubt as to whether Liv had really inherited it. She said she would first finish her remaining training at the Magic Tower for a short time and then return with the other second years.

— Don’t be too upset. Me too… I’ll be back at the canteen soon.

Was it too obvious that I had so much regret? Well, it’s only about a week, so we’ll be able to see each other again soon.

After two full days of traveling by train, I finally felt relieved when I saw the main gate of the academy in the distance.
The long journey that crossed a quarter of the continent, from Sandalphonia to Vatudis and the Ravier Mountains, was over.

“How are you, guys?”
“Kung?”

After returning home past the two iron dogs that didn’t seem to regard me as their owner anymore, I took a look around the dusty cafeteria.
As expected, the damage was extensive, perhaps because it had been left unattended for quite some time.
Adela remained at the academy, but there was no expectation from the beginning that she would take care of her business, as she had never worked in a cafeteria or a cafeteria. After just appeasing her, she left in a hurry.

“Where should I start…”

Fortunately, the broken ceiling has already been fixed, so after a little cleaning, business will be able to start right away.
But today it was late and I was tired, so I wanted to sleep for now.

I immediately went up to the second floor and threw myself on the sofa where I had been lying on my back as usual. After Darling visited, the interior was filled with strangely familiar objects.
A familiar bed that relieves the fatigue of an arduous journey. However, for some reason, I felt that the room was especially dark and lonely than before.
Should I change the interior?

In the end, it was dawn when I finally fell asleep after lying with my eyes closed for a long time.

***

The next day, I woke up early and started cleaning. With a broom and a mop, I swept and wiped the inside and outside of the store, and even took down the flyers that were stuck on the window.
After roughly preparing for the opening, I first visited the director before he got too busy. It was to return the medal that had been previously stolen.

“Chairman, are you inside?”

When I opened the door and went in, Lehel was watching the King of Mons as usual. Looking at the number of silver coins scattered on the table, it didn’t seem like a lot of money had been wagered. However, as soon as our eyes met, Lehel was startled and hurriedly hid her crystal ball.

“Oh, no! “I was just watching!”
“…”
“I was looking for a promising player from another magic tower to pair with Grand Canyon…”
“…”
“Lord, I have committed a mortal sin!!”

I immediately approached her as she was casting Gren’s Verse and returned the medal that I had secretly taken from her hand.
Not only did he lift her up, he also patted her head a little.

“?”
“It’s difficult to cut it off with a single cut, so you don’t have to worry too much. “I’m still doing well.”
“?”

If Lehel had not been willing to help at the time when dealing with Carbias, it would have been difficult to protect her Liv.
In a way, isn’t the woman in her fantasy the only victim in the world who has endured the truth that her existence is just a fiction and that she will soon disappear?
It’s difficult to do what you want with the wind and all, but it was true that she at least made me want to do a little better to Lehel here.
Should I say that he realized that although her brains were a bit lacking, she had a good heart?

“Fuck?”

But Lehel looked at my arm stroking her hair and her slightly shorter hair for a long time, and then she suddenly turned into the person she used to be and started swearing.

“Who are you, you bastard?”
“What?”
“You’re not Luis. That person can’t do this to me! Because of that bastard, how much have I… !”

Just three sentences were enough to go from the boss to Louis, that person, and that bastard. She let out a fuss and stabbed her fist first into the head of the woman who was about to stab Meteor.

“Kwaaan!!”
“What bullshit again. “Did you get stabbed by a doppelganger like me?”
“Say, boss!?”

Lehel, who had been struck so often that she now wondered if her body remembered the sensation of the blows, began to tremble and bow again.

“S-sorry! I’m out of my mind these days due to withdrawal symptoms… !!”

I took a moment to admire the pure white legs beneath the robe sliding down due to gravity, then let out a small sigh. I looked at it just one more time.

“In situ.”
“Yes!”
“Don’t do that next time. “I’m going, so let’s talk if anything happens.”
“Excuse me… President.”
“Yes?”

As she was about to leave, Lehel called out to me as I stood upside down and our eyes met for a moment. She tilted her head with a puzzled expression and asked me an inexplicable question.

“Have you used transformation magic since last time?”

***

After hearing that her canteen had reopened, Adela stormed out of her classroom and rushed to her canteen as soon as her class ended.
Lunch time was chaotic as always.
She trampled on the students gathering in the distance and even used magic to move forward, but what she wanted was not just the bread she had eaten for the first time in a long time.

“Teacher, teacher, teacher, teacher!!!!”
“Huh? I’m here?”

Is this the first reunion with my beloved lover? Seeing her Luis standing at her counter, Adela was so happy that she immediately took out a bunch of silver coins from her pocket and held them out.

“Give me some bread!!”
“… “It’s been a while since I last saw you, is that all you have to say?”
“Would you like two?”

It was nice to meet you, but I still had to eat bread. He said, “Oh, that’s it.” And put her bread in a bag. Adela sneaked inside the counter, took out one, and started eating it.
Even though it was busy with students, she quietly watched Lewis work. While he was counting money, he noticed sauce on the corner of his mouth, clicked his tongue, and wiped it off with a towel.

“It’s not even a child, they bury it all and eat it. Messy.”
“Lol… Sorry.”
“Would you like something to drink?”
“I’ll take it out and eat it.”

I don’t know why, but she behaved twice as kindly as before. So she thought she was Adela.
Even though 〈 Ice Pick 〉 failed, she was finally able to kick out the wicked farmer who was trying to take the seat next to her teacher from her cafeteria.
Now, with the teacher who has put her mind in order, a happy life at the cafeteria awaits her.

Frozen squid, a North Sea specialty, and a stone ice storage facility that stores ice and maintains the cold using magic would be enough for a coma.
As quite a bit of time had passed since ‘that incident’, she was contemplating whether to secretly contact Rochear’s vassals, when she felt a strange current.
That was none other than the reaction of the students who visited the cafeteria.

“Hello, boss. “I guess the owner has changed?”
“I continued to run it.”
“I see. “Are you interested in dancing?”
“Because I’m not a noble. “If it’s an invitation to a prom, I’d decline.”
“Oh my goodness. Sorry, I was rude…”
“No. But the calculation…”
“Oh, that’s right! This time, I’m thinking of applying to help my family find a servant…”

It took twice as long for the line to shrink as usual. This was because the students who had just left their money behind started spitting and giving long speeches the moment they stood in front of Lewis.
There were many different types of requests, from invitations to a light meal or a dance, to joining a salon or requesting a serious relationship.
A first-year student who had been standing blankly looking at his face for a while happened to notice Adela sitting next to him.

“Uh? Adela?”
“Who are you?”
“I-don’t you remember me? “We went to a magic battle together.”
“Ah…”

Surely her name was Jennifer?
As lunch time came to an end and the cafeteria became quiet, Adela grabbed the remaining bread and sat down with Jennifer on the terrace outside the cafeteria.
Adela asked, pointing to her large envelope she was carrying.

“Is that all bread?”
“Huh? Uh… “You eat it all.”
“Really?”
“Huh. To be honest, it’s not that tasty, but I bought a lot of it. Even I did not know…”

Jennifer shook her head and slapped his cheek. At the end of her gaze was Lewis, who was throwing rusty coins to the iron dogs inside the concession stand.

“Wow, how can a real person change like that?”
“What are you talking about?”
“That store owner. In the past, you were saggy, your hair was unkempt, and you were very unsightly. But I haven’t seen you for a while and it seems like you’ve become really cool? “Do people look a little brighter too?”

The reason it ended in her interrogative form was because she didn’t know anything about Lewis in the first place. A salesman within the academy that no one was interested in. But not as of today.

Jennifer also realized once again how great the great noble family of Rochear was.
There was no one among the first graders who didn’t know that Adela lived with her feet in her stall. Because she used to work at a cafe in the first place.
Looking at it now, doesn’t this mean that all of this was Louis’ insight into his true worth?
I was amazed at how big of a picture she had drawn.

“Adela is truly amazing. “Even though we entered school together, I didn’t know he was that handsome.”
“Are you handsome?”

However, Adela actually tilted her head when she heard Jennifer’s words.

“No?”
“Umm… “It’s not wrong.”

Adela did not understand other people’s dramatic reactions. She was calculating and had no pretense of calculation, and with a truly puzzled expression, she spoke about the Lewis she knew.

“The teacher was always handsome. “It was cool.”
“What?”

I can’t believe I didn’t know that. Everyone looks stupid.

“I thought so from the beginning?”

***

Sales exploded. I’ve never had lunch this busy before.
While I was finishing organizing the remaining money, Adela was talking to her friend outside on the terrace.
And she waved her hand at the first grader, who couldn’t shake off his expression of disappointment, and came running towards me.

“Teacher!”
“Isn’t there a next class?”
“There is… “Still, I’ll just stay for a moment.”
“Come in. “Don’t be too late.”

The gentle scent of flowers hit me. It’s early summer, with final exams starting soon. The strange smell of honey was familiar.

“Are you still digging honey from flowers?”
“You can eat morning glories only when you wake up early in the morning. “Recently, surveillance has become more severe, making it more difficult.”

The night I returned to the Academy, I remembered the image of Jean Vière, the tree manager here, holding a pair of garden shears and fussing.
I handed Adela a small bottle containing the variety of honey that was on display for sale.

“I get a stomachache from eating that kind of stuff. “Take this and eat it if you’re bored.”
“Really? Are you giving it to me?”
“Okay.”

Adela received the honey pot with her eyes shining brightly. On her wrist she also wore the germanium bracelet she had given her earlier.
Seeing her cherish the things she received from me so much made the triangle in her heart prick her conscience.
I need to do better in the future.

“Hehe, it’s delicious…”
“Don’t eat too much. “I’m getting fat.”
“I don’t gain weight.”
“You ate two pieces of bread earlier.”
“I ate five. “But I still don’t gain weight.”

Why do you do that-? As she unconsciously groped her small belly, I could roughly see where the flesh had gone.
Well, good things are good things. The moment I was about to take out another can of honey, two iron dogs that were hanging out in a corner of the store suddenly started barking.

— Kkkk!! Kkkk!!
— Crrrr!!

“Kwaaaaah!? Stand, teacher!”

I headbutted Adela to get her away from me, and the two darted out the front door.
Then, a moment later, a woman wearing a familiar red cape slowly appeared.

“It’s been a while, canteen owner.”
“Viscount Ruhilen?”

Darling, who appeared with the look of a traitor, reached out to Adela, who was intimidated as soon as her eyes met.

“Are you okay, Rochear?”
“Oh, yes, yes. Fine… “Oh.”
“What’s going on, Viscount?”
“Well, I have some light business for you.”

Throwing a coin made of pure iron to the iron dog rubbing itself against his leg, Darling extended the same hand that raised Adela to me.

“Bill is in bed.”
“It hurts?”
“Okay. Because I’m older, my physical strength is limited. So…”

Glancing up at the ceiling she had repaired, she asked for a small favor.

“Would you like me to help you with one thing?”