episode_0170

It’s not that I forgot.

I was just incredibly busy.

Reuniting with Tier, strengthening our bond, sharing some love, learning recovery magic.

Training with the 1-A cadets to prepare for the final exams, and then, just as the exams began, those Moriarty bastards attacked.

Wiping them out, and overcoming the surprisingly tough mid-boss, whose defeat was harder than expected due to the sheer number of things I was carrying.

Waiting for the academy to be restored, sharing some love again, then fighting the final round of the exams.

Then, because I was exhausted, I rested for a while, went to the beach, drank some alcohol, took a walk, shared some love again…

Even just listing it in my head makes it hard to organize; so many things happened.

That much time has passed, but there’s plenty of reason for my excuse.

So, I sent Amelia an invitation to the Narita Princess’s tea party, and completely forgot about it for almost three months—

No, to be precise, being incredibly busy and rarely able to free up time should be considered extenuating circumstances.

Acceptable…

“Your Highness… Your Highnessss…”

Seeing Ria, sobbing face-down on her desk in the office, I felt a little guilty.

“I’m here.”

“Get lost, you bitch. I’m not in the mood to deal with you.”

The guilt that I had momentarily felt vanished without a trace.

Therefore, I approached her with a light heart, free from all the burdens on my shoulders.

With steps as light as my heart, I spun around, using the tips of my toes as an axis, and placed a new letter on her desk.

“Another delivery. Yulia said to give it to you.”

“…Yulia?”

The moment she heard that name, a beacon of hope, Ria rekindled the fire in her empty eyes.

She quickly picked up my (the Narita Princess’s) letter.

“The Nayfranz royal crest…!”

Only after carefully checking the sender, not letting her guard down, did she drop her sour expression and burst into a wide smile.

“Finally—!! Yaaay-”

Her body was overcome with joy, frantically pulling out her pocketknife, while her hand movements in opening the envelope were more careful and cautious than ever.

I heard last time that even a daytime envelope, if sent by Her Highness the Princess, should be treasured.

Anyway, Ria carefully placed down the letter envelope, which looked almost brand new despite the melted sealing wax.

After carefully and slowly taking out the letter inside, she began to read its contents.

“The, the tea party… Really…?! This time with the date written correctly…!!”

“It must be good news—”

“Shut up, you’re breaking my immersion. Hehehe~♡”

Her expressions when looking at me and when reading the letter were worlds apart, despite only a few movements of her head.

Being able to crumple and uncrumple her face like that is a talent in itself.

“The day after tomorrow… Right. I’ll quickly clear up the work that has piled up, and then, after that…”

“I should choose a pretty outfit to wear.”

“Yes—right, the clothes! That high-quality fabric dress I saved—”

*Rip-*

“You… Didn’t I tell you to shut up?”

“Yes, yes. I’ll only deliver the last part that Yulia added.”

“Wha, what is it…”

Her true feelings were so transparently visible that even if she hurled insults at me, I wouldn’t be offended.

Even though I’m harsh to Narias, she’s still a subject who looks forward to meeting me, her heart filled with anticipation.

So, I wanted to ease her burden as much as possible.

“Her Highness doesn’t like dressing up too much. Keep it as simple as possible, and keep the makeup light.”

“Simply… dressed yet undressed… Got it. Now get lost quickly.”

For some reason, her face was quite cute even as she was shooing away her least favorite troublesome cadet.

Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes bright, and her upturned lips couldn’t hide her soft smile.

So, leaving Ria’s middle finger behind, I left her office.

. . .

Two days later, the royal palace.

The day of the promised tea party.

The day before, I got a good night’s sleep in my room in the royal palace for the first time in a while, and starting early in the morning, I prepared for the tea party with the help of numerous maids led by Yulia.

I set up a covered table on one side of the garden, and baked delicious cookies of various kinds.

Once all the preparations were neatly completed, about two hours remained until the appointed time.

“Hmm… I prepared a bit early.”

I’ve already sent the tea leaves I blended myself to the kitchen so all I need to do now is show up.

Thinking of waiting leisurely during the remaining time, I was strolling around the garden when…

Suddenly, I saw two legs sticking out abruptly from a boxwood bush nearby.

“Aaaah- Help me!”

They weren’t trying to swim in the grass.

They were wriggling their legs around frantically, like an upside-down baby bird.

I reached my hands into the neatly kept grass, supported the body inside, and slowly pulled out both legs.

Soon, the upper body hidden inside appeared, revealing a woman covered in leaves.

With her wavy silver hair neatly tied up, wearing a dress that seemed to cost an exorbitant amount at a glance.

It was Amelia, sparkling brilliantly.

“Th, thank you…!”

I told her to go for a “dressed but undressed look,” and she clearly repeated it to herself.

But where is the modestly dressed look?

She clearly came in full regalia which seemed to take 2 or 3 hours to put together.

“The appointed time… is still about two hours away.”

Ria was still seemingly dazed after her experience falling in the bush trap (not), and she was still adjusting her dress and removing the leaves that clung to her body.

Soon, after brushing off her bangs, she realized who I was.

“Ah- Uh- Uhaaa-!! Her Highness Princess Narita—”

“You came early.”

And as soon as she realized it, her face turned as red as hot coals, and she waved her hands in the air, bowing repeatedly.

“Uh- no!! I just arrived!! ”

“So…that’s the problem.”

“I’m, I’m sorry…!!”

“There’s no need to apologize—”

Although she’d tried hard to remove them, a leaf or two still remained on Ria’s back.

I gently reached out and carefully removed them.

Seeing her neatly organized appearance, I realized she was just as beautiful as our kids despite her years.

Maintaining such a well-toned body despite working overtime every day is not an easy feat.

I honestly expressed my admiration.

“Today… you look very pretty.”

“Th-th-that… because I was really looking forward to the tea party with Her Highness, ah—no, it’s not that, th-thank you!! Hehe, hehehe…”

Despite exuding an elegant atmosphere in her mature and sexy attire, the moment I gave her some praise, she grinned ear-to-ear which was quite the gap moe.

Since things turned out this way, I thought we might as well go ahead without waiting until the scheduled time.

I grabbed her hand and led her towards the back of the garden.

“Everything is ready, let’s go.”

“Ye, yes-!!”

Ria followed closely behind me with the quick steps of a chick.

. . .

At first, I just thought of it as a delayed task.

It’s like, sometimes high-ranking people come down and check up on the commoners.

I considered it something similar.

“These days, the cadets are really outstanding! They’re not like the old scholars who just read books and engaged in armchair discussions; thanks to the academy’s new curriculum, there’s an increase in practical magicians who directly experience and feel things with their own bodies, which is good, I think.”

“Hoho, is that so?”

“Yes really! It’s said that seeing is believing, right? As in those words, the fighting capacity of the new recruits this time is tremendous. The ones who advanced to the finals of this final exam…hehe, they were all first year students in our magic department.”

I felt that Ria particularly idolized me, so I let the flow of the conversation go as she pleased.

So she could say what she wanted to say and hear what she wanted to hear.

“By the way, I heard you led the knights during the recent academy incident, I’m really sorry… If I’d heard, I would have immediately rushed over to show my face, but I was too busy…”

“Don’t worry about it. I didn’t want to burden you, I just wanted to encourage everyone, that’s why I came.”

“How… Her Highness’s kind heart must have been a source of strength for everyone!! I also heard there are reports that the construction workers started to feel more energetic after Her Highness’s visit?”

It was somewhat arrogant behavior, but I also thought of it as a small reward for Ria.

She had been busy and overworked for quite some time to the point that she didn’t even have a moment to meet me.

I thought that she deserved a break for working so hard and dedicating herself to the academy.

So, while quietly listening to Ria’s story, I nodded in agreement and smiled, focusing on her.

“By the way, there’s something I wanted to tell you… these cookies are delicious enough, right? The dessert shops sold in the capital are laughable… but this tea, the aroma is really amazing…”

“I brewed that tea.”

“Re, really?! Wait a second, did you really, Her Highness… Wow-! You’re even outstanding at tea ceremonies, it’s beyond words. The scent is fresh and sweet, but the deep flavor lingering subtly after the smooth finish…”

It was cute how Ria chatted excitedly like a child, expanding on the topic freely.

She was clearly older than me.

Nevertheless, she chattered away with a beaming smile like a fledgling.

Unbeknownst to me, I must have distanced myself slightly from the conversation, quietly watching her.

When I suddenly took a sip of tea, the flow of conversation was slightly interrupted, and a silence hung in the air.

Ria bowed her head.

*Clink-*

“Her Highness.”

“What is it?”

In a voice so small nearly inaudible to ordinary people, she quietly sighed.

“Aren’t… you having fun?”

“Oh, no. That’s not it.”

“I’ve been talking too much, and it feels like Her Highness is thinking about something else…”

Did I make a mistake?

Though I had intended to let Ria take the lead, it was too passive an attitude.

Conversations should be conducted as equals, but I had simply sat there stiffly.

Even though she was sitting beside me, she must have felt lonely.

“Meeting with Her Highness… was that a reckless request on my part?”

“That…”

“I’m sorry for saying this, hehe—”

She was probably disappointed.

She’d been looking forward to meeting me for days, building up anticipation, and dressing up so pretty.

But all that happened was her talking alone.

Despite feeling upset, Ria tried her best to smile so as not to bother me.

But that backfired; her forced smile made her look like something that could fall apart at any moment.

This boredom had to end.

“Her, Her Highness…?!”

I took off my tiara and placed it on the table, untied the meticulously arranged knot in my hair and ruffled it with my hands.

I tossed my high-heeled shoes onto the grass, untied the laces of my dress and the corset on my back, stretched my legs, and crossed them over my thighs.

I abandoned all pretense, reverting to my usual tomboyish attire.

“Sorry. Let’s stop this.”

“I’m, I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to…”

“Let’s end princess-mode now—”

I pulled my chair next to Ria, sitting close enough for our shoulders to touch.

I quietly looked up at the distant sky.

“This time, will you listen to my worries?”

Her eyes spun around as if startled at first, but as I continued to look at her face,

Ria showed a relaxed smile, no longer tense.

“Of course!! I’ll listen to you as much as you want—!!”

Perhaps inviting Ria to the palace wasn’t for a citizen check-up.

Perhaps, overwhelmed by all my anxieties, I unconsciously needed someone to listen to my story and worry with me.