Color me surprised when I found out the animals were capable of cognition and speech. Their base instincts have caused many headaches, but perhaps they could make useful tools if we can teach them our tongue. Supply me with a greater number of arms and soldiers, and I shall uplift and bend these plains dwellers to our wills.

  —An old letter by Paula Idra, reassembled after the scraps were found on a charred skeleton left in the shade of a towering tree.

  No weapon that Lycoris put in her hands felt quite right when she gave a few test swings or stabs, much to her dismay. In irritation and out of desire to not linger overlong, she grabbed a few that had plenty of spares such that none would miss their disappearance, and stuffed them inside of her “bloodbag” as she’d come to think of it. The strange sensation was a mystery best explored without an immediate time constraint, and she had left the two of her friends alone in the training hall without her.

  When she returned she was surprised twice over. First, when she saw that Raine was still practicing with the saber alongside Cecily. And second, when she saw more of the class had arrived—including the instructor.

  He was a somewhat flamboyant man, with his top appearing ripped open to expose a gratuitous amount of chest hair. It was the same style of protective training gear that the students were given, only sized for adults. It also accomplished little in the way of protecting his solar plexus, as it was far too occupied with waging a losing war against his pectoral muscles. His lavender hair fell down in a short wave onto his shoulders where it naturally curled, and his golden eyes immediately locked onto Lycoris as soon as she returned.

  The man stopped in the middle of rhythmically snapping his fingers to set a tempo for the students practicing their footwork, and paced swiftly over to curtsy before Lycoris with almost more grace than her own mother.

  “Welcome back Your Highness,” he began in a dulcet tone, before dropping into a hoarse whisper, “I don’t know how you’ve done it, but I am astounded by the miracle you’ve performed today.”

  “I… uh, whuh?”

  Of all the possible things she was expecting to hear him say—from sycophancy to chastisement for leaving before he even showed up—she had not anticipated that it would be genuine earnestness for miracle-working. It was such that her own poise had broken and she slipped ever so briefly back into her old register, even though her voice still sounded far higher-pitched than before.

  For a moment, she thought she saw a light twinkle in his eye, but the teacher closed his eyes and inclined his head respectfully, “Allow me to introduce myself. I am the fencing instructor and colosseum coordinator, Almas Drimus. While it wasn’t long ago that I heard from Greatuncle Agave that you would be joining us, I am honored to welcome you to my little studio. And, I apologize for not being here when you first arrived! Never would I have anticipated that such a darling little princess would be so punctual about timely training! Though, I shouldn’t be surprised, given your mother, ahaha~”

  “A-Aye… I hear that a lot.” Lycoris closed her eyes and forced herself to regain her composure. “Although, this is the first I’ve ever been titled ‘miracle worker.’ Might I inquire to what you refer?”

  “Why, the fact that Miss Lynnvel is even practicing her footwork! I don’t think I’ve ever seen her hold a weapon in her hands before today, ‘tis a most momentous occasion! I don’t know how you did it, but it brings a tear to the eye to see.”

  “I don’t think I did anything special. I just dragged her along and put a sword in her hand.”

  “No matter the case, I offer you my gratitude, Your Highness.” This time, he offered a low bow.

  “I imagine she’ll stop not a second later than her mandatory allotment requires, though…” Lycoris muttered more to herself than to Almas.

  The conversation smoothed out after Lycoris overcame the sudden overbearing praise and regained her composure, with most of it consisting of Instructor Almas pestering her for details on the sort of training Lycoris had gotten up to with her mother—though in a more subdued manner than how her classmates had hounded her for life details prior. She was grateful for the opportunity to explain that most of her training had been of a practical sort, meant for actual combat rather than polite society duels, and how she lacked confidence in sparring without hurting someone.

  Of course that only endeared Almas to her further. Like a fish to a waterfall, he relished the opportunity to expand her awareness from the absolute basics into actual proper fencing. Unfortunately while she followed his motions and practiced, that strange feeling from before never faded. If anything, it only grew stronger the more she fixated on it, so she did her best to ignore it completely, with mixed results.

  As she had anticipated, Raine tapped out before anyone else, eventually retreating to the side of the room to pick her book back up as some of the other students cast baleful glares toward her. Not that she showed any signs of caring, or satisfaction, or really anything. Her expression was as blank as ever, as though she’d spent the past few hours discussing the weather rather than rigorously training. If it wasn’t for the sweat on her brow, Lycoris wouldn’t have even been able to tell that she’d been putting any effort into it at all.

  As for Cecily, Lycoris did humor her request for a spar, and while the two of them became the center of attention and she couldn’t figure out what the issue with her sword arm was, she still managed to trivially outperform her friend after a quick rundown from Almas. The disparity in skill and speed was simply too much, even if Lycoris was still a novice duelist herself.

  Thankfully, nobody else tried asking her for a duel after that, and she could have sworn she heard some of them complaining under their breath about her being a “leftie.” It must have been a problem for intermediate duelists, considering neither Cecily nor Almas made any remarks on her dominant hand being her left one. It was somewhat obvious why Cecily wouldn’t have any complaints, as it was quite literally her first day and she had no bias at all, but there was always the possibility that Almas was simply being polite to not bring it up—or subtly fearful of royal retribution.

  Arnen had yet to arrive even after they finished up their duel and both returned to working on their form, perhaps the sort to linger in bed in the mornings. No matter the cause, it meant Lycoris was free from having to humor his request from the day before. It was probably for the best, given that her match with Cecily had demonstrated that she had a long way to go herself before she could fight without employing “frowned upon” tactics in a formal fencing match against a more skilled opponent.

  By the time the noonbell rang from the grand steeple over the main building—no doubt magically amplified to carry across the entire campus, as there would otherwise be no way Lycoris could hear it at such a distance, especially indoors—most of the other kids that had arrived in the morning were sitting around like Raine. Though rather than reading, they were chatting with each other or watching some of the fresh arrivals practice and spar with each other.

  The one exception was Cecily, who was still working just as hard as when Lycoris first left her. Perhaps even moreso, as she eagerly joined in and followed along when Almas was giving some personal instruction to the Princess after their little bout without needing any encouragement.

  It seemed that Lycoris had ignited a spark in her heart. The thought brought a smile to the Princess’s lips, maybe she’d get her sparring buddy after all. Maybe she’d even get to teach Cecily the ins and outs of proper fighting too—assuming Vanessa didn’t take umbrage with the idea. Lycoris could certainly brute force the issue and ignore what the older sister’s wishes were, and it would probably be quite a bit harder not to given their relative positions, but she’d rather not pile any more grief onto the young lady’s already overburdened shoulders.

  For once, Lycoris was grateful that she had who knew how many years ahead of her. If she had thought about training someone like Cecily before, she probably wouldn’t have lived long enough to see her win a duel. And not just because of what her intended objective of their cross-continental journey had been.

  But like all good things, it was time for their training to come to an end for the day. And of course as soon as Lycoris brought up that she was going to finish up and wind down for the day, Raine sprung to her feet with an almost suspicious amount of energy. Though no sooner than she did, she nearly tumbled back over, so Lycoris didn’t give her too hard of a time. It was apparent she’d put in as much effort as her body would permit her to, which was already more than Lycoris had technically asked of her.

  The three of them returned to the changing room, rinsed themselves off and dressed back in their proper uniforms, and decided to go their own separate ways for their lunchtime activities. Cecily was the first to break off, having already left to grab a quick drink from a vending machine before heading off to check on Mira. Lycoris wanted to pick Raine’s brain about magic, but the other girl just wanted to return to their tower and hide in the library where she could complain to the musty tomes about how sore the muscles she hadn’t even realized she possessed were.

  Lycoris didn’t have the heart to remind her about the state of the tower’s personal library.

  Instead, she allowed Raine to leave and spent the rest of her afternoon on the same fruitless endeavor from the day before, though at least had the good sense to dress it up as “exploring the campus on her own to get a better feel for things,” to anyone who asked why she was poking her head around. Not that many people approached her of their own volition to begin with. Mostly it was just older students making sure she wasn’t lost. She was, but not in the sense that they were asking.

  There were all sorts of facilities on campus for recreation, including multiple rooms dedicated to various types of board games that she didn’t recognize or comprehend—though at least one had an immaculate miniature recreation of a city, meant for some sort of wargame involving tiny figurines kept on display on glass shelves lining the wall. No doubt that was a popular one among the bellicose nobility. There were also several with pool tables, card tables, private movie theaters, and several machines with stacks of reflective discs piled up beside and control devices connected to them that Lycoris couldn’t figure out the purpose of. Rather, she didn’t have the time to spare, given she was just giving passing glances as she kept looking for where her real target might have ended up.

  There was also a gymnasium, with both an indoor and outdoor pool, as well as a smaller steaming tub. The entire room reeked of pungent chemicals and was incredibly humid, causing Lycoris a momentary bout of dizziness. The water was apparently safe however, considering there were students swimming laps when she poked her head in.

  A facility with several machines and weights was right next door, which was currently heavily occupied thanks to the rain outdoors. Again, by students mostly older than her, but she was probably the youngest person on campus anyways.

  Next she visited an art facility, which not only boasted its own opera house, but also was fully equipped with an entire orchestra’s worth of instruments on top of that.

  Probably every single object inside of that place would be worth a fortune back in Dauwen, Lycoris thought to herself with dry amusement as she looked at the somewhat haphazard storage method of some of the instruments. It would be no lie to say this one building was probably worth more than Dauwen’s national treasury. Maybe if all of the nobles pooled their collections together, but that was just as unlikely as Lycoris sprouting wings and flying over the campus grounds… without collapsing at the mere thought of the idea.

  “Oh, Your Highness. Are you looking for something in particular? I didn’t realize you played,” a melodious voice called out from behind her, words like sweet honey warming Lycoris inside and out.

  Coming out of a brief bout of nausea from the thought of flying in open air like she saw on the track field, Lycoris turned around and saw a trio of students, two with strangely shaped guitars slung over their shoulders. Two girls with loose hanging hair in faint teal and bright pink, and one boy shorter than either of them—though taller than Lycoris—with a pale lavender bowl cut covering his eyes, all stared at her in vague surprise and concern; the usual reaction to “Princess Lycoris Aster Aphtangloa.”

  She recognized the boy at least. The Tamisrah child was in some of her classes, including on the fateful first day when she’d stumbled into Dahlia and Raine. He was apparently among the horde of students that had been clamoring to talk to her, though according to him, he’d been swept up with the flow while trying to slip out of the classroom, apparently.

  “Not to disappoint, but I fear I don’t, actually. I’m just looking around the campus as I haven’t yet familiarized myself with everything on offer.”

  “Dang. We could’ve used a drummer,” the pink-haired Idra girl sighed.

  “Carnelia, show some grace!” the other girl, an Ochros, lightly bonked the Idra’s head with her wrist. In that same soft tone—she had to be the one to speak up initially—she continued with an incline of her head, “My sincerest apologies, Your Highness. I am Agletas Ochros, this is Carnelia Idra, and our bass player is Talias Tamisrah.”

  He nodded when his name was called out, “I’ve met her before… Her Highness is in the same classes as me. Or, some of them at least…” Comparatively speaking, his voice carried so little confidence that the rain outside threatened to drown him out.

  “A pleasure to meet you all,” Lycoris curtsied with well-honed grace. She’d repeated the gesture so many times across the campus alone that it almost felt as natural as swinging a sword by this point. Almost. “Am I in the way? I can leave if you need to look around.”

  Agletas shook her head, “Not at all, Your Highness. Far be it for any one of us to invade as you search for your passion.”

  “H-Huh?!” Lycoris blushed and took a half step back as she leaned away. I-I would hardly call Dahlia a passion! And how does she even know? Don’t tell me someone started spreading a strange rumor already?! Mizar, save me!

  “You seemed enamored with the instruments on display. If you have any questions, or feel like plucking a tune, I can find our conductor.”

  “Oh, yes, mm.”

  Righting herself, Lycoris folded her hands over her waist to regain her composure. She glanced over her shoulder back at the sparkling brass and silver, and glistening varnished wood. There were many things she never would have thought she could have the chance to do. But just by wandering around, she’d found opportunity after opportunity ready for her to pounce upon.

  “Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea,” she mumbled to herself.

  “Oh wonderful! What calls out to you?”

  “We can probably work with whatever, though…” Carnelia began muttering to herself.

  “A-Are you serious?! We can’t just… I mean think of the attention we’d draw by having Her Highness as part of our band!”

  “That’s the point, Tal-boy.” Carnelia dismissively ruffled Talias’s hair.

  Tuning out the boy’s whimpering and that conversation in general, Lycoris turned around and hummed to herself. Her first thought was the violin, as she’d seen Princess Fawaris practice on occasion, but something inside told her to look elsewhere for her first choice. There was no reason to immediately gravitate towards the first or most obvious thing.

  Lycoris walked around the room a little, letting her fingers brush against different instruments as she wandered. There was nothing that seemed to call out to her, nothing that felt like it was “the one” that was waiting for her. If anything, it was a refreshing feeling. The instruments on display didn’t show any bias or favoritism, much like a sword wouldn’t.

  …I bet he’d laugh at me for comparing music to swordsmanship, she smiled inwardly.

  Eventually, after much awkward shifting about by the three who’d fallen silent waiting awkwardly for her to make up her mind, Lycoris stopped before a large black behemoth with glittering white teeth, its body split open and exposing the long thin innards that vibrated with each click of its fangs.

  She’d heard the singing of pianos before, they were almost always at the backbone of any celebration or event that she’d attended, and always somehow quietly tucked out of sight despite their huge size and complex construction. Pressing her finger down, she heard an almost nostalgic sound. Even though she didn’t know where it was from, or even if she had ever heard it before, she traipsed her hand across the keys in an curiously familiar melody.

  All present—Lycoris included—were caught up in the moment as though entranced by the sound. But as quickly as she started, Lycoris lost the thread of what she was doing and blinked. The spell immediately shattered and she stared blankly down at the piano in bemusement.

  Carnelia was already groaning under her breath, but Agletas drowned out the grumbling with applause, “What a splendid little tune, Your Highness! That was quite lovely for something off the cuff like that.”

  Lycoris raised her hand and looked at her fingers, “I’m not sure what came over me, if I am to be perfectly honest.”

  “Why’d it have to be the piano of all things?! I guess carrying something like that around isn’t really a problem for her, but… maannn, d’you think we could at least convince her to be a keyboardist instea—”

  “Carnelia, silence.”

  A shiver ran down Lycoris’s spine at the suddenly discordant tone coming from Agletas, who had turned her head to glare at her friend.

  Who in response, pursed her lips in a pout and lowered her gaze, turning her head away as she glowered and sulked.

  Before the awkward atmosphere even had a chance to clear up, the pale-haired girl turned back to Lycoris with a cheery smile and sonorous tone as though nothing had happened, “While I have no intention—nor could I even dare consider—forcing Your Highness’s hand, I would be both delighted and honored if you considered picking up the piano and playing like that again. Whether it were together as part of our entourage or otherwise, I’m sure all would be delighted to listen.”

  “Mmm.” Lycoris nodded while powering through the dubious feelings wriggling inside her, in an attempt to avoid appearing meek in front of her seniors. Who were also technically her subjects. “I’ll consider it in the future. I’m not sure about being part of any ensemble, but I’m still shopping around for extracurricular activities at present.”

  “Then Ancestors forbid we keep you! If you have any questions, feel free to find me in my dorm, or you can ask for Anastasia Volpini in the servants’ quarters. Or, you may ask Professor Wolis. He’s the one in charge of the amphitheatre.”

  Lycoris nodded and walked past the three of them, politely giving a small wave to Talias as she did so.

  “See you tomorrow,” he replied, while half-hiding behind Agletas.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  ＊　＊　＊

  Lycoris was torn between continuing her haphazard search and trying the dorms again, but ultimately decided to give up on it when she was stricken with a sudden epiphany after seeing the Tamisrah child.

  There would in fact be another day of school.

  In retrospect, it was so obvious that she felt like laughing at herself. There was no reason to hunt for Dahlia, when the girl would inevitably cross her path once more. Lycoris returned to the tower feeling a mixture of relief, anxiety, and defeat. She wouldn’t have to hunt the other girl down, but also it meant that there wasn’t going to be any running away from her problem either.

  When the next day rolled around and she arrived early at class, Lycoris was completely bewildered.

  Dahlia was there as expected, but when Lycoris approached her to speak, she was nearly left speechless. The girl acted as though nothing had happened at all. She simply smiled and greeted her in a somewhat distant but otherwise friendly manner, then left to go find a seat as though unbothered by anything.

  Lycoris was so stunned, she didn’t even think to ask after her. Class started with her in a slight daze, such that she barely processed what the professor was talking about. When class ended, Dahlia vanished before Lycoris could speak with her. Uncomfortable with the strange aloofness, she waited for their next class together and tried to speak again, only to receive the same vague polite platitudes.

  They continued in the stressful song and dance for several days, with Lycoris’s nightmares shifting to ones of loss and anxiety… which left her conflicted. She couldn’t tell which was better or worse, between that and the hazy traumatic phantoms from Dauwen. It was at least far more explainable to Vanessa, who offered her quiet sympathy and late night tea.

  Though she was surprisingly strict about denying any teasnacks or other forms of late night snacking, much to Lycoris’s amusement.

  It ultimately took another ten days before Lycoris was able to catch Dahlia in a situation she couldn’t easily maneuver out of. And Lycoris had spent a little of that time scheming up what angle she’d attack from. Lycoris approached and greeted her just as she was leaving class—as there was a “brief” two hour window during which their free time overlapped on that day—to intercept her before she could duck away.

  Perhaps Dahlia understood something was up as well, as she waved the twins off and turned to Lycoris with a slightly wan smile.

  “Good day to you too, Your Highness. Might I ask what brings you to the Sciences and Technology building?”

  In almost a single breath, Lycoris rushed to speak before the other girl could excuse herself, “Would you care to join me for lunch?”

  “Oh my,” Dahlia blinked in surprise, then furrowed her brow and put a finger to her lips as she looked a touch troubled. A moment later, she pulled out her phone and contemplated while staring down at it, closing her eyes briefly.

  Every second felt like agony to Lycoris, who desperately wished she’d just say what she was thinking.

  “I have some time, I think. Did you truly come all this way just to ask me something like that? I’m touched, if so.”

  “Well you—”

  Lycoris cut herself off, masking her frown by turning away and lightly grabbing Dahlia’s wrist. If she’s only playing innocent, is that how I come across normally? I’m surprised people don’t get more frustrated with me…

  She didn’t bother to smooth over her aborted thought, instead letting the vague sense of frustration hang in the air as she started walking Dahlia along with her as she headed towards her destination.

  “Your Highness?” Dahlia understandably seemed a little confused, possibly even genuinely concerned.

  “I picked out a spot for us already. Fear not, for I won’t take more time than necessary out of your busy schedule.”

  Dahlia nodded in a bit of a daze, allowing herself to be dragged off to a location Lycoris had already prepared. Not personally, obviously, but she had enlisted the aid of Athena and Vanessa—along with a brief call to Seraphine, who was nervously delighted to speak with her again—to set up what she thought would be a surefire solution to ameliorate whatever was going on between her and Dahila.

  The best guess Lycoris had was that Dahlia felt slighted that she’d chosen Raine over her, though it wasn’t like there was any need or incentive for her to ask Dahlia to change houses. But she could see a child being petty and jealous on principle.

  It was a sunny day, and while Lycoris would have preferred to coordinate this earlier, she didn’t have the ability to nudge the people in charge of the academy’s weather to do as she requested. Maybe if it’d been an actual emergency, but the thought of ordering people to change overcast skies to clear and sunny was so far beyond anything sounding reasonable or ordinary that Lycoris felt mildly embarrassed for even entertaining the idea in her head. Instead she had settled for simply reserving the location rather than the weather.

  Lycoris led her past a no-admittance sign to a table that had been purposefully set up in the gardens, careful to avoid stepping on the flowers that sprang up all around them. Unlike when they had first met, this wasn’t a secluded location meant for privacy that was surrounded by similar places. There was only the one table and pair of chairs set up, specifically a smaller one meant for children of their stature, with Athena standing dutifully at attendance as she loomed tall over the almost dollhouse-like display. The sea of flowers all around them swayed gently in a tempered breeze, the soft red petals forming a natural carpet and orchestra as a backdrop to Lycoris’s chosen dining location.

  As the host, Lycoris led and seated Dahlia, despite being of far higher rank, before sitting opposite and giving Athena a small nod. The maid nodded in response and vanished into thin air, while Lycoris turned her attention to the girl who’d now adopted a somewhat serious expression after she finished gazing at the gardens. The table had been set with silverware, but the cups and plates remained empty, the metal bones of a little three-layered tea cart resting to one side.

  “Might I ask what this is about? Not that I am one so inclined to shy away from a private invitation, but this reeks from heavens to beneath of a scheme.”

  Lycoris nodded, folding her hands over her lap as she sat up properly, “While perhaps improper to answer a question with another, it would be the swiftest way to cut to the heart of my concerns. Why have you been avoiding me, Dahlia? And being oddly formal and distant at that. Or, rather,” she continued before the other girl could finish inhaling to speak, “if you’re still upset with me, why not approach and ask me to apologize?”

  The lavender-haired girl trembled bodily as she choked on her own breath, placing a hand to her chest. She looked like she had been caught completely flatfooted. “*cough cough* I… Excuse me? I don’t know where to even begin with that. What… what in the world would I be upset about?”

  …

  Next it was Lycoris’s turn to be utterly bewildered. Though, no breath caught in her throat. She simply stared at Dahlia as her arms and legs turned to lead weights. Had she seriously been worrying and losing sleep over nothing? The idea of that was almost enough to make her want to flip the entire table over and immediately draw her scythe in a frenzy.

  She resisted the intrusive impulse, tamping her emotions down to mere irritated relief as her eyebrows twitched. Through gritted teeth, she spoke in the most polite tone she could muster, “Did you already forget our argument at the stables? I find that somewhat difficult to believe, Dahlia.”

  “No, I didn’t. But why would I still be upset over a minor disagreement like that?”

  “A minor— Dahlia you ran away crying. What in the world qualifies as a major disagreement if that’s a minor reaction?!” Lycoris felt her anger pop like a balloon, as she suddenly wasn’t sure if she should be upset or exasperated.

  Dahlia tilted her head, putting a finger to her chin as she scrutinized Lycoris’s face. “Neither of us were injured at all. I could hardly consider something that didn’t even come to blood a big deal. It’s no different from chastisement from one’s parents. Not even, but I’m sure you’re already well aware.”

  Ah, right. I suppose if casual mutilation is a standard punishment, then violence would be the measure by which all interactions are sorted. But the ordinary folk wouldn’t be able to heal with just a breath… Lycoris folded her arms and let out the rest of the tension that’d been welling in her, a sense of pity replacing the irritation from before. It’s no wonder that Vampires always seemed so hyper-vigilant and aggressive… Man I’m glad I was able to convince Lilianna against that method of “parenting.” …Even if it isn’t all that different from—

  “Lycoris, are you alright?”

  “Oh, yes… I haven’t had many friends before, I suppose I must have been working myself up over nothing then. I thought you might be privately harboring a grudge against me.”

  “Fuhuhu, oh no no not at all, Lycoris. If I were to hold a grudge, it’d be for stealing the seat of Exaltare out from under us all without even having to lift a finger. But I find that almost commendable, in an envious manner,” Dahlia giggled into her hand, which somehow annoyed Lycoris more than if anything else so far. “I see now why you set up such a lovely view for our little conversation.”

  “I was going to offer you a meal as a peace offering, but I suppose such a thing is unnecessary,” Lycoris answered in a flat tone. A moment passed, and she sat back up straight, “But, wait. If you weren’t upset, then why were you avoiding me all of last week?”

  “Avoiding? You said yourself that you were well aware of how busy I was, and still am. We have our annual exams coming up, Lycoris. Just because I am no longer an Heir-Potentiate in waiting, doesn’t mean that I don’t want to have the number one time in our grade.”

  “Come to think of it, I heard some boys talking about that too… might I pick your brain for some elaboration?”

  “Hmm? Ah! I suppose you have only been here for a fortnight and change. Schools grade based on how quickly you get every single question correct on an exam. A test of how swiftly and efficiently one can access all the memories tucked away in their skull. Many find it helpful to prepare by mentally going through and placing little ‘bookmarks’ in places they think are relevant, or carving out memories that get in the way rather than being of benefit.”

  “C…Carving out memories?”

  “No need to blanch, Lycoris, it’s nothing so terrifying as what you might be imagining. For instance, do you really think the annals of Archduke Norfel Deyfros are going to be of particular importance compared to his leading the expedition into Impact Site Thirty-Eight?”

  “I’m not even sure where that is or who you’re talking about. Though I do recognize the name Deyfros,” Lycoris sighed as she realized the inevitable connection that was about to be brought up once more.

  Instead of stating the obvious, Dahlia simply smiled mysteriously, then frowned, “Right, you’re several years behind the rest of the class. I’m impressed you even have time to spend on frivolities like our little moment of friction.”

  “I’m not sure what a month of time is even supposed to do for me, in that sense. I hadn’t thought to ask about the timing on such things… Perhaps I could ask the Dean if there was any consideration given for my strange circumstances.”

  “I would find that skeptical at best, Your Highness. Though an important princess and priceless treasure you may be, this academy treats all its constituents as equal on a curricular level. If you are prepared enough to stand with the rest of our class, they will most likely assume you are prepared for everything that entails.”

  “Wh…What?! What am I supposed to do then!”

  “The best you can. You still have a few weeks, it’s not the end of the world just yet.” Dahlia waved a hand through the air, shrugging her shoulders and smiling, “It wouldn’t be the end of the world either way, of course. All it would mean is that Her Majesty sent her child off to school before she was ready. I’ve no doubt you can easily smooth things over with the student body… most of them are already terrified of you on principle.”

  “Ahahah… I suppose that first impression of mine left a lasting impact. As awful a spat as it was, perhaps I should consider sending your uncle a thank you note.”

  “Pfff, no doubt he would relish such a thing. If you do, ensure that it is at a time when I will be home. I want to see his expression personally.”

  As the two of them chuckled together, with Lycoris privately wishing she could stop constantly bouncing back and forth between concerned and relieved for even just a minute, Athena returned with two trays. On each was a magnificent, towering cylinder housing a parfait, each dotted with glittering ruby-like fruits and spackled with a thick red syrup, almost giving them a vein-line quality. Condensation slipped down the sides, and the crystalline glass sparkled in the light.

  “Oh my… is that fresh pomegranate?”

  “I hope you’re okay with sweets for lunch,” said Lycoris while already reaching for her spoon.

  She already knew that Dahlia had a sweet tooth—though Lycoris couldn’t judge if it was as potent as her own—and had Athena confirm with Yulina that pomegranate was actually her favorite flavor, and not just what she was saying to get on Lycoris’s good side.

  “Well, I suppose I can indulge if Her Highness is treating me~” Dahlia put her palm to her cheek and giggled good-naturedly, “If this is the sort of treatment received for a silly little quibble like that, I greatly look forward to your reign, Lycoris.”

  With their moods reflecting the weather, the two of them immediately dug in to their “lunch.” The flavor was different from the one she had before, but it was hardly inferior. Fortunately, Lycoris had enough composure to not greedily devour it like before, and was able to savor the flavor properly. Gone were the days of stale bread and salted rations… Though Lycoris certainly didn’t mind the taste of salt. Something about sharing a parfait under the sun like this felt illegal, but that truly was the least of her concerns right now.

  Even if she’d introduced another wrinkle into the folds of Lycoris’s life, at least Dahlia didn’t harbor any sort of resentment that Lycoris could observe. The matter with exams was… daunting, however. As much as she didn’t want to, as much as she wanted to keep putting it off until the last minute for Raine’s sake, or until she found anything to use as a gotcha… Lycoris was probably going to have to have another conversation with Lilianna. It was frustrating, but she would absolutely know how Lycoris could navigate this situation to avoid either of them losing face.

  And more than anything else, she didn’t want to cause her mother more problems. Especially when she was tangentially responsible for the decision she was upset at her mother for making.

  I suppose that was more the others’ idea than mine… …I wonder if Mama even knows how I still feel about her? Maybe she’s like Dahlia and doesn’t think anything of the arguments we’ve had.

  Considering how often she’d bent her knee for Lycoris’s sake and comfort, the girl somehow doubted that was the case. If anything, it offered some insight into just how far Lilianna was willing to go for her sake that she made every attempt to break out of the habits ingrained in her as a noble-born.

  I’m sure she thinks she has a good reason, and I know that her hands are tied to at least some extent, but… Ngrgh, Goddess damn it all! Why does she have to be such a reasonable monster?!

  The girl’s head continued to swirl with muddled thoughts as her spoon swirled through the slowly melting soft serve…

  patreon is the first of many monthly bonus chapters for those who support me! And of course there's a channel on my discord server for discussing it (once you've connected your account to discord and all that). Be sure to check it out if you already support me, and if you don't, maybe consider it for the extra content. But if you don't want to or otherwise can't afford to, don't worry, as the bonus chapters are purely side content that have no direct impact on Lycoris's tale. You won't miss out on any key details or anything like that.