"I'll take a short break."

Creak, the carriage came to a stop.
Stretching her arms and legs, Charlotte loosened her stiff body.
Since it was a luxurious carriage, the interior was certainly spacious, and she could almost lie down comfortably.
Nevertheless, sitting still for a long time was quite tiring.

"Yulia! Let's go get some fresh air!"
"Ugh. I want to sleep more..."
"Don’t you feel cramped? You must have felt really stuffy, right?"
"Don't assume everyone feels as suffocated indoors as you do..."

Yulia slightly pulled aside her sleep mask and replied with a sleepy voice.
Anyway, Charlotte thinks everyone in the world is as lively as she is.
For her, staying indoors all day, reading books, studying, and lounging around is the best.
But Charlotte always makes a fuss about feeling cramped if she’s indoors for even a little while.

"Knight sister! Let’s make a campfire!"
"A campfire? There’s no need for that since we’re only stopping briefly. It would be tiring if we lit a fire and got discovered by bandits."
"Huh? Then what about food?"
"We’ll just have to eat preserved food. Do you want beef jerky or bread?"
"Ah."

No campfire?
Aren’t we going to catch a wild boar, skewer it, and roast it?
Aren’t we going to sit around the campfire and play musical instruments?
Then what about the adventure stories from the folklore...?

It was the moment when Charlotte's world came crashing down.

"Yulia. Are you really just going to sleep? Let’s take a walk and get some fresh air."
"Ugh, seriously. It’s pitch dark; how can we go for a walk?"
"Hmph. By the way, where did the old man go?"

Looking around, Charlotte couldn’t spot Aslan anywhere.
Where could he have gone?
Considering how calm the knight sister was, it seemed like he hadn’t gone far.

"Speaking of which, Yuria has also disappeared."
"Huh? It’s true!"
"Are they fighting? He was really mad earlier when he told her to take off her mask. Ugh, it seems like they don’t get along well..."
"Huh? I don’t think that’s the case?"

Charlotte tilted her head in confusion.
Yulia had a bewildered expression.
It was obvious that their relationship was quite tense, so how could she not notice?

"Didn’t you feel the hostility? When Aslan gets angry, you can feel the killing intent radiating from him."
"But it didn’t feel like he was extremely angry; it felt more like he was frustrated."

Oh? Is that so?
Now that I think about it, that might be right.
Yulia was also starting to doubt her own feelings.

"Last time when we stole bread in the market, he got really angry."
"That was terrifying..."
"Back then, it felt like he was angry for our sake. It felt similar to that this time!"
"Oh!"

Indeed. She had never seen Aslan get angry for himself.
He always got angry for others, for their sake.
At first, she hadn’t thought much about it, but after hearing Charlotte’s words, it really was like that.

He wasn’t trying to take her mask off because it annoyed him...
It felt like he was trying to take it off because he was worried about Yulia.
Thinking this way made the atmosphere between them feel delicate.

"What is their relationship really...?"
"Maybe he treats her as a special employee?"
"It might be more than that, Yulia! We should be on guard!"
"What do you mean by that?"
"They might be flirting with each other!"
"Huh? Flirting? But Yulia is a guy, right?"
"What!? Where do you see him as a guy?"

A disagreement erupted.
Charlotte and Yulia’s voices grew louder.

He’s clearly a girl, isn’t he?
How can you see him as a guy?
Charlotte and Yulia were seriously starting to suspect each other's vision.

"Why do you think he’s a guy? He’s just a slender girl."
"Just looking at his body, he’s clearly a guy. There are no curves."
"I don’t have curves either."
"Oh. That’s true."
"Hmph! Right! My words are right! My words... are right..."

With a successful rebuttal, Yulia was left speechless.
Charlotte, feeling triumphant, suddenly turned sullen.
What is this? Why do I feel like I’ve won but also lost?

"Anyway, it’s dangerous!"
"Dangerous? What do you mean?"
"We could lose the position of countess..."
"...!"

Yulia’s eyes widened.
She had been wearing a mask the whole time, so maybe she hadn’t given it much thought.
She had never imagined such a possibility.

"The maids said that the old man has a twisted preference for taking in innocent, pure commoner children and showering them with favors, making it so they can't refuse his proposals when they grow up! He might be doing the same thing to Yulia as well!"
"Huh? Whaaat!? If that’s true, that would be a bit troubling... Wait? Why am I feeling troubled? Aslan can woo whoever he wants! Ugh! Seriously!"

Yulia fanned her flushed cheeks vigorously, puffing out air.
It was so absurd that she couldn't help it.
Why should she care if Aslan is wooing someone?
An inexplicable annoyance bubbled up.

Looking at Yulia, Charlotte shook her head.

"Well, whether Aslan shows interest in Yulia or not? I don’t really care, but? Still, we need to go look for them. Yulia might hate Aslan’s clinginess!"
"Sounds like jealousy while making excuses."
"Charlotte...!"

So what exactly are they doing?
Charlotte couldn’t bear the frustration any longer.
Charlotte and Yulia soon decided to team up and go look for the two of them.

...

"Nobody is here, right?"

Squelch.
Yuria entered the quiet forest and surveyed her surroundings.
Now that she was here, there shouldn’t be anyone around.
Yuria felt relieved and snapped her fingers.

Then, magical byproducts began to float and emit light in the air.
It was one of the simple spells taught by Instructor Sylvia.
Originally, she was supposed to say “Shine!” as a spell, but...
She felt too embarrassed to say it aloud, so she figured out how to cast it without saying the incantation.

"A letter from the black old man. I thought I would leave before getting a reply, but it came quite early. Hehe."

Chuckling to herself, Yuria sat on a fallen tree and unfolded the letter.
She was all smiles.
It felt like her mood was lifting, which had already been sinking.

• To dear Yuria
• It’s been a while since my last letter. I was worried because the letters that usually come every three days didn’t arrive for a week.

I was busy with exams.
He’s really something.
At first, he seemed annoyed by writing letters, but now he seems to enjoy it more than I do.

• I heard about your exam results. Once again, you didn’t lose your spot as the top student. I felt grateful for sponsoring you.

"Hehe."

Right? I did well.
At first, I didn’t start attending the academy with a particular desire to study.
But as I continued, I started to find it enjoyable, and I ended up working hard.
Receiving praise makes me want to work even harder.

• While I want to congratulate you on being selected for the mission... it must be very painful to hide your identity behind a mask in front of your precious friends. I empathize with your worries. Given the rumors circulating and the image of Vermont, it’s understandable to feel scared. But let me tell you one thing, Count Vermont may not be as wicked as you think. Why don’t you try revealing your relationship with him and those children? If things don’t go well, I will take care of the aftermath, so be brave.

"W-What!?"

Yuria jumped in surprise and almost toppled over behind the tree.
She had thought the kind and dignified old man would soothe her gently.
Not only was he encouraging her to reveal her identity, but he also said he would take care of the aftermath...?

'So that means the black old man is at least a count? Or perhaps a duke...? No, could it be a grand duke!?'

Her imagination ran wild.
If he could confront a count, it meant he was at least that level.
She already knew he was a remarkable person when he could freely decide to admit someone into the Imperial Magic Academy,
but this was beyond Yuria’s wildest dreams.

How many people in the Empire were above a count?
The candidate pool quickly dropped below 20.
Oh, if I include the royals, it might be even more.
She had failed to narrow down the options.

'Since the black old man said it like this, maybe it’s alright...'

Yuria twirled her hair with her fingers, hesitating.
Perhaps she was hoping someone would push her forward like this.

Out of sheer fear.
Out of sheer fright.
Afraid of losing everything she currently had, she might have turned Aslan Vermont into an unrepentant villain just based on her prejudices.

Thanks to that, she felt a surge of courage.
Should I try saying it?
...was the thought that flashed in her mind.

"Here you are."
"Count!?"

Evil.
With a chilling voice that accompanied a rustling sound, Yuria hurriedly stuffed the letter into her pocket.
Ahh! I wanted to keep it neat...
Because of Aslan Vermont, the black old man’s letter was crumpled.
The hatred that was subsiding was now slightly reignited.

"Don’t wander too far. Your escort includes Charlotte and Yulia. If something happens at the carriage, it’ll be hard to deal with."
"Ah, yes. I’ll return near the carriage."
"Before that, let’s talk a bit. Man to man, let’s open our hearts and talk."

"Yes, Count. I will speak... Huh?"

Aslan put his arm around Yuria's shoulder and sat next to her.
Yuria’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
What did that man just say?