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“…Hmm, it’s already this late. Momo, wake up.”
“Zzz… Hah! Is it time to eat?!”

Hearing the sound of the noon bell, I shook Momo, who had been sleeping beside me.

She woke up surprisingly fast today, which was impressive, but the book she was holding hadn’t progressed past the very first pages. Just how long had she been asleep?

“Shall we have lunch too? Sorry for taking up so much of your time, Guildmaster.”
“Not at all. What you’ve shown me was more than worthwhile. May I keep these notes?”
“I don’t mind, but they’re just scribbles, you know?”

The Guildmaster was holding a rough set of notes I had written to teach magic to Stell.

Calling it knowledge on how to sublimate water magecraft into ice made it sound grand, but in reality, it was just a collection of things anyone could figure out by reading the grimoires available in this library.

“Not at all. Being able to clearly articulate the sensation of using magecraft is a talent in itself. You truly have a gift for teaching, Lady Laika.”
“Teach… teach me more…”
“Later, later. Where do people usually have lunch at this academy?”
“There is a cafeteria about a five-minute walk from here. Allow me to guide you.”
“……Five minutes, huh.”
“Master, should I carry you?”

✦✧✦✧✦

“Whoa, it’s a school cafeteria!”
“Several Outlanders assisted in the construction of Yuri Academy. This cafeteria was one of their ideas.”
“Huh, now that’s an interesting bit of history.”

(With Momo’s help) I made my way to the cafeteria. Inside, students who had arrived earlier were already bustling with energy, their hunger evident.

It seemed that by inserting a coin into the magic device at the back, they could purchase a ticket to exchange for a meal.

“First, let’s cycle through the menu… and for the second round, how much am I allowed to eat?”
“Are you planning to devour their entire food supply? Take it easy. I’ll secure a table, so go ahead and place your order.”
“Teach… It says… ‘Limited to 20 servings a day… Delicious Pudding’…”
“Out of the way, Momo! How bold of you to think you can eat before your master!”
“You’re being ridiculous, Master! I want dessert after my meal too!”

From an outsider’s perspective, this was nothing more than a childish spat over dessert, the kind you’d expect between elementary and middle school students. Naturally, we attracted quite a few stares.

Just as I was seriously considering the use of magecraft for the sake of pudding, a student watching us from afar suddenly shouted out.

“Aaaah!!! YOU! YOUUUU!!!”
“…Hm?”

Realizing the voice was directed at me, I turned toward its source.

Standing there was a slender boy with blond hair and blue eyes. He was pointing at me, his blue eyes blazing with hatred.

“Master, do you know him?”
“No… I don’t think so… or maybe I do?”
“Teach… That’s Konis…”
“Konis? Hmm…”
“It’s Umravolf Konis!! Don’t you dare say you forgot me, you white-haired woman!!”
“Uhh…”
“DO NOT FORGET ME!!!!”

The name ‘Umravolf’ made it clear he had some connection to Axio and Stell.

But this Konis kid… he looked vaguely familiar… or maybe not…

“Master, isn’t this kid the one you saw with that lady at the Aldebaran guild…?”
“…Ahhh—! Yeah, that’s right, he was there!”
“You b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲!!”

Umravolf Konis. If I recall correctly, he was the son of Madam Cozmiki—the woman who tried to bribe me back when I was Stell’s tutor and bodyguard.

His mother left such a strong impression that I’d completely forgotten about him, but thinking back… yeah, I do remember a boy like this sitting on her lap… wait, lap?

“Didn’t expect to run into you here. So, what do you want?”
“Don’t play dumb! Because of you, my mother is gone!!”
“Teach, could it be that this kid doesn’t…”
“…Well, we’re not obligated to tell him.”

From the way he said ‘gone,’ it seems Konis didn’t know that his mother was dead.

Technically, we never saw a corpse, but there was no doubt she fell victim to that ghost ship.

And even if she had survived, with Stell now officially recognized as the heir, there would be no place left for them.

“Father enrolled Konis here… before me…”
“I see. So he sent him away to protect him from the retaliation of the other wives. I guess Axio does have some fatherly instincts, after all.”
“Master, that’s rude.”
“What are you two whispering about?! My family is in ruins because of you!! O all-consuming flames of annihilation, burn my enemies to ash—!!”
“Cut it out. Playing with fire in a place like this isn’t exactly wise.”

I sent a water sphere toward the tip of Konis’ staff, and with a sharp sizzle, the fireball he had been building up fizzled out.

He couldn’t shorten the chant or discard it mid-cast, and even with his staff’s assistance, his control over the spell was sluggish at best. No wonder they resorted to poisoning Stell—he wouldn’t stand a chance in a proper succession battle.

“Wha—!?”
“If you truly care about your mother, at least think about the time and place. The way you act only reflects on her character.”
“Kh…! Damn you…! Just you wait!!”

Spitting out a cliché parting threat, Konis turned on his heel and fled. He must have come to the cafeteria for lunch, but… is he really okay skipping a meal?

“Teach… that was cool…”
“No, I probably shouldn’t have handled that so aggressively. Guildmaster, could it be that he’s also…?”
“Yes, he is a student in the elementary division and, well… set to become one of Lady Laika’s pupils.”
“Oh no… That’s depressing…”

The curious stares from all around were painful. Thanks to Konis’ loud voice echoing through the cafeteria, almost every student must have heard the commotion.

It was going to be awkward running into him in class from now on. And with that attitude, would he even listen to lessons properly?

“…Well, no use dwelling on it. Let’s recharge for the afternoon. For that, I need pudding.”
“Oh, sorry, Master. I think I bought the last one.”
“My pudding—!!!”

In the end, I never got my pudding. And with my motivation for the afternoon hitting rock bottom, we finished our lunch.

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