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“Well, the church overblew the tale with hundreds of years of pilgrimage, saving people. Also, ‘Wandering Beauty’ makes me sound like some kind of fairy tale princess from a ruined kingdom… Well, I don’t know if it disillusions you, but this is all who I am.”
“Bah. Knowing you, I’d bet you just wandered around for kicks and stuck your nose where it doesn’t belong. You’ve just been bringing trouble wherever you go, and then some idiots decided to worship you.”

Christy was aghast seeing Regina speak so freely to the living legend.

“Mentor, you and the Saintess, um… what’s the nature of your relationship?”

““Frenemies.””¹ They both answered without delay… then they made disgusted faces as they looked away from each other.

“…I see.”

Christy nodded, apparently reaching enlightenment. From the few exchanges she had witnessed, she managed to infer the general nature of their relationship, as well as the personality of the Saintess.

She was unmistakably a friend of Regina’s, of a similar oddball variety.

“Well then, may I now ask for the reason why you two are here together?”

When Christy brought up the main topic, resigned, Regina and Snow exchanged glances once again. However, this time it seemed they were signaling to each other with their eyes, and for some reason, Christy felt a chill run down her spine.

“What, it’s nothing important. Just wanna tell you not to send any troops to Uranus’ village… the elven village in the north.”

Regina’s words were casual, but they still drained the color from Christy’s face.

“Does the central… the capital already know what is happening?”
“Like hell they do. Those fools failed to notice a village of elves for 30 damn years; they won’t know jack until a war breaks out.”

Regina spat out in disgust.

“If so, then how did you…?”

Instead of Regina, it was Snow who answered Christy’s question, her mouth still full of several cream puffs.

“Houzuki… wait, his name is Bartholomew over here, I think? Well, that thing updated me telepathically² . We’re well acquainted with the head of that village. We’ll lend a hand if things get out of control.”
“Well, since it’s Jill who’s there, you can leave the matter to her. She’ll learn a lot from this.”

Regina grabbed a handful of cream puffs and commented nonchalantly.

“B-but, aren’t you worried about how much she’ll be hurt if this leads to serious friction between humans and elves…? I mean, aren’t you concerned about her safety, mentor?!”
“……..”

Seeing Regina clam up, Christy realized she might have spoken out of turn and bit her lip. While Christy saw Jill as her little sister, it went without saying how much her mentor cared for the girl.

“Bah. That weed is a tough nut to crack. You’d better not get any dumb ideas either!” Having said that, Regina boldly washed down the cream puff with her tea.

“Well, the elves have a wise and understanding leader. I don’t think there’s going to be any bloodshed unless some people are extremely obstinate about causing trouble, so don’t worry.”

Seeing that Christy was still clouded with anxiety, Snow waved her hand casually, as if to reassure her.

“Not to mention, if things have really gone from bad to worse and she has no way out… Hmm, let’s see. For the cream puffs I’ve enjoyed, I’m willing to intervene and handle the matter myself.”

While the revered Saintess held a cream puff in her small hand, lifting it with a radiant smile, Regina sniffled lightly, and Christy slumped onto the sofa, feeling defeated.

“…by the way, this Jill girl, is she that overweight child from a year ago? She didn’t seem too sharp to me, so why do you hold her in such high regard?”

When Snow asked, tilting her head, Christy replied humbly but firmly, with a resolute tone.

“She’s a good kid. And far from being obese, she is in excellent shape. While she may not be on par with you, Your Holiness, she is beautiful, much like you are. And most importantly, she is honest and hardworking… though her self-esteem might be a bit too low.”

“That ragweed still thinks she’s the same ugly pigweed she was a year ago. I kept quiet since it was amusing to see her reactions. It’s about time she sees herself in a mirror—It’s going to be fun to see when she does realize it, so don’t you say anything.”

Regina showed off her perfectly healthy teeth as she grinned, earning a judgmental stare from Christy.

“I see. You both surely value her highly.”

As Snow hummed in a good mood upon hearing their answer, Christy realized that the legendary Saintess had deliberately used a demeaning adjective to fish out their valuation of Jill.

Christy wasn’t a huge fan of such a manipulative method, but this proved that, at the very least, the Saintess was interested in Jill… At the very least, Christy could judge her to be an ally.

As if reading her inner thoughts from her expression, Snow made a delightfully satisfied smile, further making Christy feel like she was dancing on the palm of the Saintess.

Then, as if to signal that it was time to end the visit, Snow put an index finger on her chin and brought up a topic, looking a bit troublesome.

“That being said, I still don’t quite understand what you meant by ‘beautiful much like I am’. …Well, I guess she’s just normally beautiful, then?³ Her obliviousness aside, a beauty constantly abasing herself sounds like a painful sarcasm, so I think you really should put a stop to it.”

((((Well, she’s right……))))

Everyone in the drawing room agreed to that.

♢♦♢♦♢

After this, the residents of Baroness Brandmüller’s mansion were relieved to have been released from their war-like status for the time being. However, before they knew it, the black-robed witch had already ridden off on her giant black cat, disappearing into the distance.

The white-vested Saintess was also nowhere to be seen. Either she had disappeared, or they had been separated, somehow…

Looking out the window of the mansion, Christy, the madam of the house, sighed. She looked at her untouched cup of tea and the plates of tea sweets, which were now completely empty.

“…In the end, they just came for the confectionaries.”

Now that both the Founding Emperor and the Legendary Saintess had warned her not to do anything, the baroness could only sit back and hope for some good news. She trusted Jill, her sister-disciple and adoptive daughter by chance, but even so, she couldn’t shake off a trace of uneasiness.

“Good lord, I feel like an overprotective parent. Is this what being a parent feels like?”
“It is.”

Christy had mostly spoken to herself, but Royce still answered with a faint smile in his eyes. Beatrice also nodded. Incidentally, they were both parents with children and grandchildren in their private lives.

“But children grow fast, and they’ll be adults before you know it.”

Catching Royce’s words behind her back, Christy looked out the window — far to the north — and then muttered.

“Gods. Which one of us is the overprotective one now…”

Her mentor and her familiar had left through the back door, turned around, and headed that way. Far in the distance, the majestic scene of the sacred Seraph Mountain Range was visible.

Author’s note:

Jill’s negotiation is supposed to take place after this, but her guardians are a bit too active; they end up taking up so much space.

Moreover, here Snow says “I’m willing to lend a hand (やぶさかではない).” The original interpretation of this sentence is “Yess, please, I’d love to do it!” but due to the popular misuse of this sentence nowadays, one that is interpreted as “well, it’s not like I’d hate doing it or anything,” I’m using this sentence for its second, wrong interpretation.

Also, quick spoiler: Snow doesn’t show up after this. She’s just here as someone from behind the scenes.

Translator’s note:

Every bit of that note comes from the author, the spoiler included. For a grammar police, the author sure loves using confusing grammar, outdated vocab, and unconventional kanji, but who am I to say?

1. Mab: Kusare’en 腐れ縁 actually means a bit different than frenemy, but I honestly can’t find any better alternative.

   Kusare’en means someone you’re stuck with, lit a rotten bond. As much as you hate the other person and vice versa, there usually is a circumstance that keep you inseparable.

2. Mab: Bartholomew’s a player?? No wonder he looked surprised to see a PET.

   Also, this is probably a Message function.
   

3. Liomad: I see that Yuki still hasn’t gotten rid of that same problem.