Author: Himezaki Shiu	Original Source: Syosetu
Translator: PunishedLyly	English Source: Re:Library

Project GB is an official initiative by Re:Library.

There were plates and spoons laid out, and it seemed we were supposed to pick our food ourselves—or so I thought, until a girl in a maid uniform, who appeared to be around student age, suddenly approached and said, 「I shall pick for you.」

While not as polished as the manor’s servants, she seemed to be well-trained, so I suspect she’s an upperclassman aspiring to be an attendant.
Ciel paused to think before handing her plate and responding, 「The portions can be small, but I’d like to try a wide variety. There’s nothing I won’t eat, so please choose as you see fit.」
Receiving the plate, the girl in a maid uniform mused for a moment and then started to place food on the plate.

Since I’m sure Ciel will keep an eye on her, I took the opportunity to look around and noticed that the dancing had already begun.
New and old students were freely mingling, with upperclassmen inviting their juniors to dance.
It seemed they were taking the lead for the less experienced underclassmen, guiding them through simple steps that even I could manage. Still, they appeared to be fighting an uphill battle.

Also, clusters of people had begun to form.
One group had gathered around Juerd, the student with the Hero Job. There were more female students in that crowd, but some male students were present too. Upon closer inspection, the red-haired Rulinia Hausen was also nearby.
Rulinia likely has an appraisal-type Job, so she should already know that Juerd is a ‘Hero’. Perhaps she was there to monitor him, if not for some other unidentified reason.
Unlike the others, her expression remained carefully concealed, so I couldn’t read her intentions.

Another group was forming around the princess.
While Juerd’s group appeared to have more commoners, the princess’ group was composed mostly of nobles, which Princess Leshimiiya handled with a soft smile. This crowd had a higher proportion of male students, some of whom were upperclassmen.

Truth be told, quite a few had also attempted to approach Ciel, but upon seeing her make a beeline for the food table, they hesitated.
Well, it seems like they have the courtesy not to start a conversation with someone in the middle of a meal.
As for the commoner newcomers who lacked such etiquette, they’re too overwhelmed by the situation to even pay attention to Ciel in the first place.

With this, Ciel should be able to eat in peace. As I finished musing, the maid upperclassman returned.

「Will this be to your liking?」
「Thank you very much.」

On the plate she handed back to Ciel were small, neatly arranged portions of various dishes, none of which touched one another. There are meat, fish, and salad—a well-balanced selection. Among them, Ciel picked up the marinated fish first, a dish we normally don’t have.
Since I can also taste anything Ciel eats, I feel its potent flavor in my mouth.
It’s delicious, but it probably would’ve been too much for us if this was our first meal after our escape.

「Is it good? Are the flavors too strong?」
「They’re delicious.」
「Actually, would you like something even more flavorful?」
「Yes.」

As I suspected, the presumed maid upperclassman really was an upperclassman, as she shifted to a more casual manner of speech, which didn’t bother Ciel at all.
It seems like Ciel is really enjoying the food, though she probably just can’t be bothered to elaborate on her answer.
However, it appears that the maid upperclassman is delighted by the sight of Ciel enjoying the food, as she seems to be waiting for Ciel to finish eating with a smile on her face.

「U-um, Ailneige. Would you mind me staying with you?」
「Feel free.」

Even as Palra came running over, Ciel didn’t stop eating. Palra, however, looked visibly relieved as she quietly took her place beside her.
It appears that she had run away from a dance invitation. She didn’t need to do that, as dancing wasn’t mandatory, and I’m sure her would-be partner would have understood.
But for someone like Palra, even being approached might have been too overwhelming.

The maid upperclassman turned to Palra and asked if she would like a plate prepared as well. While nervous, Palra managed to vocalize her food preferences.
Soon enough, Ciel emptied her plate, and, taking the opportunity, a patient male student approached her.
From his clothes and his refreshing demeanor, he seems to be a noble son, and as he came before Ciel, he stretched out his hand.

「Would you care to join me for a dance?」
「If it’s only for one song. However, may I have some time first?」
「Yes, of course.」

With Ciel’s response, the boy retracted his hand and waited nearby.
As Ciel was heading to the maid upperclassman, I couldn’t help but ask her:

『Was that alright?』
『We might end up in a similar situation in the future anyway, so I can’t be dismissive forever.
Besides, it would be better to just accept it, right?』
『It may be the better choice, but… shall we swap places?』

『No.』 Ciel promptly rejected my offer.

『After all, I’m the next person Ain will be dancing with. I’m not letting anyone take that away from me.』
『… I… have complicated feelings about you holding a boy’s hand…』

Part of it is because I assumed Ciel couldn’t handle males for the longest time, and I just can’t help being protective.

『Really? Really! But since I’m putting my own feelings aside for the dance, Ain should try to do the same too.』
『I understand. But if you start to feel uncomfortable, please immediately switch with me.』
『I promise.』

With our discussion over, Ciel approached the maid upperclassman and, with her plate out, uttered, 「I’ll return afterward, so I’ll leave this with you.」
「Understood,」 she replied, accepting it.

With that out of the way, Ciel returned to the waiting student.

「I’m done.」
「Then once again, may I ask for a dance?」
「Yes, but only for one song.」

Taking his outstretched hand, they joined the group of dancers just in time for the next song to start.
Ciel flawlessly danced at the same level as I would, but as expected, the boy started talking to her.

「I would love to take the opportunity to get to know you better.」
「I’m sorry, but I already have a special person in my heart.」
「That’s a shame to hear. I’m quite envious of whoever stole your heart.」
「A wonderful individual to be envious of.」
「Ahh, it appears to be so. In that case, allow me to at least bask in this moment until the end.」

Their conversation ended there. It felt wrong to butt in during such a moment, but I couldn’t bear it any more, so I called out to Ciel.

『Umm, what was that…?』
『Noble talk is pretty annoying, isn’t it? Thankfully, the lines from a story I read before worked.』

Well, yeah. Ciel got confessed to and rejected him just as smoothly.
I don’t know whether nobles are just that casual about confessing, but some of them do seem to treat flirting as part of etiquette, so I can’t tell if it was sincere or not. Either way, it didn’t make it feel any less unpleasant.

『So who is this special person in your heart?』
『It’s obviously Ain, isn’t it?』

Ciel responded as if it’s only natural, as though she’s wondering why I even bothered to ask.
While I do know there shouldn’t be anyone else, when she says it like that, I honestly don’t know how to respond.

『No need to feel anxious, okay? After all, Ain is all I need. No one’s ever going to take me away, you know?』
『Okay… I understand.』

In the end… What kind of tone did I say that in?
Was it anxious? Was it something else? I honestly can’t remember.
All I know is that Ciel reacted with a burst of joy, shouting,『Ain, Ain! You’re absolutely adorable! Adorable, you know!』
And that left me even more unsure of how to respond.

Just as that thought crossed my mind—「Know your place, peasant!」 a loud voice suddenly echoed across the venue.

⇐ Previous

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⌈ Index ⌋

And that ends this chapter! Things got quite eventful in this half. The sudden dance invitation was… well, pretty sudden, but it led to such a funny scene. Seriously, why is Ain so cute?

I forgot to comment about it on the previous update, but I honestly liked how they had the headmistress appearing with a barrier which seems to have been intentionally perceivable for students of a certain level of skill. After all, it wasn’t just Ain who sensed it, but other students as well. Moreover, it’s also apparently elliptical, which (if we assume it’s to minimize the total surface area for the barrier) shows her skill. She was doing ‘the Ain thing’ on the students, lol.

Back to our girls, adorable. Ciel continues to grow and understand that compromises are needed sometimes, meanwhile Ain is being read like a book, lol. It’s also funny how Ain was like “Uhhh, what?” towards the sudden flirting the noble boy did, meanwhile Ciel was like “Man, talking with nobles is a pain” and “Good thing I read this in a book before”. And on the background, poor Palra was left alone after she just escaped from a dance invitation.

Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay healthy, stay safe, and have a nice day~!