TMM 28

“Lord Samuel, then I shall go to the cafeteria instead. Would that suffice?”

“That would defeat the purpose of my coming here, wouldn’t it?” Samuel shot back at once, prompting Brian to shrug lightly.

“I don’t want to put Alicia in an awkward position, so I’ll go. But if anything unpleasant happens, call for me immediately.”

“Thank you, Brian.”

Alicia waved to him as he looked back with concern.

“Now we can finally speak. Or rather—are you allowing people to call you by your given name so casually, when you are the Crown Prince’s fiancée?”

Samuel’s reproachful tone stirred genuine anger in Alicia.

“That is the custom here. Please do not bring the norms of the general course or the magic knight division into the magic department. Now then, what is your business, Lord Samuel?”

She restrained herself from saying more, wanting to send him away as quickly as possible.

It was surely about Joshua and Mariabelle.

“His Highness is worried that you no longer appear at the cafeteria. He would like to dine with you at least once a week.”

“I see. However, our curricula differ, so our schedules rarely align. Moreover, the cafeteria is quite far from here.”

“Then it will be up to you to make the necessary adjustments.”

Her irritation threatened to resurface, but she had no wish to draw attention by arguing here.

“Understood.”

“And one more thing. His Highness plans to visit the Wellston estate during the academy break next week and wishes for you to be there.”

That was a difficult demand.

She could not imagine Deborah or Thomas allowing such a thing.

For a time, she had enjoyed the natural, unencumbered atmosphere of the magic department. Yet in the end, she remained tightly bound by circumstance.

“Would it not suffice for us to share a meal at the cafeteria?”

“……”

Samuel looked at her, visibly perplexed.

“I have heard the rumors in the dormitory regarding His Highness and Mariabelle. He wishes to dispel them, does he not?”

“That may be part of it, but His Highness also wishes to get closer to you.”

Had this been before she looked into the magic mirror, Alicia might have been pleased.

“Would the palace gardens not do?”

“Who knows? I’ll tell His Highness that you suggested it.”

“Yes, please do.”

Being beaten upon returning home was worse than attending a palace tea with a spiteful Queen.

No doubt the Queen would invite Mariabelle as well. The outcome would be the same either way, but Alicia chose the path that spared her bodily harm.

(What a waste of time.)

For a fleeting moment, she wondered whether she should simply disappear from this country once she graduated.

But that would be far too ungrateful to her grandparents.

“And one more message. Fran wishes to speak with you.”

“Lady Fran…? How is she doing now?”

There had been no word since the incident. She was worried, yet also afraid to speak with her.

“She’s surprisingly well. Far more lively than before. She’s devoted herself entirely to caring for her husband.”

A chill crept up Alicia’s spine.

“I see…”

“I think that mirror should be removed. It’s not a good thing.”

“Pardon?”

“The magic mirror in the clock tower.”

“Is that His Highness’s instruction?”

Samuel raised one eyebrow slightly.

“You made me promise not to tell His Highness, so I’ve kept quiet. Would you have preferred otherwise?”

“No. Thank you for keeping it secret.”

Though she could not entirely dispel her doubts.

Still, if he truly had said nothing to Joshua, she found herself reassessing Samuel ever so slightly.

Even at the recent informal teaparty, the clock tower’s magic mirror had not come up.

“Fran is certainly a strong woman. But isn’t it strange that a newlywed would care so energetically for a husband who cannot move? Normally one would be consumed by grief or exhaustion.”

“Lady Fran is very responsible. Perhaps she is simply holding herself together.”

Fran must be happy, Alicia thought—able to keep her husband all to herself.

(The me reflected in the mirror loved His Highness until the very end. Perhaps Lady Fran and I are alike.)

The thought left her feeling bleak.

“When you first told me about the mirror, I thought it was nothing more than a ghost story. But watching you and Fran, I can no longer dismiss it so easily.”

“Am I somehow involved?”

Something in his wording caught her attention.

“You’ve changed greatly. In the cafeteria, you were always downcast, hardly ever voicing your own opinions. Yet now, in this chaotic magic department—where there is no hierarchy or rigid order—you’re thriving.”

“I find the magic department suits me better than the general course.”

“And like Fran, you seem more alive.”

“What are you trying to say?”

Time was finite. Alicia wished to use what remained before graduation wisely.

She wanted to begin preparing for the afternoon practical session.