NOVEL NEXT chapter 31
31 – Tea Party
“Young master Ike. Would you like to have a tea party together?”
After history class, Atal spoke to me.
“A tea party?”
“Yes. I thought it would be okay to have a meeting with people who are studying attribute magic.”
“Mmm.”
“Didn’t you say attribute magic was difficult in the last class? If we all get together and spend time together, I think it will help quite a bit.”
After the first class of attribute magic the day before yesterday, I confided all the facts to Atal.
The practice task of creating a new spell formula for attribute magic is difficult for me.
Fortunately, Atal was surprised, but he told me to set aside some time to study before the next class.
It seemed that the tea party was set for that time.
“I am fine.”
“Yes. Then sand tomorrow. Please come to the Garden of Stars at 2:00 PM on Sunday.”
Atal lowered his head slightly, and he left the classroom first.
It’s a tea party for the people in the attribute magic class.
A total of 10 students are taking this class.
If my memory is correct, there was no event like this in the first place, and at most there were no people except Helen to participate.
Reina is the type to avoid things like tea parties unless it’s absolutely necessary.
Sophia is still in a situation where she can’t get along well with the people around her.
Then let’s get out of here and Atal. Helen will gather.
At most, the crown prince would be added.
It won’t create an awkward atmosphere.
If you think about the personalities of Helen and Attal, wouldn’t it be a rather pleasant tea party?
I thought so.
★
“….”
On the day of the tea party.
I was at a loss for words when I arrived at the Garden of Stars on the eastern side of Arcana’s site.
A pure white table was set in the large garden.
In order to block the sunlight, there was a large parasol next to it.
Sweet scented tea and snacks welcomed me just by taking a breath.
“Welcome, Prince Ike.”
Atal looked at me and smiled as she approached.
“… Quite a lot of people have gathered.”
A total of 6 people came to Atal’s tea party.
Me, Atal, Reina, Sophia, Helen, and the crown prince.
Simply put, except for me, who is Ike, all the characters who had weight in the original work were gathered.
“Yes! Are you happy?”
When I saw Atal happy, I was speechless.
“Hello, Ike.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
After sitting down at the table, the first person to speak was the prince.
He was looking around with an intrigued expression.
“It must have been a sudden tea party, but quite a lot of people gathered.”
“I will.”
“I heard the purpose from Atal. Ike, you are very weak in attribute magic.”
“It’s embarrassing, but it is.”
“Then there can be no better environment than this.”
Aside from the atmosphere, the prince was right about what he could learn.
Everyone here is more talented than I am.
Even Helen said elemental magic isn’t fun.
“We’ll talk about that later, but for now, let’s enjoy the tea party. The priest has sent us many good refreshments, so everyone will be satisfied.”
“Thank you, Atal.”
Helen smiled and replied to Atal’s words.
It didn’t look like there would be any problems.
The only thing I was worried about was the confrontation between Reina and Sofia yesterday, but unexpectedly, the two of them were enjoying the refreshments without saying anything.
I don’t know about Sophia, but I thought Rayna would say something first.
Of course, it’s fortunate that there are no problems.
I hope it goes to the end with this kind of atmosphere.
“I don’t think attribute magic suits me either.”
Helen let out a sigh as she put her cookie into her mouth.
Okay. Even in her original work, she always wanted to drop out of the Attribute Magic class, and she didn’t actually apply when she went up to the second year.
“How did you register for the course?”
“Originally, I didn’t intend to listen to it, but my parents recommended me to listen to it at least once because I was born with a lot of magic. It would have been easier if I had failed the course registration.”
“Because attribute magic is difficult and dangerous, it is not very popular, so it must be difficult. The conditions for enrolling in classes are also difficult.”
“I mean.”
Unlike the previous times when we went in the name of the Duke of Axus, Atal’s tea party was more comfortable than we thought.
Maybe it’s because they all gathered as students of the same age.
Among them, if there was something unexpected, it was that Reina and Helen were having a conversation.
Surely, the two are partners in Attribute Magic class, but even before Sophia and Helen became close, they probably weren’t that good.
On the contrary, Sophia was the most out of the group at this meeting.
Fortunately, her crown prince continued to take care of her, but she couldn’t shake her feeling of awkwardness.
“Miss Sophia came as a specially hired student because she can convert her magical power into the attribute of light, right?”
“Me? No, that’s right.”
More than anything else, Sophia was constantly watching Reina.
Reina seemed to know that too, and every time she opened her mouth, she looked away.
It’s better than a commotion, but it would be nice if we could talk to each other a little more comfortably.
“Dean Ender said that Miss Sophia is so talented that she would definitely bring her to Arcana. In fact, I got a high score on the entrance exam.”
“Wow, that’s too much praise. After entering the school, I couldn’t even keep up with the classes.”
In fact, Sophia was ranked 13th in the entrance exam, but in the first semester midterm episode of the original story, she fell below the middle rank of 40th.
However, it is largely due to the fact that she, who was a commoner, suddenly ended up living among nobles, and after adapting, she returns to the top rank in the final exam.
Even Reina, who was at odds with Sophia in the first place, recognized her talent, but she was probably over-praised by Dean Ender.
“It must have been a coincidence that I got a high score on the exam. The dean might have misunderstood my talent. No matter how you think about it, it’s strange, right? I, who was just born in a local inn, possesses tremendous talent. It is nonsense.”
Sophia’s words suddenly calmed her down.
Okay. It’s natural to be confused about how to react when you hear something like that.
At least I couldn’t say anything.
“Ms. Sophia. Isn’t that too pessimistic?”
“Right. Getting good grades in Arcana, where all the nobility of the empire gather, can’t be possible just by chance. It’s okay to be a little more confident.”
“But it is true that I am not keeping up with the class. I don’t even know if I have a talent for light attribute magic. No matter how much you think….”
Fortunately, her dauphin and Helen tried to comfort her, but it seemed to be to no avail for her.
The atmosphere of the tea party is getting more and more subdued.
The thing that broke it all at once.
“This is really pitiful.”
It was Raina.
“Yes?”
“I said it was really pathetic.”
“Ms. Reina?!”
Helen seemed surprised by Reina’s sudden vitriol and tried to stop it.
But Reina continued her words without hesitation.
“If you really think you’re not that talented, why don’t you apply for expulsion quickly? I hope that will save the professors time as well.”
“That, that is.”
Sophia was shaking her body.
She said that what was in her eyes was fear.
“You probably said something similar last time, right? You made me say the same thing twice already. It would be a lie to say you don’t have the talent you just did. You have a talent for making people angry like this.”
“Miss Reina. Talk too much.”
“You also have other talents. It’s a talent that throws cold water at the atmosphere that was just a moment ago. Wouldn’t it be okay to be proud of it?”
Reina spat out abusive language, but her expression did not move at all.
She acts as if her words are the unmistakable truth.
“But at her house, with her mother expecting….”
“An expectant mother must be very happy to see this now. Because one commoner destroyed the meeting of nobles who would lead the future. What a great talent.”
“… Still, that makes too much sense.”
“Is there something wrong with my words? I am only telling the truth.”
Stop it.
What the hell are you doing, Reina?
If this happens, I won’t be able to help you.
“You pity Dean Ender too. This is the kind of person the special recruiter you brought in is.”
Why do you make enemies for yourself?
You mean the pain you suffered won’t go away even if Anna returns?
“It’s all my fault. My mother or the dean….”
“Why!”
Sofia was completely taken aback by Reina’s continued verbal abuse.
Then, it was Reina herself who raised her voice.
“Why do you keep belittling yourself like that?”
Raina’s eyes were shaking.
She seemed to be taken aback as she softly bit her lip.
“If you’re really here by accident, are you saying that Dean Ender’s eyes are wrong? Or, are you mocking the other students whose grades are lower than chance?”
“That, I don’t mean that.”
“… I know. Maybe because of me.”
“Yes?”
“Sorry. I’ll wake up first. And….”
Reina hurriedly got up and left the garden in an instant.
As if the storm had passed, we were speechless.
★
“What did that mean?”
To be honest, her classmate, Reina Rogelia, was very uncomfortable for me.
When she talked to her, she always listened to her point and felt like she was getting smaller.
To be honest, I didn’t plan to participate in this tea party at first either.
If it’s a tea party for attribute magic students, Reina-san will also attend.
But when she heard that she wasn’t participating, she changed her mind.
Your Highness, the crown prince who became a partner.
Ms. Helen occasionally chatting after class.
From nob le mt l dot com
Princess Ike, whom I had a short but short conversation with.
Atal-nim invited me to a tea party.
Because I wanted to be friends with them.
But today is the day of the tea party.
What was waiting for me when I went to the Garden of Stars was Miss Reina with a cold atmosphere. She
When she asked Atal-sama, she said that she would participate, but suddenly she changed her words.
The tea party is about to begin.
Miss Raina and Miss Helen enjoyed the tea party while having a normal conversation.
But I couldn’t.
Her body atrophied on its own just by being with her, and it was difficult to even open her mouth.
And then the incident happened.
Seeing how self-tortured I was despite the comfort of those around me, Miss Reina started to get angry.
It is true that it was my fault, but I still wanted to say this.
I am doing this because of you.
I lost my confidence because I was so afraid of you.
You might say it’s an excuse, but I wanted to make an excuse like that.
In the end, the tea party ended with Miss Reina abruptly apologizing and leaving.
It wouldn’t make sense to continue in such an atmosphere any longer.
However, the question that arises for me right now is.
‘… And I’m sorry, Miss Sophia.’
It was Miss Reina’s last word.
Her voice was very low, but I could definitely hear it.
I must have been scared because she was criticizing and pointing out me right up until now.
But Miss Reina’s eyes were shaking when she said that.
Her eyes looked so sad.
For some reason, I couldn’t forget it.