NOVEL NEXT “Ah, Liselotte, it’s been a while.”
“Indeed it has! Leone told me, but you truly are every bit as adorable as she said!”
“Fufufu, thank you.”
As the conversation flowed, other students began to flock around Inglis.
“Can I be next to hold Inglis?!”
“Me next, please!”
“You’re okay with boys too, right?”
Before long, a crowd had gathered.
“All right, everyone, calm down. If you wish to hold Inglis, please form a line,” Rafinha quickly instructed, showing no intention of dispersing the eager crowd.
If the roles were reversed, Inglis would certainly relish seeing others dote on a miniaturized Rafinha. Given their mutual feelings, Inglis had no complaints.
“Excuse me, Miss Rafinha, do teachers get to stand in line as well?”
A voice timidly rang out from a young beastfolk girl adorned with long hair, cat-like ears, and a tail. Clothed in the attire of a Knight Academy instructor, she exuded an elegant aura.
“Professor Arles! Of course, please join the line,” Rafinha responded, smiling warmly at the query.
Arles was a Hyrule Menace that used to belong to the neighboring country of Venefique. Alongside her lover Rochefort, a general with a Special Grade Rune, they had once launched an attack on the Chiral Royal Capital. They were eventually captured, thanks in part to Inglis’ intervention.
Rochefort had been suffering from a terminal illness, but after Inglis administered an all-curing remedy derived from the flesh of the Dragon God Vufailbane, his condition visibly improved. Consequently, both Arles and Rochefort were appointed as Knight Academy instructors shortly before the vacation began. Inglis and her peers had already had several training sessions with them.
The decision to appoint them had been approved by King Charleas, but not merely out of generosity or a desire to employ capable individuals. It also aligned with Inglis’ wish to face Rochefort and Arles again, providing her with endless opportunities for sparring. Moreover, it was a shrewd move that ensured Inglis would feel responsible for them, thereby keeping any potential issues at bay. It was a personal decision woven with intricate intentions, befitting a king who understood the human heart.
Considering rumors about the formation of a new knight order, there may even be deeper motives at play. For Inglis, having Arles and Rochefort alongside her in training was all she had wished for.
“Thank you very much! Come on, Ross, let’s join the line. She’s simply too cute to miss!”
“Dear me… I’m just here to fill my belly.”
Responding to Arles’ beckoning, a young man with red hair steps forward. He’s Rochefort, also donned in the instructor’s uniform of the Knight Academy.
His full name is Ross Rochefort. Although everyone else refers to him as Instructor Rochefort, Arles is the only one who calls him by his first name.
“You can eat anytime! This is our only chance to hug the adorable Miss Inglis!”
“Really? We see her on the training ground all the time. I don’t see why we can’t hug her then.”
“No excuses! Line up!”
For the normally reserved and quiet Arles, this is an unusual show of insistence.
“Fine, fine… I can put up with this little diversion,” Rochefort says, shrugging his shoulders. Yet a trace of happiness colors his features, perhaps charmed by Arles’ animated demeanor.
At the end of the day, Rochefort is lenient not just towards Arles, but also towards Inglis and the others, proving to be a cooperative presence during training sessions. He might be quite suited for the instructor role, after all.
“Instructor Rochefort is joining the queue! Glis, we have another eager participant~?.”
“You realize this isn’t a shop, right?”
Once everyone had their moment hugging her, Inglis and Rafinha finally headed off for their much-anticipated breakfast.
Chewing sounds fill the air as Rafinha and Inglis, who was seated on her lap, enthusiastically devour their meal.
“Mm~! This is so good! It tastes just like home!”
“Indeed, it hasn’t been long since we last ate here, but it feels nostalgic.”
Rafinha and Inglis are lost in the flavor of the feast before them.
“Even in that small form, her appetite is unchanged…”
“How does her physiology even work?”
Both Leone and Liselotte are stunned by Inglis’ eating capacity.
“No, some things do change, you know.”
Inglis’ expression sharpens. She aims her fork at a piece of fried chicken on the plate before her. But the morsel is just out of reach, prompting her to stretch—only for Rafinha’s hand to swoop in and snatch it first.
“Ah! Rani, that was supposed to be mine!”
“Fwoof ifh waah! Shdaik haast dho whiff! (Food is war! Strike first to win!)”
“Ugh, you’re so mean, Rani!”
With her arms so short, Inglis finds herself at a distinct disadvantage when competing with Rafinha.