The leftover girl convulsed with little ‘bikun bikun’ twitches before finally collapsing face-first into the dirt.
Heavy-armored men jogged right over her without a single one stepping on her.
「Not a single person stepped on her… probably because they’re afraid she’d scream 『You damaged the merchandise, so now you have to propose!』 later.」
「That sounds about right.」
Frea handed the paper back to the always-scantily-clad girl while fanning herself lazily with her hand fan.
‘pat pat pat’
「Here. Rewrite it.」
「Uwa～. Where did I go wrong this time?」
「Your calculations are off.」
「……I was originally a hunter’s daughter, you know～」
Lutte, who only started learning math after coming here, is notoriously bad at numbers.
But that excuse doesn’t fly with her vice-captain.
「Check each one carefully, step by step, then rewrite it. That’s part of studying too.」
「Yeees…」
Lutte nodded with teary eyes.
Frea shifted her gaze.
「By the way, why is Mische sleeping over there?」
「The moment Captain showed up this morning, she raised her right hand and chased her around.」
「That’s… terrifying.」
「Yes. She was seriously screaming and running for her life.」
「Even if she got punched to death right there, Captain wouldn’t face any charges… Argusta-sama probably told her to do it. That idiot must have said something stupid to Captain again.」
It’s very possible.
She’s long overdue for a good smack.
The fact that she hasn’t gotten one yet is pure luck.
「We’re really lucky Argusta-sama is such a kind person. If it had been Halfren instead…」
Frea let out a soft ‘hafu’ sigh and looked up at the sky.
Lutte watched her senpai with a puzzled frown.
Calling the prince by name without honorifics… that was so unlike the usual Frea that it felt strange.
-0-
「Um… Argusta-sama?」
「Yes? I’m awake, you know?」
「No, no. I thought you woke up, so I called out…」
That would be rude in its own way, Krea.
I quickly wipe the drool from my lips and turn to face her.
She stands in front of my desk… looking somehow embarrassed, cheeks faintly pink.
「Flower-picking?」
「That’s not it!!」
「Then what is it?」
「Um… I wanted to know why Frea-neesama was removed from being Halfren-sama’s legal wife candidate.」
Excuse me?
Did you just say what I think you said?
That Frea-san was once the fiancée candidate of Muscle Prince?
She notices my reaction and her eyes start darting around nervously.
「It’s a royal family secret, right?! I shouldn’t have asked something so weird!」
「Hold on just a second.」
「……」
You’re not getting away that easily.
She laughs awkwardly, trying to slip away with an “ahaha aha”, but I prop my elbows on the desk, lace my fingers together, and rest my chin on them.
「Krea-kun.」
「……Yes?」
「Let’s hear the details, shall we?」
「……」
Silent treatment now?
But you know… adults can be very sneaky creatures.
「Blostash is apparently releasing new cakes. A nut cake and a raspberry cake.」
「Nngh.」
Her throat bobs visibly as she swallows hard.
I know she’s on a strict allowance and can’t buy cakes whenever she wants.
Economic power is a weapon all on its own.
「Which one do you prefer? You can say both… as long as you can actually eat them.」
She stares at the bait, weighing her sister’s dark past against her gluttony.
Her food-loving soul wins in record time.
「Two raspberry ones.」
「Deal.」
In every world, girls are weak to cake.
-0-
To sum it up, here’s what she told me.
Muscle Prince and Frea-san were childhood friends.
Because she had outstanding magic power, she was once the top candidate to become his legal wife.
At one point, that idiot brother of mine was even sent to live with the Crostpurge family, Frea’s house, for a while.
Apparently, he met little Krea back then too… but if her memory is correct, she hadn’t even been born yet.
She said it with a tired sigh, probably thinking he mixed her up with one of the other sisters who was around at the time.
Here comes the main topic.
Why was Frea-san removed from being his legal wife candidate?
I have the maid prepare tea for us.
We chat casually while taking a little break.
Work seriously, rest seriously too… that’s my motto.
The cakes are still waiting for their release date, so today’s tea snack is cookies.
These cookies are awfully dry, though.
Is something wrong with the butter?
「My parents were apparently really disappointed.」
「Yeah, that makes sense. She was supposed to be the second prince’s legal wife, after all.」
And not just any wife, the one expected to bear the next king.
That’s a secret only the royal family knows, though.
「Even after being dropped as a candidate, she didn’t go back home. Before anyone realized, she’d even found herself a lover right here in the capital.」
「Ah～ but… didn’t she end up earning a ton of resentment from the other sisters or something?」
「That’s because she stayed in the capital and got a lover. And not just any lover, someone with enough magic power that even our parents would approve.」
I think I heard something like that.
So the “big sister sabotage” theory is out of order, it doesn’t fit the timeline.
「So Frea-san was removed as a candidate, but she stayed in the capital… Could it be related to Noie somehow?」
「I thought the same thing and looked into it, but apparently she was removed six years ago.」
「Oh. Noie only started slaying dragons four years ago.」
So there’s a blank two-year gap.
「I’ve always wondered why…Why didn’t she go back home?」
「Yeah.I have no idea why Frea-san didn’t return to her family.」
「……Do you know the reason she was removed as a candidate?」
「That one’s easy.」
「Eh?」
Silly question.
My brother has always openly declared it.
「He says if a woman doesn’t have big breasts, she’s not really a woman…So that’s probably why Frea-san was dropped from the list.」
「That’s the worst.」
Even as she says it, she sneaks a quick glance down at her own chest.
So cute.
「You’d probably get rejected too, Krea.」
「……Both brothers deserve to get burned by big-breasted women someday.」
Stop that.
I’m from the beautiful-breasts faction, okay?
But that one little comment of hers…
It turned out to be a huge hit later on.
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