Extra Chapter: Shenley’s Family Meeting
“……Hmm. This is a good establishment.”
Ord muttered quietly as he lightly surveyed the interior of the shop. Hearing those words, Shenley’s face brightened with joy. The two-story building resembling a log cabin made of timber had simple rooms partitioned by houseplants, with large sofas arranged throughout. The ceiling was high, and through the windows, a terrace seating area was visible, giving a sense of openness.
This was “The Sleeping Tiger Inn,” a dining establishment located at the edge of Winter Valley’s eastern district. Normally, this area where cheap inns lined the streets and many immigrants and demi-humans resided would never see nobles from other countries coming to dine. For this reason, the beastman who served as the master of “The Sleeping Tiger Inn” was watching Shenley and her companion’s movements with his somewhat stern face twitching nervously.
Smiling wryly at this sight, Shenley lightly introduced the establishment.
“……This shop is one I’ve used many times since coming to the academy. Whether I had good news or happy moments, painful experiences, or sad times, Master would listen to my stories, and I was able to get through my academy life safely. Without this shop, I might not have been able to endure it.”
Shenley spoke these words with a somewhat embarrassed air, causing Ord’s expression to cloud over. Shenley was implicitly saying that her academy life had been filled with many difficult and painful experiences.
“……The magic lectures seem quite demanding.”
When Ord voiced this, Shenley tilted her head with a troubled expression.
“No, that’s……the lectures are very advanced, but they weren’t particularly difficult. At first, I was happy to be able to study with students of the same age, but I advanced a grade early, and then I began receiving harsh treatment from the older students……”
Hesitating to give details, Shenley left her words vague. Seeing this, Ord furrowed his brow.
“……Weren’t your magical evaluations high? At a magic academy, I don’t understand the point of specifically targeting someone with high ability. Normally, those with inferior magical skills would be the targets, wouldn’t they?”
When he asked this, Shenley nodded ambiguously. From Ord’s perspective, there was common sense that highly skilled magicians would be respected and wouldn’t become targets of bullying. However, regardless of which country, academies were never that simple.
“I was receiving good evaluations for my magic, but……I caught the attention of some upperclassmen……”
Shenley muttered this reluctantly and hung her head. She deliberately didn’t say who. Ord didn’t try to force her to reveal more and simply let out a deep sigh.
For a moment, an indescribable tension passed between the two before Ord spoke first.
“……I received regular reports about your academy life, but they weren’t detailed enough. No, that’s just an excuse. At the academy, what kind of hardships did you face? Could you tell me?”
When Ord asked this in a gentle tone, Shenley nodded hesitantly.
Shenley spoke about how, upon coming to Fidic Academy, she struggled with cultural differences and prejudice against the small number of beastmen, as well as the difficulty adjusting to the level difference between the magic taught in Mapleleaf and what was taught here.
She then told him how she studied desperately to catch up with everyone from the elementary division, and due to her rapid growth, she was able to advance a grade early. However, as a result, she ended up being bullied by upperclassmen.
“……Since I’m from a viscount family of another country, not even a heir candidate, and a younger beastman, several people said I was being impudent……They poured water on me, threw stones at me, and even attacked me with magic……”
“……What?”
As Shenley recounted the details of her bullying experiences from memory, Ord’s eyes gradually became more severe, and upon hearing about magical attacks, he finally reached his limit of patience.
“Who did such things to you?”
At Ord’s question filled with anger, Shenley was the one who became flustered.
“Ah, b-but……Aoi-sensei helped me, so after that, nothing happened at all……N-now I can properly study magic again.”
She conveyed that there were currently no problems. However, Ord didn’t seem satisfied and crossed his arms, groaning. If he investigated, he would surely trace it back to Rocks, but for Shenley, it was truly something that didn’t matter anymore. She had no intention whatsoever of seeking revenge.
As Shenley worried about how to convince Ord, the Master, who had been glancing at their situation, noticed.
“Here are your ordered items.”
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While the main dishes were still being prepared, the Master appeared carrying drinks and appetizer salads on a tray. He placed the drinks and salads on the table and looked at the two alternately.
“I’ll bring the main course, bread, and dessert in order.”
“Thank you very much.”
Shenley expressed her gratitude with a relieved expression at the Master’s appearance. The Master awkwardly winked with one eye before bowing and returning to the kitchen.
“……Hmm. Since the food has arrived, let’s eat right away.”
“Yes!”
Perhaps having his mood interrupted, Ord suggested starting the meal with a somewhat calmer demeanor, and Shenley responded energetically. After taking a bite, she also tasted her drink.
“Mm, I thought this was a commoner’s establishment, but the taste is quite good.”
Ord voiced his honest admiration, and Shenley nodded.
“That’s right. The food is delicious, Master is kind, and it’s a really good establishment.”
Shenley beamed with joy at the praise for the shop. Ord was also drawn into a smile by her expression.
“I see. You really love this place.”
Shenley nodded vigorously at Ord’s words. In the back of the shop, the Master was secretly listening to their conversation and quietly making a victory pose.
After letting out a light breath, Ord decided to ask about something else that had been on his mind.
“Speaking of which, regarding that instructor Aoi, there’s no doubt about his ability as a magician, but what about as a teacher?”
When he asked this, Shenley’s eyes immediately lit up.
“Aoi-sensei is an amazing teacher! He’s kind and very reliable. Also, he surprisingly doesn’t know common sense about some things, and he gets scolded by Strauss-sensei and Eliza-sensei. Oh, and Glen-gakucho always comes to listen to Aoi-sensei’s lectures, and sometimes he makes a big fuss when he sees incredible magic. Usually he’s like a gentle grandfather, but at those times he gets as excited as a child and runs around. Also……”
Shenley began happily talking about Aoi and related people, and Ord listened to the content with some surprise.
“……She must truly be an excellent instructor.”
Midway through listening to Shenley’s stories, he muttered this quietly and nodded. Shenley’s stories about Aoi continued endlessly, and even Ord was starting to find it difficult to listen to everything.
Therefore, he opened his mouth to change the subject.
“So then, Shenley. What about the students you study magic with? From what you said earlier, it seems not all the upperclassmen are particularly good people……”
When he asked this, Shenley laughed in a troubled way.
“Yes. People close to my age like Aile-san, Liz-san, and Bel-san are all kind people……Also, the upperclassman who helped me was a very gentle person. Against two people stronger than himself, he came to help me all alone.”
“Oh? That’s a wonderful person. What is this person’s name?”
“Court-Hedge-Butler-senpai.”
She immediately gave the name of the person who had done good. She probably thought she could speak freely about someone who had done something good. However, Ord’s eyes widened and he froze.
“……Don’t tell me, the son of Councilman Butler, a senior councilman of the Court-Highland Federation? The one who’s said to definitely become a councilman of Court-Highland in the future……”
“Ah, that’s right. Previously, Rose-sama also said she remembered Court-senpai. At some ceremony where royalty from various countries gathered, Court-senpai was the most outstanding, she said.”
When Shenley agreed, Ord furrowed his brow.
“……So you also had the opportunity to exchange words with Princess Rose. It seems you’ve built more valuable friendships than I thought.”
As Ord said this with some surprise, Shenley nodded with a somewhat happy expression.
“At Fidic Academy, you meet royalty and high nobles from various countries. But the most amazing person is Aoi-sensei.”
At Shenley’s words, Ord involuntarily looked up.
“……Don’t tell me her lineage is also royalty or something?”
Was it not just her terrifying ability? When he asked this with that thought, Shenley shook her head from side to side.
“Aoi-sensei doesn’t change at all, even when dealing with His Majesty the King. When she thought Rocks-senpai was in the wrong, she apparently called His Majesty and Her Majesty the Queen to the academy and lectured them.”
“W-what!? She lectured His Majesty……!?”
At the content Shenley casually mentioned, Ord’s eyes bulged in astonishment.
At that timing, the Master brought the main dishes and bread.
“Here, I’ve brought the main course. Today we have carefully selected fried river fish and steamed potatoes with grated rock salt.”
“Ah, yes……that’s helpful.”
“Huh? Well then.”
When the Master explained the food in an unaccustomed manner, Ord, who had lost his composure, gave an incomprehensible response. Both the Master and Shenley tilted their heads at this, but Ord wasn’t in a state to care about that.
“……After lecturing His Majesty, why hasn’t anything happened? Only someone of equal status could commit such insolence.”
An existence equal to the king of the world’s largest kingdom. Such a thing didn’t exist within the Varted Kingdom. In other words, Ord wanted to say that there was no one who could lecture the king.
Shenley understood this as well, but dismissed it with a bitter smile.
“Aoi-sensei is fine. After all, it was the same in Mapleleaf. If possible, I’d like Kathy to come to Fidic Academy too so we could study together. If you act together with Aoi-sensei, various things start to seem like small matters.”
Saying this, Shenley giggled. Drawn in by this, Ord also laughed, letting out breath.
“……That’s right. She didn’t give an inch to that court magician either—rather, she easily defeated him. If he’s like that everywhere, she’s a person with terrifying courage. No, in fact, she’s accomplishing exactly that.”
The academy’s witch whom even the emperor cannot oppose. Such rumors had reached Ord’s ears as well. Since most people didn’t know Aoi personally and the rumors preceded her, she was feared and dreaded like some kind of demon lord, but Ord had met her in person. He didn’t think of her as a heartless monster, nor as an existence that would indiscriminately use magic to harm people.
Rather, his perception was of a passionate teacher who cared for her students.
That’s precisely why Aoi’s rumors became nothing more than a laughing matter for the two of them. After that, they greatly enjoyed their conversation, mainly focusing on Shenley’s life at the academy. The Master, who had heard some of what had happened before, watched their interaction with a gentle smile.
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