Chapter 85

The school festival finally began. However, on the first day, only the preliminary rounds of the martial arts competition were held, so the number of visitors was not much different from previous years.

(I have to be on my guard from the first day, even though it’s a given.)

I slipped out of the security headquarters and was now strolling around.

(It’s not like I’m slacking off. I’m just taking a break, switching with Safina.)

I made excuses to myself, even though I wasn’t talking to anyone. The school building was decorated with various items, and the voices of students still bustling about with preparations echoed throughout. Generally, the students did all the preparations, but for the large-scale and specialized parts, as well as the equipment, they relied on the help of adults sent by merchants. After all, there were nobles, so they should avoid strenuous tasks that might lead to injuries, and there were limits to what the students could do alone.

The merchants, however, were not hired. It was a kind of volunteer work. I thought it was strange that merchants would take on a job that wouldn’t earn them a single coin, but it was also a way to promote the school and build connections for the future. Moreover, since this event was sponsored by the prince, if things went well, it might even earn the favor of the royal family. It was like a form of advance investment.

I looked around the bustling school building. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, moving around and preparing. The atmosphere matched the cultural festival preparations I had imagined, and I felt a sense of fulfillment, my heart soaring.

(Ah, this is the school festival I’ve dreamed of. I wish I could join everyone in the maid café or the haunted house. Unfortunately, there’s no one here who does that kind of thing.)

I felt a bit disappointed as I left the school building and stepped out onto the main street, where several stalls lined the road. Some were still preparing, while others were already in business. Near the venue for the martial arts competition preliminaries, most of the stalls were open, and a few visitors were wandering around, looking at the stalls with interest. The smell of something delicious wafted to my nose from one of them.

(Ah, the smell of sweet baked goods. Maybe cookies or something.)

I was drawn to the stall by the smell and found female students happily making cookies. Of course, there was a professional adult supervising from behind.

"Welcome, ah, Miss Mary."

One of the girls noticed me and called out.

"Oh, it’s Fynel. I didn’t know you were running a stall here."

The girl who smiled at me, Fynel, was one of the members of the magic herbology research group that Magilka had formed and had helped during the Mandrake incident.

"Yes, we’re offering drinks and cookies made with magic herbs. I got some advice from Miss Mary, and we’ve been trying out different things together."

Fynel showed me a freshly made cookie, looking pleased. I remembered making that irresponsible comment and looked at the cookie. The sweet smell made my stomach growl.

"Miss, are you hungry?"

Tutte, who was my purse, stepped forward and asked. Her perceptive words made me feel like a spoiled young lady, and I blushed and tried to put on a brave front.

"N-no, it’s not that I’m hungry. As a security officer, I was thinking of buying some to check the hygiene and quality."

"That’s not really part of your job, I think."

My maid, Tutte, immediately shot down my flimsy excuse with a half-closed eye. Her sharp retort left me speechless, and I noticed that Fynel and the others were looking at me with warm, amused eyes.

(Ugh, this Mary Legaria is not going to be a hungry character. No, definitely not.)

I turned away from their gazes, trying to think of a good plan. I should have just left the stall, but I was determined to get those delicious sweets, so I kept coming up with excuses. By that point, I was already in trouble.

"Right, I’m one of the planners of the school festival, so I need to check things."

"Here, only honest people are allowed to eat."

I turned to come up with a new excuse, but Tutte was already showing me a bag of cookies she had bought.

"I’m hungry. I just wanted to eat them."

I instantly changed my role to an honest person.

"Aaaan♪"

With a satisfied look, I took a bite of the cookie Tutte handed me.

"Yes, the texture and taste are different from the cookies I usually eat. It’s quite refreshing. What’s in it?"

"It’s Mandrake juice."

"Choke!"

I almost choked on the cookie as Fynel said it with a smile. The word "Mandrake" was almost a taboo for me, a source of fear. The memory of being chased by everyone played back in my mind along with the realization that I had just said it.

"But it’s okay. It’s not the juice of a subspecies, so it doesn’t have any charm effect and is very good for the body."

"Are you okay, Miss? Here, drink this."

Tutte, who was patting my back, handed me a drink she had just bought.

"Thank you, Tutte."

I drank the drink without checking. The intense bitterness made me grimace.

"Ugh, it’s so bitter!"

I called out, experiencing something so bitter that I thought humans shouldn’t drink it. I was proud of myself for not spitting it out.

"That’s a mixture of all the magic herbs that are said to be very good for the body, ground up and mixed together. It’s very good for you, but it’s also very bitter. It’s quite addictive, though."

Fynel explained confidently. I was breathing heavily, and I thrust the cup I was holding at Tutte.

"Hey, Tutte. This is like a comedy sketch, isn’t it? Did you do this on purpose? Did you, Tutte?"

"I don’t know what a comedy sketch is, but no, I didn’t do it on purpose. It’s just a coincidence. So, Miss, please don’t come closer with that cup."

Tutte took a step back, smiling awkwardly at my intimidating presence.

"Tutte, we are more than just master and maid; we are a fate-sharing community. So, let’s share this fate together♪"

I smiled and held out the cup of the eerie liquid to Tutte.

"Please, Miss, have mercy!"

"Wait, Tutte! It’s okay, you won’t die. It’s just an extremely bitter taste that will run through your stomach!"

I chased after Tutte with a mischievous look on my face.

A few minutes later, I was walking down the street lined with stalls, with Tutte, who was pale and occasionally vomiting, by my side.

"Ah, it’s great, these stalls. It would be perfect if we had yakisoba, takoyaki, okonomiyaki, shaved ice, candy apples, chocolate bananas, and cotton candy."

"Ugh... I don’t understand any of the things you’re asking for, Miss. Are they all food?"

Tutte, who was starting to recover, looked at me curiously, as I had now fully embraced my foodie character.

"Yes, they are foods from my past life. I’ve always wanted to try them at festivals, but I never did."

"I see. I’ll try to look for them, so please tell me more details..."

As Tutte tried to get more details, a commotion came from ahead. I stopped looking at Tutte and turned my attention to the commotion.

There was a person in a robe with a hood, who looked extremely suspicious, talking to the students at a stall. The voice seemed to be that of a young woman. Even though I was on a break, I couldn’t ignore it. I decided to step in.

"What’s going on? It’s very noisy."

I calmly and coolly intervened.

"..."

A moment of silence. Everyone seemed surprised by my appearance.

"I’m not a judge... I mean, I’m a security officer. Noisy behavior is not allowed."

I showed the armband that the young ladies had embroidered for the security officers, swallowing the words that almost slipped out and correcting myself.

(Hmm, I made a grand entrance and showed my armband. I did it!)

"Miss, please hand over the snacks and other foods you’re holding to me. Everyone is backing away."

Tutte, who was holding various boxes and bags of food, whispered to me from behind.

"~!"

I let out a soundless scream, my face turning red as I hurriedly handed over the loot to Tutte.

"Ahem! I’m a security officer. Noisy behavior is not allowed."

"‘Let’s pretend this never happened and start over.’”

I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead as the students around the stall made sarcastic comments, but I tried to push the conversation forward.

"So, what’s the commotion about?"

"Ah, well, this customer... Wait, what?"

The student at the stall looked around, realizing that the suspicious robed person was gone.

(Come to think of it, the person who got lost during the training the other day was also a robed person with a hood. What are they doing, hiding their identity and sneaking around?)

It felt like a villainous organization from a story, and I started to feel uneasy.

"So, what was the argument about?"

"Well, we were grilling skewers after they were ordered, but the customer couldn’t wait and tried to use a fire spell on the food... We stopped them."

The idea of a villainous organization in my mind crumbled, and it turned into a very childish organization. I had a headache from this troublesome incident.

(Do they want to turn their ordered food into charcoal? Who would have such a childish idea? From their height, they seem to be around our age, but if they’re hiding their identity, they might not be a student here. But since the general public is allowed to enter now, it’s not a problem if outsiders come in. Still, someone who needs to hide their face...)

I thought about it and reached an unpleasant conclusion.

(Ah, there’s someone who’s about our height, interested in the school festival, and needs to hide their identity.)

I thought of the high-energy princess I met at the palace, shook my head, and tried to push the thought out of my mind.

(No, no, that’s impossible. I’ve decided. I’ll pretend I didn’t see anything. No harm, no foul.)

I decided that getting involved would only cause trouble and decided to cover up the incident without reporting it to headquarters.

(I can kind of understand how important people feel when they try to cover up problems now.)

And so, my school festival started with a somewhat ominous feeling.

As I mentioned in my activity report, the book is scheduled to be released on August 30th. I would appreciate it if you could pre-order it. Thank you.