Chapter 22

And so, during lunch break.

Mary was having lunch with Addy, and for some reason, Alicia, who had recently been joining them in the cafeteria as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

--- Mary's pride, which aimed for decline, could not face the current state of affairs, where they were having lunch together, as if they were friends.

"Try to tear the bread more elegantly. It’s so messy, dropping crumbs all over the place. Are you trying to attract pigeons to the courtyard?"

And as usual, Mary hurled insults at Alicia.

However, Alicia, upon being told, looked down at her lap and, upon noticing the crumbs, blushed and said, "I'll be more careful!" She then tore the bread carefully, making sure not to drop any more crumbs.

Her movements were awkward but elegant and ladylike. ...Of course, the true lady sitting next to her was eating from a bowl today.

"Well, tearing bread is actually quite difficult, isn’t it?"

Sitting across from Mary, Addy cut his steak with practiced ease and brought it to his mouth. It goes without saying that his menu was always particularly luxurious. However, the master, who should have reprimanded the servant's extravagance, was instead marveling at something entirely different: "I’m impressed that you can eat such heavy food at lunch. Do you have a strong stomach?"

"Table manners are the first thing you should learn. For example, if you step on someone’s foot during a dance, you can make a slight blush and say, 'I’m nervous,' and they’ll be happy and forgive you. But table manners are different. Once you sit down, you’re constantly being watched and evaluated."

"Wow, that sounds scary... I need to try harder."

"Don’t worry, your current manners aren’t even worth evaluating. But let me tell you, at the dining table, it’s unseemly to give off an aura of 'I’m being careful about my manners.' A lady must be graceful, refined, and have perfect manners."

"Ugh... That’s a whole different world for me..."

"Of course, it’s not something a country girl can achieve overnight. But when I get to my level, I can tear Mühenabrot with a smile."

Mary smiled proudly, and Addy nodded, saying, "That’s impressive."

Alicia, who didn’t know what the bread was—naturally, she didn’t know how hard it was—just looked at Mary with admiration.

Just then, Patrick approached with the student council members.

Usually, their appearance would cause a chorus of excited voices, but today, perhaps because of the morning’s events, the atmosphere was unusually quiet. Everyone was glancing sideways, trying to gauge the situation. Even the students on the terrace were looking over, and those eating on the second floor were awkwardly bringing their trays down.

Mary, regretting her choice of time, thought, "This was a mistake," but since she had suggested it, she couldn’t send them away. So, she forced a smile and bowed slightly, saying, "Good afternoon, everyone."

At that moment, Addy stood up and bowed deeply, indicating that he had already processed the morning’s events. In contrast, Alicia, upon seeing Patrick, puffed out her cheeks and started tearing her bread aggressively, clearly still angry.

Mary smiled wryly at the two extremes—after all, their reactions were for her. It was amusing. She decided to help the student council members, who were tense and shifting their gaze, by speaking up.

"I apologize for this morning. I was still recovering from an illness and was a bit on edge."

"N-no, we should be the ones to apologize. We believed false information and disgraced you in front of everyone."

The vice president bowed, and the others followed suit. Patrick, who had been the only one not bowing, quickly did so upon noticing Alicia’s puffed cheeks and aggressive bread-tearing.

It seemed that the "solid evidence" which had made everyone believe Mary was responsible had been proven false. While the true culprit and the deeper truth were intriguing, she decided not to bring them up here. She didn’t want to give the onlookers more drama.

So, to quickly end the conversation, Mary spoke calmly to the still-bowed student council members.

"I was on edge, and you were mistaken. Let’s just acknowledge our faults and move on, shall we?"

"Miss Mary... To have you go to such lengths for us, we feel ashamed of our immaturity."

"Oh, we’re here to learn because we’re immature. ...But"

Mary suddenly lowered her voice.

Her downcast eyes and wandering gaze made everyone wonder what was wrong.

She then whispered, "I’m scared." Her fragility and vulnerability were so palpable that any man would feel the urge to protect her, and even women would want to support her.

--- Addy, sensing what Mary wanted to convey, subtly pulled the bowl closer to himself, which also helped the situation. ---

"To think there are people in this school who would do such terrible things to Alicia... I’m really scared."

"Please rest assured. We have already identified the culprit and are monitoring them. They will not come near you or Alicia again."

"Thank you. I feel relieved. You student council members are truly reliable. Please continue to work hard for the school’s peace."

"Y-yes, of course!"

Mary subtly conveyed that she had no intention of recalling the incident, and they straightened their backs in relief. They bowed deeply once more and left the cafeteria. Their backs were already their usual selves, and some even let out passionate sighs.

Seeing Patrick, who had been puffed up and tearing bread, now slightly more cheerful and stuffing bread into his mouth, Mary felt relieved and said with a wry smile, "Well, then," and left.

Soon, the cafeteria returned to its usual lively atmosphere, and Mary let out a deep breath, feeling that it had been quite a heavy task for someone still recovering from an illness. The lingering glances from around her were making her uncomfortable.

Noticing Mary’s fatigue, Addy said, "Good job," and Mary smiled and replied,

"Compared to someone, those insults and rudeness are nothing but cute."

The cafeteria lady then said cheerfully,

"The bowl girl was running a fever from overwork, you know?"

And a few minutes later, Mary, with an elegant smile, stepped on Addy’s foot under the table.

I have added a note to the summary:

"※Please note that this story blends serious and comedic elements.※"

It’s a serious comedy rather than a romantic comedy.

I apologize for the short length of each chapter, but it’s due to my environmental constraints. Thank you for your understanding.