Chapter 15
For the first time since returning home, he encountered memories and connections in the city center.
What had once lingered in his memory as longing was now being overwritten with new impressions.
Yet, as if to mock such sentiment, Elric’s time passed without mercy.
“Today marks the beginning of the Harvest Festival.”
“So it is. I was quite surprised to see the wheat fields completely stripped bare.”
At the morning meal, Elric replied with a hearty laugh to Tiria’s words.
The wheat fields that once dyed the entire world in golden hues had become empty plains.
The harvest had ended successfully, and now only celebration remained.
At least, that was true for the people of the territory.
“You’ll be quite busy from now on,” Tiria said.
That did not apply to her.
She had to sort and organize the harvested crops—what would be offered to the royal court, what would be used for commerce, and what would be distributed to the people.
After that, she would have to calculate the entire year’s revenue—a tedious and exhausting task.
If Aldio was correct, she would soon be subjected to truly grueling overwork.
Elric, feeling somewhat sorry, asked her,
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
“There isn’t.”
“Really nothing? I can at least sort documents.”
“That is not particularly necessary.”
She was firm.
Just as he wondered if he would be left idle, doing nothing but twiddling his thumbs—
“Then please stay by my side this year. I will oversee and teach you everything.”
Ah. So that was what she meant by not needing help.
Elric chuckled awkwardly.
“…I see.”
“You will only learn the broad classifications. The details are so complex that they require years of training. You will not master it immediately.”
Her gentle, calm voice somehow carried weight.
Her softly lowered gaze only deepened the pressure.
“Perfect timing, then. We will begin document work today.”
“…What about the Harvest Festival?”
“It will be enough to attend the final day’s speech.”
Had he stepped on a landmine?
“…I’m not particularly smart, you know.”
“I will take that into account.”
Perhaps he should not have said something like that.
Elric belatedly regretted it.
But nothing changed.
It was time to pay for underestimating her patience.
As always, his mouth was the problem.
* * *
“Please spare me.”
“I haven’t killed you.”
“I feel like I’m going to die.”
“People do not die so easily.”
You absolutely do. One stab is enough to be fair.
Elric swallowed the words back down.
The location was the office. The time was the morning of the festival’s final day.
Her “education” was merciless.
Her meticulous and persistent personality meant she never moved on from a topic until he fully understood it, and her patience allowed lessons to stretch on for hours—resulting in the worst possible outcome.
Elric began to think she might be even more suited to torture than the notorious interrogators of the Western War.
It was that dreadful, which made today all the more precious.
“…Shouldn’t we prepare soon? For the speech?”
“It is still morning.”
“Is, is there no rehearsal?”
“I have already done it in advance.”
“When?”
“By sacrificing sleep.”
Indeed, Tiria seemed like a workaholic.
But Elric could not give up.
More than anything, he desperately wanted to escape this endless lesson.
“…Then shouldn’t you rest a little? It’s the last day of the festival. We could at least enjoy it, couldn’t we?”
Tiria stopped moving.
Elric looked at her with pleading eyes, hoping she would suggest resting.
And, surprisingly, heaven did not abandon him.
“…I was shortsighted. This is your first festival in ten years.”
That wasn’t exactly the reason, but Elric nodded vigorously.
More excuses were always better.
It worked.
Tiria exhaled deeply and organized the documents.
“Very well. We will end today’s lesson here. It might be good to go out a little early and… look around the streets together.”
“A wonderful idea! I look forward to it greatly! I’ll go prepare quickly—no, I mean slowly!”
Elric jumped up and hurried out of the office with his staff.
He did not see it.
Tiria, pressing her lips tightly together and lowering her head.
Her face was faintly red.
* * *
At last, he was free from that dreadful lesson. At least for today, he could rest.
It was no surprise his body felt stiff—he was doing something completely unsuitable for him.
For someone who had done nothing but sword fighting for ten years, sitting and staring at ink stains had been pure torture.
“Sir, you should change clothes.”
“I’ll take my time.”
“That is not taking your time—that is dawdling.”
“Are you talking back to your master?”
“That is advice. And you are hardly in a position to act like a master. It isn’t even intimidating.”
“You’re fired—”
“You can’t. Lady Tiria handles personnel.”
“……”
Not a single person was on his side.
It was a little unfair—though perhaps not surprising for someone who had returned after ten years of running away.
But still, Aldio should have understood him at least a little.
“Sir, you will not escape this time.”
Aldio was firm.
It felt like being dragged back to childhood and scolded again for being reckless.
Even though he knew he was being childish, that was another matter.
Elric grumbled and changed clothes.
Ready-made attire.
“You will be going up on the speech platform. Even if you are not speaking, you must be properly dressed. I will call the maids.”
“Why the maids?”
“You need makeup as well.”
“Makeup? For a man? Have you gone mad?”
“If I am mad, then every noble, royal, and imperial family member must be mad too.”
“Aldio, your tongue is unusually sharp today.”
“You are unusually immature today.”
Elric sank into despair.
Eventually, after enduring even the absurd act of having makeup applied to his face, he made his way uncomfortably to the office.
Not to work—but because the window there had the best view of the outside estate.
Creeeak—
The door opened, and sunlight poured into the room.
The office, unused for work, looked strangely beautiful.
At that thought, Elric gave a faint smile.
“…Now, I don’t think of Father first when I come here anymore.”
He realized it only now.
Perhaps because of her harsh training, or perhaps because time had simply dulled it.
Even in his father’s office, the first thing he saw was no longer his father—but her documents.
When he opened the door, the image of her sitting at the desk came to mind first.
Another layer of memory had been added over the old one.
Just as the new city had been laid over the faded old one, so too had his perception of this office changed.
Bittersweet and comforting at the same time.
Elric looked at the harvested, bare wheat fields outside, then sat on the office desk.
Tap—
His hand brushed an unorganized stack of documents.
“…Hm?”
He turned to look.
“This is…”
It was today’s lesson material.
Had it not been put away?
Lifting the papers, he found a note underneath.
His eyes widened.
[Deadline: Day 21.]
The deadline was today.
She had said there was plenty of time—but this was nowhere near finished.
There were dozens of pages in plain sight alone; it would take at least half a day to complete.
Then he realized something.
“…If she taught me while doing it, it would take half a day.”
If she worked alone, it would be much faster.
He knew he was slow at administrative work.
Tiria had been adjusting her pace to teach him.
The tight deadline was probably his fault.
The reason she still allowed him to go out early today.
Only now did he begin to understand.
“She… considered me?”
Perhaps she slowed down for his sake.
Perhaps she worried more about his exhaustion than her own workload.
It was a self-centered guess—but he could not easily dismiss it, given everything she had shown so far.
She had always been considerate of him.
“….”
If he had gone out like that, what would have happened?
Knowing her personality, she would have quietly worked through the night without complaint.
And he would never have known how much she had suffered.
A wave of shame rose in him.
This was nothing more than childish complaining.
Elric frowned.
Then he picked up the pen.
He did not want to be someone who only received kindness without gratitude.
He flipped through the documents and began filling in the text slowly, recalling what he had learned.
About an hour later, Tiria entered.
“Lord?”
She looked surprised.
Elric smiled awkwardly.
“The deadline was today. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“That is…”
“I apologize. I did not properly understand your position.”
Tiria’s expression was still full of surprise.
Feeling embarrassed, Elric lowered his gaze.
“I didn’t do much. Can you help me?”
Her response came a beat later.
“…Yes. Let us do so.”
Her voice was slightly hoarse.
But she did not seem displeased.
That, at least, was a relief.
