Nicolas's Dream

Nicolas and I went to the living room and sat facing each other. Nicolas kept his head slightly bowed, looking as though he was having trouble bringing himself to speak.

"So, what did you want to talk about? Is it something you don't want anyone else to hear?"

"Um... Leon, you're going to take the Royal Academy entrance exam, right?"

"You already knew? That's right, but... what about it?"

Was this somehow related to me going to the Royal Academy?

"Leon... Could you teach me how to study, too? I overheard Mom and the others talking about how smart you are and how you're taking the Royal Academy entrance exam..."

Huh? What did he mean? Did Nicolas want to go to the Royal Academy, too?

Come to think of it, I never showed how smart I was in front of Mom and the others... Maybe I haven't been hiding it at all. They must think I became strange after hitting my head...

Worrying about it now would only mean I'd lost.

"You want to go to the Royal Academy, too?"

"That's right... I told you I had the fire attribute when they measured my magical power, right? My magic power was five. So I was planning to become a soldier, but when I heard you were going to the Royal Academy, I thought maybe I could aim to become a knight, too."

"Why do you want to become a knight?"

"Why? Isn't it obvious! Everyone looks up to knights! And the pay is nothing like a soldier's..."

"But I think entering noble society would be difficult. And being a knight is probably more dangerous, too."

Knights are cool, sure, but they come with danger, too, and making my way into noble society would probably be harder than expected.

It's not really my place to say that, since I'm making my way into noble society myself... But I'm doing it for magic tools and to improve living standards. Besides, since I can use every attribute, I'll have to deal with people in power unless I keep it hidden for the rest of my life.

There's no way I could hide it for my whole life... It'd be impossible not to use something this convenient.

Nicolas only knows his current way of life, so he has no reason to want to improve his living standards. Maybe it's simply admiration?

I feel like admiration alone wouldn't be enough to keep him from giving up halfway.

Besides, Nicolas probably doesn't have much money, and living in the central district without money would be difficult.

I could lend him money, but I don't really want to lend money to a friend...

"If you pass the Royal Academy entrance exam, you'll have to live in the central district, and you'll need to buy school supplies and clothes, too. It will cost quite a lot, so you'll need to earn that money as well. Life there will probably be difficult. If you still truly want to become a knight, I'll support you, but what do you want to do?"

"What about you...? Are you all right when it comes to money and a place to live...?"

"I have money, and my living arrangements are already settled. But I don't think it would be easy to ask the noble who owns it to let you stay there, too. You wouldn't be able to relax living in a noble's mansion either, right?"

When I said that with a wry smile, Nicolas froze with his mouth half-open, apparently in considerable shock.

I guess commuting from a noble's mansion really is unheard of. Richard-sama talked me into it.

"L-Leon, you're going to live in a noble's mansion!?"

"That's right. A noble I'd recently met said I could stay at his mansion."

"Is that really okay!? Isn't it dangerous...?"

I could tell how worried Nicolas was about me. I was happy to have a friend who cared about me this much.

"It's fine. The noble doesn't seem bad, and I was invited to the mansion the other day, too. Everything was fine."

"Then that's good, but... You really are amazing, Leon. You got to know a noble and were even allowed to live in a noble's mansion..."

Seeing how straightforward Nicolas was made me feel guilty about hiding so many things from him... But I couldn't tell him.

"I think you could say I was lucky. So what are you going to do, Nicolas? If you really want to go to the Royal Academy and become a knight, I'll teach you how to study."

"Listening to you has made me waver a little... You're right, it sounds like admiration alone would make it difficult, and I've realized that you're far too amazing to be a useful point of reference."

I'm not sure whether I should be happy about that...

"If that's how you feel, maybe you should aim to become a soldier. Soldiers are among the better-paid jobs for commoners, and you could commute from home."

"Yeah... Maybe I'll do that. Thanks for listening, Leon! You've helped me make up my mind."

"It was nothing, really. Well, I'm going home, too."

"Yeah, see you."

"Yeah, see you."

After saying goodbye to Nicolas, I went home.

"I'm home!"

"You're finally home!"

"Huh? Did something happen?"

When I entered the house, Dad and Mom were waiting for me. Was there something special about today...?

"You'll teach us how to make the dish you made next door today, right?"

Mom gave me a smile that left no room for refusal. So that's what this was about. Marie must have told them about the food, and now they wanted to eat it.

"I don't mind teaching you, but right now?"

"Yes! Let's have it for dinner tonight."

But I only just ate it...

Mom was incredibly eager, and Dad beside her was quietly just as motivated. Looks like we'll be having okonomiyaki for dinner, too.

Well, it's delicious, so I don't mind.

"Then I'll teach you in the kitchen."

"Yes, let's go quickly. What ingredients do we need?"

I was peppered with questions from Mom as we went to the kitchen, then made okonomiyaki again while explaining the process.

"I think you could make all sorts of flavors by changing what you mix in, so you should try experimenting."

"Yes. This could be quite worthwhile. Jean, maybe we should serve this during lunch service, too?"

"It's easy to make and uses ordinary ingredients, so it might work. We could add vegetables or change the meat, too."

"That's right! Let's try all sorts of variations right away!"

"That's a good idea. By the way, have you decided on a name for this dish?"

"Yes! Since you grill whatever you like in it, it's called okonomiyaki."

"That's easy to understand. Then let's make it!"

Mom and Dad were so fired up that I escaped from the kitchen. If I stayed in there, they'd definitely make me help for the rest of the evening.

I decided to read my history study materials in the living room and went there. Marie wasn't there, so she might have been resting upstairs.

The materials seemed to summarize the history of the past few decades.

Until a few decades ago, this world had been embroiled in large-scale wars, but about twenty years ago, the king of the Kingdom of Larslasia annexed every country that sought to expand its territory and signed ceasefire agreements with all the others, bringing peace to the world. However, just when it seemed the world had found peace, the Monster Forest became a threat. Now all the countries are joining forces to stop the Monster Forest from advancing.

There were many details, but in broad terms, that was what it said.

The Monster Forest...? So monsters existed in this world in the first place...?

And if everyone is trying to stop the Monster Forest's advance, does that mean it's expanding...? How quickly is it expanding? And where is the Monster Forest in the first place?

I didn't have nearly enough information to understand any of this... I'll ask Frederick-san about it next time.

Even though I was uneasy, there was nothing I could do for now, so I closed the study materials as if putting my unease away and headed off to prepare for the evening service.