Chapter 32
After Monica safely passed her ballroom dancing retest, it was Glenn who suggested throwing a celebration party.
"I'll get the venue and food all set!" Glenn declared, thumping his chest. Lana and Neil had apparently thought they were going to have a tea party.
However, the venue was the backyard, and what had been prepared was a huge amount of meat. That made it obvious what they were going to do.
"A celebration calls for meat, right!?" Glenn said as he efficiently arranged the stones and iron grate, then began grilling the meat.
The one who was surprisingly enthusiastic—or perhaps simply fascinated—was Lana. As the daughter of a wealthy merchant, she watched Glenn grilling the meat with great interest. Had Lana not stopped Glenn, the easily swayed Neil and Monica could only have watched in silence.
"This sort of thing is surprisingly easy to make, isn't it?"
"You can make do with whatever you have on hand. The small ovens these days are pretty good, too, but they're a little pricey for an individual to buy."
The meat on the iron grate was nicely browned, its juices dripping.
The fat that dripped onto the fire beneath the grate popped, making the flames flare up. Lana let out a small, startled squeak, but Glenn calmly shifted the meat around.
"Looks about right now~"
Glenn adjusted the heat by moving the firewood, then handed skewers of grilled meat to Monica, Lana, and Neil. He took a skewer for himself as well, then held it high in the air.
"Now that everyone's got some... to celebrate Monica and me passing the retest... let's dig in!"
With that, Glenn opened his large mouth and sank his teeth into the meat.
Lana ate with practiced ease, while Monica and Neil tentatively stuffed their mouths with meat.
The well-browned lamb was a little gamey, but the spices made it easy to eat. Even Monica, who was not particularly fond of strongly gamey foods, found it genuinely delicious.
"I-I... don't like lamb... but this is... easy to eat."
When Monica voiced her thoughts in a small voice, Glenn snorted proudly.
"Heh-heh, the secret to the flavor is the Dudley family's secret spice blend. We sell it in stores, too, so please give us your patronage!"
Glenn was a commercially minded merchant who never forgot to advertise, prompting Neil to murmur thoughtfully,
"These days, spices have become easier to obtain in some regions, haven't they? My family home is in the mountains, so they're still difficult for us to acquire. We mostly use herbs rather than spices to remove unpleasant odors."
"I'm quite knowledgeable about herbs," Neil added mildly, causing Lana to pause with her skewer halfway to her mouth and join the conversation.
"My father said that trade volume increased after Sazandoll expanded its second and third ports. And since the Eastern Empire has been in turmoil after a change of emperors, apparently the merchants are waiting to see what happens. Those merchants are staying in the ports of this country, which is close to the Empire."
"Depending on the Empire's new policies, those merchants might all head there at once. I've heard that the current emperor has adopted many innovative policies."
Listening to Lana and Neil's conversation, Monica's thoughts drifted.
The Empire's legalization of medical magic had caused many mages to flock there. Perhaps it would not be long before merchants began flowing there as well. Trade sprang up wherever people gathered. The Empire would surely continue to develop from here on out.
Meanwhile, in the Kingdom of Ridill, conflict had arisen between the central nobles, who were desperately trying to preserve the old system, and the provincial nobles. To make matters worse, the nobility was divided into factions supporting the First Prince, Second Prince, and Third Prince.
The king mostly watched from the sidelines, occasionally soothing the conflicts between those nobles.
(...I have no interest in power struggles...)
As one of the Seven Sages, Monica had been granted the right to meet the king and speak with him directly.
The Seven Sages sometimes served as the king's counselors. In other words, Monica was in a position to become directly involved in politics. But Monica had no interest in power or in the future of the country. She had only become one of the Seven Sages because people around her had recommended her.
(...What does Louis-san want someone like me to do, anyway?)
If Louis-san wanted a guard for the Second Prince, there should have been far more suitable candidates.
And yet, the fact that he had sent someone as incompetent as Monica to serve as the Second Prince's guard led her to a frightening possibility.
(...Could it be that Louis-san sent me, a useless nobody, to the Second Prince and is plotting to bring about the prince's downfall...?)
What made Louis Miller so frightening was that Monica could not dismiss the possibility outright.
Recalling Louis's radiantly evil smile, Monica was trembling like a leaf when Glenn peered into her face.
"Monica, you've stopped eating. You're small, so you need to eat more."
"Ah, s-sorry..."
Because Monica had been holding the skewer while lost in thought, her hand had become greasy with meat fat. As she hurriedly wiped it with a handkerchief, Lana said in exasperation,
"The trick is to hold a skewer sideways. If you hold it upright, the grease drips down."
"Y-Yeah... You're really good at this, Lana."
"My hometown has a lot of festivals, so we have a fairly well-established culture of eating while walking around. A lot of people raised in the capital aren't used to it, though."
Indeed, Monica, who had grown up around the capital, flinched. She wasn't at all accustomed to the culture of eating while walking around.
She had been anxiously wondering what she would do if Lana pressed her about that, but Lana did not pry any further. Instead, she stared seriously at her skewer and murmured,
"Even in the capital, there are stalls selling roasted chestnuts and fruit water, but there aren't many selling grilled meat. It might become popular if someone opened one... But the capital has strict regulations on booths and street stalls..."
Monica had recently realized that Lana was not only knowledgeable about fashionable things, but also a surprisingly shrewd merchant at heart.
Such unexpected sides of a person are hard to discover without talking with them like this.
Back when Monica attended the Minerva Institute for Mages, she had rejected all interaction with others and had never tried to learn about them. She had even thought that such things were "pointless."
Back then, she had never imagined that a day would come when she would secretly grill meat in a backyard and eat it with someone else.
Lana was proud, but surprisingly considerate. And she could never resist anything fashionable.
Glenn was a little too free-spirited, but he was surprisingly observant of other people and, in his own awkward way, knew how to show concern.
Neil was easily swayed, but he was a kind person who always gave his all when someone asked him for help.
(...The meat is delicious.)
Monica smiled faintly and bit into the meat, feeling happy.
Glenn finished his meat at more than twice Monica's speed, then cheerfully began grilling the next batch.
Seeing this, Neil stared wide-eyed and said, "You're still eating!?"
"I haven't eaten nearly enough!"
"I'm already completely full!"
Neil clutched his stomach, and Glenn snorted forcefully.
"You won't grow big if you don't eat more!"
"...Did you just call me short in a roundabout way? ...You did, didn't you? You definitely did, right?"
Neil expressionlessly edged toward Glenn, who began to shrink back. Monica saw yet another side of him.
As Monica and Lana laughed at their exchange...
"Hey, you all look like you're having fun."
Everyone abruptly fell silent and turned toward the voice.
Standing there alone was Felix Arc Ridill, the student council president.
Neil's face went deathly pale.
"P-President, th-this is, um, well..."
"Honestly... Two student council officers, and you're openly violating the school rules."
As Felix sighed mournfully, Glenn raised his skewer boldly and objected.
"There isn't a school rule saying we can't grill meat behind the school building!"
"Chapter Three of the school rules states that you must not spoil the appearance of the school grounds."
"What's 'spoiling the scenery'?"
Felix ignored Glenn's question and added with a smile,
"Also, when you use fire anywhere other than a designated location, you need to submit an application to the student council."
"Then we're in the clear, since you're here, President! Give us permission!"
Glenn's carefree attitude had reached such a level that it was almost refreshing.
As everyone watched anxiously, Felix crossed his arms and fixed his gaze on Glenn.
"That's the sort of thing you apply for in writing by the day before."
"Oh, is that so? Ah, would you like one too, President?"
Glenn smoothly held out a skewer to Felix.
What nerve! As Neil and Monica drew a sharp breath, Felix stared intently at the skewer...
"Sure. I'll have one."
He took the skewer.
"He's actually going to eat it!?" Neil squeaked in a tiny voice. Monica felt exactly the same way.
Honestly, Monica had been worried that Felix might go so far as to throw the meat away in front of Glenn. Contrary to her expectations, Felix deftly bit into the meat on the skewer. Unlike Monica, he did not hold the skewer upright and let the juices drip down.
"Mmm, this is delicious. You've used the spices well."
After finishing the meat on the skewer, Felix looked at the stunned Neil and Monica and gave them a quick wink.
"Now I'm an accomplice too. You'll keep this quiet, right?"
Neil and Monica silently nodded repeatedly.
Glenn laughed cheerfully.
"There's still plenty, so help yourself! It's to thank you for watching our dance! ...Oh, right. Should we call the vice president, too?"
"Please don't!"
Monica and Neil shouted in unison.
If the delicate and high-strung Cyril Ashley saw this situation, he would undoubtedly yell at them with bloodshot eyes.
Monica secretly used silent magic to adjust the wind so that the smell and smoke from the grilling meat would not drift into the school building.
For now, she wanted to enjoy this pleasant time without anyone disturbing them.