On the weekend after Elnet successfully completed her mission as an educational trainee at the academy, the regular closing day at Marie’s Bakery saw key members involved in the recent incident gather to report the grading irregularity issue, which had been resolved before it escalated thanks to Cedric.
Among those gathered were Kent, Elnet, the sisters Josette and Rachel, Caro, Patty, the shop owner Marie, her daughter Catherine who had returned from the castle for the holiday, and even Queen Margaret.
“Tea. Please.”
Emily was distributing drinks to everyone as they settled into chairs in the dining space.
“Well then, I’d like to report on this incident. As some important matters are involved, Tia, who was involved, and Prim, who was involved in the early stages of the plan, have been asked to leave. Now that everyone is here, we can begin the report.”
The report session was to be led by Elnet, who was most involved in this matter.
“…And that’s how I ended up infiltrating the academy as an educational trainee.”
Elnet explained that the infiltration operation began when Josette brought up Cedric’s suspicious behavior during a planning meeting for the beauty contest at the school festival. Since everyone except Kent already knew these details, the report was essentially for his benefit.
“My first contact was… Then, after the midterm exams, the grading process… And that concludes the flow of this incident.”
Following that, Elnet sequentially reported the events, starting from the initial contact to Cedric’s forceful attempt to make Tia conduct fraudulent grading.
“Regarding the disciplinary actions for those involved in this matter, Cedric is officially listed as missing, but in reality, he has been exiled. He will likely not return to the academy. In truth, it was a case of fraudulent grading against a commoner, so the charges wouldn’t have been severe, especially since it was an attempted crime. This would have made the penalty even lighter. However, this time, he committed the sin of laying a hand on someone he should not have touched. The severity of the crime increased because… everyone’s emotions couldn’t be contained. Now, about the punishments for those who assisted…”
Elnet proceeded to report on the disciplinary actions for Cedric and others involved in the incident.
“That concludes the report on this matter. If anyone has questions, I will answer them to the best of my knowledge.”
After reporting the punishments, the floor opened for questions.
“May I ask one thing?”
“Yes, please.”
Kent raised his hand and stood up from his seat.
“I learned a lot of new things today, and I’m sorry for causing everyone so much trouble. Thanks to everyone’s cooperation, the test rankings turned out as satisfactory as we hoped. Thank you, everyone.”
Kent bowed deeply in front of everyone.
“It was for Kent’s sake,”
“Just hearing Kent say that makes it all worthwhile,”
“We managed to get one over on that Cedric, so it’s good, right?”
As Kent bowed, the attendees offered their words.
“Kent, you’re well-liked by everyone. It’s a pleasure to see.”
Margaret observed the scene and commented.
“Um, can I ask a question?”
“Please.”
Rachel then raised her hand.
“How did you end up finding Lilia-sensei’s husband? And even if you said you’d help, you can’t just mobilize a rescue party conveniently after the situation is known, can you?”
“Good question. Actually, I don’t know about that either.”
“It’s hard to take you seriously when you say that with such confidence…”
Elnet couldn’t answer Rachel’s question.
“Regarding that, my husband Al and I went for the search and rescue.”
“????”
Emily, who had been waiting a short distance from the dining area where the report was being held, spoke up. Kent and those who knew them well were surprised that the two, who typically only acted on Kent’s orders, were involved.
“While I cannot say who it was from, we learned that Lilia-sensei’s husband had been kidnapped at the request of a certain individual, and Al and I went to find him. We found him relatively quickly, but we were told to wait for instructions, so we remained on standby. Then, we received the order to rescue him and saved him together.”
“But Emily, you have a contract with your older brother, so you shouldn’t be able to act unless directly asked, right?”
“The ultimate objective was framed as being for Master’s sake, so we operated under that guise. I believe this counts as providing indirect support from behind the scenes.”
Emily answered Rachel’s question.
“Are there any other questions?”
“Then, may I go next?”
“Yes, Margaret-sama.”
“Elnet-chan, since we’re all friends here, I’d prefer it if you called me ‘Auntie’.”
“Ugh, understood. Please go ahead, Auntie.”
Margaret then raised her hand. However, having been addressed with a formal title, she seemed to feel a sense of exclusion and requested a change in her appellation.
“I saw the clothes Rachel made, and they’re amazing how they don’t let blades through. Could you make one for me too, if you don’t mind?”
“Um, the clothes I make are more of a hobby, so I don’t think they’re good enough for royalty… The clothes you’re wearing now, Auntie, even though they look like commoner clothes, the quality of the stitching suggests they were made by a skilled seamstress.”
“Oh, you can tell if you have an eye for sewing. Still, that’s fine. I’ll leave the design up to you, so please take care of it.”
“…Understood.”
Rachel, who, like Josette, recognized that Margaret was wearing custom-made clothes that, while appearing to be for commoners, were actually crafted with great care and effort, felt her own creations were not comparable and tried to refuse. However, at Margaret’s request, she agreed to make one item of clothing that would not be penetrated by blades.
“Well, since there seem to be no further questions, this concludes the report meeting.”
After a few more people asked questions, Elnet confirmed there were no others and ended the session.
“Then, if I may, I have one point I’d like to discuss.”
“Yes, please.”
As the report meeting concluded and everyone was about to stand up, Margaret interjected.
“Well done, everyone, for your efforts on this matter. As the academy’s principal, I am glad we were able to uncover the irregularities. As for Cedric’s father, he has offered to resign from his ministerial position to take responsibility for this incident, and the King has approved it. I hope he will simply step down, but there’s a possibility that something may be brewing behind the scenes. Please all exercise extreme caution.”
“That minister… I thought he’d cling to his position desperately, so it’s surprising he stepped down so easily.”
“Indeed, Sister. That’s what makes it even more unsettling.”
When Margaret mentioned Cedric’s father, Elnet and Josette felt uneasy about his swift resignation.
“That’s all I have to say. It’s almost noon… What should we do about lunch? Oh, Marie, do you have anything simple we can serve from the shop?”
“Although it’s our day off, we can prepare anything on this menu.”
It was a sudden proposal from Margaret, but Marie responded immediately that she could prepare it.
“Oh, that’s wonderful. Did you perhaps anticipate I might suggest something like this?”
“No, that’s not the case. The ingredients we keep for our shop are long-lasting. We always stock them for the staff’s meals, so we’re never short.”
The food and drink served at Marie’s Bakery’s dining space primarily use retort pouches, canned goods, and frozen foods. Because of this, the ingredients stay fresh and last a long time, so there’s no need to procure perishable items each time, and they can serve food and drinks even on their day off. There is one item sold in the shop that does not have a long shelf life: the bread, which is the main product. Bread is not listed on the menu for the dining space, as it is sold differently.
“I see. In that case, lunch is on me today, so eat as much as you like. Marie, I’m sorry to ask you to work, but could you manage?”
“Yes, I usually serve many more customers, so it’s no problem. Emily, could you lend a hand?”
“Understood.”
Marie accepted Margaret’s request and headed towards the kitchen with Emily.
“Mom, I’ll help too.”
Catherine also hurried to follow Marie.
“Oh my, they really are mother and daughter.”
Margaret watched them with a gentle smile.
