Leon’s manor.
To celebrate the successful negotiations, we decided to hold a tea party and invited the Master.
Why isn’t it at my own manor?
Because Lelia’s older sister, who mustn’t be provoked, is staying here, so I, the host, have to step out.
…Sometimes I think my kindness is a crime.
Anyway, that’s that.
“Look, Master! This tea set is from Alzer.”
The Master gently lifts a cup.
“Such delicate craftsmanship.”
“It was a bit pricey, but we bought the whole set with the reparations from the Republic.”
Thanks to everyone in the Republic of Alzer!
As Marie watches us flaunt our brand‑new tea set, she leans in.
“Is this expensive? How much?”
I whisper to her.
“Each cup alone is about four to five hundred thousand yen.”
Marie takes a cup, studies it.
“This one alone will make life so much easier! And it’s a whole set!”
“Sorry, I’m rich.”
I lost everything and left the kingdom—well, that’s the story—but I became a wealthy man in the Republic.
That’s the result of making the Republic pay reparations. I squeezed every last drop out of it.
Marie examines the whole set, does the math, and collapses onto her knees.
“This is terrible. I’m still getting by with a cheaper set.”
The Master begins to comfort Marie in a gentlemanly way.
“Don’t worry, Miss Marie. It’s not about the price. It’s the spirit of hospitality that matters.”
Our conversation is interrupted by Jilk, who arrives with a leather bag.
“The headmaster was right.”
Confident Jilk shakes his head at the tea set I bought.
“What’s up? If you’ve got something to say, just say it.”
“Then let me say it. That tea set is over the top. In a word, it lacks taste.”
“Huh?”
Jilk explains while looking at the set.
“Excessively ornate. It looks like a work of art, but it’s impractical for daily use. It’s a tea set that proves it’s just decoration. A nouveau‑rich taste—pardon the term. Flashy tools favored by those who’ve risen quickly. Amateurs who get obsessed with tea often buy these.”
I’m irritated.
Marie grabs my arm to stop me, but the Master backs me up.
“Mr. Jilk, that’s not right. Yes, it’s heavily decorated, but the fact that tea enthusiasts want it shows it has appeal.”
Taking the Master’s words to heart, I retort to Jilk as if I had an army behind me.
“Exactly. Calling someone’s taste ‘nouveau‑rich’ is rude.”
Should I have senior Clarice scold me?
No, that’s out of the question. Talking about Jilk in front of Clarice is forbidden.
“Perhaps I went too far. But if I may say so, Count Bartfort knows nothing about real tea.”
Jilk opens his leather bag, revealing a very old tea set, parts of it chipped.
I point and laugh.
“What’s that! It’s ancient! And you say that’s the real thing?”
Jilk presses his hand to his forehead, shaking his head.
He’s basically saying, “You don’t get it at all.”
The Master’s eyes widen.
“This—”
“The headmaster noticed the streamlined design, the sense of history in its stance. Real tea isn’t just about luxury.”
Marie listens to Jilk’s explanation, impressed.
“From a layperson’s view, something that looks worthless can be pricey. Wait, Jilk, you actually owned a set like this?”
“I bought it. It was cheap.”
“Oh, you’re good at shopping. How much?”
Jilk straightens up.
“About fifty thousand Dia in the Holfart Kingdom.”
Marie starts trembling.
“What? Hold on. Fifty thousand Dia… you actually spent that! That was supposed to be essential living expenses!”
In yen that’d be about five million.
As Marie gasps, Jilk calmly explains.
“Don’t worry, Miss Marie. I bought it from a reputable shop, and if you resell it normally you’ll get double the price. Bring it back to Holfart and someone will pay ten or twenty thousand Dia for it. Look at this beautiful white. It’s not pure white, but it has a nice hue. Can you see the subtle variations in color?”
To me it looks like a stain, but hearing him it somehow seems plausible.
Marie is being swayed by Jilk.
Apparently Jilk used cash he found in the manor to make the purchase, and Marie is gradually warming to the idea.
“Then… that’s fine. It does look nice now. Seeing this, I realize—Leon’s tea set is really over‑the‑top.”
It hurts to hear, but Jilk’s pitch makes it look good.
Damn… I want one too.
Is this wabi‑sabi? It’s starting to look like an amazing tea set.
“The Count can’t possibly appreciate this. I’ve always handled genuine tea at the palace and my family home, so I know its value. Let me serve you my special blend today.”
Seeing Jilk’s triumphant face makes me jealous.
He’s a spoiled brat.
In other words, he truly grew up touching the real thing.
I’m annoyed that I only judged by appearance.
So I end up drinking the tea Jilk blended—bland, weak, and oddly scented.
Maybe the expensive set is why I can’t taste anything.
…My tongue just can’t grasp it.
◇
When the tea party ends, Jilk and Marie clean up the set together.
I lower my shoulders and confide in the Master.
“…Jilk was right. I can’t understand what ‘real’ means. That set just looks old, and the tea itself wasn’t tasty.”
Expensive things don’t always suit my palate.
I’ve lost confidence.
I’d only seen it as an old set until someone called it pricey, and now it’s embarrassing.
But the Master looks troubled.
“What’s wrong, Master?”
It’s rare to see the usually composed Master in distress.
“Mr. Leon, that tea set is just a mass‑produced item.”
“What?”
“It’s a low‑quality set that only looks complete. It’s not worth fifty thousand Dia at all. Even in Holfart it’d sell for a hundred Dia… and the tea leaves are just cheap blends. The aroma… it’s a matter of taste, but it just isn’t for me.”
The Master is at a loss.
Jilk, who grew up handling genuine tea, can’t fathom why he got duped with a fake.
But the one who looks stunned is Marie, standing at the doorway.
Her face is pale, clinging to the door.
“No…”
“Miss Marie! I—what you just said—”
The Master tries to comfort her, but
“Wait! Jilk spent half his cash on a fake! I thought my life would get easier! Return the feeling I had when I was happy with a hundred‑Dia tea set!”
Even I found the situation a bit funny.
Marie is on the floor, hands on the ground, crying.
“I bought so many things I barely have anything left! I wanted new pajamas, new casual clothes! I can survive summer, but how will I get through autumn and winter—”
Seeing this, Jilk returns, shocked.
“Marie‑san, are you okay—”
She slaps his head with a tray and storms out, shouting,
“This idiot!!!”
Jilk holds his head, looking at us.
I look away.
The Master says,
“…Mr. Jilk, you must not use shared assets without permission.”
“Uh… yes. But it was a good item.”
“That’s no excuse! First, you should have consulted Miss Marie, who manages the money. You can’t just spend it.”
“Y‑yeah, I see that… but I thought it would help everyone…”
“Sit down. You’ve got an extra job at Alzer now—teaching everyone common sense seems to be your most important task.”
A normal lecture begins.
Still, Marie’s pitiful state is… oddly comforting in a twisted way.
If she’s in trouble again, I’ll lend a hand.
“Since this will take a while, I’ll prepare more tea.”
Jilk, who kept babbling about the ‘real thing,’ ended up with a fake. Well, he’s the guy who lost his fortune and status to Marie’s deception. He’s got no eye for quality.
I keep an eye on the lecturing Jilk while smiling and preparing tea.
◇
Back at my house, I’m talking with Lelia’s older sister.
I’m careful, so I mostly just recount daily events.
She says nothing.
She seems mentally exhausted, holding a sapling of the Sacred Tree and staying quietly at home.
Why does she have a Sacred Tree sapling?
She says it calms her. I’d love for her to just take it with her.
“So after that, Julius and the others gathered and got lectured. The Master really is amazing, huh? Julius and the others finally reflected. They should have done it sooner.”
She smiles faintly.
At first she was expressionless, but now a smile appears.
She’s also receiving treatment with medicine prepared by Luxion.
The priority is to let her rest slowly and keep Erik away.
She hugs the case with the sapling and talks to me.
“Looks fun.”
“U‑uh, is it fun? I guess… I laughed at it…”
The five were being lectured, watched by Kyle and Carla’s trio.
Two of them kept looking at the Master like, “Say more!” It was amusing.
Apparently those two held a lot of resentment toward the five.
In hindsight, if I wanted to earn Marie’s approval, I should’ve focused on life skills rather than combat power.
Take a page from me.
Extract the money from Alzer and become rich again.
“…Lately I’ve been wondering if I like Erik… Violence has increased, but he’s still kind, so I stayed by his side. When things calm down, I can’t figure it out.”
She’s finally recovering enough to speak.
“Take it easy, you don’t have… any… trouble… later think about it later.”
Marie says we shouldn’t force her to make a big decision here.
Honestly, I’d love her to jump to the next guy quickly, but who knows what Yandere Erik will do.
What the hell was Lelia doing?
“…I couldn’t take classes this semester, so I was anxious.”
Even the noble Erik is anxious, let alone his sister.
Jean was forced to repeat a year.
“Let’s talk to Professor Klemann. We have remedial classes, we can take them together, it’ll be fine. Don’t worry, I—Even the Republic can be flexible.”
If we flash the Jewel, they’ll wag their tails even harder than Noel.
Sister clutches the sapling case and falls silent.
“If it’s tough, let’s rest in the room.”
Robots come and carry her away.
She still seems mentally unstable.
◇
Port of Holfart Kingdom.
A massive fleet of airships is departing for the Republic of Alzer.
Many airships built at the Bartfort factories.
One of them.
On the deck of the airship captained by Nix, Leon’s brother, Angelica and Libya are aboard.
Claire also joins them.
Nix looks gloomy.
“Why do I have to go abroad? Father says it’s good experience, you tell me to go, Leon says he’ll pay the reward, so I’m supposed to help… Why does he even send someone abroad to study and pick fights?”
Busy Nix, irritated by Leon, vents his complaints.
Angelica places a hand on his waist,
“Brother‑in‑law, you’re just buying the fight that was sold to you. In fact, you gave the Republic of Alzer a good splash. The queen praised you highly.”
Nix is at a loss for a reply.
“Uh… right.”
To Nix, Angelica seems like a lady floating above the clouds.
She’ll be his sister‑in‑law soon, but being called “brother‑in‑law” feels… honestly awkward.
Libya talks to Claire.
“Claire‑chan, are we traveling on our brother‑in‑law’s airship?”
Nix looks surprised.
He makes a pleading face.
‘No way. We’ve prepared a dedicated airship. It’s the second‑class ship of the Einhorn line—Rikorunu.’
Claire says that, and a ship of the same model—identical to the Einhorn—breaks through the clouds.
A white hull, stunningly beautiful.
Angelica adds,
“The color should have been red.”
‘This time it’s white… isn’t it? Beautiful… It’s an upgraded version of that eccentric designer’s work. Performance is better.”
Nix watches the Rikorunu, impressed.
“It’s the same type as Leon’s ship… they really mass‑produced it well.”
‘Master… would you want…?’
“...I don’t want… because… ………… …… …… …… ……
………… ……… …… …… ……
………… ………………… ……
………… ……………………”
He… … … ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...