Vol. 4 - Chapter 5 - A harmonious morning
It\'s only 6 o\'clock. Even though it is my last break...
Habits are really scary. She still woke up at her regular time despite the holiday.
She tried to put the blanket over her head and closed her eyes tightly, but it wasn\'t effective at all.
"Ah, geez!"
If she couldn\'t sleep, then so be it. Mia jumped out of her bed, changed her clothes, and headed towards the first floor.
"Goood morning~"
Teresa, who was leaning on the table, waved her hands in the air, raising her laid-back voice.
An appetizing smell of roasting meat wafted from the kitchen. Cliff and Eight were in charge of today\'s breakfast. This fragrance was most likely of ginger and soya.
Today\'s breakfast was Cliff\'s specialty: grilled wild boar meat with ginger.
Incidentally, Sagami Co.\'s spices and ingredients were delivered to Class G\'s dormitory every morning before 6 am. The person on duty that day would pick up and use them on that day\'s menu.
The ginger and soya were the spices originally developed by Sagami Co., and the roasted wild boar with ginger was one of the dishes that the head chef of Silver Knife had taught Mia to cook in a quest.
Specifically, the grilled wild boar meat with ginger made by Cliff was the best among the students of Class G, and it was too delicious.
"Good morning," Mia greeted Pluto and Teresa, who were already seated there, and she also sat down on a chair.
"In the end, we still end up gathering at this time like every morning even though we are on a break..."
"Yeah," she nodded at Pluto, who muttered while resting his chin on his hands and absentmindedly thinking about today\'s vacation.
Mia was eating with everyone as the dessert was carried to the dining table.
"So? This is our final break. What is everyone\'s plan?" Pluto asked casually, and everyone pondered about it for a while.
"Now that you mention it, there\'s nothing particular I want to do," Cliff replied as he skillfully carried the food with his chopstick to his mouth.
"Yeah, I don\'t have anything to do either."
"Me neither."
"Mia, will you visit your mother?"
"No, mother is already fine now."
Mia\'s mother had completely recovered from her illness, and there was nothing to worry about her life, as she was told so by the doctor in charge.
Furthermore, she seemed to have found a good person and was living together with him in the central district of the empire. She had finally forgotten that scumbag man. It was a really nice development, and Mia didn\'t want to be in the way of her mother\'s happiness any more than this. That was why it turned into not seeing her for a while.
"The heck, that means none of you have any plan in the end."
Pluto shrugged in amazement.
"I bet it must be the same for you," Cliff retorted.
"No doubt."
Pluto nodded in self-mockery.
"Then, why don\'t we work on the thing we are talking about today? There is only around one month left for the exam, and I don\'t think we can manage it at our current pace."
"Yeah, indeed. Isn\'t it fine since we don\'t have anything to do either way? What do you guys think?"
Pluto looked at everyone to see what they thought about Teresa\'s words.
"Mia also supports it," Mia agreed immediately.
Yes, the deadline for Mia\'s and the others\' projects was until the end of the exam. They only had a short amount of time left.
"I basically agree, but how are we going to Straheim? Sensei isn\'t here today."
It was just as Eight said. It was impossible to travel to Straheim without the help of Shirabe-sensei or his disciple\'s profound strength.
And the crux of the matter was that Sensei wasn\'t here in the capital today. There were several of Sensei\'s disciples, but they were definitely not using it without his approval.
"You don\'t need to worry about it. Straheim has something I want, so I\'ve already made plans to visit the city."
"Right, though the problem is how to get there."
"I have an idea."
Responding to Cliff\'s extremely honest opinion, Pluto flashed a smile as if a mischievous person had pulled off his best trap.
"You, I\'m sure you are up to no good."
Cliff stopped his hand holding the spoon to scoop up the soup and raised his voice in exasperation with his half-closed eyes.
"Nonsense. That person only does legitimate deals."
Well, Mia had already guessed it, more or less. Only one person among Sagami Co. staff members in the 4th district of Leithe would most likely accept the deal.
"Let\'s eat quickly and head for the labyrinth! I have some magic I want to try out!"
"You, was this your objective all along..."
A chuckle spilled out from Mia\'s mouth naturally when she looked at Pluto let out a sigh as if he was genuinely fed up.
"What\'s so funny, Mia?"
"Hmm... You seem really happy."
"What a strange person, as usual."
Cliff began to move his spoon while spouting his usual cutting remarks.
Everyone harmoniously ate at the dining table. They could feel the gentle morning sunlight shining through the windowpane of the building everyone had worked hard to remodel.
It was as if Mia had finally gotten the thing she had lost for a long time, and at this moment, she felt certain happiness.