032 – Is Spring Coming? Spring #2

TL/ED: Lolz

The Arkwright family was as strict as it was ruthless in all matters.

 

The current head, Cain, was a person who taught his children discipline rather than love.

 

Children raised strangely under the excessively strict father.

That was the current three siblings of Arkwright.

 

Orca Arkwright, the eldest son and the dark figure of the student council route, could be set aside for now.

The second and eldest daughter, Flora, was not a normal person.

 

"I'll check for now, Victoria. Is your sister Flora in her third year this year?"

 

To my question, Victoria nodded with a small sigh.

 

"Yes, she's in her third year this year."

 

It matched the setting in the game.

 

Flora is a third-year student at the current Ludens Academy.

However, unlike her older brother and younger sister, she was not selected as a student council executive.

 

Flora, who harbors inferiority towards her brother with a dark side and her younger sister who excels in various things, is undoubtedly a twisted person, even without seeing it.

 

Creepy.

 

Thinking of Flora's appearance, my hair stood on end.

This must be a memory imprinted on Victor's body, not mine, Ha Seung-ri.

 

Victor doesn't particularly like Flora, a moment I vaguely learned about. They didn't have much interaction in the game, but...

 

"Anyway, my sister will be coming to Ludens soon. Victor, it would be nice if you could coordinate with me a bit. If you don't want be in an annoying situation."

 

"..."

 

Instead of answering, I paused for a moment in thought.

Then, Victoria added a few words, seemingly considering my silence as a denial.

 

"I know you don't like the current Arkwright. But if it becomes known that you and I have broken our engagement, can you handle Flora?"

 

"What does that mean?"

 

"You and Flora have a worse relationship than a dog and a monkey. She was relatively quiet because you were my fiancé brought by father. If it becomes known that we broke up..."

 

The relationship between Flora and Victor seems to be something I don't know.

 

After all, the game's episodes were not about Victor, not exiting as a mid-boss, but progressing towards becoming the Goddess of Victory, like Victoria or Enio.

 

Human relationships that I don't know...

 

It becomes interesting.

At the same time, it was a story I had to know to survive.

 

"I have one question. Why does Flora hate me?"

 

"That..."

 

Victorica looked like she was about to say something, but then shook her head.

 

"I thought you would know better why Flora hates you. I actually want to know the reason."

 

Doesn't Victoria know either?

 

So, summarizing Victoria's story, let's pretend to not to have broken up to avoid getting entangled with each other due to Flora's annoyance— that had seemed to be the meaning.

 

But would that work?

 

It hadn't seemed like it.

 

Then Victoria had said,

 

"The story of our breakup has already been prominently featured in the Ludens newspaper. Now, even if we pretend not to have broken up, do you think my sister Flora would believe it?"

 

"..."

 

How did she know?

I had quickly touched the corner of my mouth with my hand.

 

The face that had been touched had always been Victor's expressionless and rigid face.

 

"Was that an expression that said, 'How did you guess my thoughts just by looking at my face'?"

 

Honestly, I had had to admit it.

 

"Yeah."

 

Victoria probably hadn't had a talent like a discerning expert. The talent for discerning had been more suitable for Enio than for Victoria.

 

"How did you do it?"

 

To my question, Victoria had cheerfully said, extending her shoulders and chest.

 

"Your expressions had been easy to read these days, Victor. Your expressions had become more diverse than before. Of course, other people probably couldn't even distinguish them.”

 

"Impressive."

 

"Your expressions are more varied than I thought. I only recently discovered this fact."

 

There were times during today's class when I felt someone's gaze, and it turned out to be Victoria.

 

Suddenly, I became curious.

 

"What kind of expression do I have right now?"

 

"Now?"

 

Victoria stared at my face for a moment.

 

A frown and a serious expression, like an expert picking out a gemstone from a pile of stones.

 

But she could never guess.

 

Because I had no thoughts.

No thoughts.

 

Was it because I had given her a difficult problem?

The white face of Victoria, who was looking at me, gradually turned more red

 

"..."

 

Victoria was a person who knew how to be embarrassed by her incompetence and inadequacy.

 

It must have been frustrating that she couldn't read my expression with her own abilities.

 

In the end, Victoria suddenly shouted with a face that turned as red as a ripe tomato.

 

"Ha, ridiculous. Why should I read your expression? No way!"

 

And then she turned her head with a swift motion.

She was right.

There was no need for Victoria to read my expression right then.

The important thing was whether, in the news of our breakup that had already spread like wildfire, trying to deceive Flora through a performance was going to work or not.

 

About that, Victoria gave a sincere answer.

 

"I'll think about that. I'll contact you soon. Since my sister will arrive tomorrow, it's better to coordinate our words this evening."

 

So, this afternoon was free.

 

First, I needed to go to the market.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

A lazy afternoon.

 

With the money I earned by selling soup and spring sauce bulgogi for a week, I brought a 3 million Rene furnace to the club room.

 

It operated on the principle of a wood-burning stove, and its appearance and usage were the same as a gas stove.

 

“It seems like I worked hard and didn’t play around, but I don’t have any money in my pocket.”

 

Was it because it was an investment stage? Even though I could be called a master of debt, I couldn't help but feel a little down.

 

"Victor, look at this! I've succeeded in taming the queen bee to some extent!"

 

At that moment, Nike shouted in excitement.

When I turned my head, I saw the queen Bashkir bee, sitting quietly on Nike's palm, drinking water.

 

━Buzz, buzz.

 

Even though it was quiet, it looked incredibly scary.

Thinking about putting something like that on the palm of your hand, Nike wasn't an ordinary person either.

 

"Once you've finished drinking, let's go back inside, Elizabeth."

 

"...Why is the queen bee named Elizabeth?"

 

"I thought a lot between 'Bzz Bzz' and 'Elizabeth.'"

 

"Elizabeth, it's a deep and excellent name."

 

Anyway, Nike was successfully taming the queen bee. If she succeeds in taming it well, we may be able to produce Bashkir honey.

 

Then, we might be able to create the legendary dish 「Honey Shaved Ice Harmony」 that surpasses Tier 1. If that happens, everything will truly turn upside down.

 

But we still had a long way to go.

 

"By the way, Nike, look at this. I had something to show you."

 

I handed Nike a flower that I had kept in the corner of the club room. As a result, Nike's face brightened like a forsythia blooming in spring.

 

"It's a very pretty flower! Victor, are you giving me a flower as a gift? It's the first time I've received a flower gift in my life!"

 

Nike liked it very much.

 

She loved it so much that it reminded me of myself when I received my first Christmas present.

 

It was 12-color crayons.

 

So, I couldn't bring myself to ask, "No, are you trying to ask if you can mass-produce and grow this 「Snow Lily」? You're a dirt magician. Then, you should be able to do this, right?"

 

"Hehehe."

 

Nike sang a little song.

She soon brought a pot from somewhere and planted the Snow Lily successfully.

 

"It's a very strange flower, but if you grow it well, you can get seeds and create a flower bed! Thank you for the gift, Victor!"

 

"About growing a flower bed, I was going to ask you. Can this flower be mass-produced?"

 

"I don't know!"

 

She doesn't know.

 

Anyway, the process became strange, but in the end, Nike made an effort to mass-produce the Snow Lily.

Considering that, we seem to be quite a well-matched partners.

 

If Nike succeeds in mass-producing Bashkir honey and Snow Lilies..., before the end of this summer, both Nike and I might be able to escape from the pile of debts.

 

"Then, Victor, I'll go ask Rose about this flower! Rose is my roommate, and she knows a lot about flowers!"

 

I know Rose too.

She gave me the four-leaf clover that was decorating this club room.

 

"Rose is in the same room as you."

 

"Yes! Yesterday, I talked about you before going to bed! She praised you a lot for detaching the beehive behind the dormitory! Rose said she wants to express her gratitude!"

 

"If it's gratitude, I already received it, right? The four-leaf clover over there."

 

"Is that so? Anyway, I'll be back soon! I'll ask her!"

 

That's how Nike suddenly left.

 

I had intended to talk to Nike about shaved ice, its effects, and the business expansion based on those effects.

 

But I couldn't.

 

I was contemplating whether I should consider additional furniture or...

At that moment, I felt a presence again outside the club room.

 

Did Nike return already?

 

No, the presence felt different.

 

Really, Victor is in a place like this? It's so obvious that it smells like commoners."

 

Someone at the club room door emitted a peculiar presence.

My body reacted before I could grasp the voice, a chill ran down my spine.

 

The door creaked open.

And beyond it revealed a girl with silver hair spread out like a bun on her head.

 

Looking closely, the hair color was closer to platinum bathed in sunlight.

 

She wore Ludens' school uniform, but the skirt width was longer, resembling a dress. She also held a navy-blue umbrella in her hands.

An aristocratic lady wary of the sunlight.

 

Although her face resembled Victoria's, it had a slightly more mature feel with sharper eyes.

Upon closer inspection, their faces were entirely different.

 

I knew the name of this unexpectedly appearing character.

 

"Flora."

 

"Oh my, still an uncouth dog. Didn't I tell you to call me Miss Flora with respect?"

 

No, didn't she say she was arriving tomorrow on a ship?

 

Faced with this unexpected appearance, I surveyed behind Flora.

 

Under the lazy afternoon sunlight, Victoria was standing in front of the club room, seemingly bewildered. Her expression wasn't good at all.

 

The person made eye contact with me shook her head.

 

It seems Victoria didn't expect this.

 

I asked Flora.

 

"Flora, what brings you here? I heard you're coming on the ship tomorrow?"

 

"...I told you to call me Miss Flora. Ugh, is that ill-mannered head still the same? Anyway, I was enjoying my vacation at the Arkwright Castle. I heard a really unexpected piece of news, huh?"

 

So she couldn't just stand by quietly.

 

“Victor, how dare you belittle my only sister on such a commoner topic. It's not just an insult to the Arkwright family but also an insult to me, Flora.”

 

“Sister, I told you it's a misunderstanding.”

 

“You stay quiet. What misunderstanding? Victor, why would you do something so foolish? Have you grown to hate the way Victoria talks in her sleep every night?”

 

“Sister! Don't say unnecessary things! We didn’t break off the engagement, we’re just pretending!”

 

“I don't believe your story. I'm asking Victor. Victor is never a man who lies, no matter the situation, even if a knife is at his throat. Isn't that right?”

 

As Flora asked, veins popped out on her forehead, an odd sight for her refined face. I can't be unaware that something was going on between Victor and Flora.

 

Perhaps it was related to Victor becoming a sluggish monster?

 

I didn't even have a clue about what it was yet, but let's confirm it first.

 

“What did Victoria say?”

“There was a reason to publicly announce a breakup. You had to deceive potential enemies inside and outside the student council, or something like that. Enemies, you say. That's funny.”

 

Victoria shrugged her head.

While I was contemplating my response, Flora added.

 

“If the news of the breakup that even reached Arkwright Castle is fake, you two are still engaged, right? Then, it's something you can do.”

 

“If that's the case?”

 

As I was confirming, Flora snorted as if asking why I'm asking such a thing.

 

“If you're engaged, you should naturally be able to do it. Like holding hands.”

 

“...”

 

“...”

 

There was a moment of silence.

 

An unintentional silence.

 

Because of that, this desolate and common-smelling club room seemed to freeze as if time had stopped.

 

Flora didn't miss that gap and asked.

 

“What's wrong, can't you?”

 

Surprisingly, it was Victoria who answered.

 

“Don't make fun of me. Th-that's something we can certainly do, right? We're engaged. Holding hands is as easy as eating...!”

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