Anne woke me up, and I went to work. I was well rested after a day off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I reached the Ministry by carriage and I went to the office, where Laura would be leading me as I did manual labor like on the previous days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m going to do my best today too! <\/em>I thought to myself while rolling up my sleeves. However, looking at my sleeves, I realized that my outfit wasn\u2019t exactly ideal for manual labor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHaving to wear a dress, and then the uniform on top of it is really cumbersome…\u201d I murmured to myself, catching the attention of my tanktop-wearing colleague.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCumbersome indeed!\u201d he said. \u201cDo you want one of these?\u201d he asked with a smile, offering me a tanktop that looked just like the one he was wearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had to refuse his kind offer. I could have accepted it if I was still the monkey-like girl of my previous life, but as an adult noblewoman, a tanktop would be too much. Not to mention that it was still too cold to go sleeveless. But even if I didn\u2019t go all the way to a tanktop…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMaybe it\u2019d be okay if I wore work clothes…\u201d I murmured to myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDefinitely not,\u201d said Sora coldly. \u201cThe rules say that we have to wear the uniform. This is the only department where people dress as they please.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, he\u2019s right. <\/em>Tanktops, lab coats, frilly dresses… Everyone was wearing what they wanted, even though it was obviously against the rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As it turned out, it was because the department\u2019s director, Larna, didn\u2019t really care about rules, and wouldn\u2019t scold anyone for their clothes. Her subordinates took this as an opportunity to substitute the uniform for whatever they liked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was no surprise that the rule-abiding Cyrus Lanchester disliked us. This smart and handsome romanceable character from FL2 was the head of the Magic Powers Department. He attached great importance to rules and laws, and he disliked the Magical Tool Laboratory for being a collection of weirdos who couldn\u2019t care less about such things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But he did help me when those jerks were harassing me in the library, so he probably wasn\u2019t a bad person. Just like Dewey, he could have something to do with a catastrophic Bad End, so, if possible, I wanted to befriend him and gather more information. But… even if he didn\u2019t categorically dislike our department, I didn\u2019t see how we could ever become friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to my colleagues, he came from a relatively high-ranking family. He was diligent and talented, and he was considered a perfect, flawless individual. He was held in high esteem within the Ministry and respected by his subordinates, but he only spoke the bare minimum and wasn\u2019t on particularly friendly terms with anyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Being in a different department (and one that he hated, at that), it wouldn\u2019t be easy to casually chat him up. If I had at least played through FL2, I would know more about his background and tastes, and I could use those things to start a conversation… But I hadn\u2019t, and all the information I had came from that dream and that note. I had nothing that could help me befriend him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And if we were inside the game, I\u2019d just need to wait for him to talk to me and then choose the dialogue option which would make him like me the most… But unfortunately, this was reality. And I was the antagonist anyway, not the protagonist. He\u2019d only approach me to fight…<\/p>\n\n\n\n …Haah, this is so sad,<\/em> I thought to myself, sighing deeply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSorry to interrupt you while you\u2019re busy reflecting, but Laura said we should get to work,\u201d Sora said all of a sudden, giving me an exasperated look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes,\u201d I said, forgetting my sorrows to concentrate on my job. Today, too, I\u2019d be delivering packages. I still had much to learn and I made a few mistakes here and there, but the whole day went by without any major problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When we were close to the end of the day, our other tutor, Hart, taught us a little about paperwork. He only showed us the relatively easy documents, but even then there was a lot to be wary of, and I definitely would have preferred to keep delivering stuff throughout the building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood. Now they are complete. Would you deliver them to the proper departments?\u201d Hart said, handing me and Sora some documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShould I tag along?\u201d Sora asked, worried that I might get lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the documents he had were supposed to be delivered to a department on the other side of the building from where I was headed, so if he came with me, he\u2019d have to go back and forth for no reason. Plus, I had already been to the department I needed to go to a couple of times to deliver packages, so I knew where it was. I explained that to Sora, and went to deliver the documents on my own for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was a bit nervous, but the kind-looking colleague who I found there just accepted the documents without any problem. Feeling accomplished after having completed my first solo task, I was on my way back to the Magical Tool Laboratory when I heard a lot of fuss behind the door of that<\/em> department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was the Biomagic Department, and the monkey was probably at it again. I was warned that I\u2019d be in for some trouble if their director, who was interested in Pochi, caught sight of me, so I wanted to avoid that as much as possible. I walked faster to get away, but…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOoh ooh ahh ahh!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh? What?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I looked back, surprised by the weird noise I\u2019d just heard, and I felt something heavy fall onto my head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wh-What is this?!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The something<\/em> on my head started pulling at my hair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOuch! What?! Ouch!\u201d I screamed, and I felt the weight lift from my head. The monkey I\u2019d met before was now standing in front of me, holding my barrette \u2014 the one I always used to fix my hair \u2014 in its hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHey! That\u2019s mine! Give it back!\u201d I said, going after it. But it just grinned and started running away!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWait! Give my barrette back!\u201d I said, pulling up my skirt and sprinting after the monkey, just like I had done with Pochi the previous day at the castle. \u201c…Where am I?\u201d I asked myself, panting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had been running blindly after the monkey and ended up in a place I didn\u2019t know. Getting lost two days in a row… Just my luck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At least yesterday I\u2019d managed to get Pochi, but today, even after all the running I\u2019d done, I\u2019d lost sight of the monkey. What a complete fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I really liked that barrette! You friggin\u2019 monkey, what do you have against me?!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Dejected, I looked around to try to find my way back, but there was no clear path. There weren\u2019t even any buildings in sight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why am I in the middle of nature all of a sudden?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Ministry\u2019s entrance had a gate which was guarded, and you had to identify yourself before leaving, but I hadn\u2019t passed by anything like that. So that meant that this place, surrounded by grass and trees, was inside the Ministry. What was this place?<\/p>\n\n\n\n I knew that the building was very large, but I didn\u2019t expect it to have a place like this inside it. I worried that I wouldn\u2019t be able to ever find my way back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe Sora or Hart will realize I\u2019m missing and come looking for me. No, wait, if Hart started looking for me that would just be one more lost person, and then they\u2019d have to go looking for him too… Please stay in the office…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh?! What\u2019s that next to the bushes?!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I saw the monkey standing next to some bushes and ran towards it at full speed. I slid on the ground with a shout, managing to catch the animal between my hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHa! I\u2019ve finally got you, you troublemaking monkey! Give my barrette back!\u201d I said, staring at my prisoner as menacingly as I could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then, it tossed my barrette over the bushes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHey! What did you do that for?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I let go of the monkey and waded through the thick foliage, getting to the other side. Luckily, I found my barrette lying on the ground. I picked it up and was relieved to see that it wasn\u2019t broken. Still, that monkey was a real nuisance. I even considered complaining about it to the Biomagic Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At least I got my barrette back. Now, to find my way back…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhaaa?!\u201d I screamed, surprised at what I saw in front of me. It was a beautiful vegetable field. \u201cWh-Why is such an amazing field in a place like this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It had ridges, seedling supports, and even nets to keep the birds away. This was no amateur field \u2014 it was the work of a professional. It looked like the proper fields I\u2019d visited back in the day. The one I\u2019d made at home would pale in comparison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But why is this here? This is the Magical Ministry, right? Is it a Ministry field? <\/em>I thought to myself, staring at it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some distance from where I was standing, there was a small hut. Its door opened loudly and someone came out of it wearing a hat and work clothes and holding a hoe. That person must have been the one tending to the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me,\u201d I said, walking towards the hut, relieved that I had finally found someone that I could ask for directions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hearing my voice, the person in front of me looked up, and I could now see the face that was previously hidden by the large hat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Uh?\u201d I said, so shocked that I couldn\u2019t move any further. I knew that face. It was…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDirector Cyrus Lanchester…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The words slipped from my mouth as I stared at him. He fidgeted around for a bit, and then, straining his voice as if to camouflage it, he said, \u201cThat\u2019s not me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI said that\u2019s not me. I\u2019m not Cyrus,\u201d he said coldly, turning his face away from me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nope. Nope. He doesn\u2019t have his usual glasses, sure, but these green eyes, brown hair, and handsome face are Cyrus Lanchester\u2019s.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I wasn\u2019t that good at remembering faces, but I\u2019d last seen him only two days ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…But, you look just like…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI said that\u2019s not me!\u201d he said with such determination that it sounded like the truth… But he\u2019s even trying to hide his face. He\u2019s definitely Cyrus.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe he was embarrassed being seen with work clothes and a hat, since he was always nice and tidy in his uniform in front of people. Nobles didn\u2019t usually dress like this, and I remembered that Mother once told me to \u201cchange out of those unsightly clothes.\u201d Now she was so used to it that she didn\u2019t say anything anymore, but still.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hm… The smart thing to do here is just pretend he\u2019s someone else and ask him for directions. But then again, this is a rare chance to talk with Cyrus…<\/em> I was thinking about the best course of action when a majestic row of asparagus caught my attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Asparagus? That\u2019s the sign of a real farming pro.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWow, you can tell that they\u2019ll be delicious just by looking at them,\u201d I said, unable to contain my excitement at the superb vegetables in front of me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?! Duke\u2019s daughter Katarina Claes understands the beauty of this asparagus?!\u201d Cyrus replied, matching my excitement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes! I\u2019ve never seen ones with stalks this big and tips this straight! They\u2019re perfect!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know, right? Yer good with them greens, ain\u2019t ya? When they\u2019ve got them tips all plump like that it\u2019s when they\u2019re the yummiest! And take a gander at the… Ah…\u201d Cyrus had started sounding like a bumpkin in his enthusiasm. He caught himself, stopped speaking, and sighed while putting a hand on his forehead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLady Katarina Claes,\u201d he said with his eyes closed, \u201cthere is something I would like to discuss with you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He had gone back to his usual cool way of speaking, and his expression was grave and intense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOkay,\u201d I said, nodding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then he started to explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus Lanchester was born as the second son in a land-owning, high-ranking earl\u2019s family. However, their land was located in the middle of nowhere, far from the capital, and the rank of earl didn\u2019t hold the value it once had. His family had lost all of their fortune long ago, and they now lived in the country and tended to the fields just like all other farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus was no exception. Despite being born a noble, he was raised as a peasant. He grew up sweating in the fields, and since that was what his whole family was doing, he never thought twice about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, when he turned ten, he discovered that he had magical ability and would have to attend the Academy of Magic. In order to prepare for his new life surrounded by nobles in the faraway capital, he studied as hard as he could, even learning about the etiquette and manners of high society all by himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He entered the academy armed with a reasonable amount of knowledge under his belt, but he still couldn\u2019t fit in with the other nobles and the way they talked and acted. His studies had taught him about them, but, as someone raised as a lowly farmer, he could not become one of them. He would sometimes accidentally revert to his peasant speech patterns when he was caught off guard \u2014 another reason why he dreaded even speaking with his classmates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus kept to himself, never making any friends, trying his best not to slip up, and studying as diligently as possible. This lifestyle led him to great academic achievements and, eventually, to being scouted by the Magical Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tired of having to fit in amongst the capital\u2019s nobles, he actually wished to go back home to work on the fields. But partly because his parents had been very happy about his potential job, and partly because he wanted to send money back to his younger brothers and sisters, he ended up accepting the Ministry\u2019s offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even at his new job, he remained his strict, friendless self. People started calling him things like \u201cthe lonely genius,\u201d making it even more difficult for him to show his true self to others. He had kept playing his role as a strict, dedicated department director… until, a few years ago, he couldn\u2019t take it anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus eventually pushed himself too hard, and his body just couldn\u2019t keep up. The doctor told him that his collapse could have been caused by psychological stress rather than physical illness, and he was suggested that he find a hobby he could enjoy in his free time to forget about work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus chose as his hobby what had been his work for many years before joining the Academy of Magic: farming. He created a field for himself in an area within the Ministry where people hardly ever set foot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He soon realized that working on his field after work or on days off was relaxing, making him feel happier and even increasing his productivity at work. And so, he had been tending this field all of this time as a hobby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After telling me this very long story, which covered most of his life, Cyrus let out a deep sigh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNow you know what I\u2019m doing here. After you saw me like this, I knew I could not lie to you… But please don\u2019t tell anyone about it,\u201d he said, looking dejected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Personally, I thought that keeping a field as a hobby was a wonderful idea. If anything, I was just impressed by how good he was at it, but I understood why he wanted to keep it a secret. After all, the difference between Cyrus\u2019s public image within the Ministry and his real self was huge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI won\u2019t,\u201d I said, and his face sprung up, making his eyes, hidden behind his frameless glasses, meet mine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh! I have an idea…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…But on one condition,\u201d I added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus looked at me, perplexed. \u201cA condition? As long as it\u2019s something legal and within my power… Let\u2019s hear it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet me help you with this field. And, while we are at it, I\u2019d love it if you could teach me what you know about growing tasty vegetables,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He stared at me with his mouth open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Did I push it too far?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs that not okay…?\u201d I asked, staring at his green eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…I don\u2019t really mind…\u201d he replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yay! If he teaches me, I\u2019m sure I\u2019ll be able to grow all kinds of delicious veggies!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n After agreeing to my request, Cyrus told me how to get back to my department, and I returned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since it had taken me so long to come back, my colleagues had started looking for me. As I\u2019d feared, Hart, feeling the responsibility of having sent me on the errand that made me get lost, personally joined the search party and inevitably got lost himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Luckily he was found by the time I came back, but I was scolded for running around in a place I wasn\u2019t familiar with, even though it was that monkey\u2019s fault from the start. But I could clearly see how much my colleagues had been worried about me, so I decided to be more careful going forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sora saw me off to the carriage again, and I was so tired from chasing the monkey that I fell asleep as soon as I got inside. From the next day forward, I started visiting Cyrus every evening right after work. I helped him with the field, and he taught me about growing vegetables. The more he taught me, the more I realized that he was a pro \u2014 leagues ahead of an amateur farmer like me. His many years of farming before coming to the Ministry were showing, and I was deeply impressed by his skill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I need to learn as much as possible so if push comes to shove and I\u2019m exiled, I\u2019ll be able to make a living abroad as a peasant.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I learned about farming with much more passion than I had ever put into my studies at the academy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, I also did my best at work. It had been around a week since I\u2019d started my job at the Ministry, and Sora and I were slowly being entrusted with more unsupervised tasks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I still wasn\u2019t very good with paperwork, but when it came to delivering packages and cleaning, I was doing a decent job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Today the janitor even praised me, saying that I was always full of energy! Heehee!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n After I was done with my work, as had now become usual, I went to Cyrus\u2019s field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood evening,\u201d I greeted him after changing into the work clothes that I stored in the small hut near the field. I had come to think of him as my farming teacher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHey,\u201d he greeted me back while cleaning the sweat off his forehead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Usually he came here later than me, but today he was already here working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus, as the director of the Magical Powers Department, the most popular department in the whole Ministry, seemed to be endlessly busy. But he would still come to his field every day, no matter how late it was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIsn\u2019t that exhausting?\u201d I\u2019d asked. But he said that on the contrary, being able to work the soil, even if just for a little bit, made him feel much better. He probably used it as a way to relieve stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Actually, no matter how tired I was from work, I always found myself overflowing with energy as soon as I stepped onto the field too, so I understood how he felt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMister Cyrus, where should I put these seedlings?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, right over there,\u201d he said. His face looked relaxed and peaceful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During the day when he was doing his Ministry job, he always looked so tense and strict, but now his expression was soft and calm. And lately he had even started using his unfiltered countryside speech sometimes, making him sound much more natural.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He sounded like the old women who used to gather in the field near my childhood friend\u2019s house in my previous life. Hearing him speak like this made me feel at home, so much so that I risked forgetting that I was a noble lady.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHey, Miss Katarina, let\u2019s rest for a while and drink a cup of tea.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, sure!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus\u2019s policy was to rest and drink tea whenever work was almost done. \u201cIf you try to push harder, you\u2019ll just get tired and get nothing done,\u201d he had said, and I had promptly written that down on my farming notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We sat on a blanket laid out on the grass, sitting on either side of a tray that Cyrus had prepared with tea (green, not black as was the custom for tea parties) and pickled vegetables instead of snacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ah, this is just wonderful.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The first time he served me pickles, I\u2019d been so surprised that they even existed in this medieval Europe-inspired world that I\u2019d ended up stuffing my mouth with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus explained that, in fact, they didn\u2019t exist near the capital, but that they were common where he had grown up and the ones he had served me were homemade by him. I asked him for the details of how to prepare them, but no matter how much I tried, they never came out tasting like his. I still had a lot of trial and error to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I ate one of the pickles that I was determined to replicate, enjoying its crunchy texture and pleasantly salty and sour flavor. It was delicious on its own, but I had always eaten pickled vegetables with rice in my previous life. The more I thought about it, the more I craved rice. With pickles as delicious as these topping it, I could devour bowl after bowl of rice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAh, I wish I had some rice,\u201d I said without thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRice? Do people also eat rice around here?\u201d Cyrus asked, confused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou know about rice?! Wait, first of all, there\u2019s rice here?\u201d I asked him, leaning towards him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Yeah, it\u2019s just like with the pickles. I never see it around here, but we ate it all the time back in the country,\u201d he replied while leaning ever so slightly away from me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He told me that they ate rice more often than bread in his hometown, and now that he couldn\u2019t get it, he was craving rice too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy town\u2019s near the border, so the culture and food resemble the ones in the neighboring country, rather than this one.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It turned out that the food there was similar to Japan\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ahh, he\u2019s so lucky! I want to go there!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMister Cyrus, I want to visit your hometown!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, it\u2019s a really lovely place, so I wish I could just tell you to come visit it, but… it\u2019s so distant that the fastest carriage around would need four days to reach it from here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…U-Ugh…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was on the border farthest away from the capital, even farther away than I had imagined. But… I want to eat rice… Rice…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell,\u201d said Cyrus, noticing how shocked I was, \u201cI\u2019ve also been really wanting to eat rice, so I was thinking of asking my mother to send some over. Of course it\u2019ll take some time, but it could be here by next week. You can have some then.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus Lanchester, my Lord and Savior! My angel! My only deity! You are so wonderful!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you so very much!\u201d I said, bowing deeply, but he gestured for me to stop. \u201cBut really, doing something like that for me…\u201d I thanked him again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, I\u2019m really just getting homesick. For some reason, when I\u2019m working here on the fields with you, I can\u2019t help but think about my farmer grandma and the others…\u201d he said nostalgically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m glad,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I see, I remind him of his grandma, and… Uh?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, but… does that mean I look like your grandmother?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was kind of shocked that he didn\u2019t even say farmer sister or something, and instead went straight for grandma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, I mean, yeah, you kinda do, but not in looks. Ya kinda got this air \u2019bout yerself, y\u2019know…?\u201d He was clearly flustered as he tried his best to come up with an explanation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But does this even count as an explanation?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…So I do<\/em> remind you of her…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut it\u2019s in a good way. Like, yer easy to talk to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEasy to talk to…?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYup. Back home the young\u2019ns all left fer the big city, so the whole place\u2019s chock full of grandpas and grandmas, y\u2019know? Young girls were so rare I ain\u2019t ever had much of a conversation with one. And then I done come here, and there be lots of girls, but I ain\u2019t fond of speakin\u2019 with them. But ya got sumthing \u2019bout ya, just like grandma back home, which makes ya easy to talk to. And that\u2019s a good thing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n So he had been trying to compliment me by saying that I was easy to talk to. That was one of the most backhanded compliments I\u2019d ever received.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, I see. You also remind me of the old man who helped me with my field at home, so I know what you mean.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We basically saw each other as old people. At least it was reciprocal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo you don\u2019t like speaking with young ladies… I never noticed, since you seem to be doing that just fine at work,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At work he was always calm and collected, even when he was speaking with girls. I even saw him escort one like any other noble would on one occasion, and he didn\u2019t look like he was having any trouble with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOf course. I pay extra attention to hide it when I\u2019m speaking with girls. Can\u2019t have them notice I don\u2019t like doing it,\u201d he said, sounding proud of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To be honest, I didn\u2019t think there was anything to be proud of there… If all the girls who swooned at \u201cthe intellectual, handsome, wonderful Lord Cyrus\u201d knew about it, they\u2019d be really shocked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd now that there\u2019s a girl in my own department, I have to be even more careful…\u201d he said, sighing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So there were no girls in his department until now… Hm? A girl in his department? Does that mean…?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, do you mean Maria Campbell?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, so you knew about her. She\u2019s also famous throughout the Ministry, even if for reasons opposite to you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n So he was <\/em>talking about her. She was known as an extremely talented Light Magic user, whereas I was followed by bad rumors… But did he have to say that right in front of the interested party (me)? Maybe Cyrus was too<\/em> relaxed when working on his field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That also meant that he was comfortable around me, but it wasn\u2019t exactly flattering. And yet he was always so thoughtful of people during work…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe is just as talented as they say… but she\u2019s no good,\u201d he mumbled to himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What? As one of the game\u2019s love interests, he\u2019s supposed to like her!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWh-Why?! Maria is a very good girl!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She\u2019s kind, cute, and a good cook! Anyone would want her as a wife!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh? You know her?\u201d he said, taken aback by my enthusiasm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes! I\u2019ve known her since I was at the academy!\u201d I said proudly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I consider her one of my best friends! Not that I\u2019ve ever asked her what she considers me.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see… I agree that she is an outstanding girl, but…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut what? Are you trying to say that there\u2019s something wrong with my Maria?!\u201d I said, accidentally giving Cyrus my villainess stare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPlease calm down, Miss Katarina. I\u2019m not trying to say that there\u2019s anything wrong with her. I meant that she\u2019s no good for me<\/em>, since I get nervous when talking to girls. It\u2019s nothing personal,\u201d he hurriedly explained while shaking his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Phew,<\/em> I see. No problem then.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I got so worked up thinking that he was speaking ill of (my waifu) Maria. I even started looking like a proper villainess there. I\u2019d better be careful.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut why are girls such a problem? I understand that there were very few back in your hometown, but you\u2019ve been here for quite a while. Haven\u2019t you grown accustomed to them yet?\u201d I asked him once I got my cool back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He leaned forward like I\u2019d done moments before and started explaining. \u201cYou don\u2019t get it. Fifteen years! I spent my first fifteen years without ever meeting a girl, not even one! There\u2019s no way I could get used to them in just a few years, and especially not when we only have little, superficial exchanges at work! And the girls in the capital are all prettied up, so I get even more nervous!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He had said all of that in a single breath, with surprising passion, and now he was panting. I didn\u2019t really understand him, but I guess a man\u2019s feelings are complicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd even among those prettied-up girls, Maria Campbell is one of the prettiest! To be honest, she\u2019s so pretty that a bumpkin like me has no business talking with her!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n To think that the calm and collected Cyrus was hiding a personality like this… It was like talking to a completely different person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree that she\u2019s beautiful, but isn\u2019t it a problem work-wise if you can\u2019t even talk to her?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, I can communicate with her, keeping my voice and expression the same as usual. After years of effort, I can do it without any problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wouldn\u2019t it have been better to put that energy towards something else? Like, learning how not to be nervous around girls in the first place?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut you see, the more I have to hide it, the tireder I get,\u201d he said with an exhausted expression on his face. The dark circles under his eyes had been getting worse day after day, and this finally explained it. Overworking wasn\u2019t the only reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAll the more reason to do something about it, I think,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How can I make him get used to Maria? If he keeps talking to her only for work-related communication, he\u2019ll never get past his fear of girls… If only he could talk to her like he does with me when he\u2019s working on the field… Ah! Of course! I know!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have an idea. I will help you get used to speaking with girls, as thanks for teaching me so much about farming,\u201d I said with a smile, and he looked back at me with a troubled expression. The very next day after learning about Cyrus\u2019s problem with girls, I visited the Magic Powers Department. As soon as I opened the door, I saw the director sitting inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since I couldn\u2019t just enter another department without a good reason, I decided to ask the nearest employee to relay my message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, Lady Katarina! It is good to see you.\u201d A handsome boy with orange hair and blue eyes came running towards me, like a puppy welcoming back his owner, before I could say anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDewey! Nice to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was Dewey Percy, one of FL2\u2019s love interests. I had last seen him a few days before in the library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At first, Dewey, who was now working in the Magic Powers Department together with Maria, had absolutely hated my guts. But when we traveled together for an examination, a series of things (which I honestly don\u2019t fully understand) had happened, and now we were friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you for visiting us. Do you need anything from our department?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Being shorter than me, he always looked up at me from below. I wasn\u2019t into younger guys or anything, but he was so cute that I risked grinning just by looking at him. However, this was no time to enjoy his cuteness. I was on an important mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI need to speak with Maria. Can you call her over for me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOf course,\u201d he said with a very, very handsome smile before going to look for his colleague. Seeing him from the back as he walked away from me, he still looked like a puppy. So cute.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n He came back with Maria, who, just like him, seemed happy to see me. I asked her if she could spare some time for me after work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, I would just be going back to the dormitory anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you. I want you to come with me somewhere. It\u2019s inside the Ministry, so it won\u2019t take that much time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGladly,\u201d she said with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perfect. The first step of my mission was complete. I silently rejoiced inside my head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAh, Lady Katarina, since you are here, would you like to eat lunch together?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWith pleasure! Can Sora come too?\u201d I asked. He and I always ate lunch together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOf course,\u201d she replied with another smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was ready to go back to the Magical Tool Laboratory to tell Sora when I got the feeling that someone was looking at me. It was Cyrus, staring at me from inside the office with a gaze that anyone else would have considered menacing. But I could tell that it wasn\u2019t that. I knew about his hobby and about his real personality… That was an anxious gaze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He saw that I was talking with Maria and was worried about what I was doing. I had told him that I would help him overcome his fear of girls, but I hadn\u2019t given him any more details than that, because I thought that he\u2019d complain or chicken out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This will work. I\u2019ll make sure it does.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I tried to tell him \u201cDon\u2019t worry, it\u2019ll be alright\u201d <\/em>with my gaze, but he probably didn\u2019t get it. He looked even more preoccupied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh well, I\u2019ll just explain everything to him later today at the field.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I then went back to my department. I told Sora, who had been waiting for me to come back, that Maria had invited us to have lunch together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was expecting that to happen when you went to her department,\u201d he said. I was impressed by how he seemed to practically read the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSome things are just too predictable,\u201d he said, noticing my stupefied look. \u201cAnyway,\u201d he continued, \u201clet\u2019s go before lunchtime is over.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We walked together to the Ministry\u2019s dining hall, or rather, one of the Ministry\u2019s dining halls. There were several of them, all of different sizes and with different menus. Some of them were very large, like normal company lunchrooms, and others were smaller, only offering a few seats and serving lunch boxes and other things that were easy to take out. There were even some that looked like fancy cafes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone would just have lunch when it was convenient for them. For example, Hart would ask a colleague to get a lunch box for him, and then he\u2019d eat it inside the office (probably to keep from getting lost), and Laura always ate in the fancy cafes. To each their own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since there were four of us today, we went to the largest dining hall, the one which resembled a company lunchroom, so that we could all sit comfortably. Maria and Dewey were already waiting for us at the entrance, and, when we arrived, we all started looking for free seats. Thankfully it wasn\u2019t crowded, and we easily found a table. All that was left was to order the food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHm… The daily special looks good for the price, but I also want to try the new course…\u201d I mumbled to myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have been wondering for a while,\u201d said Sora, exasperated, \u201cbut do you really need to bother about the price? Could you not simply purchase both and only eat what you wanted? Many nobles do just that.\u201d His contrived polite speech was probably because Maria and Dewey were with us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut that would be such a waste! I don\u2019t know about other nobles, but I hate wasting food!\u201d Let the others do as they please. I live by my own rules.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n And, while the Claes family certainly didn\u2019t have any money problems, my allowance wasn\u2019t that generous. Since I was a child, Mother always insisted that if she gave me more, I\u2019d end up wasting all of it. And I also had to save for things that she didn\u2019t approve of, like sweets and farming equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSpeaking with you, one starts doubting that you are the daughter of a duke,\u201d said Dewey, who was listening to Sora and me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What does he mean? Is this a compliment? Is it an insult?<\/em> I was thinking to myself, and my confusion must have been obvious, because Maria intervened to explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe means that you are a wonderful person, Lady Katarina.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, now, you\u2019ll make me blush.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I eventually decided to go for the daily special, ordered, and came back to the table with my tray. I was sitting next to Maria, facing Sora and Dewey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet\u2019s eat!\u201d I said, and didn\u2019t wait a second longer to take the fork in my hand to eat the daily special \u2014 hamburger steak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was still steaming hot, and it was covered in a fragrant tomato and onion sauce. For vegetables there were appetizingly charred broccoli and corn. The bread was a freshly baked, still-warm butter roll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I started by cutting off a piece of the steak and chewing it, making the delicious juices spread in my mouth, their decadent richness balancing the sauce\u2019s refreshing sourness. I followed with the vegetables, which were slightly sweet and incredibly aromatic. The bread, which I ate next, was so soft that it melted in my mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ah, it\u2019s all so tasty. This is wonderful. Totally fitting of the great Magical Ministry\u2019s dining hall.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLady Katarina always seems to enjoy her food so much,\u201d said Maria while she and all the others smiled and watched me eat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat can I do? It\u2019s just delicious,\u201d I replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For some reason, Maria replied with, \u201cI will bring some homemade sweets for you next time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Heck yeah!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Once I was done delivering lunch to my stomach, I asked Maria about her and Dewey\u2019s work. She told me that on most days they were in the library rummaging through books, like I\u2019d seen them doing some days before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most of my department\u2019s tasks involved manual labor, but they actually had to use their heads. Having to read research documents every day sounded so harsh. I was glad I was assigned to the Magical Tool Laboratory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We also talked about our colleagues. I told Maria and Dewey that my department was full of oddballs, but they already knew that. It turned out that this was common knowledge throughout the whole Ministry. Sora even said that some people called it \u201cthe loony bin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n They were all good people, but… I couldn\u2019t deny that they were weird.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat about your department? How are your colleagues?\u201d I asked Maria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey are all kind, talented people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As expected of the most popular department. Of course everybody would be talented. And I was glad to know that they were kind too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey have been teaching me so much. I have been learning a lot,\u201d Dewey started explaining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s nice. Nothing like having good relationships with your colleagues.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I was listening with a smile, but I noticed that Maria\u2019s expression had become darkened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat\u2019s up, Maria?\u201d I asked her, very quietly, because Dewey was still talking enthusiastically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt is nothing,\u201d she said at first, but after I kept looking at her for a while, she whispered something to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAll of our colleagues are very kind to us, but I cannot help but think that Director Lanchester treats me differently from the others… I am afraid he might dislike me.\u201d After a pause, she added, \u201cI could just be thinking too hard about it,\u201d but her expression didn\u2019t change. She really thought that he hated her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And what about Cyrus? He was so proud to say that nobody would ever notice. Well, would you look at this. You\u2019ve been noticed, alright.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I had to do something about this… Not only for Cyrus\u2019s sake, but for Maria\u2019s as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDon\u2019t worry,\u201d I said with a smile, \u201cif you come with me after work, I\u2019m sure that problem will be solved too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d she asked, looking surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ll explain later,\u201d I said, but she stared at me with a troubled expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAlright…\u201d she said with a nod.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The meal went on as we chatted about our respective departments and work at the Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet\u2019s eat together again soon!\u201d I told Maria and Dewey in front of the dining hall\u2019s exit before leaving for the Magical Tool Laboratory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre you planning to do something weird again?\u201d Sora asked me as we were walking back to the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How does he always guess what I\u2019m thinking? Does he have psychic powers or something?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cN-Not at all,\u201d I said, still scared about his ability to read my mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looked at me and sighed. \u201cJust don\u2019t do anything dangerous, okay?\u201d he said. He could really read me like a book. Evening came, and I was finally done with work. Sora warned me again not to do anything dangerous, and then I went to meet Maria. She was already waiting for me, looking nervous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCome on, let\u2019s go,\u201d I told her, and we started walking together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, but, where exactly are we going?\u201d she asked me when she noticed that we had gone deep into the Ministry with nobody else around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had kept it a secret because I didn\u2019t want anyone else to know about Cyrus\u2019s secret hobby, but since there wasn\u2019t anyone else around anyway, I thought that I might as well tell her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to a field.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA field? Have you started a field inside the Magical Ministry?!\u201d she asked, surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Indeed, I\u2019d cultivated my own field back at the academy, partly as a hobby and partly as a Bad-End countermeasure. Maria definitely had reason to suspect that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, not me. Someone else\u2019s field. I found it by accident a few days ago.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere is someone else who likes to farm within the Ministry?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, and their field is an incredible one. I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll be surprised too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHehehe, I am looking forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We kept talking like this while walking until we finally reached Cyrus\u2019s field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, it really is a wonderful field!\u201d Maria said as soon as she saw the perfectly arranged rows of vegetables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know, right?\u201d I said proudly, almost as if it were my own field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus didn\u2019t seem to be there yet. He\u2019d been there every single evening since I\u2019d started showing up, and he even said that he hadn\u2019t been missing a day recently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought he\u2019d eventually come, but what if he\u2019d realized my plan and run away?<\/p>\n\n\n\n All of a sudden, I heard a squeaking sound. It was the door of the hut near the field, being opened from the inside by Cyrus in his farming clothes, hat and all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He saw us, and, just like the first time he\u2019d seen me on his field, he stood there frozen with his eyes open wide. After looking at us for a while, motionless… he turned around and started running<\/em>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Years of escaping Mother\u2019s lectures had trained my reflexes well enough that I lost no time and went after him, quickly managing to grab his arm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWait! Why are you running away?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m the one who wants to ask why!<\/em> Why is Maria Campbell here? Did you bring her with you?\u201d he asked under his breath so that Maria wouldn\u2019t hear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExactly,\u201d I replied, whispering as well. \u201cI thought that rather than overthinking things by yourself, it\u2019d be faster to just talk to her and get used to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Hm, you kind of have a point, but… why did you need to bring her here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBecause this is the only place where you can be yourself! At work you are always, you know, hiding behind a mask…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know what you mean, b-but…\u201d he said, frowning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s why I brought Maria here. If you can talk to her and befriend her here, I\u2019m sure that you won\u2019t have any problem with girls anymore,\u201d I said, proud of my wonderful plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat may be true,\u201d Cyrus replied with a bitter smile, \u201cbut why does it have to be Maria Campbell right from the start? I\u2019m already bad with girls, but it\u2019s even worse when it comes to a beauty like her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, men who aren\u2019t used to girls have an even harder time with beautiful girls. Hm, I didn\u2019t think of that.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHm… But Maria\u2019s a very good girl! I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll be fine,\u201d I said, dragging Cyrus back to her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now able to take a better look at him, Maria realized who he was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Mister Lanchester…\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus, noticing the slight surprise in her voice, looked at his own clothes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAh, you see, this is…\u201d he started mumbling, but I intervened to help him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is Mister Cyrus\u2019s field. He\u2019s really knowledgeable about farming, and he\u2019s also very skilled with a hoe!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMister Lanchester? Farming…?\u201d she asked, her eyes widened in disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, he actually comes from a family of farmers, and mfghfgh…<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus had put a hand over my mouth as I was talking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ll just explain it myself from here,\u201d he said, finally sounding calm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMaria Campbell,\u201d he said, looking towards her, \u201cwhat Miss Katarina just said is true. People call me a noble at the Ministry, but my family, despite its rank, lived off the fields in the country. I, myself, have grown up as a farmer. This is the truth behind my noble birth. Laugh at me, if you must.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought that being able to manage a field so well was a wonderful thing, but apparently Cyrus didn\u2019t agree. He looked very sad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMister Lanchester,\u201d replied Maria, \u201cI have nothing but admiration for your beautiful field, and I see no reason to laugh at you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As expected of my (one-sidedly appointed) close friend.<\/em> She took the words out of my mouth. That makes me a bit \u2014 no, it makes me <\/em>very happy.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Maria Campbell… I\u2019m the one who admires you now,\u201d he replied, smiling and blushing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was probably for a different reason, but Cyrus seemed to be happy as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cE-Excuse me,\u201d said Maria, looking deadly serious, \u201cbut I thought that you… hated me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She had talked to me about it earlier that day. She was mistaking Cyrus\u2019s cold treatment for hate, which is why she was so surprised at being told he admired her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cH-Hate? Why, I would never…\u201d he said, becoming nervous once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus had thought that the way that he was hiding his feelings was so perfect that nobody would notice anything weird. I had to intervene again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou see, Maria, Mister Cyrus has always lived in the country, with nobody but old men and women around him, so he isn\u2019t used to talking with young girls. He says that he gets nervous around them, especially cute ones like you, and mfghfgh…<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I felt Cyrus covering my mouth with his hand once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina Claes, could you be any less subtle?!\u201d he asked, staring at me while his face had become completely red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Was there anything wrong with my explanation? It\u2019s a complex subject after all,<\/em> I was worrying to myself, but Maria\u2019s face seemed more relaxed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cS-So, does that mean that you do not<\/em> hate me, Mister Lanchester?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTh-That\u2019s right. I don\u2019t,\u201d he said, nodding and still blushing, his face red. \u201cAs Miss Katarina remarked, I\u2019ve almost never talked to a young girl before coming here, and so I become nervous about it… Pitiful, I know. I believe that this time you may really want to laugh at me. Go ahead,\u201d he said sadly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am so glad…\u201d Maria said with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Huh?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus stared at Maria in surprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI always thought that you hated me, but I am so glad to realize that that was not the case,\u201d she said, sounding relieved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus\u2019s face turned an even brighter shade of red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd I am also happy to be able to speak with you like this, Mister Lanchester, since I do not get the chance to do so at work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She must have been really happy, because she was sporting a beautiful, innocent smile. I thought that Cyrus couldn\u2019t get any redder, but he did. He now looked more like a boiled octopus than a human.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cB-But… Aren\u2019t you disappointed seeing how different I am when I\u2019m here compared to when I\u2019m at work?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When he was his honest, farmer self, he could be very pessimistic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot at all. Seeing you like this has a charm of its own. You are as wonderful here as a farmer as you are as a superior at work, Mister Lanchester,\u201d she replied with the cutest of smiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The wind started blowing, and the petals from the flowers near us flew into the air and between Cyrus and Maria as the two stared at each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Th-This is it! It\u2019s that picture from my dream! It looks exactly the same! It\u2019s so pretty!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I was overcome with emotion. In my excitement, I was breathing so heavily that my nostrils had visibly flared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen we\u2019re here,\u201d Cyrus, who had probably completely forgotten about me, said in his sweetest, gentlest voice, \u201cdon\u2019t call me Lanchester. Call me Cyrus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, Mister Cyrus,\u201d Maria cutely replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now this really looks like an otome game! It\u2019s so beautiful.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d managed to get Cyrus, who was one of the romanceable options, to fall in love with the protagonist, and we all decided to go home for the day. After all, Cyrus had just fallen in love (probably for the first time in his life) and was spacing out so much that there was no hope of him getting any work done on the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the next day on, Maria would be coming to the field together with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI want to talk with Mister Cyrus more, and if I go to that field, I will be able to see Lady Katarina every day!\u201d she had explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It seemed that Maria was interested in Cyrus as well. Very good. You\u2019re on the right path.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Not being able to work the field today, I went back home earlier than usual. \u201cHaah, I\u2019ve done my share of good deeds for the day,\u201d I said to myself while lying down on my bed. I had helped Cyrus overcome his nervousness with girls and cleared up Maria\u2019s misunderstanding. I felt like a generous Cupid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hehe, me? Cupid? Nice…<\/em> I was grinning to myself and staring at the ceiling when I remembered the cute young boy who had eaten lunch with me today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that I think about it, Dewey\u2019s been in MARIA-LOVE mode since the examination.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n We weren\u2019t on the best terms at first, but now that we were friends, I also felt that I wanted him to succeed in his romantic aspirations… But there was only one Maria. What could I do?<\/p>\n\n\n\n To be honest, I had almost no experience with romance, so I was at a loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was time to summon them.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting chairwoman: Katarina Claes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting representative: Katarina Claes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting secretary: Katarina Claes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cVery well. We are now going to think of the fairest option in regards to the romance between Maria and two of the romanceable options for Fortune Lover II<\/em>, namely Dewey and Cyrus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am afraid that we Katarinas have little to no experience with love, but we shall nonetheless put forth our best efforts in dealing with this issue for the sake of Maria and our two friends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDoes anyone have any good ideas?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIdeas? Well, we haven\u2019t really done much romancing, neither here nor in our past life. I\u2019m clueless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut our performance today was outstanding!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt was, yes, but we weren\u2019t really going for that, were we? It just kind of happened.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhatever the case, Maria said that she\u2019ll be coming to the field too from now on. Maybe we should stop going so that she can spend some time alone with Cyrus and get closer to him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat sounds good! But wait, wouldn\u2019t that leave Dewey out?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat about inviting Dewey to the field as well?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHm… Would Dewey be interested in farming work? Also, Cyrus wouldn\u2019t take well to that many people knowing about his secret…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am sorry to interrupt, but may I speak?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina Claes? What is the matter?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe two of you seem to be focusing on how to make Maria and the two love interests come together…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, we are! We are Cupids, angels of love! Hehehe!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…I see. But, are you not forgetting something very important?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cImportant? We definitely didn\u2019t forget dinner, nor did we forget dessert, and we certainly remembered to secure some late-night snacks for today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…It will just be faster to tell you. Katarina Claes is a villainess \u2014 the antagonist in FL2, and the romance between Maria and the other characters will put us on a route that leads to doom!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGasp!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGasp!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJudging by those reactions, you had both forgotten about it, had you not?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY-Yes… I had been paying attention at first, but there was a lot to learn at work, and working on the field was so fun that I just forgot about the whole villainess thing…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor some reason I\u2019d also forgotten that detail…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s the problem with us, Katarina. The second something new catches our attention, we forget the important stuff. We have to be careful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou are right. Maybe we should write important things on sticky notes, or better yet directly on our hand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s smart! We\u2019ll put the notes up in our room!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. What should we write on them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Pardon me, but maybe that can wait. For the time being, can we discuss how to avoid doom?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY-You\u2019re right. Chairwoman Claes, please change today\u2019s agenda from \u2018making Maria grow closer to Dewey and Cyrus\u2019 to \u2018avoiding doom.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. Good. Let\u2019s start our meeting on avoiding doom in FL2, then.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo, does anyone have any good ideas?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. We must stop helping Maria and the others fall in love and give up on being angels of love.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…That makes sense, but they are already on friendly terms, and both seem to be in MARIA-LOVE mode… I am afraid that we are headed for doom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat can we do? Should we shut ourselves in our room?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat does not seem reasonable…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf that is the case, we should study how to dodge attacks, how to run away from jails, and how to get our sentence reduced to exile abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree. That is the best thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt is decided then. We will investigate Dewey and Cyrus to see if they have any weaknesses, like Jeord.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe successfully went through the plot of Fortune Lover<\/em> while (somehow) avoiding doom. In the process, we became smarter (even graduating from the academy, somehow) and stronger (at tilling the soil). We shall survive! We shall spend a peaceful retirement with a cat on our lap!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And thus, another Katarina meeting came to an end, even though the agenda changed halfway through. I sat up on my bed and raised a clenched fist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes! I\u2019m going to do my best!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n My name is Cyrus Lanchester. After graduating from the Academy of Magic, I started working at the Ministry. I was appreciated for my skills, and, perhaps due to how diligently and passionately I worked, I became a department director before others who had been there longer than me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many envied me for this… but sometimes I wished I could go back to the country, where I was raised \u2014 that peaceful village where there were more cattle than people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Colleagues at work considered me a high-ranking noble, but I was brought up as a farmer, and surrounded by other farmers for all my childhood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, I\u2019d been hiding my heritage since the time I enrolled into the academy so that people wouldn\u2019t laugh at me. It was too late to stop pretending, so, day after day, I did my best to play the part of the noble. The only place where I could relax was the field that I\u2019d secretly built in a little-visited part of the Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everything changed one spring day, a short time after newcomers had been welcomed into the Magical Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I finished work and, as I always did, made for my field. I entered the small hut next to the field and changed into my farming clothes, grabbed my hoe, and went out. Nothing unusual so far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the second I left the hut, my life took a strange turn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me,\u201d I heard a voice call out to me. Nobody was supposed to know about this place, so I was surprised to find someone there, but what was even more surprising was who this someone was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katarina Claes, daughter of Duke Claes and fianc\u00e9e of Prince Jeord. She was a real-life high-ranking noble who had nothing to do with a country boy like me, who was only noble on paper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What was she doing in this empty place at the edge of the Ministry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unable to grasp the situation, I froze in place, staring at her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDirector Cyrus Lanchester…\u201d she muttered, making me snap out of my trance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s not me,\u201d is all I managed to reply. This surprised her, and made her stare at me even harder. I repeated my lie while hiding my face, fully aware of how unconvincing I was. We had met just a few days ago, and now I could feel her gaze piercing through my profile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, I could not admit that Cyrus Lanchester, director of the Magic and Magical Powers Research Department, was in farming attire with a hoe in hand, ready to plow a field. The image of me that I\u2019d worked so hard to maintain would be utterly destroyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katarina remained silent for a while. I couldn\u2019t look at her face, but I hoped that she would just give up and leave. And then…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWow, you can tell that they\u2019ll be delicious just by looking at them,\u201d she said all of a sudden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I turned to face her, and she was looking excitedly at the asparagus I was so proud of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Those feelings that I had repressed for so many years started flowing back inside me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I was living in the country, we would show each other our vegetables and comment on how good each other\u2019s harvest was. However, here in the city, no one did any such thing. All I could do was anonymously bring my vegetables to the dining hall, so I couldn\u2019t even ask what people thought of them directly. I was proud of them, but I was longing \u2014 nay, starving<\/em> for external recognition!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?! Duke\u2019s daughter Katarina Claes understands the beauty of this asparagus?!\u201d I asked her in my excitement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When she said that she did, I felt happier than I had in many years. I started extolling the virtues of my asparagus, before realizing that, in my enthusiasm, I had gone back to the accent that I had been struggling so hard to hide all these years. Understanding that I couldn\u2019t salvage the situation anymore, I sighed, and asked Katarina Claes to listen to my story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She nodded with a serious face, and I went on to explain my background for the first time. Once I was done, I asked Katarina not to tell anyone about my secret, and, surprisingly, she immediately agreed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was extremely relieved, but then I noticed her eyes squint ever so slightly as she said, \u201c…But on one condition.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I frowned, but I wasn\u2019t surprised. Knowing the secret of my field and my story was a major weakness. Anyone who knew this secret could use it against me and blackmail me with it. I had already realized this when I\u2019d started talking to Katarina, and I was ready to pay to keep her quiet. I just made sure to tell her, while staring at her blue eyes, that I could only meet requests that were legal and within my power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet me help you with this field. And, while we are at it, I\u2019d love it if you could teach me what you know about growing tasty vegetables,\u201d she said, betraying all of my expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I predicted she would ask for special treatment at the Ministry or something to that effect, but… helping with the field?<\/p>\n\n\n\n First of all, why would a noble young lady understand the value of my asparagus? Most nobles have never even seen vegetables before they are prepared for them to eat, so why?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I was so confused that I stood still, unable to answer her, as more and more questions popped up inside my head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs that not okay…?\u201d she asked me timidly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Utterly perplexed, I told her that I wouldn\u2019t mind, and she seemed overjoyed at my answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Still unable to process what had happened, I saw Katarina off from the field. She was smiling as she said that she looked forward to starting work on the field the next day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was too confused to keep working, so I went back to the dormitory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even when I thought about it more calmly while lying on my bed, the situation was just as perplexing. Was it some novel kind of prank? Was it a dream?<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the next day, I got confirmation that our exchange had not been a dream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood evening,\u201d a smiling Katarina greeted me, in full farming attire and even donning a kerchief on her head as only the oldest women used to do, even back in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It turned out that she hadn\u2019t been joking, and actually planned to work on the field. I decided that thinking about it wasn\u2019t worth the effort and started farming with her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I quickly realized that she had some amount of experience with growing vegetables. She still had a lot to learn, but she wasn\u2019t a complete amateur either, and she picked up new information fast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHave you ever worked on a field before?\u201d I asked her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes! In my garden at home and then at the Academy of Magic,\u201d she replied briskly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The garden of a duke\u2019s manor and the Academy of Magic… I was working a field inside the Ministry myself, but I was still taken aback. And the biggest question still remained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut why would a noble like you do something like that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, I just wanted to learn some practical skills in case I needed to find a job in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…You are the daughter of Duke Claes, and you\u2019re engaged to a prince… I don\u2019t think you\u2019ll ever need to find a job…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou never know what life has in store for you, right? You\u2019ve got to be prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n After that reply, I found myself at a loss for words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, anyway, why farming of all things? She could use magic and had received the training and education of a noble \u2014 she could choose any practical skill that she wanted. I had tons of doubts, but she looked at me with twinkling eyes, saying, \u201cSo, please teach me more about farming!\u201d and I decided that I didn\u2019t really need to inquire any further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I stopped asking her questions, and we started working together as I taught her all I knew about vegetable growing. A few days passed with Katarina coming to the field every evening, and, before I noticed, I had grown closer to her. Because of the environment that I grew up in, I wasn\u2019t comfortable around girls, but she had none of the girly aura that made me nervous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, when making tea for the two of us, I ended up serving pickles with it out of habit. I thought that that would make any young person squeamish, but she happily munched on them while praising their taste. She reminded me of the old women back home who worked on the fields with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Therefore, I eventually stopped feeling any hint of nervousness around her, and I occasionally even spoke with my old accent, despite all the efforts I\u2019d made to hide it so far. After all this time farming alone, it was fun to have someone do it with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One day we were taking a short rest, sitting on a blanket on the ground with tea and pickles between us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAh, I wish I had some rice,\u201d she said after sipping on the tea and eating the pickles with delight. That was a word I hadn\u2019t heard in a while, and I was surprised at hearing it, because I thought that the people here in the capital had no custom of eating it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I asked her about it, and, suddenly excited, she leaned towards me and asked, \u201cYou know about rice?! Wait, first of all, there\u2019s rice here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shocked by her enthusiasm, I explained that, just as with pickles, I hadn\u2019t seen it since moving there, but that I used to eat it as a child. I also told her that the culture and food of my town were closer to that of the neighboring country, which made me all the more nostalgic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katarina, who apparently loved eating and appreciated my native cuisine, said that she wanted to visit my hometown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I told her of how far that was, and her expression changed to one so dejected that you\u2019d think the world was coming to an end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seeing her like that, I couldn\u2019t help but feel pity for her, so I told her that I\u2019d share some rice with her when my mother sent it to me. She rejoiced at that, and for some reason started genuflecting in front of me with her eyes filled with sparkles. I\u2019d been thinking this for a while, but Katarina was really an unpredictable girl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you so very much!\u201d she then said, bowing deeply. At least she wasn\u2019t genuflecting anymore, but still, a noble being so grateful for sharing some rice was weird.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I didn\u2019t want her to feel so indebted to me, so I told her that I was really just growing homesick myself, and that I\u2019d have that rice sent to me anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor some reason, when I\u2019m working here on the fields with you, I can\u2019t help but think about my farmer grandma and the others…\u201d I then followed. I\u2019d felt like that for a while now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, but… does that mean I look like your grandmother?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s no good. I was so relaxed I ended up being too honest.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, I mean, yeah, you kinda do, but not in looks. Ya kinda got this air \u2019bout yerself, y\u2019know…?\u201d I tried to explain myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…So I do<\/em> remind you of her…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My explanation had backfired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut it\u2019s in a good way. Like, yer easy to talk to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEasy to talk to…?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYup. Back home the young\u2019ns all left fer the big city, so the whole place\u2019s chock full of grandpas and grandmas, y\u2019know? Young girls were so rare I ain\u2019t ever had much of a conversation with one. And then I done come here, and there be lots of girls, but I ain\u2019t fond of speakin\u2019 with them. But ya got sumthing \u2019bout ya, just like grandma back home, which makes ya easy to talk to. And that\u2019s a good thing,\u201d I said, noticing that I\u2019d completely switched to my old accent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She seemed to be satisfied this time, but she also said that I, too, reminded her of an old man. I wasn\u2019t sure how to feel about that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo you don\u2019t like speaking with young ladies… I never noticed, since you seem to be doing that just fine at work,\u201d she then said. I\u2019d talked too much and let her know about another one of my weaknesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, I understood that there was no point in hiding the truth from Katarina, so I told her about the efforts I was making to mask my nervousness, and about how much more tiring it had become since a new girl had been assigned to my department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I sighed. I grew up surrounded by men and old women, and now that I had a young girl amongst my subordinates, every day was stressful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, do you mean Maria Campbell?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n So she knew about Maria Campbell. After all, even if it was for reasons opposite to Katarina, she was also famous enough throughout the Ministry that it was no surprise that someone from another department would know her name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The rumors (which I now knew to be completely false) about Katarina were that she was an entitled noble girl who\u2019d come to the Ministry just to kill time, whereas Maria was spoken of as a talented Light Magic user.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every department wanted Maria to work with them, but the higher-ups decided that, if she was so talented, she would make a wonderful addition to my team. I wasn\u2019t grateful in the least.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe is just as talented as they say… but she\u2019s no good,\u201d I honestly said. She was skilled and a fast learner, but she was too much to handle for someone as nervous around girls as I was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWh-Why?! Maria is a very good girl!\u201d Katarina said, her eyebrows slanted all of a sudden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I asked whether she personally knew her, and she proudly said that she had known her since her time at the academy. I hadn\u2019t known that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As Katarina said, she was a very good girl, and a kind and talented one at that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre you trying to say that there\u2019s something wrong with my Maria?!\u201d she asked, with a stare more menacing than I\u2019d ever seen before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It turned out that she really liked Maria, so I had to explain myself properly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPlease calm down, Miss Katarina. I\u2019m not trying to say that there\u2019s anything wrong with her. I meant that she\u2019s no good for me<\/em>, since I get nervous when talking to girls. It\u2019s nothing personal,\u201d I explained, shaking my head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She sounded perplexed that I still wasn\u2019t used to girls after so many years in the capital, and I couldn\u2019t restrain myself. I leaned forward and emphatically explained the heavy burden that a girl-less life had placed on my shoulders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After catching my breath, I went on to explain the biggest problem I had with Maria. Sure, she was talented and kind, but she was also prettier than any girl I\u2019d ever seen. Even someone used to dealing with girls would feel nervous around a girl so beautiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree that she\u2019s beautiful, but isn\u2019t it a problem work-wise if you can\u2019t even talk to her?\u201d Katarina asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I told her how, with many years of training, I had learnt to communicate while keeping my voice and expression unchanged. Of course, since she was a newcomer, I had to care for her now that she was in my department, and I actively talked with her about her tasks and frequently checked on her. Obviously, the more I did that, the more exhausted I would become. I knew that I was being too tense around her, but I couldn\u2019t help it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAll the more reason to do something about it, I think,\u201d she said, and started silently thinking about something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have an idea. I will help you get used to speaking with girls, as thanks for teaching me so much about farming,\u201d she said with a smile that, for some reason, gave me a bad feeling about how things would turn out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She told me she\u2019d help me with my problem, and then, without explaining what she was actually planning to do, she left. The very next day, Katarina visited my department and asked to speak with Maria. She was too far away for me to hear what she was saying, but I could sense that it wasn\u2019t good, whatever it was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before leaving, Katarina noticed my gaze and gave me a proud, satisfied look. I started feeling even worse about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After she had left, I overheard one of my subordinates saying, \u201cThe director always looks at the people from the Magical Tool Laboratory so sternly…\u201d My preoccupied stare probably looked like a disapproving one to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was true that I wasn\u2019t particularly approving of that department. They were talented in their own way, but Larna, their director, didn\u2019t care about rules in the least. I couldn\u2019t stand that, maybe because I was envious of how free she seemed to be. As a result, I was sometimes stern with them… but I didn\u2019t hate them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, since I had no friends to speak of in this department, I couldn\u2019t do anything about that misunderstanding. And since that didn\u2019t cause any issues with my work, I didn\u2019t care too much about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the first time, I realized that there were many more things about me that I\u2019d never made any effort to improve. Once I was done with work in the evening, I went to my field despite still having a bad feeling about what Katarina was doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I went into the hut and changed into my farming clothes. Just wearing that outfit that I was so used to was enough to relax me. I then grabbed my hoe and left the hut and saw something that, for the second time, made me freeze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katarina was standing in front of me… next to Maria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had known that Katarina\u2019s smile meant nothing good, and that she was planning to do something terrible, but I had felt safe enough in assuming she wouldn\u2019t go as far as bringing Maria Campbell here. But that girl had a way of betraying my expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019ve never seen a noble girl so bold and unique…<\/em> I thought to myself, before coming back to my senses and turning around to run away. However, Katarina, running at an unfathomable speed, quickly reached me and grabbed my arm, asking me why I was running away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In return, I asked her why in the world Maria was here, and whether Katarina was the one to blame for that. Of course, I was already almost certain that she was…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katarina explained that she wanted me to get used to talking with Maria, and that the only way to do so was to actually go ahead and do it. What she said made perfect sense, but I didn\u2019t understand why I had to do that in my field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Her response, that I could only be myself when I was here, once again made perfect sense. She was right, but it was all too sudden. Katarina was really unpredictable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She then went on to say that she chose Maria because, if I managed to speak openly with her, I would be able to do the same with any girl. That was true, sure, but Katarina obviously understood nothing of how sensitive a man who wasn\u2019t used to girls could be, especially when it came to one so beautiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katarina insisted that everything would be fine and forcibly dragged me back to Maria, who, this time, realized who she was looking at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Mister Lanchester…\u201d she said, surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I noticed what I was wearing, and I hurriedly tried to explain myself. Being in front of a young woman made it so difficult to come up with anything coherent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While I was still mumbling, Katarina, out of the blue, intervened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is Mister Cyrus\u2019s field. He\u2019s really knowledgeable about farming, and he\u2019s also very skilled with a hoe!\u201d she said, sounding proud. Why was she proud of that? This girl was such a mystery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maria, understandably, looked very surprised. Then, Katarina started proudly explaining my background before I managed to cover up her mouth. For some reason, seeing her so pleased about what she was saying made me feel calm, and I decided to continue the explanation myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I looked at Maria and told her all the truth about where I had come from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I\u2019d done the same to Katarina I still didn\u2019t know her that well, but having to reveal my secret to a subordinate who worked in the same office as me made me feel miserable. However, I had no chance of lying my way out of this situation, and all I could do was wait for Maria to laugh at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou act all high and mighty at work, and this is the truth about yourself?\u201d<\/em> she could have said. But she didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMister Lanchester, I have nothing but admiration for your beautiful field, and I see no reason to laugh at you,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was so unexpected that I stared at her, trying to ascertain whether she was serious, but her blue eyes were not those of a liar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking into them, I realized that, just as Katarina and others had said, Maria Campbell was not only beautiful on the outside, but on the inside as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Maria Campbell… I\u2019m the one who admires you now,\u201d I said, letting words that I would never utter at work slip from my mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then, even more surprisingly, Maria asked me whether I hated her. That was so confusing that I ended up panicking slightly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cH-Hate? Why, I would never…\u201d I started mumbling. But as I stopped to think of what to say next, she<\/em> opened her mouth once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou see, Maria, Mister Cyrus has always lived in the country, with nobody but old men and women around him, so he isn\u2019t used to talking with young girls. He says that he gets nervous around them, especially cute ones like you, and mfghfgh<\/em>…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I forgot about delicacy and shoved a hand over her mouth. Couldn\u2019t she choose her words a little more carefully? Did she have to be this blunt? She really didn\u2019t understand anything about the fragile hearts of men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina Claes, could you be any less subtle?!\u201d I said, glaring at her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maria, whom I\u2019d been avoiding looking at out of embarrassment, spoke up again. \u201cS-So, does that mean that you do not hate me, Mister Lanchester?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I told her that no, I did not hate her, and that yes, what Katarina had said was true. Surely, this time, hearing the truth about me after seeing how I usually behaved at work, she would laugh at me. I nervously waited for her answer, wishing only that my position as her superior would keep her from berating me too much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am so glad…\u201d Maria said with a lovely smile on her face. I couldn\u2019t hide my surprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She told me \u2014 sounding genuinely happy \u2014 that she had feared that I hated her, and so was relieved by the truth. I could tell that I was blushing, and for a different reason than before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd I am also happy to be able to speak with you like this, Mister Lanchester, since I do not get the chance to do so at work,\u201d she added, making my face feel even hotter and my chest tighter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cB-But… aren\u2019t you disappointed seeing how different I am when I\u2019m here compared to when I\u2019m at work?\u201d I managed to ask her despite how nervous and confused I was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou are as wonderful here as a farmer as you are as a superior at work, Mister Lanchester,\u201d she said with a smile so cute that I felt my whole body warm up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She was a very beautiful girl to begin with, but now she looked even prettier. It seemed as if even the air around her was sparkling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wh-What is happening to me? Why does my chest hurt like this?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Still dazed, I asked Maria to call me Cyrus when we were here. What had I done? Under normal circumstances, I\u2019d never have said something like that. I felt as if I had a fever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, Maria smiled once again as she said, \u201cYes, Mister Cyrus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I could hear my heart pounding even faster inside my chest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Anne woke me up, and I went to work. I was well rested after a day off. I reached the Ministry by carriage and I went to the office, where Laura would be leading me as I did manual labor like on the previous days. I\u2019m going to do my best today too! I thought to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tak-berkategori"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3459","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3459"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3459\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3460,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3459\/revisions\/3460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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