\u201cHow you doing, Arneau?\u201d Sora asked, entering my hospital room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGood enough,\u201d I replied. I\u2019d been healed so thoroughly that most of my wounds were gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNice to hear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey treated me so well here. And I even got all this stuff.\u201d I pointed to the snacks, flowers, and other get-well-soon gifts I\u2019d received during my stay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sora looked at them and laughed. \u201cYou probably know who chose most of these. Don\u2019t worry about it. If anything, I\u2019m sorry if she\u2019s been bothering you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…Not at all.\u201d It really wasn\u2019t a bother at all. I actually appreciated it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These gifts were from Katarina, who, after saving me along with that Maria girl, came to visit me at the hospital. As soon as I told her that I was fine, she started describing all the things she\u2019d brought there for me like she was trying to sell them. Delicious dessert this, fluffiest pastry that. She then told me to eat a lot and get well, leaving me with more snacks than I could ever eat. Maybe she thought that eating could cure all wounds? That…almost made sense, in a way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re done with the questions from the Sorci\u00e9 people, right?\u201d Sora asked. When I\u2019d recovered enough to be questioned, one of the kingdom\u2019s officials came in to ask me details about this incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah. They just questioned me and that was it. The other guys were arrested, but they let me go because I collaborated. I was just told to leave the country as soon as I was fully recovered. And all because I betrayed the organization and provided them with a little info.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Golden-eyed Wolf, who was working for Ethenell, and I had helped Sorci\u00e9\u2019s investigation, and so they\u2019d let me go free. I actually felt bad about this. I was a traitor to the organization and I was no less of a criminal than the others who\u2019d been arrested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah, sure,\u201d Sora smirked, \u201cyou really think they let you off the hook that easily just because you talked?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf course. That\u2019s all I\u2019ve done,\u201d I repeated, and he sighed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSorci\u00e9\u2019s people are kind, I\u2019ll give you that, but you can\u2019t really think that\u2019s all it\u2019d take for them to ignore your crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHuh? So I guess they\u2019ll arrest me, too, after all?\u201d I wondered, thinking that that\u2019d make more sense, and Sora sighed again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou aren\u2019t getting arrested. Your crimes aren\u2019t as bad as those other guys\u2019 to begin with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat are you talking about? I worked with those kidnappers to catch and sell children,\u201d I pointed out how what Sora was saying made no sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t kidnap any children yourself, and it turns out that you were actually looking after them, right? The other thugs didn\u2019t have anything pretty to say about you. \u2018He doesn\u2019t get anything done and just acts as if he\u2019s in charge, that kind of thing.\u2019 But on the other hand, the children were all for you. \u2018That mister was the only kind one, please save him,\u2019 they said.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had no idea. I didn\u2019t know what to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why they didn\u2019t arrest you and just asked that you leave Sorci\u00e9,\u201d Sora concluded. \u201cYou haven\u2019t changed one bit.\u201d He laughed at me. \u201cYou\u2019re that \u2018sweet mister\u2019 who looks after children. You\u2019re not cut for crime. Find something else to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I stared blankly. \u201cLike what? I\u2019ve never been through school, and I don\u2019t have a single day of honest work to my name…\u201d I admitted, and then the door opened and an unexpected person walked in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSorry there. I wasn\u2019t eavesdropping or anything, but I was waiting for the timing to walk in and just happened to catch what you two were talking about,\u201d that person announced, showing his teeth in a large grin. It was the Golden-eyed Wolf, who I hadn\u2019t seen since that day. \u201cYou\u2019re looking for a job, right? There\u2019s an open spot in your home country of Ethenell. How does that sound?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had revealed that I was an orphan from Ethenell when I was being questioned, and this mercenary had probably heard it then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…I could never be a mercenary,\u201d I told him. I wasn\u2019t that strong, and wars weren\u2019t really my thing, even if someone did hire me to fight in one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHahaha, that\u2019s not what I\u2019m talking about. What they need is someone to look after children.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d I croaked, surprised that a wild-looking mercenary would say something like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou know the state Ethenell\u2019s been in until recently, don\u2019t you? You can imagine that there are a lot of orphans there. Now there\u2019s an orphanage in the works, but these are all rowdy brats from the streets, and it\u2019s not easy to look after them. Can\u2019t ever have enough people doing it, let me tell you. I heard you used to take care of younger kids in the slums. Sounds like your kind of job. So, what do you say?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It sounded lovely, but…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…But I\u2019m uneducated, and I have nobody to vouch for me,\u201d I objected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I couldn\u2019t teach anything to the children, and what\u2019s more, I was also an orphan who had no one to confirm his identity or trustworthiness. Who\u2019d ever hire me?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDon\u2019t worry about the schooling, there\u2019s a teacher hired for that. What the orphanage needs is someone that the kids will listen to. And I\u2019ll vouch for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou? Be a guarantor for me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He\u2019s a mercenary working for Ethenell. I know that much. But who is he? He couldn\u2019t just be an ordinary mercenary… He\u2019s probably connected to someone important, I reasoned, but what he said next blew me away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah. Me. That\u2019s right, I never properly introduced myself. You\u2019ll be hired on Cezar Dahl\u2019s good word.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCezar… Dahl? Wait, Dahl?!\u201d Sora gasped, shocked. I was just as stunned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCould it be… Could you be… The honorable…?\u201d I sputtered, and Cezar grinned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNothing honorable about me. I\u2019m just a mercenary right now. But I still want to apologize to you two. It was people with that same surname who let Ethenell turn into a mess, making your childhood so difficult. I\u2019m really sorry,\u201d he spoke soberly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dahl. That surname belonged to the royal family. Nobody else could bear it in Ethenell. And now a member of the royal family was lowering his head in front of us, apologizing. I felt dizzy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI promise I\u2019ll do my best to turn Ethenell into a better country. So, won\u2019t you help me?\u201d he invited, giving me his hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This time, I took it of my own accord. I stretched my hand toward Cezar Dahl\u2019s\u2014toward a proper life and a place to call home. Toward everything I\u2019d ever wanted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat about you? You\u2019re from Ethenell too. Now you\u2019re living here, but I could let you come back if you wanted to,\u201d Cezar then looked to Sora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI…have something I need to protect right here, in this country,\u201d Sora replied, looking straight into the royal eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGood. I wish you all the best,\u201d Cezar grinned, before hurrying out of the room, promising he\u2019d come back with the paperwork as soon as it was ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sora and I were left alone in the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…Find happiness, all right?\u201d I murmured to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He smiled coolly. \u201cYou too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Through the window, I heard the bustling sound of the people walking down the street. And for the first time, I thought it was a pleasant sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The incident was over, but we still had the aftermath to deal with, so we couldn\u2019t go back to the Ministry quite yet. By the time we finished questioning the people involved and doing all the necessary paperwork, plus visiting Arneau in the hospital when we had a chance, it had already been more than a week since we\u2019d come to Ocean Harbor. Arneau\u2019s wounds had gotten better, and he was discharged from the hospital. I went to tell him that we were going back to the capital, and he said that he\u2019d be going back to Ethenell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo we won\u2019t be able to see each other again,\u201d I lamented, feeling a bit lonely about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen Ethenell is safer, come and visit,\u201d Arneau suggested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWrite us a letter once you\u2019ve settled in, okay?\u201d Sora told him, giving him the Ministry\u2019s address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was worried that Sora was going to follow his friend and go back to Ethenell, so I asked him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…I have to stay at the Ministry. They\u2019re the ones who gave me this identity,\u201d he said casually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sora, who had Dark Magic forced onto him, was now in the Ministry\u2019s care. They had given him a new identity, including a surname. He wasn\u2019t staying here out of his own free will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…So, given the choice, you\u2019d go back,\u201d I reasoned. I felt sad at the idea, but after all, it was normal for him to want to return to his home country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…Not really,\u201d he answered, ruffling my hair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I could have done without the hair-ruffling, but his answer had made me smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After saying goodbye to Arneau, it was time to say goodbye to this town we\u2019d grown accustomed to so quickly. When we were ready to leave, a huge crowd of people, including the restaurant\u2019s regulars and some of those who lived close by, came to see us off. Of course they didn\u2019t know that we worked for the Ministry, so we told everyone that we just had to go back to our respective homes. They all seemed sad to see us go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re going already? You should\u2019ve stayed a bit longer!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI won\u2019t be able to eat Maria\u2019s desserts anymore? What a shame…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt just won\u2019t be the same without Katarina around!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Along with these heartfelt farewells, they gave us lots of souvenirs, like fruit, all kinds of snacks, and even some local trinkets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Larna, Sora, Maria, and I, drowning under all those presents, boarded the carriage that would bring us home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCome again!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re waiting for you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m looking forward to the next time you visit!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Everyone was shouting in our direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGoodbye, see you again!\u201d I called back from the window, waving my hand, as we left Ocean Harbor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019d gotten used to the salty breeze coming in from the sea that was brushing against my face one last time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I, Susanna Randall, also known as Larna Smith, had just finished reporting to the Magical Ministry. Now I had to report to the man who had helped us throughout this incident, Jeffrey Stuart, the eldest prince and the fianc\u00e9 of my public alias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLately I\u2019ve been so busy that I can\u2019t even go take a look at them. It\u2019s really stressful,\u201d he grumbled as soon as we met. He was talking about his younger brothers, whom he loved to the point of obsession. I stared at him coldly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIs that why you\u2019re collecting things like these? I\u2019ll let you know that stealing is a crime.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On his desk there were a variety of items labeled as \u201cAlan\u2019s towel,\u201d \u201cJeord\u2019s pen,\u201d \u201cIan\u2019s book,\u201d and so on. I hadn\u2019t been that creeped out in a while. This maniac, not content with staring at his brothers\u2019 portraits and spying on them, had resorted to stealing their stuff. I felt he\u2019d gone way too far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSusanna, please, you misunderstand. I would never steal from my beloved brothers. These are old things that they had thrown out,\u201d he answered with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat actually…doesn\u2019t make it any less creepy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Discussing this wasn\u2019t going to change anything, so I decided to ignore that topic and move on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnyway… I think you already read what I wrote to you, but as we suspected, Dark Magic was being used. Everything points to Sarah, the girl we\u2019re looking for,\u201d I explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJust as I thought. Always busy, that girl. I really wonder what her intentions are.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOnce again, we found no clue as to that. The nobles involved were being controlled so much that asking them was pretty much useless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHm… It\u2019s incredible that we can\u2019t even find out how she approached them. That would be very difficult if she was working alone. There must be someone powerful backing her up,\u201d Jeffrey hypothesized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s probably the case.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI wish they\u2019d stop trying to ruin the peaceful country I want my brothers to live in!\u201d He sounded as if he was joking, but he had a dead serious look on his face. He could be a brother-obsessed pervert, yes, but he really cared for them and for his country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd, as I stated in the letter, Ethenell\u2019s prince, Cezar, was involved too. He was a huge help to us, but since people from his country were in the wrong too, he said that we didn\u2019t really owe him anything,\u201d I tried to get the conversation back on track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHaha, lucky for us! Debts to foreign royalty are the last thing we\u2019d want to make.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ll have to agree with you there. Anyway, I\u2019ve written all the details that didn\u2019t fit on the letter in this report right here. Read it when you\u2019ve got the time,\u201d I concluded, handing him a stack of documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThank you,\u201d he replied with his usual smile, \u201cI know how busy you are. I really appreciate you coming all the way here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDon\u2019t mention it. And you try not to work too hard, okay?\u201d I advised, noticing the dark circles under his eyes. He looked surprised but then started laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou too, Susanna,\u201d he told me, still smiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I waved and left his room. As I walked past the castle\u2019s gate, the sky was already tinged with the sunset\u2019s colors. It had been a week since I\u2019d last seen the capital\u2019s sky. It was beautiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c…And so our mission was completed successfully.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the long carriage trip, my friends, who already knew that we were going to be back, were waiting for us at the Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They all greeted me as soon as I stepped off, and then I was brought to one of the Ministry\u2019s parlors to be bombarded with questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow was it?\u201d \u201cAre you all right?\u201d \u201cAre you hurt anywhere?\u201d and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As always, I tried to reassure everyone by telling everything I\u2019d done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI worked as a waitress! And then Sora and I were captured by kidnappers, but thanks to him, Pochi, and Maria we managed to escape and arrest them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However…far from being reassured, everyone looked even more worried. But…everything turned out fine! What\u2019s the problem?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBig Sis, wait. You said that this was going to be a safe mission. Nothing more than an investigation. Why in the world were you captured?\u201d Keith asked me sternly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cW-Well, there was a little…accident, let\u2019s say. A coincidence. Nothing more than a coincidence. I just happened to walk up to the kidnappers\u2019 hideout.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPray tell, Katarina, how could such a thing ever happen by coincidence?\u201d Jeord asked, sighing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI-I was chasing after Sora, and…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat would be your colleague, correct? And may I ask why you were chasing after him, and if you were alone at the time?\u201d Jeord continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI saw him while walking through the street and just went after him… And, well, I was alone…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy would you do that, Big Sis? Haven\u2019t I told you not to do things like that?\u201d Keith said, his eyebrows rising higher and higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Things like these?! What\u2019s that even supposed to mean?! Sigh. I know how this is going to end. Whatever I say, Jeord and Keith are going to get mad at me. I glanced over in Mary and Sophia\u2019s direction, hoping for some help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd when you were captured, they…didn\u2019t do anything to you, did they?\u201d Mary, whose face had turned completely pale, asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHm? Nothing, no. I was just closed up in a room for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut that\u2019s terrible! Was it a dark, filthy underground cellar?!\u201d Sophia queried, letting her usual unstoppable imagination run wild.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo, it really was just a normal room. It wasn\u2019t comfortable or anything, but it wasn\u2019t a proper jail either. And I just walked out without any trouble, eventually.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd how did you manage that, anyway?\u201d Alan wondered, suspicious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, that. Sora and Pochi fought their way through the thugs, one at a time, and we made a path for ourselves through their unconscious bodies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t call that walking out without any trouble, you call that forcing your way through with violence…\u201d Alan groaned, exasperated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell…hm, if you put it that way…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow one puts it has absolutely no bearing on the matter,\u201d Jeord interrupted. \u201cYou had to fight to go back to safety. I hope you understand how dangerous that was. Now, are you wounded?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
H-He\u2019s so scary!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI-I\u2019m fine. I got out scot-free,\u201d I promised, waving his worries off, and then Nicol, who\u2019d been quiet all along, took his shot at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat makes it sound like it was dangerous,\u201d he spoke flatly, with his usual emotionless expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Huh?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As he stared at me, I felt as if he could almost read my mind. I figured I\u2019d say what I\u2019d been hiding all along.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhile we were running away…I tried to protect one of the children and I kind of got grabbed…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGrabbed?! Were you not hurt then?!\u201d Mary, somehow even paler than before, shouted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, really, I was just choked for a bit…\u201d I assured her, immediately regretting that admission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou were grabbed and choked. Big Sis… That\u2019s terribly dangerous!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs your neck wounded?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone gathered closer to me to check my neck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I made everyone worry again…<\/p>\n\n\n\n I waved my hands again, clarifying, \u201cIt was just for a second. It wasn\u2019t anything major, really,\u201d trying to make my point clear. \u201cLook, not even a scratch, right?\u201d I added, showing everyone my neck and causing a collective sigh of relief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They seemed to have calmed down, but they followed up with murmuring and sighing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…In what world does this not count as dangerous?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis whole thing was the definition of danger…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have to lighten things up here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cB-But you see, Maria saved me with her Light Magic, so it really was fine. Maria even learned a new spell! You should\u2019ve seen it…\u201d I tried changing the topic to her new spell, but nobody seemed to even hear that part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig Sis probably doesn\u2019t understand what we mean by danger…\u201d Keith fretted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe most certainly does not. Her threshold for considering a situation dangerous is considerably higher than ours,\u201d Jeord replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The two of them were giving me scary looks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cM-Maybe that could be, but I\u2019m really fine, so…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPerhaps our safest choice is to keep her imprisoned, so that she may not run into danger,\u201d Jeord mused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…That seems a bit too much,\u201d I gasped, terrified by his proposal… But Keith agreed<\/em> with him!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIndeed. Setting up strict limits regarding what she can do would be sure to keep her safe. But of course I wouldn\u2019t want you to worry about it, Prince Jeord, so my family will take that burden.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n You usually never agree with Jeord! What are you doing?!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhy, I will gladly spare you the trouble. Katarina is my fianc\u00e9e, and it is after all my responsibility to see to her safety. She shall reside in the castle, with me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot at all. Our family will take care of Big Sis. She will stay in the Claes mansion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe are more than eager to help too. She is a friend, after all. Right, Prince Alan?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY-Yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig brother and I will help too, of course.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe definitely will.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNone of you should be involved in this. This matter only concerns me and my future wife.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe are not talking about marriage here, Prince Jeord.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n All of my friends were busy discussing where and how to lock me up. The worst part is that nobody disagreed with the idea at its core. Seeing that things had gotten even worse, I tried to sneak out, but they immediately found out when I opened the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig Sister, we\u2019re not quite done here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina, where might you be going?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n They tried to keep me there, but thankfully, I saw Maria coming back from reporting to higher ups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI must go to report too,\u201d I excused myself, since I was actually told to do that right after Maria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most prominent members of the Katarina-scolding club, Keith chief among them, were probably still going to complain to me later, but that was still better than having everyone do it at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I walked through the Ministry\u2019s hallways for the first time in a while, thinking of how to convince my friends not to lock me up. Maybe I\u2019ll have to ask Sora and Maria to tell them how awesome and safe I was throughout<\/em>, I thought, not yet knowing that Maria would eventually tell them that I went back into the hideout to look for an acquaintance, pouring fuel on the \u201cLet\u2019s imprison Katarina for her own good!\u201d fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In any event, the case of the baron\u2019s kidnapped daughter was finally over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was born and raised in Ocean Harbor. My father owns a fruit shop that has been operating for four generations. We mostly just sell fruit to the nearby restaurants, but there are enough of them to make our business do relatively well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Right now I\u2019m a busy student. One day, I want to make our fruit shop much bigger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By the way, I love sweets. With my father owning a fruit shop, we\u2019ve always had fruit for dessert. I never had any sweets when I was little. I remember the first time I ate one. It was so delicious… I fell in love with that taste. Some people can bake them themselves, but I\u2019m too clumsy for that. I just wait for my allowance to buy them. Going through stores eating all kinds of sweet delicacies is kind of my hobby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Recently, I found a place that has the most delicious desserts: the Harbor Restaurant. It\u2019s very close to my home, but I never went there before because it was known for just serving meals made by other shops. However, a few days ago, they hired a new cook, and the food they started serving is amazing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After hearing about it I immediately tried to go there, but it was too late for desserts. Dad brought some home though, and that was the start of it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was so good that I\u2019ve started going there whenever I have the chance. I can\u2019t go every day, since I can\u2019t afford it, but I go as soon as I have my allowance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The waitress, a girl named Katarina, is very beautiful and kind. She even lets me try desserts that they aren\u2019t selling yet. Everyone who goes to the Harbor Restaurant for lunch loves her, but Dad told me that she\u2019s even more popular at dinner time. He even said that some people go there just to meet her, including the son of the greengrocer in front of our house, who\u2019s so in love that he goes there every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But a girl that pretty and kind can\u2019t be single, right? One day, coming back from school, I happened to run into Katarina. She was walking together with a handsome young man with blue hair. She was smiling, and he was looking at her with so much love in his eyes. I was pretty sure they were dating. Too bad for the greengrocer\u2019s son. They looked so good together too. Those two beautiful people could be in an illustration of a romance novel. I decided I\u2019d ask her about it next time I was at the restaurant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But then, when I asked her about it…her reply really surprised me. I realized that she was completely oblivious when it came to romance and, what\u2019s worse, she didn\u2019t even realize that the blue-haired man likes her. Poor guy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cHow you doing, Arneau?\u201d Sora asked, entering my hospital room. \u201cGood enough,\u201d I replied. I\u2019d been healed so thoroughly that most of my wounds were gone. \u201cNice to hear.\u201d \u201cThey treated me so well here. And I even got all this stuff.\u201d I pointed to the snacks, flowers, and other get-well-soon gifts I\u2019d received during […]<\/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-3600","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\/3600","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=3600"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3600\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3602,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3600\/revisions\/3602"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3600"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3600"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3600"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Bonus Short Story<\/h1>\n\n\n\n