Volume 5, Chapter 20 – The Noble Academy

“Hah—although the desserts Master brought back were delicious, they’re definitely more delicious when you eat them right in the shop.”

Hugging a paper bag, Mary walked out of the shop with her eyes squinted and the corners of her mouth curved into a happy ‘w’ shape.

Yisi, having just paid at the counter, heard her and teased with a smile, “If you keep eating like that, Mary, you’ll get fat sooner or later. You’re already quite heavy as it is.”

Yisi had discovered long ago that although Mary looked small, she actually weighed as much as three Camillas.

Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, Mary’s previously relaxed body suddenly went rigid.

“M-Master, it’s very rude to talk about a girl’s weight!”

“Pfft,” Mary’s rare rebuttal made Yisi burst out laughing. “So you do care about these things, Mary?”

“Of course! I’m a young lady with self-respect, you know.”

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“Yes, yes. Well then, first you should try to figure out why you’re so heavy.”

Laughing softly, Yisi patted Mary’s shoulder. As she walked out of the shop, she began to look for Tiffany and Andrea. She had stayed inside for a while to pay.

“I don’t see Tiffany and Andrea. Didn’t they say they would wait for us at the shop entrance?”

“Her Majesty wanted to show the Noble Academy to Tiffany, so she took her to a place a little farther away.”

“I see.”

Just in case, Yisi opened her [Omniscient Map] to confirm. Andrea and Tiffany were indeed at the nearby Noble Academy, and there was no one who looked like a kidnapper nearby.

Considering Andrea’s personality, it was perfectly normal for her to give a new friend a tour of her school.

While thinking about these things, Yisi took Mary’s hand and walked toward the Noble Academy. Just like last time, due to Yisi’s pureblood status, the young noble men and women waiting on both sides of the street cast friendly gazes her way.

Well… it’s also partly because of the paper bag in Mary’s hand.

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Just as Andrea had said, the desserts at this shop were exceptionally expensive. At first, Yisi had thought the noble young ladies clustered near the shop just wanted to enjoy the atmosphere of a high-end establishment. In reality, that was completely her own conjecture. The real reason was that these noble girls wanted to buy something but didn’t have enough money, so they could only wait near the shop. Some of them were hesitating about whether to spend their pocket money, while others were waiting for a wealthy suitor or friend.

This also reminded Yisi that most nobles were actually more strapped for cash than she had imagined. According to Andrea’s explanation, with the exception of special cases like an only daughter like Pepe, the average noble had at least five children. In addition, most of the nobles in the Royal Capital did not have their own territories; they simply worked in the capital and lived on the stipend issued by the royal family. So, the pocket money allocated to each noble’s child was naturally very little.

According to Andrea’s example, the young men and women clustered near the dessert shop had a monthly allowance of no more than one to three gold coins, while the cheapest dessert in the shop cost one silver coin. Therefore, when they saw Mary holding a large bag full of desserts, they all cast friendly gazes at Yisi—it wouldn’t be wrong to say they were hoping to be noticed by her. It was not uncommon for a high-ranking pureblood noble to, on a whim, invite a lower-ranking noble to dinner.

Yisi wondered what they would think if they saw the pile of desserts hidden in her storage.

Thanks to Yisi, the dessert shop had closed for the day just as the sun was rising. Everything in the shop, including raw materials like sugar, flour, and cream, had been completely bought out by her.

The reason for this was that they were going to visit the children at the orphanage with Andrea next, and they naturally couldn’t go empty-handed. So, Yisi had planned to use the desserts bought from the shop as a gifts. However, Andrea had advised her not to let the children eat things that were too rich all at once, otherwise, they might get stomachaches. Yisi could only change her plan, instead buying the raw materials to make handmade desserts at the orphanage. After all, the pastries here used a lot of sugar and cream. If she made them herself, she could reduce the amount of ingredients, making them less cloyingly sweet.

Having learned from her previous experience of being surrounded by the young noble men and women, Yisi wisely left immediately after exiting the shop this time.

Soon, they arrived at the Noble Academy.

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“I didn’t get a good look when we passed by yesterday. Now that I’m seeing it up close, even though this is an academy, it doesn’t feel enclosed at all.”

Although there were guards at the gate, they would only stop people who were improperly dressed. The entire academy occupied an exceptionally large area; Yisi roughly estimated it to be at least over a hundred acres. While that might not be much on Earth where she used to live, in this other world, it was already a very grand scale.

Especially with the architectural style of gray bricks and red tiles and the tall clock tower rising in the center of the academy, combined with the young men and women in uniform walking along the tree-lined paths, it naturally made one want to study at this school.

“No wonder Andrea said this is the most famous academy in the entire Blood Clan. She even attends school here herself.”

Originally, this Noble Academy only allowed the children of Blood Clan nobles to study. But since Andrea took the throne and implemented her new policies, the academy was changed to allow people of other races to enter. In addition, those who could not afford the high tuition fees could have the state pay for them in advance, on the condition that they must work for the country after graduation until they had repaid the tuition and interest.

Thanks to this, even though it was an academy of the Blood Clan, Yisi could see people of many other races—elves, beastmen, and even humans—entering the academy.

Looking at two students walking past them, Mary’s purple right eye revealed a look of admiration.

“Everyone here looks so happy…”

Yisi looked at Mary, whose hand she was holding with her left.

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“Do you want to study here, Mary?”

“If I said no, I would definitely be lying to you, Master.” Mary bit her lip as if troubled. “But if it means being separated from you, Master, then I’d rather not go.”

“Is that so?” Yisi couldn’t help but stroke Mary’s long, chestnut-colored hair. “Then after we’ve traveled the continent for a while, let’s find a place with a school nearby to settle down. There might be an even better academy in this world.”

She said this because she had noticed that there were almost no instances of Blood Clan and non-Blood Clan students staying together on the academy’s streets. If she wasn’t mistaken, although this academy now allowed non-Blood Clan students to enroll, the atmosphere of discrimination against them still remained. This kind of thing was also very common on Earth.

Sending Mary to school was certainly a good thing, but if it would cause her to face discrimination and differential treatment, re-aggravating her gradually healing sense of inferiority, then there was no need for her to enroll. Mary’s current level was already higher than most of the students. The so-called schooling was just to experience the wonderful life of an academy. If all she got were painful memories, then there was no need for that.

The adorable Mary must be doted on and treated like a princess.

Yisi’s words made Mary’s eyes light up.

“Yes~!”