Chapter 42: Chapter 42: Struggle

After that incident, we decided to procure for our daily necessities and roam around the place. From the start, we didn’t really carry a lot of luggage, including the amount that Finia brought along with her. She did attempt to carry as much as she could, but Maria stopped her and she was only able to bring a minimal amount.

That’s why we have decided to replenish our daily necessities when we arrive here. Cortina did prepare a room and bedding for us, but the sheets, bedding, and curtains were not prepared the way we wanted because it was to her personal taste. That’s why it was necessary for us to buy more supplies.

「What do you think about this Nicole-sama. Don’t you think this one is cute? 」 「Eh, what is with that heart patterned curtain? No to mention that the overall color is pink――」 「But Nicole-sama is so fair skinned almost to the point white, having a variation of red would make you more visible」 「No, I am not that white you know?」 「But it would make you stand out more」 「I am not a chameleon!」

When we were shopping together, Finia’s tension was a little stranger than usual. When I was about to go shopping with Finia, Cortina also joined us making it three people shopping. Cortina was looking at the hyped Finia with a smile. Now that I think about it, Cortina has also seen her when she was young. It might have given her some deep emotions seeing the young girl from that time growing up.

However, that has nothing to do with this situation, that curtain pattern is just……no good. I picked up some other products and try to suggest it to Finia but I was rejected.

「What about this pale yellow one」 「Won’t yellow look too dazzling when hit by the sun?」 「Then, how about this green one」 「Won’t Nicole-sama end up sleeping late because of its dark shading?」 「I do not oversleep」 「That’s not true at all. You were over sleeping a lot」

I did train my body during the day to its limits, and at night I train my magic power until I am exhausted. It’s not really surprising for me to end up oversleeping with a daily schedule like that. My frequency of oversleeping greatly increased due to the extreme fatigue which is inherent to children.

「You two, what about this one over here?」

What Cortina presented was a curtain with cat patterns. It was quite childish but the color was beige and was quite calming. Finia and me looked face to face and confirmed with eye contact that we should compromise with this one.

A few days later, it was time to prepare for admission. There was also something called a uniform which is used in the Magic Academy. Cortina prepared a Free Size Uniform for the time being, but it was too big for me. In addition to that, I can’t just choose any kind of boots unless I match it directly with my feet. I will eventually have to go and directly find a fitting one for me.

What they called a uniform was a shirt with a white emblem paired with a dark blue pleated skirt. It also has a feathered beret, a jacket, and boots with the same color as the skirt. ……it was surprising in many ways.

Well, even though I’m just a kid, I still wear boots because of living close to the forest, and I also sometimes go to the forest for training. In doing so, I would need a sturdy boots that could protect my feet which is very essential. However, what the requirements specified was only the rough shape of the boots, and no other details were mentioned. It was probably essential for girls to insist based on fashion in such details. Something like that doesn’t matter to me though. No, they are roughly related I guess. If possible, I would like to acquire a sturdy one.

「Nn, this is……」

There was one thing that caught my eye while we were in the bootmaker store, and it was the long boots that were on display. With a school designated crest, it has the same dark brown base color. What caught my attention the most is its design leaning towards practicality, with its heels and toes firmly covered and protected. It also has cat patterns similar to the curtain that Cortina brought, which added points to it.

The moment I tried to reach out to the boots, another girl came out of nowhere.

「Ah, sorry」 「Oh, do you also want those boots?」

I only noticed it for the first time after looking closely at each other’s face. It was the girl with blond curls that was packed inside the log yesterday.

「Ah, you……were safe?」

At that time, I was on the verge of losing consciousness and was not able to afford confirming her condition after she was left under the guard’s protection. They did told me that she was safely returned to her family, which completely removed my interest from her. But it seems like this girl didn’t remember me at all. Well, that should be natural because she was unconscious all that time.

「Am I safe……? Ahh, were you also abducted by those people?」 「Eh, no, that’s not it」

From the words that leaked my mouth, she immediately concluded that I was probably referring to the abductions, and that I might have also been associated with that recent crisis. She was a child with swift calculating mind.

「Oh, is that so? Then, maybe did you hear it from someone else? 」 「Ummm, yeah……」

Since I did hear it indirectly that she was safe from someone else, what I made her assume wasn’t really a lie. The girl also seemed satisfied with that answer.

「That’s right. It was amazing! 」 「Eh, what is?」

Eh, I don’t understand what is going on in this child’s head, and what is she trying to be proud of. But she’s boasting as if she was trying to show off.

「You see, the person who helped us was Maxwell-sama, you know!」 「Heee……? Eh, why so? 」 「Why so, isn’t it natural for him to do so? Maxwell-sama is a Hero after all, and he moved on his own to protect the people. And most of all, the target was this me! 」 「Heee, heeeh, isn’t that great then」

It was stated on paper that Maxwell and Cortina were the ones who moved to save them and solve the case, after all there would be various problems if my involvement came to light. She also seems to believe this manipulated information.

「It’s that Maxwell-sama you know, Maxwell-sama! Ahhh, I really wanted to meet him directly」 「Didn’t you two encounter each other when you were helped?」 「……Unfortunately, I was unconscious at that time」

I think she’s a good child based on how she speaks, but she seems a little too attached to Maxwell. That bogus man is nothing more than a messy old man if not in times of emergency. And he is also a huge magic nerd.

「By the way……」 「Nn, what is it?」 「Those boots, I noticed it first. Will you let me have it? 」 「Muu……that’s not true. I was already eyeing it before you」

Shoes and boots are mostly handmade one by one, and there aren’t a lot of items with the same design. In other words, what I wanted to point out is that…… I want those boots and don’t want to back out. However, the girl didn’t want to back out either and also grabbed the boots that I was holding.

「That is no good, you know. Look, aren’t there better ones over there! 」 「No way, I like these boots more」 「Please give it up already!」 「But I refuse」

Is the girl older than me? She is much taller than me after all. No, because she’s also buying the same shoes, she’s probably the same age as me. Why is there such a big difference in our growth rate despite having the same age…… The tall girl seized the boots and lifts it above me. After struggling for a while, I gave up and it ended with me losing the battle.