The Protagonist’s Party is Too Diligent – 63
EP.63 Forced Training (6)
“Good morning… though I’m not sure if it’s the right time to call it morning.”
Jake raised his hand slightly toward us in greeting, then yawned loudly without even covering his mouth. Alice frowned slightly at his behavior, but didn’t bother to point it out.
“Good morning.”
Alice replied as she sat next to Charlotte. I took a seat beside Alice. Claire, who was sitting next to Leo, seemed a little disappointed, but I pretended not to notice.
It wasn’t intentional, but it ended up making Jake and Mia Crowfield sit a bit further from us. Not that they were sitting together, though. The table here was a bit larger than the one in the dining hall, so the space between each seat was naturally more spread out.
Alice, Charlotte, Leo, Claire, and I were sitting close together, while Mia and Jake were seated a bit farther away from us. Even between Mia and Jake, there was a noticeable gap.
Luckily, no one seemed to mind the distance. Jake, being the carefree character he was, didn’t seem to care, and Mia was fast asleep with her face planted on the table.
Seeing her gently rising and falling shoulders and hearing her soft breathing made it hard to want to wake her up. It seemed everyone else shared the same sentiment, so Mia would likely be able to enjoy a few more minutes of sleep.
“…I just have one question—are we really going to get breakfast at this hour?”
Alice, who had been sitting with her eyes closed, trying to gather her energy, finally opened her eyes and asked.
It was true. We were the only ones in the dining hall. Given that even Alice and Charlotte, normally the picture of diligence, were struggling to stay alert, it was hard to imagine any other students would be awake and sitting here at this hour.
“You don’t need to worry about that. I spoke with the staff on my way down. Apparently, at Winterfield Castle, meals are available at any time of the day.”
Leo said confidently.
“…Is that so?”
Alice tilted her head in curiosity at Leo’s explanation.
We were currently staying in Winterfield Castle, which meant it was the residence of the Lord of Winterfield.
Of course, the Lord of Winterfield, Sir Abraham Fitzgerald Winterfield, was also the headmaster of the Imperial Runedarium Academy and was currently residing in the capital. His granddaughter, Jennifer Winterfield, had also recently been in the capital.
Lord Winterfield did have other grandchildren, but they were all involved in politics and actively serving in various roles, so the position of the castle’s lord was practically vacant.
Thanks to the loyalty of his retainers, however, the castle remained under Winterfield control. Several other members of the Winterfield family lived near the borders as well, carrying the same noble blood.
“One of Winterfield’s specialties is reindeer leather, which comes from particularly vicious creatures that are nearly impossible to domesticate.”
Of course, the material wasn’t something that could be easily acquired in large quantities.
In the game, it was one of the materials used to craft armor. While it wasn’t a game that required heavy farming of materials unless you were grinding for leveling or money, the item description did mention it was “rare,” so it must be considered quite valuable here as well.
Even on Earth, genuine leather products were relatively expensive, and that was in modern society, where cows were raised on a large scale.
So, reindeer leather, which could only be obtained through hunting, must be even more valuable—especially if you wanted to get it without any damage. The difficulty level would be much higher.
“They said they have to be ready to serve food at any time because they never know when the hunters will come back for a meal.”
“Well, that’s a relief. But we should be careful if we get sent to other regions. They might see us differently there.”
Claire added after Leo’s explanation, and Alice responded.
“Yeah…”
Hearing Alice’s words, Claire blushed slightly, looking embarrassed.
“……”
Charlotte, meanwhile, looked at the two with a somewhat worried expression. It seemed yesterday’s dinner, particularly the haggis, had left a bad impression on her. After all, Charlotte had barely touched her food.
Are animal intestines really that hard to eat? Honestly, I could handle eating raw liver without much issue.
…Of course, that was only because modern society had such advanced meat processing and distribution. I wouldn’t dare eat uncooked organs in this world. That was just a hypothetical statement.
In this era, some people still considered sushi and sashimi to be barbaric, so it made sense that a dish made by stuffing intestines with oats and cooking them might be too much for Charlotte. Plus, it had a bit of a smell too.
“You don’t have to worry too much. After all, we’re at Winterfield Castle.”
“Huh?”
When I spoke to Charlotte, she flinched slightly and asked for clarification.
“I mean, this is a noble’s castle, so the food will be served as it would to nobles. Sure, there might be haggis, but the region is also famous for its ham and sausages.”
Winterfield was known for maintaining cool temperatures year-round, and during the harsh winters, it was almost impossible to go outside. So, they prepared plenty of preserved foods for winter, and ham and sausages were some of the most famous among them.
In fact, even though both haggis and sausages were made by stuffing meat into animal intestines, sausages were considered a delicacy while haggis was treated as a strange dish. Still, sausages had a much better reputation.
Hearing this, Charlotte’s face turned a slight shade of red.
While the concept of national identity was gradually taking root, and people sometimes dissed each other’s food, it was common sense that refusing food offered by a host was embarrassing. Although we paid for the haggis, the food here was provided by Winterfield.
Leaving food uneaten wouldn’t just be rude; it would be a loss of face, especially for a princess from another nation. If you were full and left food, it would be seen as a compliment to the host but taking only one or two bites and leaving the rest could offend them.
And to make things worse, the granddaughter of Winterfield’s lord, Jennifer Winterfield, was currently leading us. It would be disastrous if rumors spread that a princess had refused to eat a meal in the presence of an Academy instructor.
“I-I wasn’t worried about that!”
Charlotte quickly answered when Alice, who was sitting between us, smiled warmly at her.
She didn’t have to be so defensive about it.
…Then again, who am I to talk? I’m constantly worrying about my pride, even if it means turning back time.
As we were having that conversation, the sound of footsteps echoed around us. Turning my gaze toward the source, I saw the dining hall doors swing open, and well-dressed servants entered, each holding a plate in both hands.
Just as I expected, the food they brought in was what one might imagine when thinking of a hearty “European-style breakfast.” It was the kind of meal commonly referred to as an English breakfast. Though here, I suppose we should call it an Aetherna Breakfast instead?
“Let’s eat first, then we can talk. And Mia needs to wake up, too.”
Claire said with a wry smile as she glanced at Mia, who was still sound asleep, oblivious to the food being served onto the table.
I glanced at the faces of the servants setting down the dishes. They all appeared perfectly composed. Not one of them looked the slightest bit tired.
…I silently offered them my respect as I picked up the knife and fork in both hands.
*
After forcing some food into my stomach, I felt much more awake than when I first got up.
Mia Crowfield had also managed to stay upright, though she was still so sleepy that she barely touched her meal. Then again, considering her small frame, she probably wouldn’t have eaten much anyway.
“Ahh.”
Claire let out a quiet breath, clearly satisfied with her meal. Even Charlotte seemed pleased. She had left one piece of black pudding on her plate, but she’d eaten nearly everything else.
The truth was, last night’s welcome feast had been quite grand. We had whole roasted reindeer and well-prepared beef steaks. But those were special occasion dishes. I could understand why they might be concerned about everyday meals possibly including things like haggis.
“Alright, then… Let’s figure out which request we should handle first.”
Claire said, pulling out a piece of paper from her coat.
It looked like she had hastily jotted down the requests we had seen on the bulletin board.
…The fact that she was asking which request we should do “first,” instead of simply which one to do, was a bit alarming.