“Well, you gave us plenty of hints, like the way you chose to spend your summer.”
“Are you referring to when I visited the former Clausius Domain?”
“Not quite. You met with your cousin Lord Hildebrandt Cotillard before that, right? The Cotillard domain specializes in textiles and sells many silks, and silks means...”
“Lunar silkworms, correct?” answered Chloe as she adjusted her glasses.
“I heard you hadn’t seen Lord Hildebrandt since you were children. I deduced that your reunion gave you the idea to farm and cultivate fish the same way they do lunar silkworms.”
“I see... So I got the idea to raise fish from silkworms,” bemoaned Mia.
Chloe, on the other hand, continued on cheerfully. “Oh, and I took the liberty of researching the silk threads lunar silkworms produce as well. Apparently, they’re edible when boiled!” she said, offering completely unnecessary information.
Rafina stepped in to stop her. “Yes, but... I think we can save such discussion for later,” she added, gracefully sidestepping this derailed train.
That’s right. While Mia was known as a skilled dancer, Rafina was a duke’s daughter herself, and she had every bit of ballroom prowess that Mia had! Whenever Rafina sensed danger, she was perfectly capable of elegantly getting out of its way. Thus, she ignored and dismissed Chloe’s fun fact with a composed smile before returning to the topic at hand.
“Though, it is a bit hard to connect the dots in this instance. I believe I was only able to get there since I had already arrived at farming fish as my answer. The more obvious hint...was the fishing competition,” she said, her smile turning mischievous as she brought a finger to her cheek.
“The tournament?” clarified Mia.
“Yes. When you first brought the idea up to the student council, I was shocked. I couldn’t figure out where the idea had come from, and Chloe and I racked our brains together.”
“That’s right, we thought long and hard about it. What could possibly be the reason behind holding a fishing tournament? At first, we concluded that it was just as you said, and you were merely trying to welcome Princess Orania, but”—her glasses, white and foggy from the bath’s steam, glistened—“then I remembered what my father once said: that each of your moves is layered with plots and reasons. And so, we pondered the dilemma with everything we had...”
Rafina picked up where Chloe left off. “And while we talked, we decided to return to the impetus. That is, the point in performing this joint research.”
“Which is...?” asked Orania, tilting her head.
Rafina responded. “Utilizing Saint-Noel’s name value was a way to make our research more palatable to foreign leaders. Thus, we thought Mia may be attempting to do the same,” said Rafina, dipping herself back in the water and looking at Mia. “I’ll put things frankly. Mia...this fishing tournament was a way of spreading the hobby to the nobility, wasn’t it?”
Mia was ready to shout the words “Oh, that makes sense!” but Orania beat her to the punch.
“Oh! So Princess Mia was trying to make the noble children here fishing enthusiasts...”
As a woman who had long and intimately known the joys of fishing, she had always wondered why the hobby had never spread to the foreign nobility. She knew for certain that if they had the chance to hold a fishing pole in their hands, they’d be hooked! Thus, she found Rafina’s reasoning perfectly sound—as long as they had a chance to participate in a fishing event, interest would surely spread.
“But what good would come of that...?” asked Orania.
“Why, that’s obvious. Nobles aren’t quick to jump to action when it comes to saving their starving people, but that’s not so true when it comes to their hobbies. They’re sure to spend extravagantly,” she said, closing her eyes and wagging her finger. “But what is it that Mia wants them to use that money for? Searching for good fishing spots within their borders? Discovering fish we’re not accustomed to eating? I think not,” she added, dramatically cutting off her words. “What Mia wants is for these nobles to create ponds in their manors and domains. There, they’d cultivate fish of their own and enjoy the amusements of fishing. There may even be royals who become so enamored with the sport they create entertainment facilities, perhaps ones where plenty of fish are let free, making them easy to catch. Don’t you think that’s possible?”
“I see... Advanced fishermen like me don’t enjoy such doctored circumstances, but plenty of others find their fun in catching as many fish as possible. Not that an experienced fisherman like me could enjoy that,” affirmed Ganudos’s veteran Fishing Princess, nodding away.
“Then what would happen in this scenario? We inform these royals and nobles that there are easily cared-for fish that are incredibly satisfying to catch, and that in times of need, they could be distributed to the people?” Rafina sounded so gleeful she was practically humming. “There are times when abandoning your subjects may be allowed if food is scarce. If it were truly unavoidable—if that noble insisted he only had the food to feed his family—the king would be unable to interfere. Well, not that I would allow such a thing.”
That final whispered sentence terrified Mia. She averted her eyes.
“But, if a noble had food and was simply being stingy because they wished to use it for their own hobbies, I’d doubt any monarch could overlook it. They’d be under the impression they were spending money on their own amusements, but creating fail-safes for famine without even realizing it. What else could we possibly want? This must be Mia’s real thinking.”
“And as we continue our research, we may discover species who breed and develop quickly. It’s important to begin cultivating fish, but if we’re able to ship these fish to regions experiencing famine and have the technology to cultivate them there, we’d be able to establish a long-term system for providing food to these regions in addition to the short-term solution of providing wheat. It would be revolutionary,” added Chloe, her eyes sparkling behind her foggy glasses.
Rafina gave a satisfied nod and directed her gaze at Mia. “That’s our answer. What do you think, Mia?”
Mia had been silent during the whole discussion, but now, she opened her eyes and grinned. “Yes, that’s about right. Of course, welcoming Orania was my main goal, but what you all just mentioned wasn’t not on my mind—though perhaps not as concrete as what you’ve laid out... Oho ho!” Her laugh sounded a bit forced, but her answer was quite normal. On the inside, however, she was reeling at these crazy leaps in logic.
Well, if I really think about it, what they’re saying makes sense. Mia accepted every good idea that came her way without qualms or hesitations, as was the natural state of the Waning Aurelia. Having overcome and trained through countless student council meetings, she had developed the flexibility to consider and readily adopt any good idea that came her way, even unexpected ones. Yes, flexible—like a soft jelly.
“This is just my own prediction, but you were hoping Orania would help us with this, right, Mia?” asked Rafina.
She nodded along happily. “Of course. Given her knowledge, having her on board is a must.” Thus, she turned to face Orania. “What do you think?”
“I don’t understand...”
“Huh?”
Orania lifted her face and stared straight into Mia’s eyes. “How can a princess try so hard for her people...?” Her expression was pained, like a lost child clinging to the last shred of hope she had.