Mia walked through the halls of Saint-Noel Academy. She was headed for a meeting—specifically one to discuss her master plan (aka the fishing tournament) to form a friendship with Princess Orania Perla Ganudos.
“Oho ho! This is perfect! We’ll forge a bond of friendship and build a bridge into Ganudos!” exclaimed Mia with a proud grin, utterly assured of her victory. But suddenly, she was hit with a wave of anxiety. “How strange. I’m feeling uneasy... I suppose something similar happened around now in the old timeline. I was so certain I’d prove successful that the shock of failure only felt greater...”
Yes, back in the old timeline, Mia had dedicated herself to forging a friendship with another certain someone—the queen of the academy, Holy Lady Rafina Orca Belluga.
“Argh! How in the moons can I get close to her?!”
“Don’t worry, milady. You just need to give her this! These hairpins have been all the rage on Saint-Noel as of late.”
“My! You prepared this just for me?” Mia took the box offered by her personal maid Petra and smiled.
“The golden jewelry you gave her the other day just isn’t her style, milady. She’d never accept something so gaudy. Don’t let the merchants push you around.”
“You’re right. I was being foolish. So Miss Rafina prefers more sophisticated, trendy designs. Of course! Saint-Noel Island is always in the forefront of fashion, after all! She must be well-versed in the subject herself.”
Yet, this surefire present gifted with absolute confidence was turned away, and Mia’s invitation for a tea party with some gourmet cake was refused as well. Despite her countless, perfect plans, none had come to fruition...leaving Mia quite traumatized.
“The more perfect the plan, the more I’m worried it’ll fail thanks to that...” Mia recalled the pure icy smile Rafina had worn back then and shivered.
“My, Mia! Are you headed for the student council room too?” Suddenly, a voice rang out from behind her. While pleasant, it had a certain sense of overwhelming presence.
“E-Eek! A-Ah, if it isn’t M-Miss Rafina!”
Rafina Orca Belluga peered into Mia’s eyes with a scowl. “Are you all right, Mia? You look awfully pale,” she said, sounding quite worried.
“Y-Yes, I’m perfectly fine. I was just up all night thinking about this meeting.” Of course, that was a complete lie. Mia almost never experienced wakeful nights.
Regardless, Rafina took her words at face value, bringing a hand to her chest with a sigh. “I see. But please, there’s no need to push yourself too hard,” she said before tilting her head. “So even you get anxious sometimes. I’ve hardly ever seen you like this before.”
“Oh well... I’m just a bit worried that the fishing tournament won’t go over as smoothly as I hoped.” Without thinking, Mia voiced her earlier apprehension. Of course she thought the tournament would go well, but she couldn’t shake the unpleasant sense that her plan was so perfect it was bound to fail.
Suddenly, Rafina took Mia’s hand in her own, looking her straight in the eyes.
“Miss Rafina?”
“There’s nothing to worry about, Mia!” Rafina attempted to wipe her worries away. “I’m sure it’ll go well! And if it doesn’t, we simply have to come up with a new plan, so...” She put on a gentle smile. “Please remember that I’m here for you. Don’t worry about all this alone. Heavy burdens are meant to be shared. You said it yourself, no?”
“Miss Rafina...” For a moment, Mia wondered if she had really said that, though she kept it from showing on her face. Instead, she offered a solemn nod. “Indeed, I did. Then if this fails, I’ll reconsider our plans alongside you and everyone else. But...oho ho!”
“Hmm? What is it?” Mia’s sudden burst of laughter earned a confused look from Rafina.
“Oh, it’s nothing,” Mia replied, shaking her head. It just suddenly felt so...strange. She had worked so hard to befriend Rafina in the old timeline, but she never so much as gave Mia the time of day. But now, they were good friends—enough so that they could even discuss befriending Orania together. All of this was so beyond expectation it was almost amusing.
“You’re right. We’re friends, even if you used to be cold to me. And if that’s true, then... Oho! I’m sure it’ll all work out with Princess Orania as well.”
“Hmm? I’m not quite sure why you’re insinuating that it was hard to befriend me...”
Mia shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. Well then, shall we be off?”
With that, the two made their way to the student council room.