This is a story from when I visited Qunorts, the Free City.
A memory of a time when I reunited with Miss Fran and Saya.
“Sigh…”
Who on earth could that witch be, heaving a depressed sigh even though she said this was just a memory?
That’s right, it’s me.
“Huh? Elaina, is something bothering you?”
And the person who quickly noticed her pupil’s distress was my teacher, Miss Fran.
We were currently on our way to a reasonably popular café. There was a reasonably large number of people inside that reasonably popular establishment, and reasonably tasty sets of bread and coffee were placed before us.
As I was eating my bread, I let out another big sigh and looked at my teacher, who was sitting across from me.
“You can tell, Miss?”
Munch, munch.
“It’s unusual for you to sigh while you’re eating bread, which you like so much, after all.”
“Well then, I guess I seem like a peerless lover of bread, a person who’s eating bread around the clock?”
Munch, munch.
“That is what I’m saying.”
“But, Miss, all these worries are making it so that I can’t enjoy even my beloved bread!”
Alas, poor me!
Even as I kept right on chewing away, still, I let out another big sigh.
My teacher seemed surprised at how very upset I was, and her eyes opened wide.
“My goodness, is that so? It must really be an awful problem you’re facing.”
“Yes. I’m really terribly troubled. In fact, it seems like I’ve never been this badly distressed in all my life.”
“What on earth could be the matter?”
“Well, as a matter of fact…”
With a piece of bread in one hand, I leaned forward.
My posture indicated that I was about to make some important announcement, and in response, my teacher also leaned forward and gulped loudly in anticipation.
“Yes…?”
Then I put on an air of importance and said, “Recently…I’ve been getting fat.”
“Sure…what?”
“It might be possible that I just gained weight, but I’m distressed because I don’t have the slightest clue exactly why I gained weight.”
Now, why on earth could that be?
Drowning in despair, I munch, munch, munched away on my bread. Even though it barely tasted like anything, I couldn’t stop myself from eating all the bread I could get my hands on.
“I have a feeling the cause is obvious, though.”
“Hmm? Miss, what are you looking at? I’m not giving you any. Even if it’s not that good, bread is bread.”
“Oh no.”
“And anyway, I’m feeling very upset and depressed right now, Miss.”
“But you’re still eating, aren’t you?”
“Basically, what’s going on here is what’s known as emotional eating, caused by stress. I’m in real trouble.”
“Oh no.”
“Normally, my eating habits aren’t really unusual, and yet…why is it that my body is getting heavier and heavier…?”
“Isn’t it just because your usual eating habits are out of balance…?”
Miss Fran gave me an exasperated sigh. The way she was acting, she seemed to be saying that she was completely giving up. My problem was so serious that even the famous Stardust Witch was ready to throw in the towel when I told her about it.
Now, I wonder what that’s all about?
“Sigh… If this continues, I’ll keep gaining weight, forever!”
I was at a loss.
Isn’t there anybody who can help me?
“I took the liberty of listening in on your conversation!”
Poof !
Suddenly, a girl appeared, sitting beside me.
When I looked over, I could see that the girl had her black hair cut short, and she looked more or less like Saya. She was dressed in a black robe, and looking closely, I could see that on her chest she had both a star-shaped brooch and a moon-shaped brooch. Exactly like Saya.
Also, she had a necklace and a pointed hat that were exactly like mine.
Wow, what a coincidence.
“……”
Or rather, it was Saya herself.
“I listened in on your conversation, Elaina!”
She raised her voice again.
“Oh, Saya?” Miss Fran did not seem particularly surprised by Saya’s appearance. She chuckled quietly as she asked, “How long have you been listening?”
“From the very beginning.”
“Oh my.”
“You’re talking about how Elaina’s gained a lot of mass, is that right?”
“Oh my…”
My teacher’s expression grew clouded.
How cringey…
“Saya, exactly where did you suddenly come from?” I asked, glaring at Saya in annoyance.
“I could smell you nearby, Elaina, so I came over.”
“Are you sure you’re not mistaking it for the scent of bread?”
Do I smell that strongly…?
“Elaina, whenever you’re around, I will always sniff you out. Remember that, please.”
“You are an inveterate stalker, aren’t you?”
“Certainly not! My actions do not constitute stalking at all!”
“Well then, what are you doing?”
“Following you out of love…I guess you could say.”
“So you are stalking me after all? How can you say you’re not?” I sighed.
“Oh my…” Miss Fran, on the other hand, was very, very taken aback.
It goes without saying that I shuddered at Saya’s outrageous act. But even the famous Stardust Witch couldn’t hide the disdain on her face.
And while I’m at it, it also goes without saying that a certain possibility made me a little bit nervous. “What will you do if Miss Fran gets the wrong idea about our relationship, Saya?”
“Anyway, if things keep going on like this, Elaina’s not going to be able to say ‘Who could that incredibly cute girl be? That’s right, it’s me’ anymore, is she? Heh-heh-heh.” Saya chuckled.
“I’ll knock you right off your feet!” I chuckled back.
“Do you normally say things like that? My goodness, oh-hoh-hoh.” Miss Fran chuckled, too.
“Miss Fran, please don’t look at me like you’ve just seen some charming side of your pupil.”
“But I actually did see a charming side of you.”
“And who was it who came ready with a scheme to make sure Elaina stays so charming? That’s right, it’s me.”
“I will knock you down, Saya.”
I glared at her again.
Miss Fran, on the other hand, said, “Oh my,” and turned to face Saya. “Do you have a strategy to keep her from eating too much bread?”
Saya seemed to have struck a chord with Miss Fran, who ate bread just as often as I did.
Saya said proudly, “Of course I do! I have a special trick up my sleeve!”
“A special trick…!” Miss Fran’s eyes twinkled.
I, on the other hand, narrowed my eyes. I was sure what she really meant was that she had some kind of strange scheme.
In the middle of all that, Saya announced grandly, “Have you heard the stories about vegetables growing more delicious if you let them listen to orchestral music every day?”
Wah, I immediately have a bad feeling about this.
“Whatever are you talking about?” Miss Fran cocked her head inquisitively.
“Well, basically, by making the food hear the same sounds every day, you can get it to comply with your wishes, is the idea.”
“I’m following.”
“And so I thought this might be effective on humans, too.”
“You…did?”
“And this implies there is a possibility that if I whisper words of love to Elaina every day, her heart might incline toward me in the future!”
“It…does?”
Please don’t look at me, Miss Fran.
“What I’m saying is that by living together with me, Elaina will be able to eat a proper diet with a good nutritional balance. We’ll never be apart for a single instant, and I’ll guide Elaina toward better health!”
“Oh my, that sounds like you’ll be holding her prisoner.”
Please don’t say that so nonchalantly, Miss Fran.
Oh wait, but—
“Well, I don’t think Saya’s plan is too terrible, in terms of actually making me slim down…” Suddenly, I gave it some serious thought. “I can see a future in which I get super skinny from the stress.”
“Meanie!” Saya wailed.
No, if I had to pick one of us, I think you’re the meanie for proposing such a plan, Saya…
“But, Elaina, if you truly want to lose weight, living with me is always an option,” said Miss Fran, with a very cheerful expression.
“With you, Miss Fran?”
“Yes. Every day, I’ll treat you to my homemade cooking.”
“…If my memories are correct, I believe your home cooking was not fit to eat, Miss.”
“Yes. Well, and so, I think you’ll probably lose weight as a result.”
“That is the result I’m after, but I can’t say I like the sound of the process.”
“Oh my.”
“Great, then my plan—” Saya popped up again.
“I don’t like that process either.” I abruptly turned away.
“Meanie!”
So in short, I passed on both their plans.
“I knew going on a diet wouldn’t be that simple… What a conundrum.” I sighed as I munched away on bread.
…As I expected, it’s not a very tasty proposition…
Watching me eat, Miss Fran let out a similar sigh, as if my sighing had transferred over to her.
“I feel like you could get it done if you just stopped eating bread, though…,” she remarked.
I’m just going to put that off to the side.
“In the course of this conversation with you, I’ve been struck with an idea for an excellent plan, so I’m going to excuse myself for today, okay?”
The two of them cocked their heads, looking confused. “A good plan…?”
I gave them both a sidelong glance as I stood up.
“Yes.” I nodded and said, “I’m going to try having the bread listen to orchestral music.”