Good day, everyone. It’s been thirteen years since I remembered my past lives in both Japan and the book and began my struggle to avoid being condemned. I, Serephione Granzeus, am now sixteen years old.
First Prince Schneider of my home country Judore found out that I had been reincarnated and tried to kill me after I refused to join his side in a war, so I fled the country for my life. Now I’m separated from my beloved family and friends, living in the Galé Empire with Emperor Gillain and my holy beast familiar, Lou.
Gillain, who had given the Serephione in I Love You, My Wild Rose a place to be and had been the only one not to betray her, proposed to me again. I’d been conflicted, but in the end, I accepted that I love Gillain. Having thus gotten engaged to him, that made me the empress of the Galé Empire. He gave me a relaxed life in a detached palace.
Speaking of which, people apparently started calling my detached palace the “Twilight Palace.” That made it sound so gloomy... Maybe they had a weird idea of me since I hadn’t been in public ever since our engagement was announced...
In the forest near the Twilight Palace, I sat down on a rock to take a break from training with Lou. Three butterflies fluttered around me.
“Aren’t you going to send them?” asked Lou.
These light blue butterflies were the form my transmission magic took. The second I gave the signal, they would fly straight to my father, brother, and grandmother. But...
“If Prince Schneider finds them...”
“He probably doesn’t care. There’s no way he doesn’t already know you’re in Galé. There’s no information in there that would be dangerous to leak.”
Lou is right, but what if something bad happens to them because I sent the letters? What if I make enemies because of these letters and they pose problems for Galé? I used magic to call the butterflies back into my opened hand, and they soundlessly turned back into paper. The pieces of paper fluttered up into the wind and vanished.
“I could go to Judore, but I don’t want to end up regretting having left your side,” said Lou.
“I’m scared to be apart from you too.”
What can I do to relieve my fears? If only I could sneak into Judore myself, meet my family without anyone noticing, and leave without drawing any attention...
I told Gillain, Asu, and my guard Sakaki about my plan over dinner at the Twilight Palace.
“If you’re going to Judore, then so am I,” Gillain declared.
I knew he’d say that.
“No, you’re not, Gillain. You have things to do.”
“You got hurt last time, even though Asu was with you. We don’t know the first prince’s current situation, so your safety isn’t guaranteed unless you bring a strong enough party to match him.”
“I was thinking I’d sneak in with Lou and bank on him not finding me...”
“You can’t underestimate him, Sere!”
I know. I understand. I know...
“I’ll make some time soon. Wait until then.”
I shook my head. “It’s okay. You’ve been so good to me already. I don’t want to hinder your work any more than I already have.”
“Then help me with the parts of my work that I’m not good at. That’ll make it even.”
“There are things you aren’t good at?”
“He’s not good at a lot of things,” answered Asu.
“He’s disqualified from contracting with me for not being able to bake cakes,” added Lou.
“Okay, thanks for the implied request!” I brought out a cheesecake topped with sliced-up summer oranges and handed each of us a piece.
“These are Galéan summer oranges, right?” Sakaki asked.
“Correct, Sakaki! They were growing wild in an unexplored part of the forest, so they may be sour, but they’re safe!”
“Galéan oranges... I didn’t know our country had seasonal fruit too.” Gillain gazed intently at the shining yellow fruit as he ate. This was his first time having summer oranges. How rigid and flavorless is your life?
“Refreshing! I give this four stars,” Lou decided.
Apparently, only Matsuki’s cakes were five stars in Lou’s mind. Matsuki had set too high of a bar for me.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Have you all washed your hands, kids?”
“Yeah!”
The job Gillain had assigned me was to assist at the orphanage. I got it; it was something he definitely couldn’t do.
But not every girl inherently loves kids and is good with them—not everybody can be an angel like Sasara. I was reincarnated at around thirty, so I’d long since forgotten what being a child was like, and my life since being reborn had been focused on training to survive... Sad.
So I’d given up on treating them like children. They were...my comrades. We were both born in situations we couldn’t do anything about and shouldering unnecessary burdens.
“You all want to eat lots of good food, right?”
“Yeah!”
“And you’ll have to make lots of money for that!”
“Yeah!”
“But nobody wants to work for scummy adults!”
“Yeah!”
The fact that I didn’t look like an adult helped me earn their trust.
“L-Lady Serephione!”
The virtuous nun was goggling with astonishment, but the kids completely understood. Their eyes glinted with determination.
“Then let’s think of stable careers to go into so you don’t have to work for bad guys! Will you all help me out?”
“Yeaaaah!”
“Who wants to learn to cook? Raise your hands!”
“Me!”
“I’ll teach you Matsuki’s secret recipe for madeleines. I have all the ingredients here. Let’s start by cracking some eggs!”
I remembered that the madeleines that the monastery sold had been popular in Japan. People were willing to spend a little extra money since they felt like they were doing a good deed by buying them.
The secret ingredient to these was going to be squishberries that I’d picked in the forest. They would act as an antibacterial when crushed and mixed in, so the madeleines would last longer and be sold to the military. I planned to teach these kids the skills to sell them so that they could make a living as cooks.
“Who likes to study?”
“Me!” A few more kids raised their hands.
I planned to tutor these kids in accounting. They would make two balance sheets each week and submit them to me. Eventually, they should be able to work in trade.
“Who has a good eye for detail?”
“Me!”
These kids would be in charge of wrapping, inventory tracking, and display. Their job would be to make a seal with the brand’s logo and stamp it carefully onto each package so no fakes could circulate. We’d have the orphanage’s logo and Asu facing each other... I’d obtained permission from Asu to use his likeness! These kids would also make good employees in trade in the future.
“Who thinks they’re cute or can fake cry?”
“Me!”
These were my salespeople. I would teach them to master using phrases like “Thank you!” “Come again!” “Do you like it?” and “Would you like to buy another?” on customers, as well as basic arithmetic. They could work in trade or acting in the future.
“S-So devious...” Arthur, who had come along with me as a guardian, was shocked. This orphanage fell under the Nirva family’s jurisdiction.
“Who wants to have a calm life just like you do now?”
“M-Me...” Fewer kids raised their hands this time.
“You’ll be in charge of the home while the others are going about their business. Keep the house clean and take care of the little ones. We’ll get you to a level where you can be maids for the nobility!”
“Okay!”
“Remember, no job is above or below the rest! The best results come from everybody putting in effort! Repeat after me! One for all, and all for one!”
“One for all, and all for one!” the kids said in chorus.