The Northern Duke’s Daughter Will Never Fall

Episode 54: Academy? I Have No Idea Why I Came Here (2)

“Hey, I didn’t just laze around for a month. I made a ton of friends!”

“Okay, fine. But how do you even know Violet? I mean, what’s the connection?”

Eranya was an elf, and Violet was from the southernmost coast of the continent. The two didn’t seem to have any reason to cross paths.

Yet, here they were—friends. Astrid found it strangely fascinating.

“Anyway, come have a drink with us tonight. That’s how I became friends with Violet!”

“I said no…!”

Besides, wasn’t Violet one of the candidates for the crown princess position?

Astrid had every reason to feel uneasy.

【Just let it be. If she starts spouting nonsense, just switch with me.】

‘That’s an even bigger problem!’

Sighing inwardly, Astrid shook her head.

Enough. There was no point in stressing over how Eranya made her friends. It wasn’t something Astrid needed to concern herself with.

Ignoring Eranya’s relentless invitations to drink, Astrid gazed out the carriage window.

The carriage continued through Michelburg’s streets, eventually leaving the central city behind.

The academy wasn’t situated in the heart of the city but rather in a slightly more secluded area. With its large buildings, numerous facilities, and sprawling training grounds, it would have been impractical to place it in the bustling city center.

“So, you spent the whole month here?”

“Of course! A month wasn’t even enough!”

Astrid couldn’t help but marvel. She had no idea what Eranya had found to do in the academy for an entire month, let alone how she felt it wasn’t enough time.

“Well, for starters, our dining hall is famous.”

She must have been talking about the dining hall that had served strange sawdust-like bread and shredded turnip stew during the first week of training.

“Why?”

“Apparently, it’s famous for being awful. But once you officially become a first-year and move to the new building, the food gets better!”

“Really?”

So first-years moved to a different building.

That gave Astrid an odd sense of déjà vu. Basic training… ugh.

Eranya continued her animated explanation. She spoke about how first-years were allowed to visit the city after class, how the dorms were strictly separated by gender, and, of all things, where to find the best desserts.

“Desserts?”

“Yep!”

Eranya’s face lit up with a triumphant grin as if she had anticipated Astrid’s interest all along.

“Ever heard of yarn cookies?”

“Yarn cookies? What are those?”

Astrid widened her eyes in curiosity, prompting Eranya to chuckle knowingly.

“It’s a specialty from the shop I just came from. Here, try one! They’re super sweet and delicious. I don’t get to have them often, but they’re unforgettable.”

Super sweet.

Astrid’s attention honed in on those words.

【You’re not a kid, so why do you like sweet things so much?】

‘What’s age got to do with it?!’

Astrid felt unjustly accused. He hadn’t been fond of sweet foods in his previous life. Eating honey gave him headaches, and overly sweet treats often left his tongue tingling.

But ever since waking up in this body, he had found himself powerless against anything sweet.

‘What can I do if it’s your body’s fault?’

【Don’t lie. I hate sweet and sour things, especially overly sweet ones.】

Come to think of it, that was true. Astrid recalled the real Astrid’s dislike for citrus sauces—their sweet and tangy flavor wasn’t to her taste. But Astrid herself found those flavors irresistibly delightful.

“Here, have one.”

Eranya pulled a small container from her paper bag and opened it with a dramatic “ta-da!”

“Wow.”

They really did look like yarn. Layers of well-baked brown crackers were sandwiched with thick yellow butter and surrounded by delicate white threads that resembled a skein of yarn.

“These white threads are all sugar. Apparently, they use some special technique to spin the sugar into threads like this!”

“Wow.”

Just looking at them made Astrid’s mouth water.

They looked impossibly sweet.

And she wanted to try one.

“Go on, have one. I pulled some strings to get these!”

***

Over the past month, Eranya had seemingly immersed herself in enjoying the academy life, gathering tips and tricks everywhere she went. 

Her efforts had certainly paid off, as evidenced by the high-quality dessert she now offered.

-Crunch.-

The perfectly baked cracker shattered with a satisfying crispness as Astrid took a bite. 

The sugar threads melted on her tongue, flooding her mouth with intense sweetness. 

A moment later, the buttery richness and slight savoriness of the cracker balanced out the sweetness.

In a word, it was delicious.

“How is it? Tasty, right?”

It was, as Eranya had promised.

It was the most delicious thing Astrid had tasted since arriving here.

The sweetness, the buttery richness, and the slight savoriness came together in perfect harmony.

“This was made by a former academy student. She graduated and started this shop after discovering her passion for pastries in the academy’s baking club. Before that, she’d dreamed of becoming a soldier!”

Eranya rambled on, but Astrid wasn’t listening.

“…Last one.”

Eranya’s dejected tone snapped Astrid out of her reverie. Looking down, she realized that the box of six yarn cookies was empty.

The last remaining piece was already in Astrid’s hand, with half of it gone.

“…Was it good?”

Eranya looked at Astrid, her hands empty, while crumbs of white sugar and brown cracker littered Astrid’s uniform and lap.

It seemed Astrid had eaten all six cookies herself.

“Should I… give you this last piece?”

“Sure.”

As Astrid half-heartedly extended the remaining piece of yarn cookie, Eranya reached for it with eager hands.

【Why are you giving it away?! Just eat it!】

‘I was going to anyway.’

She had never intended to hand it over in the first place. Delicious treats were best enjoyed alone.

Reporting back from vacation wasn’t difficult. All she had to do was show her face at the instructors’ office on the first floor of the dormitory and let them know she was back.

“Well then, I’ll be off!”

While Astrid filed her vacation return report, Eranya completed her outing return report. 

After exiting the office together and climbing the stairs, they found the dorm buzzing with cadets, likely because it was Friday night.

“Eranya! Did you bring yarn cookies?!”

A female cadet with her hair tied up in a bouncing brown ponytail darted over from across the hall.

Yarn cookies.

At those words, Eranya’s face fell.

“Huh? What’s wrong, sis? Why the long face?”

Eranya silently pointed a finger at Astrid.

“She ate them all.”

“You told me to try them first!”

Astrid wasn’t about to take the blame without a fight.

No one had asked her to share. Eranya had been the one to insist she try them. If Eranya had wanted more, she should have bought extra boxes. The shortage was entirely her fault.

【You’re pretty shameless, you know.】

‘Says the one who told me not to share even the last piece!’

“Ah, Cadet Astrid!”

The brown-haired cadet addressed Astrid as if they were already familiar. The problem was that Astrid had no idea who she was. 

Not that it mattered much, but ignoring someone who acted this friendly wasn’t ideal.

“She’s Amira, another archer like me.”

“Well, at least she’s not another elf. Nice to meet you, Cadet Amira. I’m Astrid.”

Amira beamed at Astrid with a wide smile, her teeth on full display. Her cheerful expression made her look rather cute.

“Hello, Cadet Astrid! I’m Amira! I’m an archer too! And thankfully, not an elf!”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?!”

It seemed Eranya had finally caught on to the subtext.

“Well, meeting you completely shattered my image of elves.”

“Looks like I wasn’t the only one.”

“What do you mean, Astrid?”

It was the truth, wasn’t it? Astrid found it baffling that Eranya didn’t understand.

“I mean, I used to think elves were children of the forest. Amira, didn’t you feel the same way?”

Judging by her tone, she clearly had.

“Astie, you’re so mean!”

The dorm hadn’t changed much in the month since Astrid last saw it. Thanks to staff who regularly cleaned, it was reasonably tidy, but the state of the clothes and undergarments scattered around made Astrid question if Eranya was really an elf. She chose to ignore it.

“It’s not mean. I just didn’t expect the children of the forest to be so devoted to meat, alcohol, and snacks.”

“You’ll understand when you’re older… I mean.”

Eranya trailed off as she approached Astrid, who was unpacking her travel bag and organizing her belongings.

“Hey, by the way. Did you notice anything weird in the instructors’ office earlier?”

“Weird? Like what?”

Pausing her organizing, Astrid thought back to her earlier visit to the office. Nothing had stood out. Or had it?

【There were more instructors than usual, even after hours.】

‘Oh.’

That was true. Astrid had been to the instructors’ office multiple times during training, and typically, by this time on a Friday, only a handful of instructors remained.

But earlier, nearly twenty instructors had crowded the office, looking busy.

【They all seemed exhausted, too. Mention that.】

“Hmm, now that you mention it, there were a lot of instructors there even though it’s Friday. They all looked pretty worn out.”

“Wow.”

Eranya’s eyes widened in surprise, as if she hadn’t expected Astrid to notice.

“As sharp as ever, Astie.”

“Why?”

“You nailed it.”

“What’s going on?”

“These days, the instructors can’t even go home. Most of them are staying on campus, and the atmosphere’s been tense.”

“Tense?”

“Yeah. I’ve heard rumors that academy leadership has been completely replaced. Something about a reshuffle among the high-ranking officers.”

Astrid had no idea what that meant. She looked at Eranya expectantly, urging her to continue.

“I don’t know the details. I even tried to get some info out of the instructors over drinks, but they wouldn’t spill.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. The instructors seem stressed, but it doesn’t really affect us. Anyway, how about tonight?”

“Tonight? What about it?”

Eranya made a circle with her fingers and mimed tipping a glass to her lips.

“Drinks?”

“I told you, I’m not drinking.”

“Violet’s coming too!”

“I already said no.”

“Leopold will be there.”

“That makes it even worse!”

What was she even talking about?!