Chapter 88: The Führer and Inside the Train
Under a clear, expansive blue sky, the Made-in-Yamato train, pulled by a steam locomotive travels forward.
From that train window, I gaze at the medieval-looking rural scenery.
The time is 10 am, and the scenery lit by the sun is very beautiful.
This is the Kingdom of Londeria, a part of the United Kingdom of Albatross. If I were to simply describe what kind of country it is, it is a country with a medieval and early modern British style.
A sizeable island country to the east of the Eastern Continent, approximately the size of the United Kingdom, ruled by Queen Elizabeth, who is over 90 years old.
Now then.
Speaking of why I come all the way to such a country and am riding on this train… I was forcibly brought here by Ayame-san.
She says it’s for a uniform date.
So I’m on my way to the school where I will be enrolled.
……Am I really a dictator?
Recently, I have been losing my confidence. Isn’t it strange how I always do what Ayame-san says without question?
I am a dictator and the Führer, and Ayame-san is my maid, yet…
What exactly is a uniform date anyway?
Do you call it a compartment seat? Inside a four-passenger private compartment, I look at Ayame-san, who is sitting opposite me, with a slightly reproachful gaze.
I have work to do as the Führer, do you understand?
“As for work, Eryu-san isn’t really doing anything, right? Sometimes you just stamp documents or receive gifts from big shots in various fields, but most of the time you just play around…”
“Hrm. That’s true, but look, there’s things like weapons development…”
“That’s just you chatting with the high-ranking military officers, isn’t it? Wishing for this kind of weapon, you could also say it’s just pestering. Even the other day, you were all excited about making four new model battleships…”
Nggh.
If you put it that way, I can’t deny it. As Ayame-san says, I don’t usually do what you would call a regular job.
That, you know… Isn’t there something? But isn’t it strange that the Führer is enrolling?
I stared at her as if to ask her what she was thinking, but she just nodded her head and said, “Look, since it’s our precious student life, let’s enjoy it, shall we?” And she smiled back at me.
Goodness, you truly are a difficult person.
But, you know, in my previous life, I couldn’t experience campus life, so I think I might be looking forward to this kind of school life a little.
I don’t like studying, though.
“Umm, so, where were we again? About the school.”
“Huh? Didn’t I already explain it to you?”
Yep, absolutely not.
Well, Ayame-san, didn’t you seem busy these last few days because you were making plans for a date?
Thanks to this, I have been brought to this place without being informed of anything…
“It’s Hellerford Aristocratic School. It is a traditional school located in an old castle, about half a day’s train journey from Londen, the capital of the Kingdom of Londeria…”
We have some materials, Ayame-san says, as she takes out a bundle of papers from the pocket of her uniform.
……Seriously, what is going on with that pocket? Clearly, the capacity and the size of the contents do not match.
Oh, by the way, both Ayame-san and I are in our uniforms. It’s been slightly arranged in a fantasy-like style.
We wore a white outfit that looked a bit like a military uniform, paired with the usual miniskirt and knee-high socks.
It’s a bit cosplay-ish, but since it seems to use high-quality materials, it doesn’t look cheap, and the design is cute as well.
I might actually be kind of liking it a little bit.
“Well, to put it simply, it’s a huge matchmaking facility. It’s a place where the young nobles of the Albatross gather to make an appearance, which would be an easy way to understand it.”
A huge matchmaking facility… So, is that why the uniforms are cute?
“Because it’s that kind of place, there’s absolutely no need to study at all. Isn’t that good, Eryu-san? You can focus on your student life with me, okay?”
“Huh, could it be that this is what you’re aiming for?”
“Of course. I would like to say that ――, but there are other similar huge matchmaking facilities as well. I chose this place because the other conditions were also favorable to the Empire.”
“For the empire…? Are you saying that there are various interests involved?”
“That is correct. Things like the construction of this railway as well, and also military stationing rights, land, and so on… Well, a lot of other things.”
if Eryu-san is going to enroll, then the school… No, because the country’s prestige will rise. They’ve used every means possible to get us into their schools.
Ayame somehow had a boastful look on her face.
As expected of my Eryu-san, or something like that.
Hmm.
……Say, what’s the matter, Ayame-san?
Standing up so suddenly.
Eh, you want to sit next to me? Okay, here, come closer.
Ayame-san quickly came to my side. A good point for you because you casually hold my hand the moment you sit down.
So, what’s the matter… Oh, there’s a knocking sound.
Bang, bang, bang! It’s noisy.
Who could it be? For now, I say, “Please come in.”
The door was opened…
“Oh-ho-ho-ho! Char, the beautiful flower of the Freyd, is who I am! Greetings, beautiful Fuehrer.”
Then, the flashy queen, Char-san, made a grand entrance, bursting through the door. In the background, the maids, who seem to be part of her entourage, are scattering confetti and creating some sort of performance that I can’t quite understand.
Um, what does ‘Fuehrer’ mean? Is she referring to me?
So, um, this is…
“O~hohoho, it seems you are surprised. I heard that you all are enrolling, so I made up my mind. I also intend to enroll in Hellerford.”
“Ha, I see…”
Char-san is sitting in the seat facing me. Her entourage waved at me as they went off somewhere.
But, no matter how you look at it, the clothes Char-san is wearing are the same uniform as me… Umm, right now, Char-san is in her late twenties, isn’t she?
Well, how should I put it? No, to be honest, it’s pretty hard to say, you know?
In the first place.
“…Ayame-san, can you enroll at that age?”
“In theory, it’s possible. The Hellerford Aristocratic School is open to any unmarried nobles 16 years of age or older. In fact, we, who are actually over 300 years old, have been able to enroll.”
But, when I ask quietly, Ayame-san also becomes evasive with her words.
As expected, with that appearance in a uniform, enrolling just doesn’t seem right, don’t you think?
Well, Char-san is certainly beautiful, but there is such a thing as dressing appropriately for one’s age, you know?
“By the way, Saint Roshana of the Celestial Kingdom is also present in Hellerford as a researcher, right? It looks like she is not wearing a uniform, though.”
“Oh, really?”
I thought I hadn’t seen her around lately, and it turns out she has been there the whole time. Certainly, I feel like she said something about doing something like studying abroad in Londeria.
Like that, when I was whispering with Ayame-san.
“Um, what are you two whispering about? Could it be that you’re captivated by my beauty?”
I’m blushing! And, because she somehow interpreted it positively, so I’ll just keep smiling. This is my ultimate Japanese technique: the ‘polite smile’.
Ahaha… Why did this person suddenly decide to enroll in school? Is she perhaps out of her mind?
While we were laughing, there was a knocking sound again. The sound this time is remarkably elegant.
Who is it?
“Oh, there’s a knocking sound. You can come in.”
Geez, Char-san just gives out room entry permissions on her own…
And then, the person who came in was…
“Führer Eryutheia, how are you… Oh my, Char, you were here too? That outfit is… Oh, dear?”
It’s Elizabeth-san, the ruler of Londeria. It’s unusual for Her Majesty the Queen herself to ride on such a train.
And, why is she looking so surprised like that… Oh, I would be surprised as well if Char, who is almost 30 years old, would be wearing a school uniform.
How should I put this, it is really out of place.
The person in question: “Aren’t these clothes cute? I am quite fond of it.” That is what she said.
Was it that it was too unbearable to watch, or did she not want to see an acquaintance’s painful appearance, Elizabeth said, “Ah, what a thing… Even someone like Char…” While muttering to herself, she left the compartment.
I understand that feeling.
……A few minutes later.
Having pulled herself together, Her Majesty the Queen re-entered the room with a resolute expression.
And then.
“Führer Eryutheia, this is my relative, Lynn Foreclaude. She will be your classmate at Hellerford this year.”
“My name is Lynn Foreclaude as introduced to you. Führer Eryutheia, I am honored to work with you.”
And then, she introduced a girl.
I wonder what kind of person she is. A female knight? She is a girl with such an atmosphere. She is about 17 years old?
With long indigo hair, she was quite cute…
“…Eryu-san? You know what will happen if you cheat, right?”
……Ayame-san, your sound is scary. It’s okay, so please don’t squeeze my hand so hard.
It will break.
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