“Writing a Letter from the Academy’s Top Intellect!”
Pastel clutched the stationery and scribbled with the quill.
Scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble.
“Ahh!”
“To my dear Melissa Camerott.
It’s been a long time since I’ve shared news with you. It has been quite a while since we last communicated, and I’m glad to bring this good news to you, who must have felt lonely during my absence.
I plan to visit the Camerott estate and mansion during the break to deepen our friendship. I’m already excited about how wonderful it will be to spend time together and create memories. You must feel the same way.
Of course, I want to respect your busy schedule as much as possible. Please let me know a convenient time, and I will adjust my visit accordingly.
I wish for the health of you and your family, and I eagerly await the day we meet soon.
Sincerely, your true friend, Pastel Lovecraft.”
The quill was set down.
Pastel examined the letter with focused eyes and a calm mind. And she admired her work.
“Perfect!”
The very essence of a noble lady.
Perhaps I was born to be a natural noble?
“Perfect! Perfect!”
Pastel twirled around, holding the letter.
A letter worth a million points.
“Once Melissa reads this letter, she’ll be so moved that she will open the apple farm for me without any explanation!”
And then, it will be perfect if I secretly pilfer the slush funds and use them for the guild.
“Give it to me.”
The demon extended a hand.
“Hehehe!”
Pastel felt triumphant.
“Even if the demon evaluates my work with a grim mindset, the truth will not change!”
She held the letter up high.
“A letter worth a million points~!”
Oh yeah.
“Indeed.”
The demon snatched the letter away from her.
“Ahh!”
That’s my letter worth a million points!
“Hmm. The first sentence is wrong. When did you and she become close friends?”
“Since we first met! The moment we met, I did it just like this!”
Pastel strained her eyes.
“Friend beam~!”
Level 999 friend beam!
“See, see!”
Pastel moved quickly to the other side and mimicked being hit by the friend beam.
“Melissa’s like, ‘Ahhh! Pastel’s friend beam is amazing! I can’t stay conscious~! We have to become friends immediately!'”
“That’s not how I remember it at all. Didn’t it start with a duel, during which one side ran away unilaterally?”
“No way! That can’t be! How could there be a discrepancy between my and the demon’s memories, given we always hang out together? Isn’t it likely that the demon’s memory is mistaken?”
At that moment, Pastel realized an overwhelming truth. Her eyes widened.
“Could it be d-dementia….”
Gasp.
Oh no.
Such a realistic word.
A rebellion that doesn’t even feel sinful.
Pastel trembled with guilt.
Tremble, tremble, tremble.
“It- It’s okay! It’s a natural occurrence due to aging! But I still like you, demon!”
The rolled-up letter tapped the girl on the head.
“Eek.”
“Don’t go off imagining things.”
Huh?
The demon took out a new sheet of paper.
“I’ll edit it, so rewrite the whole thing.”
“That can’t be! It’s a letter worth a million points! The mention of ‘close friend’ might differ slightly from reality, but the rest was written properly!”
It was really only slightly different!
“Got it. I’ll just write it myself.”
Ugh.
It seems that social customs and culture cannot accept the super ultra super special Pastel.
The demon wrote a new letter.
The letter was swiftly delivered by air.
Pastel boarded the scoff heading to the Camerott estate.
“Let’s arrive faster than the letter!”
“Of course, but we should not arrive before the letter.”
“Gasp, what an astonishing fact!”
“What on earth is so astonishing?”
There was no direct scoff from the Sky Island to the Camerott estate.
She took a scoff to the human realm, transferred to an interim scoff, and then boarded another scoff heading to Camerott.
Three transfers?
Ahh.
A schedule she didn’t even want to imagine.
But it was her schedule.
In the process, she even received a reply letter while having to change scoffs three times.
Pastel felt exhausted from the intense travel schedule. She slumped against the railing of the scoff, her pink hair billowing like laundry hanging on the railing.
Ugh.
Pastel, completely drained…
Drained, drained Pastel…
The demon sighed and patted her back.
“You should have eaten appropriately. How can you eat a whole roasted pig by yourself?”
“I-I could have finished it! If only my stomach had been a bit stronger, I wouldn’t have an upset stomach; I would have digested it all!”
How could this be?
Pastel wasn’t tired from the travel schedule but from overindulging!
It wasn’t drained Pastel but foolish Pastel!
Gasp, what an astonishing fact!
Pastel stared wide-eyed, hanging over the railing.
Her pink eyes sparkled.
And then she slumped down again.
I ate too much…
Hehe.
The demon patted her back.
“If you divert your thoughts, it will be better. Look over there. I can see the Great Forest.”
He pointed into the distance.
A long castle wall extended to the ground. Beyond the wall lay an endlessly vast forest.
The forest was gigantic and dense. Trees easily towering over the castle walls filled the ecosystem as if it were ordinary.
“The impenetrable area, the Great Forest. It is one of the last frontiers remaining for the Empire after conquering all nations.”
“Wow!”
Pastel’s eyes lit up.
“Give me a telescope! Telescope! Telescope!”
When she roughly shook the demon, a telescope was placed in her hands. She looked through the telescope at the Great Forest.
“Wow! It’s a completely dense forest! The trees look strong, and the underbrush is lush! With that, development is impossible!”
It seems uninhabitable.
“That’s true, but there are greater factors at play. Hm, look over there.”
She turned the telescope in the direction he pointed.
A red wild boar suddenly burst from the forest.
“Oink.”
“That’s a fire wild boar.”
“Wow, what a cute name.”
It seems like it would be friends with the roasted pig.
“You can call it a red wild boar.”
Suddenly not so cute.
“I’ll call it fire wild boar.”
Pastel observed her oinky friend.
The fire wild boar stepped out of the forest and peeked around before charging toward the castle wall.
The soldiers on the wall became frantic. Cannons were aimed and fired. Cannonballs flew and struck the wild boar. The magic circle activated, causing an explosion.
“Oink, my friend!”
It turned into roasted pig!
Pastel’s stomach was friends with the roasted pig!
Ahh.
The flames subsided. The wild boar with blood on its head emerged, still in decent condition. It shrieked and charged towards the castle wall.
Bam.
The wild boar, the size of a house, collided with the wall. A tremendous sound erupted. The noise reached the sky scoff above.
Ahh?
Are you perhaps friends with the white sand that lived in the sewer…?
Cannons fired in rapid succession. The explosions shook the atmosphere, wrapping around the wild boar.
Since the scoff continued its journey, she could not see what happened afterward.
“Camerott is a clan that has protected the southern border for generations. They maintain a significant military force and possess excellent military experience. Given the nature of the border, they do not show much interest in central politics, but they are always closely watched during disputes over imperial authority.”
What kind of villains are we, outright stealing the apple farm from a clan that has long protected such a place, declaring ourselves to be apple munchers?
Pastel’s hands trembled.
“A-Are we really going to go plunder the southern commander’s apple farm?!”
After munching on a farm passed down through generations, are we now bearing the grudge of having it returned?
“That’s right.”
No denial at all!
Ahh.
The scoff docked at the docking station. Soldiers were in control, creating an atmosphere that suggested a precious guest was arriving.
Pastel staggered off the scoff. The soldiers conducted an orderly welcome.
A noblewoman clad in a wizard’s robe approached. Retainers followed behind her.
Count Camerott smiled.
“Was your journey comfortable, Viscount?”
Such a laid-back voice.
Pastel trembled like a rabbit in front of a wolf.
“It was c-comfortable.”
The aspiring plunderer awkwardly averted her gaze.
She spotted Melissa, who had been half-hidden behind the Count, looking more hesitant than usual instead of her usual guarded self.
Save Melissa.
We were on good terms, weren’t we?
For the memories we’ve made, please say something nice to your mother.
The apple farm was chaotic. Apple trees grew all over without concern for harvest yield or commercial quality, reflecting a disorder untouched by human hands.
Yet precisely because of that, it felt like a forest blanketed with apple trees. It was a scent of nature that seemed out of place for a clan facing the Great Forest, yet somehow fitting.
In the midst of nature, there was a bare wooden table. The table, set for guests, was laden with various apple dishes.
Pastel’s cheeks flushed. She took a big bite of the apple pie.
The crispy pie crunched as she bit down. The savory aroma of butter burst forth. Sweet and tangy apples wrapped around to offset the richness.
Gasp.
Pastel was astonished.
The taste made her want to switch the owner of the farm…!
She felt as if she understood the wicked behaviors of the Craft family.
“There’s no way you’d still hold a grudge over just one farm.”
The Count smiled kindly.
“The reason the ownership of this farm changed hands back then was that His Majesty, who couldn’t stand us getting involved in the imperial authority dispute, used the Craft family to give us a warning.”
“I see!”
Pastel nodded vigorously while dipping her bowl in apple jam.
“Thank you for your understanding! No wonder, the first moment I saw you, Count, you had such a clear aura! I knew immediately you were someone with a wide heart!”
She gave a thumbs up with both hands.
Oh yeah, oh yeah.
The Count smiled even more warmly. He then drank a glass of apple wine, setting the empty glass on the table.
Pastel flinched for a moment.
Huh.
Was there something like an adult’s smile? A sense that he was allowing her to feel this way since she was still a child.
Hehe, it must be an illusion~.
It wouldn’t do to suspect such a kind person~.
The Count turned to look at Melissa beside him. Melissa had continued to fumble about ever since.
After thinking for a moment, the Count turned back to Pastel.
“You mentioned you came to build a friendship with my daughter, correct?”
“Of course! I may be the one pursuing her unilaterally, but she’s my best friend!”
A declaration of friendship in front of parents.
A friend recognized by the parents.
Oh yeah.
“Visiting a friend’s house during the break is a natural schedule!”
The aspiring plunderer boldly declared. Then, before she realized it, she apprehensively scanned the apple farm and flinched.
Gasp.
Her primal instincts kicked in…!
I wasn’t thinking at all…!
