The joint tea ceremonies practical lesson involving the second year of high school was held in the form of a tea party with several tables set up in the courtyard.

In this tea party, the guests to be served tea in the tea party were lounging on the first floor of the school building.

For those who have servants, the servants will brew the tea here, but in Monica's case, she has to brew it herself.

Since Monica would be the last one to serve tea, she had to leave in the middle of the tea ceremony and brew tea in this preparation room, but she couldn't carry a can of tea leaves to the tea ceremony. So, she decided to bring the cans into the preparation room instead.

In the preparation room, a number of servants were already preparing the tea. Almost no one was wearing a uniform.

Monica awkwardly sneaked into the preparation room and looked for a place to put the can of tea leaves.

Um, somewhere where I won't get mixed up with other people's stuff…

As she was scurrying around the preparation room, someone tapped Monica on the shoulder.

"Hey."

"Y-Y-Yeeessh…?"

When Monica turned around with a jittery look on her face, one of the girls was looking at Monica with a slightly surprised look. Perhaps she was surprised by Monica's exaggerated reaction.

The person who tapped Monica on the shoulder was a lively girl with light brown hair. Her face was somewhat familiar to Monica.

I think she is…

As Monica struggled to remember her name, the brown-haired girl's face lit up when she saw Monica's face.

"Oh, I knew it! You must be Miss Monica Norton from the next class. I'm Casey Groove. We're in the same group today. Do you remember me?"

Actually, Monica couldn't remember her name very well, but she nodded her head.

"P-Please take care of me today, Lady Groove."

"You don't have to be so formal about it. Just call me Casey. Do you mind if I call you Monica too?"

As Monica blushed and nodded, Casey said, "Thanks!" Smiled pleasantly, flashing her white teeth.

Compared to the other young ladies, she was much frank and easy-going.

Casey turned her attention to the can of tea in Monica's arms.

"Did you come to drop off your cans, too? Me too."

Casey lightly shook the light blue can in her hand. She could hear the tea leaves rustling in the can.

"I guess everyone sends their servants to make tea for them, after all. My family is a poor noble family in the countryside, so I didn't bring any servants with me."

Indeed, Casey had no makeup and her hair was simply tied up in a bun. Her scarf and gloves were also simple and unadorned. She looked almost the same as Monica.

She may not be incredibly beautiful, but she has a charming personality. She has a lively smile unlike a young lady, which was pleasing to the eye.

Casey put the can of tea leaves on the shelf and put a piece of paper with her name written underneath. That way, she wouldn't have to worry about her stuff being mistaken for someone else's.

"Do you want some, Monica? I still have some extra paper."

"T-Thank you…"

Monica took the paper hesitantly, thought about it for a moment, and then folded the edges of the paper several times to make a bellows-like crease.

This way, even without writing the name as Casey did, the distinctive fold at the edge of the paper would serve as a marker.

Monica placed a piece of paper with the edges folded underneath and placed three tea cans on top of it. This way, no one would mistake her thing for someone else's.

"Did you prepare three kinds of tea leaves?"

When Casey looked at Monica's can, she widened her eyes.

Monica fidgeted her fingers then she answered.

"I-I just didn't want my choice to overlap with anyone else."

Casey clapped her hands in admiration at Monica's answer.

"Oh, I see… I didn't realize there was such a possibility. Oh no, I hadn't even thought about what would happen if my choice overlap. You're so smart."

"I-I'm not…"

It was Miss Isabelle who gave her the idea of what to do when her choice was overlapped.

While thanking Miss Isabelle inwardly once again, Monica asked her the thing that had been bothering her.

"Oh, um, I think there's another person in our group…"

"Do you mean Miss Claudia?"

"Y-Yes. Do you know what kind of tea did she prepare?"

She had confirmed Lana's tea in advance. She was also able to confirm what Casey prepared at this moment.

That left only one person remaining. It was the black-haired Miss Claudia.

Since Claudia was in the same class as Casey, Monica asked her in the hope to know what kind of tea Claudia prepared, but… Casey shook her head dejectedly.

"Well, I'm sorry. She never talks at all in class. So I have no idea what's she thinking."

Trailing off there, Casey furrowed her brow and muttered bitterly.

"I mean, there is no one in our class who had ever talked to her before."

"…?"

Unsure of the meaning of Casey's words, Monica looked worried, but Casey smiled encouragingly at her.

"Well, let's do our best today!"

"Y-Yes… p-please take care of me…"

Casey was easy to talk to, a friendly young lady, she might even be a good friend to Lana.

And yet, she felt strangely anxious about the tea party she was about to attend.

What kind of person is Miss Claudia?

D-Don't tell me… S-She's like Miss Isabelle said… a villainous daughter…!?

While wondering what would happen if she gave her a high-pitched laugh when they met.

Anyway, I have to face it with a strong heart… thought Monica while gulped in secret.