Yuela Vlinder.

Tall as a blooming irylia. Refined as a classical painting. A girl whose own introduction served as her trump card. Just who was she? A noble girl, that much was obvious. But which one?

Mireille had never paid attention to these things. For the longest time, anyone outside her home district was practically a stranger from a distant land to her. Anyone outside her home district who also happened to have lots of status, power and influence was a creature from another world entirely.

Mireille suddenly became acutely aware of the fact she'd decked this particular creature in the face first thing this morning.

“We will take the west trail,” said Yuela, eyeing the nearest mountain from the pebbles at its feet. “The Alexandrite Knights have the east path. We can meet them as they widen their hunt. You should be aware, however, that the west trail is neither routinely used nor maintained. Do not underestimate the climb simply because the mountain is well charted.”

Nobody said anything. Mireille dearly wished to, but someone else had suffered for that first strike.

Tabitha Holtsen, still recoiling from the mental onslaught she'd forcibly suffered, smiled a great, big, murderous smirk. Casually circling in front of Yuela, she leaned in so close to her that Yuela was forced to lean back in response.

Tabitha wasn't going to let her get away with that show.

“Soooooooooo . . . your papa faaamoous . . . ?”

“. . . Be sure to carry water provisions,” murmured Yuela off to the side. “A public fountain is nearby. There should be disposable flasks we can use.”

“Yuuueeelaaaa . . . is your papa faaaamoous . . . ?”

Yuela rolled her eyes and nudged Tabitha away.

“He is not famous,” she said, clearly accepting that this conversation had to be dealt with. “He is merely a public figure.”

“That's like saying you're not rich. You just own a castle.”

Tabitha clapped her hands together and swooned. Supposedly.

“Uwah, I knew you were in the big league, but when someone asks for proof of something super important and you wave your name around instead, that's not being in the big league, that's managing it.”

“I did not . . . ugh, I was not waving my name around.”

“Ah, that's right! It has a proper term, doesn't it? Coco, help me. What was she doing?”

Coco blinked up at Yuela. Her apathetic expression told no lie.

“Social duress,” she said, calmly and clearly, so that all the world could hear. “Intimidation. Coercion. Extortion. Bullying the weak.”

Each utterance made Yuela seem like she was being pierced by an arrow through her soul.

“I am fulfilling Principal Priscelia's request,” she said, clutching where her heart was. “I will not walk back in disgrace. This is the first task we were given, and by the Head of the academy no less. Not to mention, my financial status is being greatly exaggerated. You know nothing about my family's level of income.”

“Is it enough for you to have cash to burn?” asked Tabitha enthusiastically.

“I do not have cash to burn.”

“. . . Spent it all on rich girls' panties?”

“What is your obsession with the female undergarment?!”

Off to the side, Mirielle hummed to herself. She was considering Yuela's elegant, sharp features, and trying to picture if she'd seen her anywhere before.

After a moment, she joined Tabitha by sliding up next to her.

“Yuela, do you own a castle?” she asked, forcing Yuela to lean back even more.

“W-What?”

“You know, a castle. Made of stone. With a tower. And a flag. That sort of castle.”

Yuela's eyes conspicuously darted to the pebbles.

“It does not have a—”

“Coco!” said Tabitha. “She owns a castle!”

Coco immediately appeared beside them. For some reason, her aura of innocence and general harmlessness seemed to have greatly amplified.

“Understood. Coco wishes to retract her recent comments depicting Princess Yuela in a negative light. Coco will profess apology with a dip of her head.”

“H-Hey, Coco! That's too much, really! And I'm not a princess, either . . .”

“Coco believes in standing on ceremony. Castles belong to princesses. Princess Yuela is in possession of a castle. The title will be observed.”

Yuela shook her head while flicking her wrist. She looked like she was shooing away a waiter.

“W-Wait, really, don't call me a princess. You can't do that.”

“Coco apologies for the error. Berylcross is a constitutional monarchy with a Grand Duchess as head of state. Coco will henceforth refer to Duchess Yuela as Duchess Yuela.”

“No, no! You can't do that! You definitely can't do that!”

“Coco apologies for the inappropriate use of short form. Henceforth Coco will refer to Your Royal Highness, Duchess Sovereign Yuela of the Grand Dukedom of Berylcross, as Your Royal Highness, Duchess Sovereign Yuela of the Grand Dukedom of Berylcross.”

“No, no, no! No! No, no! You can't do that! I'm serious! I'll be in big trouble if people hear that! Really big trouble!”

“Coco questions the dissatisfaction Your Royal Highness, Duchess Sovereign Yuela of the Grand Dukedom of Berylcross, Lady Regnant Minor of the Realm, Lady Regnant Minor of the Venerated Order of Chapters, Matron Hereditarium of the Great Chamber of St. Tiriele, Royal Potentate to Aventon and Caeway, is displaying.”

“Why are you adding more titles?! Aventon and Caeway?! Wait, are those places? I don't even know where they are!”

Yuela looked around, even more flustered than when Tabitha had questioned her state of dress in the train carriage.

“Okay, listen to me, Coco,” she said, her voice much more hushed than was necessary. “I'll let you see my residence sometime, okay? So you can see it's not a castle. It's really terribly boring and quite featureless. Only never call me a princess or a duchess, okay?”

“. . . . . .”

“Okay?”

Coco stared blankly up at the ever so slightly sweating Yuela.

“Coco wonders if the residence incorporates a fireplace.”

“Huh? Well . . . yes, it does?”

“Understood. Coco accepts your terms and conditions.”

And so, Coco had managed to invite herself into a nondescript castle somewhere in the world.

Unfortunately for Yuela, that was only one person appeased.

“Hey, hey, who are you to try and steal Coco's heart away from me?” said Tabitha. “You still haven't told us how famous your papa is, you know?”

“I said he is a public figure,” replied Yuela, whose willingness to negotiate for Tabitha's satisfaction was several leagues behind Coco's. “If you wish to know more about him, you are free to find that out yourself. There is nothing more that needs to be said from me about this.”

Kicking up the dusty earth with her heels, Yuela scooted past the thin line of inquisitive classmates and made a beeline straight for the hiking challenge which awaited them.

“That's enough about me, my pa—father, or anything not relevant to the task at hand. Our access to the mountains has been secured. We now navigate the west trail. All that's left to discuss is our forte.”

Tabitha made a glum face as her fun balloon was abruptly popped by Yuela's on-off sense of leadership. Still, she didn't let it linger any longer than needed.

“Our forte?” she said, dipping her staff slightly. “So, you wanna know how we fight?”

“How we approach battle.” Yuela nodded to the path in front of her. “The situation has changed. If we're to conduct combat, even as a possibility, we must first brief each other on our battle techniques and establish a modicum of teamwork.”

“Naaaah.”

“Excuse me?!”

Twisting around after all of a handful of steps, Yuela faced Tabitha with a new type of exasperation altogether.

“Dawn was a few hours ago,” said Tabitha, radiating confidence. “There are thousands of people a stone's throw away. And the lady said phantasm sightings are rare here. It'll just be small fry and stragglers crept out of some hole. Coco and I dealt with bigger outside the city walls everyday.”

“Unacceptable. What you accomplished outside the city has no bearing on today. On this minute. We must be aware of each other's combat abilities. Any error in judgement arising from the sheer guesswork that would result otherwise could be disastrous. I must know what you are capable of.”

“Hahah, don't worry, don't worry. You'll know once I show you.”

It was clear as day that Yuela had more than a few choice comments to make regarding such asininity, but it was not her responsibility to force an unruly classmate to oblige by anything as petty as common sense and good preparation.

“Haaaaaaaaaah . . .”

Therefore, with another elongated sigh, part plea and part complaint to the heavens, Yuela swished around and marched in a straight line. It looked like whether anyone hopped after her was inconsequential to her.

“Do as you wish,” she told the air. “I have such great, great expectations.”

“Mm! That's what I wanted to hear!”

Yuela couldn't see the wonderful, maddening smile that was suddenly being thrown at the back of her head. If she had, perhaps she would've been more concerned with her allies than any amount of foes waiting across the horizon. The scarlet jewel atop Tabitha's staff danced and winked.

Mirielle skipped ahead to discuss her battle techniques.