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Chapter 186
Mia, the Good Questioner
“Now, we will hold the first student council meeting.”
Mia smiled as she looked around at the people who had gathered in the student council room……then she looked at the glittering sweets on the desk and smiled even brightly.
“Well, I don’t think I need to introduce ourselves, so let’s go to the cake…”
“President Mia, we should still do it. Even as a formality.” Mia swallowed her words after being cut off by Rafina with a gentle smile.
“Well, that’s right. Then, briefly introduce yourself and what you hope to accomplish in the council…”
And so the meeting began.
Mia, Rafina, Abel and Sion. After the self-introductions of the big names who had become familiar faces, Chloe and Tiona’s slightly hesitant self-introductions followed.
And then, the last one to stand up was Sapphias with a slightly tense face.
“In this way, I am honored to be able to join the last seat of such an honorable council. I will do my best not to betray Her Highness Princess Mia’s trust, even if I am unworthy.”
After giving a more formal greeting than anyone else, Sapphias took a seat. Mia felt a little surprised when she heard him.
Hmm, that was an unexpectedly serious greeting. Well, even a Chaos Serpent wouldn’t openly declare a war.
While Mia was thinking about such things, they were easily blown away by the sweet cakes in front of her.
“Then, let’s stop with the stiff greetings… and immediately…”
“Yes. Let’s enjoy tea and cake… while talking about the budget.”
“…Huh?”
“Each club has sent their requests on this year’s budget allocation. We can discuss this while having tea.”
“Huh? Uhm… Rafina-sama. Shouldn’t we leave that for later?”
“Ufufu, it’s sweet that you want to talk first about difficult numbers. As expected of Mia.”
What Mia meant was leave the budget for later. Rafina just smiled. Mia clenched her fist, all fired up to finish this task and start devouring the cakes.
“Let’s do our best to finish this.”
After hearing Rafina’s declaration, Mia can no longer say anything.
“Well, that’s right, I see… I also thought it would be better to finish the budget as soon as possible. Oh, but let’s do our best.”
Mia let out a sigh while feeling depressed.
And so, the discussion began…but…
Mia was looking at the faces of the members, reading the mood…
“Um, excuse me Rafina-sama, what exactly does this mean?”
Mia was aware of the importance of asking questions. In the previous timeline when she was working with Ludwig to deal with issues of the empire, she had learned the hard way not to let questions stay questions. Allowing conversation to proceed uninterrupted thought things she didn’t understand often resulted in a sever scolding down the line. She was always left sniffling after a frustrated Ludwig scolded her for doing things she didn’t understand.
It was also a problem to ask too basic questions. She had to ask only the questions that needed t be asked, or she risked her credibility before the other party.
For this case, her criteria for determining the necessary questions were the faces of the other members. Not all the members. Sion was useless; Mia was even unsure if his face was capable of expressing incomprehension. Abel, Mia thought, was smart and capable as well. As for Chloe, numbers seemed to be her strong suit. So they were all not helpful
The ones left are Tiona and Sapphias. Whenever they seemed to look as if there’s a part that they don’t understand, Mia would interrupt with a relevant question, then she would write down both the issue and its answer when she can.
…And as it turns out, Mia was actually very good at asking questions.
This was also thanks to the previous timeline. Many times, Ludwig would tell her: “You can ask questions, but please don’t ask anything without thinking about it first.” “You don’t know what you don’t know in the first place. Don’t ask vague questions. Ask specific ones.” Many times she cried because of frustration. The bitter memories of holding back tears while clenching her teeth were revived! Mia, who was blessed with Ludwig’s tutelage, became quite good at asking questions.
Yes, Mia has grown into a person who knows what she doesn’t know! It’s a big growth for Mia!
—
Rafina who noticed Mia …
Mia… you really intend to train Tiona-san and Sapphias-san…
… was deeply moved.
During the discussion, Mia took notes while paying close attention to the two. And when it seemed that there was something that they didn’t understand, Mia would step in and ask and easy-to-understand question.
Rafina was able to understand what she is talking about. However, it is quite difficult for her to explain it to someone in an easy-to-understand manner. Mia, on the other hand, was attempting the far trickier task of asking targeted questions that would prompt Rafina to explain what it was that the others weren’t understanding.
While protecting the pride of the two, she firmly taught them knowledge… What a masterful stroke, Mia.
In Rafina’s eye, Mia’s evaluation continued to swell up. One can only hope that one day, it won’t burst and crash.
—
Sometime after the first student council meeting, Anne and Lynsha were busy coordinating the handover of their job responsibilities. This left Mia alone with Bel. Mia figured it was the perfect time to talk with Bel about the future again. Bel told her…
“Ah, maybe you should read ‘The Chronicles of Princess Mia’.”
“Why does that book sound familiar?”
Certainly, it was the book that appeared in a paragraph of some history book she found in the library.
“…Chronicles of Princess Mia”
“Yes, this was the record of Grandmother Mia written by Mother Elise.”
According to Bel, when she woke up in the library, she hid it in a bookshelf to keep it from being burned.
“I see, so if you’re going to hide a book, hide it in a library…”
Following Bel, Mia visited the library.
“This way. Onee-sama.”
Bel goes straight to the back of the library. Eventually she stopped in front of a bookshelf. It was the bookshelf where Mia found the history book. After Bel took out several thick books, a ragged book came out from the back.
“This one, Mia-neesama.”
The book that Bel took out was all worn out. But on its cover, the title can clearly be seen: “The Chronicles of Princess Mia.” When Mia picked up the book, she had a bad feeling. A chill ran down my spine, as if an incomprehensible miasma was wafting from the entire book.
I hate it, I don’t want to read it, but I can’t help but read it. Mia took the plunge and opened the book! She almost fainted on the spot.
“Hey, this is…”
It was full of beautiful phrases that praised her. Just reading it gave her goosebumps. Every time she turned a page, her face heats up and her body naturally began to squirm. It was a little scary.
To calm herself down, Mia exhaled heavily.
“Heh, heh, this Mia is amazing, isn’t she? Somehow, she’s like a character in a story.”
Somehow, that’s all Mia can mutter.
“Ahaha, you’re so funny Mia-neesama. Of course, she is not just some character. She is standing right here.” Bel regarded Mia with the look of someone who cannot differentiate fiction from reality.
What in the world is going to make her think that this kind of person actually exists!?
According to The Chronicles of Princess Mia, a person named Mia Luna Tearmoon has read more than ten books every day since she was a child, and her wisdom allows her to see 100 or 1000 years into the future. Even more than that, she rebuilt the failing finances of the empire. She was unconcerned with material wealthy but always considerate to the poor. She even rode a legendary horse. She rode it on the air while twirling and dancing as beautiful as the moon goddess herself.
Wait, this is all a big lie except for my appearance!
Mia was astonished and let out a sigh while failing to correct her own evaluation of her beauty.
And what is this about me about to drown when we were attacked by a Megalodon. And that I knocked it down with a single punch to its nose!?
In the first place, it has nothing to do with wisdom. It’s about physical strength. Well, since there are sensory organs on the tip of a shark’s nose, it might be part of my knowledge that I can repel them by punching them. Still, it was obviously fiction. It was a packed episode. Mia can’t swim in the first place.
If Bel thought that I was such a superhuman, it would be a big problem…
While thinking so, Mia picked up the book.
“For the time being, we can’t have such a dangerous book just lying around.”
It would be a problem if someone carelessly picked up something like this.
The humiliation would kill me.
Mia hurriedly leaves the library with the book in her chest because she didn’t want to die from embarrassment. On the way out, she was stopped by the librarian, but got through by explaining that it was her book that she forgot earlier. After comparing it with the records and wasn’t able to find the title, the librarian believed her. Mia’s heart did almost stop when the librarian checked the title.
“I swear, there’s something about a book having my name in its title. It just feels wrong. I need to have a word with Elise next time we meet.”
While muttering such things, Mia returned to her room. But….
“Oh?”
A girl was standing in front of her door.
“Ah, Princess Mia, how are you?”
The girl who was waiting for Mia slightly lifted the hem of her skirt. Her healthy tan skin and jet-black hair that looks like it’s melted into the night sky are proof that she lives in a country to the south of the Tearmoon Empire. Mia was familiar with the deep green eyes and the cute smile on her face.
“Well, Rania-san. Nice to meet you.”
It was Rania Tafrif Perujin. Mia returned a friendly smile to the third princess of Perujin Agricultural Country.
—
Well, it’s already gotten pretty sloppy, but… Mia had two rules for living in St. Noel. The first is to stay away from people who lead her to the guillotine. The other is to build connections with useful people in order to avoid the guillotine.
The first one is already half-destroyed, but the second one is something she is working hard on.
And the person in front of her, Rania, was one of the few successful examples of making connections for Mia.
“For the time being, please come in.”
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