The Power of the Saint is All Around (LN) - Volume 6 - Chapter SS9

Feelings I Want to Hide

I WAS SEWING beside a window through which warm rays of sunlight streamed. It was yet another Lady’s Day, and I was learning embroidery as part of my education to become a noble lady.

I hadn’t sewn anything since home economics in elementary school, but it was kind of fun to pay careful attention to each stitch. Or maybe it was just the simple joy of making something with your own hands that had me feeling oddly elated.

“I can tell your needlework has improved.” Liz peered over at my work. She was sitting next to me and doing her own sewing.

“Thanks. I know I still have a ways to go, though.”

While I had indeed improved, my work was still no match for what natural-born ladies could accomplish. Liz’s piece was a beautifully stitched, complicated pattern that I couldn’t even begin to dream of working on.

“What kind of design are you stitching today?” she asked me.

“It’s supposed to be globe amaranths.” I looked down at my hands, which were doing their best to stitch circles of subtly different shades of pink. They totally didn’t look like flowers. “Perhaps they’ll look more like they’re supposed to if I add some stems and leaves?”

“I am sure that they will.” Liz nodded with a smile.

Phew. Up until now, I had made everything myself, but I had been thinking of asking someone else to do this one for me.

We were half a month away from Valentine’s Day.

The Kingdom of Salutania didn’t have an event like Valentine’s Day or anything similar. However, ever since my summoning, around this time every year, I had given something to people who regularly helped me.

Last year, I had made brownies, which had been a big hit, so I was planning to bake those again this year. However, I didn’t want to give the same exact thing a second time around, so I was figuring out something else as well.

I had asked a bunch of people, and I’d learned that in terms of personal presents, people often gave out handkerchiefs and the like, ones that they had embroidered themselves. Thus, I was planning to give everyone handkerchiefs that I had personally stitched.

The one I was working on now was for Albert. I had picked globe amaranths because, in the language of flowers, they meant safety and security. I thought that fit him well, given that he was always going out to slay monsters.

However, not many people knew the intricacies of flower language. The more commonly known meaning for globe amaranths was quite different. I was going to be extremely embarrassed if he learned that meaning, so I hoped he didn’t.

The meaning behind globe amaranths aside, I hope he likes this handkerchief, I thought as I continued my stitching.

Half a month later, Valentine’s Day had finally arrived.

After I gave out brownies last year, my colleagues were hoping they’d get some again this year. The men all greeted me with lovely smiles that morning. I let them know that they’d get their brownies during lunch at the dining hall, and they beamed as they thanked me. (It was too difficult to hand them out personally to everyone, after all.)

Johan was the exception, though. He was always taking care of things for me, so I gave him his gifts one-on-one. I also reserved more brownies for him than for anyone else at the institute, and he got a handkerchief too. He had the same kind of grin on his face as he thanked me.

Now all that was left was the quest with the hardest difficulty level.

It wasn’t that my target was too busy so I couldn’t see him or anything like that. It was more of a mental hurdle.

I went to the barracks of the Knights of the Third Order and headed to Albert’s office. There, I knocked on the door and went inside once I heard an answer. Albert greeted me with his usual preternaturally dazzling smile.

“Good morning,” I greeted him.

“Morning. What’s going on today?” Albert gave me an inquisitive look. It was far too early in the day for me to have come to simply deliver a document.

It’s time. Here we go. My heart raced as I timidly held out what I had brought for him.

“What’s this?” he asked with a glint of anticipation in his eye as he took the basket I had packed the brownies and handkerchief into.

“Um… I gave you something last year too, so…” My mouth was dry, and I was having trouble speaking.

Despite that, Albert seemed to understand what I was trying to say. He happily lifted the cloth covering the basket.

“This was an event you participated in back in Japan, yes?” Albert asked as he picked up a brownie.

“That’s right.” I nodded. I-I can go back to the institute now, right? 

I was awfully restless and full of feelings—I wanted to get out of there before Albert noticed the handkerchief.

However, that wish was made in vain. He noticed it right as I had the thought. I had folded it in such a way that the embroidery was immediately visible, and he appeared to notice that as well.

Albert put down the brownie and picked up the handkerchief. He carefully ran his finger over the embroidery, a sparkling smile spreading across his face. It left me defenseless. “Did you…?” he asked.

“Yes. Although, I’m embarrassed because it’s not very good,” I confessed with resignation, but oddly, that only made his smile grow even bigger.

He doesn’t know what it means in the language of flowers, right? I want to believe he doesn’t know!

“Thank you. I’ll think of you whenever I use it.”

I was glad he seemed so happy with his present.

“You’re welcome.” There was a faint glow to his cheeks as I nodded. I couldn’t stop myself from breaking out into a joyful smile as well.