Chương 119: Chapter 111-Chosen Fire Sale

Cookies. Breads. Cupcakes. Cakes. Baked goods. These are the things that bring joy to people. The smell, the taste, the memories. Everything about them is enough to turn any frown upside down. Okay, maybe I'm generalizing, but at least for me it does. Which is why I'm standing here in the Greenhouse with a frilly pink apron and a chef's hat. Helia, on the other hand, is staring at me as she wears overalls and gloves. Her gaze right now is… the type that could send anybody packing.

A nice mix of anger and disappointment. I know some people who made money off that. In fact, one such person cut my hair before I came to the Capital.

"What do you think you're doing?" Helia asks as she crosses her arms.

"[Cooking]," I answer, without a hint of shame in my body.

"You do know- Oh, who am I kidding? I've told you this countless times. Here, put this one. We've got work to do," she says as she throws overalls at me.

"What's happening? Why did you throw this at me?" I ask as I look down at the clothes.

"Remember that field we have in the back? We're responsible for it, remember?" she says with an annoyed tone.

"Oh, yeah. Is it overgrown and-""-in disarray from the winter? Yeah, which is why we're going to go get it ready. Come on, don't dawdle," Helia says as I follow her outside. Looking over the field, or rather just a patch of dirt with rocks and a whole bunch of other things that don't belong in a field. Why is there a random chalkboard? Wait! Now that I'm looking, what's with all the school supplies?

"So, I'm not one to shy away from work, but why is our field filled with random garbage?" I ask as I quickly slip into the overalls.

"Outside of the growing season, the other clubs feel the need to place their spare equipment here. Even though we've told them not to in the past. Annoying, but we'll just have to move the stuff," she says with a deflated sigh.

"Actually, I may have an easier way," I say with a devilish grin.

"Go on."

"Fire sale! Everything must go! Anybody need a chalkboard?! Half price if you take it now!" I yell at the growing crowd of students.

"Uh, is this legal?" Helia whispers as she collects the gold.

"Yes," I [Lie].

"By the love of the Gods! What are you doing!?" a posh-looking Third Year says as he pushes his way through the crowd.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't think I needed to explain. This is a fire sale. Which means you give me money in exchange for the goods on the field behind us. Does that make sense?" I say with a devilish grin.

"No, of course it doesn't! That piano belongs to the Music Club!" he yells with just a hint of anger.

"Oh! I'm sorry. That's my fault for not understanding."

"As long as you understand," he says.

"You want a discount. How's fifty percent off sound?" I ask.

"I don't want a discount. I want our piano not to be sold!" he yells as other club presidents nod along.

"By the Gods! This is your piano?"

"Yes. As the President of the Music club, it belongs to us," the President of the Music club says.

"Wow! Guess I got confused by the fact that it was on Botany club property. Odd how that happened, isn't it?" I say with a knowing look.

"Well… Uh, you see we-""Ah, don't worry about it. It was just a simple misunderstanding, right? It definitely won't happen again, because maybe next time I might mistake it for scrap instead. Helia, what do we do to scrap in our field?" I ask. Helia thinks for a dramatically long time.

"I think we do something like this," she says as she points to the piano. The piano suddenly sinks into the ground, much to the Music club President's dismay. The next second, it appears unharmed and right underneath the stunned President.

"Yes, it was just a misunderstanding. It won't happen again," he says as the rest of the Presidents nod along. Helia gives a frightening smile.

"Well, get to it," she says with a clap. In seconds, the fire sale ends, and the field is cleared of the various clubs' garbage. All that's left is the actual garbage that we have to clear out. Mostly rocks, shrubbery, and other miscellaneous things. With the two of us, we should be able to make quick work of it. Helia cocks her head in confusion.

"Do you see a random statue sitting in the middle of our field?" Also cocking my head, I examine the statue. It's a statue of a woman holding the moon in her hands. The woman's face is smoothed over, but I get this odd sense of calmness from it.

"You thinking it's from the Art club?" I ask as I gently touch the smooth blue stone. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Probably. Although they usually don't leave things in the Botany field. What should we do with it?" she asks as her vines sway in the spring breeze.

"It seems like a pain to move, and I'd rather not piss the Art club off. I'll ask a friend of mine to come pick it up later. Let's just work around it for now," I say as I put my gloves on.

"Sounds good. So, I heard you and Princess Penelope are going to the Spring Ball together," she says as she sinks some of the larger rocks.

"Yup. That's when you and Ruby are planning to tell your father about your situation, right?"

"Not just me and Ruby, but you as well. Remember, you agreed to help us."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember, but don't expect me to actually go up to him. That's up to you. I'm just going to provide tactical support," I joke.

"I understand. Although the thought of a complete stranger going up to my father and explaining why I no longer want to be his heir does bring a smile to my face," she says with a small laugh. Shaking my head, I pull some weeds in the most optimal way possible thanks to [Gardening].

"Have any idea what you're going to say?"

"I was just going to wing it. I'm sure nothing could go wrong," Helia jokes.

"Whatever you think is best. By the way, you usually are more laid back. Any reason why you're so… motivated on getting this field cleared?" I ask, somewhat curious about what would get the laziest person I know to move with this much vigor.

"The University's Spring festival is coming up. Every club has to participate in some meaningful way, or they risk losing their funding. Considering that we only have two members, we really shouldn't give the Student Council any reason to look our way," she says with a hint of annoyance.

"I see. That explains why you're not just lounging around. Well, let's get to it. Where else am I going to be able to [Cook] in peace?" Skill <Gardening> has Leveled Up Knock. Knock. Knock. With a groan, I roll over. Even that small movement sends a jolt of pain through me. Turns out, grueling labor combined with soul damage does not equal a good time. Another knock echoes through the darkness of my room. Based on the empty bed, it seems that Hopper got locked out again.

"Hopper, take the scenic route," I groan in my drowsiness.

"It isn't Hopper, Charlatan," Penelope whispers through the door. I immediately sit up. What's she doing here? Better yet, why is she here at this hour? Better, better yet… just why?! Has she finally come to kill me or- Shaking myself, I quickly [Clean] myself and the room. There we go. Everything is orderly. Wait, it's too orderly. I gently push over one of Hopper's book stacks. Perfect.

"Charlatan, are you going to open the door?" she whispers.

"Yeah, I'm going. Just give me a second." Taking a deep breath, I open the door. Penelope immediately enters without even a 'Can I come in?' or 'How you doing?', rude much. Shrugging, I close the door behind her. Well, this wasn't how I expected my night to turn out.

"How can I help you, Penelope?" I ask as nonchalantly as possible. She looks around the room and gives a dissatisfied sigh.

"Your room isn't big enough."

"Apologies, I'll talk to some contractors. See what I can do," I joke.

"Always have something to say, don't you?" she says with a sweet smile.

"What are you doing here, Penelope?" I ask, this time with a bit more directness. Penelope looks out the window.

"You said you wanted to learn how to dance. I'm here to teach you," she says as the blue moonlight highlights her reddening ears.

"I see… So, the room isn't big enough to dance in?" I ask as I clear my throat.

"Exactly. I would suggest my room, but Alfira may… come to a misunderstanding."

"I could see that. I actually have a place in mind, if you don't mind taking a walk with me," I say as I grab my coat. With a shrug, she follows close behind as we leave the Hall.

"So where exactly are we going?" she asks.

"A familiar place with lots of room," I say as I pull the bushes apart to reveal the hidden Gazebo. Penelope looks around with an approving nod.

"This can work. Now come on," she says as she puts her arms up.

"Okay, just so we're clear. The only type of dancing I know isn't really traditional. A little help would be nice. Like, where do my hands go?" I say with a confused smile.

"Fine. Come here. Your left hand goes in mine, and your right hand goes here," she says as she places my hand on her back.

"Okay, I think I got it," I [Lie] as we end up face to face.

"Good, because that was the easy part. We'll go slow. Step by step. You ready, Charlatan?" she asks, her face a mere breath away.

"Absolutely, how hard could it be?" I say with unfounded confidence. Penelope takes a step back with her right foot.

"This is a simple waltz. Just do the opposite of what I do with my feet," she explains. Taking a step forward with my left foot, she nods. With no words between us, we move into the next step slowly. She steps back and to the right with her left foot. I follow as I step forward and to the right with my other foot. Somewhat clumsily, I bring my left foot to my right as she brings her right to her left.

"This is harder than it looks," I say as I step back with my right.

"Of course. Dancing is a form of art. It takes practice if you want to be good at it," she says as she steps forward with her left.

"Then you must have been hard at work," I say absentmindedly as I step back and to the left with my other foot.

"..." In silence, she follows my foot as she steps forward and to the right with her other foot. Then, in one clumsy motion, I bring my right to my left as she brings her left to her right. Standing there, the blue moonlight beams down on us. My gaze fixed on her.

"So… that's a waltz?" I ask.

"Yes… It consists of six simple steps, but you have to be in tune with your partner's timing if you want to pull it off. Something that we will work on until the Ball officially begins," Penelope says as she suddenly lets go of my hand.

"I don't think our timing is going to be a problem. After all, I'm pretty in tune with you, given all the combat we've seen together," I say as I scratch my horn.

"I think you're right, but a little practice never killed anyone," she says.

"I guess not. So, again?" I say as I put my hand out.

"Again." As we continue to practice, a faint flicker of red trails behind Penelope, but for whatever reason… I'm distracted by something else, or rather… someone else.