Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/822139844414118669/episodes/822139846545215844
The night two days after the Primordial Labyrinth was cleared.
The academy was filled with a cheerful atmosphere for the first time in a long while.
The labyrinth, its core destroyed, had now settled down.
It was predicted that it would show no significant activity for at least a month.
It would take a considerable amount of time to reconstruct the labyrinth’s internal structure and the monsters’ placements… or so the academy believed—
(Well, in reality, the reason probably isn’t that complicated.)
It was the same in CHOICE//MAZE.
As the subtitle – A Year in the Labyrinth with the Girls – suggests, in the original game, it takes a full year to completely clear the Primordial Labyrinth.
If the labyrinth were structured to constantly bare its fangs at full force, the quest would hit a dead end within a few days, or in the worst-case scenario, it wouldn’t be surprising if the protagonist and heroines were wiped out on the very first day.
There’s a difference between something simply being difficult and something being impossible to clear in the first place.
The latter is just unreasonable, and you can’t call that a game.
That’s why the labyrinth deliberately gives us leeway.
So that we can fight for a whole year, alternating between conquering it and calming it down.
(……In short, it’s probably just for the convenience of the developers.)
Well, whatever the reason, the fact remains that we have a grace period.
So I’ll just gratefully make use of that preparation time.
And the school administration shared that same mindset.
With the dungeon now pacified, it seems the academy has decided to make use of this time as well.
A small banquet was arranged with the aim of consoling the students who survived the conquest of the Primordial Dungeon and restoring their morale.
In fact, this banquet itself was an event already included in the original game.
It was an event where students who had completed the dungeon conquest would gather in one place to enjoy a brief respite. That was the intended purpose—
(In the original game, the atmosphere was far from conducive to holding a banquet…)
Although the expedition itself was a success, it took place immediately after a major conflict in which sixty percent of the students who had entered the Labyrinth lost their lives.
Naturally, the academy was shrouded in a somber atmosphere.
The “reward banquet” was little more than a name; it was a standing reception that felt more like a wake.
Many students had lost friends and comrades, and my impression is that it was a quiet time where everyone, saying little, simply reached for the food.
—Compared to that, the scene unfolding before my eyes now was something entirely different.
“Yum…!”
Just as I thought I heard someone’s overly candid reaction,
“Calm down.”
“I can’t wait! I’ve never eaten food this good before!”
“……I suppose that’s normal.”
“Have you?”
“We’ve had similar dishes at dinner at home.”
“Aristocrats really do have it easy…!”
At another table, a student clutched a plate excitedly, while a pair of female students looked on, seemingly trying to calm her down.
A short distance away, students could be seen slapping each other on the back.
“You’re still alive?!”
“That’s what I should be saying to you!”
“I lost sight of you partway through, so I was sure you were—”
“Don’t say such unlucky things!”
After exchanging glances, the two burst out laughing at the same time.
Such brief exchanges were taking place all over the place.
The school has about 5,000 students.
Although the majority are currently receiving treatment in the infirmary, there is no single facility large enough to accommodate everyone.
As a result, the festivities were spread out across multiple locations throughout the school.
The main cafeteria, auditorium, courtyard, and greenhouse garden—facilities normally used for classes and assemblies—had been transformed into makeshift venues just for this day.
“It’s incredibly lively!”
“It sure is.”
We made our way to the largest venue of them all—the academy’s grand dining hall.
Chandeliers suspended from the high ceiling cast a soft glow, filling the vast space with warm hues. Along the walls, long tables were lined up, their surfaces crammed with an array of dishes.
Fragrantly grilled meat dishes.
Steaming fish dishes.
Colorful vegetable dishes.
And even sweets giving off a sweet aroma.
These were all dishes you’d rarely see in the regular cafeteria.
“…W-wow, this is delicious!”
Ciel, who was eating next to me, said with sparkling eyes.
She had been silently savoring her meal for a while, but she must have noticed my gaze. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she gave a wry smile.
“I-I’m sorry. It’s just… I’ve never really eaten dishes like this before.”
“It’s fine. This feast was prepared just for us, after all.”
Saying only that, I took some of the food arranged on the table, placed it on a plate, and offered it to her.
Small pieces of herb-roasted chicken and a tiny tart with the sweet scent of fruit. I also added a side of colorful marinated vegetables.
“Here, this is delicious too, you know?”
“Huh? Oh, thank you.”
As she took the plate I offered, Ciel looked down at the food, a bit hesitant.
“…Is it okay?”
“There’s more than enough here anyway. No need to be shy.”
“I suppose you’re right…”
She gave a small laugh and used her fork to cut off a bite-sized piece of chicken.
The scent of herbs wafted up, and she brought a piece to her mouth.
Instantly, her expression brightened.
“…This is delicious, too.”
“I told you so.”
“It smells amazing. And the meat is so tender…”
Nodding in admiration, she reached for the tart with her fork.
She cut off a small piece and put it in her mouth, her eyes widening once more.
“……It’s sweet.”
“It’s a fruit tart.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a dessert this sweet before.”
Her voice sounded somewhat surprised.
After staring at the tart for a moment, Ciel murmured softly.
“…I’d love to let my little sister, and Dad and Mom, try this too.”
“So, should I send some over?”
“Huh?”
When I made that suggestion, Ciel stared at me with her sky-blue eyes wide open.
Her expression seemed to say, “Can you really do that?” and I chuckled softly.
“Merchant guilds in the capital handle deliveries to the provinces. If I ask nicely, they’ll make it happen.”
“But… aren’t the fees for that kind of thing really high?”
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Huh?”
“Just ask a guild that does business with the dukes. If you mention the duke’s name, they’ll do it for practically nothing—just the cost of the box.”
If we use a transport crate with preservation magic, we can ship it while maintaining both temperature and freshness.
No matter how remote the destination, it’ll arrive in a state almost indistinguishable from when it was freshly made.
This kind of transport is normally a high-end service for delivering dishes and ingredients to the tables of the nobility—it’s not something commoners can casually use.
But—we’ll ask them by invoking the name of the Duke’s family.
They’ll surely be flexible enough to accommodate us on this point.
At those casual words, Ciel froze completely.
“…Wait a second.”
“Hm?”
“Does that mean you’re going to use the Duke’s name for my sake?”
“…Is there a problem with that?”
“It’s a huge problem!?”
Ciel said, hurriedly lowering her voice.
“I’d feel so bad about that! It’s just delivering food to a commoner’s house—borrowing the power of the Duke’s family for something like that…!?”
“You’re overreacting.”
“I’m not overreacting!”
Ciel furrowed her brows in distress.
Seeing her clutching her head in a fluster, I gave a wry smile.
“It’s just sending over a little food. It’s no big deal.”
“But…”
“Besides,”
I added casually.
“Wanting to feed your family something delicious is only natural, isn’t it?”
At those words, Ciel was momentarily speechless.
“……”
She lowered her gaze slightly.
“……Thank you.”
Ciel murmured this with a small smile.
She was probably picturing her sister and family; her smile was very gentle.
Caring and devoted to her family.
It was a gentle expression that suited her perfectly.
The atmosphere was calm and peaceful.
“…Um, Ciel-san.”
A soft voice came from my side.
When I looked over, there stood Liene.
She was holding a plate with both hands, piled high with a meat dish, bread, and a small portion of vegetables. The portion wasn’t large, but she’d likely chosen it with nutritional balance in mind.
“Liene? What’s wrong?”
With a slightly troubled expression, Liene glanced briefly toward the back of the hall.
“Well… it’s about Yu-san.”
“Yu?”
Ciel tilted her head.
Following her lead, I turned my gaze in that direction too.
A short distance away—near a table by the wall.
There, a familiar red-haired boy stood alone.
Although he was holding a plate, he had barely touched the food. Keeping a slight distance from the bustling crowd, he was quietly observing the scene in the hall.
“I tried talking to him a little while ago…”
Liene continued, looking a bit worried.
“He just said he was fine, but he wouldn’t really talk to me.”
It was true; he seemed slightly out of place amidst the festive atmosphere.
While laughter and chatter filled the air around him, Yu alone stood a step back from the crowd.
He wasn’t injured.
He didn’t seem to be feeling unwell either.
It was just… his face looked like he was deep in thought.
“It’s probably about that girl,”
Ciel said with a wry smile.
“That girl?”
“The white-haired girl we rescued in the labyrinth.”
Upon hearing this, Liene let out a small gasp.
“he’s been like that ever since we left the labyrinth.”
Cutting a small piece of tart, Ciel continued.
“he’s distracted when I talk to him, and he’s wearing his clothes inside out… Just a little while ago, he was pacing back and forth in the same spot about three times, wasn’t he?”
“W-well, that’s quite something…”
“Yeah. And to top it all off, he keeps glancing over toward the infirmary.”
Ciel shrugged in exasperation and took a bite of the tart he’d cut.
(—I see.)
The girl they met at the very depths of the labyrinth.
She collapsed during the battle with the Core and is now being cared for in the infirmary.
Right now, his mind must surely be—completely consumed by that girl.
“…Will he be okay?”
Liene asked anxiously.
“Who knows. But knowing him, he’ll probably be back to his usual self in no time.”
Saying that, I glanced once more at the red-haired boy sitting by the wall.
His unfocused gaze was directed from the hall toward the direction of the infirmary.
(……)
Yu’s story—it really begins to take shape from the moment he meets that white-haired girl.
So it’s no wonder he looks like that right now.
I shrugged slightly and turned my gaze back to the table.
Many of the dishes laid out there were still untouched.
Meat dishes steaming with hot vapor, fish dishes wafting the scent of herbs. There were still plenty of sweet-smelling pastries left as well.
“……It’s a special banquet. You should eat before it gets cold.”
Saying that, I picked up my fork.
“Ah, yes!”
Liene hurriedly adjusted her plate, and Ciel chuckled softly.
“You’re right; it would be a shame to leave the food uneaten.”
Saying that, Ciel began to eat again.
Behind them, the lively voices of the feast continued to echo as before.
Laughter. The clinking of plates. An atmosphere filled with a sense of relief I hadn’t felt in a long time.
(…After all, a happy ending is the best.)
Thinking that, I reached for the food as well.
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