45 — Chapter 45

Prince Keith, full of enthusiasm, headed toward the Riding Club. He likely thinks this is going to be an easy task. I certainly hope so.

“Those aren’t our club’s horses. I believe I already told Captain Geoffrey that. There is no way the Riding Club would just let horses loose.”

“Then where did the horses in the Second Grounds come from?”

The Riding Club members brushed Prince Keith off with a snort. Ralph and Hugo remained silent behind the Prince.

“How should we know? We have many visitors today; perhaps they belong to them?”

But that seemed strange. The massive Captain Geoffrey isn’t a meathead. He must have had a reason for insisting they were Riding Club horses.

“Then, for the sake of caution, please just confirm that they aren’t your horses. If you do, we won’t trouble you any further.”

While grumbling that they weren’t his horses, the member was fed up with the prospect of Captain Geoffrey storming in to yell at them, so he agreed to come to the Second Grounds.

“Good grief! This horse is ours. How did this happen?!”

He panicked and started chasing the horse. Horses are animals that run when chased. Usually, he’s probably skilled at handling them, but right now, he had no chance of catching it. With Prince Keith, Ralph, and Hugo joining the chase, the horse began to run wild.

“Calm down!”

I tried chanting a Household Magic spell. Since horses are a necessity of life in this other world, it actually worked.

“Don’t let it get away!”

“Obviously!”

The horse came to a halt obediently in front of me. It was huge, and I was wondering what to do with it when the Riding Club member—true to his club—hopped onto its back with a light leap, despite it having no saddle.

“This one is a reserve horse not scheduled for the match. If one got out, it’s likely not the only one. we have to split up and look!”

The Riding Club member rode off, shouting that they had to find the others.

“See? They were the Riding Club’s horses,” Captain Geoffrey noted with a satisfied nod. “Now, let the matches begin!” he roared. Having a loud natural voice might be good for the grounds, but I certainly wouldn’t want to stand right next to him.

“You, what did you do back there?”

Prince Keith asked me as we walked back to the Student Council office.

“It was just Household Magic.”

Hugo grumbled, “There’s no way that’s all it was.” This boy still has a habit of nitpicking everything.

“Hugo, it’s a breach of etiquette to pry into the secrets of someone else’s magic.”

Thank you, Ralph. It’s true—my Household Magic is a bit… unusual.

“I see. Patience did receive a Certificate of Completion for Magic Practicum, after all.”

Since Prince Keith reached a strange sort of understanding on his own, Hugo fell silent.

“Brother, just as Captain Geoffrey said, they were Riding Club horses. The members took the horse from the Second Grounds, but other reserve horses might have escaped as well.”

At Keith’s report, Prince Richard let out a sigh.

“It seems several reserve horses from the Riding Club have broken loose. We’re receiving complaints from other clubs as well. It was the Riding Club’s mistake for putting reserve horses in the guest stables, but go and help them catch them.”

I spent the afternoon searching for horses, chanting “Calm down!” and having Prince Keith, Ralph, and Hugo catch them. I certainly couldn’t catch a horse without even a bridle myself.

“Thank you. This is the last one. I won’t let such a mistake happen again. I’ll submit a formal apology to the Student Council President later.”

After being thanked by the Riding Club Captain, Daniel, we were finally released from horse-hunting duty.

When we returned to the Student Council office, there were fewer people than before.

“Brother, we’ve caught every escaped horse. Captain Daniel says he will submit a formal apology later.”

Prince Keith actually knows how to report properly, I thought, gaining a little respect for him.

“Keith, Ralph, Hugo, Patience—you all helped tremendously. The Student Council members can handle the rest. There isn’t much time left, but please go and enjoy the Aoba Festival.”

I felt a wave of relief as Prince Richard finally gave us permission to stop helping. Although I’ve been building my strength with things like jump rope, I was exhausted from trying to keep up with the boys.

It’s a shame I missed the play, but it looks like I can still make it to the Alchemy Club’s presentation.