Coloring
Frondier arrived at Zenita's house.
This was his second home visit to Zenita alone.
"I contacted her in advance, so there shouldn't be a problem."
There were many reasons why he came here, but it was also true that he was worried about Zenita.
The way she was lying on her desk during class didn't seem like it was just because of fatigue.
Ding-dong-
Frondier lightly pressed the doorbell and waited.
Soon, footsteps were heard and the door opened.
Creak-
"Come on in."
"....Hello."
It was Zenita's father, Liberto, who greeted Frondier.
Frondier, who naturally thought Zenita would come out, was a little embarrassed.
"I'm sorry. Zenita is not feeling well and is lying down."
"Yes. I heard she wasn't feeling well. That's one of the reasons I'm here."
"I see. Come in."
Frondier followed Liberto's guidance and entered the house.
The mansion was as antique as before. However, a faint smell lingered in Frondier's nose.
'...The smell of medicine. She's taking something quite strong.'
The fact that he could smell the medicine as soon as he entered the house meant that it was a considerable amount.
Frondier's face hardened.
"Miss Zenita, is she very sick? She didn't look that serious at Atlas."
There was no particular problem in the health checkup report either. It just said she was dehydrated and malnourished.
"Zenita? Oh, no. It's not that. Don't worry about it if it's because of the smell of medicine."
Liberto shook his head.
"It's not medicine for Zenita. Zenita is just, well, she overdid it while taking care of her body."
"....I see."
As Frondier expected, Zenita seemed to have overdone her diet.
Then what was this smell of medicine? He was curious, but Frondier decided to keep quiet for now. If he could tell him, Liberto would have told him first. It seemed that Liberto didn't mind telling him.
"Zenita is in this room."
Liberto led Frondier to a slightly secluded room on the second floor of the mansion.
Frondier knocked and said.
Knock, knock.
"Miss Zenita, it's Frondier."
"Te, Teacher?! Just a moment, just a moment!"
The other side of the door became a little noisy. She looked like she was dying in the classroom, but now her voice was quite strong.
After a while, her voice was heard again. Carefully.
"Co, Come in."
Creak-
When Frondier went inside, Zenita was on the bed in comfortable pajamas.
"I came because I was worried about your condition. How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine. I was just a little tired. I'm sorry for worrying you."
Zenita bowed her head with an apologetic look.
Frondier checked Zenita's complexion.
'She definitely seems to have regained her energy compared to when I saw her in the classroom.'
Her condition had improved considerably in a short period of time.
Perhaps instead of being treated, she was feeling better after taking in fluids and nutrients.
"Miss Zenita. Make sure you eat on time. Your health comes first."
"Of, Of course. I'm doing that."
"I won't stop you from dieting, but you should combine it with diet and exercise."
"Di, Diet? What am I doing like that? Hahaha, I'm a wizard, teacher."
Hmm.
It seems she doesn't want to admit that she's on a diet.
After watching Zenita for a while, Frondier said.
"By the way, Miss Zenita."
"Yes?"
"You seem to have lost some weight."
"Re, Really?!"
"...."
"Oh."
Zenita's face turned red.
Frondier said with half-closed eyes.
"There are only two types of people who are happy to hear that they have lost weight. Those who are on a dangerous diet to lose weight all at once and eat later, or those who are just perverts."
"...."
"Are you a pervert, Miss Zenita?"
"No!"
"Then the answer is clear."
Zenita hung her head low.
Frondier tilted his head and asked.
"But why are you trying to lose weight, Miss Zenita? You're slim enough."
"Teacher, everyone says that to women who are on a diet. 'Where do you have any weight to lose?', 'Why are you dieting when you're already skinny?'. They're all trying to make you feel relieved so you'll stop dieting. They're all devils."
...There shouldn't be any devils left in Atlas.
Was this world that full of malice?
"There's fat that only I can see, teacher."
"I understand how you feel, but losing weight that only you can see is ultimately just for your own satisfaction. There's no need to overdo it to the point of ruining your body."
Objectively, Zenita was slim.
Perhaps what she meant by fat that only she could see were the parts hidden by her clothes. The slight amount of flab that most people have.
But that was really fat that only she could see. Losing it wouldn't make a dramatic difference.
There was no need to overdo it, but she was overdoing it.
"...."
Zenita rolled her eyes from side to side, her lips stretching into a horizontal line.
She snuck a glance at him and said,
"Um, teacher. Can I talk to you about something? About love?"
Love consultation?
He had been feeling it while talking about dieting, but as expected, it was that kind of thing.
Frondier, who had a rough idea, nodded.
"Sure."
"You're a wizard, right?"
"....That's, right."
It was completely different, but he couldn't help but say so.
"By any chance, is there any way you can make me look super pretty for just one day? Isn't there a magic spell like that?"
"...."
Frondier thought about it.
He didn't know.
Would Elodie tell him if he asked?
Zenita sighed deeply, looking at Frondier's face.
"As expected, there's no such thing. Don't make that face, teacher. I know what you're going to say."
You know what I'm going to say.
You know things even your teacher doesn't know, what a great student.
"Why do you need such magic?"
"It's obvious, teacher. There's someone I want to look pretty for."
"Who is it?"
"....Do you have to know that?"
"It could be helpful. Especially if it's a student."
"....You won't tell anyone?"
"I'll forget the conversation we had here. I can't tell what I don't know."
Convinced by Frondier's strange persuasiveness, Zenita hesitated for a few times before whispering softly,
"....It's Basileo."
"Oh."
He wasn't surprised at all, but he pretended to be surprised.
He wasn't sure if he did a good job, but Zenita didn't seem to find it strange.
Zenita, her face even redder, said,
"An, Anyway. I need that kind of magic."
"....But after that one day is over, you'll be back to normal."
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