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Nicole’s mention of the Castor incident rang some bells in Astrelle’s memory. It had been all over the news at the time, but that was as far as her involvement with the issue extended to. Her eldest brother attended the benefit as the representative of the Lennox clan. Astrelle avoided addressing the incident in her reply, having no attachment to it, and instead found interest in Nicole’s mention of arcades and clubs.

[color=b699ff]“Interesting. We may have crossed paths at one of those venues. I’ve been to several in Valentia before.”[/color] Astrelle often skipped on lessons and responsibilities to explore the metropolis and its many activities. On a few occasions, mostly when Astrelle was younger, she and her friends went to arcades to let out some steam. She fondly recalled the feeling of excitement generated from the flashing lights and signs, and the eccentric sound effects and music that blared from the numerous machines. They were an effective distraction from her daily life, but as she got later in her teens she lost passion for playing games.

Another tremor reverberated through the aircraft, forcefully shaking the table and the articles on top. Astrelle quickly lifted her tea cup and firmly secured the saucer over it, acting as a lid to prevent the contents from spilling. In that moment, Astrelle’s mind circled back to the aforementioned Castor incident, and she felt a cold shiver run down her spine. The unsettling feeling of impending doom was merely momentary, and faded as the aircraft returned to a stable state.

Victoria Glass excused herself from the table, appearing as though something urgent had been communicated to her through the earpiece hidden behind strands of silver hair. Something seemed off, but Astrelle figured that worrying about it would be unproductive.

Now unsupervised, Penny took the chance to address all the girls in the group. Astrelle found the topics and queries she brought up rather boorish—their opinions about being Ars Magi seemed generally naive from Astrelle’s perspective, probably helped by their interest in sugar-coated magical girl television shows. She entertained the idea of sharing her nihilistic viewpoint on it to see how’d they react, but decided against it. It seemed like a good idea to avoid dampening the mood with her pessimism.

[color=b699ff]“As expected, Vanna,”[/color] Astrelle commented, after Vanna’s comprehensive explanation on Ars Magi. Her pedigree and education were undeniable, from her mannerisms to her diction. Astrelle smiled sweetly, [color=b699ff]“Your diligence and readiness for this noble duty are admirable. I’m sure we can all learn a thing or two from you.” [/color]

Meaningless praise. Astrelle was sure Vanna would see through the hollow comment, if she had been similarly overwhelmed with pointless flattery growing up. It seemed like a likely scenario for a Duodecim princess. There was no real intention of Astrelle’s false praise, other than the fact it became second nature to her when interacting with the Venus clan, and by extension, other royalty. She had been taught strictly to pay close attention to her manners and etiquette throughout childhood. It made her feel a bit uneasy, however, when she realized how deep the roots of her parent’s teachings dug into her being.

At that point, Astrelle noticed that her teacup was empty, from taking so many frequent sips while listening to their blabbering. She reached for the teapot and poured herself another serving.