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"This way, please."
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A kindly-looking maid of honor in a light blue embroidered dress ushers me in.
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It's quite a gorgeous dress.
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She's probably a very high ranking lady-in-waiting.
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I mean, why am I here?
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I'm in the king's ...... palace.
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Why was I summoned here?
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It's never good to be summoned by His Majesty the King.
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Now he's going to ask me to be his slave.
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...... Let's turn that down.
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His Majesty lives in such a luxurious place.
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The ceilings are too high and the long corridors are filled with luxury items.
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Here it is.
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I was brought to a door three times my size.
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Two guards stand in line in front of the door.
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I want to know why they made this door so big.
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And why are there guards there?
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Is it heavily guarded, and with a door this big, is it like ...... a dragon or something?
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Now, if you'll excuse me."
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With that, the maid of honor bowed neatly and left.
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Oh, how I wish I could leave.
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I know that the king is behind this door, not the dragon.
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The dragon was a hundred times better.
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The guards slowly open the big door.
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It must be a very heavy door. .......
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My spirit is just as heavy.
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I quieted my mind and took a deep breath.
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"Excuse me."
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I bowed lightly and stepped forward.
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What a big room. I could run fifty meters.
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At the far end of a long, meaningless table sits the king.
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And at the head of the five noble families is ...... Liz!
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Why is Liz here?
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And sitting next to Master Duke.
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Normally, he would sit at the end of the hall, right?
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She is a great heroine to sit next to Duke, leaving her brothers, Gail, Curtis, Eric, and Finn behind.
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I guess she is a heroine sitting next to the prince.
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So, what is this meeting about?
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"Alicia, I have one question for you."
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I hate ....... There is absolutely nothing in the air that is good for me.
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It would be reassuring to have Jill next to me. I would have been reassured if Jill had been next to me.
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"Durand country's economy has collapsed."
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The low, commanding voice of the king rang in my ears.
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Economic collapse?
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Oh, my, just as I predicted.
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"How did you know it was going to be an economic disaster?"
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Lady Joan said as she stared at me.
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...... I've never said that I think Durand is going to be an economic disaster.
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I wonder if Joan can read my mind.
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"Alicia wrote that on the blackboard three years ago, didn't she? On the blackboard in the old library of the Magic Academy, it says that we will buy the country of Durand by way of bringing the country of Laval under our control. That's why I thought Ari was predicting an economic collapse."
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Master Curtis said this to me gently.
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So that's what happened.
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At any rate, I am relieved to know that Joanne is not a mind reader.
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Now I can show off my bad girl act in front of these big guys without any worries.
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How did you know that?
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You're always so scary to listen to, Lady Joanne.
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I wonder if she knows I'm a 13-year-old girl.
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I wish you'd have more courage to come here by yourself.
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I took a deep breath and opened my mouth.
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"It's the contradiction between productive power and purchasing power."
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