The Wings of Dreams

now, you’re really annoying.”
    “Oh?”
    “It’s written all over your face. You don’t want to upset the weepy little girl.”
    “Well, the truth’s the truth.”
    “Hmph,” Shushou pouted, averting her gaze.
    Behind her Shinkun gently asked, “If you were empress, what would you do?”
    Shushou glanced up at the wizard. “That’s a bridge I’ll cross when I come to it. But if I did become empress, that would mean there’s nobody better suited for the job in the kingdom than me. What else could I do but resolve myself to take on the task?”
    “Naturally,” he said, a smile in his voice. “And you’d be able to indulge in every possible luxury, with an army of servants kneeling at your feet and tending to your every whim.”
    “Don’t spout nonsense. I’m the cute and clever daughter of a wealthy family. I’ve lived a life of luxury up till now, treated every step along the way with kid gloves.”
    “And yet you cannot tolerate the ruin around you. Why is that?”
    She couldn’t hide the surprise on her face. “Simply because I do not suffer does not mean I should sleep well.”
    “No?”
    “When the whole kingdom is safe and prosperous, when every subject wears silk and fills their stomachs with good food every night, that is when I will return to the lap of luxury, dress however I wish and eat whatever I want without a guilty thought crossing my mind.”
    “I see,” he said with a smile. “But we should get food in your stomachs right now.”

Chapter 42
    [6-4]  S hushou put down the bowl with a satisfied smile. “You know, that was the first real meal I’ve eaten in a long time.”
    Gankyuu couldn’t help grinning at her reaction. The koushu called the main meal of the day hyakka, a mixture of edible grains roasted and finely ground. It didn’t take up much space and provided enough sustenance to live on alone. So it’d become the staple of the koushu diet. To call it bland was an understatement. Though now that he thought about it, that was the one thing Shushou had never objected to.
    “You may be the only person who’s never complained about the food.”
    “Really? Well, I wouldn’t exactly call it delicious. ”
    “Surely you’ve eaten much better at home.”
    “I suppose,” Shushou said with a shrug. “Every meal was a banquet, the table piled high with dishes. But after hearing stories at school about students going for days without a real meal, it was hard to appreciate the flavor.”
    She sighed.
    “Even so, what I didn’t eat would just end up pig fodder, and it wasn’t like I could hand out the leftovers on the street. And if I said I didn’t have the appetite for it, that’s just me being a prima donna. There wasn’t anything else, so I ate what was put in front of me. But I really didn’t care for it. Not the flavor or the cooking. The heart and the soul.”
    “I guess that’s what good food always comes down to in the end.”
    “Yeah, it does. Unless you’ve experienced it yourself, you can’t imagine what it’s like knowing that there are starving people in the world while a feast is laid out before you every day, like it or not. Your stomach empty and all those delectables right in front of your eyes. You can’t swallow. It sticks in your throat. Have you ever been in that kind of situation?”
    Gankyuu said with a thin smile, “Can’t say I ever have.”
    “While going hungry is certainly a terrible thing, having food and not being able to eat it isn’t all that different. I’m not saying it’s anything like starving to death, but I’ve often thought that actually starving would be preferable.”
    Gankyuu opened his mouth to respond. Shushou scowled. “I know what you’re going to say, so don’t. I’m liable to loose my temper. I’m a pampered princess who’s doesn’t really know what it’s like to go without. Right?”
    Shushou turned her head away. “Thinking you want to empathize with those who can’t put food on their table is nothing but charity. A child of privilege who’s never suffered in her life shouldn’t presume to go around helping people. Feel sorry for someone and trying to do something about it is simply inflating your own ego and showing off your wealth. Admit that you come from money and always went to bed with a full belly and they’ll only laugh at you. You don’t qualify if you do.”
    “Hmm,” said Gankyuu.
    “Now and then, I’ve wanted to pare down the menu a bit, except it wouldn’t