Natsume Sonoko stood outside Kongou-senpai's room in the internal dormitories of School Garden, where Tokiwadai Middle School was located.
After quite the series of hurdles, she had finally managed to get here, just as she'd hoped.
Compared to Kongou-senpai's somewhat unappealing temper, the reputation of the Kongou Aviation heiress was far more widespread and effective.
Though Tokiwadai was filled with young ladies from good families and heiresses were a dime a dozen, Kongou Aviation's fame was truly in a league of its own—a renowned name in the aviation industry, without a doubt.
Although Natsume Sonoko didn't have much concept of what Kongou Aviation entailed, her impression was that it was a company capable of building something like a Gundam, with formidable technological prowess.
'I'm so late.' Sonoko pulled out her phone to check the time, her face betraying her unease.
She was already late. Maybe she shouldn't go in.
The tea party had surely started by now, and Kongou-senpai had said it was fine if she couldn't make it.
'No, no. Even if I'm late, I have to apologize to Kongou-senpai in person. I can't just pretend I didn't notice the invitation after receiving it.'
With that thought, Sonoko straightened her appearance, adjusted the bun on her head, let out a long breath, and prepared to ring the doorbell.
The doorbell was connected to a small intercom system inside the room.
Pressing it would allow her to speak with whoever was inside, the volume adjusting automatically to a comfortable level for both parties.
Sonoko had the same device in her own room, though her dorm's main door had broken down recently, and the wiring hadn't been reconnected yet.
Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.
Sonoko pressed the bell.
She rang it three times in quick succession, and soon heard a series of frantic sounds from within—a regular racket of commotion.
"Kongou-senpai, it's Natsume Sonoko. I was invited," Sonoko announced to the door, her voice carried inside by the intercom. She could hear the sounds from within quite clearly as well.
Kongou-senpai seemed to be in a great rush. A chaotic clamor erupted from the room instantly, mixed with what sounded like furniture toppling over.
After waiting at the door for half a minute, the door before Sonoko finally swung open.
"Kongou-senpai, I ran into a bit of trouble on the way. I'm very sorry I'm late," Sonoko said with a slight bow as the door gradually opened.
"Ohohoho~! Since you've apologized so sincerely, I shall reluctantly forgive you. You certainly took your time today. My tea party waits for no one, you know."
The laughter reached Sonoko's ears before she even saw the person—Kongou-senpai's signature haughty laugh, dripping with an arrogant young lady's tone and a touch of unmistakable delight.
All of Sonoko's earlier anxiety vanished in an instant, replaced by a strong sense of amazement. 'That's Kongou-senpai's style, alright.'
But the moment Sonoko looked up and made eye contact with Kongou-senpai, she couldn't help but step back, a panicked expression flashing across her face.
"A snake! A huge snake!" Sonoko's arm trembled slightly as she raised a hand to point at the enormous serpent coiled around Kongou-senpai's body. 'Huh? Is that a bow on its head?'
It wasn't that she was terribly afraid—she'd seen plenty of Beauty and the Beast-type movies, and people who kept strange pets weren't exactly rare.
But anyone would be startled to open a door and find a large snake draped over someone.
"Little Ekaterina is a lady. It's very rude to stare at a lady like that," Kongou-senpai said disapprovingly, snapping her folding fan shut.
"...My apologies," Sonoko said after a moment's daze. 'So the snake really is Kongou-senpai's pet.'
Somewhat startled, Sonoko quickly composed herself and cautiously followed Kongou-senpai into her dorm room.
Stepping inside, Sonoko was met with an air of luxury. Two shelves were filled with various Western-style dolls, most of them crafted in the image of lavishly dressed young ladies.
These doll young ladies wore diverse outfits, had exquisitely styled hair, and carried themselves with graceful poise.
Even their poses seemed carefully considered, as if they possessed more ladylike demeanor than real people.
Sonoko studied the dolls with curiosity. Even to an amateur like her, they felt vividly lifelike, noble, and elegant.
'Seems like a lot of people have collecting obsessions,' she mused.
Misaka-senpai was crazily fond of Gekota. Shirai-san seemed to have a special passion for collecting anything related to Misaka-senpai, including, but not limited to, covertly taken photos.
Sonoko always felt Shirai-san might use her teleportation ability to do something outrageous.
As for Kongou-senpai's habit of collecting Western dolls, it seemed like a perfectly normal hobby to Sonoko.
Even Sonoko herself occasionally bought piles of things she ended up never using, eventually stuffing them under her bed with no idea what they might be good for.
"Please, have a seat, Natsume-san. I've prepared some tea and snacks. The pastries were specially made by a chef who worked through the night, and the fruit was picked just this morning. Please, don't stand on ceremony with me, Kongou Mitsuko."
Kongou-senpai sat primly at the round table, her folding fan still in hand, now opened to conceal the expectant look on her face.
"This is my first time being invited to a tea party. If I do anything improper, please forgive me," Sonoko said honestly, her eyes involuntarily darting towards the python slithering around the room.
The python, playing nearby, seemed to notice Sonoko's gaze and turned its head, tongue flickering, to look at her.
Sonoko hurriedly averted her eyes and sat up straight opposite Kongou-senpai.
Besides that, Sonoko also glanced around suspiciously but didn't see any other students who had come for the tea party.
'Had the tea party ended? Or was she the only one who had come?'
"Please, have some tea." Kongou-senpai set her fan aside, her haughty demeanor seeming to soften a bit as she picked up the teapot and poured a cup for Sonoko.
"Is this black tea?" Sonoko asked curiously, looking at the liquid in the cup. This was probably her first time drinking black tea.
The tea in the cup was bright, clear, and free of impurities, with only a captivating aroma wafting up.
She took a small sip. A refreshing, fragrant warmth flowed from between her teeth down into her chest—rich, mellow, clean, and sweet, without being cloying in the slightest. Instead, it left a faint sweetness on the palate.
"It's really good," Sonoko said, her plain-spoken nature coming through again. No amount of adjectives could beat a simple 'it's good.'
A faint flush of excitement clearly appeared on Kongou-senpai's face, as if she felt her tea ceremony skills had been validated.
"Ohohoho! Now you see that my tea ceremony skills are first-class, don't you? Very few people get to drink black tea brewed by my own hands, Kongou Mitsuko."
A look of pride spread across Kongou Mitsuko's face, her gaze repeatedly drifting towards Sonoko as she drank.
Sonoko felt a little awkward, but under Kongou-senpai's watchful eye, she dutifully finished the tea in her cup.
Naturally, besides drinking tea, the point of a tea party was chatting.
Just as Sonoko was about to start some small talk with Kongou-senpai, the senior's large teapot appeared before her eyes once more.
"It seems you can appreciate my tea ceremony. Please, don't be shy. I have plenty more black tea," Kongou-senpai declared decisively, her ornate fan spreading open before her face, revealing a pair of sparkling eyes.
The teacup was filled to the brim with rich black tea again. Under Kongou-senpai's intense gaze, Sonoko was starting to feel the pressure.
As she was drinking her tea, Sonoko suddenly felt a heavy weight on her back, as if something substantial had climbed onto her.
"Natsume-san, Little Ekaterina seems to like you quite a lot," Kongou-senpai said, her mouth agape in apparent surprise that Ekaterina, who usually only warmed up to her, was acting out of character today.
Kongou-senpai's words sent Sonoko's heart into a nervous flutter.
Sonoko felt a slippery, slithering sensation as Little Ekaterina climbed up onto her neck and settled there, not moving.
'Is Little Ekaterina sleeping?'
After about two minutes, having mustered her courage, Sonoko poked Little Ekaterina's head with her finger.
Seeing no reaction, she grew bolder, her hand unconsciously beginning to stroke the snake's body, much like one would pet a cat or a dog.
'Huh? It's unexpectedly pleasant.' And it didn't bite.
Smooth and tender, it was like touching a blob of jelly, the texture extremely comfortable.
Little Ekaterina seemed to enjoy Sonoko's stroking, growing even more languid. The snake's head, adorned with a bow, rested on top of Sonoko's head and fell asleep.
From a distance, it looked as if Sonoko was wearing a large red bow hat.
Though she wasn't sure if their tea and chat really counted as a tea party, Sonoko felt she was starting to enjoy this kind of activity—drinking tea and eating snacks with nothing else to do.
Little Ekaterina eventually slid down from Sonoko's body and began its post-nap wander around the room, while Kongou-senpai busied herself introducing Sonoko to the Western dolls in her collection.
Sonoko found these lifelike dolls quite interesting.
Her only regret was that they didn't have any circuits or programs installed; they couldn't perform fun actions like video game robots, nor could they sing or dance.
Kongou-senpai's tea party started with black tea and ended with the dolls, with Little Ekaterina occasionally causing some mischief in between.
At the very least, Natsume Sonoko's first tea party wasn't boring.
Although Kongou-senpai seemed somewhat arrogant on the surface, she put her heart and soul into the tea party, and Sonoko could feel her sincerity and regard.
By the time Sonoko left Kongou-senpai's room, it was almost afternoon.
Even though she had missed lunch, Sonoko's stomach didn't feel the least bit hungry. The flavors of the pastries and the black tea still lingered delightfully in her mouth.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.