It was Praday and Mother decided to take me out to have a picnic today with Mary and Katsuki attending us within the grounds of our estate.

Odeta could not join us unfortunately, as she had to go back to the dorms again. I did promise her that I'll have one separately with her in the future though.

For today, it would just be the four of us at least.

"Ufufufu~ Does my little one remember that we used to go out together with just the two of us?" Mother asked while holding my hand.

"U… Unnn… I remember, Mommy…."

I feel a little embarrassed that Mother was still holding my hand when I'm no longer a kid but it was hard to reject Mother.

Mother then turned to Mary, "It's such a shame you weren't with us back then~ My little one was just so cute and precious!"

Mary simply bowed her head with a smile, "I have no doubt about that, Madam."

Katsuki remained silent but I've been with her long enough to know that she was curious about what I looked like when I was younger too.

"Ah, here we are~ What does my dearest one think of this spot?" Mother asked, stopping beside a pond that had a relatively large tree growing beside it for shade.

It was as perfect a place for a picnic as any.

"It's nice," I admitted even as Mary and Katsuki started to set up the place for our picnic.

They brought out a mat and laid it in the shade of the tree before Katsuki took out plates and cutleries from the basket she had brought along.

Mother sat down with her back leaning against the tree and patted her lap with a smile, signifying that I should sit there.

I only hesitated for a moment before I did just that.

Mother immediately wrapped her arms around my waist and hugged me close to her, leaning her chin on the top of my head affectionately.

"Ufufufu~ My little one really is too cute~" Mother giggled.

After Katsuki finished bringing out the cutleries, Mary used her Astromancy to open a portal that connected to the mansion's kitchen, allowing her to take out the food that was already prepared and left there.

There was even a tea tower that had mini sandwiches and other snacks stacked on the plates of the tower. I know she also prepared a dessert tower too but it seems like Mary will only take that out later on since everyone is aware that I would most likely lose myself in the dessert if that was brought out first.

The two maids then busied themselves with preparing tea for us while Mother picked up one of the mini sandwiches just so that she could tear off a piece of it to feed it to me.

Since all of these were made by Mary, it goes without saying that it tasted delicious beyond compare.

"Ufufufu~ It's nice, isn't it, my little one~" Mother asked, presenting me with another piece that I happily ate as well.

I made some noise of agreement while Mother hugged me closer to her bosom.

"Mistress, your tea."

I looked up to see Katsuki presenting a piping hot cup of tea for me and I accepted it gratefully, taking a sip from it and smiling when I tasted the sweetness filling up my mouth.

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Yep, it was perfect~ Katsuki definitely perfected the method of brewing the tea just the way I like it. I'm sure once we start travelling around the World, I can still look forward to her tea brewing while on the road~

As though reading my thoughts, Katsuki bowed her head, "Thank you for the praise, Mistress."

So cute~ I wanna pat her~

Right as I was putting down the cup of tea to do just that though, Mother suddenly asked, "Where does my little one wish to go first on your journey?"

I paused.

Even though I kept saying that I wished to go and explore the World, I never actually thought about where I would go or which place I would start first.

Hey, there's still several more years before that happens ok? So you can't blame me for not preparing that far ahead yet.

I turned back to look at Mother, "I don't know, Mommy… Does Mommy know where I should start?"

"Ara, ara? My little one is free to go wherever you wish but Mama can offer a few suggestions if you want?"

I nodded my head quickly.

"Ufufufu~ In that case, my little one has a choice on whether you wish to attend the main Aerialla Academy right after you graduate?"

"Umm… Does Mommy mean I don't have to? Don't I lose my spot there if I choose not to go right after graduating from the branch school?"

"Ara, ara? Not at all my little one~ If you graduate from the branch schools and the main Academy also accepted you, you can choose to attend it anytime you want, even if it's another decade after that. Although the real reason why they allow that is because some students might need more time to afford the school fees~"

And here I thought they were being nice…

"Besides~" Mother continued with a smirk on her face. "The journey to reach the main Academy itself might take several years for some anyway~"

I nibbled on the sandwich in my hand, "Can't I just fly there, Mommy?"

"Ufufufu~ Of course you can~ Though I don't think your future companions would be able to fly with you on their own."

Ah, that's right… I forgot about that.

"In that case, how do we get there? If I remember correctly, the Academy is built on top of some floating islands right?"

Mother nodded, "There are flying transports in Anam City and Dunsang Trade Port that can bring people up to the Academy~ So my little one can actually plan your journey towards one of those places~"

If I remember correctly, Anam City was located in the Arwan Territory while Dunsang Trade Port belongs to the Shendhala Oligarchy, both of them reachable by both ship and land from here.

I don't really fancy staying on board a ship for several months so I guess that means I'll be travelling on foot.

And although Dunsang Trade Port would be closer to my current location, we would need to go through a large stretch of desert to reach it and that doesn't sound nice to me.

On the other hand, if I were to proceed on foot towards Anam city, that would take me through the Nekinumi Kingdom, the Elhiria Republic and through the Wrunch and Amrap villages before finally reaching the Arwan Territory.

I think that route might be the most interesting considering we'll be passing through Katsuki's home, Odeta's home and then Lisa's home as well should all three of them decide to accompany me.

And if I change my mind about attending the Academy halfway through, I could always just head north towards Frostiminir Kingdom where the Rejmar lives.

Yep, this sounds like a plan.

"Ara, ara? It seems like my little one already has an idea on where you want to go~" Mother giggled while patting my head.

I nodded enthusiastically and explained to her my idea. I did notice Katsuki's ears perk up when I mentioned her home kingdom but she did not show any other reaction aside from that. Looks like she's also anticipating for me to bring her there as well.

Just look at how her tail is wagging behind her, so cute~

"Ufufufu~ That does sound like it would be an adventure worthy of you, my little one~ Ah, but Mama is a little sad to know that my dearest child will be flying away from the nest soon."

I suppose that was something inevitable, I never intended to stay here in the first place anyway and Mother already knows that.

She hugged me closer to her chest, "Oh my little one is growing up so fast~ But remember that you will always have a home here, my dearest child~ Should you wish to settle down or simply rest your wings, you need only come back to Mama ok? Mama will always keep the nest ready for you~"

Honestly that's way more than what I could ask for already.

Although that brings up another question…

"What if I choose to settle down elsewhere, Mommy?"

"Ara, ara? Then let Mama know and Mama will bring housewarming gifts~ Mama will be sure to bring lots of sweets for you~"

Yayyyy~ I love you Mommy! You're the best!

Oh well, those are all thoughts for the future anyway, we don't even know if my plan would still hold up in the next few years either. Who knows, maybe the World might change to the point where I have to make changes to my plan too?

Maybe the floating islands start drifting towards here or something you never know.

The most important thing right now is…

"Mistress, Madam, the dessert is prepared," Mary announced.

Cakes and pastries!! Ahhhh!! They're here!! Gimme gimme gimme!