Meg and Seron Vol 1 Chapter 1

“It ended yesterday, yeah. We just have to go get our homework and our grades from the teacher.”

“Not yet. I don’t think Megmica has many female friends. I asked around quietly, but…”

“No. And the girl I asked asked me to go out with her, so I turned her down.”

<…i expected="" nothing="" less="" from="" you,="" seron="" maxwell.="" i="" almost="" want="" a="" cut="" of="" your="" popularity.="">

“Larry.”

“You can have it all. Just help me.”

<…i’d love="" to="" help,="" but…="" hmm…="" if="" you="" could="" at="" least="" meet="" megmica="" while="" i’m="" around…="" if="" i="" at="" least="" knew="" her="" face…="" it’s="" not="" like="" we="" can="" take="" photos="" of="" her="" in="" secret.="">

“Then we just have to rely on luck… Or is it hopeless after all? Do I give in?”

“Thanks, Larry. I wonder when my life will start looking up.”

<…look. our="" military="" sciences="" training="" camp="" is="" gonna="" end="" soon="" and="" i’ll="" be="" back="" for="" the="" end-of-cla.s.ses="" ceremony.="" let’s="" meet="" up="" at="" the="" school="" gates="" that="" morning.="" after="" the="" ceremony,="" we’ll="" find="" megmica="" and="" you’ll="" ask="" her="" out!="" got="" it?="" don’t="" forget—on="" the="" last="" day="" of="" cla.s.ses,="" you="" and="" her="" will="" walk="" out="" the="" gates="" together!="">

The 4th day of the seventh month.

Seron Maxwell walked out the gates alone.

At his feet was a large leather suitcase.

He was not wearing his uniform, but brown pants with suspenders and a white s.h.i.+rt, along with a light black jacket. Though neither his clothes nor his luggage made a big impression, people of certain backgrounds might recognize how expensive they were.

The weather was lovely. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and Roxche’s characteristic seasonal winds swept cool, dry air into the city.

It was just between afternoon and evening.

The end-of-cla.s.ses ceremony had finished in the morning. The students were quick to rush outside to finally enjoy their summer break. But eventually the intersection in front of the gates, packed with cars there to pick them up, had gone quiet.

The other dormitory students had also grabbed their things as soon as they returned to their rooms, and immediately rushed off on school-hired buses or taxis to train stations.

Only Seron, who was scheduled to take a night train, remained at the dormitories. It was practically tradition at this point, one he had observed at the beginning of every long school break. Some of the dormitory students even joked that the term did not officially end until Seron departed.

All alone, silent, Seron dragged his suitcase out the gates.

He pa.s.sed the security office and crossed the empty parking lot—created for parents dropping off and picking up the students—and went out to the street.

Seron flagged down a black taxi.

“Capital West Station.” He said tersely and quietly, and took the back seat.

The driver stowed Seron’s suitcase in the trunk and returned to his seat, then started the car.

Seron’s grey eyes reflected the deserted school.

“…”

The image disappeared into the distance.

Traffic was not particularly remarkable. Seron arrived at Capital West Station without incident.

He paid and tipped the driver, then called a station porter. When the porter saw the generous tip Seron handed him, he bowed and led Seron into the crowded station.

Capital West Station was the biggest train station in the Capital District. There were over ten platforms lined side-by-side under its gla.s.s dome.

First, Seron went to the station shop and picked up a box of crisps that were only sold in the Capital District. He put the box in his suitcase, then boarded the long-distance sleeper train that was pulled by a steam locomotive.

Seron was in a sleeper cabin in first cla.s.s—and was using a two-pa.s.senger cabin alone to boot, having paid double the fare. The sky was still bright when the train slowly departed the capital.

Watching the world pa.s.s by outside the window,

“I’m hopeless…”

Seron mumbled blankly.

Night soon came. The s.h.i.+ning half-moon tinted the world a faint blue.

Without even having dinner, Seron lay down in his empty cabin.

Though he was on a bed, he lay awake—on and on.

The next day. The 5th.

Under the blinding sunlight, Seron disembarked at Weld, his hometown.

Getting in the car that had been waiting for him in front of the station, Seron arrived home before it was time for breakfast.

In the suburb of the rapidly-developing countryside city of Weld was a luxury residential district located on a plateau that overlooked the station and the old city center. The Maxwell family’s mansion was situated on the highest and most magnificent part of that suburb.

The extravagant three-story mansion was made of white marble, and stood head and shoulders above the other homes in the area. The car pa.s.sed through the gates, which were opened by a guard, and traveled up the main slope before quietly coming to a stop at the front door.

“Welcome home, Young Master.”

The butler and the maids greeted him, and Seron greeted them back. And he stepped in through the imposing doors.

“Where’s my souvenir? Welcome back, Seron.”

When he entered the mansion, a skinny 12-year-old girl held out her hand.

She had slightly curly hair that went down to her back, and had large grey eyes just like Seron. She was wearing a light yellow dress.

“It’s in the suitcase. Isn’t it supposed to be the other way around? I’m back, Leena. Where’s Mother?”

“She says she’ll be back in the afternoon. She missed you a lot. I’m taking my souvenir, okay?”

Leaving his sister to rummage through his suitcase at the door, Seron headed for his own room at the end of the third-floor hallway.

The room was large, but only furnished with bare essentials like a bed and a dresser. It was a little lonely.

Still dressed in the same clothes, Seron collapsed onto his neatly-made bed. And he fell asleep.

The Maxwell family was rich.

There were only three people in the family. Seron, his younger sister Leena, and their mother Karen.

Karen Maxwell was born and raised in Weld, but she lost her parents as a teenager and had to drop out of school.

She headed to the Capital District afterwards and began to work as a waitress at a large restaurant.

The man who fell in love with her at first sight and married her—Seron and Leena’s father—was from a very rich family.

For a time, Karen was the star of a Cinderella story. But that happiness did not last long. Just after Leena was born, Karen’s husband began having an affair with a woman from another rich family, which ended in their elopement.

Though the two rich families were outraged, they panicked and feared for their reputations. Disgusted, Karen took her two children and boldly filed for divorce. She switched back to her maiden name of Maxwell and returned to Weld.

And she began a business in her hometown with the ma.s.sive alimony she had mercilessly squeezed out of the divorce.

She took note of how, at the restaurant she had waitressed at, they had stored ingredients and foodstuffs in a freezer. With that idea, she began to manufacture and distribute meal-sized packages of frozen food for domestic consumption.

That happened to be around the time when refrigerators and freezers became popularized. Frozen food exploded in popularity as well, advertised as the food of the future. The frozen food business was a ma.s.sive success—as were the restaurant and fast food businesses built upon it.

And so, in the span of several years Karen ama.s.sed an astounding fortune. ‘Maxwell Frozen Foods’ was a household name in Roxche now.

Karen was 40 years old this year.

She was a gorgeous woman with long, curly black hair and sharp features. Always in her bright red suit, she confidently issued orders to her subordinates—the very image of a competent female president. But—

“Seron! Welcome home, sweetie-pie! Look who’s still as handsome as ever. You’re nothing like your father at all! I love you so much, baby. Are you doing all right? How was school?”

As soon as she came home (slightly late), she hugged her son from behind mid-meal. For the moment, she was just another doting mother.

“I’m home, Mother.”

“Welcome back. Welcome back, sweetheart! Give your mother a welcome-home kiss?” She cooed, sticking her face at her son. Seron gave her a light kiss on the cheek.

Karen finally disentangled herself from Seron and went over to kiss Leena on the other side of the table. Then she took her seat at the head of the table.

The family chatted as they ate the meals cooked by a chef and served by maids. It was not often that the three of them had the chance to eat together.

Seron handed his report card to Karen. He had top marks in almost every subject. Karen beamed, the report card shaking in her hands.

“That’s my boy! You’re incredible, honey. Nothing like your father at all—”

Stopping his mother there, Seron got out of his chair and quietly bowed his head.

“Mother. Thanks to your support, I made it through the spring term of my third year of secondary school. I will do my best to achieve good grades in the fall term as well. Thank you.”

“Oh, sweetie! I told you, you don’t have to say this stuff every time you come back! It’s all right if your marks drop a little, as long as you can make it to university. You have to enjoy your youth! I’ll make the money, so spend it on things you like!”

Leena watched as Seron stood with his head bowed and Karen looked at him tearfully.

“You’re so diligent, Seron.” She said, continuing her meal.

Their first family conversation in months continued into topics like school, grades, friends, and the state of the Capital District.

After the meal, they moved on to tea. As Seron answered his family’s questions, Leena suddenly spoke up.

“Come to think of it… don’t you have a girlfriend yet, Seron? I thought you’d be really popular.”

At that point,

“Huh? Er… well…”

Seron hesitated. Leena continued, oblivious to her brother’s plight.

“Lots of my friends think you’re really cool, too.”

“…”

She stared into her dumbstruck brother’s face and grinned.

“You don’t like anyone right now, right?”

“No, no, Leena! That’s not it. Seron’s just the type to love only the one person he falls for. He would never go out with anyone unless he was serious about her.”

“Huh. You know what I think, Seron? You’re not really the dependable type, so you’ll be better off with an older girl. Do you want me to find someone pretty to introduce to you?”

“Let’s calm down and be patient, Leena. I’m sure your brother will bring home a wonderful girl one of these days! There’s just no one in Roxche who catches his eye yet.” Karen said.

Seron fell into complete silence.

Soon, Karen left to return to work and Leena left in a car with a bodyguard to play with her friends from primary school.

Seron spent time alone in the central gardens, where summer flowers were in spectacular bloom.

Sitting in a white wooden chair under a lacy parasol, he enjoyed the summer breeze and read.

Of the students at the 4th Capital Secondary School, Seron lived the farthest from campus.

His mother had suggested that he attend school in the Capital District, where there were more children like Seron—children of rich and famous people—and Seron had agreed. That left him with a total of zero friends to meet over the breaks.

His friends from primary school either did not have the grades to continue studying, or had gone to four-year vocational schools for financial reasons. Summer break had not yet started at vocational schools, as they had shorter breaks to help students learn and find work as soon as possible.

For the past two years, summer break had bored Seron.

All he could do was read or study. And as a result, he was able to maintain good grades throughout his secondary school career.

Quietly, Seron read.

The books on the table were—

‘Murders on the Luxury Transcontinental Express’

‘The Story of the Roxchean Navy: Tracing the History of the Ca.n.a.l’

‘Crossing the Desert -34 Days in h.e.l.l-’

He was so engrossed in his books that, each time the maid came to refill his tea, she found the cup still full.

Eventually, the sun sank so low that the parasol could no longer s.h.i.+eld him.

“Young Master. You have a phone call from your school friend, Mr. Larry Hepburn. Will you take the call?” One of the maids said, instead of bringing more tea.

“From Larry? I’ll take it.”

Seron put a bookmark on his page, put the book on the table, and hurried to the telephone in the mansion’s living room.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Larry.” Seron said as he took the receiver from another maid.

Larry apologized three times in a row.