Side Story ~ 16
Paul led Lexion and Seriniel to a table by the shop window, a place where they had often spent time together over tea. Once the couple was seated, Paul promptly closed the shop door and brought out some tea.
“…….”
Lexion, who had to force his large frame into the small chair, quietly surveyed the modest shop. Paul looked at Lexion with an amused expression.
In fact, even before Lexion became the head of the family, the Rosenvester family had supported many shops over the generations. Paul was one of the merchants who had established a close relationship with the family. This meant that Paul knew Lexion’s father before Lexion himself.
However, Lexion’s father had not been a favorable noble to the merchants. He used them but never considered them equals. When the Former Duke died and Lexion became the duke, opinions among the merchants were divided.
Some believed that they should not bow to a bastard who was not a full noble, while others thought they had no choice.
[In the end, all nobles are the same. Whether they are legitimate or not, they’ll exploit us just the same.]
Paul was closer to the latter group. He had no particular interest or emotion toward Lexion until he saw Lexion help a street child who was being badly beaten by an ill-tempered noble.
Since then, Paul had vaguely sensed that Lexion was different from the nobles he had known. However, since this happened after Lexion became the head of the family, it was natural that Lexion, who had returned alone to the past, did not recognize Paul.
“How’s the tea? Do you like it?” Paul asked.
Lexion, with a blank expression, replied, “I don’t usually enjoy tea, so I can’t say.”
“…….”
“But I can tell it’s made from good leaves.”
Paul suddenly smiled and then abruptly changed his expression.
“Actually, I don’t know much about tea either. What would a commoner merchant like me know?”
He sighed deeply and began to speak.
“These are not items I would normally have, but a certain noble gave them to me as gifts.”
“I see.”
“He gave me many gifts, rare tea leaves, unusual clothes that a commoner like me would never wear.”
“And?”
“The problem is, he makes excessive demands while giving such gifts.”
In fact, the person who gave the rare tea leaves, the clothes, and made excessive demands was the same person. Seriniel chuckled.
“He assigns me impossible tasks, like delivering furniture that takes at least a month to make in just two weeks, or asking for children’s toys or luxury watches that I don’t even deal with. Then he spreads the word that he received the items quickly and that the toys turned out well.”
“…….”
“So when I try to tell him that it’s really not possible, he somehow sends me gifts just like that. As if he had anticipated my thoughts. Isn’t that too much?”
“Well…”
Lexion seemed lost in thought for a moment. Paul and Seriniel, both curious about what he would say, perked up their ears and stared at him.
“What kind of products do you mainly deal with?” Lexion asked unexpectedly.
“Oh, I sell high-end goods used by noble families but the range isn’t very wide. The most famous are tableware. I also deal with furniture, but there are fewer items.”
“Hmm. I’m not sure why that demanding noble does all that…”
“You’re not sure?”
“But it seems like he values you.”
“…What?”
Paul looked puzzled.
“High-end goods used by noble families don’t circulate as quickly as you might think. Once sold, they bring in a significant amount of money, but there’s a long gap until the next purchase. The same goes for tableware.”
“That’s… true.”
“But children’s toys or watches are different. There are always demands for toys since children of different ages need different things, so you can sell them continuously.”
Come to think of it…
After receiving a request for toys for Elsie, who was then an infant, the demographic of customers visiting Paul’s shop changed slightly, along with the products they sought, just as Lexion mentioned.
“Watches might not circulate as quickly as toys, but they’re very expensive, right? Since your shop originally dealt with high-end goods, there would be people willing to pay whatever price you set.”
“…….”
“The rare tea leaves given to you can also be seen in the same light. People like you and I might not know much about tea, but the customers who visit your shop are different. They’d recognize the value of such rare tea leaves and consequently trust the high-end goods you sell.”
“Then… the unusual clothes I would never wear…”
“Those serve a similar purpose. Foolish nobles often judge people by their appearance. Those clothes were likely given to help you not feel inferior or be looked down upon. The noble spreading the word is the same. Since he is a noble, when he talks about receiving items quickly or the quality of the items being good, it enhances your shop’s reputation.”
“…….”
“Has he never explicitly said that he cares a lot about you?”
“…No, I’ve never heard that.”
“Hmm…”
“But I just heard it now.”
Although Lexion looked puzzled by what that meant, Paul’s eyes were slightly redder than before.
“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to handle the Duke in my lifetime, my lady,” Paul murmured with a bittersweet expression, and Seriniel smiled gently.
“If you really dislike it, why not talk to that noble honestly? Tell him that certain things are inconvenient and ask him to understand.”
“…….”
“Seeing how much he cares for you, it shouldn’t be difficult to have that conversation.”
“No, no.”
Paul shook his head.
“Thank you, Duke.”
“Now that I think about it, I too like that noble quite a lot… No, very much. So, I don’t feel uncomfortable anymore.”
“You change your emotions quickly. You were just complaining.”
At Lexion’s indifferent response, Paul burst into laughter again.
***
By the time they left Paul’s shop, the sun had completely set.
“The coachman is waiting just ahead. Shall we walk a bit?” Seriniel suggested.
Lexion nodded in agreement. He was a bit concerned about Seriniel, who was physically weak, but if it came down to it, he could carry her.
As he was about to take a step, a small white hand carefully slipped through his thick arm.
“…….”
Startled by Seriniel suddenly linking arms with him, Lexion instinctively blushed.
“Should I not link arms?”
“……No.”
Although he was clearly surprised and flustered, he seemed to enjoy it. Seriniel found Lexion’s bashful and evasive reaction both lovely and endearing, making her suppress a smile.
“Kina and Vain will be waiting eagerly. You saw earlier how worried they were about you, didn’t you?”
Ah, those… the endlessly chatty maid and the butler who kept trying to strike up a conversation while maintaining his composure.
“Yes, I suppose so,” Lexion muttered softly.
“Going back and having dinner together… might not be so bad.”
It was an astonishing thing. The dreadful Rosenvester Duchy now felt so comfortable.
Surprised by his own feelings, Lexion felt a bit awkward about himself.
“We’ll walk slowly, so let me know if you get tired.”
“What?”
“Because you’re not in good health.”
She had been weak in the past, but now she was quite healthy. She had even given birth to a child.
But she couldn’t say that outright, so Seriniel just smiled brightly and snuggled closer to Lexion.
It was at that very moment.
“Duchess!”
At the voice calling from behind, Lexion and Seriniel instinctively turned around.
“…….”
Recognizing who had called out to Seriniel, Lexion’s expression turned slightly complicated, and he furrowed his eyebrows a bit.
