Natalya and Dimitri, who noticed that Asha’s expression became a little serious, also became a little serious.
“If she hasn’t come back after a month, do we have to go get her? Is something serious going on?”
<The brat hasn’t gotten the Prasti out of her yet, it’s been a while since she’s eaten anything you’ve made.>
“Asha?”
“Oh, I’m worried because I haven’t seen Lyuda’s face for a while. I’ll go see her when I can.”
“I want to go, too!”
“Should I take Natasha along as well?”
“Oh dear. How can I just let you go alone? If that’s the case, I’ll have to go this time too.”
“But you were busy studying. Have you finished all that?”
“W-Well, almost.”
As Asha spoke to Natalya and Dimitri, Karnov, who had been quietly sipping tea on the side, spoke up casually.
“After returning, we can all share the duty of having tea with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. It’s reassuring.”
“…This time, I won’t cause any trouble.”
“So you’re aware that you’ve caused trouble before, Prince… Ouch.”
━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━
Asha has had busy days these past few days. Things had been pushed back while in the north. One of them was an interim inspection of the opera in production.
The officials, looking as nervous as possible, showed Asha some completed arias and adapted scripts, and laid out explanations for the costumes and stage equipment.
“It’s encouraging to know that Your Royal Highness cares so much.”
Baroness Saratov said, looking touched by Asha’s enthusiastic applause as she thanked the people repeatedly and walked away. Asha smiled sheepishly, embarrassed.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have bothered. I’m sure they’ll do well on their own…”
“If you’re indifferent, they might think you’re neglecting them and feel hurt. Also, occasionally checking in helps them stay focused. If you leave them completely alone, they might confuse ‘do it on your own’ with ‘do whatever you want.’”
Baroness Saratov spoke in a stern voice. Asha laughed a little when she heard her tone, which showed the hardships of managing people.
Baroness Saratov, who came out of the salon while chatting, glanced at the knights who followed a short distance away from Asha. At first glance, it was difficult to recognize whether it was a knight because he was dressed in neat plain clothes and largely unnoticeable clothes.
“But… your escort has increased a little.”
“Oh, yes. My cousins are a little worried about me.”
“You usually had too few. Actually, if it were up to me, I would have wanted to assign a few more, but doing so would be considered impolite. I even want to thank the crown prince for it.”
“I, Is that so?”
“Of course. Your Highness, you are not just yours alone. The talent in your sparkling fingertips, the discernment in your shining eyes! And even the recipes hidden in your beautiful pink hair! These are treasures of the empire that must be protected.”
“I think Olga is the only one who thinks I’m that good…”
“I’m not just seeing you favorably; I’m stating the truth. It’s only lamentable that I lack literary talent to express it in any other way!”
“No, Olga’s literary talent right now… is incredible.”
At that moment, as Asha was speaking, someone’s presence could be felt peeking from the roadside. At the same time, the escort who had been following from behind quickly positioned themselves in front of Asha and Olga.
“Who is it? Identify yourself!”
Asha realized it must be the man who had been gawking at her face, which resembled the angel on the Phoebe Powder poster, but that didn’t deter the knights. After what had happened in the north, the knights seemed traumatized by their failure to fulfill their duties.
‘Alyosha or Grandfather didn’t scold them secretly, did they?’
Asha wondered inwardly. The people hiding in the alleyway jumped out, startled by the knights’ arrival, and collided with each other with a loud crash.
“Ugh!”
“A, Ahhhh…”
Two gentlemen with graying hair, a lady, and a young man. The three elderly pointed at the young man who had bumped into them.
“What the hell, who are you?”
“How long have you been here, and what do you do?”
Asha peeped her head over the knights’ shoulders and looked ahead, then opened her eyes wide. It was unknown who the elderly were, but the face of the young man who bumped into them and held his forehead was a familiar face.
“Huh? Fedin?”
Asha called out the name, feigning recognition, and the elderly jerked their hands away.
“I, I greet Your Highness.”
“What’s Fedin doing there, and who are you…?”
Asha looked at them questioningly, and the elders hastily straightened the collar of their suits, giving her an earnest look.
“We’re from a company called Pasapo Lefkadiya that brews alcohol. We happened to pass by and saw the princess come out.”
“Wait, wait, wait.”
The lady of the group, possibly the representative, was speaking fluently, but Baroness Saratov came forward and stopped them.
“How dare you tell such an unbelievable lie that you ‘just happened to run into the princess by chance.’”
“Oh my… the young lady is speaking so harshly.”
“You didn’t secretly dig up the schedule of the princess, did you? That could be construed as an attempt on the royal family’s life.”
The lady flinched at the words, but soon raised her chin proudly.
“How dare you? It’s a coincidence. I just saw her coming from that road over there, and I just wanted to have a conversation, Your Highness, we’ve heard that you know some extraordinary brewing techniques…”
The lady attempted to speak directly to Asha, not to Baroness Saratov, but Baroness Saratov again stood covering Asha.
“You lack manners. The princess is engaged with me at the moment, so you should come back another time. If you wish to see her, you should formally request an audience at the palace.”
“Is it because you’re still young, you’re so hot-headed and short-tempered?”
“You keep calling me young lady. How old do you think I am?”
The lady’s face began to turn red. The men next to her cautiously dissuaded her with a worried expression, but the lady shook it off.
“How old you are? How old are you?!”
“And how old are you, then?”
With a completely enraged expression, the lady shouted her age loudly. At the moment everyone on the avenue learned the age of the representative from Pasapo Lefkadiya, Olga scoffed.
“Is she trying to do business with her age?”
The lady nearly toppled over, but Asha, with a face trying to suppress laughter, pulled Baroness Saratov away.
“Olga.”
“I’m… I’m sorry. I lost my temper.”
“Since they’ve come all the way here, let’s hear what they’re talking about. Why is Fedin just standing there?”
While the two were arguing, Fedin, who had been silently observing from the side, suddenly snapped out of it.
“Did Fedin come to see me by chance?”
Fedin nodded, his face turning red.
Baroness Saratov stared at Ksenia Pasapo, the Pasapo representative, but did not interrupt them. The Pasapo Lefkadiya group first apologized eloquently and politely for their lack of presence to Asha, then got down to business.
“Spirit’s… tears?”
“Yes. It’s a legendary drink that is said to let you glimpse heaven with just one drop.”
“Isn’t that usually how they describe poison?”
“No, it’s about a drink.”
“So if you drink a lot, you basically end up in heaven, right?”
“No, even if you drink just one drop…”
Asha smiled and shook her hand.
“I’m kidding. Who says there’s such a thing as a super tasty drink?”
“Yes. It’s said to taste like a sunset in a glass, with all the scents of heavenly fruits and flowers…”
Asha and Baroness Saratov exchanged glances slightly. She seemed to be referring to shasling wine.
“Is that what it’s rumored to be?”
“That sounds like a Pasapo wine advertisement I saw in a magazine. Didn’t they get fined once for false and exaggerated advertising?”
At the words of Baroness Saratov, Ksenia opened her eyes, but she closed them tightly again.
“My staff got a little carried away.”
“Who said I made that drink?”
Ksenia quickly shook her hand at Asha’s question.
“No, no, no, it’s not that, it’s just that we’ve been tracking down the rumors and they all say it was a wonderful gift from the princess, so we were wondering if you knew anything about it…”
“Hmm. I hope you didn’t go undercover just to see if she knew anything.”
At the sound of Baroness Saratov gagging, Ksenia glanced at her, the corners of her mouth quivering, and continued.
“In the meantime, we have received a flurry of inquiries about the ‘spirit’s tears’. Pasapo Lefkadiya is the place that makes the most delicious alcohol in the empire, so everyone thought we were the source of it.”
“Aha.”
Asha nodded. Pasapo Wine is the best winemaking company in the empire, so when word of the mysterious liquor spread, all eyes were on them.
“So, if Your Highness has the brewing method for that liquor, we wanted to discuss purchasing it from you.”
Asha listened for a moment, then nodded once and turned to Fedin.
“I see what you’re saying, but what about Fedin? Are you also looking to buy the brewing method?”
“N, no. I…”
Fedin, who had been standing still like a bundle of straw, was startled when everyone’s attention turned to him and waved his hands in denial.
“It’s, I… I’ve been holding a lecture recently.”
Asha, hearing about Fedin’s recent activities for the first time, nodded with interest.
“Oh, really? Are you giving lectures on making pastries? Congratulations. But what about the store?”
“I’m conducting them at the store. But, um…”
Seeing Fedin hesitate, Asha looked at him with a gentle expression, then something occurred to her and she clapped her hands together.
“Ah! You want me to come and attend the class?”
Fedin’s face turned blue at the words. Fedin quickly shook his hand.
“No! No! That’s not it! Absolutely not! I mean, I was wondering if you could give me a lesson…”
“Me? A lesson?”
Asha’s eyes widened.
