CH 132

I don’t know why Mikoto is angry, but if I resist, she’ll get even scarier, so I’ll shut up and wait for Mikoto’s words. I wonder what she’s going to say…?

“The four stayed with you last night, right? Why am I the only one left out?!” Mikoto yelled. “It’s not fair!”

“Ahh……” I said.

I feel like an idiot for my heart pounding just because I was wondering what in the hell she was going to say. Because Mikoto was angry about this, she looked adorable and I couldn’t help but smile.

“Hey! What are you smiling about?! I’m really angry, you know!” Mikoto yelled.

“I’m sorry… I didn’t expect Claudia and Louisa to stay the night…” I said.

This is true. Mikoto knew that Alexandra was staying at my house. And it must have been expected that those two would come over last night to hear the results of the rescue operation. But I didn’t expect the two of them to stay the night. It’s the same with me and Mikoto.

“Well, I suppose it’s fine because it’s over,” Mikoto said. “But I’m going to stay at your house today, Flora! Then we’re good!”

“Okay……” I said.

It doesn’t matter. The family servants would be in trouble if we suddenly had guests overnight, but unlike last night, if I tell Katharina at noon today, she should be able to prepare. Besides, with these 5 guests, it wouldn’t be too much of a burden, as there would be no need for a full-fledged reception like that of normal high-ranking aristocrats. Mikoto should be of a higher rank than me as royalty, but we don’t treat her like that.

But… huh? How does Mikoto know this? Claudia and Louisa said they would go straight to work or back home at once, but I don’t think they met Mikoto between dawn and this time. Alexandra is in Class 3, but Mikoto didn’t seem to stop by Class 3, either. So how does Mikoto know what happened last night?

“Mikoto? How do you know that Claudia and Louisa stayed the night?” I asked.

I decided to ask straight away. It shouldn’t be something that can’t be said or hidden. Or did she hide in my house?

“Because Katharina told me,” Mikoto said. “That was our secret agreement.”

“Huh?” I asked.

Katharina? What are you doing? Why did you go out of your way to tell Mikoto when you knew it would turn out like this? And what is that agreement? What kind of secret?

“What is that secret agreement?”

“I told you earlier that it was cheating that Katharina was the only one living with you, right?” Mikoto asked. “But, it’s impossible for Katharina to stop living with you as well, isn’t it? Hence, we agreed that if anything happens, we’ll keep each other informed.”

Is that so…….? But I don’t think you’d say it’s a secret agreement if you declare it so openly. Mikoto, you just want to use the term “secret agreement”, but you’re not using it exactly as it’s meant to be used, right? Well, it doesn’t matter. In short, Katharina went out of her way to tell Mikoto about what happened last night for that secret agreement

“That’s why I’m going to stay at your place tonight, okay?” Mikoto asked.

“Understood…” I said.

Even if I don’t press it, I won’t forget it, and I won’t deceive her, either… it’s not like there’s anything special about coming to stay over. It’s just that we can eat together and talk until a little later than usual. We don’t sleep in the same room and there is no night crawling.

Anyway, Mikoto is coming to stay, so let’s tell Katharina about it when I pick up my boxed lunch later. Katharina is probably expecting that, so it goes without saying she’s ready for Mikoto to stay over. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have to say it, so I’ll tell her properly.

I attended classes properly today as well, as well, while trying not to forget that.

After school ended, Mikoto was supposed to go home to her residence and get ready before coming over to mine, so Alexandra and I went home together to the Carruthers Residence. Well, Katharina is also in the carriage, so we didn’t come back alone together, but…

I told Katharina that Mikoto was coming today, and I also talked to Alexandra in the carriage. Even though I talked to Mikoto at the evening party, I couldn’t have a suspicious conversation because there were various eyes and ears at that place. Today was the first time I was able to talk in detail without hesitation because it was just a casual conversation.

“Claudia and Louisa are coming today as well,” Katharina said. “They said they won’t be staying overnight and will be going home tonight, but we will have dinner together.”

“Huh? Is that so?” I asked.

“Yes,” Katharina said. “Today is the chance for the 5 of us to finally get together, so they said they’d show up.”

I see……. come to think of it, today is the first time the 5 of them are together. In that case, it would be better if we all got together at once… huh? I don’t know for sure, but if everyone thinks so, then so be it. There’s no reason to refuse, so just leave it to everyone to do what they want. More than that, if two more people come over, the preparation for dinner will increase a little.

“Is that so…? Well, there’s not much difference between making 5 or 10 of them, so it’s fine…” I muttered.

“Are you going to make something for us, Miss Flora?” Katharina said, listening attentively.

It’s not a big deal, so there’s no need to hide it.

“Yeah, well…” I started, “Mikoto wants to eat pudding again, so I thought I’d serve pudding after dinner, but… anyway, let’s make crepes as a snack in addition to pudding as dessert.”

The pudding will take some time to cool. It would be nice to serve pudding for dessert after dinner and make crepes together for an afternoon snack after returning home. Crepes are not very suitable for making in advance because over time, the cream will start to come apart as the emulsion weakens. Prepare the pudding, then make the crepes and eat those right away.

“Pu-Pudding, you say?!” Katharina cried. “We can eat pudding, I see!”

Isn’t Katharina eating too much? Did she like the pudding that much? I feel like it’s not good enough because it doesn’t have enough vanilla or vanilla flavor… well, it’s fine if they like it, but is that all there is to it? I don’t feel it’s enough.

“I don’t know what ‘pudding’ is, but I’ve heard of something called a ‘crepe’,” Alexandra said. “It’s a hot topic at school. How do you know how to make these ‘crepes’, Flora?”

Ah… I haven’t been able to contact Alexandra much since we parted ways, so she doesn’t know. After that, I didn’t say much about that because I didn’t bother to teach her anything.

“Since Caanza sells crepes and I founded Caanza…” I said.

“Huh…?!” Alexandra cried. “You were Caanza’s owner, Flora!? So that’s why there was soap in the bath!?”

I managed to soothe Alexandra who was pressing me with all her might. I was surprised. Is it such a hot topic?

“Well… I’m the owner of Caanza Trading Firm…” I said. “Is it really that surprising?”

“Of course, it is!” Alexandra said. “Nowadays, Caanza’s products are the talk of the school! In particular, the members-only products are hard to come by, even for the greatest nobles, so just having any one of them will command respect from all!”

Oh, really……. is it that far? We don’t have a separate quantity limit, and we don’t limit memberships. We sell as soon as they are produced, so the supply may not be keeping up with the demand, but it shouldn’t be that difficult to obtain them…

“And then there’s the ‘crepes’!” Alexandra said. “They sell all their varieties at a price that even commoners can buy, and it seems that there are many students from school who secretly go there in disguise! I hear many of my cronies even go there, too!”

Cronies, she calls them… as a noble, Alexandra would probably be more correct, but to someone like me who has the sensibility of a modern Japanese person, it sounds like a ridiculous thing to call them… I’m the weird one here, but I can’t help but think so.

“Actually, I was also interested in those ‘crepes’…” Alexandra said. “But I gave up on them because of my situation… I can’t believe I can eat them! If you thought of it, Flora, then the ones at the Carruthers Residence must be the most authentic version of them, aren’t they?!”

“Well, that’s right… I’ll do my best to make them…” I said.

It was all I could say because I was overwhelmed by Alexandra’s momentum. There are restrictions on the prices and availability of ingredients that are sold at stores, so the menu is also mediocre. Compared to that, if you only make a small amount at home, you don’t have to worry about the price and types of ingredients to put in. If they are looking forward to it so much, it would be nice to try making various things.

While thinking about that, I left Alexandra and the others and headed to the kitchen to prepare desserts and snacks before everyone else arrived.

When did they hear this news from? It’s afternoon tea time, snack time, and so many people are gathered around the table, stuffing their cheeks with crepes.

It’s fine that Alexandra and Katharina know. We live in the same house and came home together. Rather, it would be natural for them to be here.

Mikoto came over quickly as if she knew I was preparing a snack. Normally, the daughter of a high-ranking aristocrat, let alone Mikoto, the Princess of the Demon Country, should take more time to prepare before visiting my house. Despite that, Mikoto came over immediately and stuffed her cheeks with snacks.

Louisa was already here, too. She wasn’t t there before I entered the kitchen, but she was at the table when I came back out. Basically, most of the farm work is done in the morning. From the afternoon, there will be only people on standby for emergencies and the supervisors. But is it okay for Louisa, one of the said supervisors, to be back at this hour?

Furthermore, for some reason, Claudia is also here. The duties of the Royal Guard Division should not be over yet. Honestly, she should be in afternoon training or the patrol rotation, but for some reason, she’s here.

Let’s just say it’s so far, so good. The three said they were coming over to play at my house. It came earlier than I thought, but they were expected scheduled to come today, so that’s good. The other members at the table are the problem.

Father and Mother are also stuffing their surprised faces with crepes. Aside from Mother, isn’t it time for Father to still be at work? Why is he here? Besides, Gabriella is also eating crepes together with us. I’m not saying that you can’t eat crepes because you’re an adult, but… even though I’m not thinking of excluding them when everyone is already eating them, I didn’t even call them, but isn’t it really surprising they were here without invitation?

And for some reason, Wilhelm and Dietrich are also at the table where the adults sit. Today they’re not wearing a disguise like before, but they’re dressed like the King and Prime Minister they are, so I guess it’s official business. Claudia came along with these two. It must be that they assigned Claudia as their escort.

Moreover, these two guys were dressed for official business, so I thought they were talking about last night’s evening party, or about Queen Amelie and the Nassam Duchy, but there was nothing like that at all. I don’t know where they got the information from, but they seemed to hear about pudding and just came to eat it. Is this country really so uneventful that the King and the Prime Minister would go out of their way to visit for such a small reason?

Furthermore, even Christa was sitting at the table where we kids sat. She hadn’t promised she’d come today, did she? So why is she here? I’m not saying she shouldn’t come, though.

However, in this world, high-ranking aristocrats don’t just casually visit others’ homes just because they’re friends, you need an appointment. Normally, you would notify them in advance and make a promise to visit after a certain day and time. It’s not normal for them to come out of the blue. This is not normal. I should be surprised by all this.

“Christa, was there an emergency?” I asked.

So let’s ask, just in case. I thought something happened, but Christa looked at me apologetically.

“I’m sorry for coming here so suddenly… but for some reason, I felt like I had to come here today…” Christa said. “And I’m glad I did. You’re so terrible though, Floto. You promised me you’d invite me over to taste the new sweets, didn’t you?”

Ah~… it seems that she came here with superhuman intuition about sweetness. Hats off to Christa’s nose for sweets. But wait a moment. This is not something to put out in the store, but to eat by ourselves, ignoring the cost and securing of ingredients. It’s not a new product at all.

“This is for personal consumption at home, so it’s not like it’s a new product to put out in the store…” I said.

“Yes! That’s just it,” Christa said. “How do you know how to make crepes, Floto?”

Come to think of it, I didn’t tell Christa that Caanza was my company… I’ve controlled myself around Alexandra and kept carelessly saying that it’s my company here and there, so Alexandra wouldn’t let it slip.

Even so, Christa was quiet at first with the King and Prime Minister nearby, but when she sat down at this table and started eating crepes, she suddenly became energetic. What did she hear…?

“Everyone,” Katharina said, “if I may get your attention? How many puddings would you like to take home?

Nice, Katharina! She sensed that I was at a loss for an answer and diverted the topic. Everyone answers Katharina’s call about many they want, so I put them together. Well, only Wilhelm, Dietrich, and Christa bring back puddings as a souvenir. Other members will eat it as dessert after dinner, so they don’t take it home.

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Christa was also desperate when it came to pudding, and immediately became absorbed in the conversation with Katharina. Katharina might just be buying time, but I was able to get away with it. While thinking about how to deflect Christa, I realized that I needed to make additional pudding and returned to the kitchen.