282 - A View of the Meeting from the Observation Room
"So looong! ...Mgh!?"
Just as I voiced my complaint about the meeting being too long, a spoon loaded with pudding was shoved into my mouth. The one who shoved the pudding in with the intention of telling me to shut up was Alfred. Ever since returning to the capital, Alfred has been coming to check on me about once every three days. I certainly appreciate it, but should he not be working? When I once asked him that, it seems he finishes his work properly before showing his face. Apparently, troublesome official duties are nothing when it comes to enriching one's personal life. That is impressive, I suppose.
"...However, this pudding has a slightly different character. This crispy, cracking texture is nice."
"When I had tea with Basilia-sama, I imitated the method she used on her cake. It is a creme brulee mock-up."
Basilia had sprinkled sugar on a cake coated with custard whip and applied a hot iron, but I had them sprinkle sugar directly on the pudding itself and apply the hot iron. I have never eaten real creme brulee in my previous life either, but I can guess the ingredients well enough. I figured it could not be that different from pudding, so I tried applying a hot iron to pudding, but my impression is that it is about the same as pudding with the top and bottom swapped. Both end up tasting like caramel anyway.
...If there is a reincarnator who knows what real creme brulee is, they might get mad at me, though.
As long as it tastes good, I thought, resigning myself, and brought the pudding-now-creme-brulee-mock-up to my mouth. I have never eaten it, but I have seen videos of people eating it. It was in a small dish, so maybe the real thing is not a solidified dessert like pudding.
"Still, the meeting is long, is it not? Have they not decided yet? I feel like I have been waiting quite a while."
While crunching through the caramel, I inwardly resent Christoph and the people of the Sedovara Church whose faces I do not even know over the secret arts for revival that still have not been decided. Both sides should be working seriously, but still, is the meeting not taking way too long?
"Honestly, I think they should just decide with dice or Upunarotto."
I have compiled the medicines whose prescriptions I have discovered into a list and handed it over. Even though they have been staring at it and meeting for days, no conclusion has been reached. At this point, leaving it to luck might be one option.
"...If they cannot decide within the next ten days, how about I declare that the promise of three will be reduced to two?"
"If you say something like that, the meeting will drag on even longer."
I was cautioned not to say such things even as a joke, so I swallowed the words saying I was pretty serious. So that I would not feel lonely, not just Kalisa but even Elke and Petrona have been sent to the capital. I do want to return to Grenore properly someday, but it is not to the point where I would throw a tantrum about going home right now.
"...But I still think it is too long."
"In other words, because you cannot see the progress of the meeting, you feel like you are being kept waiting even more, is that it?"
"That might be it."
Now that he mentions it, that might be right. Since I submitted the compiled list, I have just been working on my own transcription for easy personal use, and that is all. I have not heard anything about which ones might be decided or where the disagreement is that is preventing a decision.
...Maybe they are thinking they will just tell me the final decision, though?
Personally, it makes me feel like I am being ignored. I cannot see what is being discussed right now, so it only seems like the work has stalled.
"On the condition that you do not say a word, I could let you see the meeting."
"Really?"
"Really, you will only be watching, you know. I cannot have you blurting out impulsive and arbitrary things without consultation."
"There is no way I would disturb you. If the medicines cannot be made, it would only delay my return to Grenore."
Seeing Alfred shrug with a slightly suspicious look on his face, it seemed he was making a concession, so I presented the gift I had prepared. Alfred's cheek twitched at the paper listing the names and effects of two medicines.
"Tina, what is this?"
"Additional prescriptions I found during the transcription process."
"...I think this sort of thing is exactly why it is taking so long to decide," he said.
As Alfred took the paper with a sigh, I half-seriously suggested, "Why not decide by amida lottery this time?" To me, it does not make much difference which medicine gets revived, but it seems different for the rulers. They said they could not decide that easily, and I got my cheek pinched a little.
True to his word, Alfred invited me to the meeting four days later. Though I had promised not to speak, since I was sneaking into a place where adults were holding a meeting, I dressed in formal wear. My formal wear is still the military-style one-piece dress, though it is the winter version.
"...Huh? A room made of glass?"
When I passed through the door I was guided to, there was a dim room. It was dim, but at the far end there was glass, and beyond it I could see desks and chairs arranged in a semicircle.
"There was one in your young lady's detached palace too, no? This is a trick mirror. They are using glass that looks like a mirror from the other side."
"Oh, so that is why the room is dim."
Hearing the mechanism of the room itself, I could understand why it was dim. It was the same magic mirror used for lighting in the hidden passageways of the detached palace.
"Hello, Ethelbert-sama."
Realizing my greeting came late, I performed a curtsy to Ethelbert, who was already there. I had only heard from Alfred that I would be allowed to observe the meeting, so I was a bit surprised to find Ethelbert in the same room.
"Ethelbert-sama, will you not be attending the meeting?"
"A former king attending a meeting would just be a nuisance. I am occasionally called in as an advisor, but today I am the young lady's conversation partner."
It seemed to be a consideration so that I, who wanted to see the meeting, would not get bored and restless. The sentiment is appreciated, but I wonder how much of that is really true. The table set with two chairs had plenty of tea sweets prepared.
Escorted by Kyuubee, I sat down in the chair next to Ethelbert. The Black Dog who had followed closely showed no particular reaction, so the sweets on the table were safe to eat.
"There are so many sweets. I had Kalisa bake a cheesecake too, but..."
"I hear it is made using a somewhat unique method. I was hoping to taste one myself."
Since I have not even given one to Basilia yet, the steam-baked cheesecake is only being eaten within the detached palace. I felt like retorting, "Where exactly did you 'hear' about it?" but knowing it would be pointless, I let it slide from the start. When it comes to Ethelbert's information network, I am completely outmatched, perhaps it is the advantage of age. Complaining about it here would be useless.
...I will get the better of him someday, though.
Rebecca's sliced cheesecake was placed before Ethelbert, and Kyuubee poured my tea. Beyond the glass, the meeting was supposed to be held shortly, but this small room had a full tea party atmosphere.
"Hmm, it feels moister than the usual kind."
"I believe that is the effect of steaming and baking it."
Kalisa has made it several times since then to adjust the taste, but the moistness did seem to be the effect of steam-baking. You can bake a cake without putting water in the tray, but the browning and the moistness when you put it in your mouth are completely different.
"Is this also from your previous knowledge?"
"It is from before, but it is only a method I picked up here and there, so Kalisa has been working hard on the improvements."
The basic recipe, including the ingredient amounts, comes from a shop in the capital. I only threw in a few suggestions for improvement, so this cheesecake can be called a taste of this world.
The meeting that began as I leisurely enjoyed my tea had a completely different atmosphere from the Diet broadcasts I had seen in my previous life. First of all, not a single person interrupted someone's opinion by shouting heckles. No one was whispering among themselves, and no one was sleeping. And above all, there were so many positive statements. Rather than denying others' opinions, they seemed to be affirming them while trying to offer even better ideas.
"How should I put it... it is completely different."
It was nothing like Japanese Diet broadcasts. When I glossed over it, Ethelbert looked puzzled.
"Young lady, have you seen such meetings before?"
"It should have been this kind of meeting originally, but in reality it was nothing but a tug-of-war and a barren exchange of heckling, so I have seen it."
"Was that truly a meeting of important national figures?"
"It was supposed to be, but..."
Feeling somewhat indescribable, I trailed off. Comparing the meeting before me, where people engaged in earnest debate out of concern for the people's future, to a gathering of Japanese legislators who smugly declared, "I will just boycott the meeting" and "Now they cannot deliberate," felt far too disrespectful.
"...But I understand very well now why they cannot reach a decision."
The Sedovara Church argues for continent-wide necessary medicines, while the Staff Peerages want to select medicines predicted to wreak havoc domestically during the winter. Surprisingly, or perhaps predictably, it seems Christoph has chosen to prioritize the queen's antidote last. Or rather, as a fair king, he probably cannot prioritize it just because it is his wife's antidote. Though I also suspect he is deliberately putting it off.
"For now I said three, but I did not say I would not make the other medicines, you know."
"Many lives could be saved depending on the timing. Everyone wants to cling to the good news that the secret arts lost with Aurelia's death might be revived so soon."
Ethelbert said that, for the time being, while it has subsided domestically, the specific medicine for Wards Disease, which has not yet been contained in other countries, would likely be sought. For the Sedovara Church too, the Wards Disease medicine is necessary in this country as preparation for the next outbreak. It is clearly the most urgently needed medicine right now.
Time is up.
Will fix typos and errors at a later date. Found and fixed the typos and errors I found.