kscans

Chapter 274 - An Adult Scent

"How about this attire for today?"

I took a dress from the closet. It was primarily white, with the skirt portion dyed a pale blue from the hem up.

Considering the sunlight outside the window, a summery outfit would surely look splendid.

"Thank you, Sia."

I helped Hime-sama change. Her skin was so white and delicate it seemed a waste to cover it with clothes. It was captivating, even to another woman’s eyes. Of course, exposing it to the gaze of the opposite sex was unthinkable, and unforgivable.

To accentuate the white, I covered her slender waist with a dark deerskin corset, lacing it in a diagonal cross with a wide green cord. Her waist was so thin she hardly needed such a thing. It felt as if it might break with the slightest pressure. Then, I adorned her collar with a matching green ribbon.

"Now, please look in the mirror."

I turned the full-length mirror toward Hime-sama. Before it, Hime-sama held her hands slightly out, like a little fledgling. I watched over her from behind. Yes, she was truly lovely and beautiful again today. The green accent suited her sparkling blue hair and clear azure eyes so well.

"..."

"Hime-sama?"

Her face in the mirror clouded over slightly. My mother often told me. Hime-sama never makes selfish demands. That is why I, her milk-sister, must be the one to perceive her needs.

"Are you not pleased with it?"

"No, that's not it. I have no complaints with your selection, Sia. It's just..."

Hime-sama trailed off for a moment, then turned to face me.

"Well, don't I look a little childish?"

"N, not at all..."

Having just thought she looked as lovely as a fledgling, my denial was a moment too late. I could not deny that the white and pale blue dress emphasized her innocent air. But that was Hime-sama's charm. Even if she looked a bit childish, who would dare laugh at it?

The real question is, why is she thinking such a thing?

My heart grew heavy as I wondered whose eyes she was imagining herself in. It was incredibly rare for Hime-sama to worry about her clothes at all.

Besides being lovely in whatever she wore, her position serving in the cathedral meant she never desired anything extravagant. Even after she was finally granted a cosmetics allowance by the King. As her handmaiden, I almost found it wanting.

"We have some darker colored garments. But considering the season..."

Hime-sama glanced at the mirror once more, then placed her hands on the corset.

"Was it too tight?"

"No, well, maybe you could tighten it a little more..."

"I do not think it is necessary..."

It was more of an accent for her waist than a proper corset anyway.

"It will only..."

"If you say so, Sia, then I am sure you are right."

She accepted my words without question. My heart soared at her trust.

From the jewelry box on her desk, Hime-sama took out the single brooch kept within, a piece of jade. It was her most treasured possession, one she did not normally use. She never wore it to official functions like those at the royal court. It was a keepsake from her mother.

That one item showed just how important the person she was about to meet was to her.

Reporting to her from the edge of the garden should be more than enough for a man like that.

◇◇

"Ricardo-kun."

Hime-sama's voice bounced with an excitement so clear that even I could hear it. A man appeared from the shadows of the garden as if he were a lowly servant. The moment I saw him, a fierce anger welled up inside me.

A loosened necktie, sleeves rolled up. A slip of paper stuck out from the ink-stained pouch at his waist. There was dust on the shoulder of his unadorned vest. And on his feet were boots with dirtied toes.

His appearance was a testament to the fact he had just been working in the warehouse. Indeed, the warehouse lent to the man's company was over that way. In any case, it was no way to appear before any woman, let alone a princess.

Well, I suppose his face was not entirely without a certain coolness. His height was also passable. But to put it another way, he was ordinary. More than anything, he completely lacked dignity, ambition, and reliability. I could never acknowledge him as someone worthy of Hime-sama.

How many men in the kingdom would wish for an invitation to this gathering? Did he have any idea how special, how valuable, the smile currently directed at him truly was?

He accepted this privilege as if it were his due... no, his eyes widened slightly as he looked at Hime-sama. Of course they did.

Hime-sama's body tensed under the man's gaze. It was not the same way she used to endure the stares of others through sheer effort, but a tension born of a different reason. I could not help but clench my own fists. Surely even this boorish man would offer a word of praise.

Hime-sama, shining in the sunlight, was so radiant that not a shred of flattery was necessary. He just had to say what he saw. He could at least do that much.

"Well... right. We do not have much time, so let me explain the honey harvest."

"Yes."

I wanted to kick him. The man started talking business without so much as a seasonal greeting. He was supposedly a merchant, but I sincerely doubted his competence. Any decent merchant who frequented this place would praise the appearance of even a handmaiden like me.

Dismayed by his treatment of her, I timidly checked Hime-sama's face. But she was hanging on the man's every word.

"The problem is caring for the spring flowers before the renge bloom. If we can do that, we can further..."

Talk of money, unsuited for a tea party, continued. He was speaking of the village that served as Hime-sama's newly granted cosmetics allowance. Being from the west, I knew what the villages around there were like, and I had been furious at first. To grant a single country village to a princess who had achieved so much.

But the figures this man was now explaining were, to put it mildly, significant. It was because of this that Hime-sama was able to choose some personal attire, even if only a few outfits.

Incidentally, my own wages had also been increased. Of course, that was due to Hime-sama's generosity and had nothing to do with the man before me.

In the first place, this man was a merchant. It would be pointless if he could not at least earn money. His business was protected by Hime-sama's authority, after all.

"So, with that, do you have any questions?"

"Um, this part here..."

Hime-sama accepted the ledger from the man and pointed to several figures. I did not think she needed to remember such things. My heart grew restless, for it was like she was preparing to marry into a merchant family.

Unaware of my inner turmoil, the man answered her questions, nodding with a "I see."

"And that is the situation."

"Thank you. I understand it well now."

"Well then..."

As soon as the explanation was over, the man was already preparing to stand. He should just hurry back to the warehouse. That was my thought, but seeing Hime-sama's face...

"If you would. It is about that time, so I can have a light meal prepared."

I forced myself to interject, feeling as though I might bite through my lip.

"Oh, yes. What do you think, Ricardo-kun?"

"Then, I shall take you up on your kind offer."

French toast was brought out, and Hime-sama partook of it with an innocent expression. Apparently, it was this man who had invented it. I wanted to call it a paltry imitation of a chef's work, but it was very delicious, especially when eaten with a generous amount of honey...

"French toast really is delicious, isn't it?"

Hime-sama said with a bright voice, a tiny bit of honey on the corner of her lips. She hurriedly covered her mouth with a handkerchief. A blush colored her porcelain cheeks.

"How embarrassing... I used too much honey."

"No, that is not..."

The man's eyes darted about, troubled. I wanted to say it was cute, so it was fine, but I had no choice but to remain silent.

"Right, speaking of honey, I just remembered something I wanted you to try."

With that, the man headed toward the warehouse. He returned with a small, amber vial in his hand, tinged with a slight redness. It looked like honey, but the color was subtly different. As Hime-sama watched with anticipation, the man opened the vial. A faint fragrance drifted over the table...

The man took a small piece of French toast on his plate and poured the reddish liquid over it. Then, he presented it to Hime-sama. I instinctively blocked his hand.

"I will test it for poison first."

"Sia. Ricardo-kun would not..."

"No, that was thoughtless of me."

The man cut the French toast in two, moving one piece to his own plate. We ate the same thing at the same time. The man was, for all intents and purposes, Hime-sama's guest. I could not allow him to try it first.

Feeling Hime-sama's gaze fixed upon me, I tentatively moved my mouth. The next moment, a sweetness colored by an indescribable aroma and a faint bitterness spread through my mouth. I covered my mouth with my hand without thinking.

"W, what is this?"

My mouth filled with various fragrances and the subtle scent of alcohol. Like the highest quality tea with sugar, a slight bitterness seemed to enhance the sweetness.

"Whiskey... it is a barrel used to age distilled grain spirits. I acquired an old one that was about to be discarded. I put honey in it and let it age for a year."

The man explained. I see, this aroma and flavor were the concentrated residual scent of the distilled spirits. I have never heard of such a method...

"Only Sia gets to..."

Hime-sama used words she would never normally use. I hurried to place some French toast on a plate, and the man poured the red honey over it.

Her delicate white hands moved above the plate. Her form was perfect. But her movements were a little fast. The silver fork captured the golden bread through the reddish honey and lifted it.

Slowly, yet just a little faster than usual, the piece was brought to her cherry-pink lips. The two of us found ourselves captivated by her lovely face.

"A slightly unusual sweetness... Um, a very complex fragrance..."

The faint bitterness must have touched her tongue, considering Hime-sama's preferences. She looked a little troubled. I had no choice but to speak.

"Ricardo-sama must have thought such a mature flavor would be suitable for you, Hime-sama."

I said while glaring at the man. Hime-sama hurriedly took a second bite. Her mouth moved slowly, as if savoring the fragrance. She gave a small nod.

"It is a wonderful aroma. Will you be selling this as a new product?"

"Thank you. That is the plan, for now. But it is still in the trial stage. I have only been tasting it myself every few months, so this is the first time I have given it to anyone else."

"Is that so? Then I am the first..."

Hime-sama's face, relaxed with pride, clouded slightly as she looked at me.

"Sia was the first, wasn't she?"

She said and smiled at me. Because I have served her since she was a small child, I could see the very slight puff of her cheeks. It is so very rare that it is a little frightening, Hime-sama.

I stepped away from the table to change the hot water. Since one could say he had prepared a special item for Hime-sama, I would leave them alone together, just for a little while. So, he had better improve Hime-sama's mood by the time I returned.

With a new pot in hand, I glanced at the table from a distance. For just a moment, the man and woman who should have been so ill-matched looked perfect for each other. It must have been a trick of the eyes. I was sure it was because of the scent of liquor from before.