kscans

Chapter 99 - Chapter 2: First Half, The Invitation

"This room is more ordinary than I thought."

"…Yes, I suppose so."

It was about the size of the director's office before its expansion, with brown walls. While none of the individual items were crude, the furnishings seemed minimal. Having braced myself for the private quarters of an Imperial Princess, I felt a little underwhelmed. It was nothing like Alfina's room, which I had entered to visit her when she collapsed. The difference was even more striking considering that was probably the minimum standard for our kingdom's royalty.

Then again, maybe this isn't her real private room. No, I'm probably overthinking it.

For Princess Lisabet, this was just temporary lodging for half a year. Besides, this place had only recently been designated as the Imperial Residence. I heard it was more like a trading house before that. The entryway and corridors we passed through on the way here weren't particularly luxurious either.

"You two need to calm down."

Rilka said to me as I glanced around restlessly. Of the three commoners who had been invited, she was the only one who remained composed. Her unflappable nature was reassuring at times like this.

"I know. This is enemy territory, so to speak."

"...But Rilka was the one who recommended the Yokan to Princess Lisabet. Unlike you, Vinder-kun, I'm just a normal person. A true commoner."

"I'm not a fake. And if you want to talk about it, you're much more of a high-class lady, Sherry."

That's right. We had been summoned, no, invited to the Imperial Residence under the pretext of being thanked for the Yokan.

"...I get the feeling your business is already starting to surpass ours in scale."

"You're getting sidetracked, Sherry," Rilka said to her friend. Just then, the door opened.

"Thank you for waiting."

Princess Lisabet entered, carrying a tray herself, accompanied by two women dressed like ladies-in-waiting. Her purple hair was tied and draped forward. She wore a slightly loose-fitting blouse and skirt, giving a much more casual impression than her academy uniform.

This 'let me show you my everyday self' approach, that's a classic move, isn't it? Even knowing that, when a beautiful girl does it, it still gets to you a little. Such is the sad nature of men.

"It is a humble offering in return for the Yokan, but it's a sweet from my homeland."

Princess Lisabet placed a plate in front of each of us. One of the ladies-in-waiting poured tea into our cups. The other stood empty-handed, watching us with an unreadable expression. A bodyguard, perhaps. After all, we were just commoners from another country.

Citrus fruits were arranged on a brown pastry, drizzled with syrup. As she said, it had a rustic feel. Though, Yokan has an even plainer appearance. Come to think of it, Yokan is a sweet from my homeland, too, in a sense. ...That's something they must never find out.

I cautiously picked up the pastry. It had a slightly firm texture and a simple, coarse grain on the tongue.

"Huh, this sweetness is..."

The sweet syrup on top wasn't honey. Was it maple syrup on a galette? That would make sense, since the Empire is said to be mountainous. It was far more plausible than chocolate suddenly appearing.

"I thought you might be accustomed to honey," Princess Lisabet said to me with a mischievous smile.

On the contrary, a chill ran down my spine. Be careful. I'm not supposed to know this is boiled tree sap.

An invitation just days after the prophecy. The timing was too perfect. I had to avoid giving away any unnecessary information. In fact, I needed to be the one extracting it. Should I ask something like, "Are the Imperial forces planning to visit Bertold anytime soon?" That's just too absurd.

The next problem was determining how rare that carriage was to the Empire. If I were to ask about military secrets, I wouldn't leave this place alive.

"The moist sweetness pairs well with the pastry."

"I, I think it's a wonderful sweetness," said Rilka and Sherry.

I wanted the tree that produced this syrup more than the syrup itself.

"I was truly surprised by the iced cream dessert at the tea party. It was a confection that seemed to symbolize the wealth of the Kingdom. I had heard that Alfina-sama spends much of her time in the cathedral, so I worry that we may have imposed on her. Princess Doriustia was saying something similar as well."

Ah, I see. So that's her way of being a sore loser. Flaunting Alfina's financial power to the Empire would do us no good, so she actually did us a favor.

"And I was also surprised by the Yokan. It's a sweet with such a gentle sweetness and texture, and it's rare even in the Kingdom, isn't it? I thought about ordering some, but I was shocked when I asked the Plural Company for the price."

The princess made a slightly playful face. I think it's pointless for a princess to try a commoner-appeal. In fact, in the Kingdom, trying something like that might actually damage one's reputation. Is the sensibility different in the Empire?

Still, she has good taste for appreciating Yokan. The Empire is associated with the color black, after all. Maybe they don't have an aversion to the color. No, is this really the time to be taking social niceties at face value?

I'm not so naive that I'd let my guard down just because she complimented a sweet from my homeland, my past life. I was warned repeatedly not to do anything rash, by Alfina at the academy yesterday, by Mia at home, and even by Plural and Vinaldira when I passed them in the academy hallway before coming here.

Dalgan even made a risky joke, "Don't go declaring war on the Empire or anything." It didn't seem to go over well with Rilka and Sherry.

"Y, yes, over here too, beans are grown in areas near the mountains that aren't suitable for wheat..."

Prompted by Princess Lisabet, Sherry was talking about the ingredients for Yokan. As expected, when it comes to business, she can handle herself properly. Princess Lisabet, playing the role of the host, was devoted to listening.

"My, so something like that happened at the academy festival..."

"Yes, and it all started when Vinder gathered us together..."

Rilka, being asked, went on to talk about the establishment of Central Garden at the Shoken Festival. If they think it's just a student game, that's convenient for us, so I suppose it's fine.

No, the Shoken Festival was also where that dark-haired prince tried to approach Alfina. There might be some intention behind this.

"It is a pleasure to hear of your exploits, Ricardo-dono. It is all the more impressive because I had heard that the Kingdom of Crownheite was a very stable country."

At some point, the conversation had turned to me. Princess Lisabet smiled at me, who had been silent.

"That's right, he's always starting something unusual out of the blue, and we just get dragged along. Right, Sherry?"

"Y, yes, that's right. When we were making the Yokan, he kept coming up with one outlandish idea after another."

There was real feeling in Sherry's words.

"Does that mean that confection was your idea, Ricardo-dono?"

"I was blessed with good connections," I answered instantly, looking at Rilka and Sherry. It's nice not having to lie.

"My. Listening to you two, it certainly seems you place a great deal of trust in him. And Princess Alfina-dono also appeared to rely on Vinder-dono. Perhaps one might call you the trusted aide of Princess Alfina, who has averted countless national crises with her power of prophecy."

"Not at all. I am merely one of the many citizens who has been saved by Alfina-sama."

The conversation was taking a dangerous turn. So her target really is Alfina's prophecy.

"By the way, what kind of place is your homeland, Princess Lisabet-denka?" I changed the subject. I wasn't about to let her be the only one extracting information.

"It's actually quite close to the Royal Capital. Let's see, if this is the River of Hope..."

Princess Lisabet drew a line on the table with her finger.

"The River of Hope?"

"Yes, that is what we call the river between our nations in the Empire. So, if the side I am on is the Empire, my homeland is..."

She was talking about the de facto national border, but Princess Lisabet showed no sign of tension. The spot her finger rested on was north of the Royal Capital, near the middle of the great river.

"Huh? It's there?" I said without thinking.

It was near the Blood Mountains. Close to the very place I thought would be the perfect location for an international trading city. My reaction made not only the princess, but also Rilka and Sherry, stare at me blankly.

"Is it near the Demon Mountains?" I said, trying to cover my slip.

Even if it was next door, it's monster territory, so it's not like a princess would necessarily have information.

Besides, I could hardly say I wanted the land adjacent to her homeland. Dalgan's joke could become a reality.

"...Yes. We have had attacks from vicious dragons, like the one that was previously defeated in the Kingdom. The people of my homeland live in fear of the demonic beasts."

Princess Lisabet's face clouded over. My feet were stepped on from both sides. Damn it. To an outsider, it must look like I intentionally brought up a sensitive subject. I should have let Rilka or Sherry ask indirectly.

"That is why I think it is wonderful that you contributed to the dragon subjugation, Vinder-dono."

Her expression brightened as she spoke to me.

"Not at all. The credit for the dragon subjugation belongs to the valor of Prince Craig-denka."

Princess Lisabet fell silent for a moment at my words. She had a troubled look on her face.

"Vinder-dono. I have a request for you."

"...What could someone like me do for you?" I asked with the utmost caution.

"It is about the Knight Commander, Prince Craig-denka. I hear that you are on friendly terms with him. I was hoping you could tell him that I wish to meet him."

I see. So all that flattery was because she's interested in a rich, handsome acquaintance of mine. Right, right, this is much easier to understand. I've seen this play out in my past life, too.

That was only half a joke, though. Her real targets were still Craig and the dragon subjugation.

"...He has apparently been declining, saying he is too busy."

It seemed Craig was indeed turning her down. The one broadly in charge of the princess's affairs was Doriustia, who belonged to the Second Prince's faction. She probably wouldn't put much effort into it. Princess Lisabet was looking at me as if grasping at straws.

"I am terribly sorry, but arranging a meeting between a Princess and a Prince is a task far beyond the abilities of someone like myself."

I'll have to tell Craig that a princess is after him when I see him. It would be a problem if she found out about the pollen.

"I'm sorry. You came here so I could thank you, and instead I made an unreasonable request."

"I am sorry I could not be of service."

"By the way, I heard the confection called French Toast that is so popular in the capital is also..."

Princess Lisabet looked genuinely apologetic, then quickly changed the subject.

"Lisabet-sama. Isn't it about time?"

As the pleasantries continued, the lady-in-waiting who had been standing back, likely the bodyguard, spoke up. The other attendant, who had been about to pour more tea, froze. Princess Lisabet looked at us with regret.

"What a shame. I wanted to hear more of your stories."

"N, no, we are deeply honored that a busy princess such as yourself would grant us so much of your time."

Honestly, I wanted to ask a bit more about the Demon Mountains, but it wasn't like she would reveal anything crucial. For now, I'll have Jacob and the others investigate using the keyword "the Third Princess's homeland." In that sense, I suppose this was a fruitful visit.

"This is belated, but I look forward to seeing you at the academy," Princess Lisabet said, personally seeing us to the entrance.

◇◇

"...She seemed like a kind person, didn't she?"

"Yeah..."

Sherry said reflectively as we left the residence.

I couldn't help but agree. However, whether a person is kind has nothing to do with whether they are an ally or an enemy. You could say it's the difference between a kind wolf and a cruel wolf. For the rabbit, the commoner, who gets eaten, it makes no difference. The fact that it's a wolf is the most important trait. Everything else is just a minor detail.

Moreover, she was a person capable of an act so convincing I couldn't possibly see it as one.

"There was a tense moment back there, but you were pretty well-behaved for you, Vinder. Unlike Sherry, who went and promised to go to Plural-senpai's shop with her."

"...Rilka. You'll come with me, right?"

Sherry clung to Rilka with a desperate look on her face. How careless. She should learn from me, whose self-preservation skills have been improving lately.