Chapter 69
“Oh my, is that so? To think Lady Liri was acquainted with the Saintess.”
“Y-Yes, that’s right. So the brooch was also something the Saintess asked for.”
At the story of the veiled Saintess, Olivia’s eyes sparkled.
What I told Olivia was this:
Liri, who lives in the Imperial Palace, somehow came to know the Saintess and somehow became close with her.
And then this time, she was asked to run an errand for the return gifts for the birthday present.
It was a rather flimsy excuse, but.
Olivia accepted it.
“You wouldn’t be able to recklessly reveal matters concerning the Saintess to outsiders, after all.”
Though for something that’s supposedly private and not to be disclosed, the Saintess herself is standing right in front of Olivia……
Anyway.
I (Liri) sold myself (the Saintess) a little, but it wasn’t bad.
Even if questions arise later because of the brooch, Olivia will probably think it over once more.
There’s nothing to gain from it being revealed that Liri was actually the Saintess.
When my eyes met Kadiyan, who was sitting at the same table, he nodded as if in agreement.
“Oh, Ms. Olivia, what happened to that trainee employee?”
“You mean Vita? That child will benefit a bit thanks to Lady Liri.”
“Thanks to me?”
“She started working to pay for her younger sibling’s medicine. Once this month’s performance bonus comes out, she likely won’t have to worry about several months’ worth of medical expenses.”
It meant that my splurge would be reflected in the performance bonus of the trainee employee who had handled the sales.
Since Olivia had witnessed the entire situation, she said the other employees wouldn’t be able to play tricks and claim it as their own performance.
“Oh, that’s a relief. I was worried.”
I had been concerned she might suffer disadvantages after getting unnecessarily involved.
“But Ms. Olivia, do you have some kind of concern these days?”
“A concern?”
At my question, Olivia tilted her head.
She looked happy today, but every so often I saw a troubled expression cross her face.
As her business partner in name, shouldn’t I be paying attention to things like this…!
“Your complexion doesn’t look very good, Ms. Olivia. As if you’re worried about something.”
“Oh my.”
Olivia touched her cheek and let out a sigh.
“It seems I can’t hide anything in front of Lady Liri. I’d like to say that’s not the case, but I am worried.”
“What is it?”
“I heard the ‘Factory’ is opening a bakery.”
“The Factory… you mean the shop operated by the Duchy of Derachi?”
My common knowledge about this world has grown quite a bit.
Now I could hold a conversation without asking what something was most of the time.
But Derachi as the topic. Ugh.
My expression naturally soured.
I didn’t like it, but it was information about the enemy’s recent movements.
I perked up and focused on Olivia’s words.
“That’s right. I’d felt at ease because the ‘Factory’ had never dealt with food before… but it seems they’ve secured a shop on the same street as our main branch.”
“Huh, no way……”
“They’re declaring war on Antoine Confectionery.”
At Kadiyan’s words, Olivia nodded.
Kadiyan continued,
“It’s the ‘Factory’s’ nasty hobby. They open stores near the most successful shop in the industry. Confident that they’ll win. I suppose they feel a sense of superiority watching stores go under.”
Grit. Kadiyan ground his teeth.
What people without any business ethics.
A heavy sigh escaped Olivia’s lips.
“There’s no need to worry about desserts, since no one can imitate Lady Liri’s recipes……”
Of course, of course.
All the dessert recipes I’ve steadily built up until now—even His Majesty didn’t know them.
There was a non-disclosure clause in the contract, so the only ones who knew were Olivia, me, and Heli.
The desserts came out of the bakers’ hands, but things like batter flour or cream were mixed separately before being sent out, so no one knew the entire process.
Then what was the problem wasn’t the desserts, but……
“The basic breads eaten as staples are the concern.”
“The basic breads?”
“Yes. The ones Antoine Bakery originally focused on selling.”
She seemed to mean the breads they made before starting the dessert business.
“You can’t set the price high for those kinds of breads, so since the unit price is low, it’s hard to compete on taste.”
“Are you saying that within that price range, you can’t use ingredients good enough for customers to feel a difference in taste?”
“That’s right. Even though you’re a knight, you understand this field well.”
Olivia spoke as though she could already see the dark future ahead.
“So consumers will likely flock to the cheaper option, but how low the Factory will set their prices when selling……”
Silence settled over the VIP room.
Hmm… It must be serious.
I joined the silence cautiously, then suddenly looked at Olivia as an idea occurred to me.
“Ms. Olivia.”
“Yes?”
“Shall we move up next month’s new product launch a bit?”
At my suggestion, Olivia looked puzzled.
“I just had a good idea.”
A faint spark of anticipation appeared in Olivia’s eyes.
As the saying goes, when potato chips are scarce, you can even bundle-sell a passenger car.
With confidence brimming, I exclaimed,
“Factory, let’s beat them!”
A bright weekend afternoon.
Allend was sitting in a café in the Imperial Capital, in his silver-haired appearance.
It was a seat clearly visible from outside, yet no one recognized the Emperor.
The holy power of mental manipulation he had wrapped around his face slightly distorted people’s perception, making Allend seem different in impression.
Even so, since his features themselves hadn’t changed, he was still drawing the attention of countless people.
Though he himself paid no mind to it at all.
“A bakery.”
The biggest reason Allend had come out today was because of the ‘Factory’s’ bakery.
Derachi had opened a shop in the Imperial Capital.
It might be used as a place to meet the capital’s nobles, or to observe the situation here.
He thought it was likely a decoy opened to facilitate their activities in this place.
But it didn’t seem as though they had prepared carelessly.
The bread sold during the temporary operating period had been widely praised as, “As expected of the Factory.”
The biggest factor seemed to be that the price was about two-thirds cheaper compared to breads in the existing market.
It was hardly welcome news.
Small bakeries would close down, and even Antoine Confectionery would surely suffer considerable damage.
He couldn’t just let the ‘Factory’ come all the way to the Imperial Capital and rampage around playing a ‘monopoly game.’
“It would be better to impose sanctions.”
But if he tried to block Derachi’s ‘Factory,’ there would be nobles who would raise their voices in opposition.
“How annoying.”
He briefly considered making them listen by force.
But even after striking Derachi, there would still be things left to do.
Hadn’t he been pretending kindness all this time for a reason?
“What should I do…….”
As he was pondering, an excited voice reached his ears.
“Really?! You succeeded?!”
It was from a table diagonally behind him.
A girl who had just entered the café was being greeted by a girl who had been seated first.
“Yeah. I sent the servants in the morning and then went myself and barely managed to get it. I went to all six stores in the Imperial Capital and only succeeded at two, you know?”
“There were that many people?”
“Don’t even mention it. Some people lined up from dawn. By the time I paid, there wasn’t much bread left. By now they’ve probably closed because they’re out of stock.”
“So lucky you succeeded. I’ll have to go out at dawn tomorrow too. Did you try it? How does it taste?”
Something must be trending among young people.
He perked up at the word bread, but it didn’t seem they were talking about the ‘Factory’s’ bakery.
If it were something causing that much commotion, he would hear about it from Ebon upon returning to the palace.
Allend returned his focus to his original thoughts.
But—
“It’s fantastic……. I cried. Hey. The Liri series never disappoints.”
At the familiar name, the thoughts in Allend’s head scattered at once.
His concentration now shifted entirely to the words coming from the enraptured young lady’s mouth.
“It’s such a shame. A new product that’s only given as a bonus if you buy bread above a certain amount.”
“Come to think of it, isn’t today the opening day of the Factory’s bakery?”
“Hey, who cares about the Factory? You have to try Liri’s new product. The place I lined up at was the main branch, and the Factory bakery across the street didn’t have many people. No matter how much it’s the Factory, I don’t think their bread can beat Antoine Confectionery.”
“That’s a relief. I was actually rooting for Antoine Confectionery.”
“Me too. I hope Antoine Confectionery doesn’t go under because of the Factory. Liri’s desserts mustn’t disappear…….”
Hmm.
Allend took a sip of black tea while eavesdropping on the young ladies’ conversation.
He would have to watch a bit longer, but it seemed he didn’t need to worry about a monopoly over the bakery.
To think the Saintess’s desserts were that popular.
Allend felt an inexplicable sense of pride.
“My happiness now depends on Your Majesty’s happiness.”
Saying things like that.
Perhaps because of that, his guilt had grown heavier, and the stabbing sensation in his chest had intensified to the point that it was uncomfortable to even look at the Saintess.
If something else pleases her later, she’ll find her own happiness regardless of mine.
As he thought that, Allend felt a throbbing sensation in his heart and found it strange.
Even if it’s guilt, the pain seems too frequent.
I should visit a healing priest soon.
“Sir.”
“……?”
“This is something our shop provides free of charge.”
The café employee placed a sandwich on the table with trembling hands.
For a moment, Allend was reminded of Ari, who had trembled saying she was afraid she might do something because of His Majesty’s beauty.
He ended up smiling unconsciously, and that smile was so sweet that the employee’s face turned bright red.
“Th-Then please enjoy!”
The employee bowed and left.
Only then did Allend glance around.
When he first came in, there had only been one or two other customers besides himself.
Now it was full, with even people waiting.
“This place is doing good business.”
That must be why they provide food for free like this.
In reality, the café owner had given the service out of gratitude because the café had filled up thanks to Allend.
But once again, Allend did not realize it.
He lifted his teacup to his lips again.
The conversation about Antoine Confectionery’s new dessert at the table behind him was quite pleasant to hear.
“What did you say was inside the new product box?”
“They said it had a portrait of His Majesty the Emperor. About palm-sized? It was released to commemorate the 7th anniversary of His Majesty’s accession.”
Cough.
Allend choked at the existence of merchandise created without his knowledge.
As long as it wasn’t defamation, the Emperor might not have portrait rights, but……
And the absurdity didn’t end there.
“There are seven types of those portraits, and if you collect all seven and bring them in…….”
