Chapter 245

Change of Pace
On a whim, I decided to step out of the merchant association’s meeting room and go see Raziel directly.

“What brings you here?”

“Can you introduce me to a mold craftsman?”

“May I ask why?”

“You were the one who said it, remember? About what kind of gifts we could give along with our neckties.”

“I don’t quite see how that connects to a mold craftsman.”

“I just want to check if it can be done. If it’s possible, I’ll report back.”

The person Raziel introduced me to was Barton from Barton Workshop—the same one who handled the fittings for the adjustable straps.

“Did you come today about the fittings we were asked to make?”

The ones who appeared were a man in his twenties and Ayla.

“It’s something else. I’d like to ask about a new request, if it’s doable.”

“A different job?” he said as I handed him a sketch on paper. Ayla leaned in to look as well. Wait, why is she even here?

She explained that she had come to pick up several samples of the fittings they’d made earlier. When she heard I was here, she assumed I was also here to check those and just tagged along.

“And this is… what, exactly?”

“It’s a men’s necktie ring.”

“““Eh?”””

Even Georges looked surprised.

“You mean… a ring to attach to a necktie?”

“I want to make something stylish that sits neatly at the knot,” I explained.

In my previous life, I’d seen something similar—a ring worn with an ascot tie at weddings by the groom. I thought it’d be nice to give one to the male government clerks here.

It should work fine even with regular neckties.

For the Westland Company, I was thinking of designing it with our company crest.

Ayla was the one groaning thoughtfully now. I’d have understood if it were Barton, but her?

“Think you can do it, Barton?”

“You mean you want two molds—one for the ring and one for the crest—and to fit them together?”

“Exactly. I’d like the crest done as an openwork carving.”

“The connection point between them might be tricky.”

“Then use the sticky substance from the skeleton flower leaves. I’ve got plenty—I can give you some.”

He said he’d also like to check the necktie sizes directly.

“The government clerks’ ties and the merchants’ ties are different sizes,” Ayla pointed out, surprisingly knowledgeable for someone outside the men’s fashion trade.

The clerks’ ties were closer to modern business ties, while merchants typically wore untied, ascot-style ones.

“I’ve seen merchants use pearls or gem tiepins,” Ayla mused, “but never rings. And with an openwork crest design? That’s simply beautiful.” She looked utterly enchanted at the thought.

“Well, we’ll have to see how it looks once it’s made…”

“It’s bound to be gorgeous! It’ll start a new trend, I’m sure of it!”

“Keep quiet about it until it’s done, okay?”

Still, why was *Ayla* the one getting all excited? Barton, sure—but her?

“Young Master Reinhardt, couldn’t you make a version for women too?”

“Women don’t wear ties, though.”

“I’d like one for scarf knots.”

“For women, maybe something like glass cufflinks would look nice instead.”

“Oh, that sounds lovely! Please make some!”

To make it easier for Barton to take measurements, Ayla even took off her own scarf, tied a knot in it, and held it up for him to check.

Does she really want one that badly?

I’ll have to bring the completed mold to Carlos and explain it to him later.

Honestly, I came here just for a quick distraction—a little escape from work—but this might’ve gotten out of hand.

I’d better mention it casually to Raziel so he doesn’t scold me later.

As for the Eminira preliminaries, things had gone smoothly. Despite the crowds, the large amount of food prepared in advance kept people moving steadily.

I had originally calculated for 200 servings, but demand swelled to 300—a big miscalculation.

When Atre and Lucas found out I was ordering food in advance, they whined about wanting more, saying they hadn’t gotten enough during the tasting.

Apparently, just one bite of each dish hadn’t been satisfying enough for them.

Then both guilds and even our household staff started chiming in, saying that if cooking was happening the day before, they wanted some too.

The cooks made sense, since they were judges—but the staff? They already knew we’d ordered extra, and still wanted more?

Even though every stall had prepared large quantities beforehand, several still ran out of ingredients midway, and we had to go on another buying run.

Maybe that’s why, back in the capital, some people gave up and went home early.

The exhibition will include craft goods and souvenir stalls too… I’m not sure how that’ll go.

By the end of the day, we were all completely spent, and agreed to leave the detailed cleanup for the next day.

The participants would return home the day after tomorrow, traveling with their village or town groups and guards who had come for the preliminaries.

We told them that the results would be sent later by letter.

There had been a few small incidents, but nothing major—thank goodness. Still, with all the work left before the exhibition, it didn’t look like I’d be getting any rest anytime soon.

When will I finally get to take it easy, I wonder?

What do you think about this chapter?