Apology
“Phew… I ate too much today.”
Alicia-sama said that and lightly touched her stomach.
Certainly, she didn’t go for seconds, but the three-tiered tray was completely empty.
“Don’t make fun of me for being indecent, okay? … It was so delicious.”
Alicia-sama blushed, looking embarrassed. How cute!
“How could we laugh. We enjoyed it just as much as you did.”
I showed the almost empty tray as well, following up with Mariel-chan.
“Besides, it makes me happy to know that your words about it being delicious aren’t just flattery.”
Yes, as the one who made it, there’s nothing more joyous than seeing someone happily devour your food.
Seeing my beaming smile, Alicia-sama furrowed her brows slightly.
“… I was truly foolish.”
“Huh?”
“When I first heard that Cristea-sama took the lead in eating livestock fodder and spread it to the world, I was truly shocked. Noble as we are, everyone gossiped about how insane it was for someone of noble status to not only eat something even commoners wouldn’t touch, but also something that was only fit for livestock.”
“Ha-haha…”
Back then, I was still craving Japanese food after regaining my memories from my previous life, so the fact that there was rice nearby excited me quite a bit. I was desperate to continue eating it no matter what!
“I heard the fact that Lars could now be eaten was welcomed with open arms in some territories, mainly by people who struggled to pay taxes due to famine, to the point of not even being able to eat a crumb of bread, now suffered less.”
“Ah~… R-right, there were… such things, huh?”
That’s right. Despite being teased as the repulsive food-eating young lady, it spread from family members to servants, and from them to commoner households. Thanks to that, there was a time when rice… or Lars, how people over here call it, became more scarce, and the price went up a bit. Fortunately, territories with land more suitable for rice production worked hard at just the right time, so it quickly stabilized.
“The achievements of ensuring the people can live without hunger were highly praised by His Majesty, and Duke Ellisfeed received many compliments. My Mother, hearing about it, panicked, lamented, and scolded me, wondering why I didn’t have a talent like you. As a result, I fell quite behind as a potential fiancée for Crown Prince Raymond.”
Eh, what’s that about?! Alicia-sama did nothing wrong, and this is just unfair!
“On the other hand, I was strictly educated that Cristea-sama is still the same repulsive-food eating young lady who happily eats livestock fodder, and that I must not become such a lowly person, and not be defeated as a proud noblewoman for the title of the Queen Mother.”
“That’s…”
I never aimed to become the Queen Mother.
But Alicia-sama, with her background, viewed me as a rival. I can see she was under quite a bit of pressure from her education-focused mother. Must have been tough. I understand, my mother also has a bit of that education-focused aspect…
“However, upon entering the academy, your magic power exceeded rumors, and not only did you have general knowledge, but you also completed your etiquette studies… I heard you received guidance from Retia-sama, who is feared for her strict etiquette, and you even managed to get a letter of recommendation from her.”
“Oh, well, right…”
Wait, Teacher Retia is that famous for being strict with etiquette? I guess it makes sense…
The series of intense drills, like writing a thousand pages instead of a hundred, could be traumatic for some people, I suppose…