The Butler
Maryne returned to her room.
She immediately sat at her desk and spread out some paper.
A sales plan for macarons.
Where to sell them.
What price to set.
How much to produce.
She filled in numbers, drawing on all the knowledge from her previous life.
(Hmm. As I thought, running a business alone is extremely difficult.)
That’s what Maryne concluded.
So, she decided to recruit help.
Maryne called for her personal butler.
“You called for me, Lady Maryne?”
“Yes. Come in.”
At her words, a man entered.
Her personal butler, Rhinos.
Height: 174 centimeters.
Twenty-four years old.
Black hair.
Sharp yet gentle eyes. Gray irises.
He was Maryne’s personal butler.
He handled assistance, education, and protection.
“Rhinos. I have something important to discuss.”
“What is it?”
“I’ve decided to start a business!”
“… Pardon?”
“I have a plan to make money through sweets. I’ll procure ingredients, make products, and sell them.”
The statement was so unexpected that Rhinos was momentarily at a loss.
But Maryne continued.
“Of course, starting a sweets business requires initial capital. Ingredients, startup costs, labor, there are all sorts of expenses. However, I have the inheritance my father left me. If I use that, I believe I can begin right away.”
“...…”
I see…
Little by little, Rhinos began to understand.
“A business, is it…”
He murmured under his breath as he thought.
(Lady Maryne must have been thinking about the future in her own way. That things cannot continue like this…)
Maryne’s mother had died seven years ago, and her father had succumbed to illness half a year ago.
At present, House Flamsteed had no one managing it.
Those who once maintained close ties had already judged the house to be finished, cutting off relations one after another.
The work and income they had brought in were steadily disappearing as well.
At this rate, collapse was inevitable.
That was why Maryne must have been thinking of something she could do, for the sake of the house, or for herself…
That was Rhinos’s conclusion.
(However, one must not choose the wrong approach. It is admirable that she wishes to save this house… but a business conceived by an eight-year-old child cannot possibly succeed. I must steel myself and stop her!)
The inheritance left by Maryne’s father was the lifeline of House Flamsteed.
If it were squandered, it would be the end.
Resolving himself, Rhinos moved to intervene.
“Lady Maryne. If I may, business is…”
“This is the product!”
Rhinos was cut off.
What Maryne held out was a small, round confection.
There were two kinds, pink and indigo.
“They’re called macarons. I made them myself. Please, do try one.”
Before he knew it, a macaron had been placed in Rhinos’s hand.
(I ended up accepting it…)
He gave a wry smile inwardly.
(Well, it’s not too late to have her reconsider after I try this.)
With that thought, Rhinos examined the macaron.
(… It doesn’t look bad.)
The macaron in his palm.
The pink one was vividly colored and charming in shape.
Still, Maryne had no experience in confectionery.
Regardless of appearance, the taste would surely be amateurish at best…
Thinking that, he took a bite.
“…!?”
Rhinos’s eyes flew open.
A crisp outer shell.
A smooth interior that melted gently on the tongue.
The rich sweetness and tartness of strawberry spread throughout his mouth.
“Th-this is delicious!? What is this…!?”
The words slipped out before he could stop them.
“Right? Right? It’s delicious, isn’t it?”
Maryne said proudly.
But Rhinos’s shock was far greater than she imagined.
… For Maryne, macarons were a nostalgic taste.
She had eaten them many times in her previous life.
So even when she found them delicious, she regarded them as something almost ordinary.
But for Rhinos, it was different.
In all his life, he had never experienced such a flavor or texture.
“The blue ones have a different flavor, so please try those as well.”
She handed him an indigo macaron next.
Rhinos took a bite.
“…!”
The texture was the same as before.
But this time, the flavor of blueberry spread through his mouth.
The different balance of sweetness and tartness from the strawberry made him marvel.
(This one is delicious too…!)
Exquisite.
Strawberry macarons and blueberry macarons.
Unable to stop himself, Rhinos kept reaching for more, finishing them in no time.
What do you think about this chapter?
