Anyway, no matter how excellent the service is, the most important thing in a cafe is the coffee, right? Now, let’s elegantly lift the cup and take a sip…

Ladies, I apologize for a moment. I was briefly at a loss for words. It’s because of this coffee that, with just one sip, offers a creaminess I’ve never experienced even in the capital’s finest cafes.

Despite being the cheapest option, ‘Today’s Coffee’, its quality is no less than other famous cafes. Shall we take a look at the desserts that our dear ladies would be most interested in?

Oh my, custard fruit pie. How novel. I’ve eaten countless pies as a hobby of discovering new cafes, but I’ve never heard of a pie with this name. Let’s try it. Will it offer a taste worthy of this splendid place?

The answer will be revealed shortly. Three, two, one… Oh my goodness!

With various fruits on top and mixed with custard cream, it offers a heavenly taste. The pastry, harmoniously blended with cream, balances what could have been an overwhelming flavor. It would be a shame if only I, Tiana, were to enjoy such a delightfully delicious dessert, wouldn’t it?

Ladies, let’s rush to Saturn Street right away!

<Cafe Aria> is waiting for you!

*I swear that I wrote this column without receiving any compensation from the cafe in question – Tiana Ficet.

The scrap of paper, which might have been better left unseen, contained three important facts. First, the not-so-surprising news that <Cafe Aria> had succeeded. Second, the news that Aria had created a new menu item that sounded delicious even just reading about it. And lastly…

A subtle undercurrent with a dignified gentleman, was it? Theodore’s eyes narrowed. Certainly, in her old neighborhood, Aria hadn’t hired a single employee. It was understandable that she might increase staff as customers increased after moving to Saturn Street.

But to hire a suspicious character described as a dignified gentleman… Theodore wasn’t foolish enough to take the column literally, but it was likely true that their relationship seemed quite close.

‘Miss Bertin didn’t seem like someone who would easily let others get close.’

Theodore’s mood sank low. Of course, he didn’t need to worry about Elodie’s safety, who would be securely staying at the Duke’s mansion. But Aria Bertin was someone his daughter was very fond of.

It was not good news at all that a suspicious person was staying by her side. For Elodie’s sake, it would be good to look into it. Thinking that he should write a letter to send to the Duke’s mansion first thing in the morning, he crossed the corridor with quick steps.

***

“…What did you just say?”

Theodore Baniche glared at the servant with a hard gaze. The servant who had just reported visibly shrank, but Theodore paid no attention to it.

“Did you say that Miss Bertin was treated disrespectfully? By my head butler, no less?”

“He, he mistook her for a nanny, so it’s hard to say it was disrespect…”

“That’s not the issue.”

Theodore’s words were as cold as ice. He was intentionally maintaining his composure, thinking that he couldn’t lose his reason over such a trivial matter.

“Miss Bertin clearly explained that she wasn’t a nanny. It was the head butler who ignored her words.”

The head butler, Eric Frecher, was one of the few people left in the Duke’s mansion that he had judged to be trustworthy.

To the extent that he had reached the position of head butler, which is usually attained only in one’s later years and held as an honorary position for just a few years before retirement, at just the beginning of his middle age.

“Wh-what will you do?”

The servant was now trembling so much that it would have looked pitiful to others. Of course, to Theodore, it just looked pathetic. He let out a sigh and uttered one word.

“…Nothing.”

“Pardon?”

“I don’t plan to do anything right now.”

“Are, are you sure?”

“But I do need to make the inspection more efficient.”

Theodore’s eyes scanned the remaining inspection schedule. Seven places left. Fortunately, checking on the noble families’ situations ended with Baron Penack.

Therefore, the detailed schedule consisted of the borders of uninhabited territories. A typical schedule with long travel times.

“Three days will be enough.”

“Your Grace, if I may, it’s a schedule that would easily take ten days!”

“…”

As he glared again, the servant quietly closed his mouth. Theodore sighed and tucked the parchment scroll into his chest. He already had the map of the duchy in his head. If he wanted to return to Elodie as quickly as possible, it would be best to leave right now.

“Tell the others to wait at the Baron’s residence.”

“Surely, you don’t intend to go alone?”

“I do.”

“Your Grace, it’s dangerous!”

Theodore raised the corner of his mouth, but his reddish eyes weren’t smiling at all.

“Dangerous to whom?”

***

“Aria!”

Elodie came running towards me, almost bouncing. She was vigorously waving something in her hand.

“This, Elodie made it for Aria!”

I carefully examined the piece of paper fluttering between Elodie’s fingers.

“Oh my, it’s a broom?”

It was a paper broom that had clearly been cut and pasted with great effort.

“Yes.”

Elodie nodded firmly.

“Windy will sweep for you instead.”

“Windy?”

I smiled, stroking Elodie’s head with one hand while receiving the paper broom with the other. Maybe it was my imagination, but I felt a slight vibration in my hand.

“Wow, it really looks like a real broom. You must have worked hard to make this, didn’t you?”

Elodie pouted.

“It doesn’t really look like a real broom… but I did work hard.”

“Oh come on, you did a great job.”

I carefully tucked Elodie’s gift into my apron pocket.

“Thank you. This will give me strength every time I clean.”

“Really? Do you really like it, Aria?”

Elodie tilted her head and studied my expression. My heart ached at this simple action.

‘She’s looking for approval.’

I looked Elodie in the eyes and answered seriously.

“Of course. This is the first time I’ve received such a cute broom, how could I not like it?”

Just as Elodie broke into a wide, toothy grin.

“…Good morning.”

Eric entered the shop, greeting with a displeased face. His mood always seemed bad, so I greeted him cheerfully, paying no mind to it.

“Welcome. You’re early today, aren’t you?”

Eric’s arrival time was always the same. Neither late nor early for the appointed time of 9 o’clock. So it was strange that he came not just ten minutes, but a whole hour earlier today.

“Yes.”

Eric nodded.

“I have some work to do.”

“What kind of work?”

Instead of answering, Eric moved towards the tables lined up in a row.

“I’ve been thinking about this since I first saw it, but all the positions are crooked.”

He knelt in front of the nearest table and gauged its position.

“The angles need to be perfectly aligned. It’s an eyesore like this.”

“Really? They all looked fine to me.”

“Not to my eyes.”

Eric said firmly and began to change the position of the tables.

‘Well, if he wants to do it.’

I observed him nonchalantly. There’s no reason for me to stop him if he wants to do it himself. Moreover, it would be a bit odd to tell him not to touch anything when he’s even gone to the trouble of coming to work an hour early.

“The position of the paintings is also a bit off.”

Just when I thought he might take a break after finishing the table adjustments, Eric continued to look around the cafe, pointing out areas for improvement.

“This sculpture…”

He stroked his chin in front of a sculpture with an abstruse form.

“It’s too much to His Grace’s taste. It would be better to put it in storage.”

Oh, so that’s why it’s here? It was the Duke of Baniche’s taste?

Worried that the Duke might be upset if he returned to find his cherished sculpture gone, I tried to dissuade Eric for a moment.

“But isn’t it expensive?”

“It’s expensive, but it disrupts the balance of the shop’s interior.”

“Ah, I see.”

I immediately agreed with his words. The Duke’s taste might be refined, but it was completely at odds with the cafe’s lavish yet classic atmosphere. After that, Eric continued to move incessantly, reorganizing the positions of various objects. Exactly 45 minutes later. He stood up straight and turned to look at me.

“How is it? Much better, right?”

Though his smug tone was annoying, I smiled brightly at him.