Chapter 2 – Part 4

The next morning.

As usual, I was sorting through the teas to serve the Crown Prince when the head maid personally came to the tea storage room.

“She’s doing this again!”

What if the head maid keeps visiting a new employee’s station? It’s going to give the new employee a heart attack.

The head maid called me in a calm voice as I flustered.

“Miss Marnel.”

“Yes, Head maid!”

“Your duties have been expanded starting today.”

“What?”

Again, this sudden news?

“There’s no change in your responsibility for overseeing the Crown Prince’s tea time as usual.”

“Yes….”

“And Her Majesty has ordered that you blend three different teas each week to be sent to the Empress’s palace.”

With the sudden increase in workload, it became hard for me to maintain my composure.

Seeing this, the head maid quickly spoke up.

“Since the workload has increased, your salary has also been raised!”

‘We had a similar conversation just a few days ago.’

Still, it was good news that my salary was increasing.

My face brightened again.

The head maid said to me,

“You will be blending three different teas every week, so you will receive an additional 30 silvers.”

Oh, that means my weekly wage will increase from 1 gold and 92 silvers to 2 golds and 22 silvers. The leading number changes!

“Thank you, Head Maid! I’ll do my best!”

It must have been that the emperor liked the Rote Grütze I served yesterday.

‘The emperor himself has recognized my skills! Well done, Erica! Great job, Erica!’

The head maid, who was very busy, left immediately after finishing her business.

Humming a tune, I rummaged through the cabinet and took out several tea caddies. They were all fresh first flush teas from this year.

Then, in a corner of the tea storage cabinet, I found some green tea leaves that were near their expiration date.

‘It would be a shame to use them as they are, but it would also be wasteful to throw them away.’

After all, these were the finest tea leaves, fit for the crown prince.

The delicate tea buds, neatly arranged, looked very expensive at a glance.

The tea caddy, lavishly decorated with the inlay technique from the Western Kingdom, also looked incredibly expensive.

‘Should I try mixing something with these tea leaves to revive them?’

There were no suitable ingredients in the tea storage room, so I went to Kelsey’s large kitchen and found some brown rice from the Western Kingdom.

I took some, roasted it, and mixed it with the green tea leaves.

“Brown rice green tea, complete!”

When I took a sip, it tasted just as I expected.

“Wow, this tastes really familiar.”

I felt like I had briefly returned to my previous life on Earth.

I decided to serve this brown rice green tea for the crown prince’s tea time after breakfast.

The preparation was similar to usual.

In the small, quiet kitchen, I boiled water, checked the dining room to gauge the timing for serving the tea, and so on.

Meanwhile, I was relieved to see that the prince’s attire was proper today.

‘It’s fortunate, but somehow, it’s a bit disappointing.’

While preparing the tea set, I preheated the teapot and teacups, let the boiling water cool slightly, and made the brown rice green tea.

Behind every perfect tea time I provide, there is this kind of effort.

When I carried the prepared tea set into the dining room on a trolley, the crown prince was finishing his dessert.

‘Nice timing again!’

I gently placed the teacup and saucer in front of the prince and poured the brown rice green tea from the warm teapot.

The roasted brown rice aroma wafted up.

Before I could explain, the prince asked first,

“This seems to be green tea from the Western Kingdom, but the scent is unusual. What did you add to it?”

I couldn’t tell if his comment about the unusual scent was a compliment or a complaint.

I faithfully replied,

“I added brown rice from the Western Kingdom to the green tea from the same place. The roasted grain flavor is its characteristic.”

The crown prince lifted the teacup, appreciated the aroma, and took a sip with his usual serious expression.

With that expression, it was hard to tell if he liked the tea or not.

I anxiously awaited his verdict.

‘It’s okay if he says harsh words, just please don’t fire me…!’

I clasped my hands tightly, waiting for the prince’s words.

‘It tasted quite good when I tried it earlier. What if the brown rice green tea isn’t to his liking?’

If that happens, I’ll be fired.

The prince might throw the teacup, as he did with my predecessor.

I glanced at the teacup in the prince’s hand. Fortunately, it didn’t look like it was going to be thrown yet, but I couldn’t be sure.

‘But honestly, brown rice green tea is delicious!’

Brown rice green tea in the tea world is like hazelnut coffee in the coffee world; most people enjoy it.

Even so, more research would be needed if I were to offer this to the Empress.

Come to think of it, the Empress was very pleased with the tea I served her last time. She even gave special orders to blend tea exclusively for the imperial palace.

‘If I get fired from the crown prince’s palace, I’ll have to try my luck at the Empress’s palace.’

Having to anxiously react to the crown prince’s feedback multiple times a day was nerve-wracking and distressing. At this rate, I might develop stress-induced hair loss.

But I couldn’t afford to lose my job before saving enough money to open my tea shop.

‘As soon as I save 500 gold, I’ll quit right away. I’ll hand in my resignation!’

Just as I was imagining quitting my job at the palace and opening my own tea shop, only to find out that the new employee I hired was the daughter of a rival tea shop owner,

The crown prince finally spoke.

“This is the first time I’ve had tea like this. It’s an unusual combination.”

I still couldn’t tell if it was praise or criticism.

Come to think of it, there was no brown rice green tea here. They don’t seem to drink grain teas either.

In my past life, brown rice green tea was a popular beverage.

But here, it might be considered strange and unusual. This world doesn’t have barley tea or buckwheat tea either.

‘Oh no, have I gone too far ahead of the times…?’

I anxiously observed the prince’s expression.

After taking a few more sips of the brown rice green tea, the prince asked me,

“Did you mix the rice with the green tea from the Western Kingdom because it is also a crop from the Western Kingdom?”

No, I just wanted to make brown rice green tea. The kind I drank in my past life.

But I couldn’t answer honestly.

Feeling cornered, I ended up saying something obsequious.

“Th-that’s right, Your Highness. You are correct! You have a sharp eye, haha.”

I forced a laugh, trying not to show my nervousness.

Then the prince’s expression brightened.

“Indeed, I see.”

It seemed the obsequious remark pleased him.

‘Please let this tea time pass without incident!’

As I waited for the prince to finish his tea, more questions came pouring in.

“Then how did you determine the ratio of green tea leaves to rice? Is there a special method?”

Why is this guy so curious about everything?

I heard that this crown prince asked a lot of questions right up until the moment he fired my predecessor, just like he’s doing to me now.

When he fired Libby, he also questioned her about the material of the new curtains she had hung.

Among the palace staff, it was common knowledge that if you answered the prince’s sudden questions incorrectly and annoyed him, you would be fired immediately.

Every question he asked put me on edge, making the stress unbearable.

‘Will I get a stress-induced ulcer first, or will I save up 500 gold and quit?’

The finicky prince continued to bombard me with questions such as, ‘What do you call this type of green tea? Can white rice be used instead of brown rice? Which do you prefer? And what is your favorite tea?’

Every time, I had to come up with answers that would satisfy him, leaving me completely exhausted.