The Youngest Daughter Of The Great Wizard Of The Famous Swordsmanship [EN]: Chapter 110

110. A Tense Tea Party

February 18, 2024

“I can’t think of anything.”

Rosette, who had been pondering various gift options, collapsed onto the table. Pipi, who had been chattering beside her, tugged at her hair, urging her to get up.

“Ouch, Pipi. Stop it.”

[Pee-ip!]

Snap out of it! There’s not much time left!

At Pipi’s urging, Rosette pulled herself together and lifted her head again. Pipi, seemingly satisfied, pecked at the biscuit crumbs.

[Peep, peep.]

She even hummed a little tune, as if in a good mood.

Rosette’s eyes sparkled as she watched her.

“That’s right, I’ve got an idea.”

[Peep?]

“You know, Pipi? Sometimes, a bowl of warm chicken soup can soothe people’s hearts.”

[Pee-ip?]

Pipi questioned what on earth she was talking about, but Rosette, undeterred, left the room and headed to the kitchen.

“What can I do for you, miss?”

Rosette cautiously asked the chef, who greeted her warmly.

“Could you make a cake for me?”

“A cake? Of course! If it’s for you, miss, I can make it with all my heart anytime! What kind of cake would you like?”

“Actually, it’s not for me to eat.”

Rosette looked around and whispered in the chef’s ear. The chef’s face paled the moment he heard, ‘It’s for the Empress.’

“H-Her Majesty……”

“Shhh.”

Rosette quickly made a shushing sound, and the chef closed his mouth. After rolling his eyes for a moment, he muttered in an uncertain voice.

“Miss, I can confidently say that I make desserts better than any chef in the Empire. But I don’t know how I compare to the palace’s professional patissiers.”

“So?”

“I can make a cake, but wouldn’t it be inadequate to give to Her… I mean, to that person?”

Rosette shrugged and affirmed.

“It’s okay. I think she’ll like it.”

“‘Think’?”

“Actually, I wanted to bring back a memory of her hometown.”

“A memory of her hometown……”

“Yeah. I was thinking of making a dessert from the Ivelin Kingdom.”

“A dessert from the Ivelin Kingdom?”

The chef tried to manage his expression, but failed. He ended up furrowing his brow slightly.

‘Well, that’s understandable.’

The Ernhardt Empire had many well-developed desserts. They not only tasted good but were also beautifully decorated.

On the other hand, the Ivelin Kingdom’s desserts were not very developed, and even the ones they had were considered crude.

When the two countries were on bad terms, the Ernhardt Empire people would insult them, saying, ‘Do you eat those desserts and become just as dense-headed?’

But Rosette’s thoughts were different.

‘It’s true that they’re crude, but they have their own charm.’

Above all, Ophelia had eaten those desserts since she was young and was used to them.

Even if she missed the taste, she probably couldn’t bring herself to ask the palace patissier. They would gossip that she was from the Ivelin Kingdom and didn’t know anything about desserts.

“It’ll be fine. I’ll take care of the aftermath.”

“Yes. I understand for now.”

“Do you know the recipe?”

“You should be able to find Ivelin Kingdom recipe books on the market.”

“Okay, I understand. Ah! Don’t do much decorating. Make it like a real Ivelin Kingdom cake.”

At Rosette’s request, the chef still looked reluctant but nodded.

* * *

Time passed quickly, and Ophelia’s birthday arrived. Rosette carefully held the cake box that the chef had handed her and got into the carriage.

The chef had doubted until the end whether it was really okay, but Rosette was confident.

‘Of course, there are other gifts besides the cake.’

Rosette was fondly stroking the cake box when Ines Rivera, who was in the carriage with her, asked.

“Are you giving the Empress a cake, Rosette?”

“Yes. I prepared a cake from the Ivelin Kingdom. I thought she might miss it.”

“I see.”

“What did you prepare, Ines?”

“Ah, me?”

Ines showed the box she had next to her.

“Actually, it’s nothing special.”

“What is it?”

“There’s a skilled sculptor in our territory. I asked him to carve a small statue of the goddess Asella [a prominent deity in their religion] to put next to the bed.”

She mumbled shyly.

“I put the highest quality emeralds from our territory in the eyes of the goddess Asella.”

“That’s amazing! How can you say it’s nothing special! It’s really great.”

Rosette whispered sincerely.

“It must be so pretty. I want to see it, but I’ll have to see it at the Empress’s palace later.”

As they had a light conversation, the carriage arrived at the Empress’s palace.

The two, escorted by the royal knights, got out of the carriage and headed to the Empress’s palace.

The garden of the Empress’s palace was simple but neatly decorated. Vases filled with lush bouquets were placed on tables covered with white cloths, and neat cutlery was prepared.

Some of the young ladies and wives who were already seated and chatting noticed Rosette and Ines and showed interest.

“Oh my, it’s Lady Rivera and Princess Adrian. It’s nice to meet you.”

The two greeted the people and sat in their assigned seats. Thanks to Ophelia’s consideration, they were able to sit together.

Rosette handed the box to a maid who came to receive the gifts and whispered.

“It’s a cake. Could you bring it out during the refreshment time later?”

“I understand. I’ll ask the kitchen.”

Ines also gave the box to the maid, and then the two chatted with the people.

At that moment, people noticed someone entering the garden and fell silent. The garden became as quiet as a mouse in an instant.

The woman with reddish-brown hair walking confidently with a maid, Princess Lillis, was wearing a glamorous dress as if she were the main character of today’s tea party. The maid was, of course, Elisha.

There was a stir among the people who recognized Elisha. Princess Lillis, unconcerned, whispered something to Elisha and sent her to the waiting room.

‘Why is Princess Lillis here?’

Rosette, exchanging questioning glances with Ines for a moment, could guess what had happened.

‘The Empress must have invited her.’

The Lillis family was one of the top families in the Empire. So, of course, the Lillis family would send someone to Ophelia’s birthday tea party.

So Ophelia must have sent an invitation to the Lillis family first. She probably didn’t expect Princess Lillis to come in person.

Some people looked around and welcomed Princess Lillis.

“It’s been a while, Princess. You are still beautiful.”

“The roses blooming brightly in the garden will wither at your beauty, Princess.”

On the other hand, some people were sitting in their seats with a slightly sullen expression. Rosette and Ines were just such cases.

The difference in attitude showed which family was supporting which prince.

At that time, Princess Lillis approached Rosette with an elegant gait. Rosette and Ines had no choice but to get up from their seats.

“We meet again, you two.”

Princess Lillis winked.

“If I have the chance next time, I’d like to invite you two to my tea party. What do you think?”

Ines answered first.

“I would be honored if you invited me, Princess.”

Rosette also answered.

“I’d like that too, Princess Lillis.”

Princess Lillis laughed loudly at Rosette’s bold title once again.

“Good. I’ll invite you two soon. By the way, what kind of gifts did you two prepare?”

Her cat-like, coy eyes scanned Ines. Ines naturally turned the conversation around.

“You’ll see in a little while, Princess.”

“Yes. The Rivera family is famous for its many artists, so you probably prepared a good gift. I’ll look forward to it.”

It was as if she were the main character of the birthday, if anyone heard her.

Fortunately, the servant announced at that time.

“Her Majesty the Empress is here.”

Everyone stood up, and Princess Lillis also walked to her assigned seat.

As always, Ophelia, dressed plainly, appeared. However, her silver hair, shining subtly in the sunlight, never looked plain.

“Welcome, everyone. I’m just grateful that you all came such a long way, even though it’s nothing special.”

“No, we should definitely come to celebrate.”

“Everyone, please sit down. How about enjoying tea and talking for now?”

“Yes.”

As everyone sat down, the maids began to bring out refreshments. Rosette glanced at Ophelia, who was sitting next to her.

‘She definitely looks worse than last time.’

She must be very tired because of Joshua’s departure.

“Why are you looking at me like that, Princess?”

“No, it’s just that you look more beautiful today.”

“Oh my, the Princess says such pretty things.”

Ophelia smiled and talked to other people as well.

When the atmosphere was ripe to some extent, the time came to give gifts directly to Ophelia.

Ophelia opened the gifts one by one and expressed her gratitude.

Before long, it was Ines’s turn. She received the box from the maid and carefully approached Ophelia. She knelt down on one knee in front of Ophelia and whispered shyly.

“It’s nothing special, but I put my heart into it.”

Ophelia, who opened the box, exclaimed, “Oh my.”

“This is a statue of the goddess Asella. It’s so pretty.”

The statue of the goddess that Ophelia took out was certainly pretty. The marble was white with no other colors mixed in, and the emeralds embedded in the goddess’s eyes shone beautifully.

“I needed a statue of the goddess to put next to my bed anyway, so this is perfect. Thank you.”

“You are most gracious, Your Majesty.”

Finally, it was Rosette’s turn. Rosette knelt down on one knee in front of Ophelia, holding one large box and one small box.

“Two?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Rosette handed over the small box first. In fact, this was prepared by Isabel, and it was an amethyst earring that went well with Ophelia’s eye color.

“Thank you. I will use it well.”

“And this……”

Instead of giving the large box to Ophelia, Rosette handed it to the maid. The maid took the cake out of the box and placed it on the table where Ophelia was sitting.

A cake with cream and strawberry jam spread between the sheets without any special decoration. Unlike the moist cakes of the Ernhardt Empire, the sheets were as dry as pound cake.

Ophelia recognized it at a glance.

“This is Amelie Cake.”

It was a cake named after Ophelia’s grandmother.

Some people, including Princess Lillis, held back their laughter. But Ophelia had a look of emotion. She covered her mouth with her hand and muttered.

“How did you think of preparing this?”

“When I was in the Ivelin Kingdom, I missed the food of the Empire. I thought Your Majesty would feel the same way.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Ophelia ordered the servant to cut a piece of cake. Then, she shared it little by little so that others could taste it as well.

“Thank you.”

Ophelia carefully took a bite of the cake and brought it to her mouth. Princess Lillis, who was sitting across from her, did not eat the cake, but instead watched her with a subtle smile.