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Chapter 89: No Tea Party is complete without some Cake! [Release Version]
🕑 Added 2020-08-03 16:34:43 +0000 UTC“No, I’m serious, you honestly gave me a fat scare when you stabbed me with those two daggers. Those red eyes with the anime-like red mist, and how you scowled at me like a beast was so similar to your garm mother that chills went down my spine. Look at these goosebumps!” I shouted as I dramatically shoved my arms in front of Saori’s face, urging her to look.
“…Your arms are mostly covered in scales, Hestia, and even the bare skin parts are goosebumps-free," Saori said with a glare, pushing my arms away and giving me a swift, but gentle, tap to the head. “Still, was I really that intimidating? I guess I went a bit overboard with how I attacked you. I am sorry.
“Hey, at least you didn’t go crazy and stab me in the stomach or chest, that would be going overboard, I say,” I responded while repeatedly stabbing myself with an imaginary dagger, before checking on the fragassa plant before me. “And besides, I burned one half of your face off. We’re even. Thank goodness that no scar was left behind after I healed you.”
Morning came after I had my fight with Saori and Tasianna. Luckily, Saori’s [Arcane Fever] ended exactly like the first one she had, during the middle of the night, so I still had some time to catch some shut-eye.
After I woke up, Saori and Tasianna had already woken up and prepared breakfast. We ate and were now working in the garden inside our house.
You might have already wondered how we are even able to grow a garden when winter is so close, right? I mean it is late autumn now, after all, and the temperature has gotten so cold that I had to wear an extra layer of clothing just to go out without having to use [Body Temperature Control] to regulate my body.
So how am I able to keep our plants from dying? Well, remember the heater ball that I made? The one that our group would use to heat up our showers and baths?
<Hestia’s Heater Ball: A creation made by Hestia Atsuko. The ball is packed with fire magic inside a thick, stone covering to maximize insulation efficiency>
I, unfortunately, can’t make any more ever since I lost my ability to cast fire spells. Technically, I could use [Symphonie des Feuergottes] to replicate it but the intensity of that spell was unideal. I needed a spell that would create a smaller flame to make it work otherwise the ball itself would explode.
I could encapsulate the spell in a larger and sturdier rock ball but that still hasn’t worked out after multiple attempts. Even putting scale-dust into it was a foolish idea as they always “spark” an explosion before burning.
Thankfully, I made a ton beforehand, so the ones we were using right now were from a month ago. However, as wear and tear affected them, our supply would run out soon if I don’t figure out an alternative.
“You have been doing an amazing job, Tasianna. The plants look healthy and happy,” also tending to the garden, Saori began praising Tasianna who is the one responsible for caring for it.
“Thank you, Miss Saori, your praises warms my heart,” Tasianna replied, wiggling her elven ears in elation. “I am very glad to have obtained [Herbalist] while I was doing this in the Belzac forest. The skill is amazing.”
<Herbalist: A skill that helps the owner in their care of herbs and plants. Allows the user to gauge the needs of a plant and the quality of a plant product. A higher level will increase the precision and information revealed>
Think of the skill as a specialized version of [Identify] that only shows the advance or “hidden” parameters of a plant. Tasianna can learn if the plant had gotten enough water, sun, warmth, carbon dioxide, or even other information like the toxicity of the soil. Some plants even require a certain amount of mana in the ground to grow.
It was an essential skill to have if you wished to cultivate many interesting and fantastical plants you’ve never seen or heard before.
Remember when I told Tasianna that I wanted to grow certain plants? Well, after that moment, we started our very own “garden” inside my storage magic during our stay with the lizardmen. As we always had to move around, we had to put the plants inside pots I made to transport them around.
We would periodically take them outside my storage to let them take in the rays and air if we had the opportunity to. Now that we were here in Carine village, our plants haven’t been inside the storage ever since.
Whether it was fruit or herb plants, they were still growing so we couldn’t harvest anything yet. However, once they reach adulthood, I will make a fragassa cake, I swear…and Tasianna can make more of those coffee tasting leaves. Sounds delightful.
“These will surely produce some money for us if we sell the excess,” Saori suggested, wary of our lacking funds. “Otherwise, they can solve some of our food expenses. Hestia, you and I have pretty large appetites, after all. I believe Mister Kushlek’zar mentioned that recovering Mana would require food.”
If somebody wasn’t affected by [Mana Fever], a status effect that appears when your Mana reaches zero, one would naturally regenerate Mana from the air and using the body’s nutrients as fuel. [Mana Recovery], or similar skills, accelerated the regeneration process but didn’t reduce the cost.
I always thought my large appetite was due to me being a dragon, but I guess my usage of spells and abilities was also a major factor. For example, Mister Kushlek’zar and the two of us could eat as much as the saurian warriors, Krim-Slak, Grazlahta, and Akast despite our smaller bodies. The only exception was Tasianna whose mana body had a different biology compared to ours, so she needed far fewer calories per day even after going crazy with spells.
“Hmmm, you know, why should we sell the product in their raw form?” I mentioned, thinking of the fragassa cake. "Cake, cookies, biscuits, honestly, we can turn everything into pastries and sweets, right? Those have to sell for a higher price, just like a finished good." I suggested with anticipation to be praised, believing this was a great money-making idea.
“Oh, really?” Tasianna responded while tilting her head, showing her confusion at what I said. “Why do you earn more money if you do it that way? Whether you buy pastries or buy the ingredients for it, it should be the same price at the end of the day, correct?”
Oh right, Tasianna is a fairy, a race that doesn’t do transactions with coin. Items and goods were instead traded amongst each other by exchanging favors, labor, or other goods similar to the time before an accepted currency was invented.
The fairies are a carefree race who celebrate a lot, so restricting one’s access to certain food or drinks was seen as crazy. Exclusivity was a foreign word for them as even the royal family would share dwarven and elven delicacies to the populace after they return home from an ambassador mission.
The idea of trading goods and labor for money was unknown to Tasianna, which meant Saori and I had to educate her on that subject. That’s why she didn’t understand the concept of “manufacturing costs” which would increase any finished good’s final price.
The cost of the raw materials used in the production of the product, the cost of labor as time is needed to produce it, and any indirect costs that are required for the production like rent, water, electricity, etc. As the goal of a successful business hinged on the profit you make per product sold, knowing how to calculate this was important.
Impressed that an idol nerd would know this? Well, it’s mostly thanks to Papa and Mama as I too asked them the same question when I was younger. “Why do sweets cost so much when we can just make them ourselves, Mama?”, or “Why do tickets to your Orchestra always cost so much, Papa?” were a few childish questions I asked them, heh heh.
“Hmmm, I think I understand, thank you for your explanation, Lady Hestia,” Tasianna thanked me with a bow after I finished explaining “manufacturing costs” to her. “So, because baking a cake requires so much time, and as we need to create funds from it, increasing the price would be smart?”
“Exactly,” I agreed by showing her an “ok” sign. “Charging for only the raw materials would make no sense because we would be wasting our time. The time we use for the baking process could’ve been used for something else. That’s ‘opportunity cost’.”
I should also thank the economics lessons at school for this as I would otherwise never research it by myself.
“Hmm,” as Tasianna was praising me with “Amazing, as expected from my mistress!”, Saori was pondering on something. “do you really think that is a good idea? The material costs would be high.”
“What do you mean, Saori?” I asked with genuine curiosity. “You are already trading in some of our vegetables, fruits, and meat for stuff like eggs, milk, and grains, right? We will be able to keep the cost down with this, especially with how much meat we have. We might have worried about our winter rations in the Belzac forest, but we still have monster meat from our ‘Idol Concert Strategy’ time.”
Our worry for our depleting storage was a real concern when we were still in the Belzac forest as our daily calorie consumption was immense there. Here in Carine village, I’ve noticed that we have been eating less of our meat and more of the rice and other products we received from the village.
I say it comes from the village, but Colwyn’s family was mostly paying for it. One of the reasons why I couldn’t exactly reject the offer to give a sermon, as our daily rations have enriched our meals.
Now, with our reduced meat consumption, Saori has been going around the village, trading our meat with any products the village could trade-in. I’ve heard from her that villagers would mostly eat dried jerky they made before winter as their main source of protein, so what fresh meat we had was a blessing for them.
They technically had Peolyncian versions of sheep, chickens, and cows, at their home but nobody would think of killing them if meat was still available. Farming animals would produce dairy products like eggs and milk, which would benefit them in the long run. The only animals that would be slaughtered would be pig equivalents. Fatten them up until autumn time and send them to the butcher.
There was the option of hunting monsters and animals, but anything inside a forest was the property of the lord. The saurians and our group have been hunting them but only on the request of Colwyn, where our payment was the monster body itself. Any animals or G rank monsters were to be handed to him, where we would receive additional village products for compensation.
Although I might say any G rank monsters, Colwyn has declined to accept goblin and kobold meat. He called it a sacrilegious act to eat it and showed a bit of disgust when I mentioned that I would keep it as rations. I can understand not wanting to eat them, as they have a peculiar smell, but I wonder why it was ‘sacrilegious’, hmmm.
“The village doesn’t only grow rice, but also wheat, which we can turn into flour. We got some ourselves and if we needed more, we just need to ask. We got eggs and milk, and I believe some of the villagers are turning their milk into cheese, cream, and butter, so no problem on that end. We also have honey and fruits to substitute the sugar part, reducing the costs even more,” I counted out the ingredients. “I like baking a lot, and my mother especially. She taught me how to make homemade yeast and also how to make cake without baking powder. I can promise you a delicious pound cake that would sell easily.”
Saori looked at me for a moment before sighing and muttering, “…Somehow, this might be a foreboding to our future financial problems.”
What is that supposed to mean?
“Fine, I do not know about selling, but we can certainly make it for ourselves,” Saori said in exasperation. “So, what do we do about the oven? You want to make one yourself?”
I thought on the idea for a second before responding, “Hmm, I could, yes, but I think I’ll ask around the village first. There should be a baker around, I think.”
With that decided, Saori and I went outside to find an oven. Tasianna stayed home, as usual, to avoid the villagers and take care of the garden.
I’ve already told Saori and Tasianna about my desire to evolve but until the lord of this land sent our invitation, we didn’t know when I had the time to do so. Saori explained that rejecting or even coming late to a noble’s invitation could mark us as criminals in Earth’s history. As if I wanted to risk that when our village life hasn’t even properly started yet.
So, until that time comes, we could spend our days leisurely. Gotta be responsible here.
“Hey, excuse me, could I ask you something?” I called out to two young women around Lorena’s age, carrying buckets of water from the village’s well.
““Huh?!”” they gasped the moment they saw us, putting their buckets down before greeting us with a prayer bow. The taller woman with the green hair then started to speak, “M’lady Priestess, w-we pray to your health and for gracing us with your time. Excuse us for not noticing you earlier. We thank you so very much for yesterday’s sermon. May the goddess bless your benevolent soul.”
Once the women started saying that, all the villagers around us dropped their hustle-and-tussle and greeted me similarly before excusing themselves and practically running away.
“Urgh,” watching them run caused my heart to ache a bit. “You…I saw you speak with Lorena once. Are you two her friends?”
“Yes!” the smaller, brown-haired woman answered with a shout. “I-I mean, we are, yes, m’lady Priestess. Before the raid, we lived in the same neighborhood and were of the same age, so we naturally became friends. D-Do you need something from her…if I can ask that, of course.”
She’s stuttering and acting extremely nervous in my presence. This is more draining for me, you know?
"Please, do not worry," as I was wallowing in my annoyance at how they were acting to me, Saori suddenly took the helm. "My Lady and I are simply asking where she is as we have a favor to ask for her. She’s a good acquaintance, we do not mean her any harm.”
"O-Oh right, you're Miss Saori, right?" the green-haired woman spoke up, showing more surprise to see Saori than me. "Right, right, Lorena did say that m’lady Priestess saved her and her folks, right? We apologize, we acted quite rude.”
Seeing both of them apologize to me with a bow, a certain sting in my heart reappeared that I haven’t felt since…I reincarnated, “It's ok. No harm done…”
Once they informed us that Lorena was in the fields, we said goodbye to them and went in that direction.
“…Hey, Hestia, are you feeling alright?” on the way, Saori asked me with a brow raised, worry clearly to be seen.
“…Honestly? Annoyed…,” I answered reluctantly, instead of trying to make an excuse. “They aren’t like those bitches from back at school but…”
“You do not like the fact that they are treating you differently, correct? Due to their assumption that you are a noble priestess?” Saori ended my sentence for me, forming a wry smile as she guessed my worries correctly.
“Sigh…yeah…," I uttered meekly. "I don't want them to act so nervously around me. I’m a girl just like, just with a few more benefits. It’s so annoying to see everybody greeting me and then run away as if their life was in danger. It’s not like I even admitted any of their claims, but they're already fully accepted that I was a noble and a priestess. Fuck's sake…”
I don’t know if it could actually be called bullying, but it honestly felt like that when I was training to become an idol, in my past life. The other trainees would tease and annoy me to the point where I just blew up on them, causing my reputation among them to plummet to the point that nobody wanted to have anything to do with me.
And why did they do this to me? ‘Cause my parents were rich and they thought I was given everything on a golden spoon. Sure, I might have a great family but that doesn’t mean I cheated or slacked on my training. I worked as hard as they did ‘cause I honestly wished to become an idol. It wasn’t a spontaneously, rich-girl fancy, but a true aspiration. A calling. My life.
Yes, in this life I became a princess for some reason. I’ve also received Aurena’s, Kargryxmor’s, and, unfortunately, Danterno’s blessings. Doesn’t mean that I want to be treated differently ok? I behave and speak properly not ‘cause I wanted people to revere me but ‘cause my two companions preferred me like this.
“Hie hie, well I am just glad that you are not trying to hide your feelings like in the past,” Saori giggled joyfully, patting my head as if I was a child. “Besides, was it not your fault that they are seeing you in that light? You behaved so gracefully when you first greeted Chief Colwyn, that I personally thought you were doing it with purpose.”
"No, of course not!" I denied it immediately. "Tasianna taught me how to say it to sound more authentic. How could I have known that it was over the top?"
“Then why not do it like me? Talk with everybody. I’ve got to know quite a few people just by trading for some eggs and milk,” Saori suggested.
“Didn’t you see how they tried to avoid me? How can I talk to them if they act so nervous? The only people who were ok to talk to were the people I saved from the bandits, the same people that have become my followers,” I responded. “And even then, I think they’re super anxious around me because I speak formally. But I can’t help it. They are strangers and I feel awkward speaking to them like I would speak to you, Tasianna, or Mister Kushlek’zar.”
I honestly would have liked a few more relationships similar to the one I had with the lizardmen but what can I do?
Leaving the village through the gates, we ventured closer to the river where the farming fields were situated. The fields were completely empty compared to when we first came to the village, with no more crops around, probably having been harvested.
While there weren’t any crops, villagers and animals called equerochs, a mix between horses and oxen, were there plowing the field. Saori and I didn’t know much about farming so we could only stare at them for a moment until the figure of a young woman plucking up a blue balloon-like plant appeared.
“Ahh, Hest-Lady Hestia! Saori!” the moment she saw us, Lorena began waving her hand and ran towards us. “Blessing of the light to you two. Oh, and Lady Hestia, I listened to your sermon yesterday. It was certainly something different than what we usually got but it was pretty nice hearing you sing. Thank you so very much for your blessing. Can I ask why you two are here?”
“Ah, we’re here for you, Lorena, but before I ask my favor; is that a ‘Macula plant’?” I asked, pointing at the two blue balloons she was carrying. “Were you checking for the mana concentration in the area?”
“Huh? These?” Lorena tilted her head as she held onto one of them. “I don’t really know much about them. I just wanted to help out because most of the farmers had to help with the rebuild, and Dad said this was perfect for me. I heard from Chief Colwyn and the farmers that these plants drain mana from the ground and grow up. I’m supposed to take care of them because Lord Count Helvas demands every single one harvested.”
<Macula plant: A plant that absorbs mana from the ground. Depending on the concentration, its growth will vary. High concentration of mana will accelerate growth, while at low concentrations, they will grow slowly. The liquid inside is infused with mana>
Mister Kushlek’zar explained to me these plants were a necessary tool that any mage should carry around in abundance, as they not only drain mana from the ground but can determine how high the mana concentration in the area was. After an excessive use of spells in a single area, especially after a magician duel, the custom was for the mages to put these plant’s seeds down and see how fast they grew.
If it becomes ripe too fast, then it was a clear indication that mana was in overabundance. Too much mana in the area and the risk of a powerful monster spawning was high. The mage had two options in this situation, either drain as much mana in the area as possible with macula plants or report this to the mages and adventurer guilds.
We reported the area around the bandit camp to Colwyn, while we kept draining the area where we trained. Even if a powerful monster were to appear, none have yet, we were there to immediately subdue it. However, we weren’t allowed to completely drain the area of mana as that would slow down or even harm the growth of certain plants. A major reason why I felt the area was so low in mana was due to macula plant draining.
While our training was posing a danger to Carine village, there was a financial incentive why the lord and Colwyn haven't reprimanded us yet. The water these macula plants produced, dubbed “macula water”, was high in mana and was considered an essential component of alchemy.
Well, high-quality mana water was essential, not this one specifically. As these seeds are common and inexpensive to buy while mana water was in high demand, Colwyn explained that his lord would “ignore” what we were doing if we handed in all the macula plants we got.
Thinking about how profitable they were, Saori has been thinking of it as a way to fill our coffers. Get some seeds from Mister Kushlek’zar, drain the area after our training, and then sell them at the nearest town. Unfortunately, we couldn’t just infuse our mana into ordinary water as the water was too impure for use. Shame.
“Anyways, we have a favor to ask you. Do you have time now?” I asked Lorena.
"I still have a few more to pick up but afterward we can talk at my house, if you want," she replied with a sweet smile, showing no sign of the same distrust or anxiousness her two friends had.
“…I’m honestly glad that you’re like this. Really, thanks,” I answered with a wry smile.
“Huh?”
“Oh nothing, come on, I’ll cheer you on while you work. Harriet would probably complain if I helped,” I stated, pushing her forward to the next macula plant.
After wandering among the three giant farming fields of the village, collecting every ripe macula plant, we then proceeded back to the village and gave Lorena’s house a visit.
