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Chapter 54 Part 9 – The second princess of Hydrangea, Margaret, invades.

「…… Stop that!! It’s really scary!! That’ll make them think that I’m a devil!!」

Margaret made the frightening suggestion so casually that it made me tremble.
Margaret’s father is His Majesty the King!! Don’t just so simply make him move!!

Margaret just implicitly suggested that together with His Majesty the King, Margaret will storm into Countess Rosenthal’s ballroom, and on the pretext of abusing my mother, they are going to crush Countess Rosenthal’s faction!? That’s so scary!! You are the second princess!! What kind of 10-year-old girl would casually use the word 「execution」 in a conversation!?

If you really do that, the world will definitely misunderstand me as a heinous toddler who uses her own mother as bait to influence the highest power in the kingdom in order to destroy Countess Rosenthal.

「Ah, is that so …… what a pity. Let me know ahead of time if you want to kill Countess Rosenthal. I’ll have to make some arrangements so that the royal family can confiscate her territory. Or perhaps would it have already been arranged that the territory would fall into the hands of Duke Wilhelm?」

「There’s no way we’d do that!! I told you that we’re just going to participate in the masquerade ball!! I’m already content that our family has a territory where I can stay and become a shut-in!!」

「I’m kidding. Well, I’m going to leave now. Give my regards to your mother. When I hugged her earlier, I took the chance to check her muscle tone and it looks like she’s working hard on the dance. I wish you the best of luck.」

So scary, she pretended to be an innocent child, while she was actually probing around.

Margaret winked mischievously at me as I rushed to send her off.

「I prefer a quick goodbye. That way it’s easier to visit again soon. For example, tomorrow. See you next time, my future husband. Next time, please send me off with a kiss, not with words. Also, I’d like to hear about all the things you’re hiding from me, like where you’re getting your knowledge from, I’d be very interested in that.」

Goeeehhhhh!!
No, please don’t. Please make it once a week at most. I screamed inside my heart.
Margaret dashingly walked away. The imperial guards realized that the conversation was over, so they nodded and conveyed their farewells with their eyes to me and quickly followed after her. Silence fell. It was as if a storm had suddenly come and gone.

「…… Thank you for waiting!! Eh? Did the princess leave already?」

「She just left. You should have come sooner.」

Bradd appeared from the opposite direction while pushing a kitchen wagon.
How long did this idiot maid take to prepare the tea?
Thanks to that, I had to endure the pressure alone.

I stared at the wagon full of tea sets with resentment. A three-tiered tea stand was piled high with sweets and a flower vase filled with flowers. Tapered candles in silver candlesticks. Champagne glasses, goblets, champagne and water are a given, but why did you even prepare a wine cooler for the champagne? Is this picture in a silver frame supposed to be for decoration?　Were you planning to decorate the walls? Obviously, this is overkill. Did this guy try to prepare the tea time according to the formalities? Of course he was going to be late. Well, I guess I have no choice but to give in.

「Hey, Bradd, what’s that thing standing tall inside the teacup?」

「Well, since it was supposed to be served to the princess, I thought I should have a decorative napkin to surprise her with.」

A decorative napkin is a napkin that is folded to make the shape of a flower or accordion.

「…… Where in the world does one fold a napkin into the shape of a horse? I mean, how did you manage to fold it like that!? It’s amazing though!! It’s amazing that this thing can stand up without falling over!!」

Inside the cup was a horse made of a napkin, with its forelimbs raised in a brave manner as if it was about to neigh. It’s just natural that you’d run out of time since you were folding these napkins. What with this marvelous mechanism!! I sighed as I looked at Bradd, who looked downhearted and disappointed that he had been too excited about preparing the tea and had failed to make it in time, and that all his preparation had ended in vain.

「I’m so tired since I had to accompany Princess Margaret. I hope someone will make me a nice cup of tea.」

「……!! Leave it to me. I’ll make you an extraordinary cup of tea.」

Full of smiles, Bradd quickly spread the tablecloth and set out the tableware and cutlery.
By the way, Bradd has hardly moved from in front of the kitchen wagon. He nimbly released the dishes so that it would fly narrowly above the cutlery and set them up just like glasses sliding on a bar counter. It’s like a magic trick. This technique was at a level where it would earn him money. If Margaret had seen it, she would have been delighted.

Oh, that reminds me, Margaret said she wanted Bradd. If she saw such an unusual technique, she might be even more serious about asking for it. Since that girl also likes to have fun. Isn’t it pretty amazing that he’s so desired by the next queen of Hydrangea?

「…… I won’t give him to you, though. Because he’s mine.」

「…… What are you talking about?」

I unintentionally muttered it out loud.
Bradd asked me curiously as he brewed the tea, but I didn’t answer. I just tilted my teacup, sipped it, and smiled.

「You’ve improved a lot. But I think the aroma is still a little less than what your master, Mary, makes. When I’m a little older, I’ll wholeheartedly make you a cup of tea. You’ve been so good to me, I’d be happy to do that much.」

You should watch and learn.

Mary’s tea is delicious, but she is not good at teaching people because she is an intuitive type of person. She gently teached with a smile, 「Pour the hot water in small dribbles and watch the tea leaves as they float and dance around in the water, then all you have to do is wait.」 Yup, I don’t understand it at all. Matzo happened to be visiting, so he watched the scene, folded his arms, and nodded. He said, 「As expected of Miss Mary’s explanation. This is just like a martial art. It is quite …… deep!!」, while being impressed, but I’m not sure if he really knows what he’s talking about …… Mary seemed shy with blushing cheeks, but you shouldn’t trust that compliment too much.

In this area, I am perfect. Although often misunderstood, it is the role of the hostess to welcome guests with tea at a nobles’ tea party. If she had a servant pour tea at a formal tea party, she would be considered a crazy person. Since the noblewomen have to pour the tea themselves, they would never want to serve anything strange, so they are naturally well versed in the art of making tea.
…… Well, mother is an exception ……

However, as I am now, my arms and legs are too short, my eye level is too low, and I am not strong enough to brew tea properly with the existing tea utensils. There is another way, which is to make a miniature container, but I don’t think it is necessary to go that far and there is a risk that my senses may be off. So, unfortunately, my tea technique is sealed until I have grown to a certain extent.

…… That was what I meant to say, but Bradd was scratching the back of his head and looking shy.

「Somehow I feel shy. You don’t have to be so concerned about me. Ahh, I know. There’s no deeper meaning to it, just that you’re grateful. But it doesn’t feel bad. Scarlet is going to become a beautiful woman in the future, so I’ll look forward to it.」

What is this cross-dressing maid talking about so happily?　

I was suspicious about Bradd’s response so I asked him about it. I was surprised and blushed when I heard Bradd’s explanation. According to the custom of the〈Lawless Crew〉, when a girl says to the opposite sex, 「I’ve been in your care, so I’d like to make you some tea」, it is a metaphor that means, 「Thank you for always caring about me. I want to be the one to heal you.」 In other words, it is a confession or a proposal from a woman. Incidentally, it is also the most popular line that fathers want their daughters to say to them, in which case it means, 「I want to be papa’s wife in the future.」

Hmm, it’s a very reserved and yet nice word that gives a girl a chance to express their love …… But noooo ……!! I have no intention of doing that!! I didn’t know about that strange custom. I really didn’t know!!