Chapter Fifty-two: A Toast
“I’m done with work! Now I can drink without holding back!”
Just as the room decorations were finished, Natalia burst in.
Today was a party celebrating Karen’s successful quest completion and promotion to E-rank. The venue was Karen’s home.
Usually, such occasions call for inviting many friends and acquaintances, but most of Karen’s childhood friends were also acquaintances of Lyos—the same people who had applauded when he broke off his engagement with Karen and announced his engagement to Marian. Since there wasn’t anyone in particular she wanted to invite, Karen didn’t bother renting a venue. Instead, she simply apologized to the neighbors for any noise and decided to hold the party at her own home.
“Good work, Natalia.”
“Karen, you’re the one we’re celebrating, but I still ended up making you help with the food. Sorry about that. I bought various things from the market, so let’s dig in!”
As Natalia spread out the food she had bought—mostly things she wanted to eat—Sara arrived as well.
“Welcome, Ms. Sara!”
“Just Sara. This is a gift for you, Lady Karen.”
“Oh, is this the wine you prepared? Thank you, Ms. Sara! Honestly, can’t we just stick with ‘Ms. Sara’?”
“You call Natalia without any formalities, yet I, who am also your friend, get addressed with ‘Ms.’…?”
“W-Wait, that’s not fair!”
As Sara’s eyes welled up with tears, Karen clutched her head in frustration.
Natalia laughed and cheered as Karen opened the box of liquor she had received from Sara.
“Amazing! This is Gotthard wine—even nobles have trouble getting their hands on this!”
“Is it good wine?”
“Of course! Even nobles rarely get to drink it!”
“It’s a congratulatory gift from the head of the house.”
“Karen, we made the right choice letting Ms. Sara handle the drinks!”
“Don’t drink too much, Natalia.”
“As long as I can do my job, it doesn’t matter if I’m drunk!”
Natalia showed no remorse for pushing forward that blatantly self-indulgent demand regarding Karen’s acceptance of the Ehlertt family’s commission.
By the way, in this extremely meritocratic society, being drunk isn’t an issue as long as you produce results at work.
“Lady Alise and Master Sieg wanted to come to celebrate with you, Lady Karen, but they worried that their presence might make things awkward for your friends. So, they decided to refrain. That said, Master Sieg still wants to congratulate you, so let’s coordinate schedules for that.”
“That’s so sweet of them… By the way, what happened with Marian?”
There had been no word from her since then. While Karen was grateful that Sara had volunteered to help with this unsolvable problem, she couldn’t help but worry about whether it was causing her trouble.
“We’ve had Marian organize a victims’ association. She’s gathering people who, like you, were unreasonably crushed and robbed by the Gubert Company, to file complaints. Not that the company is willing to acknowledge any wrongdoing.”
“A victims’ association…”
Karen repeated, dumbfounded.
“I thought if I forgave her, that would be the end of it…”
But thinking about it, Marian only came to apologize because she knew Karen had gained the backing of the Ehlertt family, not because she felt remorse. Therefore, there was no way she would apologize to other victims the same way.
“Not many people can just forgive and move on like you, Lady Karen. Since these individuals are very vulnerable on their own, the Ehlertt family is protecting them from being harmed by the Gubert Company while Marian works to fulfill their wishes.”
“Will their complaints be successful?”
“It’s quite difficult. The words of those in weak positions are rarely believed, and even if they are, many would argue that it’s not a strong enough reason to go against a major trading company like Gubert. That said, it will still put some pressure on them.”
“Will that be enough to help the victims?”
“Since their complaints won’t be accepted, they’re becoming exhausted. But, sadly, that’s the reality of the situation.”
“…Would things change if I filed a complaint?”
Sara looked puzzled at Karen’s words.
“Don’t you want to avoid getting involved anymore, Lady Karen?”
“Yes, but…”
“Then it’s best to proceed as you feel. You have wonderful alchemical skills, so please focus on your alchemy. However, we could still sue the Gubert Company for recipe theft if you wish. Should we do that? I will certainly bring you victory.”
“I’d rather not. Marian sold herself to prevent that from happening.”
“Marian is a criminal, so any promise made to her holds no meaning. We didn’t put it in writing, so there’s no problem if we break it.”
That was likely because, to the Ehlertt family, Marian was nothing more than a powerless figure. Karen held her head in her hands. She had thought this would end with just her situation. She had thought an apology would be enough, but Sara and Natalia said it involved Ehlertt Earldom’s honor too. So she had entrusted Marian’s custody to them. But she never imagined it would develop into such a big issue, with the Ehlertt family being left to handle the problem.
“Lady Karen, as someone with the power to protect this nation, you have the right to live freely. If it’s something you truly want to do, that’s one thing, but there is nothing you are obligated to do. Please, don’t concern yourself with this matter.”
Sara gave a troubled smile. Feeling a disconnect in their values and not wanting to make Sara more uncomfortable, Karen kept quiet.
“Let’s have a toast already! Cheers!”
Natalia’s cheerful voice rang out from the kitchen. With a bouncy step, she returned to the living room carrying a tray.
“Here, I’ve poured the wine.”
“Wow! What are those fancy glasses?!”
On the tray she carried were three unfamiliar glasses. They had beautiful cut patterns and were decorated with gold on the stems.
“Hehe. Wine tastes better in glass cups, don’t you think? Your home only has wooden cups, so I bought these.”
“You mean as a celebration gift?”
“Yes. It was okay to use them right away, right?”
“Of course! Thank you, Natalia!”
Indeed, this was a celebration. She should focus on that instead. They each took up their glasses and raised them. Karen cleared her throat to propose the toast.
“Well then… to completing the request and my promotion to E-rank alchemist!”
“To Lady Karen who accepted Master Sieg’s request, and to Ms. Natalia who approved it.”
“To new friends!”
“Cheers!”
After lightly clinking their glasses, they took sips of wine.
“Wow, it really is delicious…! It’s the kind you can drink way too easily. Sara, be careful not to drink too much. You’re only about thirteen, right?”
“I’m sixteen.”
“You’re older than I thought!?”
“This is delicious!”
While Karen was shocked, Natalia let out a cheer.
“Karen, this biscuit and paste combo is absolutely delicious. It’s like it was made for wine!”
“The rillettes are good, aren’t they? It’s a dish made by sautéing boar-type monster meat with garlic and salt, and then solidifying it with animal fat.”
“Eating that will definitely make me gain weight and drink more!”
Even while saying this, Natalia kept munching away and enjoying the wine.
“The curry is very delicious.”
“You can eat the curry without worry since it’s properly appraised. It even has health-boosting effects, so make sure you eat some too, Natalia.”
“If you could submit the recipe for this potion in a form that our alchemists could reproduce, you’d definitely skip a rank.”
Natalia sighed while peering at the curry through the appraisal mirror. Karen had already told Natalia about the panacea and had been scolded in various ways.
“huff huff. It’s spicy and very delicious.”
“You do like spicy food, Sara.”
The spicy curry was made with generous amounts of spices. It was a perfect dining table with curry suited to each of their tastes—Karen, Natalia, and Sara.
“Ah, this vegetable dip is delicious too, and the wine goes down so easily. I started eating it to take a break from drinking, but it’s just making me drink more.”
“The miso-mayo dip is so tasty. Oh, Sara, the prosciutto-wrapped cherry tomatoes with cheese on skewers taste better if you eat them in one bite.”
“Aahn… Mmm!”
Sara’s eyes widened as she chewed with her cheeks puffed out. She seemed to approve. Karen also enjoyed the wine while savoring the magical fish Carpaccio. Since it was apparently expensive wine, it would be wasteful not to savor it properly.
“Natalia, you can drink as much as you want, but make sure to drink the scale shellfish miso soup in between.”
“I’ll definitely eat it. It’s bound to be delicious.”
“It sobers you up…”
Sara sighed as she appraised the scale shellfish miso soup with the appraisal mirror left on the table.
“You never cease to amaze me, Lady Karen.”
Scale shellfish were similar to freshwater clams. In other words, this was what happened when she tried making miso soup thinking of freshwater clams.
Sara took a sip of the miso soup and her eyes sparkled brightly.
Natalia, with bloodshot eyes, anxiously peered into her rapidly emptying glass muttering "The wine… the wine goes down too well…!”
“You can have more, so don’t make such a scary face, Natalia.”
“Goddess Karen…!”
“Yes, yes.”
Sara giggled as Natalia worshipped Karen.
Looking at this happy scene, Karen sipped her wine with a gentle smile.
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