A few days later, Liam, whom I met again, seemed a little gaunt, as if he had been through a lot, but he still looked good.
The shadows that had been cast over his face had lifted considerably, making him look carefree.
Theo, in a calm tone, told Liam, who was extremely nervous because he had been summoned so suddenly and wondered if something had happened, about his sister.
It was the story as it was, without adding or subtracting anything, but Liam's eyes quickly filled with tears.
"T-To be honest… I think I was also half-doubting it… I was so bewildered by the sudden good fortune that I even th-thought that Your Highness might be deceiving and using me, an ignorant person. But it was real…"
He immediately knelt on the floor and bowed his head as if he would bury it in the ground.
"Thank you. I have nothing to say but thank you… I will repay you somehow. I will do my best…!"
"Orca says you're quite useful."
At those words, Liam raised his head sharply and looked up at Orca with an unbelievable expression. He seemed surprised that Orca, who only ever nagged at him, had praised him.
"So don't disappoint me and prove your worth."
"I-I will keep that in mind!"
Orca, who had briefly raised the corners of his mouth while looking at the delighted Liam, quickly hardened his face as if he hadn't, and added an explanation.
"I've hired mercenaries under the name of the merchant guild and assigned them to your sister. The Empress is meticulous but arrogant, so she doesn't pay much attention to the things she's dealt with, so you don't have to worry too much."
"That's so much… Thank you so much!"
"It's not like I did it because I like you."
"A-Ah, I guess not…?"
He always has to say something so twisted. Is he really a tsundere…?
"She's wanted to open a store with her name on it for a long time, and I'm going to work hard and help her with the money."
"When will you ever help her if you work like that? Shall I lend you the money from my personal funds?"
"H-Huh, no! Not that far… I won't be able to pay it back if it fails."
"You can pay it back slowly. Instead, you just have to sign a contract saying that if you run away without paying it back, you'll be cursed with a heart that hardens or an arm that grows three arms."
"There's even such a curse… N-No, if that puts you at ease, I'll do it as much as you want…"
Looking at Liam, who was answering with a tearful face, I could see why Orca was tormenting him like that. The impact is crazy….
"But what kind of store is she opening?"
"Ah, it's a cafe. Tea leaves are expensive and almost exclusively for nobles, but coffee beans are cheap and have an awakening effect. Commoners mainly enjoy it, so she wants to open a cafe for them. However, commoners don't have enough time to enjoy coffee, so she's thinking of selling meals that go well with coffee, or rather, a cafe-restaurant."
So to speak, an Imperial style brunch cafe? Coffee is also a drink that originated from the nobles, but as Liam said, coffee beans are cheap, so commoners also enjoy drinking it, so the menu selection didn't seem bad.
"I've been wondering what she's been thinking about every day since she was in the family, and it seems like it was about the cafe. She even has a menu in mind."
Looking at Liam, who couldn't hide his pride, I said with sincerity.
"I hope it goes well."
"Since Lord Divine Beast, no, Lord Shuian, said that, I feel like it's already going to be successful!"
It would never be easy for someone who lived as a noble lady to open and run a store, and no one knows if it will be successful, but Liam's cool smile made me think that it didn't matter what happened.
"You all have to come and visit when the store opens!"
"Okay."
Liam smiled brightly at my answer as if he was really happy, so I thought I should really visit when the store opened…
Surprisingly, after that, Orca not only lent the store money, but also found a building and interior design, so the store was set up in just a few days. It was literally done in a flash. Seriously, are you a goblin…?
Orca himself seemed embarrassed, he made excuses while receiving my and Theo's dumbfounded gazes.
"Well… the idea was good and the prospects weren't bad, so I just supported it. Besides, I need to get the money back as soon as possible."
I answered vaguely to the words that were clearly excuses, even if a stranger heard them.
"I see."
“…I'm serious.”
No matter how much he torments him, Liam only follows Orca around…. Aside from taking care of the store, Orca takes good care of Liam without him knowing, so now when I look at the two of them, it's not like a senior-junior relationship, but rather like Orca the mother bird and Liam the baby bird chasing after him.
Liam now seemed to think that even if Orca said harsh things, it was an expression of affection, but I thought it was just a crush.
"Aren't those two ended up dating?"
"I can hear you. And we're not dating."
I only said it quietly to Theo, but he seemed to have heard everything. Theo chuckled mockingly at Orca, who was jumping up and down.
Anyway, the store will be busy and hectic in many ways when it officially opens, so we decided to visit in advance today. Liam was in a good mood and even humming as we headed to the store.
The building we arrived at was a small and cozy two-story building, and it seemed suitable for beginners, as it would be difficult to manage if it was too big.
"It's cute and pretty."
"I was surprised when I first saw it too. My senior has great taste, right? Hahaha."
Orca's taste was great, but Liam's flattery was very great. Leaving Orca, who was sighing deeply, behind, I entered the store following Liam's guidance, and someone who was cleaning here and there dropped what they were holding on the floor as soon as they saw us
"Oh my god…! H-His Highness the Prince…!"
Theo roughly stopped her, who was about to prostrate herself on the floor.
"Sister, you should greet His Highness and Lord Divine Beast quickly."
Liam urged her, who was embarrassed because she thought it was a great act of disrespect, even though she had omitted the etiquette for the imperial family at Theo's command. Only then did she come to her senses and tell us her name.
"It's an honor to meet you. Rayna El, no, it's Rayna."
It would now be natural to introduce herself with only her name, omitting her surname, but it was a little unnatural, but it was a relief that I couldn't find any gloomy feelings.
By the way, I'd been wondering why the shop was called 'Rayna-deul Cafe.' Could 'deul' be from 'nadeulda,' meaning 'to come and go,' combined with her name?
"She didn't believe me even when I said I became the Second Prince's adjutant! She'll finally believe me now. Hahaha!"
It's understandable that they wouldn't believe him. They knew he was dragged away as a slave soldier, so if he suddenly became the Second Prince's adjutant, they would doubt that he had suffered a lot of mental shock before believing him.
Now capable of enduring my aversion to humans quite well, I intentionally asked a question to ease the tension of the stiff Rayna.
"The store name, is it your name combined with the word 'outing'?"
"Oh my, that's right. How did you know?! Could it be because you're a Lord Divine Beast…."
"You don't have to be a Divine Beast to know that much."
“…I guess so?”
They're siblings for a reason, she's similar to Liam. I thought Orca gave her the store name, but it seems like she made it herself, so I shouldn't say it's bad.
Rayna treated us to a meal for visiting the store. The menu was a simple sandwich and coffee, but the shape and setting were neat, so it was obvious that she had put a lot of effort into it.
"Please try it and tell me what you think. There are only a few menus available now because we're preparing. Please come back when we develop other menus."
When I nodded willingly, Rayna, who smiled brightly, was a gentle-looking beauty, and when she sat with Liam, I thought the two of them looked exactly alike. It was even more so when they smiled.
The sandwich tasted good. It was even to my taste, which was accustomed to the skills of the imperial palace chef. I'm sorry to say, but I didn't expect much, so when I honestly returned the answer that it was delicious, not only Rayna but also Liam were noticeably happy.
But isn't the menu too empty? There are enough kinds of sandwiches if you can just change the ingredients inside if you can get them, but there are not many kinds of coffee, so it looked a little empty.
The menu does say that the amount of sugar or syrup can be adjusted for people who don't like the bitterness of coffee, but there weren't as many different menus as the coffee I used to drink when I was human.
I glanced at Rayna, who was smiling brightly as if she liked the cafe that she would be running in earnest from now on, and recalled my memories and started talking.
“…I didn't make it, but it's a way to enjoy it in a country far away from here….”
I explained a few menus that I remembered in a simple way, hoping it would be of some help. I didn't care much about the cost or sales price, as it was up to Rayna to figure it out.
Rayna, who was writing down what I was saying in her notebook with shining eyes, suddenly asked.
"How do you know so much about human food, Lord Divine Beast?"
At that question, I inadvertently recalled my younger sibling, who had been buried in a corner of my memory.
My younger sibling was so kind that even though there wasn't much age difference between me and them, we never fought once since we were young, and we passed puberty smoothly without even a big tantrum. He was such a gentle child.
He liked coffee and desserts. Moreover, he followed his only older brother a lot, so he would hold onto me every holiday and urge me to go to a cafe, so I had been to most of the famous cafes.
Thanks to him, I had been to most famous cafes. If a new one opened, I don't know how he found out, but he would always drag me along, so I had probably had enough coffee to be sick of it.
I grumbled that it was annoying, but in fact, I always thought it was cute that he stuck to me like glue. I smiled slightly as I recalled that lovely figure.
"There was someone who liked that kind of thing."
At that answer, everyone's heads turned to Theo at once as if they had promised. But Theo also had a puzzled expression, so the gazes that had been directed at him soon returned to me.
Both the immediate turning to Theo and the puzzled reaction when it wasn't him were so funny that I burst out laughing.
Then Liam, who was tilting his head, asked.
"Could it be that the person you mentioned is Lord Shuian's lover?"
…Huh? My eyes widened in surprise, Orca squeezed his eyes shut, and Theo's face stiffened. No, well... it's a perfectly understandable reaction, but what about this freezing atmosphere...?
Rayna, who couldn't stand it, poked Liam in the side with her elbow. It was more accurate to say that she attacked him rather than poked him. She was about to break his ribs.
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