The Duke's Daughter at Work

The morning after putting Lady Anatia and her attendant maid up in the reception room.

I'd assumed she would head straight to the Royal Capital, but instead she joined us for breakfast and followed us all the way to the Cat's Paw Inn.

"Lady Anatia, aren't you going to the capital?"

"I can go anytime. Would it be a bother?"

"No, I don't particularly mind."

In truth, while Lady Anatia was of noble birth, she never complained about anything, so she wasn't all that troublesome.

The attendant maid had also paid for the lodging.

Perhaps because they'd met her before, Azu and the others seemed somewhat more at ease dealing with a noble.

Today, too, they got to work first thing in the morning on the prep.

They'd switched suppliers, so ingredients were being delivered properly now. No issues there.

A few things had been rearranged.

Kazusa had taken Mina's advice and made changes the day before.

At first it slowed things down, but as they kept at it, it started to make sense.

Streamlining work generally required simplifying or eliminating steps.

Normally you'd figure that out gradually as you got used to the job, but with Mina's experience, they'd managed to do it all at once.

Being able to work without moving from the spot made a huge difference in speed.

On top of that, there were no more collisions while fetching tools at the same time, no more bumping into each other going back and forth. With those problems gone, they could focus on the work.

At this rate, Kazusa plus one helper would be enough to finish with time to spare.

Today, with more hands, they got through the prep and the cleaning in no time.

"You're all so efficient. So this is how it's done."

"Yesterday was a bit more hectic. Here you go."

I handed Lady Anatia flower tea sweetened with honey.

Even if she said anything was fine, I couldn't serve her something too modest.

"What a lovely fragrance…"

She seemed pleased.

The novelty of the inn's work must have piqued her curiosity.

I resigned myself to letting her observe, as long as she stayed within sight.

Handing her a knife and having her get hurt would be a disaster.

"Hey."

"Yes, what is it?"

"You're about to open up, aren't you? I'd like to try working too."

"You? Working as a waitress? Are you serious?"

Nobles were, by definition, those of high birth.

Some even boasted that nobles had a different, superior blue blood flowing through their veins.

A completely different station and birth. Born into power.

Without thinking, I glanced at the maid.

Was this really okay?

The maid simply nodded in agreement.

"… Understood. If that's what you want, I don't mind, but you'll have to follow instructions."

"Of course."

Lady Anatia accepted with a rather pleased expression.

Kazusa gaped at me in disbelief.

I had no grounds to refuse. I couldn't exactly say "No, because you're a noble."

"Azu, show Lady Anatia to the changing room."

"Understood. Um, this way."

"The uniform from yesterday, right? It was so cute. I'm looking forward to it."

I watched them head to the back.

"Is this really alright? Making a lady work in a place like this?"

"Lady Anatia hasn't been able to go outside freely since the incident, so I thought this would be a nice change of pace. I wouldn't have agreed if safety couldn't be assured, but… this place is actually quite safe."

"Safe, is it? I'm not so sure about that."

"Your group's abilities, of course, but that black-haired girl is also quite skilled. The royal castle may be guarded by soldiers, but if a spy slips inside, I alone wouldn't be enough to protect milady. Even with blood ties to the royal family, they're not purely on our side."

So this wasn't just a pleasure trip.

Neither the capital nor here was the duke's domain, where she could freely direct affairs. There were apparently various things to consider.

Even so, she must have judged this safer than staying in Alsarm.

… A war might actually be coming.

The Empire seemed to be settling down, but now the Solar Union was growing ominous.

There was still time before the duke's response deadline.

I could only hope it would all blow over.

"How do I look? Does it suit me?"

"It looks wonderful on you, milady."

The maid lavished praise on the newly changed Lady Anatia.

She showed off her beautiful figure without restraint.

Indeed, already beautiful to begin with, and now with the slightly more revealing uniform, she was certainly eye-catching.

Standing beside Alexia, they made a pair of stunning young ladies.

That alone could draw paying customers.

I kept that thought to myself, knowing I'd be scolded for suggesting such a spectacle.

Kazusa, too, seemed relieved by Lady Anatia's approachable demeanor and gradually became able to talk to her.

If only all nobles were like that, commoners could rest easy, but reality wasn't so kind.

The inn side ran without trouble.

Since they weren't running extreme discounts, even with adventurer clientele the crowd was decent.

Kazusa could handle any issues that came up.

They opened for light meals.

Same as yesterday, a throng of customers wanting to eat before work rushed in.

Some were sneaking glances at the uniformed women, so word of mouth seemed to be spreading.

The most attention went to Alexia and Lady Anatia.

Including Elza, the three of them drew every eye in the room.

As for the actual work, it wasn't bad at all.

I'd expected a sheltered lady to be clumsy, but she moved briskly.

She responded flexibly to instructions, a proper asset.

The attendant maid pitched in too, so despite more customers than yesterday, there was breathing room.

With the improved efficiency, service from order to delivery sped up, and throughput rose considerably.

They handled the entire morning rush, and the ingredients were nearly used up.

"I'll go do the shopping."

The four younger members went off to restock what was running low.

Meanwhile, the remaining group tidied up for the afternoon.

The door opened, so I turned to say we weren't serving yet, only to find Princess Tianis standing there with Kanon.

She was staring intently at Lady Anatia in uniform.

"Auntie Anatia, what are you doing here?"

"Tianis-chan! It's been so long. And didn't I tell you to stop calling me 'auntie'? We're barely a few years apart."

The atmosphere shifted.

Both were smiling, but neither smile reached their eyes.

I instinctively moved behind Alexia, who gave me a look of exasperation.