Shomin no Aji - Chapter 573.1 (Patreon)

My goodness…!
Alicia-sama's uneasy demeanor made me nervous. Gradually, she furrowed her brows, and while staring at her egg sandwich, she murmured softly.

"Delicious..."

Phew, that's a relief!
I was worried about why she had such an expression, but I'm relieved that she didn't say something like, "You're truly a gluttonous noble daughter for eating such commoner-like food!" and such.

"I'm glad it suits your taste."

After smiling and moistening my dry throat with a sip of iced tea, the acidity and sweetness of the squeezed orange spread in my mouth.
Yeah, Miria brewed tea is exquisite.
Even with a new recipe, I can show it once or explain it roughly, and she can reproduce it.
Perhaps because she understands my preferences, it's genuinely delicious.
Lately, she has also improved in brewing Yahatulian tea, so I leave it mostly to her.

"So frustrated... and pathetic..."
"Huh?"

When I turned my face towards Alicia-sama's words, her expression seemed genuinely pitiful, making me wonder if something had happened again.

"Even though it's so delicious, I blindly believed stories my mother and others told me, mocked you as a gluttonous lady, and treated you as an enemy..."

Alicia-sama said that, holding the egg sandwich, she placed both hands on her knees.

"I don't deserve to receive such delicious things anymore..."

Oh no, everyone's eating hands stopped at Alicia-sama's dejected state.
As an awkward atmosphere filled the air, Adry-sama, as if saying it can't be helped, put the egg sandwich he held onto a plate and picked up shortbread with matcha that had just been put on sale.

"Allie."
"... What is it? … Mmgh."

Adry-sama! What audacity to twist shortbread into a lady's mouth?!
Everyone was taken aback.

"...! You have been rude since earlier. What is wrong with you?"

Alicia-sama, perhaps thinking that she couldn't spit out what had entered her mouth, chewed silently, swallowed, then complained after putting the shortbread next to the egg sandwich on the plate.

"Allie, you've been recommending Mayor Company's shortbread for a while now, right?"
"Huh? Yes. Is this also from there? I have never had one with a green color like this, is this a new release?"

Alicia-sama's eyes, glancing at the partially eaten shortbread, were filled with the anticipation of a girl expecting new sweets.
Without thinking, I exchanged glances with Mariel-chan. Ummm...

"That's a recipe Miss Cristea came up with, you know?"
"... Eh?"
"When I asked Miss Mariel where to buy it before, she said her family’s Mayor Company sells it, but the recipe was provided by Miss Cristea."

Alicia-sama, upon Adry-sama’s revelation, quickly looked at Mariel-chan and me. Both of us nodded in response.

The sales of the shortbread at the Mayor Company were doing well, and Baron Mayor had just given the go-ahead to publicly disclose the recipe, judging from the nobles' reactions.
We had told Adry-sama who is a good friend of ours, immediately, but when the opposition of our Ellisfeed family was recently informed of this fact, they immediately stopped buying it, and instead continue buying it in secret, despite initially considering a purchase halt.
What a situation...

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