The land we had been given was part of the royal family’s holdings. It was close to the capital, so we could commute, and it was said to have wonderfully fertile soil. I thought it most magnanimous of the king to grant us such an excellent place to use as our garden. Perhaps that was just proof of how much importance they placed on the development of herb cultivation and potions.
The town where the annex was located looked like any typical city in the Kingdom of Salutania and was encircled by stone walls. Inside the walls were wheat fields.
The building where the annex would be installed was surrounded by additional walls, and the garden was located within those. When I heard it was behind two sets of walls, I imagined that the annex premises would be small, but they were actually quite spacious.
The annex grounds were huge. The garden took up the majority of those grounds, and it was so large that it rivaled the one we had at the institute.
Our annex would be part of the complex where the territory’s magistrate worked. That was partly because only a few people would be working at the annex full time, but it was also because the magistrate’s hall was large, so they’d decided to share it. How big am I talking? Nearly as big as a noble manor in the capital. There were also a number of rooms that never saw use, so we claimed them for our own. It would have taken time and money to build a new structure, so I thought this was a great way to effectively utilize unoccupied places they already had on hand.
We were provided with several rooms, including ones for clerical work as well as rooms for brewing potions and the like. As for a parlor for receiving guests and guest rooms for researchers who stayed overnight, we would be sharing some additional rooms with the magistrate. The magistrate would take care of keeping the common areas clean, which I thought made us quite fortunate.
It would have been no exaggeration to call this our second institute, with its vast grounds and prominent structure. You would have thought they would put someone other than Johan in charge, but they didn’t.
When we first talked about it, I feared he would wind up overworking himself, running both the annex and the institute. According to him, though, he was totally fine. The magistrate was helping him by writing monthly reports. I thought that meant the magistrate would have it rough instead, but apparently it wasn’t an issue, as he had been managing the land for a long time now.
Needless to say, I was impressed by the competency of both Johan and the magistrate.
I was crouched in the annex’s garden, checking on the herbs that we had moved from the institute, when I heard someone approach from behind. I looked back to find an incredibly charming and beautiful woman grinning at me.
“Oh, hello.”
“Hello, Lady Sei.”
The woman had sky-blue hair in a loose updo and arching, almond-shaped eyes that were silver-gray. She was very pretty and had a mole by the corner of her left eye that lent her a coquettish air. Though she was dressed modestly as always, that didn’t diminish the combination of her curves and her striking allure.
This was the magistrate’s secretary, Zara. She appeared to be about the same age as me. Though I knew she was an adult, I didn’t know exactly how old she was. I did know she was still unmarried, and as she was a single woman in my age range, we’d become friends over time as I began coming to the annex.
“How are they?” Zara asked as she peered over my shoulder.
“They appear to be doing pretty good, thankfully. I think they’ve managed to take root.”
“That’s great news.” Zara’s smile deepened. She was able to enter this high-security part of the garden because she had permission from the king. As the magistrate’s secretary, the king placed a tremendous amount of trust in her.
This probably went without saying, but the magistrate had permission to enter the garden as well. In addition to the magistrate and Zara, the gardeners employed by the magistrate also had permission. While the plants we were growing in the annex’s garden were highly classified, they were also difficult to cultivate. We needed the gardeners’ help because of their special expertise.
They hadn’t been offhandedly granted permission to join our work, obviously. Everyone who had permission to enter the garden—including me, Johan, the researchers, the magistrate, and the gardeners—had signed a non-disclosure agreement with the royal family to tell no one what we knew about its contents.
“Are you on break, Zara?”
“Indeed I am. I just got my hands on some new tea leaves, so I was hoping to invite you for a cup.”
Zara loved tea and always had it during her breaks; she’d done so even before the annex was established. Soon after we set up at the annex, she had spied me drinking a cup of herbal tea. That was the first time she’d spoken to me. Perhaps we had become friends and gotten along so well from the start because of our shared love of the stuff. Now yet again Zara was here to invite me to enjoy some.
I wonder what kind of leaves she got this time? We can easily get herbal varieties, so maybe it’s black tea? Whatever the case, I can’t wait to find out.
“Thank you! I would love to join you,” I responded enthusiastically to her lovely offer, making Zara’s smile deepen even more.
As a tea lover, Zara was very particular about her brewing. That was why she always made it for us—but to be clear, she was super good at it. She made black tea that day, and it was as delicious as if it had been brewed by a palace maid. You could even have said that it was in a league of its own.
I wonder if I could get her something nice for always making such delicious tea for me? Recently I’d been racking my brain, trying to come up with a good idea. As I was mulling it over and we drank together, the topic of cosmetics came up and I got an idea.
The cosmetics sold by the Saint’s company in the capital were considered incredibly fashionable by noble ladies, so much so that the most popular products were on backorder. I wouldn’t dream of cutting the line, so I wouldn’t do that, but I could give Zara something I’d made personally. I was scared my fifty-percent-bonus curse might do something weird to it, but if I just tweaked the recipe a bit, I could probably just blame any additional effects on the new ingredients.
Having come to that conclusion, I asked if Zara would like me to make her something.
Zara’s eyes sparkled with delight. “Oh my! Are you sure you wouldn’t mind?”
“Of course not. It’ll be my way of saying thanks to you for always making me such delicious tea.”
Voila!
Just as we had settled on this exchange, we finished the pot and our little party came to a close.
What should I give her? The rose oil cream was on backorder, but that was actually pretty pricey as well. While I would’ve loved to make it for a special gift, Zara might think it too much. Maybe it would be better to go with something from the standard line. That series was made with lavender oils. I would also still be tweaking the recipe a bit.
That reminded me that I had an oil that would go well with lavender. I had made it recently, and it had been wondrously beneficial in and of itself. It was also a precious ingredient, so I wouldn’t be using it to make a new product for the store—which made it perfect for hiding the effects of my fifty-percent-bonus curse. I’ll get started on making it as soon as I get to the institute, I thought as I walked toward the garden with a spring in my step.