Shalloak was talking as if he were ready to call it quits, but Mia meanly flashed him a grin. “Oho ho! I think it’s a bit too early for that. You’re not old quite yet! Aren’t you being hasty, talking about your life’s greatest pride?” She took a sip of her tea. “Actually, there’s something we’ve started to discuss at Saint-Noel Academy.” Mia filled him in on their plan to cultivate fish.
“So you plan to farm fish as a countermeasure to combat famine?”
“We do, but for that, we’ll have to transport live fish all across the continent. Would that be possible?”
“I’m not quite sure. We may be able to transport the eggs, but it’s not my area of expertise,” said Shalloak with a slight groan.
Mia grinned at him. “There’s still plenty left for us to do, Shalloak. Don’t you think it’s too early to be talking about retirement when we still have so much great, purposeful work left to do?”
He tilted his head. “Hmm? I don’t recall ever mentioning my retirement,” he said, standing from his chair. “But if you need me to stay healthy so I can continue this work, I believe I’ve already started!” he said, chuckling. “I don’t plan on getting old just yet!”
His expression was jolly, lacking all malice or hint of the cunning merchant he once was. Instead, it was dyed with vitality, life, and the dreams of youth.
Once her meeting with Shalloak concluded, Mia welcomed in a new guest.
“Greetings, Miss Mia.” A girl with beautiful emerald hair elegantly stepped into the room. It was the self-proclaimed leader of the Etoilines: Mia’s best friend, Esmeralda Etoile Greenmoon. She greeted Mia with a curtsy in perfect form as Mia cheerfully welcomed her inside.
“It’s been a while, Esmeralda. You really were a great help with Princess Orania.”
Esmeralda giggled. “She’s a good girl, isn’t she?”
Mia pondered this as she stared at Esmeralda’s smile. She wasn’t quite certain that “good girl” was the right way to describe Orania, but...she ultimately decided to nod along. “Yes, that may be the case once you befriend her. She’s been calling me ‘master’! Oho ho! She certainly is adorable.”
Once their joyful tea party had begun, tea and cake were immediately brought to the table. It had been a while since Mia had gotten the chance to enjoy the unusual sweets the Greenmoons always had on hand, and Esmeralda had brought just the thing to appease her.
“My, this is...!”
Mia couldn’t help but let out a gasp of awe as she marveled at the cake that had been placed on the table. It was orange in color and square in shape, similar to the castilla from Perujin, though the decoration on top was different. It was covered in white cream and three berries of different colors, giving it quite the adorable appearance.
“Oho ho! Shalloak might have partaken if this was what I had served him,” said Mia as she cheerfully dug her fork into the sponge. It was soft, and as soon as her utensil collided with the cake, syrup began to ooze out. “My, this scent! Is it alcohol?”
Esmeralda giggled. “I hear it’s soaked in a syrup made from rumoon liquor.”
“How odd! The jam you gave me to share with Shalloak was quite unique as well,” muttered Mia as she brought a bite of cake to her lips. The sweetness of the syrup spread across her tongue, meshing perfectly with the saccharine scent of the alcohol that had already spread throughout her nose. The sponge was filled with dried grapes, which must have been soaked in rumoon as well, adding texture to the dessert. Finally, the slight acidity of the berries on top cut through the sweetness brilliantly.
“This is quite...the adult delight. Oho ho! But it’s very delicious.” Mia popped another bite in her mouth with a grin.
It should be mentioned that her discussion with Shalloak about limiting food intake and exercising to lose weight—as well as the fact she had eaten the entirety of the tea cakes since he had chosen not to indulge—had completely vanished from Mia’s memory. Her heart was so big that she didn’t need to sweat such small stuff.
Her only saving grace was the fact Anne had already resolved to discuss the matter with Tatiana, but anyways...
“By the way, Esmeralda, I wanted to talk about Sion.”
“My, what about my brother-in-law?”
“Brother-in-law”? She’s sure quick to the jump. They haven’t even gotten married yet! thought Mia with a grimace. Unfortunately, there was no one around to point out the obvious.
“It seems that Sion plans on visiting Echard, and will thus be sitting out on our trip to Ganudos. We still don’t know what might happen during our journey, and we might need his help at some point. So...”
“Oh, so you were hoping I could make him head to Ganudos,” she said. Then, she clapped her hands. “In that case, why don’t I invite him to our villa?”
It was only then that Mia remembered the Greenmoons had a villa in the capital of Ganudos. If he were there, he’d be able to jump to their aid whenever it was needed.
“I’d be grateful for that,” said Mia, giving a satisfied nod.
Esmeralda’s expression grew ponderous. “I’ve heard of the Visalians in Ganudos before...” She brought a hand to her cheek and groaned. “They’re a minority group with settlements around the Galilea Sea, no? The king two generations prior ran a thorough pirate-hunting campaign, and the majority were either captured or became citizens of Ganudos themselves. There are rumors of hidden Visalian villages, but I very much doubt they are still openly acting as pirates.”
“Hmm... And why do you think that?”
Esmeralda nodded emphatically, as if the answer were obvious. “Because a beautiful noble lady like me visits the Galilea Sea every year, and I’ve never encountered a pirate once!”
“Beautiful,” she said? Well, we are related. I suppose she is beautiful, but I admire her for having the nerve to declare so herself.
Unfortunately, there was no one to point out the obvious.
“I’ve always thought being taken away by a handsome pirate would be wonderful! Oh, but not anymore, of course! I’m fully loyal to Prince Echard.”
“I...see... Well, anyways, the situation with the Visalians seems more complicated than I thought. And since I hear they have ties to the Serpents, I’ll have to be vigilant, which means I must focus on nutrition!”
Thus, Mia launched an assault on the cake in front of her, ready to recover her energy!
Unfortunately, there was no one to point out the obvious.