Thanks to Charles—who had managed the negotiations with an exasperated cry of, “This is an unreasonable demand!”—we successfully reached an agreement to hold Princess Lysonna’s wedding ceremony under fair conditions, with various discussions already underway. Each country had its own customs, so not everything could proceed strictly according to Bertia’s vision. This was especially true for Seahealby, the kingdom into which Princess Lysonna would be marrying, with its many unique cultures and traditions.
Therefore, the plan was to primarily propose ideas that offered a high degree of flexibility to accommodate Princess Lysonna’s wishes. Dealing with the other party required intricate negotiations to align our approaches, which only made things more complicated.
“The traditional wedding sake-sharing ritual was rejected because drinking from the same cup in public is considered embarrassing and indecent. Though Princess Lysonna mentioned she’d like to do it privately with her prince consort later,” Bertia said, looking a bit disheartened.
Well, that’s understandable.
Even the “First Bite” at our wedding could have been stopped for similar reasons… But it was something Bertia wanted to do, and those around her were supportive, so I forcefully deemed it “no issue.”
“It’s a shame, especially since Lady Bertia had even prepared new sake for that traditional sake-sharing ritual,” Silica remarked with a frown.
Silica and Cynthia, frequently seen with Bertia during their school days, now acted as her ladies-in-waiting. They had declared, “We could never leave Lady Bertia in another’s care!” and “I will protect Lady Bertia!” Dismissing the other contenders, they had gained their roles.
Having them as Bertia’s ladies-in-waiting was perfect for me. Yet, I’d been left speechless when Cynthia exclaimed, “I want to be a lady-in-waiting who can safeguard Lady Bertia and collect information!”
Having individuals by Bertia’s side who were capable of both protection and intelligence gathering was reassuring, so I left things as they were. Anne had also expressed interest in serving as a lady-in-waiting; however, she ultimately chose to pursue a career in diplomacy, hoping to support Charles, who was likely to focus on diplomatic work in the future. When I told Charles this later, his face became a flood of tears.
Anne now assisted Bertia with social engagements and hosted foreign dignitaries. Although she wasn’t involved as frequently as some of the other ladies, she often visited the palace to support Bertia and share information she had gathered.
As for Joanna, she was my brother’s fiancée and was currently preparing to become a princess consort. She adored Bertia and expressed a desire to support both her and Shaun as they stepped into more central roles within the nation. “I’ll do my best as a princess consort to support Lady Bertia, who will eventually be the heart of our country along with Lord Shaun.”
Technically, the heart of the nation should be the king—which meant me, not Bertia—but I had the distinct feeling she’d said it intentionally. I’d chosen not to correct her, responding with a broad smile instead.
“Well, even if we can’t do the sake-sharing ceremony publicly, the new sake we created together, Tia, tastes wonderful—and that’s rare, since we’ve only just begun production. We could include it among the wedding gifts. You can discreetly tell Princess Lysonna to enjoy it privately with her prince.”
Even though the ritual couldn’t be performed in public, Princess Lysonna had expressed a wish to carry it out in private with her prince consort. By passing along Bertia’s message, an unofficial version of the ceremony could still take place.
“That’s a wonderful idea! Since we’ve created this with your help, Cecil, I’d love for them to enjoy it together!” Hearing this, Bertia’s face brightened considerably, which made Silica’s expression soften with relief.
The “sake” mentioned in the conversation had actually been crafted based on Bertia’s memories from her previous life. When preparations for Princess Lysonna’s wedding began, I’d noticed Bertia looking troubled and asked what was wrong. She’d explained that she wanted to include a traditional sake-sharing ritual, but it wouldn’t be possible without Japanese sake.
Intrigued by the unfamiliar term, which clearly hinted at something from her past life, I came to understand that it referred to a type of alcohol cherished in the country where Bertia had once lived. The ritual, known as Sansankudo, involved the bride and groom sharing sake in a set sequence to symbolize their bond. While any beverage could technically serve the same ceremonial purpose, Bertia insisted it just wouldn’t feel right without the real thing.
Bertia had searched for something similar to Japanese sake but couldn’t find an adequate substitute, which led to her dilemma. Curious, I’d asked why she didn’t simply make it herself. To my surprise, she’d responded with a look of disbelief, explaining that only licensed individuals were allowed to brew alcohol, which had confused me.
There was no such law in Alphasta.
Of course, there were places where brewing techniques were closely guarded secrets and illegal production was punished, but making alcohol itself wasn’t a problem.
It turned out the restriction came from her previous life and didn’t apply in our world. Realizing that, Bertia had frozen for a moment—then, with renewed determination, declared, “Then we’ll make it!”
She had declared her intention to brew… However, when I checked on her progress later, it was clear she had embraced her artisan spirit a little too zealously. Determined to create the finest sake possible, she had begun experimenting with different types of brewing rice—starting from planting the rice herself.
If she was beginning at that stage, there was no way it would be ready in time for Princess Lysonna’s wedding. And shouldn’t the timing of the planting be considered a bit more carefully?
Feeling slightly awkward, I’d conveyed this to Bertia, and she had instantly become despondent. Her dismay had been so genuinely distressing that I found myself inadvertently sharing a secret method with her—enlisting Zeno’s help to harness the power of spirits.
Of course, we couldn’t let others know we were using the spirits’ power to cultivate the rice. The existence of spirits was a closely guarded secret, known only to a select group of high-ranking nobles in order to protect them. So, we officially stated that the sake had been brewed using rice Bertia had secured for Kuro’s inari sushi.
In truth, with the spirits’ quiet cooperation, we’d set up a rice field deep within a forest on palace grounds—an area accessible only to the royal family—where we then cultivated several varieties of rice in secret.
This allowed us to harvest different types of rice quickly, enabling us to brew what Bertia called Japanese sake using various rice varieties. After tasting and comparing them, she selected her favorite to be the first officially released batch, which we then began mass-producing.
Naturally, we also had the spirits’ cooperation throughout the brewing process. According to Bertia, brewing Japanese sake required not only rice but also high-quality water and something called koji mold. I wasn’t exactly sure what that was, but Bertia had explained that it likely involved some kind of fungi used to ferment the rice. Based on that clue, we then searched for suitable strains.
Identifying the appropriate fungi individually would have taken a considerable amount of time. Therefore, we enlisted the assistance of spirits knowledgeable in such matters, prepared several candidates, and conducted controlled experiments until we discovered the right one. That was how we established the foundation for our Japanese sake.
Since “Japan” was the name of the country where Bertia had lived in her previous life, we decided to intentionally retain the name, Japanese sake. From there, we experimented with various combinations of rice and water to discover the optimal blend for the best possible brew at our current stage.
Having successfully produced it, Bertia had enthusiastically proposed including the traditional sake-sharing ceremony. However, as previously mentioned, the outcome didn’t go as she had hoped. While it was unfortunate for Bertia, who looked forward to performing the ritual, Princess Lysonna could still enjoy the sake as a gift, ensuring that Bertia’s efforts weren’t in vain. Moreover, if we introduced it as a new national specialty, the entire project could turn out to be a remarkably worthwhile endeavor.
“Ah, that reminds me! Regarding the wedding dress collaboration we all worked on recently, Princess Lysonna loved the Mermaid Dress I was rooting for, and it has already gone into production based on that design! Thank you all for your cooperation,” Bertia reported with a beaming smile, clearly pleased that Princess Lysonna appreciated the design she favored.