Perhaps I was being too broad. I needed to narrow down my criteria.
“Millefie, have you decided on what kind of hot spring resort you want it to be?” Madeleine asked.
“What kind...? I’ve been so focused on how to get the digging started for the hot springs that... Well, I’d like to have a building as big as the palace, with a big open space and a large bath...I think.”
“I worry that a resort like that would only attract a small number of people,” Madeleine said.
“Really?”
“Millefie, have you been to the public bath at the capital?”
“I haven’t,” I told her.
“Have you ever wanted to go?”
“I never had a reason to. I mean, I already have a bath— Oh!” I then realized what Madeleine was getting at.
“I believe that we would have to make two resorts—one for the general public and one for nobles,” she said. “We would have to serve delicacies that would cater to both.”
“Madeleine, you’re a genius!” I exclaimed.
Madeleine flushed at my compliment. “Let’s decide on what delicacies to serve the commoners first,” she said.
“All right.” I signaled to Parfeil, and she brought some snow mushrooms and toasted sandwiches to our table.
“What are these?” Madeleine asked.
“These are the candidates we’ve found here in Diamant.”
My white squirrels had picked the snow mushrooms, which had once again been grilled and covered with oyster sauce. The sandwiches were also the same as the last time I’d had them—simple ones made with ham and cheese.
Madeleine popped a mushroom into her mouth and followed it up with a bite of the toasted sandwich. “My, these are both delicious!” she exclaimed.
Though Madeleine praised the taste of the snow mushrooms, she found them difficult to eat as the sauce was drippy. The sandwiches were also tasty, but they lacked the impact to be called a “delicacy.”
“I’m sorry. I know you thought long and hard about these options,” she said.
“No, it’s all right. I agree with both of your points.”
I considered skewering the mushrooms onto sticks, but the sauce would still drip on the visitors’ clothes and the floors of the resort. I had no rebuttal for the sandwiches. The ingredients were all items that people had on hand. Anyone would be able to make the same thing at home.
The squirrels raised some nuts that they had picked up, gesturing as if to suggest we make them into a sandwich too. Well, at least they’re trying to help.
“Make the mushrooms easier to eat, and give the sandwiches some more flair... Oh! What if we take the mushrooms and sauce and put that into a sandwich?”
“Millefie, that’s brilliant! That would kill two birds with one stone!” Madeleine exclaimed.
Sandwiches made with snow mushrooms—there was no doubt in my mind that they’d taste great. I immediately asked Parfeil to prepare some.
A few minutes later, Parfeil returned carrying sandwiches with a piping hot mushroom and sauce filling. She had cut them into bite-size pieces to make them easier to eat.
“One of the kitchen cooks suggested adding some cheese, so I made some with cheese and others without,” Parfeil explained.
“I see. Thank you, Parfeil.”
“You’re welcome!”
Madeleine and I tried the ones without cheese first. I also gave one to Parfeil as well.
“This is delicious!” I exclaimed. “These mushrooms taste good, even in a sandwich.”
“I love how the bread soaks up the savory flavor of the mushrooms!” Madeleine added.
Parfeil nodded vigorously in agreement.
After drinking some water, we tried the ones with cheese next. I bit into the crunchy, toasted bread, and some cheese stretched out from the portion I bit off.
“Whoa!”
The cheese added a rich flavor to the sauce, elevating its savory taste into something rich and complex. It complemented the taste of the snow mushrooms as well.
“Those cooks really do know their stuff. This one is a lot tastier!” I exclaimed.
“It is. I’m so surprised!” Madeleine added.
Parfeil also praised the cheesy sandwich.
“Let’s make this cheesy snow-mushroom sandwich the delicacy for the commoners’ hot spring resort,” I declared.
The other two agreed.
For the first time since we had arrived in Diamant, we were led to the first dining hall—perhaps due to Van’s complaints. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw Van seated alone at the dining table.
“We’re finally receiving some proper treatment,” Lady Opera muttered as she sat in her chair.
Most of us had been reassigned to single rooms as well. Parfeil and I were the exception, as we would be sharing one.
“I’ve lodged complaints to Marquis de Noisette about all your problems. From now on, you will no longer be treated at the same level as the servants of this mansion,” Van declared.
Thus, today we were eating dinner with Van. He had even allowed Parfeil to sit with us, but she refused, saying, “I would be so nervous that the food wouldn’t taste like anything.” As a result, she was doing her best to eat as close to my seat as she could without sitting.
The attendants of House Noisette were nowhere to be seen. Only Van’s and Lady Opera’s attendants were here to do menial tasks. Now that everyone present was in the know, there was no need to keep up our attendant act.
“Brother, what did Marquis de Noisette say?” Lady Opera asked.
“He kept apologizing to me. He says that Lady Fenetra didn’t mean any harm and was only trying to provide hospitality since my wife wasn’t around,” Van replied.
“That is quite a dubious way of providing hospitality. I can only think of her as an attention hog trying to show off just because the Dragon Duchess consort was nowhere to be seen,” Lady Opera scoffed.
“Hmm, I see... When she was young, I’d had the impression that Lady Fenetra was quite shy and reserved around crowds,” Van said.
“She must have grown brazen as she grew older and learned more about society, then.”
Speaking of people who had completely changed, there was also the matter of Count Disque Praline. I had been wondering if I should bring it up over dinner, but since both Van and Lady Opera were here, I decided to report it.
“By the way, Van, I received news from the knights acting as our body doubles,” I began. I told the others about how they had gone shopping, seen a performance, and had a tea party, but nothing unusual had happened.
“The enemy might have been more cautious because you don’t normally go out like that,” Van suggested.