And so, that’s how the two of us ended up in this tremendously uncertain situation that neither of us wished for.
The girl’s slender and pale fingers lifted her teacup from the table. She brought the porcelain cup to her small, pink lips with movements that made you wonder if there was some sort of auto-balancing mechanism built within it, and took a sip.
After putting down her cup with a most gentle sound, her slender and pale fingers reached out to a biscuit covered in amber honey, our merchandise. She pushed back her silky, platinum hair behind her ear, and brought the biscuit gracefully from her fingers to her small lips as her thin jaws slowly opened.
Tension filled the air. Just how would someone who belonged to the very peak of high society, accustomed to the most luxurious goods, judge our merchandise? It really did pique my interest, even though I knew it wouldn’t show on her face, and even though I knew she wouldn’t say that my goods were better out loud.
I held my breath and observed her, and she smiled ever so slightly. Her face, which had a porcelain beauty to it, suddenly had an innocence to it befitting her age. It had a charm that made me forget the situation at hand.
The schoolgirl with a red ponytail standing behind the princess glared at me. Incidentally, this one had a slender sword hanging from the waist of her uniform. I ducked my head in a hurry. Well, that was dangerous. This is a society where just admiring a beautiful flower out of reach is akin to plunging to one’s doom.
“That was rather enjoyable,” the princess said, as she once more took a sip from her teacup.
The tension in the air immediately reached its peak. This was the time for “judgment.” From a business standpoint, all she had to say was, “The second one has no brilliance in its color, and the taste is lacking. It’s not even comparable to the goods of the Dreyfan Company. One cannot even consider this honey.”
All I was hoping for was a soft landing. And after wetting her glossy lips with tea, the princess spoke in a tender, yet somehow translucent voice.
“I am unable to discern any difference in quality between the two. Both of them are delicious.” So the princess said as she smiled at the two of us.
There was nothing better or worse about either product. That was the same evaluation I had of the two. Having it assessed as such brought me great joy.
In the capital, the high-class market is firmly dominated by hierarchy and social status. As such, it’s “determined” that goods sold by a large company with history and social standing are far superior to that of a small company with neither of those prerequisites. And here, contrary to all expectations, a member of the royal family, who stands atop the very summit of such order, honestly evaluated both goods. As a matter of fact, the noble girls around her all looked bewildered.
Even though it was a necessity, I had our prized merchandise ranked as second-class, so such genuine praise had a sweet ring to it. ...Wait, no, this isn’t the time for that.
I had no room to make such an honest response. Look, that rich boy who was so steadfast next to me up until now is trembling, and his face is completely frozen. Having it end in a draw wasn’t the worst-case scenario, but it was more than enough of a problem.
“Your Highness. We must begin heading towards the cathedral. The time for prophecy approaches,” the knight with a red ponytail whispered in her ear, and the princess tensed up for just a moment.
“I truly thank you from the bottom of my heart for granting us your time during such an important period where you must face your duties as the Spring Festival approaches, Your Highness.”
The rich boy somehow managed to stand on decorum. Deep down, he was surely cursing her just as I was, but his ability to change gears like this was quite admirable. It was a skill that I didn’t possess.
It was almost amusing that it just sounded like he was saying “If you’re so busy then don’t do something so damn unnecessary!” Not that I had the leisure for any of that. The simulation that my brain decided to start running was in full-on panic mode.
I placed our merchandise as second-class goods aimed at commoners instead of nobles to create a niche market and a clear delineation between gold and copper honey. And here a princess of all people had labeled them as equal. If it was anybody else, we could get away with claiming that her palate was simply lacking. But because of who it was, even the noble girls who were shaken earlier were all politely keeping their silence.
My reverse branding plan was at risk of failure. This could only lead to the business world’s representative, rife with funds and influence, pressuring us even further. Their negligence in going as far as spending money to uphold their brand will vanish. It’s a problem that they will have to put the full weight of their influence behind to solve. Furthermore, this compounded the issue of her being a difficult person to deal with.
The beautiful girl with platinum hair stood from her seat while directing a gentle smile towards us. She behaved herself like an impartial judge. However, in truth, this princess was surely under the impression that she had greatly put me in her debt. My complete lack of know-how at dealing with such a problem hurt my head.
And this was the state of affairs just a few days away from spring break. I remained down on my knee to hide my sour expression. Dreyfan spat some sort of insult at me, then left. It was probably something along the lines of “don’t get cocky.” I wasn’t, by the way. While you’re at it, give me some more realistic advice.
I could see Mia hurrying over to my side. Unusually for her, she looked worried. I shook my head and expelled my formless anxieties.
It’s alright. Regardless of whether the source is my environment, my opponent, or myself, a problem is a problem. And a problem just needs to be solved.
What I need to do is the same as always. First, I need to arrange these two enormous problems in my head until they’re sorted out. Next, gather information and decide on the crux of the problem. And finally, take action to resolve that point. See? It’s simple.