Duke Burns promised that he would make both items inexpensive for customers.
“You know that you’d make more money by pricing them higher, right, Patience?” Benjamin pointed out.
You’re missing the point, Benjamin!
“You should enroll in the civil service course and study some more, Benjamin,” Duke Burns commented. “If you have the time to be constantly visiting alchemy club and Caesar, you surely must have the time to enroll in both tracks.”
Oh, he got scolded by Duke Burns. I guess President Caesar isn’t getting in trouble because he understands what I’m trying to do.
“I’m sure Patience will invent plenty of items that will make her a fortune,” Caesar chimed in.
That’s right! I’m definitely going to make a killing off of the wealthy! I thought with a smile. Duke Burns seemed to pick up on my intentions.
“Does that include that new device you’re making, the bicycle?” the duke asked.
This is all your fault for not staying quiet, Benjamin.
“We still have many improvements to make,” I responded.
Duke Burns was intimidating, but I wasn’t going to back down on this point. If we sold the bicycle in its current state, we would be putting a defective item on the market. I just smiled and refused to speak more on that topic.
“Oh, I just remembered!” President Caesar suddenly exclaimed. “Patience wants to sell a dessert called ice cream at the Festival of Verdure, and she’s going to make it for us today.”
He’s pretty good at changing the subject.
“Yes, that’s right,” I replied. “Ice cream is usually served during the summer, but enjoying some in front of a warm fire is also quite luxurious.”
President Caesar, Benjamin, Mary, and I all headed to the kitchen.
“I’ve prepared eggs, sugar, and milk for you,” Caesar said.
I was under Mary’s strict observation, so instead of making it myself, I instructed the Burnses’ chef on how to prepare the ice cream. It would be faster if I could just do it.
“Please separate the egg yolks from the whites, then gently whisk the yolks,” I instructed. “Then, you’ll add some sugar... That’s enough! Once it’s thoroughly combined, please stir in some milk. After that, you’ll add some heavy cream. That looks like enough.”
The rest would be done using household magic. The chef handed the bowl to me, and I used a spoon to taste the mixture. It’s good, thank God! I was worried since the chefs here are always dumping tons of sugar into desserts.
Since the mixture contained raw eggs, I decided to purify it just in case.
“Become ice cream!” I chanted at the mixture.
Ms. Makias would likely be annoyed by my lame choice of words, but that was the most succinct way I could describe a spell that churned and froze a mixture at the same time.
“This is ice cream,” I announced. “Oh, would you mind chopping up some of the strawberries I brought?” I asked the chef. “Then, I’d like you to put half of the ice cream in a separate bowl.”
I added the chopped strawberries to half of the ice cream, then I churned it again with magic. I took a taste, and it had a lovely, fresh strawberry flavor.
“My lady!” Mary quietly snapped, scolding me for tasting the mixture.
I mean, I can’t serve this to Duke Burns without tasting it first.
“To serve the ice cream, please scoop it into glass bowls,” I told the chef.
President Caesar and Benjamin had just hung back and watched the entire time.
I want them to make an ice cream maker. I wonder if this helped them understand.
We returned to the drawing room, where another beautiful upper-class maid served us the glass bowls, which were filled with two scoops of ice cream, each a different color.
“Hmm, so this is ice cream,” Duke Burns remarked.
Since I’d made it, I dug in first.
“It’s delicious!” I raved.
It had been a year and two months since I’d come to this world, and it was my first time having ice cream since then. I never would’ve craved it while at home, since it was so cold in the winter, but I could enjoy it here since Duke Burns’s drawing room was warm.
The duke, Caesar, and Benjamin all took a bite, and they were pleasantly surprised.
“This will definitely be well received at the Festival of Verdure!” President Caesar exclaimed. “We might even get ourselves some new members!”
President Caesar is always the same at his core. He must really love the alchemy club.
“If you develop a magical instrument that makes this ice cream, my company will happily sell it!” Duke Burns chimed in. “Such a device would be perfect for summer garden parties!”
Duke Burns sure is passionate about his business. Oh, I think I have a great idea, and I’m not going to waste this opportunity.
“Duke Burns, I haven’t seen much of the world aside from my home and the academy,” I said. “Would it be possible for me to visit the Burns Trading Company?”
Caesar and Benjamin both stared at me in disbelief.
“I never knew you were so sheltered,” Benjamin bluntly blurted out.
Since Caesar was in his father’s presence, he politely kept his mouth shut.
“Absolutely, Lady Patience. I would be happy to arrange a visit for you.”
Duke Burns seems to understand what I want, which is to conduct market research! It’s an important part of doing business!
I’m so happy!
This was my first time going out since I’d sneaked out of the academy and peeked at the nearby bookstore, produce shop, and flower shop. Visiting the Northcourts didn’t count, since I just stayed in their home.
Visiting someone’s house is not the same thing as going out!
Mary, President Caesar, and Benjamin were all tagging along, so I had to keep such complaints in my thoughts.
Duke Burns’s home was in the area where most upper-ranking nobles lived. The Granger home was also in this area, probably because our family used to receive a proper income.
Not long after the carriage departed, we entered an area with smaller homes. Though they were relatively smaller, these homes would have been considered stately mansions during my previous life.
We traveled a little farther, and the residences no longer had front yards. They were also built a lot closer together, which reminded me of the cityscape of Paris. Along the roads were apartment buildings of a similar construction, which likely had courtyards at the very least.
I wonder if this is where lower-ranking nobles and rich commoners live.
“That’s the Romano branch of the Burns Trading Company,” Caesar pointed out.
The Romano branch was a grand building that reminded me of time-honored European department stores. It blended into the townscape, but its decorated pillars and the items displayed behind the front windows drew your eyes. It definitely looked polished by this world’s standards, but as someone who’d grown up in the city in my previous life, it was a bit lacking and plain.
It seems like they’re just showing off what sells well. This needs improvement!
Though I wasn’t blown away by the storefront, I was still thoroughly inspecting it. I definitely wanted to know what items sold well.
Since it’s winter, coats are the most popular clothing item right now. Magic lamps seem to be the most popular of the magical instruments. Wow, they even sell swords and armor. They’ve also got tableware and cooking utensils... They’ve pretty much got everything aside from food.
Though the display in the front windows wasn’t anything special, it was perhaps effective in that it showcased what the store had to offer.
“We’re going in!” President Caesar called out, urging me to get moving since I’d been caught up looking at the window displays. He continued his chivalrous streak and opened the door for me.
I guess he really knows his etiquette.
“The first floor is for tableware, pots, and other tools,” Caesar began to explain. “The second floor is mainly for clothes, armor, and other fabric-based items. The third floor is mainly premium items, like magical instruments and swords.”
It seemed that the higher the floor, the more expensive the products would be. Though there were mostly cooking utensils and tableware on the first floor, there was also a section for other sorts of items at an affordable price, such as cloaks.
I wanted to take my time going through the store, but Caesar and Benjamin were already headed for the second floor.
Do men not like to shop or something? They seem to only be interested in looking at what they want to buy.
We got to the second floor, which both Caesar and Benjamin quickly walked through again, headed for the third floor.
Yeah, they must not be interested in browsing.
“Wow, there’s a lot of stuff on display,” Benjamin remarked.