Chapter 73

Chapter 73

[Oh dear, it’s sulking.]

[It got unsummoned.]

‘I’ll have to play with it later…’

A quick flight together usually cheers it right up.

At first, I worried about being labelled a witch. 

But surprisingly, people were quite accepting of unfamiliar creatures and objects.

When they saw Vroom-vroom, they only spread rumors about ‘a mysterious mythical creature appearing.’

That’s why I let Vroom-vroom roam freely in the North, where there was plenty of space.

When everyone at Orsha Palace first encountered Vroom-vroom, they were shocked by its size but soon accepted it as my pet(?!).

<Oh, so it’s Lady Irina’s pet?>

<You could say that.>

<I see. Understood.>

‘Is that why they’re so accepting of ice cream?’

[Could be.]

In any case, looking back at the past month in the Capital, the biggest achievement was ice cream’s recognition.

Ice cream was popular regardless of social status.

When I first started selling ice cream in the Capital, I wasn’t sure if people would respond well or if they’d like it – I just wanted to test their preferences.

But to receive such love from so many people!

[Right! It sold like hotcakes at the stalls!]

[And it was popular in high society too!]

It felt like our test pop-up store had become an overnight sensation.

Actually, I was somewhat confident about targeting the nobility. 

After all, I had the recognition of being from House Luwin, and Cassis’s best friend was Isiel Lemiere.

‘Ice cream,’ first introduced at ‘Ophelia’ and properly promoted on the first day of the New Year’s party, continued to receive inquiries even after the party ended.

I heard Count Seike’s house received quite a lot of contact.

Ijin responded to these inquiries by telling them to contact ‘Irina Seike’ if they had any questions.

The recognition seemed good enough that we probably didn’t need additional promotion.

Since I didn’t have any suitable dresses anyway, I skipped all the parties except for the last day.

Cassis and Roen did the same.

When I declared I wouldn’t go, they gave me a standing ovation, saying they’d been waiting for those words.

During that time, I went to work at the street stall and observed Yen and Harvey, our new employee.

Harvey was excellent at his job. 

When Yen suggested new ways to organize the workflow, he provided perfect backup.

Ice cream sold even better than before, probably due to the buzz from the first day of the New Year’s party.

For commoners, it seemed amazing that they could buy a dessert so popular among nobles for just 3 Jurang on the street.

Ice cream sold so fast that we couldn’t keep up with the quantity I could make in a day.

It got to the point where even servants from prominent noble houses in the Capital were standing in line.

<Lady Irina, that person must be here on an errand?>

<Yeah? Still, sell it the same way. What else can we do?>

Some people seemed upset that a dessert marketed to nobles was made readily available to commoners.

They even wrote letters of complaint directly to me. 

Of course, I ignored all such letters.

Fortunately, I had support from prominent upper-class nobles like Isiel, Isolini, and Jane, so I had excuses ready for when it became an issue in social circles.

For various reasons, my biggest worry about capturing both the upper class and the general public was resolved in one go.

<Lord Cassis, managing the stall seems quite challenging.>

<Currently there are two staff members, correct?>

<Yes, and since some customers are nobles…>

Seeing that Yen and Harvey couldn’t manage alone, I asked Cassis and Roen for help.

Cassis called in a deputy butler with the title of baronet and two servants who had worked at Orsha Palace for a long time.

After brief training, they were assigned to the street stall.

With these people who had served nobility now working there, it became much easier to handle noble servants running errands and nobles who caused trouble by refusing to wait in line.

<Oh, I’m dying…>

I started feeling the effects of holy power deficiency.

Finally, I began asking Seiren, who was holed up on the second floor, how her research was going.

<You didn’t care before!>

<I might die from holy power deficiency.>

When I asked the deity who only sends me system messages for help, they replied that holy power is innate and dramatic changes are impossible.

I was naturally outraged.

<How am I supposed to create a worldwide franchise when I can’t make enough due to holy power deficiency!>

[Irina can do it~]

[Fighting~~]

Anyway, I could only cling to Seiren, chanting ‘you’re Luwin’s only hope.’

Because if my production capacity was this limited due to holy power deficiency, there would be clear limitations no matter how much I wanted to expand the ‘ice cream business.’

Meanwhile, the last day of the Imperial ball approached, and the party concluded without anything particularly special happening.

Instead, many people started approaching me talking about investing in ‘ice cream’ and such.

I don’t think I’d ever been this popular in my life.

Tired of such people, I used Cassis as a shield in front of me and pulled in Isiel from the side.

<Why are you suddenly telling me all this?>

<To prepare you mentally since we’ll be busy once the business properly starts.>

<…I’ve prepared the money.>

<Money is good, but more important than money is being a model.>

Isiel grumbled about having to both provide money and model, but when I quietly pointed to Seiren, he fell silent.

Though nothing’s decided yet, only once we determine the name, concept, and open a store! 

Then Isiel will have to follow us around like a dog drawing pictures.

Just drawing? 

He’ll have to attend every possible party and eat ice cream.

<Alright, alright. I’ll do it.>

Unaware of the tragedy awaiting him, he nodded saying ‘why not.’

Even after the New Year’s celebration completely ended, I was still busy.

I worked hard making ice cream for delivery to House Lemiere’s party, one of the contracts(!) Cassis secured.

That’s not all. 

I staggered around Luwin’s mansion making ice cream for delivery to ‘Ophelia’s’ New Year opening party too.

Even though Seiren tried to sprinkle me with holy power despite her inability, I crawled around the reception room floor like someone who hadn’t sobered up.

Cassis and Roen worried about my condition, but there was nothing they could do.

After such a challenging month where I gave it my all, returning to the North was incredibly peaceful.

* * *

“Lady Irina…!”

“Hi Yuri. You’re here?”

The office door cracked open slightly, and a small child came running in.

Everyone smiled warmly at the sight of Yuri.

I heard it had been a very long time since there had been a child at Orsha Palace.

I left the stall in Yen and Harvey’s care and brought Yuri to the North.

Primarily because, with Yen working tirelessly from morning till night, young Yuri seemed to be left alone at home for too long.

“About what you mentioned before, I tried drawing it…!”

Yuri held out a small notebook to me. 

It was filled with sketches of a quality that seemed impossible for a child.

‘My best talent.’

Without a doubt, if there was anyone I recruited best from the Capital, it would be Yuri.

By the way, I heard that Yen and Harvey had moved out of their previous residence and were now staying at Luwin’s mansion in the Capital.

When Cassis’s servants and deputy butler heard Yen and Harvey’s ages, they visited their lodgings to check on them, were horrified by the terrible conditions, and immediately moved them out.

While moving them, they also brought along Harvey’s sister who was only a year older than him. She’s now staying at the mansion and learning to be a maid.

<Lady Irina! It’s so wonderful here!>

From Yen’s occasional letters, it seems they’re enjoying life there.

<Originally our main customer base was quite young, but lately the age range seems to be increasing.>

<People are asking if we plan to open more branches.>

<Oh! I received a business card too. Baron Ratz, I think? He asked if we could deliver some ice cream to his mansion.>

<Also, please send a bit more ice cream this time. We keep selling out too quickly.>

Yen and Harvey analyzed the customer base while selling ice cream and sent me daily reports.

Thanks to these reports, I could continuously monitor ice cream’s reputation in the Capital even from the North.

Incidentally, Seiren ended up returning to the Lemiere mansion in tears.

<Waaah, I want to go with big sis!>

<Seiren, let’s go home, even if just for a while.>

<I hate you, brother!>

I had subtly suggested we go to the North together, but Isiel insisted she needed to return home at least briefly since she was a Lemiere.

And so Seiren was dragged back to the Lemiere mansion at Richmond estate like a soldier being taken to war.

“What on earth has our Yuri been eating to be this smart?”

“Lady Irina’s love and attention?”

“Aww, how cute.”

I ruffled Yuri’s hair vigorously.

As soon as I returned to the North, the first thing I did was call a meeting to definitively establish the ‘ice cream’ brand’s concept and direction.

“As you said, Lady Irina, ice cream needs to be both a luxury dessert and something people can casually enjoy while traveling excitedly, so I drew these designs…”

Ultimately, what we’ll present upfront is a dessert easily accessible to the public. 

Behind that, my goal is to showcase premium ice cream varieties.

“First, I drew some designs for the casual ice cream…”

What Yuri had drawn was a pop art-style waffle with two appetizing scoops of ice cream between them.

“Once the brand name is decided… we could write it in this kind of font style.”

Yuri flipped through the notebook, showing other designs.

They had drawn not just logos, but also poster drafts and even signs to put up at the stalls.

I immediately called for Roen.

“Senior!”

“What is it?”

“Look at this.”

As I covered my mouth and pointed at the notebook with moved eyes, Roen came to look as well. 

He let out an impressed sound and asked me:

“Has the name been decided?”

“I don’t think so.”

I’d asked every time we met, but Cassis would always answer ‘not yet’ and run away.