The Reincarnated Thirty-Something Woman’s Otherworldly Reform Life
[Back to Each Other's Daily Lives]
Translated by: ME
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*****
The ship glided across the sea.
It had been some time since they left the harbor, and the silhouette of the island had vanished from sight.
Ernest let the sea breeze play with his golden hair as he gazed back, as if chasing the scenery that had already disappeared.
「Was it really alright not to properly announce your name?」
「...My name is 'Ernest', so that wasn't exactly incorrect, was it?」
「That may be so, but...」
The chamberlain looked at Ernest with a bitter expression.
「Do you intend to take Lady Gilmore as your wife?」
When he boldly broached the subject, the face that turned to look back at him was far gentler than he had expected.
「She is a candidate for Queen of the great Kingdom of Ascald. I am merely a noble from a humble, medium-sized country, am I not? The difference in status is absurd.」
And there is the age gap, too, he laughed.
「Eleven years is hardly a rare difference. Besides...」
「Hmm? It sounds rather like a political marriage, doesn't it?」
He spoke over the attendant's words, cutting him off.
Then, keeping his wry smile, he turned his body fully toward the chamberlain.
「She is the descendant of the 'Fairy Princess of the Ruined Country', isn't she? Surely, things will be difficult from here on out.」
「I suppose so... She is still young, yet possesses such beauty, such a good nature... and to speak nothing of that knowledge. We can only hope war does not break out again...」
「That is likely part of the reason Marquis Gilmore kept her hidden.」
The chamberlain affirmed this with silence.
「But, she wasn't the sort of princess to stay hidden, was she?」
「Possessing too much talent can be cruel at times.」
Hearing the chamberlain's words, which seemed to imply many things, Ernest’s golden eyelashes trembled in the sea breeze.
「Well, the Fairy Princess is protected by the Demon General and the Black Lion. They are the strongest iron wall imaginable on the continent right now.」
「......」
Once again, his eyes—golden like his hair—slid across the horizon, tracing the invisible land.
The chamberlain swallowed a sigh and gazed out at the blue waves.
Magnolia was waiting for a messenger crow.
She peeked her eyes out from the saw-toothed battlements of the fortress, looking up at the sky. Since she was short, everything below her nose was hidden by the wall, which was rather charming in its own way. Her large, round eyes darted back and forth.
(I'm going to keep a carrier crow next time, too. No phones, no email, no social media—it's sho inconvenient!)
「The crow won't come just because you're watching, you know. I will let you know when it arrives.」
Unusually, Ethan was the one to call out to her. Magnolia gave a half-hearted reply while still gazing at the sky.
「Yeah... I know dat. But if we don't go home shoon, I fink Grandpapa might come back.」
「...It is your own home; you can return freely whenever you like without sending a herald.」
「Yeah. Dat's true, but...」
Ethan asked a question while staring at the pink swirl of hair on her head.
「Do you plan to build a sauerkraut workshop in the future?」
「Yeah. I plan to make it from da fieldsh up.」
「...From the fields?」
「Yup. A place for people from the shlumsh, or people who find it hard to get hired, or anyone in trouble—a place where we can do everything from farming to manufacturing, and if poshible, even shales. I want to do it with a bang.」
「....... Hahaha.」
With her gaze still fixed on the sky, Magnolia spread her arms wide to emphasize the 'bang'.
Ethan laughed, seeming amused by the grand scale of the plan.
「We can ushe the vacant farmland too, right?」
「That may be fine initially, but if others copy you, the business will stall immediately.」
「Yeah. But I fink it would be good if it shpreads and diseases go away. Actually, other vegetables would have been more efficient, sho I'm gonna ushe cabbage in shpring, autumn, and winter, and paprika in the summer.」
The two continued their conversation matter-of-factly.
「I see. So you already have a concept for another product...」
「Yup. Actually, if I hadn't heard about the voyage shickness, I might not have thought of shauerkraut and pickles. The fields were jusht for their shelf-shufficiency... I was planning to do businesh with a different product that wasn't food.」
「......」
A different business.
He stared intently at the head of Magnolia, who spoke of it so casually.
「...Is that why Lord Claude told you to come and see the West, which is likely to become the window for trade?」
「Hmm?」
At Ethan's words, Magnolia finally looked up.
She blinked her crested ibis-colored eyes and tilted her head to the side.
—Seeing Ethan's green eyes, she realized what he meant.
「...Ah, actually, if Big Brudder had come to check everything himshelf, it would've been lesh trouble. Honestly, I don't know how to shet up a workshop or handle the paperwork, sho I'd just leave it to Grandpapa or Big Brudder anyway.」
「The West will likely be the port for exports, after all.」
「I guesh sho~. Shince it's related to voyage shickness, eshpecially. Well, I didn't come to shcout for business this time; I just heard there were patients and thought maybe I could cure them.」
She wasn't a corporate employee, so she wouldn't be evaluated, nor would her bonus go up. She didn't care where the credit went.
In reality, she had zero knowledge of entrepreneurship and was merely freeloading, so it was fine if Claude or Servas considered this a "nuisance fee" or whatever they preferred.
That would actually be more convenient, as it would spare her from various bothersome things.
She didn't bother correcting his misunderstanding and just let it slide.
(I mean, just thinking about sending a four-year-old to scout a new business... if I were still an older lady, I'd be flabbergasted.)
However, she made sure to emphasize that she had come purely to resolve the voyage sickness.
That was something she couldn't compromise on, and she certainly didn't want them to think it was just an afterthought.
「Ah, it's here!」
A single bird could be seen flying in the distance. At Magnolia's voice, Ethan raised his gaze and saw the approaching black shadow.
Caa, the crow cried, announcing its arrival as it picked up speed, its form growing larger.
When Ethan raised his arm, it circled and slowly touched down.
Crows are truly intelligent. Magnolia gently stroked its black feathers. The feathers were faintly warm, and it gave a small quaa in response.
She offered the water and feed she had prepared at her feet. As if to say "right away," it pecked at the food and drank the water.
Ethan removed the letter and handed it to Magnolia, who hurriedly opened it.
『To organize the situation, calm down and, if possible, come home for the time being.』 It was written in precise handwriting.
「Shir Berlioz, pleash, tie this on for me!」
Magnolia, who had already brought a letter stating she would return tomorrow, handed the letter to Ethan as if rushing him.
Seeing her act unusually like a child, Ethan narrowed his eyes slightly, placed the letter in the communication tube, and released the crow.
At first, she thought about making a cake as a thank-you for their hospitality, but when she asked Lily the price of sugar and honey, she was surprised by how expensive they were.
In that case, perhaps a savory cake salé... she thought, but while searching for acerola, she confirmed that neither baking powder nor baking soda was anywhere to be found.
(...A world without hotcake mix...)
She dropped her shoulders in disappointment.
Just in case, she tried to recall the ingredients of baking powder... but only baking soda and cornstarch, or perhaps potato starch, came to mind.
(Wasn't there something needed to cause a chemical reaction? chemically speaking, would lemon juice work?)
She thought about it, but she couldn't find baking soda itself.
Thinking it might just be out of stock, she asked, but was told they didn't know what it was.
(Natural baking soda was a mineral, wasn't it...? Seriously, they should absolutely select science majors for otherworld reincarnation...)
Since her recent thoughts had been biased toward science—vitamins, oxidation, diseases—she felt this all the more strongly. Surely, if one could make antibiotics, the survival rate and cure rate in this world would improve dramatically.
—Though asking a science major to make medicine from mold or microbes without tools or equipment would probably be too unreasonable a demand, even for them.
(I never thought I'd need to excavate raw materials for baking soda just to make sweets~)
Thinking of something that could definitely be obtained in the middle ages, something a little girl could make simply without much strength, and something that wouldn't take too much time... the only thing within Magnolia's knowledge was baked cheesecake.
She finally got Lily and Dean to take a break.
Although having three days of free time felt like a vacation anyway, there was a world of difference between knowing the disease was under control and not knowing.
Since it was a rare opportunity, she told them to go sightseeing in Kruse and asked them to buy honey on their way back.
During breakfast, she asked a knight going to the Kruse station to accompany the two of them part of the way.
For the return trip, she arranged for them to stop by the station and come back with a knight returning to the fortress.
She asked the dorm mother to order extra cheese, milk or fresh cream, eggs, butter, and wheat flour from the visiting merchant for the thank-you gifts. She figured if she gave the expenses to Hugo or Ethan, they would pass it on to the appropriate department.
She had saved a few lemons from the large batch she bought the other day.
That night, directly into the pots and molds in the kitchen, she added the fromage-like substance, sugar, eggs, butter, flour, milk, lemon juice, and grated lemon zest in order, mixing them with a wooden spatula and smoothing them out.
In the other batch, she used grated hard cheese, sugar, eggs, butter, flour, milk, lemon juice, and zest.
The firmness of the dough depended on the moisture content of the cheese, so she adjusted it appropriately with milk. She added the ingredients by eye, recalling the amounts she used to use in her past life.
...It was a method that would probably make baking enthusiasts or professionals angry.
Even in Japan, once she got used to it, she didn't use a scale; she would make cookies and such by feel, often exasperating her friends who called her too sloppy, but she felt that experience had paid off.
Just as she was thinking of baking them in the oven, Lily came to help. Dean seemed to be already deep in dreamland.
「Fire is dangerous, so I will do it, okay?」
Although told she could rest, Lily, worried, had peeked into the kitchen anyway. Since she offered, Magnolia nodded obediently and let her handle the baking.
There were no timers or temperature settings. Magnolia wouldn't be able to manage it.
「...It smells lovely.」
「If it turns out well, let's make shome to give away.」
Amidst the drifting scent of baking sweets, Lily told her about the rare souvenirs she saw in the port town, strange fruits, and the many people with different skin colors. Magnolia listened, nodding along with "un-un".
She felt relieved that Lily seemed to have enjoyed the short time in a place she usually wouldn't visit.
「It might be baked by now?」
Taking it out carefully to avoid burns, a familiar yellow cake with a beautiful golden-brown color had finished baking.
Once it had cooled a little, she removed it from the mold, cut a small piece, and tasted it.
「...Seems okay. It's yummy chilled, but this is yummy in its own way too.」
She cut a large piece for Lily and handed her a spoon.
「Eat this, okay? In exchange, could you watch the oven for me?」
「Understood.」
「I wonder how many I can line up at onche...」
Thus, through trial and error, she baked the cheesecake-lookalikes one after another, and her final night at the fortress deepened.
「Everyone, thank you for everything. It'sh only a shmall token, but pleash eat!」
The next morning, the cakes disappeared into the knights' stomachs in the blink of an eye.
Ethan ate his with a somewhat difficult expression, but otherwise, it seemed generally well-received, and she stroked her chest in relief.
The dorm mother praised it highly and said she wanted to make it, so Magnolia taught her the recipe... or rather, the haphazard instructions that couldn't really be called a recipe. She apologized in advance in case it failed.
Receiving thanks from everyone, they lamented her return home.
Though slightly stifling, the good-natured knights brought a smile to her face as well.
It had been a fleeting seven days, but so much had happened.
She gazed deeply at the various parts of the fortress.
Above all, she was truly glad that the patients with voyage sickness were on the road to recovery.
Relief and a sense of accomplishment filled her entire body.
***
The knight who came to pick her up was that same escort knight.
「......」
「......」
After staring at each other in silence for a while, both of them broke into wry smiles.
In front of the gate, many knights of the Western Garrison were lined up.
「Everyone, thank you for your care and shupport over these sheven days. I hope you will continue to devote yourshelves to protecting the region, the people, the borders, and the citizens. I look forward to your continued ashistance. Pleash take care regarding injuries and illness, and push forward in your work.」
「「「「「「Yes, Ma'am!」」」」」」
A spirited reply and salute, typical of knights, returned to her.
Magnolia, Lily, and Dean each bowed in return.
「Shir Ducasse, Shir Berlioz. I caushed you two eshpecially much trouble. Thank you for dealing with my shudden visit despite being sho busy.」
Just before boarding the carriage, she thanked the two standing at the front.
Stern-faced but with a surprisingly kind smile, Hugo nodded slightly.
「Not at all. The entire order is grateful for the swift action of the Young Lady and the Margrave family.」
She told them to contact her if there were any developments or changes regarding the voyage sickness.
And so, seen off by the knights of the Western Garrison, the carriage carrying the party slowly began to move.
「...There she goes.」
「...Indeed.」
Watching the carriage grow smaller in the distance, Hugo and Ethan muttered quietly.
「...I never expected she would actually resolve it.」
「It's impossible.」
At Ethan's tone, which suggested he still found it hard to believe, Hugo let out a sigh mixed with a wry smile.
「True enough. She was a Young Lady like a storm.」
Tiny, cheeky, and precocious—an irregular Young Lady.
「...Come to think of it, there was a gift left for you in the guest room.」
Seeing Hugo grin and sneer, Ethan furrowed his brow.
The carriage reflected the same scenery in its windows as when they had come.
The flowing greens, reds, and the yellow-turning trees were reflected in her eyes as well.
Outside the window, a thicket of assorted trees spread out. And dotted here and there were blue and azure lakes.
「Knight-shan... did Big Brudder find you again today?」
「...No. Today, I just happened to be on guard duty at the mansion...」
The rest could be guessed.
Since Claude had apparently told him—looking like he found it hard to say—to go pick her up just in case he saw the knight's face, it seemed he had learned to be somewhat considerate.
Magnolia smiled wryly in her heart.
They would surely arrive at the mansion in no time.
Passing through the small town center and seeing the greenery increase again, the lord's mansion came into view in the distance.
It was big enough, but for a lord's mansion, it was on the cozy side.
Small light-brown brick walls and a brown tiled roof. Pink and white flowers bloomed on the ivy-covered walls.
A house inhabited by a muscle-bound giant and a grumpy colossus.
Recently, a small, lisping Young Lady had been added to the mix.
Looking toward the mansion from the carriage window, her uncle—the grumpy colossus—along with the servants and the knights guarding the mansion, were all lined up in front, awaiting their arrival.
It was her home, seen for the first time in a week.
「...What is that dust cloud?」
Far down the road in front of them.
Billowing dust rose as something approached with ferocious momentum. While wondering what it was, the carriage stopped, and Magnolia stepped down in front of the waiting group.
Before greeting them, everyone looked toward the direction of the dust cloud.
The sound of hooves and the rumbling of the earth.
「MAGNOLIAAAAA!!!!」
At that angry roar that seemed to crawl along the ground, startled stray cats fled from the grass, and birds perched in the trees took flight noisily.
Claude massaged the space between his eyebrows with a sigh.
「...That's Father.」
The cause of the dust cloud, the lord of this land and Magnolia's grandfather, Servas, leapt from his beloved horse and immediately broke into a fierce dash, sprinting toward them at a speed that made it impossible to believe he was sixty years old.
「Grandpapa! I'm home!!」
Magnolia smiled and speed-wal... broke into a run, leaping into her grandfather's outstretched arms.
*****
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