Interlude: Got Sugar!?

Translated by: ME

Treat me to a Ko-Fi to give me more motivation!!!

*****

Time jumps back a little, to shortly before the debutante ball.

(That's right, the herb garden!)

Recalling what the church monk had taught her, Magnolia headed out to the garden for a change of pace. Gai—her guard, naturally—followed along, but it seemed Lily and Dean were coming too today.

「Since we’re going, let's prepare some tea. You work far too hard, Lady Magnolia!」

At Lily’s comment—which implied "and you're only six years old"—Dean, Gai, and Magnolia all nodded in unison. They were in complete agreement. Even if it was entirely her own fault.

「Well then, Dean, you can review those calculations from the other day while we're out.」
「Ehhh...」

The boy destined to be her manservant let out a massive groan at the young lady who wouldn't waste a single moment.

***

The courtyard of the Margrave of Azenda’s estate was the definition of rugged. Unlike the Gilmore townhouse, which was overflowing with flowers, here it was just trees, trees, trees.

When the residents are grim warriors, the guests at the manor follow suit... mostly knights, former knights, or old men involved in territorial administration.

(Well, I mean... I can't really see the Demon General or that surly young man doting over flowers...)

Only the parts visible from the outside were kept tidy; behind the scenes of this lady-less manor, Magnolia had a premonition it would soon turn into a forest. If one expected something matching the lovely exterior of the house, it was a complete letdown.

(Wait, could this be emergency provisions?)

It was possible. Beyond nuts and fruits, in old Japan, they used to plant edible trees around castles so that during a siege, they could stave off hunger by eating the fruit—or was it the bark?

Thinking of the faces of her grandfather and uncle, she nodded to herself. They looked like they could crunch right through wood... wait, what?

Still, what happened to the gardener?

「Ah—the gardener is away on a business trip...」 Gai said nonchalantly.

A gardener on a business trip? Was there a gardening festival or a horticultural expo being held somewhere? In this era? The young lady shot him a deadpan look.

What Magnolia didn't know was that in the Gilmore family, the gardener often doubled as a secret agent. "Gardener" was the cover used when they weren't engaged in espionage.

In the main Gilmore house, which had ceased espionage activities, retired agents served as gardeners at the townhouse and manor. However, at the Margraviate, active agents still filled both roles.

Their primary duties were intelligence gathering and guarding the manor and the Margrave's family; gardening was merely a side gig. Furthermore, because Gai had been called back to the manor, many other agents were currently out in the field. Normally, Gai would be doing the gardening, but since he was tasked with Magnolia’s protection, he didn't have a moment to spare for playing in the dirt.

It just so happened that "errands" had piled up, and with no rotation or shift system in place—and Gai being at the manor anyway—everyone else had headed out.

***

「Even so, a herb garden... are you planning to make medicine next?」
「No, it's not quite like that...」

Magnolia didn't have that much knowledge. At most, she knew how to use a few herbs. And sadly, that knowledge was specialized mostly toward the edible side of things.

(...I-I'm not a glutton, okay!)

She made excuses in her heart, pouting her lips. If anything, her feeling that a herb garden might have more useful things than a decorative greenhouse was proof enough that she preferred substance over style—or rather, "dumplings over flowers."

In a slightly secluded spot, a small herb garden had been established. She didn't know the classification system, but it was divided into blocks, some resembling flowerbeds. There were familiar herbs, unrecognizable plants, and a vast variety of flora swaying with lovely blossoms.

「When you have a headache, you crush this and rub it on your temples.」

Dean pointed to some mint leaves to teach Magnolia. She lightly touched the leaf to check the scent. She couldn't tell the specific variety, but it was the exact scent of mint from her memories.

「It's mint. It smells wonderful.」
It reminded her of the tablets and gum she often ate back on Earth.

「That's spearmint. These slightly longer leaves over here are peppermint. Both are good for colds or the stomach.」

True to people of this era, they seemed well-versed in folk remedies involving herbs. As she listened to the explanation, her expression turned complicated as she spotted the "poisonous plant" corner a short distance away.

(Over there is lily of the valley, gloriosa, belladonna, oleander, and digitalis...)

Noticing Magnolia’s gaze, Gai let out a "hehehe" chuckle. She returned a "fuhehe."

............
Seeking a change of pace, she looked around the immediate area and spotted a leaf that looked like a familiar vegetable.

「Hm...?」 (Spinach?)

As she approached for a closer look, she saw a thick root in the soil, like a turnip or a radish. It was a vegetable she had seen in the corner of an old textbook. (Could this be...)

「That's a beet. It's used as a laxative°...」

(BEETS!!!!)
「YES! THIS IS IT! IT'S HEREEEEE!!!!」

*I got it!*
With a shout, she yanked it out and hoisted the mud-covered beet above her head. Clumps of soil from the root showered down onto her pink hair.

Gai, Lily, and Dean were initially startled by her scream—yet another of her eccentric outbursts—but they quickly got "distant eyes." *Ah, she found something again...*

A few minutes later, she found herself having to apologize profusely to Servas and Claude, who had come running with swords drawn, followed by a squad of knights.

***

「...So, why exactly did you let out that bizarre scream?」

Claude sighed as he brushed the dirt from Magnolia’s hair.

「Beets! Sugar beets! Sugar radishes!」

She thrust the mud-stained beet right toward his handsome face. Claude leaned back, a valley of a frown forming between his brows.

「...Calm down a little.」

Sensing he was getting nowhere, Claude handed the huffing, excited Magnolia over to Servas. Her flailing legs looked like a blur of multiple limbs; with her coloring, she looked like a rampaging shrimp.

Since it was called a "herb garden," it was styled like a small park. Lily had prepared tea for three in the gazebo.

「Magnolia, those are harsh. They aren't fit for eating, you know?」
At Servas’s casual remark, everyone mentally shouted: *You ate one?!*

「I'm going to make sugar with this!」
「Sugar?! You can make sugar from beets?」
「Probably...」

If one ignored the perfection... the taste, smell, and color... it should be possible. Back in elementary school, she had made sugar from carrots and sweet potatoes for a summer research project. She should be able to do the same with beets.

Beets are plants of the Amaranthaceae family, related to spinach. As Gai said, they were used here as ingredients for constipation medicine.

Apparently, there are several types—some for eating the leaves, others that aren't very sweet—but when she cut a piece and licked it, it tasted quite sweet. She simply had to try it.

If this worked, mass production of sugar might be possible! Sweets! Cakes! Sugar!! ...The dream was expanding.

The method: peel the skin thickly and cut it into one-centimeter cubes. Put them in a pot, soak them in water around 70°C, wrap the pot in a blanket, and let it sit for about an hour. After removing the beet pieces, boil down the remaining liquid over high heat, carefully skimming off the scum. Once it thickens, turn the heat to low and boil further; when it turns whitish, remove it from the heat and stir constantly. Transfer to a flat dish to cool.

If all went well, it should solidify.

***

「...That's quite a lot of work.」
「If I don't remove the scum properly, the harshness or smell might make it inedible.」

She answered Servas, who was watching her hands with great interest, while tilting her head. Being a herb garden, it seemed they occasionally prepared medicines on-site, as there was a small cooking area in the corner. She boiled the mixture, painstakingly skimming the surface.

...With things as convenient as Misoyu fruit around, was there really no sugar? The sugar generally available on the market resembled what she ate on Earth, so she had assumed plants like sugarcane existed.

「How is the sugar sold in shops made?」 she asked Claude and Gai.

Claude seemed like he knew everything, and Gai might have actually seen it in another country. Sugarcane (on Earth) is grown in warm regions, while beets are grown in cold regions. If both tasted the same as on Earth, sugarcane sugar would be easier to make, but...

「It's harvested in the mountains. It's found with rock salt.」
「...What?! It's a mineral?!」

*You crush it,* Gai added, delivering the finishing blow. Like rock candy?! And then you grind it into powder??
*Gahn!* (And no, that's not a pun on "rock"!)

...If it's a mineral, why isn't it found in the Ascald Kingdom, which is supposed to have a strong blessing of the earth element? It was a mystery.

She got tired halfway through and had Dean take over skimming the scum. After over three hours of work—a major undertaking—the six of them stared intently at the resulting brown clump. Then, they each took a small piece and popped it into their mouths simultaneously.

It was sweet... but.

「............」
「It has... a very unique taste and scent, doesn't it?」
「It's subtle.」
「Perhaps it could be used as is for simmered dishes... maybe?」
「Tastes like thin dirt?」

Each gave their own unfiltered opinion. Magnolia confirmed the taste of the faux-beet sugar lingering in her mouth, her eyes drifting upward as she thought.

「As I thought, it needs treatment with lime or calcium carbonate... maybe filtration or a centrifuge is necessary too...」
「...Hmm... filtration and centrifuges...」
「It would have been great if we could get sugar from beets, which are relatively easy to grow in Azenda.」

As expected, the scientific level of a typical summer research project wasn't enough to produce delicious sugar. Without machinery, refining it to a sellable level seemed impossible. Plus, it was incredibly hard labor.

However, while she hadn't secured the sugar, she had found a lead. (And if there are beets, there might be sugar maples! The taste would be much safer than beets!!)

Magnolia was quite optimistic and possessed a hidden greed for food (of which she was unaware). She thought she might even find sugarcane eventually...

But she was relentlessly grilled by Claude about the structure of filtration and the mechanics of a centrifuge. As usual, Magnolia—who wasn't actually an expert in science—had to rack her brain to scour every bit of past knowledge she possessed.

(I don't know that much detail! I'm pretty sure I was a humanities major!!)

「What is a 'humanities major'?」
「...Hiee!!」

She had clearly piqued the interest of the researcher-minded Claude... Magnolia felt keenly that one shouldn't carelessly say unnecessary things.

***

A few months later, a hulking machine contraption sat before Magnolia's eyes. It was a "Sugar Refiner," specially made by Claude.

「Wait... you understood from that clumsy explanation?!」

He wore a composed face, but was it her imagination that he looked a bit smug? Magnolia blinked her ibis-colored eyes.

He scooped her up onto his shoulder and, without a word, strode back toward the herb garden.

「Lime can be handled with powdered burnt seashells. Now, let us experiment!」
「Wait! What about the carbon dioxide?!」

Naturally, a grinning Gai followed behind, carrying the refiner on a cart. Lily and Dean exchanged looks and left the room to prepare tea.

「I shall go too—」
「Lord Servas, these documents come first!」

Servas, who had started to stand, was presented with paperwork by Sebastian, who was applying pressure with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. Without a pause, a mountain of documents loomed over Servas, who had let them pile up.

「Come on now!!」
「Uwaaaaaah!!」

Peace (chaos) reigned in the Azenda Margraviate once again. Surely, the day when sugars other than "rock sugar" would be exported from Azenda was not far in the future.

*****

Peaceful chaos within Azenda.

Thank you for reading. If you want to help my hobby please download and install LDP9 with my link down below. Just Click the small yellow LDPlayer Banner.