Katariona Becomes a Collaborator 

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Today is the day for my dress fitting.
Laura was scheduled to come to the mansion in the afternoon, so Marie and I spent the morning in the kitchen making sweets for her.
I’m going to ask her to teach me some beauty tips after the dress fitting, so this is my humble teaching fee.

We made a shelf under the treehouse and planted peaches, so we can use the peaches to make cupcakes.
Peaches are difficult to grow, but that’s where the creation magic comes in.
I made them grow until they were ready to be harvested.

“Leon, is the peach cream ready? Bring me some of the peach cream with a little peach paste in it.”

“It’s ready.
I made it fluffy just like you ordered.”

Lately, when I cook, Leon also assists me.
He’s too blinding in his teenage form, and he can’t use his hands as a beast, so he uses his child form.

“It’s really fluffy.
Leon is really handy, isn’t he?”

“Fu.
It’s easy to do this when I have hands.” 

My heart suddenly tightened.
He looks like a cheeky little boy, but he looks cute if you think of him as a fluffy lion.
But, since gods don’t have a specific form, can’t we say that the lion’s form is the main body? Eh?When we first met, didn’t he say he was in his “original appearance” or something? Huh? Whatever.
I’ll ask him about it sometime later. 

We split up the division of tasks for the peach cupcakes.
The sponge was difficult, so I left it to Marie, who was used to making them, while Leon and I were in charge of the peach cream and cutting the peaches into petal shapes.
We spread the peach cream on the sponge and put the cut peaches on top of it in the shape of flowers.
Of course, Marie was the one who came up with the idea.

“Milady is also very skillful.
You’ve only been cooking for a short time, but you’re very good with a knife.”

Marie complimented me as I took the sponge out of the oven and placed it on the worktable.

“Fufu.
Marie gave me her seal of approval.”

“Well? I don’t know.
There’s a lot more to cooking than that.”

Flare-sama was right, Leon is a meanie. 

Trying to finish up the cake baking, all three of us worked in silence.
The “Peach Blossom Cupcakes” are finally completed.
The pinkish-white peach pieces look like a beautiful gradation of flowers.

“Do you think Laura will like it?”

“She seems to have a sweet tooth.
I’m sure she’ll love it.”

“I’d like to taste it, do you mind?”

I had to restrain Leon, who was about to take a bite out of the cake.

“No! Wait until tea time.”

“Mmm.”

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Leon groaned at being denied, but if I say you can’t have it, you just can’t have it.
I’m trying to resist the urge to taste it, too, you know?

* * * * * 

A bit past noon, Laura came to visit me at the mansion, accompanied by a female employee.
I quickly showed her to the room.

“I’m here as promised.
Miss Katariona.”

“Thank you for taking the time to come.”

Laura smiled elegantly.
It’s great to be beautiful.

“If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.
If there is anything you don’t like, we can fix it.”

She took out a dress that had been temporarily sewn and showed it to me.
It’s a pretty dress with a bright blue base and a delicate white lace with roses woven into it.

“It’s a cute dress.
The lace is also very delicate and beautiful.”

“Do you like it? I took Marie-san’s design and altered it a bit.”

I was impressed with Marie’s taste and Laura’s ability to recreate it.

“I really like it.
I absolutely love it.
It’s a beautiful dress.”

“I’m glad to hear it.
Marie-san knows exactly what the young lady likes, doesn’t she?”

“I was just suggesting a design that I thought would suit Milady.
Laura-san is the incredible one for making it turn out so wonderfully.”

I think both Marie and Laura are amazing.

“Would you mind trying on the dress? We can always make some alterations to the size.”

I must have lost some weight exercising in the treehouse recently, so I should be fine.
Probably…

I put my arms through the sleeves on the dress, and it fitted easily.
Thank goodness.
I was afraid it would burst at the seams.

“Oh? You’ve gone down a few sizes since the last time I took your measurements.
Did you go on a diet?”

Ugh! She hit it spot on.

“I’ve recently decided to do a few exercises.”

I smile and try to cover it up.

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“At Miss’s age, there is no need to diet.”

No, you can’t! Absolutely not! Those are the magic words.
It’s a magic word.
If you indulge yourself, you’ll get fat.

“I’ll make some adjustments to the size.
I also made a hair ornament to match your dress, so please try it on.”

The hair ornament was a pretty ribbon made of rose lace and blue satin.

“The hair ornament is also pretty!”

Laura giggled and smiled.

“Marie-san, could you tie up the young lady’s hair and try on the hair ornament?”

“I understand.”

Marie picked up her usual brush with purification magic and tied up my hair into a half-up hairdo, and attached the hair ornament.
I looked into the hand mirror.
Oh! I look so cute.

“Oh my! You look lovely.
I knew it would look good on you.”

For some reason, Marie was very proud.
She had her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest.

“Young Lady’s hair is so shiny.
Do you use any special perfumed oils in your hair?”

“That’s because of this brush.”

When I showed the brush to Laura, she studied it intently.

“This! Are you applying purification magic to it?”

“Eh? How can you tell? Do you have an appraisal eye, by any chance?”

“Yes… Well…”

Laura was mumbling, and her words weren’t very clear.
But, having an appraisal eye is a great thing.
That’s right! The bracelet that Flare gave me allows me to look at Laura and see if she is…! Oh no! I forgot to put it on today!

“I’m not sure what to make of it, but I’m sure it’s worth it.
Did Young Lady grant this to you?

“No.
Marie gave it to me.
I don’t think I can do it as I don’t know if I have the water attribute.”

It’s hard for me to say for sure because I haven’t had a chance to judge my magic attributes yet.

“I’m sorry, is that so? Marie-san, you’re amazing.”

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“It’s thanks to the Water God.”

Leon, relaxing on the sofa, chuckled.
Did something funny happen?

As I finished resizing my dress, I gave Marie a look.
I was trying to signal her to prepare the peach cupcakes and tea.
Marie nodded with a knowing look and left the room.

“Laura.
What was that beauty thing you were talking about the other day?”

“Oh!” Laura nodded as she put away her tools.

“Yes.
If there is something you need from me, I would be happy to help.”

“Actually, I tried making soap and perfume with roses, and it worked.
However, when I tried it with other flowers, it didn’t work as well as the roses.”

After that, I researched various flowers to make soaps and perfumes, but I could not make them work as well as roses.

“Speaking of rose soap and perfume, are you perhaps talking about the popular products that sold out? Were you the one who made them, Young Lady?”

“It was a collaboration between Marie and me.”

“I stood in line all night to buy them!”

Oh, my goodness! Laura bought it too? She even stood in line all night.

“I thought it was a great idea.
And, if you add lotion and scented oil to it, it will be a great product for the nobility…”

Laura spoke enthusiastically.
Her cheeks were flushed.
She looked like a large rose in her red dress and her licorice red hair.

There was a knock on the door, and Marie arrived with the peach cupcakes and tea.

“I thought it would be a good idea if we had a tea party today while listening to your advice on beauty.
So, Marie, Leon, and I made peach cupcakes.”

“Oh my! Did you make the cake yourself, Young Lady?”

“Do you have any plans later? If it’s fine with you, I’d like to discuss cosmetics and beauty tips with you over some peach cupcakes.”

Laura gazed at the gorgeous cupcakes decorated with peach-shaped flowers.
She’s a sweet tooth, isn’t she? That’s good.

“Of course, it’s okay.
I’d be honored to enjoy Young Lady’s cake.”

I invited the female employee to sit on the sofa and offered her a cup of tea and a piece of cake.

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“It’s delicious! The freshness of the peaches just bursts in your mouth.”

“Teacher.
This cream also tastes good with peaches.”

Laura and Nina, the employee, took a bite and tasted it with their hands cupped to their cheeks.

I cut the cake into bite-sized pieces and placed them in front of Leon, who ate them all in one bite and rolled them around with a playful grin.
Mhm.
It’s delicious, is it not?

I’ll have some too.
First, I dipped the peach in the cream and took a bite! It’s delicious! Let’s take a bite of the cream and sponge! I can’t stop! How about peaches with cream and sponge? Absolutely divine!

By the time we finished eating, we all had satisfied expressions on our faces.

“It was very delicious.
Thank you for the food.”

We all clapped our hands together toward Marie.
After cooling down with a cup of tea, we got down to business.

“I’ve been having trouble finding the right roses, so I thought I’d consult an expert in the field.
Do you have any advice for me?”

Laura put her finger to her mouth and thought.

“Have you attempted the flowers on their own?”

“Yes, I did with just the flowers.”

“If you blend them with fruits, herbs, etc., you will get a gorgeous fragrance.”

This was a surprising thing to hear.
I had never thought of blending them.

“Here’s a suggestion.
If it’s alright with you, why don’t we three collaborate on this project?”

It was a suggestion I hadn’t thought of.
I appreciate Laura’s offer, but I am still a child.

“However, Marie aside, I’m still a child… And what would my parents say?”

“There are no adults or children in the pursuit of beauty.
And Young Lady seems to have a very interesting point of view.
I will discuss it with the Marquis.

“I understand.
I’ll talk to my parents, as well.
Laura, I’ll be in your care from now on.
Please take care of me. 

Laura stood up from the sofa with a grin and curtseyed, saying, “Please do the same for me, Miss.”

Having reached an agreement, Laura decided to leave.
Marie and I escorted her to the entrance.
As we were leaving, she glanced at Leon, who was in my arms.

“Then, I will take my leave now.
Leon, that little knight-errant, is it? Please give my regards to him as well.”

I thought I felt Leon’s body tremble.

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