Chapter 15: Did You Understand It? If You Did, Come and Take the Test
“Miss Peiya, your patent has been fully approved. Congratulations~”
At the start of a new week, Nara came to find Peiya with the completed patent certificate. She hadn’t been resting at all these past few days.
She had been working overtime every day, urging the audit department to stop slacking and come back to work.
Because of that, the audit staff now treated her like a plague whenever they saw her.
Even President Maya, who at first said she didn’t care much, turned out to be soft-hearted despite her sharp words.
She said she would handle it when she had time, but once she started, she worked like crazy.
She even wanted to stand at the High Judge’s door and force him to approve the patent quickly.
So as soon as the report came out today, Nara rushed over immediately.
“That was fast… did you stay up all night?”
Peiya looked at Nara’s dark circles and suspected she hadn’t slept at all.
“I did stay up a bit, but it’s fine. And I have another piece of good news.”
Nara clapped her hands and took out a property certificate from her bag.
“The president has assigned you a house under the guild. When you have time, we can set a day to go check it out.”
“A… a house? Just like that?”
Peiya was a bit surprised. She didn’t expect them to be so generous.
“Of course! You’re a valuable member of our guild now. If you have any more patents in the future, just come to us.
The Dikert Guild will always welcome you~”
“Thank you. When I move into the new house, I’ll invite you and President Maya over for a meal.”
“Alright! Since it’s your invitation, I’ll gladly accept.”
After chatting a bit more, Peiya took the certificates and headed to Elise’s residence.
When the carriage arrived, Peiya couldn’t help but open her mouth in surprise.
Even though she had prepared herself mentally, she was still shocked by how luxurious it was.
The entire manor was covered with white tiles. Vines climbed along the walls, and a winding stone staircase stood at the main entrance.
On both sides of the stairs were neatly trimmed evergreen bushes, forming an elegant tree-lined path.
The main building was a three-story Victorian-style structure, with a light cream exterior decorated with detailed carvings.
The level of luxury left Peiya standing there in a daze, until a gentle voice interrupted her thoughts.
“Hello, who are you looking for?”
Peiya looked up and saw a maid dressed in black and white.
She guessed this must be the servant Elise had mentioned before.
“I’m here to see Elise. This is her letter.”
The maid was a bit surprised. It was the first time she had seen the young lady invite someone to the manor.
She took the letter, glanced at it, and confirmed it was indeed written in Elise’s tone.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. Please follow me.”
The maid bowed politely and led Peiya along a long stone path. The rough stones made the soles of her feet feel uncomfortable.
Maybe my shoes are too thin…
“Are your feet uncomfortable?” the maid asked politely when she noticed Peiya slowing down.
“Yes, my shoes are a bit thin. It feels a little rough.”
“Then please come this way.”
The maid led her along another path and explained,
“The previous path hasn’t been fully finished yet, so it can feel uncomfortable to walk on. I’m very sorry for the inconvenience. This path goes through the back garden, it’s a bit longer.”
Since Peiya was the young lady’s guest, the maid thoughtfully introduced the nearby facilities while quietly remembering her appearance.
“Okay~”
As they passed the stone steps, the sound of flowing water caught Peiya’s attention.
In front of her stood a huge, snow-white, three-tier fountain in the middle of a plaza. It looked very grand.
“T-that’s a fountain? It’s so big?”
Peiya stared at it. At first glance, she thought it was a swimming pool.
Isn’t this a bit too extravagant!?
“Something like that. Miss used to like it a lot.”
“Was your miss planning to swim? Why build something so big?”
“I’m not sure about that. But honestly, I’m also surprised that Miss invited you to the manor. It seems… you must be very special to her~”
The maid smiled gently and said it in a teasing way. As expected, Peiya’s thoughts started to wander.
Such a big house… is it really comfortable to live here alone?
Wouldn’t you get lost going to the bathroom at night?
The maid nodded to herself, satisfied, and decided not to push further. She led Peiya up to the second floor.
Pointing to a room at the end, she said,
“That is Miss’s study. She usually works there. If you don’t find her there, check the rooms further inside. Hmm… if the door is locked, she might be sleeping, so you may have to wait a bit.”
“That’s fine. I understand. Thank you, you’re really responsible.”
“That’s just my duty. It’s definitely not because I’m helping Miss make friends.”
“Huh?”
Peiya didn’t quite understand why the maid said something like that, but the thought quickly passed.
Just as she was still thinking about it, a cool and elegant figure appeared and caught all her attention.
“So you’re here~”
Peiya raised her hand and greeted her.
“You’re here. How was the trip? Any problems on the way?”
“No problems. I just didn’t expect your house to be this big. It feels like a maze, I almost got lost.”
“I didn’t expect it to be this big either. Since you’re here, can you help me taste some desserts I made?”
“What is it?”
Peiya followed Elise into the room and saw a plate of neatly arranged cookies on the table.
“Dessert?”
“Yeah. I tried making some. I’m not sure if you’ll like them.”
After going back that day, Elise had studied how to make cookies.
She failed many times, so only a few finished pieces remained.
“I’ll try.”
Peiya picked up a cookie and put it in her mouth.
At first, everything seemed fine…
Then things quickly went bad…
And then, disaster.
Th-this tastes terrible…
After forcing herself to swallow, Peiya let out a small sigh.
Elise could tell from her expression that it probably didn’t turn out well.
“Next time, add more cream. Otherwise, it will end up hard like this. Are you busy right now? If not, I can show you how to do it.”
“I’m not busy. The kitchen is this way.”
Elise led Peiya into the kitchen. Along the way, a few maids secretly peeked at them from behind.
They were probably thinking…
We haven’t seen Miss smile like this in a long time.jpg
At this moment, Peiya became a “little teacher,” asking Elise to show the cookie-making process again.
She believed that practice was the best way to learn.
Just explaining with words wasn’t enough.
Elise picked up a bag of flour and was about to add water, but Peiya quickly stopped her.
“That’s already wrong. First, you need to sift the flour. That way the cookies will be lighter. Then add a small amount of water, like this.”
Peiya demonstrated step by step while Elise watched carefully.
Outside the door, more maids were secretly watching what was happening inside.
She looks so professional…
“Aren’t you all supposed to be working?”
The head maid couldn’t help but scold them.
“But… you’re watching too.”
“I’m protecting Miss. That’s different.”
……………………………
In the kitchen, Peiya set the prepared dough aside, then took some butter and powdered sugar.
“Add butter like this. If you like it sweeter, you can add some sugar. Don’t use regular sugar, or the texture will feel rough. Then just mix it in one direction. Here, you try.”
Peiya handed the butter and sugar mixture to Elise.
“Me?”
Elise pointed at herself, looking shocked.
It felt just like when a teacher finishes explaining everything, and suddenly says, ‘Alright, now it’s time for the final test.’