"You know I had no such intention," Melina muttered, patting Mango's cool fur.
"I know you didn't, but Count Speziale didn't. He's unmarried, you know," Alistair said, narrowing his eyes.
"Really? Isn't he over thirty? Usually noblemen marry before then," Melina pointed out.
"This man is anything but usual. You should realize that. You cannot trust him."
"I don't intend to trust him, but I need those Monster Realm ingredients," she said with a pout. She didn't enjoy that he was lecturing her, much like Gilbert would.
Alistair must have noticed her displeasure. He sighed and sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "I'm sorry. This is partially my fault. I should have done things properly, but instead I rushed ahead."
"What do you mean?" She cocked her head curiously.
"You'll see soon. I promise to prepare everything. So wait for me for a bit longer."
"I'm not sure what you want me to wait for, but you know I'll always be here for you," Melina assured.
Alistair smiled, his disposition softening, as his shoulders relaxed. "Thank you. Now, let's take a look at that contract that Count Speziale offered. I'm sure we can find more than a few unfavorable clauses."
They spent a good hour looking through the contract. Alistair pointed out many places where Melina could be taken advantage of. She didn't even realize that something so seemingly simple could be turned on its head. While Count Speziale claimed to provide all the necessary Monster Realm ingredients, upon closer inspection, there was a rather serious caveat.
Melina had to earn a certain amount of money to receive the promised amount of ingredients. If she didn't, then the amount of ingredients she received would be greatly reduced. To the point that she'd be able to make two or three tartlets with them, if even that much.
There were also other clauses favorable to the Count and many not so favorable to Melina. She felt baffled that he'd even attempt to do something so shady. But Alistair explained that this was often the norm among noblemen. Nobody ever signed the first version of the contract. The clauses were supposed to be discussed back and forth, so it was often a game of wit, trying to implant the clauses most favorable to you.
"After all this, I don't think I even want to work together with him," Melina huffed in annoyance. "But we need every ally we can get. Even the shady ones."
"Are you sure about this? You don't have to work together with him," Alistair pointed out. "We can find another way."
"The other way would involve us heading into Monster Realm as soon as possible," Melina pointed out.
Alistair frowned, his hand reaching out and clutching hers. The last incident in the Monster Realm must have brought up a lot of unpleasant memories. It was clear that he didn't want Melina to go anywhere near the passageway. Frankly, Melina didn't want to either. It was a miracle that Monster Lord hadn't sent more assassins her way by now.
"But I don't want to remain alone with that man anymore. I'll come along for the negotiations tomorrow. Make sure to set it up after my patrol," he said.
"I'll do that," Melina nodded. She'd feel better if Alistair were there to catch any other suspicious clauses.
The next day, Melina focused on helping Roxie get over her fears. She guided her step by step while making shortcrust pastry. The girl was still very nervous and feared making even the tiniest mistakes. But praise seemed to work well, helping her overcome her fears.
"That's right. Don't be afraid to add a bit more flour if you feel the dough is too moist or a bit more water if you feel it's falling apart too easily," Melina said.
Roxie nodded as she added a bit of flour and kneaded the ball into perfect consistency. "Like this?"
"Yes! That's perfect. Now try to make another," Melina encouraged. "And don't be afraid to ask for ratios if you forget them."
"S-Sure. I was wondering if we could perhaps write down the recipes. So it's easier to follow," the girl suggested timidly.
"You're right. I should write the recipes down. Master Gilbert never did that, but thinking about it, we should have the recipes available since there are two of us working in the kitchen now."
Sienna let out a displeased puff of smoke.
"I'm sorry, Sienna. Three."
The wyrm nodded approvingly and peered into the oven, looking at the pumpkin seed bread currently cooking in there. Melina had applied
Roxie continued making shortcrust pastry at a slow pace. She was still very nervous and did mess up two batches of the dough towards the end. But it was definitely an improvement over the previous day. The distraction and slow pace did mean that they weren't able to prepare as many pastries as the previous day, but Melina knew it was a necessary sacrifice for Roxie to improve.
"Good morning," Adrien greeted them, coming out of the living room. The boy was slowly moving his things into the attic, but without a bed, he was forced to sleep in the living room.
Melina suspected they should have enough money for one in a week or two. She'd have to order it from Milo, which meant it might take a while for it to be prepared. But the boy assured me that he didn't mind sleeping in the living room as long as he had his own space where he could relax away from others.
"Take the bread into the bakery, okay?" Melina asked Adrien after he had finished eating breakfast.
The boy nodded and grabbed a basket. He had been trying to levitate it, much like Melina was doing during her cooking process. But he still hadn't grasped how to properly control his mana, so she often had to prevent the bread from exploding into nothing.
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It was a good thing that he only woke up when most of the pastries were cooked. She wasn't sure if she could cook with magic and prevent his magical accidents at the same time.
They did have another helper, though. Mango, who had been watching Melina and Adrien with eager eyes, had started to levitate baskets of bread and pastries and bring them out into the bakery. She was good—the basket didn't wobble even once, gliding smoothly. Melina could only admire the fox's amazing control over her mana.
When Melina went to light up the sign, she saw that it wasn't adventurers who approached the bakery first, but rather Auden Speziale. He took large, confident strides and studied the bakery carefully from top to bottom. He had the same calculating look in his eyes that she had noticed yesterday.
She couldn't help but feel peeved by his deception, but decided that it was best that she didn't show it and instead appeared naive and grateful for his offer. Soften him up, so to speak. Melina activated
"Good morning, Auden," she said.
"Good morning! I'm honestly amazed. I saw the wonderful sign yesterday, but didn't notice that it was illuminated. Where did you get it?" He asked, looking at the sign closely. "Is it magitech?"
"Yes. It was made by a very special carpenter who works in Sunglow," Melina said, feeling pride for Milo's work. She would have to pass the compliments on to him later.
"I see. I'd like to meet him if possible."
"I'll see if I can arrange a meeting," Melina said and motioned the Count to enter the bakery.
Adrien had already prepared a seat for him in the corner of the bakery where Auden could observe the service hours.
"Welcome to Sunglow Bakery, Count Speziale," Adrien bowed respectfully. He appeared a bit stiff, but didn't let his nervousness show too much.
Roxie, on the other hand, looked like a nervous wreck, not able to utter a word, and instead just bowed alongside Adrien.
"Imagine that I'm not even here, and continue working as you usually do," Auden instructed.
"Of course," Melina said calmly. She wasn't particularly interested in impressing him.
That didn't mean that she wanted to fail either. But she didn't intend to confront his standards. There had been a clause in the contract that had stated that Count Speziale could demand that Melina change things in the bakery if he believed that the current setup wasn't "nurturing for the prosperity of the business". She had no intention of changing anything for this man.
But at the same time, she wouldn't allow him to slip through her fingers either. She knows that he has been itching to recruit her. She had the advantage over him—as long as she leveraged it right.
So the service went mostly like it usually did. People came to buy her pastries, many of them asking for wider variety. Just like the previous two days, cakes were the first to disappear, followed by fancier magical pastries.
Sunglowers were eyeing Auden suspiciously. Everyone was a bit tense around strangers after the whole spy incident. But Melina did her best to show that he was, in fact, her guest, not another Church agent, by having Adrien give him tea and occasional pastries to enjoy.
Auden observed everything with a smile, occasionally writing something down in his notebook. She wasn't sure exactly what he was writing down, but decided not to dwell on it.
The service came and went by without any incidents. Count Speziale remained in the bakery the whole time, observing everything. Once the last customer left, he approached Melina. "Very good. I honestly expected to see more mistakes during service, but you both did exceptionally well. Where did you get this talented boy?"
"My father is a merchant. I learned a lot about customer service from him," Adrien said proudly.
"Really? You wouldn't be interested in moving to Tuvia would you?" Auden offered.
"I'd appreciate it if you didn't try to steal away my employees," Melina frowned.
"I'm sorry, but I'm only willing to work for Miss Melina. Only she can teach me what I want to know," Adrien declined firmly.
"I was merely joking, but I see that you've got really loyal workers," Auden noted, his eyes wandering to Roxie, who hid behind Melina.
"Of course. I wouldn't have hired them otherwise," she said.
The Count hummed approvingly. "Indeed. In either case, I have seen a lot of good things here. How about we continue our discussion from yesterday?"
"Of course. But would you mind if I brought someone along with me?" Melina asked.
"No, of course not! Shall we meet in the same place as yesterday?"
"Yes. At seven, if you don't mind. I still have some things I need to do before the end of the day."
"Of course. I understand. I eagerly look forward to our meeting, Melina," he said, and once again planted a kiss on her fingertips.
She had the strongest urge to yank her hands out of his grasp, but controlled herself. Once evening came, everything would be made clear for him.
As Alistair cut down yet another mirror spider, he couldn't help but think of that slimy Count Speziale. To think that he would have the gall to meet with Melina one-on-one. He had been so angry seeing him exit from their home with a spring in his step and a wide grin on his face.
He didn't doubt that Speziale was trying to court Melina. She obviously didn't realize it—Melina never really mastered the finer subtleties of noble etiquette. Not to mention that each time she gazed at Alistair with those loving blue eyes, he did not doubt that Melina only had him in her heart.
But Speziale was a sly man. Like a snake, he'd slithered out of Church's grasp, doing whatever pleased him the most. Now he had set his sights on Melina. Alistair couldn't even blame him—she was beautiful, she was talented, and a powerful mage. Who wouldn't want her?
But intruding in the home of a young, unmarried woman was beyond scandalous. If Alistair's father heard of this, then he had no doubt that it would instantly put Melina on his bad side by no fault of her own. Alistair wouldn't allow that. He initially had wanted to wait longer—let things settle down between them. Let Melina get more comfortable.
But with Speziale lurking about, he would have to rush things a little. Alistair already agreed on a date with the Guildmaster when he'd leave for his home, Fenrora. He would have to convince his father. Convince him or accept being removed from the family. He hoped to remain close to his family, but for Melina's sake, he wouldn't hesitate to abandon his family name. Surely Charlotte at least would understand.
With his patrol over, Alistair rushed back home. He didn't want to find Count Speziale leaving his home again. The thought that he could be alone with Melina infuriated him. But when he knocked on the door and saw Melina greet him with a smile, all anger evaporated and he felt himself exhale in relief.
"Welcome home! How was your day?" She said, Mango squealing delightfully in her arms.
"I'm home. How are my girls?" He smiled, giving the fox an affectionate pat.
"Yip-yip!" Mango exclaimed. Sienna chittered, sticking to the nearby wall. Alistair gave her a hearty scratch.
"We're good. Been waiting for you to come home," she said sweetly.
Alistair nodded and pulled her close, planting a kiss on her lips. Mango protested, being squished between them for a moment, and Melina's cheeks tinged with a red color. She looked away, a bit surprised, but she didn't seem to mind.
"So when is Speziale coming?" Alistair asked.
"At seven," Melina replied.
That was about half an hour away. Alistair nodded and decided to get ready. He would fight the man with everything he had. While Melina prepared dinner, he went to the bathroom to clean up. He even got out one of his nicer suits. There weren't many chances to wear it in Sunglow, but he believed that this occasion called for it.
When Auden Speziale knocked on the door, Alistair went to open the door, dressed in his best. The man was smiling initially, but the smile died down the moment he saw Alistair.
"It is such a pleasure that you would visit Melina and me at our home," Alistair said, accentuating the word "our".
"Welcome, Count Speziale," Melina came to greet him. She, too, had put on her nicer dress. Without hesitation, she clung into Alistair's elbow.
Alistair didn't miss the slight frown on Speziale's lips. He hadn't expected this. But Alistair would make sure that he wouldn't just run off. He'd procure those Monster Realm ingredients for Melina, and make sure that there was nothing shady in the contract. It would be signed on their terms — or not at all. But Alistair knew men like Speziale never backed down so easily.