With Cambelina seated, Alme decided to at least say something polite. “I’ll bring you some tea. Would you like black tea?” “I’m not a fan of commoners’ tea, but I guess it'll do. Just give it to me without sugar, I'll add it myself.” She spoke as if she were giving orders to a servant. Alme’s face twitched again, and she went down to the kitchen in the back where Ena was waiting. “She’s so brazen, isn’t she?” “She’s a noble lady’s daughter, after all.” Ena and Alme had a silent conversation with their eyes as Alme quickly prepared the tea. She put a teacup and saucer, a small sugar container for guests, and the fairy honey she had just taken out on a tray and returned to Cambelina. When Alme sat down, Cambelina took a small leather bag from her attendant and opened it before touching her tea. She took out a small pouch from the bag and placed it in the middle of the table. Alme watched Cambelina’s actions until she was finished and then asked a question that had been on her mind. “Um, Cambelina-san, what brings you here today? What’s in that leather pouch?” “It’s a settlement. I’ve come to give you this money. I want you to break off your relationship with Julio.” “Huh, what...?” Alme gave a dazed response to Cambelina's sharp-toned declaration. “Um, I've already ended my relationship with Julio, so I don't need this money...” “Just a moment! Don’t call him by his first name so casually! Honestly, that’s what i mean. That’s why I can’t stand commoners like you. You’re just so tactless. Atleast contain that vulgarity to the way you look only.” “I-I’m sorry…” Cambelina berated her in a shrill, high-pitched voice, and Alme involuntarily flinched. Seeing Alme shrink back, Cambelina continued. “You say you’ve broken off your relationship, but didn’t you ask Julio for a dress the other day? What was that all about? That’s unbelievable. Aren’t you still fawning all over him behind my back?” “That was Jul... Beatrice came up with that on her own. I refused, and nothing happened after that.” She was certain that Julio had been the one to bring up the idea of giving her a dress when she went to the library to get her personal items. With a meaning of “I should have added a dress to the compensations” or something alike. It was probably just a joke, and she’d already forgotten about it. Cambelina seemed to be annoyed by Alme’s response. “All right, then, just disappear from Julio’s life! If you’re around, he might feel sorry for you again and give you another dress! Don’t come to the library anymore! Stay away from Julio!” “I don't have any business with Beatrice-san, so I won’t go near her, but being restricted from using the library would be a problem for me,” Alme said. She needed to use the library for her research. As a citizen of the town, she had an equal right to use it, so she couldn't understand why Cambelina was trying to take that away from her. Cambelina’s face turned red with irritation, and she began to blurt out all sorts of nonsense. “I'm giving you money so you have to listen to what I say! I’m a noble! Don’t talk back to me, commoner! In any case, stay away from the library! And don’t go to the market or square where Julio goes, or any of the streets where you might run into him!” “But... I wouldn’t be able to walk around town...” Alme was gradually beginning to understand that this Cambelina girl was rather egotistical. She wasn’t sure if it was because of her status as a baron’s daughter or if it was just part of her personality though. Cambelina turned the focus of her rising anger toward Alme herself and continued ranting angrily. “Why were you even engaged to Julio in the first place?! You two don’t suit each other at all! You’re so ugly, with your ugly hair and ugly dress. I can’t believe you were engaged to a handsome man like Julio.. It’s impossible! I hate it! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have had to go through any of this! I would have been able to marry Julio happily without a care in the world!” “Hmm... I don't know what to say to that,” Alme replied.

“Seriously, you need to know your place! You should be with someone who’s appropriate for you! You should’ve picked a man who’s just as plain as you are from the start! Ugh, I’m so annoyed! I hate that you were a part of Julio’s past!” There was nothing Alme could do about that now, so she wished Cambelina would just forget about it already. Alme didn’t want anyone to know that she’d once been engaged to a foolish cheater, either. As Alme placed her hand on her aching forehead, she saw Ena peek her head out from the entrance to the kitchen, which was behind Cambelina. She mouthed the words “Are you okay?” into her direction. and Ena mouthed back that she was fine. Alme decided to think about how to get out of this situation. From Cambelina’s behavior, it was clear that she wasn’t going to be able to have a rational discussion. It would be wise to end the meeting as soon as possible and send her on her way. “...All right, I understand. I’ll do my best to avoid running into Beatos-san in the future. Even if we do happen to pass each other in town, I’m such a plain girl that I’m sure he won’t even notice me. I can say that with confidence.” Alme emphasized the parts where she was putting herself down, which seemed to satisfy Cambelina and improved her mood. “Well, I suppose that’s true! You’re wearing a dress the color of a rat after all. I’m sure no one would look after a rat when they passed one in the streets.” Cambelina looked Alme up and down as if appraising her. Satisfied, she chuckled and had her attendant pick up the bag on the table. She began to get ready to leave. “So that’s that, then. Don’t come near Julio. I’m done here, so I’ll be on my way. Make sure to check the amount of the severance pay for yourself. I won’t accept any complaints.” “Yes... I'm graciously accpeting this gift.” Alme had a lot of things she wanted to say about all this nonesense, but the money could be used as funds for the shop, so she decided to accept it. Instead of consolation money she thought of it more as reparation payment. Cambelina took one last sip of her tea, then quickly stood up and left the shop. At the front door, she exchanged a last set of pleasentries with Alme. “Well then, good-bye, Alme-san.” “Yes, have a good day, Cambelina-san.” Alme watched Cambelina’s back as she stormed out of the shop, then finally relaxed and took a deep breath. Ena came out from the back of the shop and patted Alme on the shoulder. “Good work. That was quite the ordeal...” “Yes, it really was...” The two of them laughed tiredly as they returned to the kitchen. Today’s lunch meeting was sure to be filled with complaints about Cambelina. Cambelina walked down an alley in the commoners’ section of town with a complicated expression on her face. Her attendant called out to her, having noticed her master’s mood. “Miss, the commoners’ tea really didn’t suit your palate, did it?” “...That’s right. It was so bitter, I couldn’t drink it.” Cambelina basically spat out the answer. She liked sweet tea, but had forgotten to add sugar. She’d been so distracted by the fact that Alme, a commoner, had brought out fairy honey that she’d forgotten to properly prepare the tea. After all, that fairy honey had been a gift. At noble tea parties, women would place these beautiful honey bottles on their tables as a way to show off their status. It was a way of saying, “I'm the kind of women who receives wonderful gifts from handsome men.” That’s what the product was made for. It was certainly not something a commoner would use every day at the dinner table. So why was that girl carrying it around as if it were nothing? Cambelina continued walking down the alley, trying to shake off the bothersome thoughts that were troubling her. The bitter taste in her mouth was because she’d forgotten to sweeten the tea. It had nothing to do with Alme’s honey. That’s what she told herself.