The Witch and the Doll Swear

Get up from Miss Witch who has not yet woken up, the sky outside the window is still shrouded in night.

The bedroom was pitch-black, only the embers that had not yet cooled were crackling and flickering in the fireplace, and the little puppet beside the pillow kept praying, holding the faint sunlight in his hands.

"...Good morning, Miss Alice."

"Good morning, Miss Tina."

After finishing the good morning greetings, the girl stood up, pinched the wick of the candlestick on the desk with her fingertips, and said softly.

"Salamanda."

Chant the name of the flame.

This is not calling for protection, the lively elf with a long tail on Miss Liliana's Mage Tower, but the words that trigger the flame magic engraved in the [Elemental Crown].

The driving method of this ring is not gestures but language. After two days of practice, Tina finally got permission to use this ring from the puppet and witch.

With the end of the words, a bright flame ignited on the girl's hand, [Lavin's Flaming Hand] lit the candle, and then the girl let go of her hand, keeping her palm in the air without touching anything, and after waiting for a minute, The flames in his hands were naturally extinguished.

Candlelight illuminates the calendar, and Tina turns over the numbers written on the hard cardboard, so the desk calendar reveals the scale of this day in this month.

The Moon of the Moonless Moon, 19th.

Ting Na wrapped herself in the quilt and stared at the calendar silently.

Tomorrow is the provincial appraisal meeting.

And there is still about half a month before the end of the last month of the year and the arrival of the new year.

Two days ago, a group of children's reckless Qu challenged the remaining golden vines in First's territory and was rescued by Alice and her, these days are really lackluster.

As the tasting is approaching, in addition to the daily work, the winery puts all its energy into the research and brewing of fast wine. The winemakers work in three shifts day and night, and those business contacts and problems are It was taken over by Liliana alone.

When the winery was in trouble—especially after the wine cellar was invaded by the golden demon tree, the merchants who learned the news demanded that the winery pay compensation for the transaction in the name of not being able to accept the wine soaked in the sludge of the monster , Divided into several groups according to the distance.

Before the arrival of Liliana, Tingna, and Alice, the most recent and most persecuted group of people, Jeste and Mary finally managed to deal with it, and now they are coming one after another, because the geographical distance is farther away Much more of those.

Miss Witch's main daily job is this. Go to Shetis or Sura in the morning to meet and negotiate with various merchants. In addition, as the lord of the territory, some knights and knights under Earl First Walking around, maintaining the authority of the nobility, it was not until late at night that the wings of light landed on the balcony of the room.

But even if hundreds of hundreds of gold coins were thrown out, Liliana didn't care.

...This will allow the winery to operate again, revive the First family and give more confidence in the negotiations with the Einhart family. Compared with the chips that may eventually be used to impress them and the royal family, these All cheap.

And get that gold cup by the way... don't expect to get any clues about us, but it's not bad.

That's what she said.

"Is Miss Liliana going to meet with the businessman today?"

"Meet with a wine merchant from the Southern Kingdom of the Kingdom in Shetis. This merchant was also the one who sought liquidated damages when the winery was in trouble. Due to the distance, he came late."

"Don't they have anything to do with the Eswald family?"

"I do not know……"

The little puppet shook its head.

Tina sighed and began to change into comfortable clothes for exercise.

Mary once mentioned that these businessmen were ordered by the Eswald family to suddenly turn their backs on such a merciless demand for liquidated damages. Miss Liliana also investigated it carefully, but did not get any valuable information. .

Every businessman said to Liliana with a "slight apology" about this matter, the disaster of the golden magic tree in the Holly Valley spreads faster than the wind in the brewing industry, and the rumors are exaggerated day by day, which will make them The value of the fine wine ordered dropped sharply, which would cause them to suffer a huge loss.

But if it’s just like this, it’s fine. When Masula’s wine cellar was breached by monsters, they didn’t know what to do. They had no choice but to ask for a high liquidated damages or at least get their deposit back regardless of sympathy.

It sounds like there is nothing wrong with it. The merchants insisted that they were only driven by rumors and were so impatient to stop losses. Even if they wanted to find out the source of the rumors, it has been a long time now, and it is not so easy to find the instigators of the rumors. The matter had to be left alone.

Of course, Mary didn't know about it.

Even if she knew, the girl who firmly believed that the Edwards family was responsible for the winery's drive to a desperate situation probably wouldn't believe it.

Although because of what happened two days ago, Tina and her relationship seem to be getting closer, but whenever Edwards or Liliana is mentioned, the red-haired girl will show a serious expression, like an angry lioness.

"Is today's practice still [Arcane Missile]?"

"Although the accuracy of Miss Tina's use of magic has become higher, it is still not enough if ten [Arcane Missiles] can only hit half of them. If Miss Tina really wants to protect herself in battle, the hit rate It has to be higher.”

And Tina’s training life continues.

The essence of magic is the search for truth, and power and wealth are only by-products of this process. Mastering and using magic is to master and use knowledge.

After allowing the girl to use the powerful and dangerous ring, Alice repeated this sentence several times. That night, under the supervision of the doll, and every night, the girl began to face her like a magic apprentice. I started reading a thick book "The Theory of Elements".

"Then, I'll go for a run first, and then go to the big bath to take a bath."

"Well, see you later, Miss Tina."

During the day, the girl's day starts as early as the work in the winery. When Liliana is still sleeping, she wakes up and starts physical exercise.

The form of exercise is running.

It is common and effective. It has been practiced and confirmed by countless people. It is necessary to circle the main castle three times in the morning and evening, totaling about 6 kilometers. Jogging without demanding speed is very beneficial to the growth of physical strength.

For Tina, this is a sustained amount of exercise, and while running, she can also see the castle and the busy people in the winery.

The lights were on all night, and the candlelight in the hall had been lit for three consecutive nights. People who had finished the night shift walked out of the winery, and those who rushed to the morning shift cheered up in the cold winter wind. They talked about the recipe of wine, because a certain The addition of magic plants or the difference in temperature during fermentation are debated, regardless of time and place.

These are members of the Forster family.

Maybe the witch lady was simply following the order of the lord that day, or maybe they, like themselves, simply bowed to the witch's pomegranate skirt and worked hard for what she wanted. Even the old people with white beards and hair were only struggling with their declining physical strength. Only when I couldn't bear it anymore did I go back to my room to rest.

In contrast to them are the hired workers. They don't seem to be enthusiastic about the tasting meeting. They just complete their work. Sometimes they are seen gathering in twos and twos to complain that the winery is not doing enough. Endless work.

Maybe it is indeed crazy.

Fast winemaking is something that this winery has never tried before, and Jester and Mary don't have enough time to learn and try it. They can only use Liliana to come up with those recipes and top-notch fast winemaking, and pass the winemaker's taste. With the knowledge and experience of brewing for many years, we can control the fermentation that is shortened to only a few hours, and challenge the dazzling variety of recipes.

The goal is to qualify in the provincial evaluation meeting and win in the kingdom evaluation meeting.

Just like a climber without tools, he can only rely on his own hands and feet to conquer the unreachable mountain top.

Even Tina can understand how difficult that is.

And just tomorrow, the results will be shown.

Barrels of a mixture of grapes and magic plants were poured into the wine vat, and then barrels were poured out. The ditch in front of the castle took away these failed creations and seeped into the soil, injecting waves of holly.

The harvest season is completely over, but the area around the castle is still filled with the fruity aroma of grapes.

But being a complete layman in this regard, she couldn't help at all.

The girl also went to Jester and expressed that she hoped to be of some help. The man who had not slept for two nights and relied on the fierce cold wind on the terrace to stay awake was stunned for a while, and then shook his head with a smile.

——Isn’t Miss Tina helping us clean up the remaining golden magic trees in the orchard? For this alone we are very grateful.

Now that I say that... let's take it as such.

Because of the conflict between hard work and his daughter, the middle-aged man seemed to have more wrinkles on his face. When Tina talked about Mary, every word he spoke seemed to reveal deep exhaustion and helplessness.

"Mary's mother never taught her how to be a lady. She left not long after Mary was born. I don't know how to teach a girl. She wants to learn magic. So I sent her to learn magic. She wanted to When learning brewing, I taught her everything I knew. She seemed to want to share all her achievements with me. Our relationship has always been very harmonious, so..."

The father seemed to be at a loss as to what was going on with his daughter.

However, shortly after Mary was born, her mother left... Jester used "leave", so it shouldn't have passed away, right? But for some reason, I left this family...

Tina thought about it, wiped the sweat on her body with a towel, and opened the door of the large bath.

Mary wasn't here either two days ago.

Except for appearing in the restaurant when she went to rescue those children, the girl rarely saw her in the castle.

"...Is there really no problem with this?"

Her disordered breathing finally calmed down with a long sigh. The girl stood in the dressing room for several minutes before walking into the bathtub.

The next morning Mary was still not here.

Another day passed, the last day before this tasting meeting, it was still the same.

Even if he went directly to the door of the room where Mary and the others were studying Yusu brewing, they would be blocked by a young man.

"Miss Tina, everyone is very busy and a little anxious now. If possible, can you please not disturb them?"

"I just wanted to talk to Miss Mary."

"Really sorry."

Every time, the young man named Xiu Jie would politely refuse Ting Na who wanted to go in and take a look, while the young girl could only listen to the occasional Mary's frenzied shouts coming from behind the door and turn away.

"Miss Mary seems to have not slept for several days."

"Miss Tina really cares about Miss Mary."

Tina couldn't say why she was so worried about the red-haired girl, but she just felt worried.

Watching several golden vines turn into coke in the crackling electric light, she let go of her thumb that was pressing on the crown-like ring.

The activation condition of [Elemental Crown] is to touch, and then the elemental magic inscribed in it can be selected and activated in language.

These magics are much more powerful than the arcane missiles that cause purely physical attacks. It took several missiles for Tina to hit her dying, or the severed vines immediately turned into black smoke under the [Arc Light Art] of a sky system. coke.

But only after using [Arcane Missile] to destroy a vine within the specified time, Alice allowed her to use this ring. The magic of these elemental systems is as deadly to the enemy as to herself.

Now the creeping golden magic tree vines in this orchard has been reduced to about one-third of its original size, and there is no sign of a recovery trend.

Now, among the five rings in her hand, two have dimmed. On the finger wheel of white jade, the silky lines are not so blurred. The training these days has paid off. The attack cost a lot of physical strength, and now he is sweating profusely.

If ten vines are eliminated today, only three or four new vines will emerge the next day. The scene of luxuriant growth after a night of hard elimination the previous day did not appear at all.

Alice said that these golden magic trees still entrenched in the most fertile corner of First are already at the end of their strength after the large-scale clearing of the river valley, which seems to be what she meant.

It seems that by tomorrow, these monsters will be completely wiped out.

"Although I have never worked in a management position, I also know that a disagreement between subordinates and superiors is not good for work, and may cause extra trouble. Miss Liliana doesn't like trouble..."

During the break, Ting Na took out the water from the space storage ring and poured it, and looked at the little doll floating in front of her eyes.

"I also... want to help a little more, in..."

Tina didn't go on.

"Lily really doesn't like trouble, yes, Alice doesn't like it either, because many troubles are not troublesome to Lily and Alice, but it is a waste of time to deal with them."

Seemingly not paying attention to Tingna's hesitation, the little puppet wiped the sweat and dirt off Tingna's face with a wet towel.

This was left by a flying pounce, and now it was suddenly ejected by a leaf on a vine not long ago, whirling like a blade, Tingna was so frightened that she threw herself directly on the ground, which is very indecent and inappropriate to use. way to escape the attack.

That's not the most appropriate way to deal with it. Alice decided to tell Tina after the rest time is over. Death can easily tread on the back.

"But Miss Liliana's behavior seems to be laissez-faire... Whether it is before or after that..."

Tina sat down on the dirt floor, thinking back to that day—the last meeting in the conference room.

——I thought you wouldn't be any more despicable.

The grinning female teacher stared at Liliana with those fiery red eyes for a long time, but in the end she only uttered this sentence.

After finishing speaking, she left the conference room and slammed the wooden door on the threshold heavily.

At that time, Tina wanted to stop the angry Mary, but was stopped by the witch with her eyes. The meeting continued, and when it was over, Tina asked the witch if there would be any problems. Liliana's tone was as calm as ever.

...There is no problem, I used some not-so-honorable means to get the subject of the judging session, which is equivalent to getting the test paper before the exam started. Although it is helpless, if an honest person gets angry because of this, I have nothing to do for myself Defensive, don't worry, unless she reports it to the Brewers Guild, she's also an accomplice.

—What if Miss Mary plans to report it?

... I will admire her integrity like an ancient nobleman, and then put her under house arrest.

With a calm tone, until the word "house arrest" is spoken, the only thing Tina can hear is that Miss Witch really doesn't care about the red-haired girl at all.

"But that's not okay..."

Thinking of this, Tingna couldn't help wondering how the witch who was said to have ruled an empire as a queen could be so disregarding the hearts of the people around her.

Thinking of this, she felt lonely for a while.

Liliana has been very busy in the past few days. Not only did she have to discuss with the merchants, but also the banquets of the nobles in the river valley were more frequent. Those nobles seemed to have made an agreement, and invitations were sent before dawn every day. Jon, the gatekeeper, and as Earl First, Liliana couldn't refuse invitations to these banquets.

...The winery will be in a recovery period that lasts for several years, and I will leave soon. If I can't establish a good relationship with the nobles in the valley, it will be very dangerous if I am targeted during this period, no matter what It is also my industry, and some responsibilities should be borne.

Having said that, every time Liliana came back smelling like wine, Tingna had already finished her night study and went to bed.

When Tina woke up, Miss Witch hadn't gotten up yet.

When Tina returned to the room after running and showering, she had already left, leaving only Alice who had replenished her magic power to guide her training.

It's not that I can't understand that Liliana took over all the work by herself in order to let the people in the winery prepare for the tasting with peace of mind, but this feeling is always... a bit lonely.

So lonely that I want to find some familiar warmth, such as Miss Alice...such as father, mother...

"Because Lily didn't regard Miss Mary as someone close to her."

"……Yeah?"

"It's not that the people who work around Lily are all 'people around', not to mention that Miss Mary has a lot of hostility towards Lily. If it was the time when Lily was queen, Miss Mary was like a certain province. Opponents in a certain place, no queen of any empire needs to tame or eliminate local opponents one by one regardless of size."

"..."

Tina suddenly understood.

It wasn't that Liliana made such an obvious mistake, but she was the one who made the mistake. She was trying to figure out the witch's thoughts from the perspective of an ordinary person and the principles of ordinary life.

The winery is now clearly divided into the young faction headed by Mary and the old faction headed by Jester. The old people are completely obedient to Liliana, but because of Mary's hostility, the attitude of the young people is somewhat hesitant.

"Think of this situation as the court of the empire. Now Lily, as the queen, needs to do one thing in a short time, because the difference in approach has caused dissatisfaction among the young faction, but the young faction's approach is not up to par. After meeting the request, the time was tight, and the conflict was eased after following the way of the consultant, Miss Tingna, but the attempt to please the leader of the youth group failed because of something that had already been done, which in turn aggravated her hostility , what should Lily do at this time?"

Alice didn't rush to say the answer.

The little puppet floated in front of Ting Na's eyes, her hands were folded on her chest, and her head was slightly tilted.

"If it was Miss Tina, what would she do?"

"I... If I say it, I will really negotiate well..."

"I don't have that time anymore? A suitable finished product must be produced in a day or two. The leaders of the Young People's Faction firmly believe that their approach is correct. It is not an easy task to convince them, but in fact their actions have already been completed. This thing got in the way."

This refers to the fact that young people obtained the right to use two wine tanks.

Because the fermentation time of fast wine is much shorter than that of traditional wine, even now, the raw materials in the wine tank of the winery will be replaced every one or two hours, up to three hours. With the non-stop work of rich winemakers, there are more than 20 recipes that have been eliminated in the past two days.

Among the complaints that I heard occasionally while running, it was also said that if there were more wine tanks, the progress could be faster or something, it was said from the mouth of the young man who helped Mary.

But there is really no more, the number of winemakers with experience and skills is limited, and they have to design recipes, manage fermentation conditions, and test drinks. The taste through the throat is also an important aspect.

The limited number of people and energy limit the progress, otherwise, Liliana actually considered temporarily suspending her daily work to fully prepare for the judging meeting.

Can they get two wine tanks? After Tina persuaded Liliana, Miss Witch made a concession after considering leaving young people as labor force for middle-aged and old winemakers.

Basically, Liliana's initial move couldn't have been wrong, except that it didn't take into account that Mozzarella was a close-knit family business.

And she also handed over the proof of purchasing the magic plant to Mary, which is also an act of wooing and showing favor.

It's a pity that after Miss Witch obtained the selection theme of the judging meeting in a special way, Mary and her almost completely broke up...

What to do in such a situation?

Ting Na tried her best to think, but the more she thought about the outline that loomed, the more chills shivered down her spine.

The word "house arrest" sounded in his ears, with the indifferent tone of Miss Witch.

"House arrest..."

When she said these two words, she felt as if cold sweat was seeping out from under her wet shirt.

--knock.

But this answer earned Alice a slap in the face.

"Although historians have evaluated her as a dictator with a luxurious life, Lily is not a tyrant. It doesn't mean that a group of political opponents should be imprisoned. If Lily does this, Mr. Jeste and the others will not be indifferent, even now Confrontation, Mary, and those young people are also their descendants, the descendants who have been together for many years and are connected by blood, and the lord who only appears in the sense of history and stories and then suddenly appears for a few days... Lily will consider this issue. "

"Say, it's true..."

"So Lily's approach is to deal with it coldly, make certain compromises to appease Miss Mary and the others, and don't expect them to help much in this matter, but at least let them not make too much obstruction. This is also a sign of obeying Lily. The attitude of the old people - they don't care about the behavior of young people, so that they can do things with peace of mind. Of course it would be better if Miss Mary's attitude towards Lily can be improved, but even if it gets worse, there is no need to care. Tomorrow night is the evaluation meeting Well, Miss Mary has not reported it to the Brewers Association so far. Although Kreiser has caused a big mess, it has nothing to do with Mary and the others, so that’s enough.”

After saying that, Alice looked at Tina who had an expression that seemed to be enlightened, and flicked the tip of her nose.

"Miss Tina is already a noble. In the future, Lily and Alice will inevitably have many contacts with the circle of nobles in order to find the truth. Therefore, Miss Tina, as a member of the nobles, must first remember the most important things in communication. a little."

She spoke softly but seriously, as if she wanted to imprint the words into the girl's mind.

"There are no permanent enemies and no permanent friends."

"……I will remember."

"Well, that's it for the morning's training. Do you still want to go to town today?"

“Let’s check out the Holly River and then go to town for lunch.”

With a not-so-elegant pat on the butt, Tina stood up from the mud. A ball of golden venom flew over from a distance, was blocked by the magic shield, and then slowly slid down, corroding the soil with a sizzling sound.

Tina looked in the direction from which the liquid bullet flew. The remaining golden magic trees have not given up yet, and it is not known whether they can understand such a situation of despair.

This orchard has been completely destroyed, with only scattered grape trellises still standing in the cold wind of winter.

The green grapevines are completely invisible. They have all withered over the past few days, crawling on the ground like rotten snakes, and their abundant fruits rot in the soil full of holes.

When spring comes, the weeds here will grow very lush.

"Speaking of which, Miss Alice, didn't Miss Liliana have another purpose in letting me practice magic in this orchard? What exactly is that..."

"I will tell Miss Tina when the time comes."

By that time...by that time?

Since it was Alice who said it, she would definitely tell herself when the time comes, so...just wait until then.

...Will that be when I still stay here...?

"Miss Tina?"

"Huh? It's nothing..."

Shaking her head, Tina put Alice on her left shoulder and left the orchard.

The practice of magic is also partly done in the castle.

However, due to the troublesome handling of the spider webs afterwards and the atmosphere in the castle, this training has been stopped since yesterday.

The morning training was over and it was almost lunch time.

Because people in the winery work tirelessly on research, the times for lunch and dinner fluctuate. The brewers, old and young, would only go into the dining hall when they were so hungry that they were dizzy, which made the castle's chefs miserable, both from the perspective of their health and their own work. For headache.

But this was still within the acceptable range of the people at the winery. The reason why Tina went back to Sula Town for lunch was just that the dishes prepared by the castle chef... couldn't satisfy her increasingly picky tongue.

There is a saying in the Eastern Kingdom, from simple to luxurious and easy, from luxurious to simple and difficult.

After returning home from the New Year Festival, can I still be satisfied with that cheap bed and my mother's craftsmanship...

Girls like witches, but they don’t really want to become that kind of woman who lives too extravagantly...

Putting down the wine glass, Tina took one last look at the wine cabinet filled with various brandies. With worries about her future, Tina walked out from under the elk head sign of the [Big Antler Pavilion] with Alice in her arms.

The sunshine at noon is very good, with white walls and red tiles. The halo of sunlight on the mosaic pavement made of stones obscures the patterns of the stones themselves.

Tina let out a long sigh.

——Miss Tina, aren’t you full?

"No...it's just."

As she spoke, Tina suddenly realized that she was on the street. Although the people passing by did not pay attention to what she was saying to herself, the girl immediately lowered her voice.

"I've rarely seen Miss Liliana recently..."

——A little lonely?

--Um.

In front of Miss Doll, I can admit it frankly.

——Lily is also very busy. If Miss Tina is lonely, Alice can also become Lily, right?

--May I?

——Sure, Alice also has a costume like [The Immortal Witch of Immortality].

……J.

Tina hugged the little doll tighter.

——Miss Alice is Miss Alice, not a substitute for Miss Liliana.

Alice is Alice.

A cute, ever-changing doll, although she always said that if she didn’t have the outfits to define her personality and character, she would just be a doll that could do nothing. But Tina still felt that no matter what kind of clothes she put on, Ellie would still be like a doll. Silk is Alice.

--Yeah?

--Um.

It feels like the doll in his arms is a little happy.

The next step is to go back to the castle to rest for a while and then prepare for the afternoon training.

Tomorrow is the provincial tasting meeting, and today Liliana will have to deal with businessmen who came to the river valley from the north of the kingdom to participate in the annual tasting meeting of the most famous wine producing area in the kingdom, and come by to negotiate the liquidated damages of the transaction.

Is it really okay? Miss Liliana did not participate in the brewing of the wine at all, so is the result really okay...even with such worries

Tina couldn't do anything at all.

"……Um?"

In the corner of the field of vision, a flash of red flashed.

Tina, who was about to walk towards the castle, stopped.

Is that...Mary?

……………………………………………………………………………………

With fiery red braids swaying, he walked into an alley from a corner of the street, and then pushed open the old beech door with the [Old Vink Tavern].

The Holly Valley is the largest wine producing area in Olympion. Wine is a drink here as old as water. In addition to the large and medium-sized pubs that are open day and night on the streets, there are also many private businesses hidden in residential areas and alleys. A small bar that can make people's eyes shine when you walk in.

This is a feature of nearly every town in the valley.

The wind chime rang softly, and the glass door was completely closed. The girl's push made the old man behind the bar raise his eyes. Seeing the flame-colored hair, the old man waved to her as if he was used to it.

"Is it the first rose today? Ten years?"

"There is only First Rose here. Father Wenk."

Two tables, four chairs, and a bar that can accommodate 3 or 4 people. Most of these small bars are decorated in this way. Their founders are often not for profit. Wine is the blood of this valley, and drinking is the survival of the valley people. Methods, wine making, wine selling, and wine storage are commonplace here, so.

When a glass of ruby ​​rose wine was put in front of her eyes, Mary thought.

There is no difference, the only thing that can distinguish himself, the winery from the people everywhere in this land is——

"……call."

—History, and glory.

"It's ironic that the people at the Massoula winery have to go to the old man's bar to drink the wine brewed by their own winery."

Looking at the girl who closed her eyes and remained silent after drinking the glass of wine, the owner of the bar wiped the glass creakingly.

"Yes."

The soft touch flowing through the throat has a rose-like fragrance, just the right sweetness, a little dry, and the aftertaste is breathless. It seems that what slides down the tip of the tongue is not a liquid, but a cluster of silky petals.

"Father Wenk, I'm really grateful that you were willing to buy those wines soaked in sludge at the original price. If it weren't for you, I would have gone to other territories even if I wanted to relive the taste of the winery."

"Those profiteers will only care about the mud on the wooden barrel that will make the wine unsalable. We rough people who only like to drink don't care. As long as it is good wine, we can drink it no matter whether it is in a goblet or a beer mug. It's a pity that my The disobedient daughter is disobedient, so she ran to Lin Lun to be an airport receptionist!"

The old man blew on his beard and answered casually.

As long as it's good wine...

The red-haired girl stared blankly at the glass in front of her. The light hit the glass wall, illuminating her lost soul.

"The things that group of silly boys did before made everyone terrified. During this time, if any child wants to leave the town, the guards will stop and search."

"Well, yes, everyone was terrified, but luckily nothing happened."

"Hey, let me tell you that they should thank our benevolent lord for the rest of their lives, otherwise they will have to live on crutches or arms. Brewing and brewing wine. Do you think there is a joke? The liquidated damages demanded by those profiteers who eat people and don’t spit out their bones should have been paid by her, these nobles are real grandma’s rich."

"Um."

Chatting with each other is also a feature of this small bar, but today, Mary is not in the mood.

"Is everything okay at the winery?"

"...Yeah, everything is fine. Our lord is very rich, and all the merchants have been handled by her alone. The winery has resumed normal operations. Dad led everyone to follow the orders of the lord to study fast brewing. Busy No time to sleep."

"Haha, that kid Jester is still the same as before."

The old man coughed twice, reached out and patted the girl on the shoulder.

"Come on, let the dog nobles in Eswald know that our First Rose, Marsula Winery has not yet poured!"

The hands full of calluses are no longer as stable as before, but they are still so strong.

Mary looked up blankly at the old man who retired from the winery a long time ago, opened her mouth, and suddenly wanted to tell him that the winery with a long history and glory for which he had devoted most of his life was actually not that good.

I had a deadlock with the lord and my father.

The tasting will be tomorrow, but she hasn't researched the ideal wine that needs to be fermented for a very short period of time but can have an aging-like flavor, and her father seems to have made no progress.

It seems that the winery has been as usual, but everyone knows that if this tasting fails, the historic Marsula will be completely defeated and decline.

There was a lot to say, but in the end she just nodded.

"We are also nobles, although we are different from those guys."

"Haha, that's right, it has nothing to do with blood. You guys who really care about the people can be called real nobles! But then again, do you know the blond girl holding a doll outside the door? ?”

"..."

The girl's expression froze.

She turned her head, looking through the not-so-clean glass.

"……Yo……"

He met a pair of sea blue eyes.

The wind chimes of the old Wenk bar rang continuously within a few minutes, and two strange guests were rarely greeted in front of the bar.

To be precise, two guests and one doll.

"When did you start following me?"

Mary's question made Tina shake her head.

"I just happened to see Miss Mary when I was going back to the castle after lunch..."

"is that so?"

"Yes, Miss Mary has just purchased the ingredients needed for wine making and is ready to go back?"

"...I plan to drink here before going back, yes."

Mary let out a long sigh.

"It's now."

"Eh? Are you leaving?"

"That's right."

"What are you talking about, little Mary, it's rare to have a new guest, at least let her have a drink, big blonde girl, what do you want to drink, although the old man only has Rose Forster here."

Before she finished speaking, the old man standing behind the bar glared at her first, then poured a full glass of wine into her glass.

Mary glanced at the old man unexpectedly.

Recently, she has taken time to come here almost every day, but every time, this old man who bought a lot of [Fuerster Rose] from the winery at the original price at the most critical time of the winery is always like the most stingy landowner. Same thing, I only give one cup anyway.

Is the new customer so happy?

"...Her name is Tina von Sia, a nobleman in the south of the mainland, the secretary of the lord of that little brat."

While thinking that this does not match the image of the stingy old man, Mary opened her mouth.

"Ah, it's the Miss Secretary who saved those children. Although I may not know you, everyone on this street knows you now. You are the big benefactor of those little guys."

"No, it's not that I did anything remarkable..."

But there's no need to make trouble with Meijiu, anyway, after telling Tingna's identity in the shortest words, they will chat by themselves.

Mary picked up the refilled wine glass, and left Tina, who hadn't figured out what was going on, aside, and she was still chatting with the owner of the bar.

"Oh, yes, this is also a noble lady, this is really... old man, I'm being rude."

"Ah, no, it doesn't matter if you don't need to worry about it that much. I'm just an honorary nobleman who has no fief and won't be hereditary. Grandpa just treat me like an ordinary person!"

Tina waved her hand quickly.

In any case, Tina is still not used to being treated as a nobleman, should it be a lack of self-awareness? This made Alice sigh softly—of course, Old Wenk didn't notice.

Although she heard from Mary that this old man used to work at the Masura Winery and might know about the living doll beside the real lord, Alice felt that there was no need to let her heart, which was no longer young, be stimulated like this. .

"No, no, that's okay, that's okay, Miss Noble can't fool around with wine that is less than ten years old, and even if the lady wants something else, there are only [First Rose] of different years here."

"Only, only the First Rose?"

"That's right."

Old Wenk turned sideways, and his hands as rough as bark slid along the wooden shelf behind him. The same wine bottles were lined up on it, only the labels attached to the bottles were different in color and design.

"1 Year of First Rose, 2 Years of First Rose, 5 Years of First Rose, 7 Years of First Rose, 10 Years of First Rose, 30 Years to Go The First Rose! Miss, the old man dares to pat his chest to assure that if you want to drink First Rose, you can come to the old man! Especially the 30-year-old bottle, if this bottle is finished, Holly Valley will only have another Wait 30 years for a wine like this!"

As soon as this kind of wine was mentioned, the old man became elated and began to tell the legendary story of how this kind of fine wine was brewed from the middle of the winery.

... No, maybe his heart is still strong enough.

Alice thought.

"Even if you have a legendary background, Sura is only here with Papa Wenk, who is still selling wine from Masula Winery."

The second glass of wine was also finished.

Reminiscing the aftertaste that gradually disappeared from her throat, Mary lay on the bar counter, with her face sideways, looking at the wine rack behind the old man.

Tina finally saw Mary's face.

There are a pair of deep dark circles around her eyes, maybe because of staying up late for several days, a few pimples appeared on her pale face.

When Ting Na saw her back on the street, she felt that she was very, very tired, and now she could see her haggardness even at a glance.

"Mary, not everyone can live and drink like I do."

"I know, I know so—"

The sound stopped abruptly.

Looking at the silent Mary, Tina couldn't help thinking of what she saw in this town.

There is an activity in the restaurant to give away brandy for a certain amount of consumption.

Posted on the walls outside the store were posters of handsome men and beautiful women holding brandies.

Sometimes I look up and see the banners hanging between the houses, which are also brandy words, matching the color of the brandy bottles.

Even the wine placed in front of the Holy Light Cross and the sacred flame sculpture in the church is brandy. It is said that the flame in the church pours a bottle of fine wine every day to show awe, so it is also brandy.

Because it is too common and can be seen anywhere, it makes people feel taken for granted, but.

This is Masura Winery, a town founded by the Furst family.

"The boy from the Madalai family came back from the royal capital a week ago. He said that brandy is now the most fashionable wine in Olympian. Originally, there were only a few free city-states as backers, but now there are more than a dozen nobles and banks injecting capital. At this point Above all, the winery that has been enclosing land for self-management has lost completely."

"Didn't Father Wenk say that as long as it's good wine, you can drink it from any cup?"

"Brandy is good enough to be called fine wine."

--ah.

Tina let out a low cry in her heart, and looked at Mary nervously.

"...I just don't admit it."

"Yeah?"

But Mary didn't jump up like a furious female teacher like before, and the old man just shook his head and whispered two words.

Then he looked back at Tina with those gray-brown eyes that were bunched in wrinkles.

"Oh, I left the noble lady aside while I was talking. I'm sorry, I talk a lot when I'm old."

"No, that, it doesn't matter if you don't need to worry so much."

"Look at what you said, although the guys in the winery don't always look like aristocrats, how can they not care about the nobles?"

The old man looked at Tina, then at Mary, turned around and picked up the bottle from the rightmost end of the wooden shelf behind him.

"I've been wondering when I'm going to open this 30-year-old bottle of [First Rose]. You know, old man, I don't have 30 years to live. This bottle may not be the last one in the valley, but it must be. The last bottle I can drink, old man."

The rough, callused palms caress the dark glass bottle like loving skin.

"I'm very old, and I can still pour wine for two ladies at the bar, just like I'm young, and I can talk to little girls, but every night I think, an old man like me may not sleep at any time Wake up, this bottle of wine has been taken up and down by me back and forth, but I just can't make up my mind."

Speaking to himself, the old man's voice was a bit loud, and he took out three cups from the cupboard while talking.

"Hey, hey, old man Wenk, do you want to—"

The wine glass was placed on the bar counter. Like Tina, Mary seemed to have not reacted yet. The girl raised her head from the bar counter but at this time.

"I think now is the time."

The old man behind the bar had already picked up a bartender knife and pulled out the cork of the wine bottle with ease.

Very light, very light sound.

The cork of old wine is often difficult to open due to the erosion of time, but he opened this 30-year-old bottle in such a skillful and freehand way.

The expression of the old man was as if he had unscrewed a cheap wine he bought casually from the street.

He poured the pale rose-colored liquor into a decanter.

It was very light at first, but as the silky wine slid into the strangely shaped container without even the slightest foam, it came into contact with the cold winter air, like a tightly closed flower bud being inspired by the spring breeze, with a proud air. The posture is gorgeous and in full bloom.

"Smells good!"

"Forster Rose is positioned as a cheap wine, and its taste is more suitable for the public's tongue. It may not be able to compete with those wineries in the tasting, but for those of us who love wine and have little money It's the best choice."

As soon as the decanter fell into the wine glass, the old man pushed the two glasses to Mary and Tingna without saying a word, and then picked up the glass in his hand, showing a look of intoxication.

Even the wrinkles that had piled together seemed to unravel.

Then came Mary. After a moment of silence, the red-haired girl raised her glass without saying anything.

Maybe some kind of unspoken tacit understanding prevents them from talking in words, so...

——Miss Tina, how about trying it too?

--Eh?

Tingna looked at Alice who was placed on the bar by herself and the old man looked at her twice.

Miss Puppet is now pretending that she is an ordinary puppet, and she only speaks softly in the spiritual link.

——This is a small bar, it's not polite to refuse the drink served to you, other than that...

--besides?

——If you try it, you might be able to understand why Miss Mary is obsessed with traditional aging.

"..."

The reason for clinging to traditional aging... is it...

"call……"

Tina was actually a little hesitant.

I am not very good at wine tasting. Before going to the city of a thousand towers, the most I drank was ale and cheap wine. Is it really okay for people like me to drink this kind of 30-year-old wine?

But overcoming this hesitant curiosity, she picked up the wine glass and looked at the glass of 30-year-old wine.

The rim has the color of red bricks slightly, but the wine in the glass is still like a rose-red gemstone, overflowing with fragrance. If you close your eyes, you will think that what you are holding in your hand is actually a blooming flower. Rose.

No, it seems that there are more than that. Although the fragrance of roses is the strongest, there are other complex flavors mixed into the wine's fragrance. Ting Na can't tell what they are, but such a strong fragrance made her immediately feel this smell. The urge to drink a glass of wine.

"--delicious!!!"

Immediately, screamed.

Because she was a little nervous and curious, she drank it directly. The moment the wine touched her taste buds, Tingna screamed like this.

Delicious.

She couldn't find any other words to describe this feeling. The fragrance of roses permeated slowly from her lips and tongue, and the complex taste contained in the sweetness overwhelmed the taste buds.

It just seems that there is a rose blooming in the throat, softly caressing the throat, and one can't wait to pour the next mouthful.

"I heard from Grandma Dan that she gave Ms. Tingna a drink of [First Rose] stored for one year. How about it? Can you drink it for one year and thirty years? Is there a difference in the time scale?"

When he came back to his senses, he was already stared at by those fiery red eyes.

And the wine in the glass was already empty.

When did I... finish this?

Ting Na stared blankly at the wine glass, and immediately realized that now was not the time to be lost in the deliciousness that she had never experienced before.

The eyes that looked at her were as dark as ashes in the hearth, though fiery.

Such a premonition suddenly hit my heart.

——Then, my own words will become the candle that rekindles this ashes, or the last strong wind that blows it out.

"I, I don't know what to say, it's just..."

Not even able to look away, Tina faltered, looking into Mary's eyes.

"It's just, I just feel very touched... I don't know how to describe such a delicious wine. Well, really, even in Miss Liliana's mage tower..."

"……Yeah."

I don't know what I'm talking about, and I don't know how to judge this glass of wine. Although I have heard that expensive wine is a completely different world, this is still beyond the girl's most exaggerated imagination.

[It's delicious. 】

That was the only words I could piece together from my mind.

Mary muttered about this, "Wine tasting also needs to be learned and trained", and sighed long.

"But even you can understand how delicious wine brewed for a long time is."

"Hey, um...it's very delicious..."

"Compared to the one year old bottle."

"...it doesn't look like a wine at all."

Tina honestly expressed her feelings. After listening, Mary stared at her for a moment, then turned her head.

"So, I do not admit in any way that the wine that loses the flavor of the brewing time can be delicious. As for the brandy? They blend every barrel of wine into the same taste, which is simply a blasphemy against wine!"

She didn't let Tina see her expression, after being slightly agitated.

"...Thank you, Father Wenk. It was the same at that time. If everyone in the town hadn't given me this year's rent in advance, the winery would definitely not be able to support the lord who came over, and..."

Mary seemed to say something softly, but Tina couldn't hear it, and Sylph's protection didn't work. The red-haired girl seemed to only open and close her lips, but didn't let her breath flow through her throat.

"...?"

At this moment, Mary suddenly stood up from the bar and clenched the thumbwheels on her fingers.

"Tomorrow night's tasting meeting, there is still some time left, I also met a businessman from the magic plant market in Shetis, and bought from him a unique magic plant that is said to be able to add a special flavor. Yes, there is still time .”

It seemed to be talking to himself, and it seemed to be talking to old Wenk.

"I am……"

——I will never give up.

Those flame-like pupils stared at himself in the cup, scanning from top to bottom.

turn around.

"Ah, Miss Mary..."

The wind chime behind the door rang again, jingle, jingle, following the girl's back, gradually disappeared beyond the door.

Even if Tina wanted to stop her, Mary didn't stop at all, and didn't even turn her head.

"Go, lady noble, the old man's bar is closed today."

From behind the bar, the old man's voice sounded leisurely.

"Just let me taste the taste of this thirty-year-old wine in peace."

"Well, Mr. Wenk, I'm really bothering you today..."

Holding Alice in her arms, Tina also stood up from the bar, and quickly ran towards the door in order to chase Mary. The wind chimes rang softly at this time.

"..."

"?"

Ting Na turned her head, and in the sound of the wind chime, some kind of words seemed to be mixed in.

But she couldn't hear it, not even Sylph's blessed ears heard it. The glass on the wooden door reflected the old man behind the bar. He filled himself a glass and drank it slowly, with intoxication and incomparable happiness on his face.

——Probably, I heard it wrong.

Tina shook her head and ran towards the winery.

……………………………………………………………………………………

Afternoon words:

"That, Miss Alice."

"What's wrong?"

"Is it really okay for me to cheer up Miss Mary in such an irresponsible way?"

"When Miss Mary asked, did Miss Tina lie to cheer her up?"

"No……"

"So should one feel guilty for not lying?"

"No, this is also..."

"So why does Miss Tina have such doubts? Because Miss Tina honestly expressed her feelings, and then Miss Mary decided to cheer up and make a last-ditch effort? This may cause new problems?"

"..."

"Miss Tina."

"……yes?"

"The words that the old man hid with the sound of wind chimes were 'thank you'."