It’s mid-September, and winter is soon approaching. Although I continue exploring dungeons, I haven’t found any new items.
My level has already risen to 299. I’m about to catch up to my father’s level.
One day, I decided to host a tea party at my mansion.
The guests I invited were: the seventh prince, Reinhardt, Count Valter’s daughter, Claudia, the third son of the Dellinger family, Bruno, the eldest son of the Eichholtz family, Daniel, the third daughter of the Holzvar family, Deborah, and the eldest daughter of the Neibert family, Rena.
Well, it’s Reinhardt’s faction.
The problem at hand was deciding what kind of sweets to serve.
Since I have both a refrigerator and a freezer, I figured cold treats would be best.
The refrigerator has been quite popular, with over 300 units on backorder. The current production rate is about 15 units per month, meaning the wait time for delivery is around two years.
Especially among high and mid-level nobles, many order multiple units at once, so we initially limited the orders to two units per person.
This is partly because the king brags about it to those he meets.
I asked Bruno to quickly take on an apprentice. I’ve also contacted the deputy to help Bruno in recruiting talents broadly.
Ah, sorry, I digress.
The representative cold treat would surely be ice cream.
I’ve made ice cream before, and it’s not particularly difficult. You only need milk, eggs, and sugar. If you have vanilla beans, you can make vanilla ice cream, but I haven’t seen any vanilla beans in this world. While I could create them through conversion, I’ll refrain from doing so.
Add milk, sugar, and eggs into a pot and stir until the sugar dissolves. Do not heat it yet.
Once the sugar dissolves, heat the mixture on low heat.
When it thickens, turn off the heat.
Then, strain it into a container and freeze it in the freezer to complete the ice cream.
“Ben, want to taste it?”
“Of course, I do!”
Ben had been watching me make the ice cream from behind a corner. I wondered if he wasn’t supposed to be studying, but he always accommodates my schedule, and sometimes a little break is necessary. Besides, I guess he remembered the ice cream from before, and he was looking at me with excited eyes.
“It’s delicious! Cold ice cream really is the best, right!? Thomas, this is so good!”
Seeing him this happy, I felt like it was worth making.
“Ben! So this is where you were!”
“Gah!? Charmy!?”
“‘Gah’? How rude! So, what are you eating?”
“It’s ice cream! It’s amazing! Charmy, you should try it too!”
It seems Ben had escaped from his studies and was desperately recommending the ice cream to Charmy.
“Charmy, try some.”
“You’ve had it before, right? It was really good.”
Since Ben gave me a thumbs-up, I also gave him one in return.
“It’s delicious!”
If you eat ice cream, the ladies will smile. Great people from the past were right about this. (Though I’m the one saying it.)
So, I decided to serve pudding a la mode at the tea party.
I had already delivered pudding to the queen, and while I was at it, I made sure Reinhardt also got some.
The teas served will be Umya’s herbal tea and coffee imported from the Vesta Empire. The coffee is in bean form, and I roasted and ground it myself.
I made coffee jelly with it earlier, and the bitterness was so pleasant it was simply divine. This time, I’ll serve it as a drink.
A carriage for the high-ranking nobles pulled up to the mansion. The first to step out was Rena, who looked much more glamorous than usual.
She typically has straight, silver hair, but today it was styled in loose curls, and her nape was exposed, giving her a seductive look.
“Lady Rena, you look as beautiful as always.”
“Thank you, Thomas. Hehe.”
I escorted Lady Rena to the venue.
Although we call it a venue, it’s just a room of about 30 tatami mats with a round table and chairs where everyone could sit comfortably.
It’s a nice day outside, but it’s cold, so I led them inside.
The chandelier shining brightly lit up the room.
“My, what a lovely chandelier.”
I was happy to receive praise for the chandelier I had worked hard to create. It was a labor of love.
“I was the first one here, it seems.”
“They should be arriving soon.”
Shortly afterward, Bruno, Daniel, and Deborah arrived, and after a bit, Claudia showed up.
Of course, I had Ben show Claudia in. The blush on Ben’s face was quite endearing.
Finally, Reinhardt arrived, and everyone was present. Reinhardt really did sparkle; the star of the show was clear.
“I’ve prepared two kinds of tea today. I hope they suit everyone’s taste.”
Umya’s herbal tea tastes great, but more importantly, it has restorative effects. I’m sure it will soothe everyone who’s been diligently studying.
“I’ve always thought so, but Thomas’s herbal tea is delicious.”
“Umya leaves can be found in the Ixtan Great Forest, which lies south of the Ashood domain.”
“The Ixtan Great Forest? Isn’t that a dangerous area? I can’t believe such delicious leaves grow there…”
As Bruno said, the Ixtan Great Forest is known as a dangerous place. My father used to hunt monsters there every year, so his level must have been extremely high.
Even my father couldn’t venture into the deepest parts of the Ixtan Great Forest. He only hunted the monsters that came near human settlements during winter.
“Thomas, what’s this black tea?”
Reinhardt picked up a cup with coffee and smelled it.
“That’s tea made with coffee beans imported from the Vesta Empire. I’ve named it ‘coffee.’ I think it’s delicious as black, but it’s also great with sugar and milk.”
Black coffee is an adult flavor. I think so, but whether you like it or not is up for debate.
“There’s bitterness and acidity, and a fruity aroma comes through afterward.”
“Reinhardt, you’re even cool with your comments.”
“Huh?”
“It’s nothing, don’t mind me.”
“I-I see…”
He seems a little confused. Honestly, I don’t understand why Reinhardt is so handsome either.
“I prefer my coffee with sugar and milk.”
“I prefer Umya’s herbal tea.”
“This coffee is fine on its own, though.”
Claudia likes milk coffee, Rena likes Umya’s herbal tea, and Deborah prefers black coffee—so the women’s preferences were split.
The three men all liked milk coffee, and they each added a lot of sugar. Watching them made my stomach churn a little.
At just the right moment, the pudding a la mode was brought out.
“Is this pudding?”
Reinhardt has had pudding before, but this is his first time with ice cream.
“Yep, it’s pudding with ice cream and fruit on top. I’ve named it pudding a la mode.”
“Is this what you mean by ice cream?”
Reinhardt scooped up the ice cream with a spoon and took a bite.
“!? Delicious! What is this? It’s so cold!”
Seeing Reinhardt’s reaction, everyone else started eating the ice cream too.
It turned into quite a commotion.
“It melts at room temperature, so it can’t be made without a freezer.”
“I heard your father ordered the freezer.”
Rena, with her cool beauty, was really enthusiastic about it.
“The production of both refrigerators and freezers can’t keep up. I apologize for the inconvenience.”
“Can’t we take some home?”
Rena seemed to really love the ice cream.
“As I mentioned before, it melts at room temperature. So for now, it can only be eaten here.”
“W-what…?”
Don’t be too disappointed…
“If that’s the case, then it would be wonderful if you held a tea party every week, Thomas.”
Claudia gave a look as if suggesting a great idea, but I’d rather not.
And so, pudding a la mode was a hit with everyone.
