Chapter 107: The Queen Goes to the Fruit Parlor

Judging from how shaken everyone in the room looked, it seemed the Queen’s words would have to be made reality. She hadn’t said anything crazy like "defeat the demon king" — she just wanted to visit a shop in the commoner district. It wasn’t an impossibly high hurdle, and it wasn’t something that couldn’t be done. Details like security arrangements and choosing escorts would be handled by other people.

It occurred to me then that while living in the rear palace, I basically ate whatever was served without leaving any leftovers. Refusing food or expressing likes and dislikes was strictly not allowed. To me, it felt almost like being forced, but for royalty and high-ranking nobles, this was probably completely natural. Eating everything cleanly without complaint was simply one of the expected skills. Saying you wanted to eat something because you liked it was probably also not permitted. The only real freedom seemed to be in choosing drinks.

At meals, you could choose between wine, juice, or tea. Most people chose wine, but occasionally there were people who couldn’t drink it and would pick juice instead. Tea seemed to be more common during snack time rather than with meals.

Other alcohols like beer, whiskey, and brandy were probably recreated by people who came from other worlds in the past. But they didn’t seem to exist here.

In any case, with a single word from the Queen, it was decided that we would go to that shop. His Majesty’s approval would probably be needed, but the Queen’s wishes would likely take priority.

Because this matter was now set in stone, the attendants seemed to have concluded that if they left me here any longer, I would say something else unnecessary and cause them even more trouble.

For some reason I didn’t fully understand, the attendants told the Queen that she had other scheduled matters and began trying to usher me out. Since I didn’t have much more to talk about anyway, I was grateful to be released and left the room.

Cantoner guided me out. When I first met him, he had seemed rather cheerful, but now his shoulders were slumped and he looked utterly dejected. He was probably thinking about how to take the Queen to the fruit parlor. Every now and then he glanced at me with a resentful look. Hey, I already said it, so there’s nothing I can do about it now.

I was taken to Lord Richelieu’s room. When I entered, Lord Richelieu and several others were waiting for me.

"Straight to the point — could you tell me what kind of conversation you had?"

Lord Richelieu’s tone was polite, but his expression was stern. However, the moment I mentioned that the Queen wanted to go to the fruit parlor, his face became even more grim. Silence filled the room. After a while, he turned to Relf. ℯℯ𝑙.

"Relf, I’m sorry, but I need you to go to the Queen immediately and discuss the arrangements for her visit to that fruit parlor. You’ve been there yourself, correct? Then you should be able to make arrangements that suit Her Majesty’s wishes. I’m sorry to ask this of you."

For a split second, Relf made a face like "Ugh!", but he quickly regained his composure.

"Understood."

He bowed and left the room.

When asked if there was anything else, I replied that there wasn’t really anything more to report.

"How was Prince Alan? What impression did you have of him, Lord Robin?"

I gave a safe answer:

"Prince Alan is a man of few words. He seemed calm and attentive when listening to others."

Since he hadn’t really spoken at all, I had no idea what kind of person he actually was.

"I see. Well, that sounds about right."

It seemed like Lord Richelieu had his own thoughts on the matter.

"Prince Alan may invite you again before long."

I really didn’t want to meet that guy alone. Just imagining sitting in silence the entire time gave me chills.

Lord Richelieu also said something that weighed on my mind:

"The other princes are paying close attention to the fact that Prince Alan invited you this time. You will likely receive invitations from other princes soon as well. When that happens, please tell me what was discussed. Understood?"

He said this with strong emphasis in his gaze, practically forcing my agreement. I don’t really have anything to hide, though.

—-

An executive committee for the Queen’s visit to the fruit parlor was formed on the very same day. Naturally, I, Lake, and Relf were all included as members, with Cantoner appointed as chairman. Poor guy... I’m really sorry. This is all because of my big mouth.

Starting the next day, since I had work at the accounting bureau in the afternoon, the committee meetings were held in the morning. They could have just held the meetings without me and only told me the final plan, but for some reason I had to attend.

I thought the whole plan would be scrapped if His Majesty told the Queen she couldn’t go, but after my meeting the previous day, the Queen had dinner with the King and apparently received the green light. Everyone’s expressions were gloomy as they thought about how difficult this would be. I expected someone to complain to me, the root cause of all this, but since I’m a prince, they only gave me resentful looks and said nothing. At this point, complaining wouldn’t change anything anyway.

At first, Lake proposed renting out the entire parlor, having the Queen’s carriage go straight to the entrance, letting her enter directly, and leaving the same way after eating. It was immediately rejected.

The Queen’s wishes were:

To line up with the commoner girls in front of the shop.

To eat inside mixed in with the commoner girls.

To not be recognized as the Queen and receive no special treatment.

Chairman Cantoner explained this in a heavy tone. Lake was rendered speechless and collapsed back into his chair with a thud.

Isn’t this going to be more difficult than when the Emperor visited for a tree-planting ceremony? Back then, the police were fully mobilized, including a friend of mine who had just become an officer. They had uniformed and plainclothes officers stationed at intersections, along the roads, and at every stop. Even my friend, who was just a rookie patrolman, had a stomachache for days before the visit out of worry that something might happen.

The Queen’s protection would probably need to be at that level — plainclothes guards securing key points.

However, when the Emperor visited, despite all that effort by the police, my mother had counted down the days excitedly. She went to the roadside more than an hour early just to wave at the motorcade. The cars passed by in an instant, but she came home overjoyed and excitedly told me all about it when I returned exhausted from work.

Even though the Queen said she wanted to go incognito, it would be fine as long as she enjoyed herself. In my opinion, the best way was to fill the shop and surrounding area with skilled women from the palace and rear palace.

Some people seemed to get it immediately, but most didn’t understand, so I explained: We would fill the line in front of and behind the Queen with about 20 palace/rear palace women, then have them enter the shop and occupy seats. They would pretend not to know the Queen, act like ordinary commoner girls, and casually eat parfaits and such.

If necessary, we could also bring palace maids to work in the kitchen and as waitresses — provided they had never been seen by the Queen before.

For security, we could fill the entire street with palace-related personnel. It would be just like those TV prank shows where the whole area is filled with plants and their associates. No matter how much it cost, the Queen’s safety came first. "Safety first, quality second, production third" — though of course no one here knew that phrase.

Everyone made bitter faces at my proposal, but since no one had a better idea, it was ultimately adopted. There was some reluctance about deceiving the Queen, but that was fine. As long as she enjoyed herself without realizing she was being tricked, it was okay. We also decided to let some actual commoner girls line up and enter the shop, but only those with clear backgrounds.

First, we set the date. There was apparently someone in the palace with weather-reading skills. After securing enough preparation time, we were told that 12 days later would be clear all day. Taking my schedule into account, the operation was set for that morning. No one suggested canceling my accounting bureau work just for this. The extremely rare situation of a prince working and receiving a salary seemed to be highly respected.

Next came the selection of the team. Since they had to be young women the Queen wouldn’t recognize, regular palace and rear palace maids were out. The Queen had an exceptional memory for faces, and most maids had met her at least once. What an enviable skill.

So the question became: where could we find young women? The conversation turned to recruiting girls from the accounting bureau. The bureau chief was too old and was sadly excluded. Anise, Marin-sensei, and Christine (thanks to her youthful appearance) were selected, along with several other girls whose faces I knew but whose names I didn’t. Stevie was also called, and Lily was chosen because her strength made her look like Stevie’s mother.

Because so many female staff were pulled from the accounting bureau, it was temporarily closed that morning. Sorry, everyone. This is all my fault for running my mouth.

I’ll never forget the moment when all the participating girls (and a few older women) were gathered. A room full of girls who had no idea why they’d been called were buzzing with anxiety. When Cantoner and Relf stepped forward and explained the plan — that they would go to the fruit parlor and could eat as much as they wanted on the palace’s expense — the cheers were deafening!

About half had already been there before, but some had wanted to go but couldn’t afford it. The sudden chance to go on the country’s dime made their joy explode.

However, when they were told this was all for the Queen’s sake, the mood instantly grew heavy. They were also informed that a strict gag order was in place and they would need to sign confidentiality agreements, which made the atmosphere even gloomier. Even when told they could opt out if they wanted, no one quit.

To me it didn’t seem that big a deal, but this was probably the normal reaction in this world.

The detailed schedule for the day was explained: who would be at the front of the line, who would stand before and after the Queen, and so on. I was naturally paired with the Queen as mother and son. Behind us were Stevie and Lily posing as mother and daughter. Deciding who would stand in front of the Queen caused a lot of conflict. Everyone made reluctant faces, but in the end Christine, Marin-sensei, and Anise were chosen. Christine seemed relatively okay, but Anise and Marin-sensei visibly paled. In front of them would be Lake and Relf — two middle-aged men who reeked of uncle energy. Cantoner, as overall commander, would not join the line.

The committee met every day, and with each passing day Cantoner’s cheeks grew more hollow. Was it my imagination, or was the top of his head getting thinner too?

Such events arrive in the blink of an eye. Just as the palace weather forecaster predicted, the morning dawned bright and clear.

After breakfast, I went to pick up the Queen at her room. She had already changed into commoner clothes and was waiting for me.

As soon as I entered, she stood up, spun around, and asked happily,

"How do I look? Does this outfit suit me? Do I look like a commoner?"

"Yes, it suits you very well. You look like a high-ranking commoner’s wife."

She still gave off a slightly too refined aura, but there was no point saying that.

"Really? That’s wonderful. Shall we go then? Ufufu, I’m so excited!"

She was fidgeting, unable to wait. She probably hadn’t slept much last night.

"No, the shop isn’t open yet, so let’s take our time."

I tried to calm the Queen down. We still needed to kill time. Prince Alan hadn’t shown up. What does that guy usually do anyway?

"Is that so? I was so excited I couldn’t sleep last night. How long has it been since I last went outside the palace? This will be my first time in the commoner district since becoming Queen. I’m embarrassingly excited. I never dreamed I’d be able to do something like this. Thank you, Lord Robin."

She spoke with a bright smile. So the Queen normally never leaves the palace. She probably rarely even returns to her family’s ducal house. Going outside the noble district must be an unprecedented, unthinkable event for her.

"I was so looking forward to it that I asked the commoner-born maids all sorts of questions. One of them said it was a shop she had always wanted to visit. I wanted to bring her along, but Cantoner said no, so I gave up this time. She was very disappointed."

She really looked happy. Wait... "this time"? She said she gave up "this time"? Does that mean she’s already thinking about a next time? This is bad. I’d better keep quiet. If Cantoner hears this, he might actually go bald...