Chapter 57

"You're here just in time. The building in front of the east gate plaza was put on sale."

As soon as I sat down on the chair opposite him in the office, the Master handed me a document stating the location and price of the real estate where I would run the cafe business.

'The price seems okay?'

The location is good, and the area is quite large. Moreover, it was a three-story building with a basement.

"The price is cheaper than expected."

"Because it's the east gate. It costs more than double the gold coins to get such a sale in the goddess' square, on the west side of the academy."

"It must be because of the value of the goddess' fountain."

Landmarks also played a pretty important role here.

"But I discovered something interesting. I had my subordinates count the people passing by for a week, and the floating population did not differ as much as the building prices."

"The west gate plaza was overrated due to the goddess' fountain, meaning the east gate property was undervalued."

"Yes, exactly."

The Master grinned.

"Very well. Let's make a contract with this building right away. How did the donations go?"

"We have permission. Thanks to this, the corporation has also been given a tax deduction on the income for one year."

It's obvious.

In terms of a group project, I was at the level of being placed as the limousine bus driver.

'How can the ride be this comfortable?'

It was a refreshing shock for me, who had been running the bus by myself every time I had a group project because I had such bad luck.

'Were the group members who only badmouthed me on kakao talk and barely touched the wiki for four years when I was an undergraduate student the driving force for now?'

"Princess. Now that we have a location, it's important to know what to sell and how to sell it."

At his words, I stopped reminiscing about the grim past and took a paper out of my bag.

"I've put together a list for the menu of the restaurant."

The Master, who had been looking at the paper I held out with an interesting look, frowned.

"Everything is fine, but how about removing the coffee?"

"Why? I think coffee is the most competitive menu."

"Why is that?"

"After having this drink at the Maisond, my sleep time decreased and my concentration increased. Coffee allowed me to develop the improved formula faster."

In order to lay the groundwork to persuade the Master, every time I came to the Maisond, I drank a cup of the bitter and tasteless coffee on purpose.

'It was very hard work.'

"Really?"

"Check with the employee. He will tell you that I always drank coffee. That drink must have a great effect."

"If it is effective in enhancing concentration, it would be better to distribute it to an herbal medicine store. Neither the color nor the taste is appealing at all."

"How do you make coffee at the Maisond?"

"Crush the coffee beans, put them in a filter, and pour hot water to brew them."

"I heard from the clerk that it was a drink made from roasted beans, but are they already processed before coming in?"

"Yes. A merchant in the Duchy of Ferdin sends us freshly roasted beans. The price difference between roasted coffee beans and unroasted beans is not that big, so I chose the former to save time."

I seemed to understand roughly why the Maisond's coffee was so horribly tasteless.

'It's either that the beans were sent in poorly roasted condition, or the Maisond failed to properly store the beans. The freshness was low, so the smell and taste were awful.'

I know that coffee beans are the most delicious for two weeks after being roasted. I pondered for a moment and then opened my mouth.

"Why don't you bring in fresh unroasted beans and roast them right away?"

"The process of preparing the ingredients will take a long time and become cumbersome."

Master looked like he couldn't understand why I was so obsessed with coffee.

Since tea culture flourished in the Empire, he must have thought that there was no room for the drink of a small duchy that is disregarded and called a savage tribe.

But I really wanted to sell it.

'I want an Iced Americano so much right now.'

How could I ever give up on this devil's drink that, once indulged, you can't get rid of?

'Actually, the menu is for me.'

I will somehow try to put up with not having ramen and chicken, but I don't have the confidence to live the rest of my life happily without coffee.

"Master. If you can find kitchen staff, connect me to them. I will be directly involved in recipe development."

"You are very ambitious."

"I have to be that confident. The no.1 contribution to the formula development! Coffee! I'm pretty sure that I can sell this."

As I kept insisting and running my mouth, the Master also had a tempted expression.

"I should try it as an experiment. If I drink about three cups, it will work properly, right?"

"... Well, drink it first."

***

"This is the main building of the Fret House."

Isidor, who was introducing the Epsilon facility to me as I was a new member, suddenly rubbed his darkened eyes.

A sense of fatigue spread on his always fresh face, and a decadent atmosphere flowed down.

'Does he get dark circles?'

The more I looked, the more wonderful it looked.

"Sir Isidor, you look tired today."

The 5th Princess, who was standing next to me with her hands behind her back, clicked her tongue.

"... I haven't slept properly for a few days."

"Are you worried about something?"

"It's not like that."

"You have to lead a regular life. It is common knowledge that lack of sleep is harmful to the skin. Never forget that you are the flower of the Empire and the face of Epsilon!"

Isidor's expression darkened, perhaps because the people around him teased him for being the flower of the year.

"Princess, aren't you going to class?"

"Can't I skip a day or so?"

"I'm telling you because I feel like you're skipping every day. The Crown Prince is not the only one concerned that the Princess will be the first person in the royal family that is going to be expelled from the academy."

The Princess suddenly fluttered her fan while pretending not to hear.

Isidor, who made her shut up, led me to a large building with an old-fashioned navy-blue roof.

"This building is being used by Epsilon for academic conferences and various gatherings. And this one on the left is an annex used only by the ladies."

The prestigious club had a huge building called Fret House near the academy, and there was a separate salon for men and women.

'I can't believe they own a building in the best piece of land under the theme of a social club. The money of the nobles here is beyond imagination.'

The lucky thing is that the fret house of Epsilon is near the building for the cafe I will open.

I was thinking of visiting often to see how the cafe business was going while spending time in the lounge here.

"In this hall on the left, there is a library built with the support of our seniors. That hallway is being decorated as a permanent exhibition hall with donated works of art."

As the purpose of the academy itself was to be a social club, the support from the inside as well as the outside was great.

'It reminds me of the strong school ties of Korea.'

As a Seymour, if I hadn't made it into the top four clubs, I would have been pretty much ignored by the social world later on.

'So, even though Deborah was older, she didn't join last year and waited for Omicron to accept memberships this year.'

I kicked my tongue inwardly and looked around.

"There is also a lot of space for activities related to hobbies. There is also a magic laboratory and an ensemble, so please use it if you are interested."

Listening to Isidor's affectionate voice, I slowly looked around the beautiful building lined with famous paintings and sculptures.

'How can I use this building for free? It's a super profit.'

"Oh, and there are various clubs in Epsilon, so if you are interested, please apply."

"Princess Deborah!"

At that moment, the 5th Princess, who was covering her mouth with a fan, suddenly called my name fiercely.

"Yes?"

"Join the mana research club. Have an in-depth discussion about magic with me."

'So, you brought me here for this purpose.'

Still, research on magic was not a waste of time.

Although I am not sensitive to mana, I was very interested in making money using mana's limitless and high potential energy.

"Of course."

Her yellow eyes filled with emotion at my cool reply.

A VIP customer of a higher level of royalty than me.

There is nothing bad about getting close to her.

"Princess. It's already three o'clock. The professor is coming in late, but you have to go now."

Perhaps her number of attendance days was really at a dangerous level, as the maid next to Princess whispered with a worried face.

'Deborah wasn't even close to being expelled.'

After Thierry, the 5th Princess was also a bit suspicious, but I let it go with the absurd excuse that it was probably my feeling.

"Ahem. It's unfortunate, but I have to go."

She suddenly glanced at me and started wiggling her hands nervously.

"What's wrong?"

"Hm! Now that we belong to the same social club, why don't we shake hands?"

"Very well."

As we lightly held hands, the Princess smiled brightly.

"See you again soon!"

She waved her hands several times like an idiot and ran towards the Department of Magic.

Isidor looked silently at the back of the 5th Princess getting smaller and smaller, and muttered something in a low voice.

"... Something annoying happened again."

"What did you say"

"Let's go for a walk around here. I have something important to say."

"Sir Isidor looks so tired today, but you have something important to tell me?"

"I have enough strength to talk and walk."

Fatigued, he walked in the direction of the quiet road.