"That was so romantic," Katarina swooned.
"Like something out of a story," Sophia agreed. "As expected of Lady Maria!"
"Sasuga, Maria-chan!" Katarina… probably agreed? Maria was going to have to remember that word to find out what it meant
Maria, suddenly finding seven people who had just sworn to obey her, gave them the duty of suicide watch. After all, as they actually knew the language and culture, they would best know if any of the others seemed likely to take their own life for one reason or another. They were also to help them find a reason to live, as vague as that was, and would inspect whether someone cleaned their rooms. They were not allowed to punish though, whether physically or by deprival of privileges until Maria had gotten a better understanding of their personality.
That seemed a reasonable amount of work for seven people to be given responsibility. Maria would have to assess future developments and might need to reassign them, but for now at least they had something to do. She also made Chiharu the representative of the Ashina women, officially making her the one they spoke to about any needs or issues.
The afternoon was spent on a more thorough building inspection, especially the rising framework of her production facility. It would be raised like a barn, but for now the individual pieces were being assembled, as well as the solid support beams she had asked for to add reinforcement. The carpenter was a bit curious as to her specifications, but didn't question why she wanted strong walls but a light roof. His greatest concern was getting it properly waterproof against rain, but he assured her it was doable.
Rafael said he would stay for one more day to ensure Ghirardeli was on top of things before he returned to work at the Ministry. After briefly entwining their fingers together and much hugging from the children, even the new ones, they parted ways and left to return to the Academy. It was quite unfortunate that Maria wouldn't make the trip in her own carriage, but it was still being fixed for a year of neglect. Something had started living in the cushions.
The next day, Maria went to Estus, some new plans in hand, to visit the blacksmith.
That done, she searched for Katarina, but learned from an annoyed Lady Hunt that Katarina had apparently left to go visit someone– the pained and possessive but unspoken "Without me!" was palpable– and thus was unavailable for another lesson in Ashinago.
After nodding along sympathetically and politely inquiring about her lessons with Shana on 'how to be Mary Hunt' the day before, which seemed to improve Lady Hunt's mood as spoke proudly of how well the younger Light Magic Wielder was learning, Maria made her farewells and sought out Lady Cavendish to learn of the other foreign language she had to make headway in.
Lady Cavendish had apparently been in the middle of answering her correspondence when Maria came to visit. Her rooms were filled with the scent of some strange exotic fruit that Maria deduced was banana. It was still hard to come by in most markets, since it was so highly sought after, but Maria had encountered it during the graduation party last year, served as a pie tart filling with apple. The banapple pie had been… too disintegrating for her tastes, but she had remembered the smell. It filled Lady Cavendish's rooms, the scent pure, subtle and unsweetened, seeming to come from a cluster set in a decorative bowl.
"Lady President Campbell," Lady Cavendish said, seated quite properly across from Maria. Her rooms had a sitting room, which was more than Maria had. "What can I do for you?"
"I apologize for intruding on your time, Lady Cavendish, but I have come to beg a favor of you," Maria said. "If you refuse, however, I will understand and trouble you no longer."
"How considerate of you," Lady Cavendish said. "What is this favor, pray tell?"
"I need to learn the language of the Gerudo," Maria said, "And you are the only one I know of with that expertise."
Lady Cavendish nodded. "You seek to be able to better care for your new wards at your estate, I take it?"
"I cannot care for their needs if I don't understand what they are," Maria confirmed.
"Then I will try to help you," Lady Cavendish said. "I cannot guarantee my teaching will be effective, however. I learned to speak Gerudosa at an early age, and know it as naturally as one raised to it."
"Any help at all would be appreciated, Lady Cavendish," Maria said.
Lady Cavendish nodded. "Very well. Give me a few days to prepare."
Lady Selena Berg was just sighing in regret at the note form her prince that they wouldn't be able to spend the day together because he had duties to attend to when her butler announced that she had a visitor.
As she seldom ever got visitors, even now, she went to see them just to make sure they hadn't gotten the wrong house.
"Hi Selena!" Katarina greeted. "I came to hang out!"
"L-Lady Katarina?" Selena exclaimed in surprise.
"Eh? Is this a bad time? Were you planning to go somewhere?" Katarina asked. "Should I go…?"
"No!" Selena cried. "No, of course not! I… don't actually have anything planned for today, Lady Katarina."
"So we can hang out? Yay!" Katarina gave a completely improper cheer. "That's great!"
"Did you… want to do anything in particular, Lady Katarina?" Selena asked.
Katarina grinned widely.
Lady Lalatina Dustiness sighed in contentment as her carriage brought her back from the cathedral of the sun. She'd just gotten back from a delightful morning at a café with some of their knights that she'd met when she'd been helping organize those charitable donations for Lady Campbell's wards. Finally, someone who talked about something besides how big and hard and strong their armors were. AND they didn't run away saying they needed to find Crystal Lizards so they could make their armors even harder and stronger when they she brought up subjects herself. Ahh, she was so happy. It was a good day, and it still morning! Surely things couldn't get better than this…
As they made the familiar approach to the Dustiness manor and the carriage slowed for the gate to open, Lalatina was startled when someone knocked on her carriage door.
"Hi!" a cheerful voice called to her from the window. "Lalatina, want to hang out with me and Selena?"
Oh. She was wrong. Things could get better.
With her personal affairs in order, the universe seemed to take that as invitation to find new things to take up her time. For one thing, The Third Prince casually informed her that this weekend his Sire wanted a demonstration of her 'alchemical weapon'. In the middle of the week Anne Shelley, Lady Katarina's maid, also handed her an invitation from Duke and Duchess Claes, inviting her to speak with them at her earliest convenience.
Unfortunately, the latest thing she had commissioned from the blacksmith would not be available in time for the demonstration, the Gehrman would have to do. She had cleaned and stored it in her room, so it was a simple matter to look it over, clean it once more and insure it was in working order. It also reminded her to make more gunpowder, as they hadn't made any since the presentation, and her reserves were very low. The large amount of sulphur she had ordered from the Alchemist guild had fortunately arrived, and she had made the round trip to her estate to retrieve some and make more in her dorm room. It was slow going with merely a mortar and pestle, but gunpowder slurry was safe to work in such amounts. She'd had to ask Prince Alan to use his magic to extract the water from it to get to dry quickly, and he'd looked alarmed at realizing she could make it in her room.
Maria also started learning Gerudosa from Lady Cavendish. She was as strict about pronunciation as Katarina.
In addition, she bought some cheap pottery jars, pitch and wax, as well as made more match cord, as she didn't have any more. She would not have only one thing to show come the day, impressive and new as that one thing would be.
A pity she had no bone marrow ash, but that was a very difficult substance to just casually acquire without specialized incinerator facilities. And anyway, given how thin blood was here, the marrow might not hold as much power when combined with gunpowder, if at all.
As the time for latest official encounter with royalty came closer, Maria worked on introducing Sorcier to a more explosive form of war.
…
Or possibly just its latest expensive fad. One or the other. After all, they weren't at war with anyone right now.