It seemed that because of the effect of the rumors, fewer and fewer people were coming to buy desserts from Liyakade and the others.
Field, who had been promoting the Dessert Shop not far away, also returned, her expression becoming a bit serious as she exchanged glances with Liyakade.
Judging from her face, Field had clearly heard the rumors as well.
“Alice.”
Field entered the kitchen.
At that moment, Alice was standing in front of the oven, waiting for the latest batch of desserts to be ready.
To prevent any stray hair from falling into the dough, she had tucked all her beautiful golden hair into her chef’s hat.
Even though beads of sweat had already formed on Alice’s forehead, she was determined to keep things hygienic.
“Miss Liyakade? Princess Field? Why did you come in?”
Standing in front of the oven, Alice looked puzzled.
Weren’t they supposed to still be busy outside?
“There aren’t many customers right now. We just came in to take a look. Let’s rest after this batch finishes baking. There’s still quite a bit left outside.”
“Alright.”
Alice nodded.
When she finished taking the batch of desserts out, she removed her gloves and chef’s hat.
Her golden hair was completely soaked with sweat.
She pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her forehead.
“Mm.”
Alice stretched, rubbing her shoulder with a gentle expression.
“Making so many is a bit tiring after all.”
“Sigh, you worked hard.”
Seeing Alice like this, Liyakade felt a pang of sympathy.
Alice had worked so seriously, enduring the heat to make desserts with perfect hygiene, yet was still being slandered.
“Sit here and rest for a while.”
Liyakade gently pressed Alice’s shoulder and guided her to a chair, standing behind her.
“Eh?”
Alice was startled by Liyakade’s sudden concern and greeting.
In her memory, Liyakade was cheerful and a bit timid, but rarely this gentle.
“W-What’s wrong all of a sudden, Miss Liyakade?”
Alice felt the gentle touch on her back as Liyakade’s small hands softly stroked every inch of skin, moving from her back up to her shoulders.
“It’s nothing. You just seemed tired, so I’ll give you a massage.”
Then, Liyakade gently kneaded Alice’s slightly sore shoulders, making Alice let out soft hums without realizing it.
“Mm… Miss Liyakade…”
However, Liyakade’s techniques were just getting started.
Pressing, stroking, kneading, pinching, tapping—she gave Alice the full treatment.
As Liyakade’s strength gradually increased, Alice’s soft moans turned into comfortable sighs.
“Stop, stop, stop!”
Field watched as Alice’s face turned a deep pink and those strange sounds filled the air.
She quickly stopped Liyakade.
“Wait, is this massage even proper?!”
At first, Field thought Liyakade was just being thoughtful, giving Alice a massage.
But the way Liyakade was doing it became more and more suspicious.
“Very… comfortable, Princess Field.”
Alice was still lost in the gentle touch, praising Liyakade’s massage skills.
Her waist no longer felt sore and her shoulders were pain-free.
“Alright, alright, I can see you’re feeling good.”
Field held her forehead.
“My massage is proper!”
Liyakade’s mouth twitched as she stopped.
She had learned this massage style from some books in her previous life—how could it not be proper?
She just didn’t know why Alice was reacting this way…
Yes, it must be Alice’s problem, not the massage.
“My desserts… Are they not popular?”
Although Liyakade’s massage had made Alice a little dazed, she wasn’t completely out of it.
Surely, the desserts she made weren’t selling, so she’d been told to take a break so soon.
“That’s not it. In the morning, there were plenty of customers. It’s just that business is slow now since it’s almost noon. Maybe the nobles have gone elsewhere or want to eat something more filling.”
Liyakade didn’t tell Alice that rumors were the reason her desserts weren’t selling.
Mainly because the rumors themselves were unpleasant.
Alice was so serious about her work, but because of slander, her desserts weren’t selling.
If Alice heard the content of those rumors, she would surely be hurt.
“Sigh… In the end, I still didn’t help you all.”
Alice sighed and shook her head.
If no one was buying, then no one was buying.
Even with Liyakade’s comfort, the fact remained: no one wanted her desserts, and the first event of their Cultural Festival might be coming to an end.
“What are you saying?”
Liyakade smiled, pulling out a towel and rubbing the remaining sweat from Alice’s golden hair.
“It’s clearly us who didn’t help. We left everything to Alice-chan alone, even though there was so much more we could have done. Sorry for making you do it all.”
“Eh? That’s not…”
“I think the spot we chose is a bit out of the way, so there aren’t as many people passing by. If we go and promote a little farther out, it should be fine. Can you watch the shop for a bit?”
Liyakade saw Alice wanted to object, but cut her off, drying her hair and folding the towel neatly onto the table.
“…Mm.”
Facing Liyakade’s suggestion and her determined tone, Alice nodded in agreement.
“Then we’ll go out to promote.”
“Alice, take care of the store.”
“Mm.”
After coming out, Liyakade and Field exchanged glances.
To solve the Dessert Shop’s predicament, the first thing to do was find the ones spreading the rumors.
That’s right, just like the original story.
Only now, Liyakade was on Alice’s side, and the ones spreading the rumors were unknown.
They decided to split up and search for the source.
With Field’s status and reputation, she could easily handle the situation if she found the culprit, and Liyakade could rely on force if needed.
Among the crowd, nasty talk about their Dessert Shop and Alice—the “commoner”—still popped up from time to time, making Liyakade angrier with every word.
But she forced herself to stay calm, pretending not to care as she asked where the talk was coming from.
One by one, she followed the trail to a deserted street where a Bakery stood.
From the looks of it, the rumors had started here.
Were they using such underhanded tactics to get rid of competitors?
Liyakade walked closer.
This Bakery was much bigger than their Dessert Shop, with more customers and staff.
However, when Liyakade saw the owner, her crimson eyes narrowed in shock.
It was him.