Meeting Her Again III

Shortly after the staff returned, Carolyn and Riley finished the tea and cookies. Carolyn was ready to pay for her share, but Riley informed her that their meals would also be covered as a work expense. Carolyn wondered if it was really alright to take advantage of Riley's position like this, but Riley assured her that this was the right way to use her benefits. They didn't exchange addresses, but Riley told Carolyn that she could pass a message through the owner if she wanted to meet again.

Once Riley left, Carolyn went to the bar counter where tea, coffee and other beverages were made to ask for the owner. The middle-aged man at the counter had a stern expression and was dressed like a butler, so Carolyn wondered if he was the owner, but she wasn't confident in that guess.

"Excuse me, could I speak to the owner about becoming a special member?"

Even after waiting for ten seconds, the man didn't raise his eyes from the cup he was wiping with a piece of cloth.

"Excuse me?"

"Hello?"

As Carolyn wondered why he was ignoring her, someone approached from her right.

"There's no point in asking; he can't hear you."

The waitress who had served Carolyn and Riley went behind the counter and tapped the man's arm before making a series of hand signs. Upon seeing the hand signs, the man put down the tea cup and left the counter.

Once Carolyn learnt of the man's disability, any trace of discontent was gone and replaced by shame for not considering that possibility. However, in Carolyn's defence, those with speech, sight or auditory disabilities were almost never hired for work in most cities, especially not customer service roles.

"So, I hear you want to be a special member."

"That's right. I heard about it from Riley, so I want to ask the owner if I'm eligible. Are they available?"

"No need to ask. You're looking at them."

Carolyn was a bit surprised to hear this, but she nodded without airing any doubt. The waitress' demeanour seemed different from when she had been serving, and this was likely the reason.

"You have Riley's recommendation, and there's no problem with your tea etiquette, so there's no strong reason to refuse you, but let me ask you a question. What do you think it means to be a lady?"

It certainly wasn't a question Carolyn expected, but she recalled discussing a similar topic with her mother so she was able to respond almost on reflex.

"To be a lady is to be tough in mind and soft in action. It is to shed tears for others but bear pain with a smile. It is to be—"

"A woman among women and a mother to all children. To be a lady is to act with the heart of a lady at all times and in all ways. To think I would find someone who read that old book. I'm almost tempted to look into your background."

Though she didn't know that it was a saying with apparently some renown, the lines that Carolyn started and the owner finished were part of an oath that her mother always made her recite during etiquette lessons. Carolyn didn't expect that uttering it would excite the owner's curiosity, so she quickly tried to diminish her interest.

"I'm just an outsider who recently came to the city. You won't find out anything interesting by looking into me."

"I find that hard to believe given that you were with Riley, but let's leave it there for now."

After holding back a sigh of relief, Carolyn asked, "So, do I have your approval?"

"Yeah. My name's Marie, but you can just call me Owner. I'll give you a quick rundown on your privileges as a special member."

Carolyn paid keen attention while Marie explained the services that Amber Teahouse offered special members. The store provided a venue for secret discussions, passed along messages and small packages, and also hosted masked tea parties for ladies to gather and share valuable information and small talk. All services came with a price, but it wasn't much more expensive than ordering a cup of tea. Men were also allowed to be special members, but Marie brazenly charged them significantly more, and they were barred from the tea parties.

"Did you get that?"

"I think so. I'd love to have another cup of tea, but I should go now. I'll return if need be."

"Then, I look forward to the next time our distant fates intertwine."

"May it be written so in the near future."

After exchanging those lines with elegant curtsies, the two showed bright smiles. The two knew that the phrases they spoke were used back in the days of the ancient Empire and hardly made any appearances in modern day, but it was enough that the other party understood them.

Carolyn left Amber Teahouse in an excellent mood and headed to the slums district with a wide smile still on her face. Meeting with Riley was enough to make her thank the Goddess, but finding a kindred spirit in Marie was an added bonus. She was reluctant to make new friends because they might get in trouble because of her, but if they were already involved in the city's underbelly, then there was some leeway.

Yes, this much was okay. This wouldn't get in the way of finding the truth behind her village's destruction and her parents' death. She was still working hard to meet her objective, so surely, this much was fine.

When Carolyn arrived at the church in the slums district, the children had just finished their daily trip to the well to wipe off their bodies. They couldn't afford to keep themselves as clean as most official residents, but Benedict ensured that they were at least splashed with water in the morning. It was too early for lunch, so Carolyn handed out pieces of bread which she bought along with the ingredients for a stew. This stew would need to be slow-cooked, so she planned to leave watching the pots to her cooking assistants while she trained the organisation's intelligence officers.

As the children ate the bread, Carolyn gathered Lety and Benedict in Benedict's office and shared what she learnt from Riley and about Amber Teahouse.

"I didn't expect that you would already have a government contact. From the way they responded, they were likely being honest about the deal with the throne. Even if they manage to win this battle, I don't have much hope in them being the victor in the overall dispute."

"That bothers me too, but I'm more interested in this teahouse. It sounds like a good place to interact with clients and learn new information."

"You're not wrong, but as Carol mentioned, they're somewhat exclusive to women, so I don't have much advice to give regarding that venue. However, you should be aware that you probably won't make it past the front door the way you are now."

Carolyn grimaced at Benedict's comment, but she couldn't deny it. She shared similar interests with the owner of Amber Teahouse, so Carolyn could tell that she wouldn't allow a messy child from the slums to enter her store even if she was a kind person at heart. To the owner, that store was like a sanctuary, so compassion would hardly be enough to make her bend the rules.

"I know. It's irritating, but it's normal for people to judge based on appearances, so I'll have to work on that aspect as I try to expand my network. I'll need to find a teacher suitable for that role too."

"Wait, Lety, what about me?"

At Carolyn's question, both Lety and Benedict looked at her strangely before slowly turning away.

"Why are you two looking at me like that? I'm a young lady, in case you forgot."

"Carol, I know that I can depend on you when it comes to etiquette, but even I can tell you don't have much fashion knowledge."

"What?!"

Carolyn was shocked by Lety's declaration, but Benedict was even harsher.

"Indeed. It can't be helped given your rural background, but I've noticed that your outfits tend to follow the same safe patterns. I'm guessing you thought they looked nice and stuck to what you're used to instead of experimenting with anything else."

"Well, you're not wrong."

"I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but to make a good impression in high society, it's best to leave this to someone with more expertise."

With Carol's natural charm, she could get by with her average fashion sense, but Lety would need more than that if she wanted to interact with rich and noble clients. Carolyn still felt offended by their opinions, but she didn't let the topic drag on.

Soon after their discussion was complete, Carolyn prepared the stew up to a safe point and left instructions for her assistants, led by Katty, while she was gone. She then gathered the intelligence officers and Derrick and put them through training until lunchtime. She might have seemed stricter compared to yesterday, but that was surely just their imagination.

The assistants who she had left to watch the stew did their jobs well so she could apply the finishing steps and help serve it. The proportions weren't much larger than usual, but everyone was especially eager to eat this time because the smell of the stew had pervaded the church for hours. Benedict even had to stop children fighting over whether it was okay to eat before the stew was done. If the finished product wasn't worth the torturous waiting, some children would have surely glared at Carolyn with hatred in their eyes, but lunch proved to be the best meal that most of them ever had.

Carolyn was glad to see the joy on their faces, but as someone who was aware of the underlying circumstances, Lety was more on the side of relief.