The aroma, combined with the visual candy of syrup and butter melting over the fluffy pancakes, was something most humans wouldn't be able to resist; it was only natural that it left Silvie yearning for another bite.
"Hmmm~ hmmm~"
"So fluffy, so delicious~"
Lady Evelyn watched in delight as her servant took her time savoring the dessert, but underneath her graceful smile, the mistress silently wished that this small joy might cushion the blow of the heinous scheme she soon intended to involve Silvie in.
In the meantime, the lady dined with elegant table manners. The way she wielded the silver cutlery, each movement was a portrait to behold.
Silvie was mindful of her own table manners; despite the temptation to devour the entire dessert without care, she dared not disgrace herself in front of her mistress.
"Silvie, even with your amnesia, your manners remain remarkably refined," Lady Evelyn observed.
"My Lady, certain habits are not so easily lost," Silvie answered with pride, pausing in her indulgence until her mistress spoke again.
Lady Evelyn took a sip from her cup and gently dabbed her lips with a fresh napkin. "Have you remembered anything, Silvie?" the mistress inquired.
Silvie paused, put down her fork, and contemplated Lady Evelyn's question. "My Lady, I have yet to remember anything significant," she said softly.
"I see. I was hoping that the flavor of the dessert might aid in recovering your memories deep within," the mistress remarked soundly.
"Why is that, my lady?" Silvie asked, intrigued by her notion.
"It is a matter of one's childhood. Perhaps, sometime in your past, you tasted and savored meals made by your parents. Pancakes in particular are a popular childhood dessert in Umbridge." To the mistress, there had to be a reason for her servant choosing this particular dessert, but there was a possibility that it was merely one of her whims.
"I believe those kinds of things will forever remain in our hearts long after the moment has passed." At Lady Evelyn's gentle words, Silvie conjured a soft smile and reflected inwardly.
"A childhood... something that will never leave a person... a meal made by my parents..." The thought weighed heavily on her delicate heart.
"That's lovely, Lady Evelyn. But... what are the chances that I've never experienced any of those?" An awkward silence hung in the air.
The ceiling fan sounded louder than usual. Perhaps some of the nearby patrons had heard her sentiments, for they grew silent as well. The store owner and the nearby waitresses heard it too; however, though they paused, they soon continued working shortly after.
Lady Evelyn hadn't expected that from Silvie, but she wasn't particularly surprised; rather, she found it endearing.
"Then I'll make sure you experience them." Those words, leaving the mistress's lips, resonated more than they should have within the servant's heart.
Yet to Silvie, deep down, why did she feel that Lady Evelyn knew exactly where she was coming from?
Their eyes met once more, silver and violet intertwining in a blurred connection. In that moment, Silvie felt that, even as a slave, she was not truly seen as one.
"Carry on. We don't want the mood of the dessert to be spoiled, do we?" Lady Evelyn quickly added, realizing they were stepping into the boundaries of melodrama within a pastry shop of all places.
Silvie snapped back to her senses, unsure of what to say in return. She realized she wasn't used to receiving such kindness, and perhaps wasn't quite sure how to respond.
"Y-yes, Lady Evelyn."
Lady Evelyn drew out her purse and placed a gold crown on the table. Silvie still didn't understand how currency worked in Umbridge, but as a servant, it was not her place to question it.
"To celebrate our entwined meeting, here is a gift. Order as much as you wish, and eat without concern for table manners. I shall turn a blind eye for you."
The servant was indeed excited, as evident in her soft smile; however, she kept her mannerisms in check. With her pale right hand, she nodded gracefully as she accepted the generous gift of her mistress.
"I thank you very much, Lady Evelyn..."
She stood up from her seat and walked to the counter. She waited patiently in line, for there were at least three people ahead of her, all of whom greeted her with their own soft smiles.
It helped that the gold crown looked like something that could fetch her quite a lot of items. Yet she had forgotten to ask her mistress how much a gold crown was actually worth, perhaps due to the excitement of being able to indulge like a king.
"It's too late..." she muttered. In any case, the servant decided to wing it.
After reaching the counter to place her orders, her eyes leveled with the store owner, Sir Daishi.
Beside them, Lady Evelyn observed with interest, eager to hear what her servant would order.
"Ahem—" Silvie prepared to place her order. Realistically, she could have just called a waitress to their table, but immersion was a priority for the servant; thus, she began.
"Hello, good sir..."
"I'll have two Venerable Immortal Shortcakes... one Esteemed Glazed Hurst Pancakes... Three of the Pozzy Wuzzy Strawberry Cakes, the Destroyer of Worlds... uhm... one Thick Spontaneous Cheesecake, End of Mankind... and, oh... one Forbidden Red Velvet Scripture of... S–Seduction."
The store owner nodded, his eyes carefully examining her diminutive frame. He could scarcely imagine how she might consume the sheer quantity of her orders, yet it was not his place to question a customer; business was business.
"Very well, that would be 56 Cs ⨀," he tallied the total.
Silvie looked confused but remained polite. Without hesitation, the servant slid a glittering gold crown across the counter.
The store owner's lips pressed together in a shaky line, his cheeks puffing as he tried to hold it in. "This girl just used a gold crown to buy pastries, that's the equivalent of using pure gold to buy candies..."
Interestingly, Silvie was not even close to draining the purchasing power of a gold crown.
But before the store owner could ask if the servant had a smaller bill, Lady Evelyn chimed in from the side, "Daishi, do keep the change," she said with a sly smile.
Suffice it to say, the store owner welcomed the gesture wholeheartedly.
Chapter End...