Sugar Apple Fairytale - Volume 4 - Chapter 2.1

Chapter 2

THE WORKSHOP AMONG THE LAKES AND GREEN HILLS

“Wow, what a huge help! You saved me the carriage fare!”

Elliott sat beside Anne, looking like he had expected nothing less.

Anne left Lewiston with her old boxy wagon and took the road headed northeast.

The highway connecting Lewiston and Millsfield was well traveled by wagons and pedestrians. The road was wide, and wagons could pass each other with room to spare.

To either side of the road was woodland, broken up by small settlements of two or three farmhouses and their wheat fields. It was a clear sunny day, so the aroma of the forest was refreshing.

The farmers looked cheerful as they harvested the heavily laden ears of ripe wheat.

Elliott seemed to be in a good mood. In the bright sunshine, his red hair looked even redder.

Anne was somewhat less than happy. Mithril had taken up a position between Anne and Elliott and was on guard, glaring suspiciously up at Elliott.

I doubt this guy told me to come work at the main studio of the Paige Workshop just to save himself the carriage fare…

That morning, Anne had finished all her preparations for the journey. Kat and Keith had come to see her off as she headed out from the main studio of the Radcliffe Workshop, steering her boxy horse-drawn wagon.

Elliott had not made any arrangements for a carriage of his own, as if neglecting to do so was unavoidable. It seemed he had intended to ride along on Anne’s wagon from the start.

“Anyway, poor Kat didn’t look well at all, huh? I wonder if he ate something bad?” Elliott sounded carefree.

When Kat had come to see her off, Anne had told him about Hugh’s visit the night before. She had declined his proposal and thanked him for his kindness.

“I heard all the details from that dim-witted bastard last night,” Kat had said, adding that he didn’t expect any thanks for sticking his nose where it didn’t belong. But he looked dispirited. Anne couldn’t help but worry and asked Kat what Hugh had demanded of him. Kat made an extremely unpleasant face and simply said, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

She wondered what on Earth the Silver Sugar Viscount had demanded. Hugh had said that Kat was a good-natured person, but despite that, he couldn’t help but take advantage of him. He was quite mean.

Speaking of nasty people, the man sitting beside Anne was just as bad. At the moment, she had absolutely no idea what he was planning.

“How nice this is! Traveling together with a girl. Truly delightful.”

“Hey! The two of you aren’t alone together, pal! I’m right here!” Mithril said with an angry look in his eyes.

“Ah— Sorry, sorry. It’s a two-person trip with a girl, plus you, so two and a half?” Elliott rephrased, looking fed up.

“Why am I an extra?! And only half, to boot?!”

“Just calling it as I see it. Ah, well, maybe not half—maybe more like a tenth, then?”

“Who do you think you are—?!!”

Mithril grabbed Elliott by the collar and shouted at him. But Elliott ignored the angry fairy, crossed both arms behind his head, and leaned back against the seat.

“Anyway, Anne. Do you have a boyfriend?”

“Huh?! What kind of question is that, all of a sudden?”

Elliott’s puzzling question was so abrupt and so flippant that she was almost impressed by his brazenness.

“Well, that’s the kind of thing people are curious about, right? It’s perfectly normal.”

“I’m not curious about those things.”

“Well, I am. So how about it? Am I right in thinking your boyfriend is Challe?”

“N-n-n-n-no way!!”

“So I guessed right? I knew it!”

“Are you even listening?! Didn’t I just flatly deny it?!”

“Okay, so he’s not your boyfriend. Unrequited love, then? How dreadful. Why don’t you abandon such a fruitless pursuit and go out with me instead?”

“Just what is wrong with your gray matter?!” Mithril lashed out at Elliott for his proposal. “Is it rotten in there?!”

“Terrible words from a tenth of a man.”

“Don’t call me a tenth of anything! Even half was better than that—!!”

Anne felt deflated by the foolishness of it all.

They were in the northeastern part of the kingdom known as the Strand region, which had several lakes.

It was a place where many royals and nobles owned villas and vacation homes, a retreat for the upper classes.

There were no craggy mountains—just gently sloping hills and meadows, lakes, and forests. The area was full of peaceful, beautiful scenery.

Millsfield was in the center of the Strand region. It was the provincial capital of the Sant Province, which made up half of the area.

The town was just a half day’s distance from Lewiston by wagon, and it was a fairly bustling place for its size. The surrounding countryside was dotted with lakes and patches of forest, giving the area a relaxed atmosphere. There were no city walls or fortifications, and the town hadn’t been carefully planned, but the roads were wide, so it didn’t seem too chaotic. Having developed organically, the place had a sereneness to it. The provincial governor’s castle was somewhat distant from the town, as if standing guard over Millsfield from afar. Its watchful presence was one of the primary reasons that the place felt so peaceful.

The main studio of the Paige Workshop was on the east side of Millsfield, on the outskirts of town. It was located right where the town ended and the road became a country lane.

The studio sat atop a gently sloping hill, and at the foot of the hill was a small copse of trees and a lake. The broad leaves had changed colors, and the yellows and reds were reflected on the rippling surface of the water.

Aside from the copse of trees, it was all grass. The grass was withered, but a dry, pleasant breeze blew over the extensive fields.

This scenery was typical of the Strand region.

In the middle of the property was a large brick building with a steeply pitched roof. The building looked like it was calmly gazing out over the foothills and lakes spread out before it.

And clustered around that structure was a group of seven long bungalows, two small two-story houses, one hut that looked like a storehouse, and one stable for horses.

“All the buildings over there make up the main studio of the Paige Workshop. The one in the middle is the main house. That’s where Glen, the maestro of the faction, lives. Bridget and I live there, too. The Silver Sugar Masters, and folk with important roles in the workshop, live over there. All seven of the single-story buildings near the main house are used for the production of sugar candies and the refining of silver sugar. At the Radcliffe Workshop, production and refining are done in separate buildings, but here, they’re in the same one. Out of the seven workrooms, only one is currently in use. The two-story houses are where the candy crafters live together,” Elliott said, pointing out each structure.

Among the three factions of candy crafters, the Paige Workshop had the longest history.

About three hundred years ago, the land that was now the Kingdom of Highland was ruled by various feudal lords who were constantly warring with one another.

In order to draw in good fortune for themselves, the lords controlling each area competed to employ candy crafters.

During that era, a candy crafter named Enoch Paige appeared. He established the first-known candy workshop. There was a limit to the amount of candy that he could produce alone, so he gathered other crafters to work under him and made candy after candy to suit the desires of the feudal lord who hired him.

The family that employed Enoch Paige became the present-day royal family, the Millslands.

This was the start of the Paige Workshop. They continued to work for the Millsland family, and two hundred years later, the Millsland family united the Kingdom of Highland.

The Radcliffe Workshop was founded just before that happened, while the Mercury Workshop was established around the same time as the unification of the kingdom. Each of the other workshops had originally been a branch of the Paige Workshop. Over time, the number of subordinates who branched out from each workshop increased, building out the structure of each faction.

In short, the Paige Workshop was the origin of the other candy factions.

Anne’s first experience with a big candy studio was the main studio of the Radcliffe Workshop. Because of that, she was under the mistaken impression that they were imposing places.

As such, she expected the main studio of the Paige Workshop, which held three hundred years of history, to be the same and look like a fortress.

Instead, counter to her expectations, the main studio of the Paige Workshop gave the impression of a large rustic household on an expansive estate.

And Challe was somewhere inside those grounds. She would be able to see him again. She was overcome with happiness. They had only been separated for a single day. Yet she wanted to see him so badly that she could hardly stand it.

Anne’s boxy wagon ascended the hilly road that wound gently upward through the meadow.

Before long, they arrived at the main house.

The building was larger than it had appeared to be from afar.

The raised-floor home was on top of a cobblestone foundation. It was a design often seen in regions where the winters were especially cold; the space under the floor was used for storing the firewood needed to make it through the winter.

Elliott told Anne to tie her horse to a nearby tree, then he went into the main house ahead of her.

Anne did as instructed.

A breeze blew across the meadow, rustling the blades of grass. Anne heard feet treading on the gravel behind her.

When she turned around, she found a young man there.

He had his black hair tied into a single high ponytail, where it swayed in the breeze like a horse’s tail. His facial features made him seem cold, and his pale-blue eyes added to that impression.

Even after he made eye contact with Anne, the young man didn’t move; he just stared fixedly at her, motionless. Anne couldn’t come up with anything to say on the spur of the moment. After they stared at each other in silence for a minute, the young man frowned slightly.

“Who are you?”

He had to be someone associated with the workshop. So Anne went ahead and introduced herself.

“I am Anne Halford. I was invited by Mr. Elliott Collins to come and work at the main studio of the Paige Workshop.”

“Elliott?”

The young man wrinkled his brow even further. His expression was a mixture of displeasure and suspicion.

“Um, and you are?”

The young man was silent. Anne didn’t know what to do. She wasn’t sure how to interact with him.

Then Mithril, who had been sitting on Anne’s shoulder the whole time, brought his face close to her ear and whispered, “Anne, do you think this guy is asleep with his eyes open?”

“I’m not asleep,” the young man finally said. “Don’t be rude.”

Elliott poked his head out from the front door of the main house. “Oops, you already met?” he asked. He descended the stone steps and approached them.

The young man moved aside slightly and looked at Elliott. Then—

“Elliott. What’s this?” he said, pointing a finger at the tip of Anne’s nose.

“That’s Anne Halford. She’s a Silver Sugar Master. I scouted her in Lewiston.”

The young man’s eyes opened wide.

“A Silver Sugar Master?”

“Yep. A girl! Isn’t it nice? Isn’t she cute? I’m going to introduce her to Glen now. Starting tomorrow, she’s going to be working with us. Try to get along.”

The young man cast a fleeting glance at Anne. But immediately, he turned his back to her and Elliott. Without acknowledging or denying what Elliott had said and with no parting words, he walked straight into the main house at a brisk pace.

Mithril cocked his head as he watched the young man leave. “What was that about?”

Elliott smiled at his question. “That was Orlando Langston. He’s one of our head crafters, and he supervises the whole sugar candy production. He’s very skilled. Though, he is pretty cranky for someone around the same age as me. Well then, let’s go inside, Anne. I know it’s sudden, but I want you to meet Glen. He’s the maestro of the Paige Workshop.”

There were seven stone steps leading up to the entrance. At the top of the stairs, like an extension of the front porch, a terrace encircled the whole house. The eaves hung out over the terrace, which made it more comfortable for people to use. Furthermore, all the first-floor windows, except for those on the north-facing side, were sliding glass doors.

Because the windows were so large, bright light filled the interior of the house.

The entryway was a two-story atrium with sunlight pouring down from the second floor as well.

“There are six rooms on the second floor, and it’s also where the crafters live, but right now, it’s just me and Orlando. The first floor has the parlor, dining room, kitchen, and bath. As well as Glen’s and Bridget’s rooms.”

Walking straight in from the atrium, they arrived at a parlor with an upholstered sofa and a large hearth. At the back of the parlor, there was an arch-shaped entryway, through which seemed to be the dining room. It housed a massive oak dining table.