Three minutes had passed since I poured warm water on the tea leaves in the teapot. A fragrant aroma emanated from the teapot when I lifted the lid to fish out the tea leaves. After I finished brewing the tea, I glanced towards Merilyn and pointed at the teapot. "Please serve this to everyone," I said. I skimmed over the tea table for a moment, when my eyes landed on the empty seat next to me with the cup sitting in front of it.

'He would have enjoyed it since the tea set has flower patterns…' I found that I was thinking about Max even in his absence, when the members of the tea tasting party gushed in admiration.

"Oh my goodness, the scent is wonderful."

The method used to efficiently restore low-cost tea leaves that had lost their scent or had it changed was to give them a new scent. This meant that giving good quality tea leaves a new scent would produce a very delicious and aromatic tea.

'This is what you call cost-effectiveness,' I thought with pride. Instead of purchasing new tea leaves, I had put a new scent on the tea leaves we had at home. Thanks to this method, I didn't have to spend a fortune preparing for this tea tasting party. I smiled, thoroughly satisfied with my decision, since I was able to save money and avoid embarrassing myself.

"Wow, I can smell a strong scent of roses coming from the tea," someone whispered in awe.

"It's amazing."

"It's more than amazing, it's great!"

"The tea is really fragrant and delicious. It also pairs well with the tea food."

"I agree. Plus, the flower decorations on the food makes it pleasing to the eyes."

I was a bit taken aback from seeing the ladies appreciate what I had prepared, since I hadn't expected much reaction from them. After all, my purpose in the first place wasn't to become a member of the tea tasting party, but simply to save face.

'I didn't expect them to enjoy something as trivial as this,' I thought as I felt a strange sensation rise inside me. An absurd impulse sprang once I was plunged into a state of confusion: I wanted to show something better next time by preparing without considering cost-effectiveness.

I was brought back to reality when someone chimed in. "How did you get the scent on the tea leaves?" My senses returned when I saw Lady Terrence gazing at me with keen eyes.

'Ah, I've come to my senses, thanks to her.' I don't think she intended to do so, but I had unintentionally received a lot of help from her.

"You know how the scent of tea leaves can disappear or go bad if you store them incorrectly, right?

"Yes, of course." I could see everyone nodding their heads like the tea enthusiasts they were.

"That's because tea leaves have the tendency to absorb scents. So, if you mix dried petals or fruits with the tea leaves, then it will absorb that scent. If you want a stronger scent, then you can extract the oil from those things and have the tea leaves absorb it."

When I finished speaking, Lady Terrence gave me a bizarre look as she sipped her tea. Seeing how quiet everyone had become, I started to wonder if the description I gave had been too boring.

'Well, I guess all explanations tend to be dull.' With this thought in mind, I decided to add something that they might find interesting.

"After you brew the tea, you can reuse the tea leaves by drying them and putting them in the pockets of the clothing in your closet. It has a deodorizing effect."

"Oh my goodness, that's amazing." I heard someone marvel at my words.

"How did you come to gain such knowledge…!"

"And it's phenomenal how you came up with the idea of making the tea leaves absorb the scent of other things!"

The truth was that the ideas I had come up with were all other people's knowledge, but I couldn't tell them that. 'If I were to do so, then I would have to tell them that I've been reincarnated.' Because of this, I responded vaguely. "Oh, I just happened to find out… It was a result of coincidence." I silently prayed that someone would change the subject after my ambiguous response to their praises.

Just in time, Lady Terrence spoke up. "Ah, I just thought of something."

"Yes, what is it?"

She shot me a weird look when I answered her enthusiastically, then continued. "Did you all hear that the crown prince has returned to the capital?"

It was the first time I was hearing such news.

'If I had known earlier, I would have left this place and went on vacation or something. I guess it makes sense since he'll be attending the princess' coming-of-age ceremony. It'll be useless to try to run away… since all the nobles will probably be forced to attend the ceremony as well.'

"I see," I responded with a flat voice. I sipped my tea, which was fragrant just a moment ago, only to have it feel like I was drinking plain water. I squinted my eyes as I felt a headache coming on, when someone spoke.

"Now that I think about it, there hasn't been any news about who was chosen to become the crown princess."

At the mention of who was going to be chosen as the crown princess, all of the members went silent as they tried to decipher each other's expressions.

"I've heard rumors that he's a terrible person," one stated.

"Likewise. I'm afraid that I'll be chosen to become married to him," another commented.

I listened to their chattering for a while, then sighed softly. 'It's obvious that the crown prince needs to be avoided, but my father has gone and chosen such a man to become my fiancé.' I was silently resenting my father when the door to the room opened. A man with black hair, red eyes, and a handsome appearance that could clearly impress anyone stepped foot into the drawing room.

"Max?"

He nodded at my call and answered. "I'm late… my lady."