Then, at night, by the time she had Ekaterina dressed in her nightgown, she had made the arrangements.
“I heard that Master Murano’s workshop, which had a reputation for being very skilled, was closed down after he died, so I’ll take you to the one that’s said to be the best of the current workshops tomorrow.” (Mina)
“…Well, that’s nice. I’m so glad you arranged it so quickly.” (Ekaterina)
My beautiful maid is too talented.
So the next day, Ekaterina went out in a carriage with Mina.
Graham, her butler, smilingly helped her when she told him what she wanted to do, so she successfully went out without Alexei knowing. When she thinks about it, she has always traveled in a carriage with her brother, so even though Mina is with her, she feels a bit nervous.
I’m not saying that a 30-year-old woman should be nervous, but I am!
I’m sure I’m not the only one.
Mmm! Ekaterina said in her mind.
Ekaterina’s POV
The carriage took us to a different district from the one Alexei and I had toured yesterday. It was a more popular and lively district, full of signs of life to the point of obscurity.
Children run through the streets, where more wagons than noblemen’s carriages come and go. There are many buildings that look like workshops, and you can hear the loud sounds of metal being forged.
In Tokyo, this is Ota Ward, where small and medium-sized manufacturing companies gather.
But you can see laundry hanging in the backstreets, making it look like Hong Kong or Naples in Italy.
The carriage stopped in front of a large building among the workshops. It was still new and had a rather elaborate sign that read [Garen Workshop].
3rd POV
“Master Garen’s workshop. This is it.” (Mina)
Mina said, opening the door and getting out of the carriage with ease. Taking Mina’s outstretched hand, Ekaterina also exited the carriage.
“My Lady, please be careful.” (Mina)
Returning a smile to the gentleman who called out to her, Ekaterina stepped into the Garen workshop.
The first thing she felt was the heat. There was a furnace at the back of the workshop, and she could see the orange glow. It was probably used to melt glass. There seemed to be a number of other furnaces as well, for different purposes. Around the furnace, half-naked craftsmen were busily working.
One of these craftsmen, a young, kind-looking man, noticed them and quickly walked up to them.
“Welcome, may I help you?” (Craftsman)
“Send for Master Garen, I told him that the young lady of the Dukes of Yurinova will be visiting.” (Mina)
“The young lady of… I’m sorry, please wait a moment.” (Craftsman)
The young man was taken aback by Mina’s words, glanced at Ekaterina, and rushed off to the back of the workshop.
Soon, a man who looked like Garen himself arrived. He was an old man, probably around fifty years old, with incredibly thick arms and a big belly.
“Hello, young lady, how nice of you to come all the way to such a shabby place to visit this Garen, hehehe.” (Garen)
His laugh…was quite strange and somewhat unpleasant.
I wonder if he’s okay.
What’s more, where is he looking?
Mina, who looked at the laughing man without expression, silently offered Ekaterina a fan, which Ekaterina also silently accepted and flipped open to cover her mouth and chest.
In the corner of the workshop, there is a sofa that looks like a reception set, where Ekaterina and Mina went to sit facing Garen.
“I understand that you want to order some special glassware. If that’s the case, that’s where Garen comes in. What do you want, I can make you a very large vase, a decorative plate, anything you want.” (Garen)
“What I want you to make for me is not a big thing. I’m sorry to say that it’s an amateur painting, but you can see it here.” (Ekaterina)
