Crimson and Merchant 8
The following day after their arrival, Liliana, Riley, and Clyde visited the Crimson Museum. After a brief introduction, they were scheduled to proceed to the actual workshop.
The Crimson Museum was located within the city walls, about a ten-minute walk from the dyeing district. As had been mentioned, it resembled a typical private house. The two-story building had white walls with beautiful brown wooden beams. The curator, who had spent most of his life within the Clark Duchy and had rarely ventured outside the territory except for research, stood nervously at the gate. To him, nobility outside the Clark Duchy was an absolute rarity, and Riley, as a royal, was considered a priceless and noble rarity—almost a national treasure. The curator looked as though he might faint, eliciting sympathetic glances from Marianne and others.
(The curator is of commoner origin, and he doesn’t hold a title. His Highness interacts with everyone regardless of their status, so it’s understandable that he feels this way.)
Some people appreciated Riley's approachable attitude, while others, like the curator, felt even more frightened. The curator, who had lived a life devoted to research and avoided social interactions, was instinctively fearful and tense around those of higher status. For him, this visit was a veritable nightmare. He would have preferred to delegate the task if possible, but with only three staff members at the museum, including himself, and one on leave, he had no choice but to greet the Crown Prince himself.
Clyde stepped forward and introduced Riley to the curator with a smile.
"Curator, thank you for taking on the role of guide today. This is His Highness, Crown Prince Riley Williams Slibegrad."
"W-welcome, Your Highness. It is an honor to have you here."
The curator, introduced by Clyde, managed to convey his welcome, though his voice wavered and his words stumbled. Riley maintained a gentle and friendly smile as he thanked the curator. Despite the curator's awkwardness, Riley showed no sign of discomfort and followed him inside the mansion. Clyde and Liliana followed Riley, with a few of Riley's guards accompanying them inside while the majority waited outside.
The inside of the museum was more orderly than expected. Although there was a distinctive smell from dyes, it wasn’t too overwhelming thanks to numerous small windows for ventilation. The ground floor was designated as the exhibition room, the second floor housed the research lab, and the basement contained storage for materials. Riley and his party were first shown the exhibition room on the ground floor.
"T-this is the Kermes scale insect, which is used to make Crimson dye. It lives on oak trees and prefers hot climates, so we used to import it, but we’ve successfully bred it now. The breeding technique is a closely guarded secret, so I’m afraid I can’t disclose it..."
The curator wiped his sweat, desperately trying to explain. Riley, smiling, reassured him that there was no need to disclose any secret techniques. The curator let out a sigh of relief. Carmine, the dye extracted from the Kermes scale insect, is particularly renowned as a high-quality dye for woolen fabrics. Keeping the manufacturing method secret ensured the region’s commercial advantage.
As they leisurely toured the exhibition room, the curator spoke rapidly about the exhibits. Once they finished viewing the exhibition room, they proceeded to the research lab.
"From the root of a flower called Akane, we can extract a red dye called Alizarin. However, it tends to fade quickly. If we could find a way to make it more durable, it would be very valuable."
"I see. So, you’re not only researching Crimson dye?"
"Ah, no. I believe Alizarin could be made to resemble Crimson if we can manage it, so yes, that’s what I’m working on."
When the curator became enthusiastic, he spoke very quickly and could not stop his flow of words. Riley and the others listened with interest and occasionally asked questions. As expected of a leading expert, the curator answered all questions fluently, except for those covered by confidentiality agreements.
Liliana, who was supposed to be silent, listened without speaking.
(Alizarin Crimson. It would be difficult to achieve without developing a high-temperature distillation technology for coal.)
Alizarin Crimson was an artificial dye in Liliana’s previous life. It required the separation and purification of an oily substance produced by high-temperature distillation of coal, followed by further synthesis. With current technology, even using magic, it would be challenging.
Before that, the concept of “patents” should have been spread. Perhaps a similar system had already been introduced somewhere. After investigating, Liliana wanted to adapt and introduce it to current society.
While Liliana was thinking about this, they were guided to the library. The library contained a large number of books, items from previous experiments that had no clear purpose, obsolete items replaced by alternatives, and numerous fabrics dyed with Crimson dye from foreign lands.
"What’s this?"
"Oh, that’s something we acquired from abroad. It was reportedly found in an ancient sarcophagus."
"I see."
The curator explained that it was likely used to wrap either a deceased person or burial goods. Riley and Clyde looked at the fabric with uncertain expressions and averted their gazes. They likely wanted to avoid touching it but couldn’t show any discomfort in front of the curator. Liliana, maintaining a constant smile, observed the scene.
*****
After leaving the museum, the group headed to the dyeing district, an area enclosed by two city walls. Centered around a river, this area was lined with workshops involved in dyeing. Some shops also sold dyed fabrics, giving the area a commercial district feel specializing in textile products.
Their first stop was to observe the dyeing process. While the breeding facility for Kermes scale insects, the raw material, was off-limits, they were able to view the process of dyeing fabrics and threads with the extracted dye. The entire process was highly organized, with efficiency being the primary focus.
They toured the various stages of the process and finally arrived at a shop handling dyed fabrics. It seemed that ready-made products were available for purchase here as well. The shop primarily sold to clothing workshops but occasionally offered retail sales, as the shopkeeper explained.
Riley blinked in interest.
"That sounds fascinating. If it’s not too much trouble, could we see the products?"
"Of course, Your Highness."
The shopkeeper, accustomed to dealing with nobility, responded smoothly despite his nervousness in the presence of the Crown Prince. He instructed an apprentice to bring out fabrics dyed with Crimson, along with others in different shades of red and yellow.
"Basically, our workshop handles fabrics dyed in this district, but occasionally, if we come across good products, we purchase from foreign merchants. Particularly with silk, it seems that foreign sources offer superior quality."
The shopkeeper described the quality ranks from left to right. It appeared that not only the dye but also the dyeing irregularities affected the grade. Naturally, the origin and condition of the wool used also influenced the quality. The final fabric presented was silk imported from a foreign merchant, featuring a mysterious pattern embroidered in gold thread on red fabric. Liliana noticed a resemblance between the pattern and one she had seen before.
(Didn’t the Marquis Tanner’s daughter wear a dress with a similar pattern some time ago?)
At that time, she had received unpleasant comments from the Marquis Tanner’s daughter and hadn’t had the chance to closely examine the dress. Nonetheless, she had remembered the pattern as an unusual one, often seen in products from the Yunatian Empire, differing from the patterns in Slibegrad Kingdom that depicted natural objects more faithfully.
—Perhaps the merchant from the Yunatian Empire, whom I had someone look into, came to this town as well.
Riley might have had the same suspicion. Although Riley had mentioned investigating "Yunatian Empire merchants," he hadn’t specified anyone in particular. It was possible Riley was also investigating the merchant favored by Marquis Tanner’s daughter and had some suspicions.
After a moment of silence, Riley asked the shopkeeper, "When did that merchant come by?"
The shopkeeper easily responded, "I believe it was about a week ago." If so, the merchant had likely already moved on to another region or returned to their homeland.
Although Riley would have liked to see the merchant in person, it was not feasible.
Liliana considered buying several pieces of fabric. Though she only needed one, purchasing only the foreign fabric might seem conspicuous. Additionally, she could use any excess fabric for cushions or bed covers by adding embroidery. She signaled Marianne and asked to purchase some of the fabrics, including those from the Yunatian Empire merchant.
It seemed Riley and Clyde decided not to make any purchases. They thanked the shopkeeper and left the store with Liliana. Riley cast a meaningful glance at Liliana, but she met his gaze with a smile.
Riley might have noticed the similarity between the pattern on the fabric from the Yunatian merchant and the dress worn by the Marquis Tanner’s daughter.
Liliana pondered this internally. If Riley had noticed, it would be cumbersome to deceive him.
Ideally, Liliana wished to investigate discreetly. This would allow her to proceed secretly. Despite being a candidate for the Crown Prince’s fiancée, her status as a ducal house’s daughter was not politically significant. Often underestimated due to her inability to speak and rarely attracting attention, Liliana thought she should conduct her investigation discreetly.
The pattern on the fabric was likely a symbol of curse magic.
Although the exact intention was unclear, the Yunatian merchant was spreading fabrics with curse magic symbols in the Slibegrad Kingdom, likely with sinister motives.