​Short Story: The Imperial Prince's Sigh

​"Master, Count Flexatone is begging us to sell him that liquor, no matter what it takes..."

​"Have we not already sold him his allotment for this month? Tell him he must wait until next month."

​Not this again. I let out a small sigh at the words of my butler, Sebastian.

​The alcohol from the alternate world, acquired through the storefront summoned by my only daughter, Sakurariel, had ignited an unprecedented boom among the nobility.

​After all, this was a liquor the likes of which had never been seen before, impossible to procure anywhere else in the entire world.

​In the blink of an eye, it had become the ultimate status symbol for the vain, prideful nobles—an item they were desperate to acquire, regardless of the exorbitant cost.

​To be completely honest, this was entirely unexpected. A mountain of pleading letters arrives every single day for me, an Imperial Prince.

​When deciding to sell this liquor, I intentionally instituted a strict purchase limit. This was both to cement the impression that the liquor was exceedingly rare and to ensure that we maintained absolute control of the market.

​Officially, the limit is set at three bottles per month for every noble house, but we do offer slight preferential treatment to those within our own faction.

​Though, the one who buys the most by far is His Majesty the Emperor, my older brother...

​However, perhaps because the restrictions were too severe, rumors have surfaced of upper-class nobles practically extorting the liquor purchased by lower-class nobles, forcing them to offer it up as tribute. This otherworldly alcohol truly drives men mad...

​Well, considering that every single item available in Sakurariel's store is a masterpiece, I suppose it cannot be helped.

​When she first received it, I was terrified my daughter had been cursed with some baffling, useless "Gift" like <Store Summoning>, but now I am absolutely convinced it is a truly magnificent power.

​Even my wife, Ashley, is utterly captivated by the stores our daughter summons.

​Those cakes must seem unbelievably alluring to the noblewomen. Ashley even mentioned that the clothing from the alternate world could be marketed as a revolutionary new fashion trend.

​Unlike the clothing of this world, those garments are phenomenally comfortable. While they cannot be worn to official functions, they are absolutely flawless for lounging in one's private chambers.

​As for the undergarments... there is simply no going back. I could never part with undergarments that feel that sublime against the skin.

​Ashley expressed the exact same sentiment. The women's undergarments from the alternate world are apparently also quite wondrous... Ahem, well, setting that aside for the moment.

​In any case, by selling the goods from Sakurariel's store to the nobility, the Philharmony Dukedom is generating unprecedented, staggering profits.

​However, this is money that Sakurariel should use for her own sake, so we have decided to deposit it all into savings without touching a single coin.

​The Philharmony Dukedom is already slightly wealthier than the other high-ranking nobles thanks to the income from our territory anyway. We would have no financial troubles even without the revenue from Sakurariel's store.

​Ashley, on the other hand, seems to be devising an entirely separate business venture. She is attempting to create original products based on the items sold in Sakurariel's store.

​It seems she intends to start with undergarments and clothing, and is currently in the process of gathering highly skilled seamstresses.

​My wife is originally the daughter of a Margrave, and compared to the nobles of the Royal Capital, she was raised in a remarkably free and easygoing environment.

​Normally, for a noble to engage directly in commerce is viewed rather unfavorably by both fellow nobles and commoners alike.

​Other nobles mock them, sneering, "Are you truly so destitute?" while commoners roll their eyes and think, "It's just another noble's idle pastime."

​But she doesn't care about any of that in the slightest. She wants to do it, so she will. She is incredibly honest and straightforward with her own feelings.

​I feel that Sakurariel has inherited that exact same personality.

​I just desperately wish she wouldn't do anything reckless...

​When I heard she had fought a cursed magic swordsman so soon after facing a Dark Dragon, my blood truly ran cold.

​Those are absolutely not the actions of a Duke's daughter. With a track record like that, finding her a suitable fiancé is going to be incredibly difficult... No, wait, she doesn't need a fiancé at all.

​Unless it is a man with the sheer magnitude of tolerance and capability required to swallow all of that whole, I will absolutely never permit her to marry. If I say I won't allow it, I won't allow it.

​"Master, Marquis Didgeridoo is begging us to sell him that liquor, no matter what it takes..."

​"Haaah..."

​Dragged back from the sea of my thoughts by Sebastian delivering the exact same lines as before, I let out yet another small sigh.