Let's Start A Bakery!

Chapter 41

I opened the door to the library with one hand, and saw Sir Leonard sitting at the table waiting for me.

"Good morning, Sir Leonard!" I said, as I walked towards the desk. "I brought you some cornbread I made last night. Would you like to try it?"

"Good morning Lady Corvalia," Sir Leonard said while standing up from the chair. "Thank you for the bread. I never got the chance to tell you that it was very good."

"You're welcome," I said, while sitting down in my seat and setting the plate with a fork in front of Sir Leonard's seat.

"That drink you made was very good as well," he said, while sitting down across from me. "You called it limeade, right?"

"Yes. It's just a simple mixture of lime juice, sugar, and water," I explained.

"I'd love to hear more about what kinds of food you want to make in the future," Sir Leonard told me while smiling. "But for now, let's continue the history lesson."

I sagged back into my seat and sighed, "Alright, let's get started."

The lesson was incredibly boring, but Sir Leonard enjoyed my cornbread and complimented me on my baking skills, which made me very happy.

"How did you come up with this recipe?" Sir Leonard asked. "It tastes amazing!"

"I just did what felt right!" I said. That was a partially true statement. I had to eyeball all of the ingredients, since there were no scales in the kitchen.

After the history lecture, I took a quick quiz on everything I learned, and my class was finally over.

"I was wondering, Sir, do you know where I can find some coffee beans?" I asked.

"What would you need those for?" Sir Leonard asked. "Unfortunately, you have to finish all of the history lectures in order to begin learning alchemy. Even so, you might not get permission, since you are still too young."

"How long will it take me to finish these history lessons?"

"At the rate we are going?" Sir Leonard adjusted his glasses in thought. "Normally classes should last longer than just an hour, but the lady of the house requested that your classes be shorter. It will probably take a year and a half to finish all of the material."

"A year and a half!? That's way too long," I said. "By lady of the house, do you mean my father's wife? Lady Catherine?"

"That's right. Lady Catherine oversees the education of you and your siblings," he said.

"What is the normal class time? I want to finish history as soon as possible and move onto potions," I asked.

"Normally, lessons should be two hours in the morning, and another three hours in the afternoon," he explained. "But history isn't the only thing you have to learn about in order to study alchemy. Since your family has very high status among social groups, you will also have to study politics."

"Can't I learn them both at the same time?"

Sir Leonard sighed, and leaned back in his chair, "I'll bring up changing our class times to Lady Catherine, but if I'm being honest, I don't think she will allow it."

"She wants to sabotage me doesn't she," I whispered bluntly to him. "I can already tell, especially since I'm not her real child."

"You said it, not me," Sir Leonard cracked a smile, then dropped it. "But yes, I won't get too far into it, but Lady Catherine has tried to sabotage things before in the past as well."

I sat in silence for a few minutes, thinking back on Corvalia's memories. Lady Catherine treated Corvalia very nicely, and if I were truly as young and naïve as Corvalia was, I probably would have trusted her as well. However, through the eyes of an adult, it was obvious that Lady Catherine overly spoiled Corvalia in order to try and ruin her social status. Molly, the maid, was probably assigned by Lady Catherine in order to keep an eye on me.

"Well, even if she doesn't approve, there has to be a way that I can learn everything faster. Can I just study from books myself?" I asked.

"It might work," Sir Leonard considered, "...but first let's see if she agrees to extend our class time."

"Okay. Then I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yes, I'll see you tomorrow Lady Corvalia," Sir Leonard stood up and shook my hand while smiling kindly.