A Fortune-telling Princess - Chapter 106

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“Have you heard?”
“The Gracia Empire?”
“A new emperor is set to ascend soon.”
“So the Second Prince won in the end.”
The three Dukes had gathered in one place after a long time. Their recent focus was on the Gracia Empire.
The civil war that had raged for so long had finally ended, and a new emperor’s ascension was momentous news indeed.
Though they were allies now, long ago they had fought endlessly over continental hegemony.
As members of the Imperial Guardian Houses, it was only natural for them to keep a keen eye on the Gracia Empire’s movements.
‘The Gracia Empire?’
Camilla, held hostage by the Shinsu as always, also listened intently to their conversation.
She knew quite a bit about the Gracia Empire. Not that she wanted to—but in this repeating life, people never ceased talking about it.
‘Nothing’s changed this time either.’
I already knew the Second Prince would become emperor.
But unlike the three Dukes, it was none of my concern, so I hadn’t paid it any attention.
‘Oh! That’s right!’
Then one fact suddenly occurred to me—the Gracia Empire was no longer entirely unrelated to me!
Mana stones! I’d completely forgotten about them.
And for good reason—the supreme-grade mana stone I currently owned had once belonged to Duke Jebillen, after all.
“Heh….”
I couldn’t help but let out a small, knowing laugh. A very wealthy customer would soon be arriving to purchase mana stones.
“Camilla?”
Oh no!
I quickly composed my expression, realizing I’d let slip that mercenary smile.
Arsian had already warned me not to make such faces in front of others.
“Is something the matter?”
Seeing the three Dukes’ gazes turn toward me, I answered as naturally as I could.
“Oh no, King is just so adorable.”
[Kyuu?]
I quickly scooped King into my arms, who had been napping beside me. Then I gently stroked the head of King, who looked up at me with a questioning expression.
“Our King is really cute, isn’t he?”
[Kyuu kyuu!]
Understanding the praise, King proudly lifted his head high, and I burst into genuine laughter.
“Speaking of which, they say a new mineral was discovered at the Mine again this time.”
Duke Jebillen’s eyes gleamed as he looked at me.
“Yes, and I actually have something to give all three of you.”
I retrieved three small boxes I’d set aside and placed them before the three Dukes.
Recognizing them as gifts, they immediately opened the boxes.
“This is….”
They were heavy-set rings of the type men typically wore. Crafted from platinum, the rings were unpretentious yet possessed exquisitely delicate designs.
Most notably, the gemstone set in the center of each ring.
“A blue diamond?”
The shape and luster certainly resembled a diamond, yet something was distinctly different.
“How could it possibly have such a color…?”
It possessed an extraordinarily subtle hue.
One might describe it as predominantly blue, but that hardly captured its essence.
It seemed as though only one such color existed in the entire world—a shade that could never be artificially replicated.
“It’s a blue diamond.”
The ring had been crafted from ore recently extracted from the Mine. It was a mineral yet to be discovered on the Continent, and the three of them were experiencing it for the first time.
“This is really a diamond?”
“Yes, the color is quite beautiful, isn’t it? Since it’s mined only very rarely, we plan to sell it exclusively to our VIP clients.”
This was a lie. While the yield was indeed lower than ordinary diamonds, it hardly qualified as extremely scarce.
However, Camilla had decided to conceal this fact from everyone else.
The words “extremely rare” and “scarce” naturally triggered purchasing desire and inflated prices.
“…This ore was recently discovered?”
“Yes.”
Duke Jebillen could not tear his gaze from the ring. His expression shifted moment by moment as he beheld the blue diamond.
His trembling body seemed to recall how he had lost the Mine over such a narrow margin.
“Would you like this one?”
Duke Sorpel smoothly extended the ring he had been holding toward Duke Jebillen, his lips curving into a triumphant smile.
“….”
Duke Jebillen’s body trembled once more.
“What about mine?”
At Duke Sefra’s words that followed, Duke Jebillen’s expression contorted even more painfully. Unlike Duke Sorpel, the Duke harbored no malice whatsoever—which only irritated him further.
* * *
“A message has arrived from the Imperial Palace.”
“As expected.”
“Did you already anticipate contact?”
“Well, more or less.”
The moment I entered the Office, Chris quickly brought up a matter.
“It’s about the mana stone trade with the Gracia Empire, isn’t it?”
“…That’s correct.”
His typically impassive expression crumbled abruptly.
He could not help but be astonished at her, who already knew everything before any report had even been made.
Though he had directly experienced her foresight ability during the previous Mine auction, he still had not grown accustomed to it.
“The Gracia Empire wishes to purchase our mana stones.”
A smile naturally bloomed across Camilla’s lips. It meant a very important client was about to open their purse wide.
The Gracia Empire was an extremely cold nation. Naturally, heating systems were essential, and mana stones were absolutely necessary to maintain those systems.
“I heard that Marquis Gabriel worked very diligently on the Gracia side.”
“He must have.”
Having lost his previous sales channels, he would have needed to find new ones to survive, and for such a marquis, there was no better place than the Gracia Empire.
“But they’re not fools either.”
It was inevitable that their eyes would be drawn to the highest-grade mana stones rather than inferior ones.
“From a long-term perspective, this is more profitable too.”
Mana stones couldn’t be used permanently. Since they were consumables, they had to be replaced periodically.
For them, it was more advantageous to equip high-quality mana stones and use them for longer than to replace inferior ones multiple times.
“People don’t say ‘highest-grade, highest-grade’ for nothing.”
If the cost of buying and using ten cheap ones equaled the cost of buying and using one highest-grade one?
The answer was clear. It would reduce the waste of labor for replacements, so naturally their preference would lean toward the latter.
“The Imperial Palace has requested the fastest possible response.”
“Hmm.”
I was quite pleased that the contact had come directly to me rather than through Duke Sorpel.
It meant the Imperial Palace was acknowledging me as the owner of the mana stones.
“I’ll contact the Imperial Palace directly.”
“Understood.”
Chris nodded lightly and reported several other matters to me.
During this, his gaze drifted slightly to the side.
I could see Dorman brewing tea in the corner. He usually came alone, so why did I bring him this time?
“Would you like some tea, Chris?”
“No, thank you.”
“I see. Miss, have some tea.”
“Sure.”
Chris watched me take a sip of tea before asking.
“Why is that person….”
“I’m going to have him work at the Cafe.”
“Pardon?”
It was Dorman who reacted first to my words, not Chris.
“W-what are you saying? A cafe?”
Dorman’s eyes widened as if hearing this for the first time.
“Go prove your worth there with some effort.”
“What—! I’m already proving my value sufficiently as it is.”
“When? Where? How?”
“I, I work hard at cleaning too.”
“These days the other servants work harder at it.”
“And I brew tea well!”
“Tea I brew myself tastes better.”
More precisely, tea brewed the way Derin taught me tastes far superior.
“I, I also help with bathing—”
“Do you really want to die?”
He’s dredging up memories I’d rather forget. What?
“This is too much!”
What did you say?
“Regardless, starting today, I’ll have you work at the cafe during the hours I’m away from home, Dorman.”
Recently, word of mouth had spread, and the number of customers had grown considerably. Initially, a bit of promotion was needed, but the desserts were so delicious that the reputation had grown naturally.
Seeing Laila cry out with joy about being short-handed, I decided to supplement the workforce with idle hands sitting around at home.
“If you can’t prove your worth there as well….”
“W-what if I can’t?”
“Curious?”
At the sight of Camilla’s lips curling up slightly, Dorman instinctively took a step back from her.
“Those shoes I bought recently, you know. The heels are particularly sharp.”
“I’ll work hard! I’ll really work hard to prove myself!”
“Good, you’d better. Head to the cafe right now.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Camilla watched Dorman scurry out of the room for a moment, then clicked her tongue.
Recently, with the other servants attending to her so diligently, he had been slacking off quite a bit.
Just a while ago, I had dragged him here after finding him napping in the shade of a tree.
‘I don’t care what others do, but I can’t stand watching you loaf about.’
Only then did Camilla move through the remaining documents with a satisfied expression, checking them quickly.
Chris, who had been quietly observing the entire situation from the side, gave a subtle shake of his head.
* * *
“A diplomatic delegation?”
“Yes.”
I sent my response directly to the Imperial Palace—that I would accept the deal.
Then the other party made another proposal through Duke Sorpel.
“They want to meet you in person.”
The Gracia Empire had conveyed their wish to meet with me, the owner of the Ghost Merchant Guild, directly and conduct the transaction.
“So they’re including me in the delegation….”
With the ascension of the new emperor, the Faebler Empire had decided to send a congratulatory delegation as well.
‘This is something that happens all the time, so it’s not particularly surprising.’
However, the fact that I had been included in that delegation was somewhat disconcerting.
“I would prefer it if you didn’t go.”
Duke Sorpel’s expression was displeased, clearly unhappy about this matter.
He didn’t like the idea of Camilla having to travel to such a distant place.
“You could always send a representative instead.”
“That’s true, but….”
Had this been an ordinary transaction, I would have agreed with Duke Sorpel’s opinion as well. It would be simple to send Chris or another representative to conclude the deal.
“It’s the Imperial Palace.”
When the Gracia Empire’s Imperial Palace itself was asking to see my face and conduct the transaction, it was far too awkward for even someone as bold as me to refuse.
“I’ll go.”
“Hey! What are you thinking, going to a place like that!”
Ravi, who had been standing aside while Father handled the conversation, finally couldn’t hold back and burst out loudly.
His lips remained sealed, but Ludvil’s expression was equally grim.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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