A Fortune-telling Princess - Chapter 91

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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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“Going out again?”
“Huh?”
Camilla, who had been preparing for her outing, widened her eyes at the sight of Ravi standing before her.
“What’s the occasion?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re heading out at this hour.”
“You were so worried about mold growing on my body.”
Tap, tap.
“…What are you doing?”
“Praise me.”
“Annoying.”
He quickly swatted away Camilla’s hand as it reached to pat his head. Ravi, whose brow had been furrowed the entire time, suddenly tossed something at her with a soft thud as she laughed melodiously.
“Take this instead.”
“Oh!”
What Ravi handed her was a robe—the very robe she had asked him to infuse with cold energy not long ago!
“Why a robe in this season?”
“It has its uses.”
“What are you up to these days?”
“Good things.”
“Hey.”
“I’ll make good use of this.”
With those words, as she tried to pass by him, Ravi caught her again.
“You’re not doing anything dangerous again, are you?”
“I can’t say it’s entirely safe.”
“What?”
“There’s no such thing as a perfectly safe endeavor in this world.”
“Hey!”
A faint smile spread across her lips.
“Don’t worry.”
Camilla gave Ravi’s chest a light tap with her fist.
“I won’t make my brother an orphan.”
“…”
“I’ll be back.”
As she passed him, he could no longer hold her back.
Short sighs escaped his lips in succession, yet his expression was more at ease than ever.
“That’s been getting to me lately.”
A faint smile had already settled at the corners of his mouth.
* * *
“An auction?”
“Yes.”
Chris, who oversaw the Ghost Merchant Guild, briefly scanned the documents Camilla handed him. He was already familiar with this auction.
“As you know, there are many people vying for this item.”
The commodity she had set her sights on this time was a mine—one that numerous nobles currently coveted, rumored to contain an enormous deposit of iron.
Iron was always in high demand. Rumors circulated that not only ordinary nobles but even the Three Great Dukes would participate in the auction to acquire this mine.
“Why suddenly a mine….”
Chris couldn’t easily understand her intention. She didn’t even own a weapons business, so her sudden desire to purchase an iron mine made no sense to him.
“Because iron isn’t all that’s buried there.”
“Pardon?”
“The jewel of all jewels lies hidden within.”
No matter what anyone says, the king of jewels is surely the diamond, isn’t it?
That iron mine—deep within its depths—contains an abundance of diamonds. And not just any diamonds, but the finest quality with exceptional purity!
Is that all? No! Dig even deeper, and blue diamonds emerge—those legendary rare gems that left everyone absolutely astounded.
“That’s why we absolutely must acquire it.”
Now that I think about it, Duke Jebillen seems incredibly fortunate. This mine, too, had always belonged to him in the past.
When he discovered diamonds while mining iron, he never failed to seek out Duke Sorpel and boast freely about his good fortune.
“However, Camilla, winning the bid won’t be easy.”
Chris shook his head gently.
“The others have been preparing for a long time already. If we try to enter the competition now, the probability of us winning the bid is extremely low.”
“That’s true.”
Camilla readily agreed with his assessment, nodding her head.
“But here’s the thing.”
She paused for a moment, a playful smile appearing at the corners of her lips.
“What if I knew the final bid price?”
“…Even if you knew the bid price the Sorpel Family would offer, it wouldn’t be of much help, I’m afraid.”
Chris assumed Camilla had discovered what bid the Sorpel Family would submit. Living in the same household, she might have easily obtained such information.
“No.”
But Camilla immediately shook her head.
“What if I knew the final price at which the mine would be sold?”
“…What?”
This time, Chris’s eyes widened like saucers.
“What do you mean…!”
“If we simply add a little more—just a tiny bit more—to that amount, wouldn’t we be able to win the bid?”
“Well, of course that would work, but….”
In that instant, rumors about Camilla flashed rapidly through Chris’s mind.
Foresight ability.
He’d heard about it through gossip and had a rough understanding, but he hadn’t paid it much attention. Since he hadn’t witnessed it with his own eyes, he found it hard to believe.
“Do you truly know the final bid price?”
“Yes.”
Yet hearing her answer with such unwavering conviction, Chris’s mind became confused. Could he really proceed with this plan based on her word?
‘Of course I can trust her.’
Camilla roughly understood his feelings but offered no further explanation.
She remembered the exact amount Duke Jebillen had paid for the mine at auction. After all, he’d bid the same figure every time.
When diamonds were discovered, people had loudly compared the auction price he’d paid against the diamonds’ value.
Such news had reached Camilla’s ears with perfect clarity, so there was nothing more to say about it.
“I’ll spend exactly thirty thousand gold more than that.”
She would bid exactly thirty thousand gold above whatever Duke Jebillen offered—not a single gold coin beyond.
Honestly, even thirty thousand felt wasteful. She’d have preferred to spend just a hundred gold more to secure the bid, but…
If she did that, Duke Jebillen would genuinely grab her by the scruff of her neck, so she’d decided to restrain herself.
“Are you truly certain about this?”
Chris asked one final time.
“Yes.”
At her resolute answer, Chris ceased mentioning the auction altogether.
* * *
“Is this your first auction?”
“Yes.”
I’d intended to leave everything to Chris and step back, but curiosity got the better of me, so I came to the auction house. I’d pestered Duke Sorpel until he agreed to accompany me.
When I mentioned wanting to follow along to the auction house, Duke Sorpel readily agreed. He seemed delighted to move about together.
“The interior isn’t particularly spacious, is it?”
The auction house, once I was guided inside, proved smaller than expected. Though the overall atmosphere was quite refined.
“It’s a place where only a select few nobles participate.”
With three Dukes in attendance, most other nobles had already withdrawn. The bidding amounts alone were beyond their reach.
Consequently, only a handful of nobles sat within the auction house.
“He’s arrived.”
“Camilla came as well.”
Most of the faces were familiar. Duke Sefra and Duke Jebillen greeted me first.
I could also see Marquis Gabriel in the distance, glancing toward us.
“That fellow is from the Ghost Merchant Guild.”
At Duke Sorpel’s words, I turned my head to see Chris, seated at his station, offer a light bow in our direction. He also gave me a simple nod of acknowledgment.
“Younger than I expected.”
“Indeed.”
I offered a vague agreement and took my seat. Then Chris glanced at me.
Seeing him still unable to completely hide his anxiety, I sent him a deep smile meant to reassure him.
Click.
Moments later, the door opened and auction officials entered. In their hands they carried a single document.
“I shall now announce the auction results for Item 127: the Areaas Mine.”
The auction method was simple. Those wishing to bid would submit a document with their offered amount within a set timeframe, and whoever presented the highest figure would become the owner of the item.
Everyone stared intently at the auctioneer’s mouth.
“Twenty-one million, three hundred eighty-seven thousand gold! The Areaas Mine has been awarded to the Ghost Merchant Guild!”
“…What!”
“The Ghost Merchant Guild?”
“That’s absurd!”
Gasps of astonishment erupted from all corners of the room.
“W-wait, how much did you say?”
Duke Jebillen was the most shocked of all. The difference between his bid and this one was far too narrow.
‘Still, I added another two thousand gold on top of it.’
I had intended to spend only thirty thousand more gold, but my conscience got the better of me and I added two thousand more. Duke Jebillen’s bid had been twenty-one million, three hundred fifty-five thousand gold.
“Ha….”
Chris stared toward where Camilla stood, his expression one of disbelief.
‘I told you to trust me.’
I had ensured my final safeguard was firmly in place.
Just to be safe, I had quietly confirmed the bids of Duke Jebillen and the others through the ghosts.
“Congratulations.”
“You’re quite remarkable for one so young.”
Watching Chris receive congratulations from the crowd, I struggled to hide my satisfied expression.
“Congratulations.”
At that moment, a familiar voice reached my ears. It was Duke Sorpel.
He too offered his words of congratulation.
But here was the problem.
“Well done.”
His gaze was directed not at Chris, but at me.

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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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