Celebrity Lady - Chapter 67

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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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Celebrity Lady
Chapter 67
“Ah, well… you’ve never seen a watch like this before, have you? Given how much labor goes into it, there probably won’t be much demand, so it’s not exactly something I made to sell, but……”
“Did… did you really make this?”
“Mmhm.”
Jeremy turned away bashfully, rubbing the tip of his nose as he spoke.
“I’m sorry for eyeing you suspiciously at first and treating you badly. I kept meaning to apologize… but just saying it felt a bit shameless.”
“……”
“It wasn’t your fault, but I got upset and ended up……”
I pressed my lips together and slowly shook my head.
“You’ve helped with the workshop and driven off the baron too. Honestly, I never expected to receive this much help from you. I suppose I had some prejudice against nobility. I’m really sorry about that too……”
“No. There’s no need to apologize. I, I thoroughly, thoroughly understand.”
“Rubetria?”
Bewildered at my stammering reaction as I kept my eyes fixed on the “gift,” Jeremy quickly hid it behind his back.
“D-do you not like it? It is a rather unusual watch, after all……. I’ll ask Father to make a large, beautiful one to place in your villa instead.”
“No, wait!”
I turned pale and glanced furtively behind Jeremy.
“Give it to me… please. I really, really want it.”
“Huh?”
Jeremy’s eyes widened as he produced the gift again, and I eagerly extended my left wrist.
“It’s meant to be worn on the wrist, right?”
“Yes, yes. How did you know? Here, let me have your hand. I’ll fasten it for you.”
Sensing at last the genuine delight I’d been hiding, Jeremy beamed and fastened the gift around my wrist.
‘This is incredible.’
A “watch” made using mechanical components is an item requiring extraordinarily precise craftsmanship.
Because the work is so intricate, all but the most skilled artisans produced inaccurate timepieces.
That’s why Leubon watches were so successful.
The artisan Works Family was producing the most accurate timepieces in existence.
Given how difficult such a thing was to make, naturally the smaller the size, the more exacting the work required and the greater the labor involved.
Thus, with current technology, the best that could be managed was the pocket watch—small enough to fit in the palm of one’s hand and slip into a pocket.
In other words……
‘A wristwatch!’
This “wristwatch” that Jeremy had presented to me as a “gift” was an invention that didn’t yet exist at this point in time.
‘There won’t be much demand? Foolish Jeremy! You’re talking without understanding anything!’
I knew better than anyone.
A luxury wristwatch!
When people spoke of “high-end goods,” it was hardly an exaggeration to say wristwatches were nearly the first thing mentioned!
“Perfect!”
Looking at the watch fitting snugly on my wrist, I seized Jeremy’s hand with barely contained emotion.
“Jeremy, thank you. Thank you so much. I love it.”
“Really? Ha ha, I’m so glad.”
“Genius! You’re a genius. You’re a brilliant inventor who will make history—not just in watchmaking, but in all of human history. You absolutely cannot stay buried in Leubon.”
“Oh, that’s too much……”
Though flustered, Jeremy was clearly pleased at how enthusiastically I was praising him, and his lips curved upward.
At that endearing reaction, I barely managed to suppress my rising smile as I spoke.
“Use this to make a fortune. I’m going to help you earn a lot of money.”
* * *
“Siena.”
“Yes, Miss. I’ve submitted a patent application to the imperial court in Jeremy Works’s name for the wristwatch.”
“Good……”
I looked down at my left wrist.
The wristwatch with its pale pink dyed leather band was lovely—clearly made with Jeremy’s consideration for my tastes as a noble lady.
“Excellent!”
When I first mentioned commercializing the wristwatch, everyone in the workshop, including foreman Charlie, had seemed hesitant.
Their concern was understandable: the manufacturing required enormous amounts of time and labor, while the product was something no one had yet tried—would demand actually match the price?
But I said:
“This cannot possibly fail. Even if you don’t believe it, there’s no risk—I’ll cover all the costs. Labor, materials, compensation for technical expertise—everything comes from my pocket.”
I convinced them with absolute confidence, and succeeded.
Of course, I had not pushed the commercialization of the wristwatch with no profit motive of my own.
“The contract?”
“Here it is. An exclusive manufacturing rights agreement with Blanc de Rubis.”
That is to say—I had secured a collaboration agreement giving Blanc de Rubis the exclusive rights to manufacture and sell the initial batch of wristwatches!
“However, Charlie Works mentioned that you should revise the contract terms. He says it makes no sense for you to fund all manufacturing costs while taking only ten percent of the revenue for such an uncertain product. I agree with him as well……”
“Oh, Siena.”
I wagged my index finger dismissively and continued.
“My ultimate goal is to build trust with the workshop and renew the contract every time it expires. For now, getting exclusive rights was easy—but later? It won’t be. The watches will sell like hotcakes, and other companies will inevitably come calling.”
“I see. So you’re strategically offering favorable terms to ensure they have no interest in working with anyone else?”
“Exactly. And besides, even taking only ten percent, the profits will be absolutely enormous.”
“How can you be so certain?”
I shrugged at Siena’s puzzled expression.
“Just a very strong intuition.”
“Hmm……”
“Come on, trust me. Have you been in touch with the lapidary? It’ll be quite difficult work, but can he do it?”
“Yes. Our collaborating lapidary, Hamilton, reached out immediately. He mentioned that the diamonds you requested are quite small, so the lapidary work will be somewhat challenging……”
“Really?”
“……but of course he’s not famous for nothing. He was confident it’s entirely possible.”
“Wow, you scared me.”
I pressed a hand to my chest, and Siena lowered her head, suppressing a smile.
Siena… I’d thought she was rigid and formal, but apparently she can joke around too.
Smiling at her, I glanced away, then turned my attention back to the wristwatch with satisfaction.
I would have a supreme wristwatch created, lavishly set with diamonds, and present it as Blanc de Rubis’s first luxury accessory.
“Oh! Siena, now that I think about it—isn’t there a National Holiday next month?”
“Yes, Miss. It’s the Crown Prince’s birthday on November sixteenth. The festival period is the second week of November.”
“Ha ha, wonderful.”
My heart lifted as I thought of Lark.
* * *
Rubetria Diolus. One month into her isolation in Leubon.
One month after arriving in Leubon, Crown Prince Lark van Rashmach Decard, the lead investigator, tilted his head in surprise upon seeing Rubetria’s face for the first time in so long.
“Wow, Your Highness! You’ve become even more handsome since I last saw you!”
“……Well, I can’t say whether I’ve become more handsome, but I can certainly see that you’ve become more beautiful.”
“That’s nice to hear, even if it is just courtesy.”
“I’m serious.”
Something in my chest felt fluttery, somehow.
It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation. Perhaps it was simply that seeing Rubetria’s face after a month felt unexpectedly welcoming.
“Leubon is wonderful. Let me show you around. Do you have time?”
“That’s very kind of you, but I’m afraid I don’t have time. I have something to deliver, so I need to hand it over quickly and head back.”
“Oh, I knew it, but… You really are busy twenty-four hours a day, three hundred sixty-five days a year.”
Watching Rubetria pout with disappointment, Lark hesitated for a moment.
An afternoon session of the nobles’ council.
Could he simply skip it?
‘What am I thinking? It’s an important meeting.’
Lark shook his head firmly and spoke.
“I have a banking matter that needs my urgent attention, and it has to be brought before the nobles’ council today. I’m sorry. I’ll make time and come again next week.”
“Oh my, the banking enterprise must be doing well these days?”
For some reason, Rubetria smiled mysteriously.
“Yes. Deposits have improved significantly, so I can finally attempt some of the plans I’d only been considering before. I’m thinking of encouraging deposits from the residents with an attractive interest rate……”
As he spoke, he noticed the peculiar expression on Rubetria’s face—she kept smiling—and tilted his head in confusion.
“Deposits have improved? Has the bank attracted some major investor?”
“Exactly. According to the bank director……”
Lark paused mid-sentence as a realization dawned, and then let out a soft laugh.
“……There’s a tremendously wealthy businesswoman who’s been patronizing the provincial bank. You wouldn’t happen to be that person, would you?”
“Ahem, yes. That would be me.”
Rubetria spoke with her nose held high.
“Whoever came up with the idea, banks are incredibly convenient institutions. Thanks to them, I’ve been able to manage my finances much more easily.”
Rubetria playfully poked Lark and spoke. He burst into an awkward laugh.
“I’m really grateful……. For all of it.”
“Oh! If you’re grateful……”
“What? Is there anything I can help with?”
Seeing Lark immediately ask with enthusiasm, Rubetria rubbed her palms together like a merchant.
“Well, it’s nothing in particular. Before……”
“Yes. Just tell me.”
“Oh! No, wait. I’m losing my mind! I should have given you the gift first!”
Just as Rubetria was about to get to the main point, she laughed brightly and spoke.
“First, happy birthday!”
“……?”
At this sudden birthday greeting, Lark blinked.
“How did you know?”
Why would he be surprised? Rubetria tilted her head.
“It’s a National Holiday—how could I not know?”
“Ah! Right, of course. That’s right. What’s wrong with me. Ha ha……”
The emperor and empress’s birthday, as well as the Crown Prince’s, had been designated as National Holidays, so of course there was no way not to know.
Why had he expected something different? Feeling unnecessarily embarrassed, Lark cleared his throat just as Rubetria produced something she’d been hiding, her expression bright with anticipation.
It was a small box.
“What is it? A gift?”
“Yes.”
When he opened the box, what appeared was—
“……A watch?”
It was a design he’d never seen before, but unmistakably a watch.
Smaller than a pocket watch, yet despite being made for practical use, it glittered beautifully with the diamonds set across its surface.
“Rather unique, isn’t it? It’s a portable watch you wear on your wrist. Let me fasten it for you. Give me this hand.”
Bewildered, Lark extended his left hand. With her head bowed, Rubetria worked intently, fastening the watch around his wrist.
“There!”
A brilliant, glittering watch that fit perfectly on Lark’s wrist.
The diamonds set densely along the watch face’s edge were clearly the work of extraordinary craftsmanship.
The cool touch of the silvery refined steel that wrapped around his wrist……
“I personally designed this, you know. With only you in mind.”
To Lark, who stood mesmerized, gazing at the watch now adorning his wrist, Rubetria added with a radiant smile:
“There’s only one of it in the entire world. Your birthday present.”

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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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