Countess Youngae’s Money-Sweeping Makeup Shop - Chapter 51

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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51

 

“Isn’t the work hard? It’s your first day. There were so many people too!”

 

When break time came, the employees and I were eating sandwiches in the 2nd floor break room when I asked Lucy a question.

 

Lucy quickly shook her head while eating her sandwich, then her eyes sparkled.

 

“Not at all. I’m actually happy to learn about a new field! My bad impression of makeup has been completely shattered!”

 

“I’m happy that it seems to be well-received. If we can reduce material costs further, I’m thinking of preparing an affordable version too.”

 

“Is that okay though? It’s fine for us commoners, but wouldn’t the nobles be displeased? They’d say ‘How dare you touch what belongs to nobles.'”

 

“Hmm, that’s certainly true. But if I’m the only one doing makeup, we’ll just be flooded with similar styles.”

 

“Wouldn’t that be fine?”

 

“Someone will find new makeup styles eventually. If we can try various styles, wouldn’t we discover more?”

 

Lucy, who had been thinking for a moment, nodded her head.

 

When I asked how the other employees felt, they shared their first-day reviews one by one, and Lili even tightly held the employees’ hands, saying she finally felt like she could live.

 

During this time, I caught a glimpse of Lucy’s expression, which seemed awkward somehow.

 

It felt like she was lost in other thoughts, as if there was no emotion in her laughter.

 

When I tilted my head, Lucy smiled brightly again as if nothing had happened.

 

I felt puzzled, but making a fuss about something like this once seemed too meddlesome and old-fashioned, so I focused on eating my sandwich again.

 

Right, maybe she was just hungry.

 

The despair when you’ve already eaten half your sandwich!

 

It’s a fact I really don’t want to believe. I get dazed at times like that too.

 

But why is mine only half left too?

 

My lunch is already ending! No!

 

***

 

Fortunately, my body felt satisfied after finishing the meal.

 

As I continued working hard with that energy from food, closing time quickly approached.

 

After finishing the last makeup, I was seeing off the customer and doing the accounts.

 

“Miss.”

 

“Yes?”

 

Lucy approached me and hesitated.

 

Don’t tell me she’s going to quit?

 

No, Lucy! Lucy, please work at our shop for life!

 

I could feel my heart pounding and my body tensing, but I tried to act calm, kind, and gave a gentle smile.

 

Then Lucy, who had been reading the mood, grabbed my hands.

 

Here it comes, here it comes, here—!

 

“Could you teach me makeup?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Ah, I guess it wouldn’t work, would it?”

 

“No! No! It’s totally fine! I can teach you as much as you want if you’d like. You’re an employee of our shop!”

 

“Really?”

 

I nodded my head enthusiastically.

 

Then Lucy’s expression brightened instantly.

 

When I called over the other employees who were cleaning up and asked them, they all reacted positively, saying they’d like to learn too.

 

Just having others show interest in makeup made me feel proud.

 

With so much interest, I wanted to curse the nobles for the fact that people couldn’t try it until now.

 

How many talented people would emerge if cosmetics became easily accessible?

 

It’s a bit depressing that my money cushion might be threatened, but makeup artists need to increase for makeup to become mainstream.

 

Only then would sales increase more and I could sit in the industry’s top position.

 

I calmed my touched heart and stood in front of the mirror with a bright smile.

 

Since I couldn’t delay quitting time too much, I briefly taught them about skin makeup and how to use blush.

 

Everyone concentrating and practicing looked like university juniors.

 

When the makeup was somewhat finished, I gave feedback and prepared to go home.

 

Finally finishing up, we locked the shop door, said our goodbyes, and parted ways.

 

I also got on the carriage heading to the manor, and seeing the employees going the same way made loneliness suddenly surge up.

 

Usually Lili would always sit in front of me and talk.

 

I sighed deeply and looked outside, trying to soothe my solitude.

 

As we passed through an alley,

 

A person with white hair reaching below their thighs briefly entered my vision.

 

It was definitely someone I’d never seen before, yet I felt a sense of familiarity.

 

Feeling this familiar means there’s a chance they’re one of the original characters…

 

Which original characters haven’t appeared yet?

 

I wrote names in the air and tapped my thigh with my finger.

 

Villain, female protagonist, important extras…

 

Could it be the original male protagonist?

 

If that’s him, why is he in this village?

 

Was there a story about him coming here without Helena?

 

I thought he was always holed up in the mage tower.

 

He only showed human-like behavior when he fell in love with Helena…

 

He’s not doing anything strange, is he?

 

I’d rather it was just a weird intuition I had because I was lonely!

 

***

 

Last night was the most difficult night for me.

 

What if a dragon or something appeared in the village and blew up my shop, or blew up the bank, or blew up the entire village.

 

I spent almost the whole night with my eyes open, full of such worries and delusions.

 

Even when I briefly fell asleep, I dreamed of my shop burning brightly.

 

It was so vivid that I woke up crying, and I cursed that person from last night while punching my pillow.

 

Since I woke up early anyway, I prepared early today too and went to work at the shop.

 

Ugh, I’m tired.

 

As soon as I got off the carriage, I stretched and tried to shake off my drowsiness.

 

I entered the shop, sat in front of the mirror, and chose cosmetics with a dazed mind.

 

I woke myself up by doing makeup with whatever cosmetics my hands picked.

 

Since I really picked randomly without thinking, some quite unusual color cosmetics were laid out.

 

A shadow palette with yellow and orange as the main colors that I rarely use on my face, bright pink blush, and peach-colored lips.

 

What kind of combination is this?

 

I thought about doing my usual daily makeup instead, but thinking of it as punishment for losing focus and not cutting off other thoughts, I picked up the brush.

 

I just need to make this work for me too!

 

***

 

“Good morning, Miss. I’m here!”

 

“Oh, Lili’s here? Wait a moment, I’m almost done…”

 

“Ah, yes! Take your time! I’ll be cleaning.”

 

“Mm-hmm.”

 

Just the lips last and I’m done!

 

It felt like taking a makeup exam.

 

There’s a saying.

 

If you’re going to do it, do it properly!

 

With makeup too, if you’re going bold, you have to be bold all the way.

 

Being wishy-washy makes it worse.

 

I looked in the mirror and grinned.

 

For the eye makeup, I used a very light lemon color as the base.

 

Then I applied a deep yellow color to the inner corners and outer edges of the eyes to make them pop.

 

Using only yellow would be too plain, so I took out a pink shadow without orange undertones that suited my face and lightly applied it to the front of my eyes and the triangle zone.

 

This could give the feeling of the eye area expanding vertically.

 

For blush, I lightly swept yellow shadow from the cheekbones to the bridge of the nose, then placed bright pink blush as a point in the center of the blush I had applied first.

 

The important thing here is to draw pictures over the blush with a thin brush.

 

Simply drawing one moon and several stars of different sizes completed the blush as well.

 

Finally, for the lips, I first neutralized the lip color with the ointment foundation, then applied peach-colored lip color over it.

 

Patting and spreading the lip color with cloth to make it delicate finished the makeup.

 

How about that, I saved this look!

 

Looking at it this way, it also seems like a star goddess.

 

This kind of makeup is really difficult while doing it, but the satisfaction when completed is double that of finishing regular makeup.

 

Should I try random makeup again next time?

 

After finishing the makeup, my fatigue and sleepiness had disappeared somewhere.

 

As I was organizing the things I used and taking out the dried brushes to bring to the vanity, Lucy entered the shop.

 

Lucy also seemed to have not slept properly, with dark circles around her eyes and slightly disheveled hair.

 

She looked like an office worker with years of experience who had no vitality at all…

 

What was she doing again at night?

 

“Lucy, are you okay?”

 

“…Huh? Oh, ah. Yes, yes. I’m fine. But just to make sure. You are Miss Ebennain, right?”

 

“Oh, that’s right! How is it? I tried makeup with cosmetics my hand chose today!”

 

“It’s really amazing. You look like a different person. If yesterday was a calm feeling, today is bright, I guess, like a star.”

 

“Do you really feel that way? I was aiming for stars!”

 

“Yes… Oh, yes! Totally! Did you change that much just with makeup?”

 

Lucy, who had been downcast, was suddenly startled.

 

She regained her vitality and looked at me with curious eyes full of interest like yesterday.

 

Was she so tired that she didn’t even know she was in that state?

 

I smiled brightly so Lucy wouldn’t feel embarrassed.

 

“…doing.”

 

“What?”

 

“Oh, nothing! I said it’s amazing! It’s just like magic. You’re not using magic when you do makeup, are you?”

 

“My hands do cast magic. Abracadabra and ta-da! Amazing makeup appears.”

 

“Abracadabra?”

 

“Oh, um, well, it’s like my own magic spell!”

 

Even after tilting her head in confusion, she nodded as if understanding, so I cleared my throat with a cough.

 

“Anyway, let’s do our best today too, Lucy!”

 

“Yes, Miss!”

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