Surviving as a Terminally Ill Heiress - Chapter 39

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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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Chapter 39

A cold assessment of herself.
Even this moment of reflection was a luxury she couldn’t afford.
When the body was exhausted, there was no room for thought—just collapse onto a pillow and sleep claimed her before anything else.
If only she’d known about this incident beforehand in her past life…….
‘So what? What could I have possibly done?’
Tomorrow, there was nothing to eat for her and her siblings. She had to leave at dawn to work.
But some noble had an accident in an expensive bed, and then what?
They didn’t die, she’d heard. Just suffered some injuries. And the noble extracted a hefty compensation, apparently.
The newspapers made such a fuss about it.
Did anyone know how many children starved to death in the Slums each year?
“Predictable…….”
That’s what she’d thought then, dismissing it.
Was it because she was wicked? Because she was far from a hero?
Don’t make her laugh. Only people with full bellies would blame her.
She simply had no power to do anything…….
No, that wasn’t true. It was all just an excuse.
‘Mother would never have ignored it.’
A dance performer from a fallen nation’s slums, burdened with three children—yet she would have done something, surely.
Even at the bottom, such people existed.
But now, what was she?
What could she become?
‘Lavigne Ambrose.’
What could she accomplish?
‘Anything.’
After all, she was a miracle.
She had died and returned to life, becoming the heiress of House Ambrose.
So perhaps even something like seeing an object and knowing whether an accident would occur before it happened—magic itself…….
Magic.
“A Mage.”
The scent of flowers from that distant day drifted across her nose.

* * *

“……A Safety Inspection Magical Device?”
Orka’s eyes widened.
She nodded firmly.
“Yes. I hear that under imperial law, if a company sells a defective product and the customer suffers damages, the company must pay substantial compensation?”
“That’s correct. Especially if the customer is a noble who can afford a lawyer.”
“So if a nobleman happens to be gravely injured by sheer bad luck? Not only money, but the company’s reputation suffers too. The losses would be enormous. But what if, beforehand, every single product could be inspected for safety? If those inspection results were reliable, customers would have peace of mind, and the company could identify cases of customer negligence.”
“The intent is sound, but…….”
Orka’s expression was uncertain.
She easily deduced what he was thinking.
“The Magical Device is too expensive?”
“……Yes. The cost is prohibitive, and we’d need custom fabrication—whether Pandium would accept such a commission is unclear. And I’m not sure how many companies and customers could actually adopt it.”
Fair enough. A practical concern.
But it wasn’t what mattered.
“It will be done.”
“Pardon?”
“If I do it, it will be done.”
She rose, leaving Orka dumbfounded.
In her arms was the plan she’d sketched through the night.
And with it, she headed directly to the Duke.
“Please invest in this.”
“Rejected.”
As expected.
She hadn’t really expected immediate approval, but at least he’d read through it, hadn’t he?
The Duke merely skimmed her plan and tossed it aside.
She protested, her face flushed with frustration.
“Just let us make a small trial batch first…….”
“Rejected.”
“Then perhaps just one…….”
“Rejected.”
This was truly irritating.
The Duke wore the expression of someone waiting to hear something more interesting.
She chewed her lip as she asked.
“What’s the problem, then?”
“The utility relative to investment seems insufficient.”
Utility?
Safety inspections would be used only by companies, so what else could…….
Ah.
She leaned toward him and whispered discreetly.
“House calls.”
“Hmm?”
“We charge only a travel fee and make visits anywhere—even remote mountain villages.”
“……Anywhere?”
“Yes, we’d be inspecting products already in use. We’d visit places where old items, items of critical safety importance, or suspicious goods might be found, and examine them beforehand. If we discover problems, we prevent major accidents. Focusing on items too burdensome to replace entirely. We’d point out intuitively what repairs are needed where, and wouldn’t customers appreciate that? Carriages, for instance. Or…….”
She smiled, revealing her true intention.
“Furniture.”

* * *

Pandium.
The estate of Mages.
One of the three pillars supporting the Atera Empire.
It had begun as a small parcel of land provided by the first head of House Ambrose, and over centuries had been cultivated into a grand estate.
Unlike the Grand Cathedral at the center, their stronghold lay in the north.
In ages past, when they were despised, they hid themselves throughout the Snowy Plains amid bitter winds.
When the first head of House Ambrose drew them out, he had asked if they wanted warmer lands.
‘Why bother?’
they had replied, and in a single day, he transformed it into a blooming valley—a tale widely known.
Thus, little by little, the winter land was painted with spring, becoming Pandium as it stood now.
The Mages who dwelled there had long been God’s Shadow, Monster Hunters.
“Miss, the Mage has arrived!”
Now, they were the cause of Tru’s excitement.
It had been only two days since contacting Pandium.
They’d sent a Mage who happened to be in the Imperial Capital Region.
She nodded and headed for the reception room.
‘Meeting a Mage isn’t the first time for me…….’
A silhouette she’d nearly forgotten flickered at the edge of memory.
She shook her head forcefully.
Go away. She was about to do something important; she couldn’t afford stray thoughts.
Then the servants standing outside the reception room looked at her with puzzled eyes.
She gestured awkwardly.
“Her Excellency, Lady Ambrose!”
The announcement, awkward as always, preceded the door opening.
As she stepped inside slowly, two figures appeared.
One was seated on the sofa; the other stood behind it.
Both wore the same Deep Blue Robe.
That boy had been wearing the same thing.
It must be the mark of a Mage from Pandium.
‘Then does that one know too?’
It seemed like she could identify him immediately if she mentioned it. Such a face wasn’t common.
She settled into the opposite sofa while studying her counterpart.
The seated one appeared to be elderly; the standing one seemed young.
Both had their faces largely hidden by their robes.
‘Well, Mages are known for not revealing their identities.’
She spoke casually.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Lavigne Ambrose.”
“I am Percy.”
For an old man, his voice was remarkably clear.
She nodded and glanced toward the back, whereupon the old man spoke.
“Ah, pay no mind to him. He’s just baggage.”
An apprentice, then?
The boy’s gaze at the old man flickered across her awareness.
The old man, seeming to find it amusing, merely curled his lips in a smile and ignored the boy.
Well, that settled it.
She moved straight to business.
“I’ve asked you here because I have an item I’d like to commission.”
She spread the plan Tru had brought onto the table.
Both of them bent to examine it for a while.
She asked nervously.
“Is it possible?”
“Do you mean how long it would take?”
“No—rather, whether fabrication itself is possible…….”
Then both of them turned to look at her simultaneously.
She understood.
Their look said: Why would you ask such a thing?
Of course. She’d asked a foolish question.
She waited quietly while they finished reviewing the plan.
After a brief murmur between them, the old man spoke as their representative.
“A week or so should suffice, I’d say.”
“Should suffice?”
“Ah, it will suffice.”
The old man lightly corrected himself.
She sent him a slightly skeptical look.
There was something ageless about him.
Though she’d heard that Mages from Pandium rarely venture out, so their social skills are peculiar.
That might explain it. She offered a gracious smile.
The commission was accepted readily, and fabrication would happen faster than expected—her mood naturally brightened.
“Then we shall attend to you well during the week.”
She called for her steward to prepare guest quarters.
She also added that they should be treated with special care as honored guests.
And when they rose to leave, she stood with them.
‘……Hmm?’
In that moment, an odd sense of déjà vu struck her.
She looked up; the young apprentice was gazing at her.
Only his chin and part of his lips were visible beneath the robe.
Did he have something to say?
As she blinked in silence, the apprentice’s robe trembled slightly.
Just then, had he……smiled?
As doubt crept in, he turned away briskly.

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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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