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<Chapter 7>
“Get to the point.”
The Grand Duke, who lived more poorly than commoners but whose appearance alone was as noble as any royal, finally opened his mouth.
I quickly got to the point.
“I want to procure ingredients for the castle and hire a cook.”
And I also pulled out a pouch of gold coins the size of a person’s head.
They were freshly made, common continental gold coins.
I may not be able to cook delicious meals, but I can certainly create the money to provide them.
The dream of every alchemist, an authority on magical alchemy capable of turning stone into gold. A walking gold mine.
That’s me.
“Does gold work in Belmire too?”
Jingle jingle.
[Belmire Winter Castle Job Posting
Tasks: Purchasing and managing ingredients, cooking three meals a day
Requirements: Cook, regardless of age or gender
Work Environment: Low workload, family-like atmosphere, landlord’s indifference
Salary: 100 gold]
“Do as you please.”
The Grand Duke, looking weary of everything, said only that to me.
As soon as I got his permission, I made dozens of job postings and distributed them throughout the capital.
Fwoosh.
Niche, throwing the official document he was reading into the air, clicked his tongue.
“I’m telling you in advance, don’t get your hopes up.”
“Niche, gold works everywhere.”
“Why don’t you try offering gold to a monster and see if it works?”
“The people of the duchy are people, and money is the best motivator.”
This is the creed of my life, having lived in a modern capitalist society and now, in my second life, living in a fake medieval world with a class system.
“We don’t have money.”
Zephyr, who had distributed the notices with an ability that, to his description was ‘running,’ but to my eyes looked like teleportation, pointed out in a flat tone.
Come to think of it, he was quite fond of me and listened well to what I said. Something about my soul being pretty?
“Who told you to pay?”
You’re clearly penniless, so what’s the point.
“Sister has lots of money.”
Even if it is created through magical alchemy.
What kind of ability is that, you ask?
Within the academic discipline of magic, there are specialized fields, one of which is Transmutation Magic, combining magic with alchemy…
‘It’s an unpopular field. The formulas are complex.’
Nine out of ten mages usually choose pure magic. It’s the orthodox, flashy field that uses up magical power extravagantly.
Yes. They ‘use up’ magical power extravagantly.
That’s why my brother Noahren, blessed with vast magical power, devoted himself to pure magic, while I walked the path of the minor field, magical alchemy.
It was for a simple reason. Because this field allows maximum efficiency with minimal magical power.
‘If only I had more magical power… No.’
What’s the use of lamenting now? It’s been a while since I reached the level (presumably the only one on the continent) where I can instantly turn stone into gold.
So, even if I have nothing right now, I can become rich anytime. That’s me.
“Look forward to it. I’ll make sure you guys get to eat real cooking.”
And eat well myself, too.
“Why bother with such a useless thing?”
Niche grumpily picked a fight.
It seems this man suffers from a disease where if he doesn’t pick a fight every moment, his tongue grows thorns.
Whether they feel the need to improve the castle’s terrible environment or not, it’s not useless.
Everything has its stages.
I have a grand plan to improve Belmeyer step by step so it won’t be pushed around by the Empire.
And I have the Grand Duke as my backing.
Why, I told you.
“I’m not curious about why you’re here, and I don’t care what you do.”
“I don’t care what you do.”
“Whatever.”
—He said, clearly.
I summed up this ambition in one phrase.
“After all… a person’s strength comes from their meals.”
Zephyr, intelligent enough to believe any nonsense I said, agreed with a confused face.
“I understood.”
Day two since I ambitiously put up the notices.
Contrary to my expectations, interviewees: 0, applicants: 0. No one applied for the sweet job paying a hundred gold.
A hundred gold is a huge remuneration considering the workload. It’s about the price of a decent noble lady’s dress from the mainland.
“No, why…? How come…?”
Is there anyone in the world who dislikes money?
No way. It’s more believable that I’ve fallen for Cheshire again.
“See? I told you not to get your hopes up.”
Niche mocked me as I was dejected.
It was lunchtime, and he was eating bread.
More precisely, everyone in the dining hall was holding that damn potato bread in their hands.
I unconsciously crumpled the bread in my hand.
“Don’t be so picky. Just eat it. What’s so hard about it?”
“…Right, what would you know, with your dead taste buds.”
These humans must have traded their taste buds for living a hundred years. How else!
Grinding teeth.
I ground my teeth and rewrote the notice.
[Salary: 500 gold]
‘Let’s see if no one comes even now.’
A problem money can’t solve?
Just solve it with more money!
…Even more money couldn’t solve it.
Two more days passed without seeing a single hair of an applicant, even for a job posting worth a whopping five hundred gold.
At this point, I started to think money wasn’t the issue.
“I need to find out why they’re avoiding it.”
I hadn’t expected it to be this difficult from the start.
‘When I don’t know something… market research!’
As I sprang up from my seat, Giselle grabbed me.
“Going out? You can’t go alone, Irene.”
A sly witch with long, tomato-red hair and fresh green eyes.
Always keeping to herself, she had suddenly appeared moments ago with an armful of dresses, saying she wanted to give them to me.
Sorry, but I didn’t have the energy to pay attention to the old-lady dresses that looked like they were definitely taken from some storeroom in the castle.
Besides, I make my own clothes with magic.
“It’s fine if we go together, though.”
Giselle added with a pretty smile.
“Oh? Then let’s go.”
“Wait a moment. I’ll inform the master.”
“Is going out something that needs the Grand Duke’s permission?”
I had never been outside the Winter Castle until now.
But his subordinates, who called the Grand Duke ‘master’ or ‘liege lord,’ often went out on their own accord.
Besides that, they rarely asked for the Grand Duke’s opinion or permission. Sometimes, Giselle even seemed more authoritative than the Grand Duke.
From what I’ve gathered so far, the Grand Duke in this castle seems to occupy a position akin to a precious and handsome idle noble…
‘Well, I am from the Empire, so maybe the Grand Duke needs to permit it.’
I had just convinced myself when Giselle, the castle’s informal power, casually dropped a bombshell.
“Go with the master. An incognito outing, so to speak?”
“…Giselle. Why is the Grand Duke coming into this?”
What does she mean, the Grand Duke will accompany me?
He was the only person who hadn’t left the castle with me even once in the past month.
Giselle’s attitude was so casual it almost made me think this was normal and natural in Belmeyer.
Humming a tune, she picked a plain winter dress from the messy pile of clothes and handed it to me.
“Perfect. Wear this, Irene. I’ll get you a robe too. Zephyr… Ah, no. I need to call a carriage.”
“Giselle?”
“I’ve been wanting to find out something anyway, so this works out well. I’ll go talk to the master, Irene, you take your time getting ready and come out.”
“I will help Irene.”
Allie approached saying that and immediately started unbuttoning the back of my dress. Giselle, lightly praising Allie, left the room before I could stop her.
“Oh. Irene, if the master falls asleep, just come back right away.”
Leaving only these incomprehensible words behind.
It was in the blink of an eye.
Having changed clothes with relying characteristically pushy assistance, I was left alone in the lobby of the Winter Castle.
“What…?”
Would the Grand Duke agree to something like this? No way…
Irene Baltres
…He did. It did make sense, this.
The Grand Duke appeared before me as if by magic.
Appearing without a sound, the Grand Duke looked at me with his sculptural face and unreadable expression, saying only two words.
“You’re here. Let’s go.”
“You’re here, Princess. Excessively beautiful today.”
“…Ah.”
At that moment, I recalled Cheshire, who had visited the ducal residence to escort me to a ball sometime back when my daily life was still normal.
‘Seeing Cheshire overlapped with the Grand Duke.’
It was an unpleasant experience I didn’t want to have twice, so I ended up quibbling over the Grand Duke’s words.
“I’m not Irene Baltres anymore, you know.”
The Grand Duke, wearing a black robe over a tunic as light as summer attire, had not a single resemblance to the Crown Prince, no matter how you looked at him.
For some reason, I felt a little relieved by that fact.
Irene Baltres. How long are you going to stand there like an idiot?”
The Grand Duke flung open the castle door himself and tilted his head.
‘Look at his rudeness. Definitely the Northern Grand Duke.’
I followed the Grand Duke outside. Thinking that only unpredictable things happen here.
