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Chapter 33
No one understood anything.
It wasn’t just Nivellia.
Aref looked bewildered, his face twisted in confusion, and even the relatively smart Solace only understood about half of it.
Yet no one scolded the children.
Seletina asked,
“Is it difficult?”
“Yeah…”
Nivellia replied in a deflated voice.
Even though it was obvious the children wouldn’t understand, the adults had a specific reason for painstakingly explaining every business detail.
“You need to listen a lot and gain a lot of experience.”
Even if they didn’t understand now, as these experiences accumulated, the day would come when they would fully comprehend everything.
From that point on, they would see much more, and things would appear different than before.
“It’s okay if you don’t understand now.”
“When will I know?”
“If you work hard and consistently, like today, someday you will.”
“……”
“Does it feel hard?”
Nivellia hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
“Yeah.”
She couldn’t lie.
“But I’ll do it anyway.”
At four years old, Nivellia didn’t know how to give up.
“I’m going to be a woman who makes a lot of money!”
“That’s my wonderful daughter. Come here.”
Seletina pinched her cheeks and kissed her before finally getting to the main point: Nivellia’s investment.
“To run a company, you need money. Nini, didn’t you spend money when running your little cat shop?”
“You mean the time the cookie business totally failed?”
“Why did it fail so badly?”
“I spent too much money making cookies…”
How much sweat had been shed just to pay back 1.28 million Uba? Even now, recalling the purple-stained debt documents brought a wave of sorrow.
Seletina said that’s exactly why.
“When you start something for the first time, you need a lot of money. That way, even if you make mistakes, you can succeed again.”
“So, Nini is putting money into the company? And then you get interest, right? Like ‘thank you for lending money’?”
“That’s right! You remembered well!”
Nivellia grinned at the praise.
Thus, Nivellia’s fifty million Uba was decided to be invested as the initial capital for the pharmaceutical company. The stocks she would receive as compensation would be given once the company went public.
“Not now?”
Nivellia asked anxiously.
“We can’t give stocks now because there aren’t any.”
“When will there be some?”
“Hmm… maybe next year? When Nini turns five?”
“……”
Distrust flickered across Nivellia’s face.
To calm Nivellia’s doubts, the adults immediately drafted a contract on the spot, promising to give her the stocks.
Still uneasy, Nivellia even demanded notarization.
“The law is scary, so promise me with that! Make sure you give it!”
“You don’t have to do that. I’ll definitely give it.”
“How can I trust you? You lost my money gambling on cards. Aren’t you ashamed?”
“…Your words have become quite skilled.”
Money had instantly elevated Nivellia’s level of expression.
Eventually, Monatos was hurriedly summoned to handle the notarization.
“…….”
Monatos shot Calleo a look full of questions. Today was supposed to be his day off.
“Why was I called?”
Muscular and large like Ardorres, Monatos did not hide his displeasure. Even the air around him seemed to prick with tension.
Calleo explained with a pleasant smile.
“Nini asked for notarization. I’m terribly sorry for troubling you on your day off.”
“That little thing knows so much.”
Monatos’ displeasure vanished instantly.
“This household has always been too soft on the kids.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Make sure the allowance is processed properly. And 41-year-old whiskey.”
“Don’t you usually drink 40-year-old?”
He didn’t want to share tastes with trash like the Plaud couple.
Nivellia, tiny as she was, said firmly,
“The law is scary! If you don’t follow the law, you go to jail!”
“Yes. So follow it well.”
Soon, the documents and stamps needed for notarization were neatly arranged on the table.
Monatos adjusted a slightly crooked paper carefully.
And Nivellia lightly touched it with her finger.
“Hey, didn’t Nini once get locked up for violating child labor laws?”
“Did you hire a lawyer?”
Monatos glared at Nivellia, displeased, but didn’t bother straightening the crooked paper.
“What’s hiring a lawyer?”
“When you might go to jail, if you call a lawyer, they can help you. Then you might not go to jail.”
Nivellia’s jaw dropped at this revelation.
Meanwhile, Monatos quickly prepared the notarization documents.
Thump-thump—the stamps were applied, and even the complicated papers that Nivellia couldn’t read were completed skillfully.
“Here.”
Monatos handed the completed notarization document to Nivellia.
Her small hands gripped it tightly.
“The law will protect you now.”
With that, Nivellia’s first investment was successfully finalized.
The next day.
Monatos submitted the notarization to the authorities.
And on the day the witches began constructing buildings on new land,
Nivellia and Aref took a day off from kindergarten to visit the bank with Calleo.
Unfortunately, Solace couldn’t join because of tutoring.
Getting out of the carriage, Nivellia asked,
“A bank is a place to save money, right?”
“Yes. This is Petra Bank, the largest in the Drameno Empire.”
Calleo explained the purpose of their visit.
“Today, we’re going to open your bankbooks and accounts.”
“Nini already has a bankbook!”
Nivellia took off her bright yellow wolf bag and pulled out her salary bankbook.
“Me too…”
Aref showed his from his white cat bag.
Every day, sometimes twice a day, the evidence of their consistent work was recorded neatly in their notebooks.
Calleo looked on with pride.
“Now we’ll convert this into real money and deposit it in your accounts. You’ll have a bankbook with real money in it.”
Lapis Bank was crowded early in the morning.
“Will Nini sit on Daddy’s lap?”
“Yeah…”
Nivellia obediently buried her face in Calleo’s shoulder.
Though she had improved in shyness, the crowd was still overwhelming.
Aref gently patted Nivellia’s legs.
“Aref, hold my hand.”
“Yes.”
“Now let’s get a number ticket. Banks are busy, so we take a numbered ticket and wait our turn.”
In the center of the bank, employees handed out tickets.
After asking the purpose of the visit, they drew a paper from a strange-looking device.
As the paper came out, another smaller paper popped up.
“Do you know who made this?” Calleo asked the children.
“Grandma!”
“Lady Muniel?” Aref exclaimed.
“Of course, it was made by the Mage Tower, but yes, it’s my mother’s invention.”
“Wow…!”
“My mother has helped many places. Our family’s prosperity is all thanks to her.”
Calleo’s face radiated pride as he spoke, clearly showing his respect for his mother.
“Give it! Give Nini the paper!”
“You should say, ‘please give it to me.’”
“Please give it!”
“Alright. Don’t lose it, okay?”
Calleo handed the numbered tickets to the children.
Nivellia and Aref examined theirs carefully.
“What’s good about this?”
“It prevents fights over who came first, so you can wait more comfortably.”
Thus, number-ticket machines are used in banks, hospitals, government offices, and stores with many waiting customers.
“It’s amazing! It stops fights!”
Nivellia smiled brightly, pleased.
While waiting,
“Our number!”
Aref pointed to the counter where their number appeared.
“It’s our turn.”
“Let’s go! Move out!” Nivellia shouted bravely.
“Aref, can you tell why we came here while handing the ticket?”
“Yes.”
Aref, tense at the task, walked stiffly to the counter and handed his ticket to the employee.
“We… we’re here to open an account!”
“Okay, please wait a moment.”
The kind bank employee quickly provided the necessary forms.
“Are you only making the account for your son?”
Aref’s eyes widened.
Calleo continued,
“We’ll make one for our daughter too.”
“Then write the children’s names here and here. The guardian’s name goes here…”
“I want to write my name! I do!”
“No. You can’t write in the small spaces yet.”
Nivellia pouted, duck-bill style, though she had recently learned to write her name.
“I wanted to write it myself…”
Aref also felt a bit disappointed.
But the moment they received bankbooks with their names, their disappointment vanished like melting snow.
The bankbooks showed the money they had earned through work.
Nivellia: 3.2 million Uba.
Aref: 53 million Uba.
Nivellia had worked more actively, and Aref’s total included the 50 million Uba he received as a previous reward.
The amounts were slightly more than their actual labor, thanks to Calleo and Seletina.
The children’s eyes sparkled as they checked their bankbooks.
Especially Aref, who almost shed tears seeing his own property for the first time.
“Today is such a happy day…!”
He had his very own bankbook.
And Calleo had called him his son.
He didn’t actually believe he had become Calleo’s son, but he felt trust and certainty that an adult would protect him.
“Thank you!”
Aref said in a spirited voice.
“Thank you!”
Nivellia echoed.
“You earned this money through hard work, so there’s no need to thank anyone.”
“That’s true.”
Nivellia nodded.
Calleo, at a loss for words, merely smiled faintly.
“Now, let’s go home. Or should we stroll around the square? Aref hasn’t explored here yet, right?”
“Yes. I want to look around.”
“Then we can have lunch outside…”
The Marquis!
Calleo, whose face had been gentle the whole time, suddenly froze.
