Chapter 222 Opening Ceremony Of The Hunting Tournament I
In the merchant guild master's office at the Sophia Merchant Guild, a dress was hung on a mannequin. It was the dress for today's opening ceremony, and women with experience working as maids in noble families had been sent from the women's village.
The one in charge of them was Catherine, who used to be Rebecca's maid. Even though it was still early afternoon, she was scrubbing Sophia in the bathtub, washing her thoroughly, and applying Amelia (Pharmacist Girl)'s special body cream (not for sale) all over her. Of course, she was also using Amelia's special hair oil (not for sale) to take care of her hair.
'This is totally a spa treatment. I never expected my mother to arrange something like this...'
That's right. Rebecca felt sorry for Sara, who had been so busy that she put her own needs aside, so she asked Catherine to help get Sophia ready.
"By the way, Lady Sophia, you're so beautiful. Let's keep the makeup light and highlight the features. You have such stunning blue eyes."
Catherine styled Sophia's hair, making sure it wasn't too high and adjusting the loose strands. According to Catherine, these loose strands were the most important part.
"If the hairstyle is too perfect, it looks too stiff, but if there are too many loose strands, it looks messy. Finding the right balance is very important."
"I see. Then I'll leave it to the expert, Ms. Catherine."
"Leave it to me! The beauty that everyone will be captivated by will definitely be Lady Sophia!"
'Uh, I don't really want to stand out that much...'
Since Sophia is a commoner, she can't wear flashy dresses. She basically has to wear something less noticeable than the dresses of noble ladies. However, there's also the contradiction that she can't look shabby as the face of the Sophia Merchant Guild.
So, this time, she decided to wear a mermaid dress with a corset style, topped with a lace bolero. The delicate lace allows a faint glimpse of her shoulders and upper arms. To avoid clashing with the noble ladies, she chose a shiny gray for the dress, which gradually darkens to black towards the bottom. It may look plain at first glance, but those who know will recognize the value of the fabric.
"Now then, Lady Sophia, I will tighten the corset. Don't worry, I won't tighten it too much. Even without that, Lady Sophia's figure is perfect."
With that, Catherine said something to make her relax, but she was completely merciless.
'Ughhhhhh!'
But strangely, after a while, the tightness didn't bother her anymore. In fact, it felt like her insides were in the right place, and her posture improved.
When she saw her reflection in the mirror after putting on the dress, Sara was surprised.
'Wow! Look at this waist!'
She felt like she was seeing someone completely different; Sophia in her dress was like another person. Her waist was so thin it looked like it could break, and while her neckline was modest, it still couldn't hide her rich bust line. However, since dresses that emphasize a large chest are in fashion lately, Sophia's dress might seem more reserved.
With her hair styled up and makeup done, she looked 20% more mature and about 30% more beautiful.
'Why did I reincarnate as such a beauty? I don't remember doing that many good deeds in my past life.'
It was surprising enough that she transformed from Sara to Sophia, but she couldn't hide her amazement at how much someone could change with just a little help.
After finishing her preparations and sipping herbal tea, Daniel came to her room to pick her up. Today, Daniel was both her bodyguard and partner. To escort Sophia, Daniel was shining from head to toe. Dressed in a beautiful knight-like outfit with a decorative sword, he had an even more impressive aura than usual.
"This is truly stunning."
"Thank you, Daniel. I appreciate it today."
With a bright smile, Sophia gently extended her hand to Daniel.
* * *
When they arrived at Grandchester Castle, Robert and Rebecca welcomed them.
"Oh, Sophia, you look more beautiful than ever today."
"I'm honored, Sir Robert."
"It seems Catherine did a great job."
"Thank you, Lady Orson. I really appreciate your help this time."
The 3 exchanged playful glances and smiled.
"Finally, it's time for the cider and Elma brandy reveal. I'm getting excited!"
"Hopefully everyone will like it..."
"Don't worry, it's all good."
Rebecca lightly patted Sophia's shoulder.
As Robert and the others left to greet the arriving guests, Sophia started to feel the curious gazes on her.
"The stares are a bit annoying."
"There's nothing we can do. Lady Sophia is just too beautiful."
"I thought I chose a plain dress to blend in, Daniel."
"You didn't really think that would hide you, did you?"
It was hard for Sara to admit, 'I thought that a little,' so she just smiled sweetly at Daniel. Even though Daniel knew it was Sara, he couldn't stop his heart from racing when he saw her smile directly.
"Let's move to the terrace for now. They said if we close the curtains, no one will come in."
Following the dance party rules Rebecca hurriedly taught her, Sophia tried to head to the terrace.
But at that moment,
"Sophia, is it not?"
The voice belonged to Baron Jilbafuchs, a man Daniel was also wary of.
"Good day, Baron Jilbafuchs."
"I intended to visit you today, but..."
"I'm sorry. It's been quite hectic today."
"That's understandable. However, I would like to have a discussion with you soon. Could you spare some time?"
"Then, shall we talk a bit on the terrace now?"
"Hmm. Understood."
Sophia led Daniel and moved to the terrace with Baron Jilbafuchs. She figured it wouldn't be as rude as in the merchant guild's reception room. If things got out of hand, Daniel wouldn't stay quiet, and if someone shouted, people would gather in no time.
"I apologize for being rude, but I need to confirm something. There's no hidden meaning beyond the original words. Are you connected to Grandchester?"
"I am not allowed to say that from my mouth."
"I see. Understood."
This indirectly meant yes. But it was just explaining that they wouldn't publicly acknowledge the relationship. Of course, Baron Jilbafuchs understood that part too.
"I've heard that your merchant guild has bought up all the wheat from Grandchester. Do you have a buyer?"
"Hehe. It seems that even the merchants, including Mr. Kojimo, didn't know that much."
Sophia started to giggle, finding it amusing.
"Wha――!"
Baron Jilbafuchs couldn't hide his shock at realizing that yesterday's actions were already known.
"In Grandchester, there's no way to secretly negotiate under the Grandchester family. They've just been kept in the dark until now. If they were going to have secret talks, they should have done it in another territory. Mr. Kojimo is quite careless."
It's quite an exaggeration. Robert had been suspicious of Kojimo and the others' collusion and had been investigating the brōtḥel. However, the Flower Hideaway brōtḥel never leaked its customers' secrets. The flowers called to individual rooms were the same.
'Well, if the flowers were loose-lipped, it wouldn't be called a top-notch brōtḥel. Still, I think there might be flowers who would spill secrets to Father... but I guess I'll stop pursuing that.'
However, this statement greatly shocked Baron Jilbafuchs. Even if it wasn't intended, he was already in a situation where it wouldn't be surprising if people misunderstood that Roisen was involved in the wheat collusion.
"I'm not trying to side with those people."
"I understand. You returned without enjoying the flowers."
Baron Jilbafuchs turned red at Sophia's words.
"To think you have grasped it to that extent."
"Being serious is a virtue, but you should probably consider that you might be viewed with suspicion by Mr. Kojimo. In Roisen, it's customary not to refuse the women who offer hospitality, right?"
"That's a custom of the nobles connected to the Roisen royal family and the former Roisen Dukedom. The Jilbafuchs family served the Odel royal family. At that time, we held the title of Count, but we bowed to the Roisen royal family and barely remained as Barons, a lower noble family. Therefore, our house does not recklessly take concubines or favorites unless there are issues with the heir, nor do we offer our family members to the royal family or higher nobles."
'Oh, so you really say that.'
"I have been treated quite specially, haven't I?"
The day after being flirted with, hearing "Don't recklessly take in concubines or lovers" has no convincing power at all.
"Ah, no, that was... I'm sorry. That was just in the heat of the moment. Please forget about it."
"Hehe. Understood. I would appreciate it if you could treat me just as a merchant from now on."
In short, it means "Don't flirt with me anymore," but Baron Jilbafuchs clearly looks downcast.
"By the way, to get back on track, is it possible to purchase wheat from the Sophia Merchant Guild?"
"You know that we can't sell wheat to other countries without the royal family's permission, right?"
"Of course. That's why right now, His Highness the Crown Prince Gerhart is discussing it with King Avalon."
"However, he still hasn't decided on a Crown Princess. Despite that, the actions taken could lead to the abduction of young children, and this has already spread among the Avalon nobles. Will Grandchester really allow wheat to be supplied to Roisen?"
"But the wheat is part of the stock held by the Sophia Merchant Guild, right?"
"That's correct. However, if you offend Grandchester here, we might not be able to sell them to your merchant guild next year."
"Ugh..."
At this point, Baron Jilbafuchs finally understood how big of a problem the actions of Crown Prince Gerhart and his close aides were. Of course, he also reflected on his own actions.
"What should I do?"
"First, we must finish the discussions with King Avalon and decide on the Crown Prince's bride, then we have no choice but to persuade Marquis Grandchester."
"In the meantime, it's very possible that all the wheat will be sold off..."
"That's quite likely. So, you may not have much time left."
'He should be worried enough. He need to realize that there's no time for unnecessary actions.'
"I understand. Thank you for taking the time to speak with me."
As Baron Jilbafuchs was about to leave, Sophia called out to him.
"Baron Jilbafuchs, please enjoy the new liquor tonight."
"New liquor?"
"Yes, it's a new liquor being sold by the Sophia Merchant Guild. We don't have much of it yet, but I hope to make it a specialty of the Grandchester region in the future. I would be grateful if you could introduce it in Roisen as well. Next time, I'd like to discuss things as fellow merchants."
"I understand."
At that moment, Baron Jilbafuchs accepted Sophia's words as a social courtesy. However, he quickly took her statement as a commitment and ended up acquiring the exclusive rights to sell the cider and Elma brandy from the Sophia Merchant Guild in Roisen.
Neither Baron Jilbafuchs nor Sophia realized that this would be the first step for the 'wealthy Jilbafuchs family,' which was said to influence the fate of the nation.
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