Chapter 243 Copycat
The 3-day hunting tournament has ended, and today, the final day, is the award ceremony and closing event.
The hunting tournament is an individual competition based on a points system. The points for the prey depend on their strength, so the winner is decided by the total points of the prey each participant has hunted.
In addition to the total points, there is also an award for the person who hunts the highest-scoring prey, but usually, this person is among the top winners.
Since the achievements of the Grandchester family, who are the hosts, are excluded, the members of the Grandchester family generally do not actively hunt in the hunting ground and focus on support. This time, Rebecca is also considered part of the host side and mainly supported the female participants.
By the way, the prey can be processed according to the hunter's wishes, such as being made into taxidermy or having its fur taken. Many craftsmen are on standby to process the prey, and the Grandchester family takes care of delivering the processed items to each noble family later. Additionally, the Grandchester family can also buy the prey and turn it into cash.
Since a large amount of meat and organs for medicine can be obtained, this time is busy not only for craftsmen but also for pharmacists, alchemists, and merchants. Of course, the restaurants, taverns, and service industry workers that these people use also become active, making this a time when the economy of the territory moves significantly.
As this event takes place before winter arrives, the income from the hunting tournament greatly affects how well the residents can prepare for winter. Most of the meat obtained from the hunted prey is bought by the Grandchester family, processed into dried meat, and sold at a low price as food for the winter.
The reason the Grandchester family values the hunting tournament is to ensure that the people don't go hungry during winter due to the economic benefits, and to reduce the number of beasts so that hungry animals don't attack homes.
The closing ceremony, which includes a dinner party, can only be attended by adults, but the award ceremony is held in the evening, so children can participate. In fact, Chloe is in charge of giving out prizes to the top winners, and she is very excited about her dress.
Sophia must attend the award ceremony and closing ceremony, so Sara initially planned to skip it. However, since many people are suspicious of Sara and Sophia's relationship, Sara decided to come up with a plan.
'I should show off the relationship between Sara and Sophia around here.'
Alicia hasn't made a golem unit for Sophia yet, but Sara thought that other golem units could work for a little while.
So, she quickly made a "Sara" golem using the same unit as the small golem that helps with the Sophia Merchant Guild. The base is the same as Unit 28.
"Hey, do you understand your role?"
"Of course. I just need to act like Sara and be close to my relative Sophia, right?"
Sophia's Sara felt a bit creeped out because the golem Sara's laugh and gestures were just like hers, but she took its hand and left the office.
Sophia's office is connected to another room, so the front room has the secretary's desk and Daniel's waiting area. Sophia isn't using a human secretary yet, so Unit 28 is quietly organizing documents at the desk, while Daniel is waiting in front of the office door.
Then, Sophia came out of the room, holding Sara's hand, which shocked Daniel so much that he almost fell over.
"Lady Sophia... what does this mean?"
"This is the golem Sara. Sara, please say hello."
When Sophia prompted her, the golem Sara smiled and spoke up.
"Good day, Daniel."
Daniel stood there, mouth open in shock.
"Hey, Daniel, don't freeze up just because you're a little surprised. You're supposed to be a bodyguard."
"Ah! I'm sorry."
"There are many people who are suspicious about my relationship with Sara, so I thought we'd just attend the award ceremony together."
"I-I see."
"Still, you look surprisingly alike."
"It takes a lot of magic to maintain my body while moving and talking, so I can't operate for long without frequently replenishing my magic. But for the award ceremony, it should be fine."
"Since you're based on Unit 28, you can easily mimic the speech for casual conversation. I'm grateful that golems are smart."
Then Unit 28 looked up without standing and whispered, "It's an honor."
'She's getting more and more human-like.'
While guarding Sophia and the golem Sara, Daniel headed to Grandchester Castle in a carriage.
Since the Grandchester family members had already been informed about Sophia's true identity through a letter, Maria, who had moved ahead from the Jeffrey residence, was waiting at the carport of the main estate.
"Ms. Maria, could you help Miss Sara change? She's supposed to join the award ceremony today."
"Of course. If you don't mind, could I also do Lady Sophia's makeup touch-up?"
Sophia remembered that although she was wearing a dress thanks to magic, her hair and makeup were still the same as during her duties.
"Then I'd appreciate that."
"Please come with me to Miss Sara's room. Sir Daniel, the guard, can wait by the door, okay?"
"Understood."
Maria, who had become quite efficient lately, finished getting the golem Sara ready and then started on Sophia's hair and makeup.
"In the future, I'll be helping you get ready like this."
"Before that, Maria might get married, right?"
"I want to serve you forever. So, I think I'll either find someone who says, 'It's okay to keep working after marriage,' or I won't get married at all."
"Really!? That's a huge responsibility. If you have someone you want to marry, don't hesitate to go for it."
"Hehe. First, I need to find someone, so I'll think about it when the time comes."
"That's true."
Through the mirror, Sophia and Maria exchanged smiles.
Once they finished getting ready, Sophia called out to the golem Sara.
"Sara, could you come over here? I need to recharge your magic as much as possible."
"Okay."
Sophia placed her hand on the golem Sara's head and slowly poured magic power into her until it was almost full.
"I think this will be okay for a few hours, but if you interact with Magi too often, the magic stone might run out of power."
"I'll be careful."
"Can you manage to respond on your own?"
"I might be able to pretend to be a normal kid, but what will I do if the princes come?"
"I'll stay close to support you, but if it gets too risky, just say you're sleepy and run away. After what happened last night, I think Prince Andrew and Crown Prince Gerhart will hold back."
"Okay. So, we're appealing to their conscience, right?"
"Hey, that sounds bad."
"But it's true, right?"
It seems that Magi has gotten pretty close to Sara's usual behavior. However, if it's too accurate, it feels uncomfortable.
"Well, it's fine. Let's go, Lady Sara."
"Um, should I call you Aunt Sophia?"
"Isn't 'sister' better?"
"Are we going with the age-unknown strategy?"
"I want to keep our relationship vague and give off a cousin vibe."
"Understood. Dear Sister Sophia."
Sophia entered the venue, escorted by Daniel, behind the golem Sara, who was protected by the knight guards.
As Sara and Sophia entered side by side, all the nobles' gazes turned toward them. However, since both women were guarded by knights, no one could easily approach.
"Hey, Sara, you made it. Standing like that, you and Sophia really look alike."
Robert and Rebecca, who had arrived earlier, knew from prior notice that the two would be attending, but seeing how much Sara resembled Sophia made them slightly pale.
However, when Robert called out to her, the golem Sara showed a very happy expression and greeted Robert and Rebecca.
"Father, Mother, good day!"
From a distance, Marquis Grandchester and Jeffrey also looked uneasy. They probably felt strange about Sara and Sophia standing next to each other.
On the other hand, the surrounding nobles had already recognized that Sara was attached to Robert and Rebecca as her parents, and they were convinced that there was a blood relationship between Sophia and Sara. Their hair color and eye color were exactly the same, so it wouldn't be surprising if they were said to be sisters.
The quick-eared nobles were already aware of what the professors from the Academy's Alchemy Department had done last night, and they understood that various technologies related to magic stones from the Sophia Merchant Guild would remain exclusive to the guild for the time being.
New alcohol, magic stones that can replenish magical power, and various magical tools using those magic stones could generate unimaginable wealth. There were also many attractive products in the Sophia Merchant Guild, like cosmetics that capture women's hearts and herbal teas with various effects.
Additionally, it was a hot topic in social circles that Sophia, the master of the merchant guild, said she would not respond to any courtship or marriage proposals from noblemen. Even when a man of noble rank wanted her as his official wife, rumors spread that she refused to agree, leading some noblemen to disdain her as an "arrogant female merchant" and "the beloved mistress of a Grandchester man."
However, when Victoria, the Lady of Duke Arbal, praised Sophia by saying, "Sophia is smart and amazing. She has the talent to succeed in business without using the weapons of women," many noblewomen quickly started to admire Sophia overnight. In other words, Sophia became a figure supported by women in high society.
Many merchants who were allowed to attend this event believed that Sophia was part of the Genoa Florence merchant guild. Of course, this information was also shared among the noble families, so many of them secretly instructed their people to investigate the Genoa Florencemerchant guild.
In any case, there was no doubt that the existence of "Sara" connected Grandchester and Sophia, making Sophia and Sara the center of conversation in high society. Naturally, it was also clear that Marquis Grandchester, Edward, and Elizabeth had gained even more influence in social circles than before.
By the way, the winner of the hunting competition was Felix di Orson, the eldest son of the Viscount Orson family, who was Rebecca's brother. The Orson family had a close relationship with the Grandchester family, so the hunting ground was a familiar place for them.
Additionally, Felix was the one who hunted the highest-scoring prey, and he had a happy expression as he received both bottles of the prize Elma brandy. Although prizes were prepared for the fifth-place winner as well, the bottles for those in second place and below were smaller, making it seem like Felix was the clear winner.
The award ceremony ended smoothly, and the children returned to their respective lodgings. The golem Sara was also escorted back to the Jeffrey residence by the knight guards, and she switched to a mode that reduced her magic consumption while sitting on the sofa in her bedroom.
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