Chapter 50

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 50

Chapter Title: My Own Room

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"So many?"

"My sister who lived near the orphanage showed me tons of these a long, long time ago."

"Is that true? Are you absolutely sure it's spinel?!"

"It looks exactly the same..."

The retainers exchanged glances at my words.

Viscount Dubos stepped closer to me and asked,

"Who owns it? Where does she live?"

I shouted, "She goes by Sheshe!" and gave him the address.

The place where Ceria should be by now, having bought a disguise magic tool with the money I'd sent her.

Viscount Dubos immediately dispatched an administrative officer to the location Leblain had mentioned.

Three days later, the officer returned with a box brimming with spinel.

"So there really was an unknown spinel vein owner we knew nothing about..."

Viscount Dubos clutched his forehead in shock, and the retainers questioned the officer.

"What happened?"

"That woman named Sheshe was quite clever. She seemed to know that if word got out that a commoner like her owned a vein, nobles or the temple would snatch it away in broad daylight."

"So that's why she never released the spinel onto the market?"

"She said it took time to prepare a merchant company and find a great noble to back her."

The retainers' faces lit up.

"This means we don't need to rely on the temple anymore. Let's recall the envoys in negotiations."

The duke, who had been tapping the armrest of his chair, spoke up.

"No. Don't let the temple know we've secured the spinel."

"What do you...?"

"Nos, you buy up every last bit of spinel the owner mines."

"Do we really need to stockpile that much?"

"It's not for stockpiling. We'll flood the market at rock-bottom prices."

The retainers jumped up in protest, demanding to know what he meant, but Henri, who had been observing the meeting, twisted his lips.

"You're planning to crash the value of spinel."

If spinel flooded the market, its price had no choice but to plummet.

Devaluing the temple's lifeline would strike them a direct blow.

One retainer who grasped the duke's intent asked worriedly,

"It'll affect us too, won't it?"

Henri replied,

"The temple won't last long. They'll have no choice but to sell off their devalued spinel mines."

Once that happened, Sheshe's merchant company would monopolize spinel. They could simply raise prices after that.

"But buying up all that spinel and selling it cheap will cost us a fortune. Can we even hold out...?"

Ishak, lounging loosely next to Henri with his chin propped up, spoke.

"Is the duke an idiot?"

"Pardon?"

"Who do you think we are?"

The Duvered name came with nicknames beyond "the worst family."

The golden vein of the west.

A bottomless pit of wealth, no matter how much they poured out.

In chicken games like this, they boasted a perfect win rate.

Rubbing his temples, the duke said in a low, grave voice,

"When the temple comes begging, tell them this: as long as they never utter nonsense about taking over Leblain's education, we'll let them have a bowl of gruel."

Thus declared the empire's richest man.

The retainers bowed their heads in unison.

As the meeting ended and a chuckling retainer emerged, he said,

"Isn't the little one truly wondrous?"

"Indeed. Without her, we'd have fallen right into the temple's trap."

"She's saved the Duvereds more times than we can count. Like a goddess of fortune."

The chatting retainers each fell into thought.

'She really is an angel.'

'The Duvered's little fairy...'

'So cute...'

At that moment, Leblain, deep in her nap, had no idea her followers had multiplied in droves.

Yawn. I rubbed my eyes as I woke.

Even though I'd napped for quite a while, my body felt heavy as lead.

A few days ago, because of Viscount Roman, I'd used divine power on my own for the first time without Bune. Unfamiliar with it, I'd burned through far more than planned.

'And I've been thinking adult thoughts a lot because of the spinel since then, so no wonder my body's off.'

I stretched with a groan and climbed down from the bed.

"Hungwy. Wanna bwead... ("I'm hungry. I want bread...")"

As I sucked my thumb, I startled myself.

'This is getting serious.'

Worse than when I first met Bune.

With no one in the room, it even felt scary. Proof that my poor condition was regressing my mind back to baby mode.

I shook my face furiously to snap out of it, but tears kept welling up.

"Wahh..."

As I sniffled and sobbed, the maids entered the room.

"Oh dear, little one! What's wrong?"

Startled by my pooled tears, they rushed over.

"Alone... scawwy..."

The maids fussed over me, soothing me.

"There, there, little one, don't cry. We have good news to cheer you up."

"Good news?"

At my question, the maids exchanged smiles.

"Your room is finally complete!"

It's done at last.

Until now, I'd been staying in the guest room the duke had given me when I first arrived at Duvered Castle.

After the adoption, I was supposed to get a room in the west annex right away, but installing safety measures had delayed it.

Mages from the Magic Tower and court wizards had shuttled between the capital and Duvered lands to complete a flawless barrier.

'My very own room...'

My heart thumped, chasing away the tears.

Having a room made just for me, mine alone, was a first since my first life.

'Even in my first life, it wasn't truly mine.'

Just a desk and new bed squeezed into one of the rooms at Duke Amities's estate.

The maids led me to the room.

'In the west annex, as expected.'

I toddled after them, peering around the annex.

"Here we are."

I stepped through the door and drew in a deep breath.

A large window bathed in sunlight, crisp beige walls.

All the furniture was unified in white, with elegant golden patterns on edges and bases for a touch of splendor.

The sofa was a lovely apricot color. Scented candles wafting sweet fragrance sat on the sofa table and bookshelf.

Nothing like the guest room I'd stayed in—it was magnificent.

"This is the reception room. That door leads to your private study for reading or lessons."

"Across is the bedroom. It has an attached bath and dressing room."

"We brought in new clothes, ribbons, and accessories for the dressing room."

"The bath has a big, spacious tub. Warm water flows all day—it's wonderful. And..."

As the maids explained the layout, I froze in place.

"Little one?"

They looked at me curiously.

"Don't you like it?"

I clenched and unclenched my fists, opening and closing my mouth without a word, fidgeting anxiously.

Duke Amities had let me stay in a pretty room like Mina's before handing me over as a sacrifice.

Duke Ballua had done the same before using me for human experiments.

[Leblain, it's time to fulfill your duty.]

[We've let you enjoy luxuries beyond your station. Time to pay the price.]

The voices of Duke Amities and Duke Ballua echoed in my head.

And me, dragged by the hem of my pants to those places, clinging and desperately begging, "I did wrong! I did wrong! Just kill me, please—I did wrong!"

Just then, familiar figures entered through the open door.

The servants parted like the Red Sea, and the young masters walked through, looking at me.

"No wonder it was noisy—you moved rooms."

Ishak glanced around my room and continued,

"It's near ours. Hey, kid. You can't come barging in scared at night anymore, got it?"

Then he cleared his throat. "Three times a week max. Deal?"

"..."

"What? No answer? Fine, whatever. Four times a week then. Happy?"

"..."

"What's with that face?"

Ishak turned to the maids as if something was wrong, but they just shook their heads, clueless.

Henri asked,

"What's wrong?"

"This not Leblain's woom."

"It is your room, Leblain."

"But, but... this pw incess woom!"

Henri blinked. "What?" Ishak looked baffled. "Huh?"

"Woom too big and pw etty..."

"What're you saying? Hey, kid. Bigger and prettier rooms are better! The one you've been in was big and nice too."

"That was guest woom bowwowed. Guest wooms good! But Leblain's woom small and dawk. So not mine. This big and pw etty, so not mine!"

The adult Leblain in my head seemed to yell, Stop talking! but baby me kept getting scared.

Like Dukes Amities and Ballua, they might give a nice room, let me get happy, then hit me over the head.

What if it hurt like before? What if I regressed again?

Regression hurt so, so much.

Like my whole body splitting apart and stitching back together.

I looked at the young masters with a frightened face. Their eyes trembled faintly.

Henri stared at Leblain blankly, like he'd been punched. When tears began pooling in her eyes, he snapped to.

"You won't have to stay in a small, dark room anymore."

"..."

"This is your room, and this castle is your home."

Henri gently wiped her teary eyes with his sleeve.

"So please don't cry. It hurts my heart too much."

His hand stroking her head was exceedingly careful.

Once Leblain had calmed, Henri told the maids,

"Keep her in the guest room for the time being."

"Yes, young master."

Lea arrived just then, exclaiming, "Oh my, little one!" and carried off the red-eyed child.

Henri watched Leblain leave in Lea's arms, then turned.

Ishak was frozen in the exact pose from when she'd started crying.

"Move, you're blocking the way."

Henri narrowed his eyes. Ishak wilted like a dog with drooping ears and tail, looking to his brother.

"Bro, what kind of room did Leblain stay in before?"

Born the youngest young master of Duvered, he couldn't easily imagine cramped, filthy rooms.

Even his dormitory room felt like two of Leblain's guest rooms stitched together.

Henri was the same.

"The admin office has records from the Empress Dowager on Leblain. It should say where she grew up."

"Let's go."

"Yeah."

The young masters headed straight for Nos in the administrative offices.

When the young masters burst in demanding Leblain's records, everyone panicked at first but soon fetched them.

"Orphanage records too? Like interior pics."

"Yes, we checked before... Ah, here."

Ishak peered at the image the officer handed over and furrowed his brow.

"No, the room the kid stayed in. Not the barn."

"That is the room."

"What?"