“…What good would it do for me to do that now? The market presentation is already over…” Neslan’s lips moved slightly, but then he closed his mouth, though his hands were visibly trembling.
He wants to do it himself. Though his mouth says no, his body is being honest.
To encourage him, I added another word. “It’s an opportunity to bring honor to the family.”
“An opportunity to bring honor to the family, you say.”
“Yes! It’s a chance to become someone very useful to the family.”
“A chance for someone like me, who was utterly useless, to become useful…” His trembling lips suddenly stiffened, and he nodded slowly.
Success. I smiled warmly, encouraging him with my expression.
Count Ronus had invested heavily in this venture. Moreover, I knew part of that investment came from Marquis Berto. Which meant I had every reason to help the Kalinos family.
Count Ronus, it’s time for your downfall. Marquis Berto will also face consequences when he returns. At that moment, I was savoring the satisfying taste of success.
Neslan, with a slightly excited expression and flushed cheeks, muttered to himself. “Then, if I give this magic artifact a name, something like ‘Barrel of Boiling Orc’s Blood,’ and bring it to my son…”
Hearing his muttering, my face twisted in dismay. …Ugh, right. Their marketing skills are a disaster, aren’t they?
From afar, I could hear Neslan mumbling, “I should attach a golden liquor next to the magic artifact brooch. Like an orc’s barrel.”
Their aesthetic sense is the worst too.
I clutched my head in frustration. Since I had to maintain my ‘troublemaker’ persona, I couldn’t step in to help directly. But no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t find a way to help without revealing my identity.
Just then, a brilliant idea struck me. Wait, who says there’s no way?
* * *
“S-So, you’re saying I should pretend to be the new merchant guild owner and scam them?”
“Scam them? What are you talking about, Kima?”
Kima is the accountant for the House of Florette and the financial manager of my coffee house. Having put his drunken past behind him, he was now working so hard that his nose was practically crooked. But a talented person should be given triple the workload to truly shine.
“That, you’re asking me to disguise myself and help with the distribution of magic artifacts… right? Isn’t that a scam?”
“No, Kima. It just means you’ll have three jobs: accountant of the Florette family, accountant for my coffee house, and now, the owner of a small merchant guild, ‘Kimar.’”
Kima’s eyes wavered.
I grinned as I showed him the slave contract. “I just want to entrust a splendid merchant guild to someone as talented as you.” With this, Kima would…
“I’m talented?”
“Yes. You’re truly remarkable.”
“I-I’m touched, but…” He clasped his hands together, his expression overwhelmed with emotion.
I knew this would happen.
Despite his tiny salary, Kima had even invented the double-entry bookkeeping system. He was the very image of someone with a loyal, almost servile nature.
The name lending is done for now. Of course, I needed to compensate him properly.
After successfully finalizing a contract to give Kima 20% of the sales incentives, I discreetly knocked on Duke Kalinos’s door. Combining my father-in-law’s magic artifact with modern marketing expertise, I prepared a meticulous sales presentation.
I gave myself a pep talk, convinced it would go well. Let’s do this. Let’s save him. Giving someone the will to live is worth a try, right?
* * *
In the dark room, the sound of paper being turned echoed repeatedly in the silence. In front of Duke Kalinos, who was reading the report, Giselle appeared a bit more nervous than usual. Because the silent, focused expression he wore as he read was actually rather intimidating.
“Selling the magic video artifacts will certainly help the family’s finances. But do you really think this will give Father the will to live?”
“Yes! Isn’t it wonderful? I really want Lord Neslan to keep living!”
“You really want him to live.” Kalinos’s somber gaze lingered on Giselle.
Giselle seemed like someone who lived life to the fullest. She never did anything half-heartedly, not even when causing trouble, and took even the act of punishing others seriously. She even went as far as using a borrowed name to try to save his father. Her intense focus on gathering money was just an added bonus.
Watching this woman passionately fuel the flames of desire for life, he was reminded of someone who once lived with all their might, just like Giselle.
“Vientin, I’m heading out.”
“Where are you going, Brother?”
“Training!”
A person who would drench themselves in sweat for over ten hours a day.
“Brother, I’m sleepy.”
“No, look at the aurora over there. Isn’t it amazing? You should come here with the person you love someday.”
“Then let’s come back together later! Because I love you the most, Brother!”
“Liar. You love your research the most.”
“Well…”
“It’s okay, Vientin! I love that you’re so into research. If I become the head of the family, I’ll build a huge research lab with your name on it. I’ll get you a pet monster too.”
“Yes, Brother! I can’t wait! I want a really, really big troll for my pet. I’ll take such good care of it! I’ll even brush its hair every day!”
He would always say, ‘Let’s definitely do that.’
…And one summer, as the heir, that brother was fighting off monsters that emerged from the monster territory.
“No, Brother! According to my mathematical calculations, this monster battle is extremely dangerous. Let’s just let the soldiers handle it, okay? You can join the next battle.”
“I have to go, even if it’s dangerous. I have to protect the territory since I’m the heir, after all.”
“I don’t get what that even means, Brother. Just don’t go. It’s dangerous.”
“No. I have to go. If I don’t, who will protect our people? I’ll come back safe, I promise. And Vientin.”
“Yes?”
“If I’m not here, you must protect the family, the territory, and the people I love. Promise me.”
Don’t go.
The brother he loved and respected more than anyone else in the world was torn apart by monsters. All that returned was his father waiting for the day of his death after losing his son. The promise to return alive was forgotten in vain, and Vientin inherited the family head’s signet that should have belonged to his brother.
Years passed. The people of the territory, whom he had given his all to save, quickly forgot his brother. They, too, had to move on with their own lives.
But my family was left in shambles. His father’s grief led him to shut himself away, and his mother became even colder. His nephew was being raised by another family, one that was not dangerous.
That’s how empty life was. Unlike research, which yielded tangible results, life amounted to nothing more than fleeting moments.
There’s no meaning to life. And there’s nothing worth working hard for to protect. Yet, why does this woman make him ponder the value of life?
For someone trapped in the shell of nihilism, it was unbearable, so he blurted out the question. “My father doesn’t want to live. Is there really a need to make him live?”
“Whether he truly doesn’t want to live or if it’s just a defense mechanism, we can’t be sure.”
“…”
“Was I too blunt?”
“A little.”
“But, in my opinion, Lord Neslan does want to live. Especially when I see him smile, delighted to use <Video Magic Artifact> and feel a sense of self-efficacy.”
He, too, had noticed that his father’s cheerful smile had become more frequent lately.
If Neslan wanted to live, he had no intention of stopping him. There was no reason to, after all.
“…Then, let me hear the detailed plan. Are you suggesting you will personally assist in selling the video magic artifact?”
“Yes. Typically, each family distributes artifacts through their merchant guilds. I wish to assist in the sales to contribute to Lord Neslan’s will to survive!”
As he skimmed through the report summarizing the use of pseudonyms, name rentals, and basic marketing strategies, he murmured quietly. “The report is as flawless as usual, but I do have a question.”
“What question?”
“Why is <Barrel of Boiling Orc’s Blood> listed as an example of a bad name? It sounds wild and impressive to me.”
Giselle’s face stiffened for reasons she couldn’t explain. She looked like she wanted to say something very badly, but he moved on to the next point.
“But I trust you. After all, you’ve never done anything by halves, not even when annoying my mother or ruining people’s meal times.”
“Wow, I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or an insult, but I’ll take it as a compliment.”
He lowered his head slightly, persistently observing Giselle. A new curiosity about the woman suddenly arose in his mind. A woman appeared before him, someone who declared she would live any life with defiance, even as he believed that neither death nor life held any meaning.
As Duke Kalinos signed the contract, he suddenly asked, “I’ll allow it. But I want to know something. Why do you live so diligently?”
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Força.Kima