บท 17: Chapter 16. I will build a business
Having moved into the body of Camille de Walt, I thought a lot about my future life plans.
Despite the fact that the main threat to the security of this world in the person of the main villain will soon be eliminated, I still did not know what to do with my life.
The reality of the life of the daughter of the ducal family turned out to be not as great as I imagined. Anyway, all the power was in the hands of my father and brother. And they, in turn, hated me to death. From this point of view, it became more than obvious that I could not claim the family inheritance.
If I wanted to continue to lead a luxurious lifestyle without being on the street, I had only two ways. The first is to try to "appease" these two. Using the proven tricks of the main characters from the novels, I would eventually be able to "melt" the icy hearts of the Duke and Yufil.
But in this case, I would have to trample on my own pride at the same time...
When I imagined myself fawning over this blue-haired cretin in an attempt to win his favor, my gag reflex instantly kicked in.
Well, no way!
It's better to eat garbage rats than try to make eyes at this arrogant idiot. Besides, the Duke was no better than him. If not even worse. After all, there are often conflicts between siblings, but I am his daughter. How can he treat his own child like that?
In general, this idea was a failure from the very beginning. So I immediately moved on to the second option.
Try to survive on your own.
But considering that I am just a fragile lady who is nothing without the support of her father, it was quite a difficult task.
Knowing about their eagerness to marry me off, I definitely have to leave the estate before another "profitable" applicant shows up.
So sooner or later I'm going to have to start living on my own anyway.
And although it contradicted my ideas of a carefree life, spending money without restraint and having fun until death, I had no other choice. It's either marriage or business. And of the two evils, I decided to choose the least.
That's just it... What could I possibly do?
Of course, if I'm lucky, I'll still be able to get some small part of the money from my father. Perhaps even a low title. But the main problem was what would happen next.
Although I got almost all my knowledge from the previous owner of the body, it didn't help me much. Camilla, like most ladies, was taught little. Basic etiquette accepted in high society, the basics of the humanities, dancing, embroidery and writing. In short, nothing useful.
And it certainly wasn't enough to run any business. My knowledge gained from my previous life could not be useful to me either. I spent three years studying information technology at the university, which in today's realities was quite promising and would allow me to earn a lot of money.
And I needed the money.
I didn't have enough time until the end of my studies to get the coveted diploma of a programmer. That's just it... What is the use of this education in my current situation? How, pray tell, can writing codes on a computer be useful to me in the fantasy world of the Middle Ages?
So, I found myself in a pretty hopeless situation.
Not knowing which field to go into, I also clearly understood that not everyone is capable of running a business. I had neither eloquence nor business acumen. Nor did I have extensive connections. Thus, debts and bankruptcy were most likely awaiting me...
Having come to such an unsatisfactory conclusion, I took a deep breath. Elisha, who had been watching my torment from the sidelines all this time, asked uncertainly:
— My Lady, is something bothering you?
— Em...
— Maybe I can help you with something?
I smiled and shook my head weakly.
— It's not worth it. I don't think there's anything you can do.
My head has been full of these ideas since the very morning, when I realized that there was no way back. The imperial banquet was held yesterday, and, accordingly, the main villain should already be dead. Soon, the news of this will spread throughout the empire.
I was euphoric about it in the first five seconds. And then I seriously thought about what to do next. After all, the death of the villain would solve only one of my problems, and not all the others.
Since the banquet was held late, the Duke had not yet returned from the capital. And Yufil left for classes at the academy. Thus, I was left completely alone in the manor. Sprawled out on my favorite spot on the summer porch, I was really depressed.
The personal maid was probably shocked by her mistress's sudden mood swings. Just last night, she was overjoyed. And today she suddenly became so gloomy.
Needless to say, sometimes I didn't understand myself.
Elisha, who had been trying in vain to cheer me up all morning, asked:
"My Lady, would you like to take a walk?"
Actually, I wasn't in the mood for a walk. But having succumbed to the persuasions of the maid, I still agreed.
Maybe during physical activity I will have fresh ideas.
While we were casually strolling through the de Walt residence, I involuntarily drew attention to a place that I had not noticed before. Right next to our estate there was a large forest, more like a taiga.
It was fenced off from the territory of the duchy by a wall, so it never even occurred to me to look there before.
Noticing my interested look, the maid asked perplexedly:
— My Lady, why are you looking towards the Wolf Forest? You've always avoided this place before.
— "The Wolf Forest?" — I asked in surprise.
It seemed that this was the very moment when I needed to demonstrate the knowledge of the real Camille. The maid stared at me in disbelief, and I strained all my muscles.
Oh, shit... It's not working out.
Some of the memories got mixed up in my head in a messy way.
In other words, I could remember exactly the date of Yufil's birthday and all his habits, but I couldn't remember anything about my own at all. Probably because during her lifetime Camilla was more fixated on her brother than on herself.
Anyway, I tried in vain not to show that I didn't know something.
— E... You know, it seems to me that I haven't quite recovered yet.
— Eh?
"I had to go through a lot of procedures in the hospital," I wrote as I walked, "the doctor warned me that side effects might occur. I think this is it... I have small blackouts in my memory.
The suspicious expression on the maid's face deepened.
"I knew it..."
It seems that in order to avoid unfavorable rumors, His Lordship lied to the servants and the public that he simply sent his daughter to "improve" her health. But he actually sent her to a psychiatric hospital... Probably because of her constant tantrums and mood swings.
No wonder that one day the duke decided to get rid of such a noisy daughter.
After staying there, it became clear why the hostess suddenly began to behave so strangely. And who would be able to keep his mind sober if he was forcibly kept in four walls for a whole year?
"My poor lady!" Elisha could barely hold back her tears, "It's not enough that His Lordship and the young master don't like her. So she also has mental health problems... I should treat her more gently."
— My Lady, ask me anything you want!
Why did I suddenly feel pity in the maid's voice? Hm... Strange.
— Well... I would like you to tell me more about this forest.
— You were afraid of this place when you were little. That's why I wasn't particularly interested in him either...
— Were you afraid? Why?
— A long time ago, the former lord, His Lordship's father, created a legend that there were demonic wolves in this forest. And when you were a child, you believed in it too.
— what? Why did my grandfather invent such a legend?
— To protect the forest from smugglers.
I was surprised.
Smugglers? Why do they need a forest in which there is nothing but trees and squirrels?
— The fact is that there is a valuable relic in this forest. She is under the protection of the Emperor himself.
— what?
But from this place, please, in more detail.
"Frosty mushrooms," the girl explained, "are a rare natural resource of the empire, which is listed in the black book. After almost all of these mushrooms were consumed by underground traders a hundred years ago, their collection became illegal.
To be honest, the maid's story caused me some confusion. How could some mushrooms cause such a commotion, and even be under the protection of the emperor?
Unless they were made of gold.
— What's so special about them? — I asked with genuine interest.
— They say that these mushrooms are able to cure almost any disease...
— Really? Any one?!
My eyes widened.
— Yes, — the maid nodded, — Once upon a time, my grandmother told me that she was able to save my grandfather from a deadly disease with a decoction of frosty mushroom. However, this was before they were banned in the empire.
— And? — I asked, — how valuable are they?
— well... After they were added to the black book, frosty mushrooms rose greatly in value. Only five hundred gold pieces for a mushroom.
At that moment, I almost choked.
— "Five hundred?" And why didn't you say anything?!
The maid stared at me.
— Well... I am... You didn't ask.
I waved my hand impatiently, looking at this forest now as if I had found a gold mine.
I think now I know what I'm going to build my business on.
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