Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Father's Return and Casino Visit
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"The Family Head will soon return from the East. He sent a letter saying as much."
"Hmmm..."
"He should be back within a week, probably."
"Thanks."
The butler had delivered that news first thing in the morning. Of course, it was about time for him to return. I knew that much.
But knowing that didn't change anything.
He had gone to the East for business in the first place, and it wasn't supposed to take that long anyway. He'd probably come back right on schedule. That was the extent of my thoughts on it.
"Did things go well in the East?"
"The letter said they did, but I don't know the details. Still, if it's the Family Head..."
"He handled it perfectly. He's exceptional when it comes to that sort of thing."
"Yes."
Everyone knew it. William had an uncanny nose for money.
He would've sorted it out on his own.
With that, the butler left my room, leaving me alone.
I sprawled out on the bed, casually sorting through my thoughts. I could've called for Lize, but I wanted some time to think by myself right now. It wasn't anything major.
"Hmm... The Niesista matter's already settled with William's agreement... Things are progressing smoothly there, so no issues... Hmm..."
The Niesista situation and the tea party had gone even better than expected.
When I was planning, I worried there might be some hiccups. Like Ella Niesista not convincing her father or something. But nothing like that happened.
Did I handle it better than I thought?
"The girls from the tea party even said they wanted to meet up again."
Maybe I did even better than that.
"Hehe..."
Everything working out put me in a good mood. At least all the recent worries and hard work had paid off.
Sure, I had no idea how the next things would go, but these ones had turned out great.
My relationship with Rozalin, who'd moved into the mansion, had improved too. Things were really going well... What a relief.
"Hehehe... Hehe!"
I couldn't stop giggling to myself.
"What should I do next... Maybe look into that northern business idea from before... Ask William about it."
He was the Family Head, after all.
I had to at least run it by him. Skipping that entirely would be weird.
As I lay there on the bed, a knock came at the door.
"Come in."
"Young Lady."
It was Lize who entered.
I hadn't called for her, so what brought her here?
We got along well enough, but she never just dropped by for no reason.
No matter how close we were, she was still a maid at heart. It couldn't be helped.
"What's up?"
"A letter arrived from the Riang Family, Young Lady. I didn't read it, but it seems to be from their lady."
"The one from the tea party?"
"Yes."
"Hmm... Got it."
It was sudden, but I took the letter from Lize.
Why send it to me, though? We hadn't talked much about the Riangs that day.
"Hmm..."
The letter itself wasn't anything special.
Just a standard invitation to a tea party she was hosting next time.
Of course, no details on when exactly.
"Nothing big. Lize?"
"Yes."
"Brush my hair. I'm heading out for a bit."
"Understood."
Knowing it was no big deal, I started getting ready to go out. I was planning to anyway. I'd already bathed; I just needed to change into outing clothes.
"And prepare the carriage."
"Understood."
Lize replied without complaint, as reliable as ever.
She brushed my hair and helped me change, and soon I was ready.
We headed to the carriage waiting out front, climbed in together, and set off right away.
*
"Young Lady. Why are we suddenly coming here?"
"Huh? Nothing much... Just to make some money."
"...Permission..."
"Huh? Has Father ever been strict about me earning money? Only when I lose it."
"Th-that..."
Lize stared at me in bewilderment. I got it, but I wasn't worried.
Anyone would've been surprised to see me here, not just Lize. Normal eight-year-olds... no, kids before adulthood didn't come to places like this.
"Gambling..."
"It's not gambling. It's just legally betting money on games."
"........."
Lize gave me a deadpan look, but it was true.
This was a perfectly legal casino in the south, fully approved by the imperial family. And I had my status to prove it.
"No problem. I've come a few times before."
"Pardon?"
"I won a bit last time."
"...When did you come without me knowing?"
"Hmm... Three times last month, I think?"
"Hah..."
"Don't look at me like that. Father knows."
Maybe mentioning William shut her up, because Lize stopped prying about gambling.
It really was with permission, so no issue. And I always won money.
Truth was, preparing Rozalin's necklace and the rose path had cost a pretty penny. Especially that necklace for her.
So this was my chance to build up some funds. William gave me an allowance, but... I also kinda wanted to gamble...?
"Hehe. Lize? Watch how good I am at this."
"...You admitted it's gambling."
"Yeah, it is. But it's legal, right? If there was a problem, they wouldn't let me in properly like this."
To~tally legal.
I had a knack for it, winning every time I visited the casino. Maybe they pandered a bit, but the results were too good for that.
Anyway, I started picking games for the day at the casino.
Lize trailed behind with a worried face, but no worries.
I was confident.
*
"1... 100 gold...! Winner!"
"Yahoo~"
"........."
I'd already won nearly 1,000 gold from gambling today.
Same old skill. At this level, maybe make it a career? Just kidding.
A noble lady couldn't have gambling as a job. This was fine for pocket money and fun.
"Head back now?"
"...Yes."
"Hehe, pretty good, right?"
".........Yes."
Lize still looked incredulous.
Was it that surprising I was good?
Well, I'd always come alone before. No one else had joined me.
"Hehe, your salary this month might go up a bit? Won more than usual."
"That's..."
"Nice, huh?"
"..."
No answer, but it was the same as agreeing.
She might hate me gambling, but more pay was different.
It was more like a bonus from me, but whatever. Gambling done, we boarded the carriage back to the mansion.
"Ooh... That was fun after so long..."
"...Young Lady. We got away with it today, but at your age, gambling is..."
"Hey, it's fine! I'm not addicted or anything!"
Of course, hearing "gambling" made people think that way, but no.
Today was purely to grow my personal funds. Not because I craved gambling. From Rozalin's necklace to the tea party and Niesista stuff... I'd spent quite a bit.
Anyway, not addicted.
"Our family loves money, but we're not the type to get hooked on that...?"
"...Is that so."
"Don't say you don't believe me. You just saw me go for the first time today, right? So obviously not addicted."
"Well... True..."
"Plenty of other nobles gamble too."
"...I've never seen an eight-year-old lady gamble before."
"That's..."
Fair point...
Anyway, insisting to Lize it was fine, we returned to the mansion. We'd left that morning, so it was right lunchtime.
But... the moment I opened the mansion door, there was Rozalin.
"Mother?"
"Camellia."
"Yes?"
"Casino. You went, didn't you?"
"Uh... Yeah?"
Why ask about the casino out of nowhere?
How did she even know? Lize was with me, and I hadn't told anyone else.
"...?"
"Sigh... Camellia."
"Yes?"
Something... Something scary about Rozalin.
Not a huge difference from her usual smiling face. She was smiling, sure. But... the smile felt cold.
What was it?
Her eyes were different from usual. Mouth curved up, looking like a smile, but eyes not smiling. Something... off.
"Wh-why... are you...?"
"Shall we go inside first?"
"Y-yes?"
Suddenly, Rozalin grabbed my hand. And started dragging me along.
"...Huh?"
".........."
I got dragged by Rozalin, glancing back at Lize, who shook her head at me.
...?
What.
Something felt wrong.
"Mother? Why all of a sudden...?"
"Sigh... Camellia. You're better than me at business and investments, true... But this? No."
"What? Oh, the casino...? I had permission for all of..."
"Kids don't go to places like that. Why would an eight-year-old go to a casino? What if some creep messes with you!"
"Uh.........."
"And at your age, doing gambling stuff like this warps your sense of money and leads to all sorts of bad habits. Others gave permission?"
"Well... Yeah, but...?"
"Sigh... This won't do. To my room."
"Y-yes?!"
Rozalin seemed way angrier than I thought.
The way she gripped my hand tight, her eyes sharper than usual... I really felt it.