Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: The Magic Tool Merchant
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The main residence of the Etwar Marquis House was a mansion among the largest in the capital, complete with several annexes.
Among them, my favorite spot was the glass-enclosed garden.
A sofa and table sat in the center, along with a bed, creating the illusion of being deep in a forest.
I changed into a light dress and headed straight there.
Then I flopped onto the bed, kicked off my shoes, and called out to the maid.
"Bring me ten macarons, black tea, and a cake loaded with strawberries."
"Y-Yes. Right away."
It had been ages since I'd craved sweets like this.
With a sigh, I sat up and moved to the sofa. Time to relieve some stress.
In the blink of an eye, my favorite desserts were arranged on the table one by one.
A cake piled high with strawberries and fresh cream. Colorful macarons. And freshly brewed black tea. Everything was perfect.
'Goodbye, high society.'
I'd endured unimaginable stress just to survive in a world full of people who circled around what they wanted with flattery, only to badmouth others behind their backs.
I wanted no part in facing people or exchanging pleasantries anymore.
No matter how hard I tried, Ryan and Kaisen wouldn't listen and just shut me out. Then there was the heroine, Resuan, whose obliviousness and incompatible personality had force-fed me hundreds of sweet potatoes. Farewell to all of them.
Whatever happened in the original story, I planned to live out my days with cats until I grew old and died.
How had I never thought of this before?
Maybe the pressure of needing to navigate society as a modern person had gotten to me.
There was no need for that at all.
"What to do at home..."
But truthfully, the idle life of a noble in a book world without modern conveniences was boring.
I needed things to endure this reclusive lifestyle. Like a smartphone, computer, or projector.
That's when something flashed through my mind.
"Magic tools. Let's make some magic tools."
Devices infused with magic. I'd heard you could order mages to invent specific ones.
Of course, magic tools cost astronomical sums and were seen as ominous, so even most nobles avoided them...
But that was someone else's story, not mine—Marso Etwar's.
The Marquis Etwar had neglected the daughter his late wife left behind, but he never skimped on support. He loved his wife so deeply that seeing Marso, who resembled her so closely, was painful—yet he couldn't fully abandon her.
He knew so little about Marso that he never realized she'd become an entirely different person. Tragic for him, but lucky for me.
The upshot? Money overflowed.
And so, I planned to pour it lavishly into my comfortable seclusion.
"Leti."
"Yes, miss."
"I want to meet a magic tool merchant."
With that, I put my thoughts into action.
The Etwar Marquis House's wealth came from mines that produced magic crystals. They owned two of the only five such mines in existence.
The royal family owned the other two, and the last one belonged to the Epekle Marquis House—home of the heroine, Resuan.
Magic crystals were mainly used to craft staffs for the Imperial Mages serving the emperor.
Their beautiful purple hue also made them popular when carved into jewelry or decorations.
Palaces adorned with magic crystals were hailed as the empire's most stunning buildings.
Magic tools were crafted by processing magic crystals. Take a raw purple crystal to a mage, and they'd shape it into the desired form.
Mystical items like carriages that moved without horses or machines that recorded voices—all passed through magic crystals and mages.
Sadly, magic tools hadn't advanced much in this world.
They were incredibly useful, but required magic crystals and their performance varied wildly by mage.
Mages themselves weren't thrilled about tools that let anyone use magic without them.
High-ranking mages despised magic tools for threatening their value. Mages were already viewed suspiciously due to their power.
The sky-high prices were inevitable.
Conservative nobles shunned horseless carriages and recorders too.
The world functioned fine without magic tools.
The emperor and nobles disparaged them, spreading lies like "Magic tools are cursed" or "No one uses them."
But such rumors didn't faze me.
Cursed recorders? What I planned to commission would far surpass that.
Above all, magic tools were a jackpot.
Why? Later, one—"horseless carriage"—would cause a huge stir when used for a date between Ryan and Resuan.
That incident washed away the curse stigma, and nobles who loved rarities snapped them up.
The royal family, which monopolized mages, reaped massive profits.
It even emerged that various magic tools had been used to suppress mages, boosting their fame.
In a society wary of mages, tools to control them were irresistible.
High mages eventually bowed to the money.
Too much to refuse... Perfect tale for this capitalist world, right?
And I had more than enough wealth to make it happen.
My loyal maid Leti quickly found a magic tool merchant. Surprisingly fast. I'd expected it to be tricky...
I hadn't budged from home, of course. A promise was a promise.
Plus, with Ryan and Kaisen watching me, I didn't want to give them any ammunition.
The merchant wished to meet me in person. I agreed readily. Everything progressed smoothly.
Today was the day he visited the Etwar Marquis House.
I'd been lounging on the parlor sofa, but now wore a serious expression.
Our meeting was set for 2 p.m. It was 1:58. Not a glimpse of the merchant.
"Scammed, huh."
I hadn't expected it'd be this easy to find one, given how people shunned magic tools. No demand, no supply.
"Even so, for the Etwar Marquis House, I figured it'd be simple."
With our magic crystal mines, word of our interest should've drawn merchants instantly. To be scammed like this...
I grumbled at the clock ticking toward two.
Adding fun to my seclusion would have to wait.
Maybe redecorate the house first. I preferred minimalist white furniture, but everything here was too opulent.
Who cared what others thought? My house, my rules. Reputation be damned.
Just thinking about it lifted my spirits. I smiled faintly and picked up a fork.
"First, the cake."
As I sliced the fruit cake in half, a man appeared before me.
'...Huh?'
Yes, he descended from thin air.
Teleportation inside the mansion? That meant serious skill.
Stunned, I watched as the robed man, face obscured, greeted me.
"Hello?"
A soft, melodic voice.
Why the casual tone right off? As a Confucian at heart, I couldn't accept that.
My face hardened, ready to demand if he knew who I was—some cliché line—when he doffed the robe. I clapped a hand over my mouth.
"...What."
The words slipped out unbidden. Pure instinct.
His fine silver hair sparkled like the finest diamond.
A face pretty enough to claim everyone's first love at first sight, yet far from innocent.
Cat-like upturned double-lidded eyes, matched by sharp phoenix eyes that oozed decadence, seizing attention.
Like a deadly poison flower: alluring beauty tempting touch, but harboring venom ready to kill.
Irresistibly seductive, nonetheless.
...Did people like this exist?
He gazed at my dazed face, then smiled radiantly, like a bloom.
"I'm Darsi, magic tool merchant and mage."
...Who was this gorgeous man?