Chapter 114
Chapter 114: Should I Walk Life One More Time? (2)
Ghislaine made a ridiculous expression upon seeing the wizards charging in boldly.
“What’s going on with all of you?”
“We came to make a bet! We all bet that your lord’s cosmetics are useless.”
“Hm, there are too many people… What are the conditions?”
Claude, stepping up as the representative, grinned as he replied.
“If we win, you terminate the slave contracts and give us 2,000 gold each. How about that?”
“And if you lose?”
“Then each of us will add ten more years.”
Ghislaine pretended to hesitate and asked again.
“What if I don’t accept the bet?”
At her words, Claude and the wizards’ eyes sparkled.
That unruly lord was showing a rare lack of confidence, meaning the chances of winning were high.
“Didn’t the lord propose the bet first? It’s dishonorable to refuse now. If you drop out, you’ll have to reduce it by five years.”
“Oh, that’s troublesome…”
After a moment of contemplation, Ghislaine nodded.
“I feel sorry for adding ten more years… but since everyone is so resolute, I have no choice. I accept the bet.”
“Yay!”
Claude and the wizards clenched their fists and let out small cheers.
“Great! Then please set a deadline.”
“Hmm, would a month be enough?”
Ghislaine confidently blurted it out.
Two weeks would be enough to see the effects, but since skin conditions differ from person to person, she decided to allow a generous month.
Claude, gleefully laughing, gathered numerous retainers to witness the bet.
Everyone gathered in the main hall except for Gillian, who was inspecting the territory, and Vanessa, who was training at the training ground.
Naturally, Belinda protested vehemently.
“What do you mean by a bet! Have you lost your mind? How on earth are we supposed to prove the effectiveness of cosmetics?”
While agriculture has visible sprouts and fruits, cosmetics lacked objective criteria to evaluate their effects.
A person’s face can improve simply by eating well and sleeping soundly.
In other words, it meant one could deliberately ruin their skin.
“Are you seriously going to let those guys test it? We don’t know what they might do!”
Ghislaine waved her hands dismissively, as if to say not to worry.
“Of course, Claude and the wizards will be exempt from testing. If they could win the bet, they’d probably smear dung on their faces.”
The wizards felt their pride pricked but couldn’t retort.
They were even considering doing just that, if things went south.
Even after Ghislaine’s words, Belinda couldn’t calm her anger.
“Then who’s going to do the testing? If just one pimple appears, they’ll scream that they’ve won!”
“Hmm, that’s true. We need someone trustworthy…”
Ghislaine looked around.
Everyone present quickly bowed their heads, fearing eye contact.
No one wanted to test an unproven product on their face.
“Who would be good…?”
Forcing everyone to apply the cosmetics wouldn’t be difficult.
But if the people were too scared to apply it, the results of the bet would become unclear.
That would give Claude and the wizards a chance to argue that it didn’t work.
No matter how effective the new product was, one would need to apply it consistently for a few days to see results.
Ghislaine decided it was better to first find someone willing to test it properly rather than forcing it onto everyone.
“Kaor, do you want to try it? I’ll give you a few days off from training.”
Since he was honing his mana, he would be less affected by external conditions, making him a suitable candidate.
However, Kaor snorted and arrogantly declined.
“Real men don’t apply that kind of stuff.”
“Who doesn’t know you stick fruit peels on your face every night?”
“That’s! It just happened to stick while I was eating fruit!”
Even before Kaor joined Ghislaine, he often slept with fruit peels stuck to his face.
Since coming to Perdium, he occasionally did the same, so anyone who knew him was well aware.
“Regardless! I’m not applying that. I’m past that now.”
A person who had always taken care of their skin wouldn’t calmly apply something unproven.
With his firm rejection, Ghislaine merely shrugged.
She had no intention of forcing someone unwilling. Finding a trustworthy person to volunteer would do.
“I guess I’ll have to look for someone else to experiment on. Anyway, we’ll proceed with the bet, so everyone keep that in mind.”
“What are you looking for! There’s a noble’s pride at stake. Does it make sense to search for someone just because you made a bet?”
Belinda glared at her with exasperation lighting up her eyes.
Ghislaine tilted her head in bewilderment.
“Everyone here is refusing to do it. So how about you, Belinda?”
“No, that’s a bit…”
Feeling everyone’s gazes on her, she panicked and kept her head low.
‘Ugh, I have no choice. I’ll just have to pretend to apply it and think of a way to do it.’
Belinda raised her head and confidently extended her hand.
“Alright. I’ll do it, so give me a jar.”
She had no intention of actually applying it.
She just planned to get plenty of sleep and diligently practice mana, then stretch her skin using mana on the final day of the bet.
That way, for even a brief moment, she’d look like her skin had improved for real.
“Wait! The butler can’t do it.”
Claude stepped in and halted Belinda’s action.
“Why not?”
“The butler’s skin is already quite nice, isn’t it? Although there are a few wrinkles around the eyes…”
“Will you please be quiet?”
“In any case, the butler can’t do it. We don’t know what tricks he might pull. It would be better to have someone whose skin condition is poor and is sure to show visible results.”
Having been around the gambling scene for years, Claude immediately sensed the suspicious change in Belinda’s attitude.
‘Oh, that bastard…’
Belinda glared at Claude, fuming.
That little brat was quick on the uptake and always obstructed her at crucial moments.
Ghislaine nodded knowingly.
“Alright, let’s find someone else. Now everyone, go back to your duties.”
Belinda let out a sigh and left, and the others quickly departed, looking relieved.
Though everyone refused, Ghislaine didn’t think much of it.
Surely, there would be someone willing to use it if she pushed them.
“Wouldn’t the mercenaries and servants be keen on this? Isn’t it just something for nobles? Well, at least a few of them should trust me.”
With a confident expression, Ghislaine started approaching people.
“Do you want to try this?”
“Uh, I’m sorry.”
“How about trying this? It’s an amazing product. Nobles use it.”
“Please forgive me!”
Everyone looked at Ghislaine’s cosmetics with suspicion.
It was only natural for them to hesitate to apply something completely unknown.
“Is everyone satisfied with their current condition? Should I gather those with less than ideal skin and offer it to them?”
She gathered the servants and mercenaries with poor skin conditions, but they all either reluctantly accepted or showed clear signs of disliking it, forcing her to take it back.
This wouldn’t lead to a proper test.
“Ugh, this is frustrating. Finding buyers among the nobles later might be an issue too. It’s not like I’m as well-known as Duke Delphine.”
The name Duke Delphine alone gained trust from people.
Before regressing, when it was announced that the products were newly developed in the duke’s household, everyone rushed to buy cosmetics.
But the Territory of Penris was at the far edge of the empire, and the recognition of Ghislaine, its lord, was virtually nonexistent.
Who would trust and use something made in such a place?
Even her loyal followers had this attitude, so it was clear that the nobles would completely disregard her existence.
“I’ll need to find a way to promote this in the capital after the test is over.”
Ghislaine clicked her tongue.
She thought that once she made it, that would be the end, but she now had to search for buyers.
“Let’s think about that later. Right now, the test is the priority.”
Ghislaine diligently roamed inside and outside the castle, recommending her cosmetics to everyone.
The complaints from the initial recipients spread like wildfire.
People began to avoid Ghislaine as the rumors spread.
“Did you receive that thing the lord is carrying…?”
“Hmm, I did accept it, but then they took it back after seeing my expression.”
“Why would he suddenly create and sell something like that?”
“Our lord sometimes goes a bit weird. Last time, he almost died drinking poison.”
The lord’s success in agriculture was well-known throughout the territory.
Everyone acknowledged that Ghislaine’s new attempts had been effective back then.
But whether it was truly her original skill or merely a stroke of luck remained a matter of skepticism for many.
Being such a peculiar person, it was hard for people to fully trust her.
Should I say they wavered between faith and disbelief?
They might think a new attempt could succeed, but no one wanted to personally test it on themselves.
Rumors quickly spread that the lord had gone peculiar again.
As negative opinions began to surface, it became even harder to find volunteers.
“These bastards… I’ll just have to force it onto everyone.”
Ghislaine’s face twisted unconsciously.
Days passed without a single person volunteering for the test.
The calmness and confidence she initially had had long since shattered.
She had tried to use peaceful methods as much as possible, but everyone’s refusal left her with no choice.
Forcing everyone to apply it and obtaining the overall sample would likely be much faster.
Just when Ghislaine decided to proceed with the test by force, a savior suddenly appeared.
“Milord, I’ll give it a try.”
“Oh, Gillian!”
Because she hadn’t been able to propose it directly to Gillian, who was out inspecting the territory, this loyal man volunteered to experiment after hearing the rumors.
Ghislaine examined Gillian from head to toe.
‘He has quite a few wrinkles, and his skin looks rough…’
Upon closer inspection, he turned out to be a very suitable candidate for the test.
Gillian knew how to handle mana, but he hadn’t completely escaped the traces of time.
Moreover, having trained outside and lived a rough life, his skin condition wasn’t particularly good.
He could be considered an excellent tester.
Still, Ghislaine asked for confirmation.
“Are you sure? Everyone else has been avoiding it. I made this myself, you know.”
“I don’t care much about appearances. It’s fine with me.”
Gillian didn’t say he believed in it, either.
Though he found it unsatisfactory, it was still a relief that he volunteered, so Ghislaine sighed softly.
She handed him a container she had brought.
“How do I use it?”
“Just wash your face before bed and apply it to your face before sleeping. It doesn’t have to be just your face; you can apply it elsewhere too.”
“Understood.”
From that day onward, Gillian began diligently applying the cosmetics Ghislaine had given him.
After all, this was also an order given by the lord.
By the third day, people around him began to talk a bit.
“Old man, do you have a girlfriend lately? You look good!”
“Stop with the nonsense before I chop off your head.”
Gillian responded dryly to Kaor, who nudged him.
He was too busy training the same as always and supervising the development of the territory to meet any women.
He was just living day to day to assist the lord.
As a couple more days passed, the reactions around him changed significantly.
Whenever mercenaries saw Gillian, they’d whisper to each other.
“What’s up? Doesn’t he seem a bit younger?”
“Look at how plump his skin is. Is he eating better?”
“No way, did his face suddenly improve like that? Could it be… he’s using that cosmetics made by the boss?”
Gillian’s face glowed differently than before.
The wrinkles were still there, but the texture of his skin had changed, making him look definitely younger.
His previously dull skin, burnt from the sun, began to appear shiny and lively.
Having never cared for his skin, the effects showed dramatically.
Gillian quickly realized why things had changed.
“Looks like the lord’s creation really works. The lord is indeed remarkable.”
Having confirmed that it was effective, he started using the cosmetics even more diligently.
Previously, he had applied it with one finger, but now he used two fingers.
Despite saying he didn’t care for his skin, he found himself glancing in the mirror a bit more before going to bed or leaving his room in the morning due to all the comments from others.
“Even as I age, I’m still just as concerned.”
Watching his face change a little every day, Gillian chuckled to himself.
Whenever someone asked, he explained it was the effect of the cosmetics made by the lord.
Rumors spread quickly once again.
Even those with poor skin, like Gillian, could see effects within three days! It was truly a revolution in the cosmetics industry!
And then, on the seventh day since Gillian received the prototype.
Bang!
The door to Ghislaine’s office flew open with a loud crash.
Ghislaine, who had been working, looked up in surprise at what was going on.
Belinda, along with Claude and Wendy, among others from the territory, rushed in.
“What’s happening?”
As Ghislaine asked with interest, Belinda panted and shouted.
“Give me that too!”
