Chapter 115
Chapter 115: Should I Walk This Life Once More? (3)
“What?”
Ghislaine responded playfully, pretending not to know despite clearly understanding.
Belinda, looking frustrated, smacked her chest and said, “I want that! Please give me cosmetics! A lot, please! I need to take good care of myself at this age.”
“But you said you didn’t need any before?”
“What are you talking about? I even supported it! It was those bumbling idiots who stopped me from getting any. Hohoho, our Young Master is truly incapable of doing anything wrong!”
Belinda shot back shamelessly.
Ghislaine chuckled and tossed a few cosmetics from a nearby pile to her.
After all, she had prepared plenty thinking of letting several people test them out.
“Yay! Thank you!”
She beamed with joy, clutching the cosmetics tightly before scampering away.
Following her, Kaor and the mercenaries stepped forward confidently.
“Please give us some too.”
“But you guys said men don’t use this stuff. And you all were never interested in looking good anyway?”
The mercenaries, apart from a few odd ones, typically didn’t care much about their appearances. Even if a rugged fella took care of himself, he would just end up being a smooth-talking rugged fella.
Feeling unfairly treated being lumped together, Kaor elbowed the mercenary beside him.
“…I want to impress someone.”
“What?”
“I want to give it as a gift to a girl to charm her!”
“…Alright. I like your honesty.”
Ghislaine shook her head at the blatant desire pouring out of him.
“Take what you need, and share some with the other mercenaries. But tell those who receive gifts to report any side effects.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Ghislaine handed over a few boxes of samples.
As soon as the mercenaries accepted the cosmetics, they erupted into cheers and rushed out.
“Wendy, distribute some to the other servants as well. Make sure to get precise reports on their progress.”
“Understood.”
Ghislaine also handed Wendy a few boxes.
The other retainers watching eagerly grabbed one or two for themselves, leaving cheerfully.
Only Claude and the wizards were biting their nails in anxiety.
Ghislaine looked at them firmly and said, “You guys can’t. Right now, we’re in the middle of a bet.”
“Ugh… How unfair.”
The results of the bet were yet to come.
But with rumors spreading that Gillian had benefited greatly, Claude and the wizards couldn’t relax.
They rushed over to get some cosmetics for themselves but found it was futile.
“Let’s head back for now. There’s no need to panic just yet. We still have a lot of time.”
Claude reassured the wizards as they retreated.
After all, only one person had seen results. Gillian was someone who handled mana, so the improvements could have stemmed from other factors.
The wizards nodded at Claude’s words, calming themselves.
Once the office was cleared by the crowd, Gillian came to find Ghislaine.
Ghislaine welcomed him with joy.
“Oh, Gillian! Welcome!”
He was the man who had stepped up to showcase results when everyone else hesitated.
Thanks to him, more people were motivated to join, making testing much smoother.
“Your skin has definitely improved. So, what do you think? Is it usable?”
“Yes, indeed. I feel younger.”
Gillian beamed with confident smiles.
His skin, now smooth and shiny compared to before, seemed to radiate health.
“So, what’s up? You must still have some cosmetics left from what you took before. Is this a training report?”
“…I would like one more, please.”
“Huh?”
“I want to send it to my daughter.”
“Oh, I see. Is this a parent’s desire?”
Rachel was in Perdium with Elena, so it had been quite a while since he’d last seen her.
It’s only natural for a parent to want to send something nice to a daughter they can’t personally care for.
Ghislaine laughed and handed over several, encouraging him to use them freely.
“Thanks to you, I’ve saved a lot of people. It’s largely because of Gillian. Once the territory improves, I’ll bring Elena and Rachel over, so just wait a bit.”
“Thank you. I’m sure everyone will be satisfied once they try it.”
Gillian said with certainty.
Ghislaine smiled at him.
With so many people participating, they would be able to confirm the effects properly soon.
“Hmm, speaking of which… Should I bring some for Vanessa? I heard she’s been training nonstop lately.”
Ghislaine personally went to find Vanessa, who was completely absorbed in training and research at the training ground.
She had been holed up, trying to break through the 6th Circle.
When Ghislaine arrived unannounced, she was startled and flushed red.
“Ah, L-Lord… What brings you here all of a sudden…?”
“Wow, you…”
Ghislaine was taken aback at the sight of Vanessa.
Having focused solely on training and research, her appearance was quite a sight.
Her hair was a tangled mess, and her clothes looked as if they hadn’t been changed in days.
Clearing her throat, Ghislaine handed Vanessa the cosmetics.
“Have you heard the rumors? These are the cosmetics; try using them when you find the time.”
“Y-Yes! Thank you!”
“And… While it’s great that you’re researching, make sure to get some sleep, eat, and wash yourself every now and then.”
Vanessa lowered her head and gave a shy smile.
Regardless of what the item was for, it was the first time she had received a gift.
As Ghislaine turned to head back to her office, she peeked inside the training ground’s door before closing it.
She carefully set the cosmetics in a corner and slipped into the pile of books.
Then, she sank down among the hundreds of volumes and concentrated on her research again.
“Wow, how in the world is she going to read all those? How does that even fit in her head?”
The wizards could maintain a minimum level of cleanliness using Clean Magic.
Therefore, most thought it shameful to appear messy in front of others.
However, Vanessa was so devoted to her research that she didn’t care about cleanliness at all.
“Well, she probably never had a genuine opportunity to study like this. Still, it’s impressive.”
This was a woman who hadn’t slacked off her studies even while doing menial tasks in the Mage Tower.
Now that she was fully immersed in training and research, how happy she must feel.
“Soon, I’ll need to help her increase her mana as much as possible. She’s truly dependable.”
Ghislaine returned to her office with a content smile.
Then she issued a new command.
“Have everyone who needs it but hasn’t received any come to me.”
Ghislaine’s orders spread quickly throughout the castle.
People who had heard the rumor late began to arrive in droves, and the sample products quickly ran out.
The reactions were explosive.
“Have you tried the ones given by the Lord? It’s amazing! Everyone is going crazy over it.”
“Oh my gosh, look at my skin! It’s like I’ve aged ten years in just two days!”
“Wait, that’s kind of… But I feel like I’ve aged at least ten hours younger.”
“This is something nobles normally use, so when else would I get to try it?”
“I heard the ingredients are incredibly expensive. We need to use it sparingly. I should have brought back another one.”
Every time people gathered, discussions about the cosmetics created by Ghislaine blossomed.
Those who hadn’t cared for their skin before noticed significant results.
Ghislaine constantly received progress reports from those who had used the cosmetics over several days.
“Good, most reactions are positive.”
The results were overwhelmingly favorable.
No one had spoken poorly, and instead, requests for more flooded in.
The fact that they had experienced a product usually reserved for nobles also contributed to its popularity.
After all, no one dislikes expensive things.
As the atmosphere in the castle grew more exuberant, Claude and the wizards became increasingly anxious.
“Damn! Have you seen people’s faces lately? They’re getting smoother and smoother! Is this really not working? What are we going to do?”
Alfoy exclaimed nervously. Claude responded nonchalantly.
“Don’t worry. The results aren’t in yet. Why are you in such a hurry? In gambling, impatience is a killer. Until the last card is revealed, no one knows how it will turn out.”
“Everyone’s only saying good things! They actually look better!”
“That’s just because of the atmosphere. They may look better just because they’ve had a good sleep. Plus, you might not realize it, but those were made using incredibly expensive and good herbs. So, they might look good temporarily.”
“What? Then it does have some real effect!”
Claude scoffed with a condescending expression.
“If mixing in only good things guaranteed success, the Mage Tower would have succeeded long ago. Don’t you know that applying just any herb can make your skin worse? Mix good things, and they turn toxic. That’s why even nobles are cautious.”
“That’s true, but…”
“So, stop worrying and relax. No, think about it logically. It’s not you or me, but the Lord. It doesn’t make sense for him to succeed.”
“Y-You’re right.”
Alfoy nodded, albeit anxiously.
Claude slammed his hand down on the table assertively.
“We are intellectuals, intellectuals! We are people who judge with cold reason and intellect! We must not be swayed by such ignorant and nonsensical individuals.”
At his words, Alfoy seemed to regain some confidence, nodding as he made his exit.
Though slightly anxious, Claude wasn’t wrong.
The Lord wasn’t an expert in any one field, nor was he someone with knowledge across various disciplines.
There was no way he could achieve such impossible things in succession.
As Alfoy and the wizards left, Claude shook his head and sighed heavily.
“Phew, this is really exhausting. Why do all these weaklings take bets like this? If they’re scared, they should just avoid making bets in the first place. Tsk tsk.”
Wendy, watching him from behind, stared at Claude with shocked eyes.
‘You’re the one who seduced them!’
Regardless of anything else, one had to acknowledge his boldness and chatter.
Wendy shook her head, prompting Claude to hurry along.
Disdainful as he was, he was still the Chief Officer of the Territory of Penris.
“Chief Officer, we have a lot on our plate. The next schedule is to check the construction progress of the supply depot…”
Suddenly, Claude began to fidget nervously while biting his nails.
Wendy closed her mouth. Given his demeanor, it seemed he wasn’t even hearing her.
‘Damn, what do I do? It really seems to be effective. Ugh, this is driving me crazy. There’s no way that this will succeed, right?’
Wendy had been sticking by Claude daily.
Observing the changes in Wendy’s skin condition each day, it became painfully clear that everything was falling apart.
‘I can’t even sabotage this!’
To be honest, she had considered the idea of disrupting things.
Being on the same side as the wizards, there were countless ways to do so.
Could easily prevent her from washing by getting rid of the water, or using decay magic to foul the air.
‘If caught, I’d probably be imprisoned for at least 30 years.’
However, given Ghislaine’s personality, if she sensed anything strange, she would likely toss someone in jail without needing evidence.
Now that many people had received the cosmetics, it was impossible to sabotage them anyway.
Not only the people working in the castle, but also the mercenaries and retainers had taken them, so stopping them all would require an intervention across the entire territory.
Unless one were a great mage, it was quite impossible.
‘Ugh, what now?’
With Claude pacing anxiously, he caught Wendy’s eyes and let out a complaint.
“What, why? You traitor. I saw you put on cosmetics! Ugh, look at your face getting all smooth!”
Wendy averted her gaze, giving him a look combining disdain and pity.
From their time spent together, it became evident that engaging with that mouth of his was only disadvantageous.
Anxious Claude shook his head.
‘Right, surely a few will have side effects. Cosmetics aren’t that simple. There’s no way the Lord could create such a product. I can confirm that on the last day.’
If just a few people exhibited side effects, they could insist on declaring a draw.
Anything even slightly risky would be rejected by nobles, which would make the product’s value diminish.
‘There’s no need to panic now that results aren’t out yet. The thrill of this tension is the essence of gambling; I’ve become soft-minded. Hu hu hu.’
Though this was typical denial common among gamblers, Claude remained oblivious.
“Let’s go, let’s go. We have work to do.”
If he neglected his work while caught up in the bet, he would undoubtedly face dire repercussions.
Though the Lord seemed generous, he had an unexpectedly persistent side.
While Claude desperately struggled to deny reality, Ghislaine was smiling contentedly at the growing stack of documents.
“Zero side effects.”
Despite so many people using it for over two weeks, there had not been a single report of side effects.
Far from taking longer as she had expected due to the intricate manufacturing methods, it had succeeded far more quickly than anticipated.
While it was delightful to have succeeded in making the cosmetics, it was even more heartening to see people enjoying themselves while using them. This meant that people had found some semblance of peace of mind.
After a moment’s thought, Ghislaine conveyed a new order to her retainers.
“Everyone has been too busy with work lately. I’m thinking of hosting a feast soon. Even if time is tight, you must take appropriate breaks to continue fighting.”
The retainers were all taken aback.
It was shocking that the Lord, who hadn’t hosted even a simple banquet, was suddenly planning a feast.
‘Is the Lord who’s obsessed with that nonsense really saying this?’
Seeing the surprised expressions on the retainers, Ghislaine continued.
“I will set the feast date as the last day of the bet. Prepare food and drink for the servants and territory residents to all enjoy. Since there will be those who need to work, the feast will last for two days.”
It was a plan to not only see the results of the bet but also to take some time to rest.
In fact, it was already almost a foregone conclusion that the Lord would win this bet.
During farming seasons, they had to wait until the sprouts appeared to know the results, but cosmetics were different.
They could observe the faces of users daily, so the effects would be immediately evident.
Hearing that even the servants could participate in the feast, excitement spread among the people, while Claude and the wizards wandered around shrouded in gloom.
With heavy hearts, they offered daily prayers to the goddess.
“Please let the world come to an end. Even if it’s just the Demon King, send one our way.”
It was a mindset that thought it would be better to die together than lose the bet again.
