Chapter 55

Chapter 55

#55. The Northerner’s Porcelain (1)

The praises for Ariana from Arad continued without end.

“Beyond good, it’s absolutely the best. If that person had been born in a different kingdom other than the Northern Region, they would’ve already unified the continent by now.”

“Is that true?”

“Of course.”

“By any chance, do you have more? More about what’s great about His Grace, the Duke?”

“During the treason of the Northern nobles back in the day, he minimized the use of collective punishment. I want to commend that greatly.”

“…?!”

“Others say the punishment was too lenient, but I think the opposite. The North has a small population and not many talents. Excessive purges would only make things worse.”

“But the ones who survived that collective punishment might not be grateful. They could even be sharpening their swords for revenge.”

“That may be so, but most people would feel the exact opposite.”

“Opposite?”

“They’d likely go out of their way to prove their loyalty. His Grace must’ve foreseen this when making that decision.”

“…”

“Huh…I hadn’t thought that far!”

Ariana hadn’t thought that far at all.

She just didn’t want too many people implicated if collective punishment were applied. It felt impossible to follow the rules strictly, so she took responsibility herself and limited the scope of the punishments as much as possible.

Through this process, she gradually harbored distrust and cynicism in her heart.

‘Well…this is somewhat comforting.’

That memory, those wounds, somehow felt like they were healing.

“Do you have more? More about what His Grace did well?”

“There are too many to count. I should write a book.”

“If such a book comes out, it will definitely sell a lot! It’ll also help with the company’s revenue!”

More! More! More! Keep praising!

‘I wasn’t wrong after all!’

Dopamine-addicted Ariana trembled with excitement.

“Writing a book…not a bad idea.”

“I’ll assist you while you write.”

“Would you? Given your skills, you’d surely be helpful. Let’s try writing bit by bit during our evening studies.”

“Yes!”

The disappointment from earlier tutoring sessions vanished.

Concerns about employee management at Arad Company were long forgotten.

Even the embarrassment and mistaken realizations from their conversations faded away.

‘Ariana seems to get along well with him. She appears to enjoy his praise more than His Grace himself.’

On the side, Arad chuckled at the sight of Mary.

The pure goodwill of a younger sister toward her half-sister seemed cute and beautiful to him.

Of course, what he said just now was heavily exaggerated.

‘Trying to cover up my slip, I ended up praising His Grace, and it turned out surprisingly well.’

The reason he suddenly started singing odes was simple.

-There is obviously some responsibility on the leader guiding that organization.

He had unintentionally dissed Ariana earlier, and that too, in front of an illegitimate sibling of the dukedom.

“His Grace is also frugal. These days, porcelain from the Empire is being imported cheaply into the North, right?”

Therefore, he decided to continue the ode through its second, third, and fourth verses.

“Uh? Yes, that’s true. But it’s certainly not cheap.”

“Still, there are Northern women subtly buying porcelain, aren’t there? Lately, with more leisure time, it seems to be increasing.”

“Well, that does concern me. It feels like the trade deficit we barely escaped is returning.”

“So, the Empire sells us porcelain they need themselves at low prices? There’s definitely a reason behind that.”

“They probably plan to create a trend by selling cheaply first and then raise the price.”

“You’re exactly right.”

“It happened with spices and silk before too.”

“What did His Grace do each time?”

“There wasn’t really anything specific… He just lived with what was available and without when it wasn’t…”

As Arad asked, Ariana answered while recalling her own experiences.

In reality, she rarely wore silk clothes except for official court meetings or events.

For daily life, she mostly wore simple clothes made of Rian fabric.

It was the same with spices. When prices skyrocketed, she didn’t insist on using them. Instead, she grimaced and ate bland, smelly food.

If it weren’t for Arad Salt appearing, she would probably still be living that way.

“Yeah, that restraint and sense of reality. I highly value Your Grace’s approach.”

But even this became a great excuse for Arad, who was now in full ode mode.

“Eh…Eeh…?”

Hearing praise from an unexpected angle left Ariana flustered.

Until now, these were things criticized as unbecoming of a noble—things that couldn’t possibly be considered praiseworthy.

“Initially, wearing fine clothes and eating gourmet meals doesn’t create authority. Leading by example in every situation—that’s the virtue of a leader.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course. In that sense, His Grace’s response to porcelain is truly exemplary.”

“Response…what kind of…?”

“Not placing porcelain in the High City.”

“Ah…”

“Fashion flows from top to bottom. If porcelain isn’t used at the very top of the North, the next level down—nobles and bureaucrats—are bound to feel awkward trying to use it.”

“Just because I didn’t care enough to use it… How many high-quality swords could be bought with that money? That’s all I thought.”

“But even if the High City doesn’t use porcelain, there’s a limit to how long that can last.”

Arad’s compliments brought temporary joy.

Ariana revealed her concerns.

‘Could it be…?’

She subtly pinned hopes on Arad.

“You’re right. Eventually, the High City will have no choice but to use porcelain. Everyone with money in the North will be using it; the Dukedom can’t be the exception.”

“That’s a big problem.”

“This means it’s finally time to start our long-delayed first business venture.”

“Oh!!”

Her expectations were rewarded.

“To be honest, calling it the first business venture feels strange.”

Arad said with a proud expression.

“First business venture?”

“Yes, this was originally what Arad Company planned to do first.”

“…?!”

At Arad’s words, Ariana tilted her head in confusion before snapping it upright.

“Ah! Now that you mention it?!”

Upon reflection, she remembered Arad mentioning something about their first business item before.

‘We got interrupted mid-conversation.’

With all the incidents and busyness, she had completely forgotten afterward.

“Maybe…! Is the first business item related to porcelain-like tableware?”

“Close. By the way, there’s something I need your help with.”

“Anything you ask.”

“Please deliver this letter directly to His Grace.”

“Uh…?”

After saying this, Arad pulled out a letter from his pocket and handed it to Ariana sitting in front of him.

Originally, he had planned to deliver it himself soon, but his thoughts changed due to their current conversation.

“I’d prefer if you delivered it personally.”

“Why specifically me…? Besides, I’m not of high standing!”

“If you introduce yourself as the representative of the Royal Merchant Guild, His Grace will understand.”

“No, but why should I…?”

“I’ll be busy designing new products for a while. Manager Te will also be occupied setting up the workforce and production line for the new product.”

“So…you mean…?”

“Relax. You can do it.”

“Ugh…?”

Though it was an unreasonable excuse, Arad pushed forward resolutely.

‘If I say I ordered it, neither Ariana nor her surrounding ministers can object.’

Arad wanted to take this opportunity to strengthen the bond between Ariana and Mary.

Despite being illegitimate, the girl before him admired her half-sister and took pride in her family. Wasn’t that admirable?

Especially since she enjoyed praising her sister more than receiving praise herself. As both employer and loyal servant, how could he sit idly by?

‘Mary, don’t worry. I’ll ensure the bond between sisters continues. I’ll show you what a family-like company is.’

This was the decisive reason Arad went out of his way to push this.

‘And incidentally, I’ll earn some points with the future Great Witch.’

While there was an additional purpose, he firmly believed this was merely a side quest.

* * *

The next day.

Arad appeared at the Second Factory, where construction was ongoing.

“Can you help me build this structure according to this drawing, from here to there?”

Without hesitation, Arad asked the witches assisting with construction through earth elementals.

“Hmm…? A kiln, is it? Are you planning to sell bricks or jars?”

“We’ll be making something similar.”

Unlike anyone else, Arad held significant influence comparable to the Duchess of the High City or the Great Witch Isabel.

“However, the structure differs from traditional kilns.”

“Wow, really? This design looks interesting!”

Who knows? He might even surpass them in influence.

Arad always carried fascinating unknown knowledge, had a good personality, and was quite handsome.

“Where? Where? Oh wow…”

“Will we build this inside the factory?”

“Hee… Me too! I want to help!”

The witches abandoned their current tasks and showed great interest in the design Arad presented.

“Woah! Our boss can do anything, huh? How does he draw so well?”

“Could you paint portraits of us later?”

Moreover, this design appeared unrelated to magic.

Thus, the witches felt even more relaxed examining and discussing Arad’s drawings.

“Portraits? If you build this according to the design, I’ll consider it.”

“Omigosh, really?”

“A portrait personally painted by Lord Jin! Time to lose some weight! Hahaha!”

“Now, everyone, focus on the work. We need to finish this before the factory walls go up.”

Just as Arad motivated the witches with promises of rewards, someone spoke.

“Boss.”

Mary stood beside Arad, having arrived at work.

“Huh!”

“Hem!”

“…”

Suddenly, the giggling witches fell silent.

“We’ll get back to work~.”

“Boss, Mary, fighting!”

The witches quickly distanced themselves from Arad.

From before, it seemed like they particularly avoided Mary.

‘What exactly did Grandma tell them about Mary?’

Watching the witches hastily retreat, Arad wondered.

“Mary, you’re a bit late today?”

“Since it’s your flexible work schedule policy, I’m used to it now, so it’s fine.”

“Yesterday’s task you were working on delayed you, right?”

Recalling the morning meeting with the ministers, Ariana responded.

“Wow! Faster than expected! So, what did they say?”

“They agreed to proceed through Frosthaven. Someone from Frosthaven will meet you soon. Just prepare the briefing.”

Pretending to remain calm despite reporting to herself (as Mary), she managed the act effortlessly.

“Good job.”

Unaware of the truth, Arad simply smiled contentedly.

“Uh… By the way, I overheard your conversation with the witches earlier.”

Ariana, who had been staring blankly at Arad’s smile, cautiously spoke up.

“What conversation?”

“About painting portraits…”

“Ah, yes.”

“That portrait… His Grace would probably like it too.”

“Hmm?!?”

Taken aback by Mary’s random comment, Arad scratched his chin and thought for four seconds.

“Alright. Let’s schedule a time later. And you can relay this message to His Grace as well.”

Then he readily agreed with a smile.

“Yes! Thank you! His Grace will be delighted!”

Ariana genuinely felt happy.

But her joy didn’t last long.

“By the way, when painting His Grace’s portrait, I’d also like to add a character piece featuring you and His Grace together. Can you convey that as well?”

“Uh…?”

“Why are you suddenly adding such a strange condition?”

“It’s the inspiration of an artist. Combining you and His Grace in one painting could create a historic masterpiece.”

“Uh…?”

“Done well, we might leave an invaluable cultural heritage for our descendants, beyond monetary value.”

“??”

Wearing Mary’s face, Ariana looked at Arad with eyes full of doubt and confusion.

“Well, keep that in mind, and focus on the task at hand now.”

Ignoring Ariana’s complex gaze, Arad refocused on the ongoing construction of the Second Factory.

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