In This Life I Will Be The Lord Novel - Episode 19

‘That’s it.’
I smiled knowingly and deliberately flapped the fabric once.
“Wow! Pretty! Pretty… Ahh!”
I took advantage of the moment when Father and Grandfather’s attention was drawn to the fabric wavering in the air.
My hand, which was holding and shaking the fabric, ‘accidentally’ knocked over the cup in front of Father.
The tea spilled onto the desk in an instant, and Grandfather and Father rose from their seats in surprise.
And I, at the right moment, dropped the Coroy-Yung fabric I was playing with onto the spilled tea.
“Oh no…!”
Father, startled, first picked me up and set me down at a distance.
“Tia, are you alright? Did hot water splash on you?”
Father was frantic, worried that I might have been scalded, but I saw it.
Grandfather’s expression changed as he watched the Coroy-Yung fabric instantly absorb the tea.
“I’m sorry, Daddy. It was an accident.”
“Phew… As long as you’re not hurt, it’s fine.”
“Gallahan.”
Grandfather called Father, who was dusting off my clothes, which had gotten a little splashed with tea.
Following Grandfather’s gaze, Father’s eyes widened when he saw how amazingly absorbent the Coroy-Yung fabric was.
“Oh, it’s very absorbent.”
Father picked up a corner and lifted it slightly; although there was still some dampness, most of the tea had clearly been absorbed by the fabric.
“If used well, it could be used in many places. We should include a brief explanation when we supply it to clothing stores.”
That would certainly be a good method, but it wasn’t enough yet.
I needed a move that could be taken immediately.
I quickly squeezed in front of Father, touching the now heavy fabric, and said,
“Wow, this thing Daddy made is so amazing! People will buy a lot, right?
What if they fight over it?”
When I spoke with feigned concern, Father smiled wryly and said,
“Haha, well. For now, people’s reactions aren’t great, but I truly hope it turns out as our Tia says.”
“The reaction isn’t good? Why?”
“Because, hmm… It seems people just don’t know much about this fabric yet.”
Yes, Father! That’s the key!
I nodded sadly at Father’s words and said,
“Hmm… It would be good if people could try it out beforehand.”
“…What did you just say, Tia?”
“Daddy said so. That people don’t know much about this fabric yet. So…”
“Yes, that’s right… Why didn’t I think of that sooner?”
Father murmured, lost in thought, as if he had realized something from my hint.
According to the conversation Father had with Grandfather, the fabric was already produced in sufficient quantities for sale.
Moreover, the weavers were continuously producing more, so if it was just left to accumulate, it would only become inventory.
Rather than incurring storage fees, it would be much more beneficial to use the already produced fabric for promotion.
“The quality of the fabric is excellent, so if people could just experience it beforehand…”
“That’s quite a good idea. How about giving prototypes made from the fabric as free gifts to the nobles who are target customers?”
As expected, it was Grandfather.
Nobles in the Lambru Empire visit clothing stores and custom-order clothing, choosing materials and designs according to their own taste.
This applied not only to clothes but also to bedding and curtains made from fabric.
Therefore, simply letting them see the fabric in advance wouldn’t be enough; showcasing items made from the fabric would stimulate their desire to purchase even more.
“But there isn’t much time left until sales begin. To meet the deadline, the products would have to be simple…”
This is it.
I picked up the dry fabric next to me, held it out to Father, and said,
“Make me a handkerchief!”
“A handkerchief?”
“It’s so soft! If you cut it small and embroider a tiny flower in the corner, it would be so pretty! I’m going to show off to Giliou and Mayron!”
“Father…!”
Father’s eyes gleamed as he listened to me and looked at Grandfather.
Grandfather, who was stroking his beard, nodded.
“A handkerchief. It could be a good prototype.”
“Why didn’t I think of this sooner! I even saw the head of the Dyurak Merchant Guild cut some fabric to wipe his sweat and say it was great, then keep carrying it around!”
Father laughed in exasperation.
“No special processing is needed. Just cut it appropriately and iron it neatly. Ah! It would be good to add simple decorations too!”
There was nothing more I needed to help with.
Father began to pour out ideas frantically.
It wasn’t just handkerchiefs.
Prototypes that could be made by utilizing the weavers he currently employed flowed out of Father’s mouth.
“I, I don’t think this is the time to be doing this! Father, perhaps Tia—”
“Don’t worry about Florentia and go.”
Originally, he had intended to drop by Grandfather’s office for a brief report before having dinner with me, since he was getting off work early for the first time in a while.
Father hurriedly gathered the fabric he had brought and told me,
“Tia, I’m sorry but Daddy has to go back to work. It seems we’ll have to have dinner another time, what should we do?”
“It’s okay! Have a good day, Daddy!”
I smiled with relief and waved my hand.
Father, who looked back a few times as if feeling sorry, eventually ran out of the office.
A hand grabbed my shoulder as I watched him with a satisfied smile.
“Shall we have dinner with your old grandfather today?”
Oh! An unexpected gain.
I quickly nodded and answered,
“Yes, Grandfather! I want to eat meat!”

“Ho ho, I didn’t know our Florentia ate so well.”
“It’s delicious!”
“Yes, eat plenty and grow big and strong.”
This is cheating.
Of course, I knew that the chef who cooked for Father and me was different from the chef who cooked for Grandfather, the Head of the family, but the difference was this huge!
Chewing on the tender, juicy steak made me so happy.
I now had more reasons to eat with Grandfather often.
“Grandfather, you eat too!”
“This grandfather is full just watching you eat well.”
When I finished the meat I had cut, Grandfather began cutting my steak into bite-sized pieces for me.
“I’ve been seeing many new sides of you lately, Florentia.”
“Cough. …Pardon?”
“The one who was so timid and such a crybaby is now hitting her cousin. The one who was a picky eater and troubled her father so much is now eating so heartily. And today…”
The meat that was going down well seemed to get stuck in the middle of my esophagus.
Did he find out?
I tried my best to act nonchalant, poking a vegetable next to the meat and putting it in my mouth, constantly observing his expression.
“Florentia.”
“Yes, yes?”
“Don’t worry anymore.”
I wasn’t sure what he was saying, but it didn’t seem like he was questioning my sudden change.
“That kid…”
He smiled somewhat wryly, yet stroked the back of my head, seemingly proud of me.
Since it seemed alright for now, I put a piece of meat Grandfather had cut into my mouth and changed the subject.
“Oh, delicious! Hahahaha…”
“Eat plenty. If it’s not enough, I’ll tell them to bring more.”
“Yes, Grandfather!”
Fortunately, Grandfather said nothing more after that.
He pushed the foods I liked towards me, and we finished our meal normally.
Feeling relieved, I was enjoying the fruit and sweet chocolate for dessert when I felt Grandfather’s gaze fixed on me again.
When I stopped eating, Grandfather asked in a subtle voice,
“Florentia, is there anything you desire?”
“Anything I desire?”
Why is he suddenly asking that?
“What do you usually like?”
“I… like books.”
I answered cautiously, unable to understand the reason.
“Books, huh…”
Grandfather, who had been stroking his splendid beard and thinking for a moment, snapped his fingers and said,
“Alright. Since you like books, I will build you a small library!”
“Aha, a library… No, a library?!”
What does he mean he’ll build me a library just because I said I like books?
I was startled, but Grandfather chuckled heartily instead.
“It’s the birthday of Rulac’s youngest granddaughter; shouldn’t I do at least that much to save face?”
“Oh, birthday!”
I had forgotten for a moment.
My birthday was approaching.
The birthday where Father had promised to buy me a mother horse and a baby horse as gifts.
I had been so busy lately that I hadn’t noticed how time was passing.
“Ah, so that’s why!”
As soon as I realized my birthday was coming soon, I began to understand my cousins’ strange behavior.
“Why are you asking?”
“Lorraine, and Giliou and Mayron, were curious about what color I liked. Now I know why.”
Grandfather chuckled with satisfaction.
“Our Florentia seems to have become close with her other cousins.”
Could you call that close?
Still, compared to my previous life, I was getting along quite well with my three cousins, so I nodded.
“Yes, that’s good to see. Very good to see.”
Grandfather, who stroked my head again, asked with shining eyes,
“So, how does a library sound as a birthday gift?”
A library as an eighth birthday gift.
Following Father’s horse and foal set, it was a scale that I simply couldn’t get used to.
“Hmm. So, only I can use it?”
“If you wish, I will make it so.”
Actually, it wasn’t a bad offer.
As Father became busy, I had gained some time to myself, but recently, I had been staying with the twins at Shananet’s residence.
So, I felt the need for a space, in any form, where I could quietly organize my thoughts and use it as a kind of office in the future.
However, I shook my head.
“A library just for me would be nice, but please give me something else for my birthday this time, Grandfather.”
“Something else? Tell me.”
“It’s nothing big. Just grant me a favor later.”
“A favor?”
Grandfather, who widened his eyes for a moment, burst into laughter.
“Hahahaha! A favor, a favor!”
I also looked at Grandfather with an innocent smile, but sweat was beading in my palms from nervousness.
Soon, something would happen that would require Grandfather’s help.
If this request were denied now, I would have to find another way to ask Grandfather for a favor.
“Do you know that it’s a much bigger birthday gift than building a library?”
As expected.
Grandfather was not easy to deal with.
“Is that so?”
I feigned ignorance, giggling, as if I didn’t know much about such things.
“Hmm…”
Grandfather looked at me with a strange gaze for a moment.
And then, he smiled kindly and said,
“Alright, let’s do that.”
Haa, thank goodness.
I forced myself to swallow a sigh of relief and then exclaimed loudly,
“Wow! Thank you, Grandfather!”
“You’re quite happy, you rascal.”
With this, the means for that time were prepared.
I plucked a grape from the bunch in front of me and ate it, enjoying the sweetness of the moment.