Magical Tool Master Dahlia Never Compromises ~ Starting Today: Life as a Freelancer ~

I always feel that the time waiting in the carriage is particularly long.

At the banquet, Atya always arrived later than everyone else and left earlier. Sometimes she was escorted in by a knight with a title, sometimes by Wolf. Sometimes she left with the knight, sometimes Wolf would pick her up.

The job was occasionally done by someone else, but Wolff never asked who it was.

A while ago, Dalia entrusted a gift to Wolf, asking him to give it to Atya as a thank you for the wine she had given her before.

Dahlia thought about it and felt that it was not a good idea to give a shoe dryer as a return gift. She planned to give a small magic furnace, but she didn't know if that would be disrespectful.

Because the small magic furnace was closely associated with Wolf, they ultimately decided to give it to him, but they still didn't know if Etaea would use it. Despite this doubt, he still brought Dahlia's carefully wrapped gift.

What happened in the royal city yesterday made him very worried about Dahlia.

However, before leaving, Dahlia herself was worried about the safety of the maid who had stained her clothes. To reassure her, Wolf promised to inform the captain and his brother about the incident and to have someone check on the maid's condition.

It seemed that Dorino and Randolph had known about this for a long time, only Wolff was unaware. Perhaps it was a coincidence, or perhaps they didn't want to worry him. Although he could understand, he still felt inexplicably complicated.

"Mrs. Atya is about to leave."

Finally hearing the servant say this, Wolfe checked his attire and stepped out of the carriage.

Before him stood a magnificent mansion, its pristine white walls and bright red roof. The path was lit by so many magical lanterns that it seemed as bright as day. He walked along the road, then greeted the woman who slowly emerged from the main entrance with a smile and extended his hand.

"I'm coming down to pick you up, Madam Atya."

"Thank you, Wolffred."

He didn't know how many times this had happened. All he had to do was greet Atya like this after a dance or dinner and send her back to the mansion.

Many eyes were fixed on them, but Etaja and Wolf ignored them. It was unclear whether the gazes contained envy, desire, or yearning. Wolf felt neither superior nor interested.

He ignored the voices that were too loud to be called whispers and escorted Etaea to the carriage.

As soon as the car door closed, Wolff let out a long sigh.

"Why are you so absent-minded? It's best to put on a good show in front of a woman. This is also the duty of a flower protector."

"I'm sorry, I'll be more careful next time."

Atya teased with a mischievous smile on her face, and Wolfe apologized to her seriously.

It's really rude of me to often cause her unnecessary worries.

"Wolfred, what's troubling you?"

"A little bit..."

"Is it something about work? Something you can't tell me?"

"No, it's not a military secret. The merchant association I'm guarantor for wants to provide goods to the troops, but things aren't going smoothly."

"If you want me to take care of it, I can help with that."

"Thank you. I appreciate your kindness."

Wolf refused without hesitation. Dahlia certainly didn't want Aitaya to interfere in this matter.

"Your expression was so heavy, I thought you wanted to break up but couldn't bring yourself to do it."

""separate"?"

"Yeah, break up with me. If you keep picking me up like this, won't the people you cherish get jealous? If it bothers you, we can end it at any time."

"No, she and I are not in that kind of relationship."

He couldn't imagine Dalia being jealous of this. They were friends, that was natural.

"If you saw that friend dancing with other men, would that be okay with you?"

Wolf imagined Dahlia dancing at a ball as a baron. She'd look good in a dress, but it didn't seem like she'd be very good at it. He was also somewhat concerned about her safety, but ultimately, he couldn't stop her from dancing. The best he could do was stand by and watch over her.

"As a friend, I'm a little worried, but I won't stop her. I don't have the right to do that."

He had unconsciously changed his self-pronoun from "Zaixia" to "I" without even noticing. (Note: The first-person pronoun in the original text changed from the more formal "私" to the masculine "俺" used in private situations.)

Atya didn't say anything, just smiled with her eyes narrowed.

After returning to the mansion, Wolfe drank only a glass of white wine and then went into the guest room.

The maid opened the floral wrapping in front of Etaea and took out a small magic furnace. Inside was a folded card with neat handwriting stating that it was a return gift for the bottle of wine she had given her last time.

Eta placed the small magic furnace given by Wolf's friend on the table.

She seemed very interested in the furnace, admiring it from different angles and confirming the location of the magic stone.

"Mrs. Atya, would you like to use this to boil water for tea?"

Seeing that Atya was in a good mood, the male attendant asked half-jokingly.

Unexpectedly, she agreed with a smile and said she would make it herself, not even wanting anyone to teach her how.

The maid beside him looked very flustered and cast a reproachful look at the servant. He felt very sorry.

"Speaking of which... that kid always only accepts gifts that he can afford to pay for. He seems to really dislike owing me 'favors'."

Etaja complained as she stared at the hot water in the small pot above the small magic furnace.

She then scooped up three full cups of high-quality tea from the side with a spoon and poured it all into the boiling water.

The maid quickly covered her mouth and let out a silent scream.

"Maybe it's because he's a man, so it's normal for him not to owe a woman a favour."

"Really? Is it too much to ask for him to rely on me a little more?"

"Given his personality, it might be difficult..."

The servant's mind flashed with the overly handsome profile of the black-haired man.

The man named Wolffred Scafalot.

He had been going to Atya's house for many years, and every time he picked her up from a dinner party, he would stay here.

But he never slept with Aita, nor did he accept a penny. He never even asked the powerful Aita for any small favor. He simply came here as a guest.

A few years ago, Wolfred was promoted to the position of Red Armor in the monster subjugation force, which he had always longed for.

After discussing with her attendants, Atya decided to give him a Crimson Fox coin purse as a gift. It was a high-end product with exquisite carvings and was very expensive.

He accepted it and thanked him with a smile. The attendant breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that as long as he liked it, it was good.

Unexpectedly, the next week he gave Atya a small bag of almost the same price and made of the same crimson fox material.

Receiving a gift from a woman of higher status and older than her would have been enough to simply say thank you or give her a flower, but he didn't do that.

Later, every time he received a gift from Atya, he would give her something of equal value in return.

It's as if the balance between the two of them is not allowed to tilt even slightly, giving people a feeling of walking on thin ice.

From the moment they first met, Wolffred didn't have the youthfulness or aura that a man of his age should have.

He was always polite, even greeting his servants, and never seemed arrogant.

When Etaja taught him how to dance, he studied diligently; when she taught him the etiquette and speech of the nobility, he listened attentively. Only when he tasted fine wine and delicious food would he occasionally show a happy expression, but that was only for a brief moment.

The attendants had heard roughly about his past experiences. He owed no debt to anyone and kept a certain distance from everyone, sometimes making people feel that there was a cold and dark world behind him.

However, he has recently begun to show a rich expression that is consistent with his age, no, even like a teenager.

Atya was very happy about this.

Since when, Atya started talking about him more and more often.

"I really hope Wolffred learns to rely on others a little more. Don't all men in the world like 'woman's consideration'?"

After saying this, Atya turned off the fire with her slender white fingers.

Then he picked up the small pot with trembling hands, filtered the tea and poured it into the teacup.

There were obviously many problems with brewing tea this way. The color was so dark that it must have tasted very astringent, but the servant decided to watch silently. The maid turned pale, and the servant didn't know how to comfort her.

"This is the first time in my life that I've boiled water to make tea myself."

Hearing Etaea's contented words, the attendant tried hard to suppress his laughter.

He tried to imagine the taste of the black tea he would taste later, and managed to hold it back with great difficulty.

"By the way, I want to know about the matter that Wolfe mentioned today."

"Didn't you promise him not to interfere?"

"I only said 'I won't show up', I didn't say 'I won't do anything'."

"...Mrs. Aiteya."

"It's not too much to help a wet puppy survive the storm, right?"

Seeing Atya's dazzling smile, the attendant sighed deeply.

He had served Atya for many years and knew her personality well. At this point, no one could stop her.

"Come and try this black tea."

On the surface, she is a willful aristocratic woman, but in fact, she has always been serving her country and is surprisingly loyal to her own people.

This woman brewed her first cup of black tea—she had served him for nearly twenty years, and now he was the first to drink it. Should he feel grateful for it, or should he be proud of his courage to take on the challenge?

In the end, the taste of the black tea made the three people present cry out in pain.

Volume 4: For Whom Was the Expedition Furnace Built?

In the office rented by the Roseti Chamber of Commerce from the Merchant Guild, Dahlia and Ivano sat across the table from each other. Ivano had just given silver coins to the people who were helping the Chamber of Commerce write documents and letters, and asked them to go outside for a cup of tea. So, they were the only ones left in the office.

The day after returning from the Royal City, the two of them repeatedly discussed how to introduce the expedition furnace and determine the price.

"That's enough for the product introduction. The problem still lies in the price."

They are going into the city tomorrow. They have finally reached an agreement on the content of the report and have made general preparations for it.

But ideas about price remain two parallel lines.

"It seems the Finance Department is strictly reviewing the Monster Suppression Force budget. Five previous Monster Suppression Force captains inflated expedition expenses and embezzled public funds."

"That sounds like a long time ago."

"Yes, you and I weren't even born then. It was Fortu-sama who told me. It was this invasion that reduced the number of marquisates from eight to seven. The captain in question was a marquis, but was stripped of his title after the incident."

Dahlia now understood why the Finance Department strictly controlled the military budget.

But Goulart even said he would pay out of his own pocket to purchase furnaces for his subordinates to use during the expedition. It is impossible for such a person to embezzle public funds.

"I must reiterate once again. Even if the transaction is with a monster-slaying force, you must not harm the interests of the guild and lower the price."

"Would it be too low to lower the price to about the same as a small magic furnace?"

"Yes. To put it bluntly, it's 'too low'."

Ivano took off his dark blue coat and hung it on the back of the chair, then clasped his hands on the table. He took a deep breath and began to talk non-stop.

"President, my father was known as the 'President of the Kind Merchants Guild.' After the death of my grandfather, nicknamed the 'President of the Smart Merchants Guild,' my father lent a hand to a merchant guild in need, acting as a loan guarantor. In the end, he lost everything: his reputation, his clients, his property, his house, his family, and his own life. Everything was gone."

"Ivano..."

"It may sound selfish, but making money is the foundation of a merchant. Loyalty and dignity are important, but they alone won't sustain a business. Only by pocketing money can one truly be called a merchant, a worthy member of a guild. I realized this in my youth, and I don't want Miss Dahlia, as the guild president, to fall into the same trap of idealism."

Hearing Ivano's sincere words, Dahlia responded seriously.

"This might be an opportunity to establish long-term cooperation with the military. Selling it to them at a reduced price this time should also be beneficial, right?"

"Expedition Furnaces are designed to be durable and resistant to damage, so it's hard to predict how many they'll repurchase. Furthermore, other units in the Royal City don't need Expedition Furnaces; they only need small Magic Furnaces, so we're not sure if they'll order them. With all this in mind, it wouldn't be wise to lower the price at the outset."

"Wouldn't it be profitable just to provide toe socks and insoles to the troops?"

"Although there is profit, the two are different commodities. No merchant wants to sell goods that don't make a profit."

So, the two are indeed different. A normal chamber of commerce wouldn't just lower the price of a single item like this. Dahlia frantically thought of other reasons.

"Perhaps this will strengthen our relationship with the troops?"

"We already have Lord Wolf and Captain Gulat to connect us with the troops. Let's have the members purchase individually and wait for the product to gradually become popular. The product itself is good, and with enough time, it will naturally become popular."

"Until then, are we just going to stand by and watch? They risk their lives to exorcise monsters in other places, and when they're done, they can't even get a nutritious and delicious meal... Their work is so dangerous, and the meal they eat during the expedition might very well be their last."

"Is this just your personal 'sympathy' and 'concern'? As the head of a merchant guild and a magical tool master, can you sell expedition furnaces to the troops just because of such personal feelings?"

Ivano stared at her quietly with his deep blue eyes.

"With all due respect—'Ms. Dahlia,' are you confusing Wolfe-sama with the Monster Suppression Squad?"