BSGE 84

“Chu chu chu chit!”

Beatty laughed like a final boss, puffing out her white-furred chest and placing her tiny paws on her hips.

‘The Fairy Stones they just mentioned… It must be the same ones Ritter used to brag about!’

Her eyes sparkled as she recalled her knowledge about this special mineral – information that was highly classified at this time.

The Last Fairy’s Gift.

That’s what they called these Fairy Stones, and they possessed extraordinary powers.

Like magic stones imbued with a wizard’s spells, Fairy Stones transformed their surroundings as if fairies had worked their magic there.

Ritter had claimed a fairy presented him with these stones in a cave his subordinate had purchased, just before disappearing.

True to the fairy’s nickname as “Friend of Plants” – beings born from flower petals and sustained by dew – any garden where a Fairy Stone was planted would flourish with even the most difficult plants.

The soil’s previous condition didn’t matter at all.

Even if the ground had become desert-like from nutrient-hungry garden trees, burying a Fairy Stone would transform it into rich, moist plains soil within a short time.

‘They say it later became a must-have item for high nobles wanting to show off their gardens.’

This remarkable effect earned them the name “The Last Fairy’s Gift.”

Ritter’s popularity had soared after encountering what was thought to be one of the last fairies, which hadn’t been seen for hundreds of years.

People found it mystical that he had been chosen by the last known fairy.

‘I heard Ritter received enormous compensation for distributing these, Fairy Stones.’

The fact that the fairy vanished after giving Ritter the stones, leaving only a limited quantity in the world, only fueled the nobles’ desires further.

Ritter had profited immensely by only giving Fairy Stones to close allies who offered him substantial “gifts” in return.

“Chit!”

Beatty’s whiskers twitched as she snorted loudly, remembering a certain name at the top of her payback list.

‘I can’t just sit by and let Ritter hoard something so precious.’

Though she wasn’t sure what Ritter was plotting with Count Zealot, their secretive behavior around the “Fairy Stones” suggested they hadn’t obtained them yet.

‘If I could find this cave with the Fairy Stones before that Ritter…’

Beatty’s nose twitched as she pondered seriously.

‘Before, Fairy Stones were only used to grow exotic plants in noble gardens, but…’

Sparkle.

The squirrel’s black eyes gleamed as she thought of a new possibility.

‘If we planted these Fairy Stones in our land, we might be able to completely transform the northern territory’s nature!’

While the Tuberoseup had temporarily addressed the food shortage, it wasn’t truly a fundamental solution.

The North’s food scarcity stemmed from soil too poor for proper farming.

But if they could discover this cave of Fairy Stones and use them throughout the northern lands…

‘We could solve our territory’s food problems once and for all!’

Beatty’s eyes sparkled as she imagined a prosperous future for their domain.

Not just solving the immediate food crisis, but potentially improving the very nature of their territory!

The chance to both thwart Ritter and eliminate their territory’s problems entirely – it was perfect.

Filled with excitement about her brilliant plan, Beatty scampered off to tell her father.

*

In the Duke’s office.

Count Zealot sat calmly before the Duke at his large desk, awaiting an answer.

In the Duke’s office.

“You want to sell off the outer mountain region?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Having returned from his disciplinary period, Count Zealot bowed his head respectfully, as if showing deep remorse for his past actions.

“While searching for ways to make amends for my previous mistakes and benefit the family, I discovered something.”

Count Zealot pulled out a rolled bundle of papers from his chest and spread them out.

“As you well know, looking here, there’s mountainous terrain taking up space with no particular value.”

He continued, pointing to the map laid out on the Duke’s desk.

“There’s not a trace of profitable resources like ore or rare beasts, and with slopes too steep and dense with scrub trees, farming is out of the question.”

“True, I recall that area has been left as wasteland for quite some time.”

“Yes, just abandoned land…”

The subordinates who were familiar with the area nodded in agreement with Count Zealot’s detailed description.

“And then, some amateur… ahem! A self-proclaimed researcher from outside came asking to purchase this area.”

After deliberately implying he’d found a sucker, the Count cleared his throat and pointed to another document in his pile.

“As you can see here, this is the contract with his seal already stamped, ready to pay immediately.”

Count Zealot particularly emphasized the clearly written amount.

“My, that much money for such worthless land…?”

“Perhaps being an outsider, he doesn’t know any better about the pricing?”

The others murmured in surprise at the substantial amount written on the contract Count Zealot presented.

Seeing the positive reactions from the other retainers, Count Zealot straightened his back confidently and continued.

“Ahem! Most of our territory’s outer regions are remote mountains where we can barely collect taxes. How fortunate that we’ve found such a perfect buyer!”

His tone carried a subtle pride in his own cleverness at finding such a mark.

“I suggest we take this opportunity to sell this resourceless mountain land and collect the purchase money-“

“……”

“-that is my proposal for disposing of this mountain region.”

Glancing sidelong at the Duke’s silent face, Count Zealot concluded his pitch.

‘Why isn’t he saying anything? Surely, he wouldn’t reject such an appealing offer.’

Count Zealot watched the Duke tensely, trying to read his thoughts.

‘Has he noticed something?’

Gulp.

As Count Zealot opened his mouth to make another brazen attempt at persuasion…

“We may not find another buyer like this. Before he changes his mind, we should quickly-“

Knock knock.

A small knocking sound came with the opening of the door.

Count Zealot, who had been internally quite tense, felt his momentum break at the sudden visitor.

“Who dares enter the office during an important discussion!”

He turned around irritably, expecting some ill-mannered servant, but…

“…A book?”

An absurd sound escaped Count Zealot’s mouth as he saw the figure entering through the door.

‘My child!’

The Duke jumped to his feet, recognizing the tiny figure barely half the size of a typical northerner.

“Ah, hello.”

Peek.

Beatty, her face mostly hidden behind a huge stack of books, managed to poke her head out sideways to greet everyone.

‘Oh. Quite a crowd here.’

Noticing the office was more crowded than usual during meetings, Beatty struggled to lift her heavy stack of books onto the central table.

“Ah, Young Lady! Let us take those! We’ll carry them!”

“Should I put them here?”

As people rushed forward to help, her load suddenly became lighter.

“You don’t need to carry such things yourself.”

Her father had appeared and effortlessly lifted the stack of books that was nearly half her size.

Beatty flexed her freed hands and looked up at her father as he asked the reason.

“So. What’s all this?”

Though his voice was gruff, his question gave her an immediate chance to speak.

Beatty straightened her chest proudly and announced:

“These are materials about Fairy Stones!”

“!”

Count Zealot’s face instantly froze.

“Fairy Stones…?”

Meanwhile, the retainers, hearing this unfamiliar term, turned to their scholarly adjutant.

“I, I think I read somewhere about magical stones possessed by fairies being called Fairy Stones.”

“Fairies? Hadn’t they vanished from the continent? Ah, could it be…!”

The retainers who had been whispering among themselves suddenly lowered their voices.

“Of course! The Young Lady is still at an age to believe in fairies!”

“Shh. Everyone be quiet. We mustn’t say anything to disturb the Young Lady’s innocent heart!”

The retainers instantly united, wearing warm expressions and nodding like grandmothers knitting in armchairs.

“Ho ho ho, so the Young Lady is looking for Fairy Stones.”

“Yes, yes, it’s natural to be curious. Though they might be as unreachable as treasure buried under a rainbow, the real treasure is in our hearts…”

Pufpufpuf!

The tactless one who went too far was immediately punished and sent to the back.

Beatty gave a strange look to these hulking men who smiled innocently as if they hadn’t done anything, then turned her attention elsewhere.

“!”

Her eyes finally fell on Count Zealot, who had been hidden behind the larger men.

‘That’s…!’

Her eyes sparkled with recognition as she saw the map in front of him.

“Count Zealot, what were you discussing?”

“Pardon?”

Already flustered by the unexpected leak of information about the ‘Fairy Stones,’ Count Zealot flinched at being suddenly addressed.

“It’s a rather boring matter for the Young Lady to hear about.”

However, quickly composing himself, Count Zealot forced a kind expression and replied.

“Hmm. That’s alright.”

“Since its business matters…”

“Or.”

Count Zealot, who had been trying to deflect by saying it was complicated business talk beyond a child’s understanding, had to stop.

“Is it something I’m not supposed to hear about?”

He froze as the black eyes turned toward him carried the same intimidating pressure as when the Duke used his beast power.