Seventh Daughter 3-4

 

Chapter 3-4 : About The Invoice

 

The fourth daughter of the Atwood Family, Jasmine, had poor eyesight. She couldn’t do heavy work, so she always did simple work such as knitting at the corner of the mansion. She wasn’t a very talkative person and didn’t have much presence at home.

*/Here’s the most updated family structure of the Atwood Family based on the story progress so far:

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The lord of the house || Aaron de la Atwood || 63 years old
The lady of the house || Ella || 53 years old
Eldest daughter || Bonnie || 26 years old || married with Alex Morgan de la Atwood (no child yet)
Second daughter || Robin || 23 years old || married with the son of the Copeland Family (divorced)
Third daughter || Clara || 19 years old || married with the eldest son of the Curtis Family
Forth daughter || Jasmine || 17 years old || marriage partner has been decided (someone from Darelias Family)
Fifth daughter || Penelope || 16 years old || married with the second son of the Curtis Family

Baronet Chloe de la Atwood || 14 years old || a student of the Adrashelm Royal Girls’ Academy (Commerce Department)
Baron Mylia de la Atwood || 12 years old || a student of the Adrashelm Royal Girls’ Academy (Magic Department)

――――――――――――――――――――

None of the family members knew that Mylia and Chloe had been ennobled by the queen, and because they both had become nobles, they lived independently from the Atwood Family.

（So that muslcebrain finally forced Jasmine onee-sama to get married, huh…? I wonder what kind of people the Darelias Family are… I’ve never heard about them but I hope they are not bad people…）

「Jasmine…? I’ve heard that name. If I’m not mistaken, there was a rumor about a girl named Jasmine among aristocrats a while ago.」(Aria)

When Aria said that, Mylia, Chloe, and the manager turned their gazes toward her.

「Really? Can you tell us about that?」(Chloe)

Aria replied to Chloe with a nod, fixed her sitting posture, and started talking.

「Actually, I heard about this from Diana onee-sama. She said that not long after Mylia-san received her first Dragon Slayer emblem from the queen, for some reason, many aristocrats sent engagement requests to Miss Jasmine of the Atwood Family.」(Aria)

「Eh…? But why?」(Mylia)

Mylia couldn’t hide her surprise.

（If they sent engagement requests right after I became a Dragon Slayer, then it’s not weird that Jasmine onee-sama’s engagement party will be held soon…）

It had been two and a half months since Mylia got her first Dragon Slayer emblem.

If those aristocrats sent soldiers with fast horses to deliver their letters to the Atwood Family, then it wasn’t weird that Robin could get to the royal capital real fast because she most likely went along with the soldiers when they returned to the royal capital. After all, although it takes two months of travel from the Atwood territory to the royal capital with a carriage, it only takes a month with a fast horse.

「This is just my guess, but I think those aristocrats just want to become your relativesー No, to be exact, become a relative of a Dragon Slayer.」(Aria)

「So… Jasmine onee-sama suddenly became a very popular lady because I became a Dragon Slayer?」(Mylia)

「Yeah, probably.」(Aria)

（So those people want to marry a fragile girl like Jasmine onee-sama not because they love her, but because they want my power…?）

「But even if they married Jasmine onee-sama, it’s still up to me to decide whether I will help them or not, right?」(Mylia)

「Even if you don’t want to help them, being the husband of a Dragon Slayer’s sister alone is a big advantage in aristocratic society.」(Aria)

When Aria said that, Chloe and the store manager, Ghedel, nodded in agreement.

「Other than your power as a strong magician, I think they were also expecting financial assistance from you in the future. After all, magicians, especially talented ones like you, can make a lot more money than ordinary people. In fact, you got tons of gold coins for defeating elder dragons, right?」(Aria)

「I see…」(Mylia)

「Oh, right. I also heard that thanks to you becoming a Dragon Slayer, the bad reputation of the Atwood Family that their second daughter had an affair has been recovered.」(Aria)

「Really? I see, so because of that too those aristocrats are sure to marry Jasmine onee-sama.」(Mylia)

「Yes. But unfortunately for the second daughter, no one sent engagement requests to her even though she is currently single. Looks like no one trusts her.」(Aria)

「Hee~」(Mylia)

When Mylia heard that, she imagined Robin’s frustrated face and smirked.

（That woman must be really frustrated that Jasmine onee-sama became so popular. I bet she shouted, “Why did no one proposed to me!?” and screamed while holding her head.）

「I heard about this rumor two months ago. I should have told you sooner… I’m sorry… I was too focused on saving my grandma at that time…」(Aria)

Aria lowered her eyebrows, looking apologetic.

「No, it’s okay. Thank you for telling us, Aria.」(Chloe)

「Chloe onee-sama…」(Aria)

After smiling at Aria, Chloe turned her gaze toward the manager and talked to him with a calm voice.

「Ghedel-san, would you like to tell us in more detail about the purchase in this invoice? You can rest assured because we will definitely pay.」(Chloe)

「Understood. Six days ago, Miss Robin came with a letter from the Darelias Family, saying that she came on their behalf. After looking around the store for about two hours, she decided to buy a necklace and a pair of earrings. She told us that Miss Mylia de la Atwood would pay and went home. Because Miss Robin came on behalf of the Darelias Family, we contacted the Darelias Family to confirm if it was really Miss Mylia who would pay for the goods.」(Ghedel)

「And they said, “yes”?」(Chloe)

「Yes. I didn’t think there would be a problem if the one who would pay was the famous Dragon Slayer, so I made the invoice.」(Ghedel)

At that moment, Mylia raised her hand and asked Ghedel a question.

「What if I refuse to pay?」(Mylia)

「Then the payment will be billed to the Atwood Family or the Darelias Family.」(Ghedel)

Saying that, the manager stood up, grabbed a document from a filing cabinet and showed it to Mylia.

「This is the proof of purchase for the goods Miss Robin bought.」(Ghedel)

（Hmm… fifteen gold coins in total… If it’s converted to yen, it’ll be about one million and five hundred thousand yen… Ha.. haha…）

Mylia had thousands of gold coins, so fifteen is not a big number for her, but when she converted that amount to yen, she couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

（How could that woman think that I would pay that amount…?）

「You can see the date, the total price, the list of goods, the signature of Darelias Family, and the signature of Miss Robin in that document.」(Ghedel)

「Umm… You don’t need my signature even though the invoice is addressed to me?」(Mylia)

「Yes. Because I thought that you were their relative, so I didn’t think there would be a problem.」(Ghedel)

「Is that how it works…?」(Mylia)

（In my previous world, you still have to ask for confirmation from the person who will pay even though the one who is buying the items is part of their family. Looks like there are a lot of things that don’t make sense for me in this aristocratic society…）

Seeing Mylia’s confused face, Chloe stroked Mylia’s head.

「Seems like we were ennobled by the queen at a bad time.」(Chloe)

「What do you mean?」(Mylia)

「Robin came to this store six days ago, while we were ennobled five days ago.」(Chloe)

「Umm… In other words, we still were not nobles when Robin bought jewelry in this store, right?」(Mylia)

「Exactly. Now we are independent because we have become nobles, but at that time, what Ghedel-san knew was that you were the seventh daughter of the Atwood Family. Isn’t that right, Ghedel-san?」(Chloe)

The store manager, Ghedel, nodded to Chloe.

「Yes, exactly.」(Ghedel)

（I see… If Ghedel-san knew that I was a noble, he would have asked me for confirmation before sending this invoice to my mansion, huh…? But… Did Robin really buy these items for Jasmine onee-sama? It’s hard to believe knowing that she’s a greedy woman…）

Mylia turned her gaze to Chloe.

「Onee-chan, do you think Robin knows how to buy stuff on someone’s behalf?」(Mylia)

「I don’t think so.」(Chloe)

「I don’t think so either… Didn’t she think that I could refuse to pay the bill?」(Mylia)

「You know her. She probably still thinks that you will do whatever she says… What an unpleasant woman.」(Chloe)

「You’re right…」(Mylia)

 

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