Chapter 157 – Turnover

It was a bright, scorching afternoon.

Jamer, the jeweler who ran the Goldrain shop Lumina, stepped outside while holding his throbbing head.

He had come to check his shop for the first time in days, but the number of accessories sold could be counted on one hand.

‘At this rate, going bankrupt is only a matter of time.’

His business had been declining for the past few years, but starting this year, sales had dropped sharply.

Most shop owners based in Goldrain were in similar situations.

Since outside merchant groups usually judged contracts based on the main store’s popularity and revenue, this outcome was inevitable.

Standing on the quiet Goldrain main street, Jamer frowned as he looked at Café Delitar across the diagonal street.

‘I shouldn’t have listened to the association president back then.’

If he had taken the subsidy and opened his shop by the lakeside, he would be humming happily by now.

But spilled water couldn’t be gathered again.

Baron Gelfrey, who recently faced waves of complaints from merchants, shut himself inside his mansion, pretending to be sick.

And today of all days, the carriage was moving so slowly.

He was grinding his teeth in frustration when he saw someone post a new notice board outside Delitar.

‘What’s that?’

Feeling instinctively that it might be something he shouldn’t miss, Jamer hurried across the street.

**“We will support the exterior wall painting costs for Goldrain shops.

Refresh your dull shop exterior and transform it into one that catches the eye!”**

‘They’ll pay for exterior painting?’

Jamer tilted his head at the strange offer, then his eyes moved to the text below.

**“Painting costs will be supported in the order of arrival.

1st group: 5 shops – full support
2nd group: 10 shops – 50% support
3rd group: 15 shops – 10% support
Shop owners who want painting must visit the Grand Duke’s Castle in person.”**

This odd notice must have been posted by the Grand Duchess.

Whether he actually needed painting or not didn’t matter.

‘This isn’t the time to hesitate.’

He forgot all dignity and dashed toward the coachman arriving in front of his shop.

“Master?”

“Go—now! To the Grand Duke’s Castle! As fast as possible!”

He had no intention of repeating his last regret.

* *

‘Maybe I rushed too much.’

Sitting in the reception room of the East Wing, Jamer cleared his throat awkwardly.

— “Mr. Jamer, you are the first one.”

Hearing the administrator’s answer when he quietly asked what number he was made him realize he might have overreacted.

Well, of course—he ran over before the ink on the notice had even dried.

And honestly, he didn’t even need his exterior painted.

What use was that when his sales were barely surviving?

‘It would have been better if they just gave subsidies again.’

Just then, the door opened, and surprisingly, the Grand Duchess entered with several administrators.

“You, I’ve heard plenty about.”

Jamer stiffened when she said that.

“I hear you’ve sent letters to the administrators several times.”

The Grand Duchess spoke gently, but the words had weight.

The administrators sitting across from him subtly averted their eyes.

He had sent letters multiple times.

Since Baron Gelfrey, the president of the merchants’ association, pretended not to notice the crisis, and the surrounding shop owners only sighed, someone had to issue a proper warning.

His letters had also included protest about the Grand Duchess giving too many advantages to the Valpide Lakeside Market.

“It seems you were quite dissatisfied with me?”

At the direct remark, Jamer swallowed and answered carefully.

“I only wished that, as much as Your Highness treasures the lakeside, you would also pay some attention to Goldrain.”

“If you say it like that, it sounds unfair to me. I gave Goldrain the first chance, you know.”

“Well, that is true, but…”

Jamer hesitated, then sighed.

“…Honestly, that mistake was the merchants’ association’s fault.”

The Grand Duchess’s personality was unclear, but he believed that admitting what should be admitted was the right thing.
Even though that apology was actually the association president’s responsibility.

“But if Goldrain collapses, the entire Blenheim territory will be badly damaged.”

To Jamer, Goldrain, and Valpide Lake were fundamentally different types of marketplaces.

They had every possibility to coexist and prosper together.

“Please… do not abandon us.”

He hoped she wouldn’t punish all the shop owners because of the merchants’ association’s behaviour.

But at his logical plea, the Grand Duchess—so elegant and composed—puffed her lips out like a pout.

“Well, saying I ‘abandoned’ you is a bit much.”

As she finished speaking, Administrator Adem smoothly placed a document in front of Jamer.

“This is the official letter Her Highness sent to the merchants’ association yesterday morning.”

She sent a letter to the association?

No one had told him that.

As one of the senior members, he should have known.

He picked up the document, confused—and then frowned deeply.

The letter contained the same content as the wall notice: she would support exterior painting costs for Goldrain shops and asked the association to collect names.

There was no mention of “first come, first served,” no ranking, no discounts.

“I waited all day for them to send me a list of names,” she said calmly. “But no reply came. I cannot wait forever, so I posted the notice myself.”

“…Unbelievable.”

Gelfrey, that useless idiot!

‘So originally, everyone could have received support.’

Jamer ground his teeth.

The Grand Duchess had extended a hand first—yet the association dared to ignore it.

‘No wonder Her Highness’s tone was sharp from the beginning.’

“It seems Baron Gelfrey is far too busy to serve as the association president.”

Jamer hinted that someone more capable should take his place.

If things continued like this, Goldrain really would collapse.

At that moment, the Grand Duchess asked while watching Jamer’s trembling mouth:

“Do you have anyone specific in mind?”

Her tone was casual, but Jamer was a shopkeeper—survival depended on reading subtleties.

The fact that she asked meant she already had someone in mind.

“Not yet… But at the very least, it should be someone who is trying to save Goldrain. Not someone who is letting it die.”

“That won’t be easy.”

Her calm, almost detached tone annoyed him slightly, but she wasn’t wrong.

After all, it was Count Avorre who installed Gelfrey as president.

‘Even if Count Avorre is lying low because of his daughter’s expulsion…’

Jamer rubbed his aching forehead.

Then the Grand Duchess said something shocking.

“Why not just make a second merchants’ association?”

“…What?”

Jamer blinked dumbly.

“Make… another merchants’ association?”

He looked at Adem, thinking it was absurd, but the administrator opened the law book.

“The laws do not state that there must only be one merchants’ association.”

Hearing an administrator point it out made Jamer realise the Grand Duchess was being serious.

‘Instead of removing the president… she wants to create a whole new association.’

“So,” she continued brightly, “I’d like you to create it.”

Her bold request made Jamer look up in shock.

The Grand Duchess’s eyes sparkled.

“…Why me?”

Anyone would jump at such an offer—so why pick him?

She smiled.

“You were the first one to arrive. That makes you the perfect person.”

…Just because of that?

Not his skills or character?

He felt his ears heat up.

“But… I can’t create an association alone. And I don’t even know how many shop owners would leave the current one.”

At that moment, the administrator from earlier came into the room—the one who processed Jamer’s application.

He politely handed the Grand Duchess a document.

“Your Highness, all three rounds are fully booked.”

“That was faster than expected.”

She nodded in satisfaction and handed the document to Jamer.

On it were the names of 30 shop owners who had already applied—listed under 1st, 2nd, and 3rd groups.

“All… thirty spots are already taken?”

Jamer couldn’t hide his shock.

It hadn’t even been thirty minutes since he had tea with the Grand Duchess.

And yet, so many shop owners applied without caring about the association’s reaction.

“For new members… I thought you could start by speaking with these people.”

The Grand Duchess lifted her teacup elegantly.

He realised she was right.

Those who rushed to sign up clearly had no loyalty to the current merchants’ association.

They would likely switch to a new one without hesitation.

Jamer slowly lifted his head.

“Don’t tell me… You created this ‘first come, first served’ event because of this?”

Only now did he understand her intention.

The Grand Duchess smiled teasingly.

“What? Did you think I made that rule just to watch you panic and run here?”

Jamer closed his mouth tightly.

He had suspected she was trying to mock the Goldrain shop owners for ignoring her.

Now he felt ridiculous.

No matter how young she was, she was the Grand Duchess.

Her strategy was far more sophisticated than he imagined.

Jamer couldn’t help but let out a breath of admiration.