Redemption of the Blue Rose Princess - Chapter 7.4

Chapter 7-4

The originally thriving art industry in Heilland was set to fall in popularity in the face of the foreign market. This was a bold prediction from a well-known eccentric who rarely socialized with his fellow nobles.

“So, you came up with a solution for that situation. Creating a ‘large-scale trading company specialized in distribution’, huh?”

“Rather than coming up with it, I was just copying the Ealdar’s Ist Company. Oh, Ist Company is the large-scale company that I previously told you before, the one with permission from the Empress.”

The young lord replied while shrugging his shoulder slightly.

The Ist Company was said to gather information from all the merchants scattered around Ealdar while also acting as a contact point for those merchants to sell the country’s products overseas. In other words, they acted as a business intermediary.

The way they worked was pretty simple. Say that someone wanted to tailor a dress or order a set of cutlery, they could contact the Ist Company, and the company would connect the customer with the right company that could complete their requests. It was beneficial for the customer since they could get high-quality goods pretty easily.

At the same time, the companies that worked with Ist Company also profited from this. By just paying the intermediary fee, they could receive orders from both nobles and royalty and gave them chance to show those great figures their worth. This wouldn’t be possible if the Ist Company didn’t act as an intermediary for them.

“I see. If we can establish a large-scale company similar to Ist Company in Heilland, our country’s scale of business will rapidly expand.”

Jude nodded, his face was beaming in happiness as he saw Clovis agreeing with his view.

“Clovis– no, Clo-kun! You actually understood everything, didn’t you? You don’t actually need me to explain everything, no?”

“Clo-kun…? Ah, no, you’re overestimating me.”

The black-haired aide, though upset being suddenly called with a strange nickname, managed to remain humble.

Now, both the Princess and her aide finally understood Jude’s proposal.

Is now the time for us to present our view?

Alicia turned her gaze to her aide next to her, just to make sure that it was the right time for them to strike, and as expected, the black-haired eye quietly nodded at her. The Princess straightened her back and turned her gaze to face the young lord in front of her once again.

“Lord Jude, I’m sure you understand this, but, the thing that you’ve explained, while it makes a lot of sense, it still lacked evidence.”

“That’s a rather harsh evaluation.”

He laughed bitterly while holding out his hand lightly, making an ‘I give up’ gesture.

“That’s what both the Regional and Privy Council told me. They said after looking at the data that came from the territories across the kingdom, it’s hard to believe that the kingdom’s art industry would ever fall in popularity.”

With her bright eyes fixed on Jude, Alicia continued.

“In addition, for you to turn your proposal into a reality, you need to get the approval of all the nobles in Heilland, and, of course, even after that, you’ll still need to get the approval from the Privy Council, which is the biggest obstacle for you currently.”

“That’s true isn’t it?”

He nodded as her brows lowered, turning his expression into that of an annoyed one.

“The trading company I want to establish is the trading company that would be able to move around freely across the territory, there’s no way that the nobles would allow such company to exist. In addition, they wouldn’t accept the fact that they would still need to pay an intermediary fee to another company.”

“Correct. That’s roughly the reason why the Council rejected your proposal.”

Alicia nodded while feeling relieved that she was able to say her point without stuttering. Of course, most of the points she stated were something that her aide had told her beforehand.

Now, this is where everything begins. Alicia thought as she opened her mouth with a determined expression.

“I still want to adopt your idea. I’m planning to put together a draft based on your proposal and put it on the national agenda.”

“Right, I still can’t comprehend why would you actually do that.”

Jude leaned forward as he intertwined both his hands. Even though he was so absorbed in the conversation, he didn’t fail to be considerate toward the other parties as he offered both of them their tea with a ‘please’. Gratefully, the Princess took a sip from her cup since she was starting to get thirsty from all the talking.

Jude raised his eyebrows mischievously as he looked at Alicia.

“If I may ask, Princess, why are you willingly involving yourself with my proposal in the first place? After all, my proposal was rejected once by the Regional Council. No matter how you look at it, it’s really a strange thing for someone like you to do.”

“There are two reasons.”

Alicia held up her two small fingers.

“First, the profit. If we could realize this, the profit that the kingdom would receive will surely be great. Sure, we have to cross the hurdle that is the Privy Council, but it’s worth all the effort we put into it since we can also ensure the future of the Heilland’s craftsmen.”

And the second one. As she spoke, Alicia’s eyelids drooped slightly.

“Second… Well, it’s my selfish desire… To help my people, even if I tread on a difficult path, I’ll still do my best, as long as my people will be saved by my actions.”

This is the result of being blinded by love, drowned by the delusions that came from your heart, and turning your back on your own people.

She remembered the man’s voice, burning with anger.

So, Alicia swore, that she will never repeat her past mistakes.

‘The Country’s Poisonous Rose.’ 

I will remember the time when I was called that by the people of my country as a reminder for me.

If there was even the slightest possibility that her people would starve, Alicia wouldn’t ignore it. After all, she had already sworn to herself that she would use her position as a Princess to the utmost and do whatever she could to help her people.

TL: Iyo

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