When Elise Dioreano returned to the Sant-Elmo Trading Company, the entire place was in an uproar, as though some incident had struck.
Servants hurried up and down the corridors, and shouted orders echoed from somewhere in the distance. The company was usually immaculate and orderly, and Elise found herself knitting her brows.
What on earth is going on?
Uneasy, she headed for her father's office.
The door stood open, and several employees were bustling in and out. Elise hesitated, then stepped forward—and just as she was about to enter, one of the men coming out called to her.
"Welcome home, young miss."
The moment he said it, her father, Gaston, looked up from inside and muttered in a weary voice,
"So you're finally back, Elise."
"I'm home, Father. It looks awfully busy in here today. Did something happen?"
Glancing around at the employees sorting documents at a frantic pace, Elise asked the question.
"What happened? What happened, she says. It's been chaos since morning..."
Leaning back heavily in his chair, Gaston let out a long, exhausted breath. Elise's eyes fell to the import ledgers spread across his desk, and at once she caught the scent of money.
Was there some important visitor from the Imperial State?
The nobility of the Imperial State—they apparently called them court nobles, or something of the sort. And when she thought there might even be a chance to meet a handsome elf, a smile rose to Elise's lips all by itself.
"Ah, the baron-consort of Reberk paid us a visit. The baroness regnant herself also sent word asking us to extend him every courtesy. He is to stay here for the night."
The instant she heard that name, Elise's expression stiffened.
She drew in a sharp breath and stared at Gaston for a moment. Then her brows drew together, and her mouth twisted with unconcealed disgust.
"The baron-consort of Reberk? You mean the man people say used money and power to make the Virtuous Consort his? And on top of that, the one they say is using money borrowed from us to gather women around him?"
Disgust seeped into Elise's voice, turning it low and hard.
To her, nobles who used money and power to acquire women were thoroughly loathsome. And the fact that the woman in question was Lady Celine, the Virtuous Consort she had admired for so long, only made it all the more infuriating.
Worse still, he had apparently been born with the Merchant Gift—something commoner merchants could never obtain no matter how hard they worked for it.
That fact, more than anything, left Elise with a restless unease she could not quite put to rest.
Gaston frowned, and for an instant the look he turned on Elise sharpened. Sensing his surprise, she felt a flicker of tension in her chest.
But his expression soon softened into one tinged with a sigh.
"What sort of nonsense is that? People are saying such things? ...Well, it's true he brought a maid with him who looked like some sort of flower fairy, and he does live in the First Hero's harem. So I suppose it wouldn't be strange if he were recruiting women to work there."
"And what did that sham merchant want?"
The barbed words slipped from Elise's lips before she could stop them.
"Easy there. He's a noble. Do me a favor and don't say anything that could get you charged with insulting one."
As Gaston gave a little shrug, Elise clicked her tongue under her breath and folded her arms.
"I mean, all he did was get the Merchant Gift from the goddess without making any effort at all, didn't he?"
Irritation seeped through the edges of her words, and without realizing it she began tapping the floor lightly with her foot.
That small sound seemed to tighten the air in the room.
Watching her, Gaston gave a wry smile.
"A lady ought not click her tongue."
He chided her gently—but his tone soon turned serious, and a hard gleam came into his eyes.
"Elise, I want you to go to the Reberk Barony. I intend to ask the baron-consort to recommend you for a place in the harem."
The moment those words reached her ears, Elise's heart gave a violent leap.
Her eyes flew wide, disbelief written plainly across her face.
The harem? Me...?
"W-wait, Father, are you serious? And why on earth would I have to go in there? Though I might be willing to let him become one of my little patrons..."
Trying to hide her shock and unease, Elise brushed a hand lightly through her hair.
At her words, Gaston's eyes bulged as he stared at his daughter.
"H-hold on just a minute. What do you mean, 'one of your little patrons'? What in the world have you been up to? Don't tell me you've done anything that would disgrace the company name?"
It took everything Elise had not to laugh at the sight of her father flustered like this. It was rare indeed to see him lose his composure so badly.
"All I do is go out with them once in a while and listen to them talk a little, and in return they're happy to do me all sorts of favors."
"W-what is that supposed to mean...? Don't tell me—you haven't already been sleeping with these men, have you?"
At that, Elise's expression turned serious, and she answered at once.
"I'm not doing anything like that. I'm not some prostitute. Besides, they're proper nobles."
Still unconvinced, Gaston furrowed his brows and lowered his voice gravely.
"Elise, the world is not so sweet. If you get involved with nobles too lightly, you never know when they'll pull the rug out from under you."
Elise gave a small shrug and a light smile.
"I know that much. I draw the line where I should, and I assign them roles to suit their personalities."
"What? What's that supposed to mean?"
Ignoring her father's confusion, Elise went on cheerfully.
"For instance, there's one gentleman who will have a carriage prepared whenever I want to go out of town, and another who always treats me to meals. Then there are the ones who grant my little requests right away, and the ones who quietly carry my heavy things for me."
For a moment Gaston was speechless, opening his mouth only to close it again.
Seeing his reaction, Elise felt a small sense of victory rise in her chest, though she was still a little curious what he would say next.
"Y-you fool!"
Gaston reacted as if he had been launched out of his chair, only to drop back down into it and press a hand to his forehead with a deep sigh.
"Haaah... Honestly, who in the world did you take after...?"
At his reaction, Elise only lifted one corner of her mouth.
"Hold on. This is work."
"What are you talking about?"
As Gaston voiced his bewilderment, Elise continued in earnest.
"It's not as simple as going on a date around town and making small talk. You have to listen carefully to what they say, figure out what's troubling them and what words they want to hear, and then give them a sense of comfort and satisfy their pride."
As Elise said, it was not enough to "just talk."
She had to gather information about noble society, choose the topics that would please them, and leave them satisfied.
It took a great deal of effort.
"Even today, I was comforting a young nobleman because something awful happened at a recent ball and he was feeling miserable."
Elise pressed her lips together and turned her face away with a little huff.
That small gesture made her dissatisfaction plain.
"What was that? What happened?"
When Gaston leaned forward in spite of himself, Elise let a faint smile tug at the corner of her mouth.
"Oh, all right."
With that, she began telling her father what she had heard from the nobleman.
"At a certain ball, a young lady's dress came loose at the seam, and part of her thigh was exposed. But that wasn't even the worst part. One nobleman who saw it mocked her for being indecent, and then started asking the others around him to agree."
Gaston frowned and listened with complete seriousness.
"And among the men he asked for agreement, there was one noble who happened to be the very man that young lady had feelings for. But he got swept along by the mood of the room and ended up blurting out, 'Ah... yes, I suppose so.' The moment she heard that, she burst into tears and ran out of the ballroom..."
When she got that far, Elise let out a small sigh and looked at her father.
But Gaston still wore an expression that said he did not quite understand why this was such a disaster. With a little shrug, Elise continued.
"The truth is, that noble liked her too. He just wasn't listening properly... He was apparently too busy staring at her legs. So when he was asked whether he agreed, he somehow thought he'd been asked whether he wanted her to step on him, and he answered yes without thinking. He came to me for advice because he wanted to apologize and had no idea what to say."
Gaston slumped his shoulders in disbelief and looked at Elise.
"How do you mistake calling a woman indecent for wanting her to step on you? How much wishful thinking was involved there?"
Elise beamed and teased him with sparkling mischief.
"Doesn't Father want Mother to step on him too? If you'll give me spending money, I'd be willing to do it for you."
For an instant Gaston's eyes went round. Then, his face reddening at his daughter's joke, he shot back in flustered outrage,
"Don't be ridiculous! Who would ask his own daughter for something like that? Besides, if I were going to say such a thing, I'd say it when we were alone, not in front of everyone!"
At that, Elise let out a soft laugh and looked at her father with a faintly triumphant air.
Oh, he absolutely says it.
Perhaps unable to withstand the look she gave him, Gaston cleared his throat in embarrassment.
Then, composing himself, he fixed her with a serious look and asked.