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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: The Friends at Nineteen
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Meanwhile, after Carius left.
Lellia immediately pulled up the Alchemy Lottery screen and pressed the button to charge crystals.
‘How long has it been since I last spent real money…?’
She was one of those people who believed the true joy of gaming was in the grind.
But spending money was also an undeniable allure of the game.
As soon as she pressed charge, the alchemy tool displayed a speech bubble.
[Would you like to charge crystals? ( •̀ᴗ•́ )و ̑̑]
“Yes!”
[How much would you like to charge? (*°▽°*)]
Just in case, Lellia set aside one gold coin—100,000 shillings—as emergency funds and placed the rest on the table.
“All of this.”
[Yay! Processing your charge! ✧*｡٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و✧*｡]
Lellia narrowed her eyes. The alchemy tool seemed particularly excited… Was it just her imagination?
A moment later, the alchemy tool’s speech bubble and a system window popped up in succession.
[Master! 4,000 crystals have been successfully charged! ୧(๑•̀⌄•́๑)૭ A bonus of 400 crystals has been added!]
[system : 4,400 crystals successfully charged!]
At the same time, the gold coins on the table vanished like mist. Lellia stared at the scene, unable to even blink.
“……”
For some reason, she felt a sense of injustice and loss, but the important thing was to gather the ingredients.
Losing the money was a shame, but seeing her crystal count plump up was reassuring.
‘Alright… I have to earn back much more than I invested.’
Lellia, fired up with determination, first expanded her inventory. Then, she unlocked the common ingredients.
She prioritized activating Flame Ash, the ingredient for the potion that could treat her grandmother’s dementia.
With a *ping!* sound effect, a Gold Dragon appeared and began to fly around. It had started gathering ingredients.
‘Good. Starting today, I’m going to clear recipes and gather ingredients like crazy.’
Was it because Carius had not only finally cleared his suspicions of her but had also comforted her about her past wounds? She felt more energized than before.
After expanding her inventory and unlocking the ingredients, her crystals were nearly depleted.
‘What should I make to get my money back…?’
It was a relief that she could at least craft items and bring them into the real world. That way, she could recoup the money she had spent.
Lellia started looking for items she could craft in large quantities with her available ingredients.
After setting up the crafting queue, she explored every corner of the game screen.
The original story of ‘Alchemy Lottery’ was about the protagonist running a lottery shop before changing business to an alchemy potion store.
In short, it was a business management game where you sold alchemy potions and tools.
But right now, the business system was locked.
The customers she used to deal with in the game were townspeople—a diverse bunch including animal residents, elves, and humans.
They always gave her quests that felt like highway robbery, but the rewards from building affinity with them were quite substantial.
However, the affinity system with those residents was also currently locked.
‘The problem is the special ingredients…’
The way to obtain special ingredients was through business achievement rewards and the affinity system.
‘When does this unlock?’
Just then, another speech bubble appeared before her eyes without permission.
[Master! Do you wish to reactivate the ‘Commerce’ system and the ‘Relationship Affinity’ system? If so, you must clear over 50% of the newly added recipes! =͟͟͞͞(๑•̀д•́๑)]
“……”
Wait. What?
It seemed there were about 300 newly added recipes in this world. And of those, she had only managed to clear about 20 in her spare time….
Including the ones she had gathered ingredients for but hadn’t crafted yet, it would be about 30 in total.
In that case….
“…But recipes are constantly being added. Don’t new ones get added every time I go to a new region?”
That meant she had to choose one of two options: either never go to another region, or never be able to clear them all.
[◔ ̯◔…]
“Are you kidding me? You’re telling me to gather ingredients for the rest of my life! Then you should unlock all the recipes that might be added in the future all at once, right now!”
[Would you like to unlock all hidden recipes? Revealing all recipes requires 10,000 crystals! (ง•̀ө•́)ง✧]
“Ten thousand crystals is… ten million shillings… so ten million won? You scammer!”
[=͟͟͞͞(꒪ᗜ꒪ ‧̣̥̇)]
“You think ten million won is chump change? I can’t believe this…!”
[Once all recipes are revealed, the ‘Special Affinity’ and ‘Special Recipe’ systems will be unlocked even if you haven’t cleared over 50%! ୧(๑•̀⌄•́๑)૭]
“Special Affinity? Special Recipes? What are those now… It’s so frustrating how you keep adding new things….”
She had to think carefully.
First of all, unlocking all the recipes was crucial, if only for the final item, the Philosopher’s Stone.
Moreover, to get the special ingredients that couldn’t be obtained even with real money, she needed the residents’ relationship affinity or business achievements.
Unlocking all the recipes was a must.
‘Besides, I don’t have to craft each one to clear them, so it’s actually a good deal.’
If she didn’t want to do that, she would have to travel to every nook and cranny of this world herself.
Thinking about it that way, the price didn’t seem so exorbitant after all.
But one thing was certain: while the value of won and shillings was similar… the value of crystals was much higher here than in her past life.
[Would you like to charge crystals? ( •̀ᴗ•́ )و ̑̑]
“I don’t have any money….”
First, she had to use the ingredients she had gathered before to craft items and sell them.
‘I’ll have to ask Grandfather for help finding a market…’
Lellia let out a deep sigh.
She had so, so much to do.
“……”
Lellia suddenly turned her head to look at the scenery outside the large window.
It had been winter when she returned to the main castle from the temple. Now, it was already spring.
‘Right, let’s cheer up and make some money first.’
Lellia went to the window and happily observed the approaching spring scenery.
She was grateful just to have a place where she could live in peace, and now she even had a family that cherished her.
On top of that, her wish from her past life had been granted one way or another, so she couldn't ask for more.
‘I have to work even harder from now on. Until I can meet my friends…’
The scenery outside the window flew by in a flash.
Summer came, rain fell, leaves turned, and snow fluttered down. In the meantime, Lellia greeted the changing seasons more busily than anyone.
The cycle of seasons repeated several times. Before she knew it, Lellia was thirteen years old.
It was finally the time when the battle against the Mad Dragon began in earnest.
After sending off the uncle she had grown fond of to the battlefield, Lellia prayed for her friends, her uncle, and everyone else.
May they all return safely.
As the seasons changed several more times, the war with the Mad Dragon continued.
Lellia spent her days busy as if addicted to a game, saving money and searching for ingredients.
Thanks to her grandfather’s support, she was able to diligently save money once she started selling her alchemical ingredients.
When Lellia first tried to sell her alchemy potions, Duke Superion had asked her.
“My dear, are you doing this because you need some allowance? If so, just tell your grandfather. How much should I give you?”
“……”
*Ten million won, Grandfather….*
Of course, the Superion family was extremely wealthy, so if she asked for ten million shillings as an allowance, he would gladly hand it over.
But Lellia didn’t want to do that.
It was too much money for a child to receive as an allowance.
And if he asked what she would use it for, she would have nothing to say.
‘How can I tell him I’m spending it on a game… It would be too difficult to even explain in the first place.’
So Lellia painstakingly made an excuse.
“I… want to be a great person who runs a big business someday. So I’m practicing now.”
When she said that, her grandfather praised her for being so admirable and promised to spare no expense in supporting her.
It took quite a long time to secure a market. It was important to sell safely without being caught by the temple.
The first alchemy potion Lellia released to the public was a stamina recovery potion.
The reaction was so explosive that if the temple’s attention hadn’t been focused on the battle with the Mad Dragon, she would have been tracked down immediately.
The potion was just that effective.
Lellia was bewildered by the reaction, but she rejoiced when she saw her first earnings from a few months prior.
And thanks to that, she was finally able to unlock all the recipes.
[Unlocking all recipes. ٩(*•̀ᴗ•́*)و]
[system : Optimizing--]
After a short wait, a series of messages popped up.
[All alchemy recipes unlocked! ‘Resident Relationship Affinity’ and ‘Commerce System’ are reactivated! o(*ﾟ∇ﾟ)ﾉ]
[‘Special Affinity’ and ‘Special Recipe’ systems ready! (੭•̀ᴗ•̀)੭]
[You can now expand the dragon’s nest, Master! (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧ Shall we raise some new dragons?]
‘Oh…’
Lellia clicked her tongue as she looked at the countless newly added recipes.
‘When am I supposed to craft all of these at least once? And there are so many new ingredients…’
But to create the ‘Philosopher’s Stone,’ she had to craft every single recipe at least once.
For now, Lellia started with the most urgent task: starting her business within the game.
As soon as she unlocked it, the cute animal residents and elves she hadn’t seen in a long time came to her with various requests.
‘The dragons are going to be incredibly busy now.’
She had to sell alchemy potions in reality, and she also had to sell them to the residents within the game.
So it was only natural that the dragons procuring the ingredients would be busy.
Still, the fact that a nest had been added meant she could probably raise a few more.
Lellia navigated to the screen for managing the dragons that fetched ingredients.
Currently, Lellia had three baby dragons: a Gold Dragon, a Red Dragon, and a White Dragon.
And next to them, a volcano-shaped illustration had been added in gray. It was a new nest.
When she tapped it, the alchemy tool’s speech bubble popped up again.
[Would you like to expand the dragon’s nest? (•̀ ▽ •́ )φ]
‘Wait. Don’t tell me…’
[Expanding the nest requires 500 crystals! Would you like to charge crystals? ( •̀ᴗ•́ )و ̑̑]
“……”
She felt angry for some reason, but since this was what she had earned the money for, it felt ambiguous to be mad.
Lellia charged more crystals with a reluctant expression.
[Dragon’s nest expansion complete! If you leave out food, dragons will appear! Would you like to purchase food? ╰(*°▽°*)╯]
“Argh! This is so frustrating!”
Lellia clenched her fist. She had almost thrown her mother’s precious necklace.
“Hoo…”
After taking a deep breath, she saw that the bait to lure a new dragon cost 100 crystals. Trembling, Lellia pressed the purchase button.
‘…I hope I get a rare one, at least.’
Suppressing her anger, Lellia checked the newly added systems.
‘By the way, what’s Special Affinity?’
[Special Affinity proceeds through hidden quests! It appears when you max out the affinity of all residents! (୨୧ ❛ᴗ❛)✧]
‘Ugh, so annoying…’
Since it wasn’t something she needed right away, Lellia closed the screen.
Lellia didn’t spend all her days just playing the game.
She took care of her grandmother and grandfather’s health, acted spoiled with her now-closer uncle and aunt, and befriended the servants of the castle.
Just as children of that age grow through various experiences, Lellia also spent her time that way.
Those happy times flew by, and before she knew it, Lellia’s nineteenth birthday arrived.
And a short while later, the good news that the war with the Mad Dragon was over spread throughout the world. It was a little earlier than in the original story.
***
The Friends at Nineteen
With her eyes gently closed, Lellia enjoyed the feeling of the maid brushing her hair.
“Young Miss, it’s all done.”
At Becky’s words, she opened her eyes to see her neatly tied hair in the mirror.
“My lady, Sir Carius won’t recognize you at all when he returns.”
“…You think so?”
Lellia awkwardly touched her hair.
Well, it did seem likely.
When Uncle Carius left, Lellia was thirteen. Now, six years had passed, and she was nineteen.
Unlike back then, her appearance was that of a full-grown adult, though a hint of youthfulness remained.
“Now, you must hurry and change your clothes.”
“…Okay.”
Lellia gazed at her matured reflection in the mirror before changing her clothes at Becky’s urging.
Becky’s eyes sparkled as she helped Lellia into a silver-gray dress.
The lovely young miss she had served for the past nine years had changed remarkably.
When they first met, she was a small and thin girl for her age… but now she had become a dazzlingly beautiful young lady.
Her silver hair shimmered as if sprinkled with shattered moonlight, and her pale, translucent skin was as soft as silk to the touch.
Moreover, her beautiful body, with its elegant curves, was captivating enough to steal the soul of anyone, man or woman.
Becky felt her heart swell with pride, like a mother who had raised her daughter to be the most wonderful in the world.
Having bathed, fed, and put her to sleep for the past nine years, it was only natural for Becky to feel a parental affection.
Perhaps that was why Becky was now wrestling with a concern typical of most parents.
Carefully fastening the buttons on Lellia’s dress, Becky asked.
“Young Miss, why did you refuse the coming-of-age banquet the Duke offered to throw for you? If you just held the banquet… I’m sure many wonderful gentlemen would send you proposals.”
“Hmm…”
That was precisely why she had refused.
Typically, nobles in this world were legally considered adults at the age of nineteen.
And to commemorate this, a nineteen-year-old woman would have a coming-of-age banquet. Though it was called a celebration, it was, in fact, no different from a matchmaking event.
Holding that banquet was like announcing, ‘I’m an adult now, so feel free to propose to me.’
Duke Superion had also considered whether he should throw the same banquet that all noblewomen had.
So he had asked Lellia, ‘My dear, shall I throw a coming-of-age banquet for you?’
But the grandfather asking the question looked as if he hadn’t the slightest intention of marrying Lellia off.
When Lellia refused, her grandfather let out an audible sigh of relief.
Even if they had tried to hold the banquet, the process would not have been easy anyway.
‘The vassals of Superion don’t acknowledge me.’
Only the direct family of Superion knew that Lellia was Elizabeth’s daughter.
The branch families and vassals did not look upon Lellia’s existence favorably.
It was only natural. They wouldn’t be pleased to see her living in the main castle and enjoying all the privileges just because she resembled Elizabeth in appearance.
The vassals wanted to remove Lellia from her position and push their own daughters in her place instead.
But the official reason for bringing Lellia here was for the Duchess’s sake.
Since the Duchess would call Lellia ‘Elizabeth’ and dote on her whenever she saw her, the vassals could do little.
Furthermore, as Lellia grew older, she came to resemble Elizabeth more and more.
Now, it wasn’t just the Duchess with dementia, but even Duke Superion and Elizabeth’s siblings, Zenon and Atias, acknowledged the resemblance.
Even the older vassals would be startled whenever they encountered Lellia.
Lellia, too, looked at her mother’s portrait and her own reflection in the mirror, consciously and happily accepting the fact that she was growing to resemble her mother.
Even to her own eyes, she and her mother looked very much alike. That was why Lellia sometimes found herself staring endlessly into the mirror.
“Becky… do you want me to get married?”
“Of course! I want you to meet someone who will cherish you more than anyone and be happy and loved.”
Becky said, clasping her hands together as if in a dream. Lellia let out a heavy sigh.
“I’m sorry to crush your dream, Becky… but I have no intention of getting married for the time being.”
“Oh my… why, Young Miss? Are the gentlemen in the territory not to your liking? Then you can just go to the capital!”
“Well…”
She was going to the capital, but not for marriage.
The most important moments of Lellia’s life plan were about to begin.
The past nine years had been nothing but a period of preparation for the future that was to come.
And for good reason—there were so, so many things to do.
First, she had to complete the treatment for her grandmother’s Alzheimer’s.
‘There’s one ingredient left.’
She had succeeded in gathering all the special ingredients, but one was still missing.
It was an ingredient called the ‘Crystal of Memories.’
No matter what she did, she couldn’t find that ingredient.
Fortunately, her grandmother’s condition hadn’t worsened. It was fluctuating, getting better and then worse again.
‘Crystal of Memories.’
She had a hunch about where she might find that ingredient.
‘Mother’s cabin… that place is suspicious.’
She felt like she had to go there to find the ingredient.
When she first went to the cabin, the recipe for the cure itself didn’t exist. She guessed that was why the ingredient hadn’t appeared.
And that wasn’t all she had to do.
She had to prevent the future deaths of her grandfather and Uncle Zenon, and also prevent Aunt Atias from falling into a mountain of debt.
‘But Auntie doesn’t seem to have any interest in gambling at all…’
Perhaps the future had changed because of Lellia. In any case, there was still more to do.
‘I have to steal the sacred artifact from the original male lead, Lute.’
It was one of the most important tasks.
Now that the war with the Mad Dragon was over, he would soon be returning to the capital.
For that, Lellia had to go to the capital in time.
‘I also need to find the ingredient for Grandmother’s cure…’
She had to go, for more than one reason.
With so many plans, Lellia’s life was just beginning.
She had to move diligently every single day.
And this evening, she planned to tell her grandfather that she was going to the capital.
‘He wouldn’t refuse to let me go, would he?’
Her grandfather was always overprotective of her.
“All done, Young Miss.”
“Thank you, Becky.”
At Becky’s words, Lellia looked at her reflection in the mirror.
The silver-gray dress had no cumbersome decorations and didn’t tightly cinch her entire waistline, making it comfortable to move in.
“Young Miss, I have nothing more to wish for. I only hope you meet a truly good gentleman and are loved. However, please keep just one thing in mind.”
“…What is it?”
“The Creutz family is an absolute, absolute no.”
At Becky’s firm words, the corners of Lellia’s lips tilted up slightly.
The Creutz family was one of Superion’s vassal families.
Unlike the other vassals, they had been friendly to Lellia from the beginning.
But the reason Becky was so opposed was because of their son.
The Creutz couple had one son, who had come to visit the castle when Lellia was about thirteen.
At that time, the boy had looked at Lellia and insulted her, spitting out the words, “You fake!”
Not only that, but he had also thrown sand in her face as he said it.
Since Becky had witnessed that scene, he had thoroughly earned her enmity.
The Duke, who heard the story from Becky, was furious, and the Creutz couple apologized profusely, not knowing what to do.
Lellia, worried that her grandfather’s relationship with his vassals would sour because of her, had smiled and said it was okay.
‘After that incident, the Creutz couple sent their son away to the capital.’
It was common for nobles or vassals from the outer territories to send their children to the capital for their education.
After all, spending their teenage years in the capital allowed them to build many good connections.
Anyway, that son of the Creutz couple had returned to the territory a while ago….
And what do you know, he happened to run into Lellia in the territory’s downtown area and proposed to her on the spot.
Claiming it was love at first sight, no less.
However, the moment he saw Becky’s face, his complexion turned pale.
Becky, fuming, dragged Lellia into the carriage with the help of a knight.
Recalling that day, Lellia patted Becky’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry, Becky.”
That man wasn’t Lellia’s type anyway.
If she had to state a preference… Lellia preferred men with a larger frame and taller stature over the rather thin young master of Creutz.
Despite Lellia’s words, Becky looked at her anxiously.
“Let’s go, Grandfather must be waiting.”
“Yes, Young Miss.”
