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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Securing Funds
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That evening.
Once word spread that the two's business plan had been approved, congratulations poured in from all around.
"Nini, congrats."
Solles handed Nibelria a gift to celebrate her new venture.
"Wow!"
Nibelria's eyes went wide when she saw the gift.
A fountain pen with a pristine white barrel and a gleaming blue sapphire lay neatly in the box, accompanied by a tiny ink bottle.
"Th-this is for grown-ups! Real working adults use these! How could Nini...?"
"Cool bosses sign their name with fountain pens. Let's give it our all this time too. Got it?"
"Yeah!"
Nibelria nodded with determination, vowing to start practicing her signature with the fountain pen right away.
Next up was Arep.
"Miss, here..."
With advice from Kaleo and Ardores, Arep shyly offered Nibelria a lovely bouquet.
Red and white flowers mingled in a vibrant display.
Nibelria received it and stomped her little feet in delight.
"So pretty! Thank you!"
"Ah, the miss is even prettier..."
"Hehe!"
"And..."
The flowers were just the opener, really.
Arep pulled out the real gift he'd been hiding.
"Ah, I want to invest in the miss's business!"
Arep's true present was pouring all his hard-earned savings into Nibelria's new business.
A staggering 53 million Uba.
"Wow!"
Armifera gawked at the bankbook balance, utterly impressed.
'You're... too cool...!'
What kind of perfectly upright, devoted boy existed like this? Was he really just eight? With a crafty wolf soul tucked inside, no less?
While Armifera melted over Arep—her future nephew-in-law—
"Kyaaah!"
Nibelria, even more overjoyed, launched herself into Arep's arms and squeezed him tight.
She locked her arms and legs around him like restraints, burying her face in his shoulder.
"For real? Really?"
"Yes!"
Arep wobbled but answered firmly.
His voice rang out even stronger than before.
"But Arep."
Solles, steadying the boy before he toppled over, spoke carefully.
"That was money you saved up to become a knight someday, right? You sure? You don't have to give Nini everything."
He'd scrimped and saved it specifically for a fixed deposit account.
Nibelria's face fell at once.
She slipped quietly from Arep's embrace and twisted her fingers together.
Arep felt a pang of sadness as the warm weight lifted.
"Yeah. Nini knows..."
Nibelria remembered it well.
How many times Arep had declared his dream of becoming a splendid knight.
"Is it okay to give it to Nini?"
"It's not giving. It's investing."
"What if I fail again?"
Memories of past failures bubbled up vividly.
The cookie shop—her most recent venture—had started with such promise, only to crash and leave her in debt.
Her pharmaceutical investment was still locked up tight.
And she'd only ever used her own money before; borrowing from others was uncharted territory.
'But Nini’s the boss...'
She had to make bank to feed and support her crew.
'What if I fail?'
Failing with Arep's money and not repaying it properly terrified her.
What if he lost faith in her again? The fear gripped her.
'Scary.'
For the first time, Nibelria truly grasped how frightening it was to make money.
"Miss."
To the frozen, speechless Nibelria, Arep spoke with rock-solid resolve.
"It's fine. Even if it fails."
"......"
"Because it's my choice to invest. Not yours."
"......"
"I believe you'll succeed."
"What if it fails...? Then I can't give Arep his money back."
"Then it's my mistake."
Arep declared firmly.
"Because I don't believe you'll fail."
His red eyes brimmed with unshakable trust.
Nibelria couldn't bear to betray it.
But she knew she couldn't decide solo.
This wasn't just her business. Armifera was in too.
"The boss is Nini."
Armifera flashed a grin.
"Auntie will go with whatever the boss decides."
Nibelria turned to Solles.
Solles eyed Arep's investment warily—specifically, dumping so much in one go.
He got that it was for Nibelria's sake, but he wanted some emergency cushion left.
Arep was his precious little brother too.
"...Hmm."
What choice did he have?
"Arep, you're absolutely sure—no regrets?"
"Yes."
"Fine."
Solles said.
"Nini, brother'll invest too."
Just like that, 103 million Uba materialized in a flash.
But Nibelria didn't take the generous sum for granted.
"We gotta do a contract. And get it notarized."
True to form, she summoned Monatos for investment contracts and official notarization.
"Business again?"
A few days later, Monatos dropped by the Dayamor mansion and blinked at the news, thrown off.
He eyed Nibelria like she was gearing up to tank another fortune.
"This time, it's definitely gonna succeed."
But her transformed vibe hinted at real promise.
"I'll succeed for sure and pay back Arep and brother. Nini’s gonna work super hard."
"That's the spirit."
As he drew up the contracts, Monatos asked,
"So, what’s the business?"
"Secret. That's how these things work."
"Heh, you really have changed."
"Nini’s different now."
"Good sign. Means you're growing up."
Impressed, Monatos—uncharacteristically—ruffled her hair.
Hehe, Nibelria's lips quirked up in childish glee.
"Hey. Wanna invest too, Monatos?"
"Maybe I will."
"Yeah! But it might flop."
"Don't jinx it. You're the boss—act like you'll crush it to snag investments."
Now latched onto Monatos's broad back like a clingy cicada, Nibelria prodded,
"So, it'll succeed—invest! C'mon, invest!"
"Brat, ever heard of politeness?"
"I know it. Saying hi to grown-ups. Nini's super polite these days. Even greeted the Grand Witch properly."
"Smart kid."
Because she was, Monatos chipped in 10 million Uba.
And that wasn't all.
"Truffles, huh? Been ages since I heard that name."
"Ah, those are delicious. Hook me up if you forage some?"
Della and Majia—who'd sniffed out the intel somehow—each tossed in 10 million Uba for Nibelria's new venture.
But the biggest shocker came from...
"Here."
An account from Kaleo.
"Dad lost the money he borrowed from Nini way back on card games, right?"
"I almost hated you then..."
"Thanks for forgiving me."
The 50,000 Uba from back then.
Nibelria's first hard-earned pot, clutched in tinier hands.
To that, Kaleo had steadily squirreled away every loss from her failed businesses.
Right up to the recent 1.28 million Uba wipeout.
Smartly invested, it had ballooned to 20 million Uba before he knew it.
Kaleo handed it all back.
"This time, you can make it big."
"......"
"You got this, right?"
"...Yeah!"
Nibelria threw her arms around Kaleo's neck.
"I love Dad!"
"Dad loves his Nini tons too."
"Hehe!"
And so, a massive 153 million Uba in funding landed in her lap.
"Wow..."
Armifera gazed in awe at her niece, who'd rounded up the cash in mere days.
"You're no joke, huh?"
"Nini’s kinda like that. The real deal."
"With this haul, let's gear up hard?"
Nibelria stared intently at her fired-up aunt.
Sensing the look, Armifera asked, "What?"
"Auntie."
"Yeah?"
"Auntie not pitching in cash?"
Nini’s putting up 3 million Uba, y'know?
"Grown-up just taking handouts from Nini? Kinda lame, right? Not embarrassing?"
"......"
The overconfident Mercenary Queen took a solid hit.
"Pfft!"
Ater the evil dragon, sprawled on the sofa amid plush cushions, snickered.
Today's dragon dress was a poison-green stunner, vivid as venom.
Her wardrobe only got flashier with time.
"Nini pulled in all this dough—what's Auntie doing?"
"Auntie's providing the brains, duh. Secretary duty: tweaking plans that stump Nini?"
Armifera defended herself.
Truth be told, she felt a tad hard-done-by.
Nibelria might lead, but Armifera handled all the planning and fine-tuning.
Her partner was only four, after all.
"Right! Auntie's Nini's secretary!"
Luckily, Nibelria bought it.
'So that's why they warn against family biz.'
Armifera nursed a bruise to her pride and aunt cred.
But snapping at her kid niece? No way.
"Eek! Eeeek!"
Instead, she mashed down hard on the evil dragon's head. Payback for the laugh.
The Meow Shop eyed fresh changes ahead of reopening.
"Not Meow Shop anymore—time to rebrand as Meow Merchant Company."
"Merchant Company?"
"Means a business that hauls goods around."
To dodge nitpicks, Armifera drafted orders in her dapper suit.
Nibelria sketched a new signboard nearby.
"Merchant company's bigger than a shop. They transport and sell goods themselves. Way more profit."
"Wow!"
Nibelria was sold on Meow Merchant Company already. Rolled off the tongue better than Meow Shop.
"Okay, pop quiz!"
Armifera prompted.
"What do we need to haul goods?"
"Power to bend the world to my will?"
"Nini, level with me. You skipping kindergarten? Living a second life? Past-life memories or what?"
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