It was about time we moved on to the next step. Chris managed to persuade father that we needed to start making more money and proceeded to establish FairyCo. I wasn’t the one who gave it such a cringe name, by the way—the culprit was my father. Don’t look at me.
FairyCo. would be a company that would draw ideas from my active imagination and good eye and transform them into products to sell. The concept was so airy-fairy that I quite liked it. Possessing the wealth to view starting a business as a mere side project sure felt amazing.
The reason that I of all people—the person who kept saying she wouldn’t get involved in politics and wanted to stay as incognita as possible—had decided to take an active role in our domain was because our land had been slowly shifting from a tourist destination to a holy site. I was glad we were getting more visitors than before, but the vast majority were here to learn how to get along with their spirits. Even if they visited our port town, they weren’t bothering with any of the nearby tourist locations. The price of having become famous for our spirits was being paid by our tourism industry.
I decided I wanted to create new jobs for the locals affected by that change while also creating some other specialties that we could become known for.
We gathered all of the company’s founding members in our manor’s living room in October. Father had, with great sadness, told us that he was about to be appointed as a minister of the empress’s cabinet and headed off to the imperial palace with his shoulders drooping, so the only members of our family attending this meeting were us three children.
Despite our age, not a single person here was looking down on us—not that there was anyone within the castle walls who dared treat Chris like a child in the first place.
Our initial members included Sebas, father’s proxy and his ex-majordomo. He was now going to primarily be stationed at the annex we were currently refurbishing into the company headquarters. Rex, now my former valet, was in the same boat. On Chris’s orders, he had been studying furiously since the spring. Though he was still assigned to me, he now served as my personal aide within the company.
Then there was Nick, who used to be Chris’s valet. He was the third son of a viscount. Since his family’s holding was small, he had experience in keeping ledgers and calculating taxes. He had the look of a sharp-witted young man, glasses and all, and seeing him side-by-side with my brother always healed my soul.
Alan’s former maid Moira was the daughter of a knight. She had a large build and was skilled with a sword, but she loved cute clothes and little ornaments. I wanted her help in creating the products so that we could add a bit of a feminine touch.
All the people I’d mentioned so far had ties to the castle—in other words, they were all either amateurs or had only basic experience. Knowing that there was no way we would last like this, father and Chris had headhunted some merchants and managed to grab two professionals.
The first was Glen. He was a former traveling merchant in his late thirties who had brought many fascinating foreign goods to our domain. Our offer had come just as he’d been preparing to settle down, so he’d accepted and moved his wife and children to a new house closer to the castle.
The second was Hugh, a playboy in his mid-twenties. He was a strange one, having originally been on the verge of going independent after learning the tools of his trade. Then he’d heard the rumors that we were starting up a new business—he’d thought it sounded fun and decided to come along and see what it was all about.
“First, let me be clear: Do not forget the magic contract you signed alongside the employment contract. It is absolutely forbidden to mention anything discussed within the company or details of any of our projects outside of these premises.” From where he stood beside the window, Chris looked at each of the gathered members as he spoke. “Also, you do not need to treat Alan or Deir as if they are children. Simply treat them as you would me.”
Glen and Hugh weren’t the only ones who looked at me in surprise; the valets standing by the wall were also glancing my way. Since mother and father were both starting to grow suspicious of me, Chris had said that I should start gradually acting less and less like a child. Of course, I would still keep the matter of my reincarnation secret.
“The young lady here?” Glen asked. “I should treat her the same as you, Lord Chris?”
“Deir has a much more creative imagination than I. In fact, you could say this company was built for her. That said, if you have your own ideas, don’t hesitate to bring them up. We’ll use them if we think they’re good.”
The room’s atmosphere suddenly morphed into one of concern for the health of this business. Perhaps they were all thinking that they’d gotten tangled up in nothing more than an attempt by father and Chris to spoil me—they were both already well-known for their tendency to do so.
“Deir, perhaps you should tell them what you’d like to do?” Alan took my hand and patted me lightly on the back.
“Heh heh.”
I’d been waiting for this moment. Four years had passed since my birth in this world. It was time to prove that radio calisthenics weren’t all I had in my arsenal.
“The first thing I want to do is to change women’s undergarments. I intend to get mother’s help to involve everyone who usually makes our dresses. Can I put you in charge of that, Miss Moira?” I tilted my head sweetly and flashed a smile but got no response. Instead, her eyes were open so wide I thought they were going to fall out of their sockets—she was clearly starting to question what on earth I was.