Chapter 6

The next morning, Lazzette entered Sora's room with a troubled expression after selling the leftover wood.

"Is something wrong? Didn't it sell for a good price?"

Sora, who had expected her to come in with a good mood and wearing a hair accessory bought with her bonus, was puzzled and asked.

"On the contrary, I felt the buyback price was a bit too high."

Sora gave Lazzette a cold look as she revealed her luxurious concern. Given their still tight financial situation, this was a matter that Sora wanted to think about seriously.

"The various chambers are scrambling to secure firewood for the winter. Even though we only traded one type of wood, the prices of other types of wood have also risen. If it becomes known that the lottery tickets were made of wood, the prices should drop a bit."

Lazzette nodded at Sora's explanation. Still a bit concerned, she glanced out the window but then refocused on Sora.

"By the way, what are you doing, Sora-sama?"

She stood next to Sora and peered at what she was doing.

"I'm starting to hydroponically grow ice plants."

The ice plants, which are always frozen, were now in an old pot Sora had gotten from the kitchen. She had received them from an unskilled cook who had betrayed her by making her eat a dish she was bad at, and she had also obtained salt water. Sora poured the salt water into the pot. All that was left was to observe them for a while.

"Will they grow with this method?"

Lazzette poked the ice plants curiously. While there was a possibility that they were a completely different plant that just looked similar due to the different world, Sora had no intention of telling her. However, considering their characteristics, Sora believed they would grow in salt water.

"If they don't grow in salt water, there are other uses for them, so it's not a problem."

Sora warned Lazzette, who was poking the ice plants with her fingers, and pulled her away. Despite being a fifteen-year-old girl, Lazzette's actions were more childish than Sora's, who was physically two years old. Lazzette, looking a bit reluctant, moved away from the ice plants and opened the closet, crossing her arms.

"What clothes will you wear today?"

"That's your job to decide, isn't it?"

This maid tends to slack off if not watched. While she efficiently completes tasks when ordered, Sora had been speechless when she heard that Lazzette did this to finish quickly and take a break. However, Sora herself was the type to finish her summer homework on the first day, so they got along well.

"Here's a piece of clothing, but isn't it too big for Sora-sama?"

Lazzette pulled out a piece of clothing that could fit three average men. It was made of high-quality fabric.

"That's Father's old clothes."

"Ugh..."

Lazzette muttered a phrase that shouldn't come from a young lady's mouth and pushed the clothes back into the closet, saying "disgusting" and wiping her hands.

"They've been washed properly."

"Then it's fine."

Lazzette quickly changed her attitude and started feeling the texture of the old clothes. She was a practical girl.

"But why are these old clothes here?"

"To distribute to homeless children. Since they fit well, remake them into children's clothes. However, do it secretly so no one finds out."

"Wow, more work."

Lazzette's shoulders drooped. She didn't seem interested in asking why it had to be done secretly.

"Well, if I get a bonus for helping with Sora-sama's schemes, it's fine."

Lazzette concluded this on her own. Her subtle request for a bonus was shrewd. After changing into the children's clothes Lazzette had chosen, Sora and Lazzette headed to the dining room. The atmosphere in the mansion had returned to normal now that the pig fathers were gone and the lottery was over. The cook bowed to greet Sora as they entered the dining room.

"Good morning, Sora-sama."

"Yeah, good morning."

During the ten days the pig fathers stayed, Sora had shed the act of being a child and was now interacting as herself.

"Yesterday, Sora-sama gave me... ice plants, right? I made them into a salad."

Sora looked around the table. As the cook said, there was a small plate of salad with ice plants. She tried the salad immediately. The strange bitterness spread along with the taste of salt. It was a difficult flavor to commercialize without breeding.

"Regardless of the ice plants, it would be better to add some flavor to the other vegetables."

While eating the salad, which mixed vegetables with and without salt, Sora gave her feedback.

"Understood. By the way, why don't you come into the kitchen?"

The cook's face lit up as if it was a great idea.

"Wouldn't a child be in the way?"

"Not at all! Anyone interested in cooking is welcome. I started my training before I was ten. It brings back memories. The pot I gave to Sora-sama was a cherished item from my training days. Using it will definitely help you improve. Please, Sora-sama."

While the cook smiled, Sora turned away awkwardly.

"Ah, well, you see... I'm using that cherished item as a pot for plants."

"Pot for plants!?"

The cook's jaw dropped, and he froze, exposing the back of his throat. Ignoring Lazzette's comments about "devil child," Sora finished her breakfast and fled the dining room. The cook knelt on the floor, looking up at the ceiling, and silently cried.

"You can use those tears to water the ice plants."

"The bitterness will increase, so stop it."

Back in the room, Sora instructed Lazzette to remake the clothes. It was ironic that the pig father's excessive fat allowed them to make clothes for homeless children.

"What will you do by giving clothes to homeless children?"

Lazzette asked while preparing her sewing tools. Sora told her about her future plans. She would gather homeless children, settle them in an abandoned village by the sea, teach them fishing, and have them produce and improve ice plants. Lazzette listened to Sora's plan while skillfully cutting and dividing the fabric by size.

"That's a plan full of holes."

Lazzette suddenly interjected.

"Teaching fishing isn't easy. Where will you get the boats? How will you feed them until they learn fishing? Even using the abandoned village, repairs will cost money."

Lazzette listed the problems accurately. She was quick-witted and capable, but...

"Let's stop before it fails."

"If only you didn't have that lazy habit."

Lazzette had already stopped working and started putting away her sewing tools, signaling the end of the conversation.

"Boats can wait. The food until they learn fishing will be provided from the profits of the lottery. The village repair costs will be covered by selling firewood made from nearby forests in the city. Due to the lottery, there will be a shortage of firewood, so it will sell for a higher price than usual."

The more Mina conducted the lottery, the more firewood would be in short supply. Sora planned to bring in wood at the right time to sell at a high price and make a steady profit through futures trading, as she had done before. She had a plan for every issue raised by the lazy attendant maid.

"No mistakes. Even if there are oversights, Sora-sama will handle them quickly, and my workload will only increase."

Lazzette genuinely regretted that there were no flaws in the plan. Over the next three days, she worked almost without sleep, sewing children's clothes, and won a five-day holiday from Sora. Strangely, the holiday was longer.