Chapter 32 - Crossroad
Scarlett closed the last page of the book she'd been reading and put it off to the side on the desk before her. This was the third book she'd finished in as many days covering different aspects of noble society and etiquette in this world. This last one had been a compendium on prominent families in the Empire, which she'd felt was relevant as she was soon supposed to travel to the capital for what was apparently some kind of noble gathering. Suffice to say that there had been and were a lot of important families in the Graenal Empire. The book had even mentioned the Hartfords—albeit only briefly—due to some of the predecessors being famous mages.
While she couldn't possibly memorize all of the different families in this short time, now she at least felt some certainty in being able to tell some of the noble houses apart if necessary — which was about as much as one could expect after binging through a book in the span of a day. She still had more books she wanted to read through before she had to leave and actually begin interacting with the nobles of this world. And that wasn't the only thing she wanted to do before she left.
The trip itself to Elystead was supposed to be through Kilnstone in two days. Then the Light Fest began two days after that, on the 31st of August, continuing over a period of eight days. From her meeting with Evelyne a couple of days before she knew that the younger woman was supposed to have left earlier this day and was probably already at whatever residence it was that the Hartfords owned in the capital. The thought of sharing the same building as Evelyne for over a week didn't exactly excite Scarlett—considering how uncomfortable it was, just being in the same room as her for a few minutes—but there wasn't much she could do about it in this case. She could probably try and restrict Evelyne's movements to avoid things like that, being the head of the family and all, but she certainly wouldn't. That might have been something the original Scarlett would try, it wouldn't surprise her, but it wasn't something she was willing to do. As such, living with Evelyne during their stay in the capital was just something she'd have to deal with.
She'd probably manage it without too much trouble. Hopefully. Their last meeting hadn't been too bad, all things considered. She'd largely succeeded in restraining the flaring feelings of anger and disgust that arose when speaking with Evelyne, and if you were to ask her they'd had what she'd genuinely call a productive conversation... Wherein Scarlett had learned some things she hadn't been aware of. Namely, that she wasn't as loaded as she had previously thought.
She had to admit that she had been a bit lax when it came to confirming her current financial situation as 'Scarlett Hartford'. She'd intended to, but then it turned out she could just wave her hand and the Hartford family would pay for it, which she had felt was fine for now until she actually got started on any of her plans. A definite oversight on her part. She probably shouldn't have just assumed Scarlett was filthy rich. Although she did feel it was somewhat defendable, considering that she lived in a huge mansion with over a dozen people working under her. And honestly, if you asked her this still fit under the 'filthy rich' label, despite any current financial troubles the family might have.
But Scarlett did feel a little bad for Evelyne, thinking of how the woman must have reacted when she first saw the cost of the things she had done this last month. It still surprised her that the destroyed carriage had been worth as much as it had. Sure, it had been a comfortable carriage—the one they'd switched to afterward definitely rocked a lot more—but to think it was worth several times the amount of an ordinary house. She assumed the high cost was because it was enchanted in some manner.
Anyhow, what she had learned from this was that she had to be a bit more frugal in the future. At least until she could start earning some real money herself. She still felt pretty confident in the plans she had for amassing a decent amount of wealth, as long as she had the time. She also still had the gear that she'd looted from the Cabal Adepts that had attacked them when they left for Whistlecreek. She hadn't done anything with it yet. For now she was planning on just bringing it with her to the capital. She only knew of one store from the game that dealt with enchanted armor here in Freybrook and she wasn't sure if that place could necessarily be trusted with equipment like this. But there was one store in Elystead that she was certain could do it. Although she'd have to wait until she was actually there to decide whether she would simply try selling the armor or repurposing it in some way.
Another matter she'd almost forgotten about was the reward for the servants that ended up having to deal with the aftermath of the fight with the Adepts, as well as the bodies. Although Scarlett did try to keep up at least part of the 'villainess' facade she had going from the original, there were some points she didn't mind acting differently on. The servants that had dealt with that matter deserved some kind of reward, she felt. At least to the degree she could afford at the moment.
She had also wanted to get Kat some kind of armor, as compensation for the equipment the Shielder had lost along with the burned carriage, but that turned out to be a bit difficult under the current circumstances. Kat hadn't actually brought the matter up—perhaps the employer wasn't considered responsible for any lost equipment while the Shielder was under contract—but Scarlett felt it would be better for both of them if it was resolved. Maybe she could get a good deal along with the gear from the Cabal Adepts?
Just as Scarlett was about to pick up and begin the next book that lay on her desk, a knock sounded out from the office's door. Scarlett looked up as Kat's voice rang out from the other side of the door.