That voice seemed to ask what she was talking about.

Bartolin is 28 years old.

From the age of three, he learned all kinds of work by doing odd jobs for the merchant guild and developed his intuition.

That means he has 25 years of experience.

Bartolin, who had good intuition since childhood, continued to thrive even after setting up a small merchant guild.

In other words, he had good business acumen.

The products he chose were usually hits.

What he thought was good always brought good results, and what he invested in always earned him more than the money he invested.

Thanks to this, Bartolin was recognized for his talent and rose to the high position of association president.

To be honest, the lotion was groundbreaking at first.

Unfortunately, it didn’t captivate people for a long time.

Anyway, his intuition is now telling him.

This is not bad, somehow.

So Bartolin sat back down on the sofa, reattaching the buttocks he had lifted to get up.

“How is the skin beauty medicine you’re talking about different from the lotion currently in distribution?”

At Bartolin’s question, Serena closed her mouth.

Because she didn’t know about this world’s lotion.

She couldn’t explain by comparing something she didn’t know. She was at a loss for words.

But her pride wouldn’t allow her to say she didn’t know.

‘But I need to make this deal.’

So she was pondering now.

It might be a problem that Bartolin interpreted that silence differently.

‘…Is she angry at my rudeness?’

Bartolin thought, looking at her mouth that showed no signs of opening.

After all, he was the type who couldn’t stand curiosity.

‘…No, I can’t lose this battle of nerves.’

But he had his pride as the president of the Imperial Merchants Association.

Because the moment he yielded here, it would be the same as losing from the start.

Losing at the first negotiating table means missing the chance to take the upper hand.

“……”

“……”

As a result, the silence lengthened.

“……”

“……”

It grew even longer.

‘…Does the lotion here have any special features? Aren’t all lotions pretty much the same? When he asks about the difference between skin beauty medicine and lotion, what aspect does he want me to explain? The ingredients? Appearance? Or is he talking about usage and such?’

‘…How long is she going to keep her mouth shut like this? Is this an expression of her will to never back down?’

The two were in different dreams.

Serena was honestly grateful for the other’s consideration. Because she had a lot on her mind right now.

She had never tried to dress up since coming here.

Because even though she was a villainess, she was a villainess with her appearance corrected.

That’s right.

Serena was objectively quite beautiful in appearance.

It’s because she inherited the crazy appearance genes of Marquis Lavernia intact.

Anyway, for that reason, she stood out even in rags and had clear, transparent skin without a single blemish even without makeup.

There was no reason or need to use this world’s lotion.

‘…She’s really stubborn. They said she was a madwoman who couldn’t be stopped once she slipped, like a bulldozer, and it seems that rumor wasn’t just a rumor. She knows well how to drain people.’

Meanwhile, Bartolin was spreading his wings of imagination alone.

‘…Do I have no choice but to back down? This is really humiliating.’

Bartolin gritted his teeth inwardly.

That’s right.

Bartolin was a man who was realistic, had good business acumen, and was very quick to calculate, but he liked to imagine.

Because it was very enjoyable to imagine becoming rich and bathing in gold coins.

In any case, that random imagination has now jumped to a strange place.

“…Miss Serena. I think I was too rude at our first meeting. I apologize for that part.”

In the end, Bartolin backed down first. It was a moment of humiliation, but it couldn’t be helped.

He was a person who couldn’t stand curiosity.

‘What a cruel and wicked woman…’

Bartolin thought sadly, having already suffered various imaginary *buses from her in his own fantasy.

“…Pardon?”

And it was Serena who was surprised by that extremely unexpected apology.

Her expression became strange at the unexpected apology.

‘…What is he apologizing for?’

She was just pondering about the lotion.

“…Please forgive my rudeness and explain.”

“Ah…!”

Serena realized.

That he was greatly misunderstanding.

Bartolin had found the cause of Serena’s silence in his own attitude.

“…Ah, I see.”

And Serena didn’t deny it.

Because she still couldn’t say that she didn’t know about this world’s lotion.

So she gave up on comparing.

“The skin beauty medicine I want to sell is……”

She decided to talk about her own product first.

She was going to gloss over it.

“So, you’re saying that just by applying it, blemishes disappear… pores shrink… skin becomes clear… prevents wrinkles from forming… and keeps it moisturized?”

Bartolin grew increasingly skeptical as he listened to Serena’s story.

‘…Who on earth is she trying to scam?’

Because it sounded like complete nonsense.

How could such a perfect product exist in this world?

He couldn’t openly snort at a noble, so he laughed inwardly.

“Yes, that’s right.”

Serena was impressed to see Bartolin summarizing her long-winded explanation in just a few words.

‘As expected of an association president! Then he must understand the value of this product well.’

There probably isn’t this kind of medicine in this world.

But who was Lemerun?

He was a man who had mastered all sorts of medicines in the process of making a panacea.

And Serena was the person who watched it up close, helping with his research by managing all kinds of herbs, medicines, ingredient combinations, and even a vegetable garden.

She wasn’t a genius, but she was talented enough and had the brains to use it sufficiently.

Serena was convinced.

This would become a wonderful product that would cause a sensation in the world!

“Yeah……”

Bartolin answered indifferently and shook his head.

“So about the contract…”

“I’m not buying it, I’m not buying.”

“…Excuse me? That’s not what I…”

“I don’t believe in pseudo-religions either.”

Huh?

Bartolin raised Serena from her seat. Then he started pushing her back, shoving her out.

Exactly, it’s a scene seen in other cliché novels.

“I don’t believe it, and I’m not buying it. You’ve got some nerve trying to scam me to my face. Is the Kelahinum duchy that desperate for money?”

Usually, the positions are reversed, though.

It means Serena should be the one chasing out, and this man should be the one being chased out.

Not to mention, here there’s even harsh criticism along with it.

Serena started being pushed out while making “Uh uh uh?” sounds.

Because she was a villainess embracing the villainess buff.

“W-wait a moment!”

“I’m sorry, but I ask that you return home safely, Duchess Serena Kelahinum.”

His voice became even more polite.

Serena’s pride cracked with a snap. And she was shocked too.

It’s more shocking because he’s trying to chase her out so nonchalantly.

It’s like going to a supposedly friendly old lady’s store, eating all the food and asking for a discount, only to be met with stiff formal language instead of the expected scolding.

“It’s not a lie…!”

“All scammers start like that.”

“Will you listen to me? I guarantee, if you let me go, it will remain a big stain on your merchant life in the future.”

The moment Serena, who was being pushed out, said that, Bartolin hesitated.