Three years ago, a merchantry called ‘Eileen’ appeared in the empire.

The merchant lord, Mare, and the manager, Conrad. There were just the two of them; no shops or offices.

And now, Eileen has become one of the most prominent merchantry in the empire.

With special items, unique promotional methods, and a talented and capable manager.

Various factors have combined to fuel Eileen’s endless growth.

Many rumors circulated, but what people found most peculiar was about the boss, Mare.

Unusually, the manager was involved in all of the merchant’s affairs, while the boss remained hidden.

The only known information about the person named Mare was that they were a magician. Their face and age were thoroughly concealed.

Very occasionally, they accepted invitations from nobles or the imperial family, but they completely concealed their appearance with a long robe.

At first, there were rumors that the manager was also serving as the merchant boss.

“Are you really comparing our merchant boss to someone like me? I am nothing but a slave to our merchant boss! Such rumors are an insult to our merchant boss!”

Due to Conrad’s strong and vehement reaction, those rumors quickly died down.

People made constant efforts to uncover the true identity of the merchant boss, who held the empire’s purse strings, but all their efforts were in vain.

No one in the world could find a white mage.

Even within the merchantry, Conrad was the only one who could meet the merchant boss.

On the top floor of the merchantry headquarters located in the capital, was where the boss’s office was located.

Servants and aides were strictly forbidden from entering, and only Conrad had access to this place. The merchant boss had never entered through the door even once.

“I’m back.”

Adelia easily passed through the sturdy defensive magic and crossed over the window once again today.

The room connected to the window was a storage room where various documents were collected.

Newspapers and books published in various countries over the past ten years, as well as the marchantry’s operational documents, were neatly organized.

The smudges on the documents were the product of hard work.

Passing between the bookshelves, she arrived in front of a large door.

As she opened the door and stepped out, she saw a familiar green-haired figure.

His emerald green hair, slightly cascading over his shoulders, was tied low, and his bangs were swept to the side. Within the golden-framed glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, his deep green eyes blinked.

“Boss–!”

Conrad, who turned around at the sound of the door opening, hugged her with a trembling voice.

Despite slapping his shoulders, telling him to put her down immediately, it took a few spins before she could set her feet on the ground.

Adelia held onto her dizzy head and let out a deep sigh.

“Isn’t it tiring to do this every time you see me?”

“Of course not! Seeing the boss is always a joy!”

Conrad laughed heartily and followed Adelia with small steps.

Although his voice sounded somewhat frivolous, recounting what happened while Adelia was away was an important task.

Adelia listened with one ear and scanned through the documents with her eyes.

“The imperial palace placed a lot of orders.”

“That’s because there’s a banquet coming up.”

“The dress shop must be busy as well.”

“Yes. Since the banquet was arranged hastily, reservations are flooding in. We are selecting the customers based on who paid the most first.”

“Put one name on the top of the list.”

“Huh?”

Conrad asked, bewildered.

Adelia was not a bad boss. She would hire more people when there was a lot of work and give bonuses when the workload was heavy. But to suddenly increase the work during a busy ball season?

At that moment, one hypothesis popped into Conrad’s mind.

“Could it be… that you’re attending that ball?”

“Yeah.”

When Adelia casually replied, Conrad stiffened.

All unmarried noblewomen of marriageable age from noble families in the capital would be attending that ball.

In other words…

“Boss, are you a noble?”

“From a count’s family, to be exact.”

“Uh…”

Conrad grabbed the back of his neck.

It had been about three years since he met Adelia. He vaguely suspected it with her subtle aristocratic manners and high level of knowledge, but a high-ranking noble?

“The Boss is a fraud…”

Conrad, with a face that resembled a rejected lover, trembled and sobbed.

There were no tears. Just a slight feeling of disappointment, but no sense of betrayal.

She was the one who settled him down from his wandering life, and she was the one who brought him to this position.

His master had always been secretive. At least about her name. Even if she had deceived him about her gender, he would have accepted it.

“By the way, why is a count’s daughter like you here doing this?”

“Obviously, it’s because of money.”

“Then is Mare also a pseudonym?”

“That’s right. Adelia Vita. That’s my real name.”

“If you’re Lady Vita, then, isn’t that the family that you send money to regularly? No wonder you let it slide.”

The only family that the boss sends money to without any reason, despite the boss always telling him that everything comes with a price.

The very first contract made under the name of the merchantry was a financial contract with Count Vita.

Instead of lending a large sum of money every month, the contract stated that the debt must be repaid immediately when requested by the boss.

The borrowed money kept piling up, enough to bankrupt a family, but they never any pressure for them to pay it back.

As Conrad’s eyes widened with realization, Adelia frowned as if in disbelief.

“Well… think what you want to think. Send this to the dress shop.”

“Should I make the reservation under your real name?”

Adelia nodded silently, fixing her gaze on another document.

‘You can’t just wear anything.’

She had to be the star of the ball. She would do whatever it takes to be the center of attention.

Even if the clothes were not as flashy as the main character’s, she had to dress appropriately.

“And keep this too.”

Adelia pulled out a large box from the space.

Conrad, who took the box without knowing what was inside, looked up in surprise.

When he opened the box and checked the contents, he tilted his head as if he didn’t understand.

Adelia, who saw his puzzled face, smirked and laughed.

“Put that in the auction. Pay for it with my name and keep it a secret until the auction. On that day, prepare jewelry for women with pink and red gems and items for girls.”

“I understand… but this a magic stone, isn’t it? Although the color is unique and the size is large, it doesn’t seem like something to be auctioned off.”

“Oh my, it’s so disappointing to hear the white magic stone described that way.”

” … What!?”

Thud—

The box Conrad was holding fell to the ground.

The white magic stone rolled around on the floor.

Adelia shivered briefly and picked it up, brushing off the dust. Then she firmly grasped it in his frozen hand.

“Is this very expensive?”

Adelia’s eyes narrowed and she let out a playful laugh.

Conrad couldn’t continue his sentence, his mouth half-opened. Cold sweat ran down his spine and his legs trembled to the point of madness.

But the hand holding the white magic stone was very stable, as though he was holding a gold nugget with care and firmness.

“Where did you get this…?”

His voice trembled with a severe tremor that he couldn’t continue.

Adelia pointed to herself with her finger and raised the corners of her mouth.

“Me.”

With that light gesture, Conrad collapsed in a foaming heap, completely overwhelmed.

A few minutes later, Conrad rubbed his head and got up from the floor.

“Huh?”

With his fingers, he grabbed the blanket that was spread over him, looking surprised.

The roughly spread blanket was clearly a small consideration from his master.

As he looked at the white magic stone that occupied a place on the desk with a dignified appearance, he let out a deep sigh.

“Are you still working while someone has collapsed?”

“You’re not dead.”

Adelia said in a nonchalant tone, fixing her gaze on the documents.

Conrad groaned and placed his hand on his chest.

“Please consider my heart that has to endure such tremendous things in a single day. It’s a relief that my heart didn’t explode.”

“Oh come on, you really think I would let you die? Our contract still has twenty more years to go.”

“I knew you were a mage, but… damn, there’s a reason your artifacts are so good.”

Conrad swallowed a bitter laugh and tidied his disheveled hair.

It was pitiful to be in a position where he would cover a fallen person with a blanket and be treated like a slave, given a pile of work as usual.

‘That’s right, I am a slave. A wage slave.’

He quickly realized his situation.

“Next week is payday… This month’s double…”

Conrad mumbled about the upcoming payslip.

Thinking about his bank account growing thicker, his desire to work surged again.

He returned to his seat and grabbed the box containing the white magic stone.

“By the way, why are we putting the white magic stone up for auction?”

“The rarity and value are the criteria for determining the price at an auction. And there’s only one white magic stone in the world.”

“It’s going to skyrocket in value. It will break the record for the highest price ever and rumors will spread…”

Conrad held his chin with one hand and understood her intention.

Adelia nodded in agreement with his somewhat accurate thoughts.

“That’s right. And in the end, whose hands will it fall into?”

“The person who bids the highest… The Emperor, I suppose.”

“Correct!”

Adelia clapped her hands together with a satisfied expression.

As expected of the person I chose. He was a talented individual with a sharp mind in various aspects.

While Adelia had a pleased expression on her face, Conrad still remained puzzled.

“But what does it matter if the Emperor wins the bid? The rumors will spread quickly anyway.”

“Yeah, it matters because this time I’m going to become the Crown Prince’s consort.”

“What?”

He thought there was nothing left to be surprised about.

There could be nothing more astonishing than finding out that his superior was not only a high-ranking noble but also a white mage.

Surprisingly, she managed to create something even more astonishing than that.

Conrad barely managed to regain his composure. There was too much work to collapse.

“Why would you do such a thing? Do you fancy the Crown Prince or something…?”

“What? Is your salary too high?”

“There must be a valid reason since there are no coincidences.”

Conrad placed both hands by his side and looked at her with a mischievous glint in his eye.

Living in this harsh business world was truly difficult.