Chapter_41

Translator: Yonnee

Dustin clicked his tongue inwardly.

‘That boy, really.’

The silks the young man brought out were not meant for sale here. Smitten by the beauty before him, he had opened a sealed box from the inner storage and brought out the reserved pieces.

Cecilia touched each silk fabric one by one.

“Is there any that’s not mixed?”

“This one is pure.”

“No, it’s mixed.”

“Pardon? That can’t be. Look at this luster and color. It’s high-purity silk.”

“It is mixed.”

Dustin interjected.

“It seems the lady knows her silk well.”

A flicker of recognition passed through Cecilia’s eyes.

‘This old man… Isn’t he the head of the Ewen Trading Guild?’

One of the continent’s top trading guilds. Even grand dukes rarely had the chance to meet a merchant of his stature.

For such a prominent figure to lead a small trade caravan to Lagos Castle?

Cecilia regretted her lack of interest in current affairs and economics. She couldn’t deduce any context from the situation.

“I know a little out of interest. And who might you be?”

“I am merely the leader of this trade caravan. Hardly someone worth the lady’s notice.”

‘A lie.’

About ten years from now. Cecilia would see Dustin just once more, at an antique auction. Though he would be even older by then, his face remained vivid in her memory, for Cecilia never forgot a face she had once seen.

When she was young, she thought the Lumia Company, which held a monopoly over the market within the Jericho Grand Duchy, was the largest trading firm.

But, in reality, Lumia was merely a regional merchant operating under the protection of Grand Duke Jericho.

There were three major guilds operating across the entire continent, and one of them was the Ewen Guild.

‘Ten years from now, the Ewen Guild was already the top choice among the financially savvy, and twenty years later, even commoners knew of it.’

The sight she saw at that auction, a decade in the future, left a lasting impression. Prominent figures, their noses usually held high, were smiling deferentially beside an elderly man.

When she had asked who the man was, they had replied he was the head of the Ewen Guild.

 

⌜There had been many rumors about the identity of the Ewen Guild’s head, but it was only revealed less than a year ago.⌟

 

Cecilia remembered someone muttering beside her that day.

‘It’s still a secret now, I suppose.’

“As the caravan leader, do you take pre-orders for items in your next shipment?”

“Of course. From what I see, you’re seeking white fabric made of pure silk, but are you dissatisfied with what we have here?”

“This isn’t what I’m looking for.”

“In that case… Peter.”

“Yes, Master.”

The young man, who had been standing around awkwardly, replied.

“Go to Tran and ask for a silk sample.”

Peter darted off and soon returned with a burly, middle-aged man carrying a small wooden box that seemed tiny in his large hands.

The middle-aged man set the box on the stall, and Dustin opened the lid. Inside was silk. The luster on the white silk indicated its premium quality at a single glance.

“Perhaps this will suit your taste.”

Cecilia’s gaze wavered as she touched the silk.

‘This…’

This fabric would only appear five or six years later.

It was a new material that combined the qualities of silk and cotton, something that hadn’t existed before. It was cheaper than silk but as soft, more durable, and as absorbent as cotton.

It became wildly popular and nearly dominated the fabric market.

‘So this originated from the Ewen Guild.’

This fabric would undoubtedly be the catalyst for the Ewen Guild’s meteoric rise in the future.

“This isn’t silk, is it?”

Dustin’s brow twitched.

“What do you mean? It is indeed silk.”

“What I mean is that it’s not silk made from raw silk of the Srahil region.”

The Srahil region was the largest silk-producing area on the continent. Most of the silk distributed across the continent was made from raw silk sourced there.

Moreover, the entire Srahil region’s silkworm farms were jointly owned by the seven grand dukes, who each held an equal share.

This meant that the new fabric the Ewen Guild would soon release could potentially alter the financial currents across the continent.

Dustin hid his inner shock with a smile.

“You say interesting things, Your Ladyship.”

 

Want to support this website and read a total of up to [40] chapters ahead for RWP?
Visit patreon.com/peachesatdusk

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

error: This site\'s contents are protected!