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That brilliant man couldn't have stepped into this situation without a reason.
Surely, there must be a special and important reason that she doesn't understand, which is why he quietly agreed without stopping his rampaging lover...
Just as his head was starting to spin, the drawing room door opened again.
"You've been waiting long. This person is the creator of our Flor Cosmetics, Yuria."
Behind Jordik, who was greeting with courtesy, someone quietly appeared.
Yetien frowned slightly without realizing it when he saw the person Jordik pointed to.
'Still too young.'
A small and frail figure. Messy hair and a face covered in bright red freckles.
Perhaps because she was nervous in front of important people, her eyes were darting around, and her hands were busy fiddling with her apron.
Her trembling fingertips were roughly chapped. That point was strangely unsettling.
'Something's strange.'
Flor Cosmetics was currently raking in money in the empire, to the point where it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say so.
But for the creator of such famous cosmetics to look so shabby.
Yetien was puzzled, but he swallowed his words tactfully.
"Be careful not to be rude, and apologize unconditionally."
After Jordik left those cold words, he quickly left the room.
A heavy silence fell in the room for a moment. The woman introduced as Yuria hesitated, then took a hesitant step forward.
"I, I heard that you came because there was a problem with the cosmetics I made. If you show me what you used, I'd like to check it out..."
However, instead of reacting to her words, Ayla stared at the direction Jordik had left and muttered something small.
"--."
There was no visible change. But Yetien noticed that the sound from outside the drawing room had completely stopped at some point.
'Did she use Magic?'
Soon, Ayla smiled contentedly and opened her mouth in a kind voice that was completely different from before.
"Sit down first, Yuria."
She pointed to the sofa in front of her with a gentle attitude.
It was completely opposite to the fierce look she had given her opponent a moment ago.
Yuria looked bewildered for a moment, not knowing what was going on, but soon hesitated and sat down in the seat she pointed to.
"How... how should I address you..."
"My name is Ayla."
Ayla said, looking awkward.
"I'm sorry for glaring at you so fiercely earlier. Were you very surprised?"
"Yes? Ah, not really..."
Yuria looked at the woman in front of her with a flustered face.
In fact, when she first encountered her here, Yuria was quite nervous.
She had been told several times to be careful not to offend her as much as possible, as the other party was no ordinary troublemaker.
'Besides, the man next to her is said to be from the Argenta Duke's family.'
Yuria glanced at Felix's face.
Clear and transparent green eyes under shining silver hair. Below that, a straight nose and tightly closed lips, and a sharp jawline.
It was a handsome appearance that made her face heat up without realizing it, out of place for the situation.
'I was told that the two of them came to scold me...'
She carefully examined the expressions of the two people alternately.
But Yuria tilted her head because she couldn't find any sign of blame in their eyes.
"I... may I ask why you called me here?"
Ayla nodded and opened her mouth.
"First of all, I apologize for surprising you with such a somewhat extreme method."
Ayla said that and put her hand on her cheek and then took it off.
Yuria widened her eyes in surprise as the red mark that had been visible a moment ago disappeared cleanly.
"As you can see, there was nothing wrong with the cosmetics you made."
"......"
"But Jordik hid you so well that I had no choice but to use this method."
"I... I can hardly get out of the workshop."
Yuria blushed and lowered her head. She didn't know why, but she felt it was hard to make eye contact with the other person.
Ayla looked at her with warm eyes and opened her mouth.
"I'll be direct. I want you to come under me."
"......Yes?"
"Of course, I know this proposal is too sudden. You may be worried about starting a new business with a new person when your cosmetics are already so popular."
Ayla sighed softly and continued.
"But Jordik, the owner of Fleur Merchant, is not a very reliable business partner."
"......"
When Yuria closed her mouth as if she had been stabbed, Ayla nodded with a knowing expression and continued.
"Do you know that several people have already sued him for unfair contracts? But Jordik has repeatedly used money to cover it up every time."
"......"
"Besides, the cosmetics sold at Fleur are sold with excessive profits compared to the cost. As you know."
Ayla said that and crossed her arms and leaned back on the sofa.
"Just one more question. It's been a month since you started the business, but are you getting your share of the profits properly, Ms. Yuria? It's a sensitive question, but please answer me."
Yuria blankly opened her mouth and answered in a barely audible voice.
"He said... he hasn't recovered the investment yet... so I haven't received any money."
Ayla frowned.
It became clear that Jordik had been monopolizing the profits by taking advantage of Yuria's inexperience in business.
"Really, he's nothing but a scammer. Just looking at the scale of cosmetics that have been sold so far, it's more than enough to break even."
"Yes? That much...?"
Yuria seemed a little shocked.
Ayla looked at such Yuria with pity.
'In the original story, Yuria gradually fell out with Jordik and eventually decided to leave Fleur.'
Count Arman was the first to reach out to her.
However, Sharon Atelier also tried to use Yuria's name to sell cosmetics made with cheap ingredients at high prices.
'That's why the Arman family overcomes the financial difficulties and accumulates enormous wealth.'
Ayla knew that Yuria was trying to escape from the scammer Jordik, but she was being deceived by the bigger scammer, Count Arman.
That's why she was planning to rescue her early.
"Did Jordik say anything when he asked you to sign the contract?"
Yuria answered in a trembling voice.
"I... I said I wanted to make cosmetics that commoners could also use. He readily agreed. But after the contract, he said that we should promote it to noble women first, and try to make it high-end first. He said we'll plan cosmetics for commoners later..."
"Jordik never intended to listen to you in the first place. He's already making more than enough money, so why would he try to lower the price?"
"......"
Yuria's lips trembled at Ayla's words. Then she tightly closed her eyes.
"Actually, I knew it. I felt it was strange that he kept changing his words. But... I don't have the power or the capital, so there was no way."
Ayla asked quietly.
"What's the existing contract ratio?"
"3 to 7. But I haven't received any money yet because he said he hasn't recovered the investment. I'm also paying for some of the manufacturing room costs and material costs."
Ayla frowned.
"I can give you 5 to 5. And I will respect the brand identity you wanted to create as much as possible. Let's create a low-cost cosmetics brand together that commoners can also use."
"A low-cost cosmetics brand?"
"Yes. So that people with money can choose the high-end line, and those who don't can choose products at reasonable prices."
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