# Chapter 48
Chapter 48
"Since it's come to this, let's each come forward and explain the business we’ve picked out."
Clattering sounds filled the room as the people who had been shouting at each other earlier started coming forward, one by one, to explain the business they wanted to invest in.
"This is such a huge business, so if it works out, we could have hundreds of snacks…"
‘Liar.’
"This business is about very thick, fluffy clothes from a distant land, and here, there’s even a cute rabbit design…"
‘Liar.’
Bunny tilted her head.
Bunny had the ability to sense others' malice.
Malice meant bad intentions, which included dishonest words.
So, Bunny could tell when someone was lying.
And here, there were only liars.
Bunny's eyes soon grew tired and uninterested.
As she listened to the long-winded stories, Bunny slumped into Ludbride's arms.
‘Not Grandpa, but Bunny’s falling apart…’
With a heavy sigh, Bunny pointed to some papers piled up on Ludbride's desk with her finger.
"Grandpa, what's this?"
"Hmm?
These are the documents that came with the request for money.
You still haven’t learned to read all the characters, right?"
"Yeah.
But I can read a few."
Bunny stretched out her fingers, then struggled to grab the papers in her hands and started reading.
Flipping through the pages carelessly, Bunny’s lips began to stick out more and more.
All the letters were difficult and crooked, but among them, she noticed a familiar character.
‘Oh?
I know this one!’
Bunny’s eyes sparkled, and she suddenly stopped moving.
***
The letter that Luriel had written below contained several twisted words from humans, and one of the shapes matched exactly.
Bunny could mimic anything she saw just once.
Of course, understanding and studying were different from simply copying, but—
She could tell the letters were the same.
***
"This one!"
Bunny raised the paper high.
It was only a thin sheet, no more than two or three pages.
Among the piles of papers filled with elaborate stories, this one had been tucked away in a corner.
"This one's a big deal."
"Big deal?"
"Yeah.
Super rich.
Bunny learned about it from the dragon."
Bunny pointed her finger at a red shrike that was perched on her shoulder, preening its feathers.
"Big deal, huh…?"
"What kind of business is this?"
The people who had been eyeing the paper Bunny raised with narrowed eyes flipped through their piles of papers, scanning through them and frowning.
"Magic engineering?
Magic stone air cooler?"
"Wait, magic stones?
Isn't that the thing from the Magic Kingdom?
The ones from the Magic Tower?"
"Even if you don’t know much, you’re not suggesting we help those sorcerers, are you?"
Ludbride took the paper Bunny had raised and examined it.
With Bunny perched on one arm and the paper in the other, Ludbride casually flipped through the pages with one hand.
"Looks like they’re not from the Magic Tower."
"Can a sorcerer not be from the Magic Tower?"
"Well, they don’t seem to know much about the real world.
How dare they ask for investment from the Duchy of Udia with their magical nonsense!"
"This is nonsense.
Do you have anything else, Bunny?"
One of the people sitting around the long table quickly asked Bunny.
Bunny shook her head and, with a serious expression, folded her arms and spoke.
"Nothing."
Well, it wasn’t that Bunny didn’t know any words—she didn’t know any of the words on these papers.
***
"But… what about this cute clothing with designs?"
"Ugly."
Bunny stared disinterestedly at a shirt with a cat design on it.
"It’s a rabbit, not a cat."
"But…"
"No.
Not changing it."
Bunny shook her head.
She had nothing more to say to liars.
Bunny flipped through the remaining papers in her hands and stopped suddenly when she saw something familiar.
"Grandpa, this one too!!"
"Hmm?
Clothing business?
It’s related to a boutique."
Ludbride took the paper Bunny pointed to and examined it.
"Looks like it’s gathering funds for a boutique."
***
"I suppose leaving it to Bunny wasn’t the best idea.
A business like this isn’t something anyone can choose…"
As Ludbride pondered, one of the side faction members who thought it was unfavorable quickly changed the topic.
"No, let’s stick with these two for this year."
Ludbride, having read the brief three-page application for magic engineering and the portfolio-heavy clothing business application, handed the documents to Pell.
Both seemed to have potential, and the documents were well-organized, so they were more meaningful than supporting the side faction members.
"Got it.
We’ll process it according to the procedures."
Pell quickly took the documents and responded.
***
"This is nonsense!
Duke, the clothing business is one thing, but those sorcerers!
You know how wicked and despicable they are, right?
They’ll do anything, even inhumane acts, for the sake of magical advancement…"
"Yeah, I know."
Ludbride cut off his retort with a sharp glance and spoke curtly.
"Looks like they aren’t from the Magic Tower, and they really do need funding for research.
Their research goal seems decent enough."
***
The vassals, who had been debating, fell silent.
Some were about to speak but paused, their mouths closing again.
A man, taking a deep breath, opened his mouth but quickly closed it under Ludbride’s cold gaze.
***
"I’m not doing this to line your pockets.
This was meant to help those who have the ability but lack the circumstances."
"But to trust a child’s word…"
"You said that yourself.
Once you speak, you better keep your word.
Otherwise…"
Boom!
The air around Ludbride grew heavy.
The vassals' faces turned pale.
Hee-ing—!
Somewhere, a horse’s cry echoed, followed by the flapping of wings.
The holy power around Ludbride was intensifying.
Holy power was a purifying force, but when its density became too high, even oxygen could no longer exist, suffocating anyone nearby.
***
"My granddaughter’s words are far more reliable than your smooth-talking mouths."
My granddaughter?
It was a strange title.
Had Ludbride ever called any of the side faction children grandchildren?
The vassals’ eyes flickered uneasily.
In fact, Ludbride, who had never referred to Udia’s direct descendants—his only son, Kalvad Udia—as a grandchild, was now using this term.
***
"We’ll do a thorough investigation before making a decision, but if there are no disqualifications, we’ll proceed with this project for this quarter."
"Yes, understood."
Pell responded with a subtle smile and a slow bow.
***
In the future, thanks to Bunny’s choice, Ludbride Udia would invest in the magic stone air cooler, which would go on to revolutionize not only the Empire but the entire continent.
It would become so widespread that the term "one air cooler per household" would be coined.