Having the upper hand

Eliz breathed a sigh of relief. She only managed to do so when she inserted the first Golden Goose coin. She had already lost all the smaller goose coins.

The entire machine lit up and made loud winning noises. Eliz smiled with satisfaction and watched as the golden goose coins poured out. Her eyes grew bigger and bigger as the stream of coins continued to flow. She could not even count it out of her head!

Even her guardian, who disapproved of gambling, could not stop staring.

Eliz stared at the slot machine and considered continuing to play, but she feared that she would bother her for her winnings. There was also the possibility that they would accuse her of cheating, which would not be entirely untrue. But they had no way of knowing that. Still, that would be quite a nuisance.

"Young Miss Roseblood. It seems luck is on your side today," a woman's voice sounded behind her. Eliz turned in her chair and stared at the woman's generous bosom.

'Damn. Should not you need a license for that? ' Eliz thought in amazement before averting her gaze from the cleavage and focusing on the woman's face. She was an imposing, well-rounded lady, and Eliz had no idea who she might be.

Eliz stood up and noticed that even her guard had stared, showing a lack of manners. So she discreetly kicked him in the leg. The guard flinched and immediately looked back up. Eliz found this funny.

She turned her attention to the woman and watched as more people came, including her target.

'Well, well,' she thought to herself and smiled.

'You are right, ma'am. I am having a great day today. I'd say I have earned my share of luck." She signaled the guard to collect her winnings. Still, she had no clue who the woman was. But she saw an opportunity to find out. Potential!

With that thought in mind, she focused on the woman, and information appeared above her head.

Madame Pristine Vesnee

Trail: Successful businesswoman, Sense of beauty

Potential: Enhanced Warrior - Defender, Visionary

Eliz received more information than she had hoped for. The labels above the woman's head probably indicated what she had achieved or possessed. The colors seemed to correspond to rarity, much like the games. However, the system provided no explanations, so Eliz had to make her own interpretations.

She guessed that light blue represented something common, while deep blue denoted a successful businesswoman and was above common. But what about the gray label "Enhanced Warrior - Defender"? The gray color did not give a positive impression; maybe it was just an option, but was it hard to excel in this talent? Finally, there was the gold color of "Visionary" Eliz assumed from the color that it was legendary.

'Yes, let's go with that.'

The inscription above Madame Vesnee's head disappeared, and Eliz turned to her. "What can I do for you, Madame Vesnee?"

"Oh, so you know me, Lady Roseblood?" the woman seemed pleased.

Eliz nodded. "Of course I do. How could I not?" She smiled and inwardly cursed, 'Bloody hell, I have no idea who you are!'

Her only relief was that she had not pretended they had met before. She could not rely on that tactic yet, and how many more times could she pretend not to remember?

And she could not use it with this woman. This woman was impossible to forget.

Madame Vesnee smiled and nodded her head. "Certainly. With your beauty, Lady Roseblood, I am sure you know my brand. I recognize my lipstick brand 'Captivating Cherry' by sight."

Eliz nodded her head, thinking. Brand? Oh... Beauty products? Now that the lady was talking about it, she realized that the products Alobela adorned her with were branded with the sign Vesnee.

Eliz could tell that this lady was definitely no small fry.

"Please, Madame Vesnee. Elizabeth is enough. And, of course. There's no way I could use other products. I always want the best." Eliz had no problem making a snob of herself.

"Great! Wonderful! Lady Elizabeth, then. I have a certain business proposition for you. Would you promote my new brand, 'Black Crane'?"

Eliz was momentarily surprised, for she had not expected to be offered the job. Can aristocrats even work? Eliz could not remember ever reading about such a thing. Indeed there were those stories where an aristocrat was 'secretly' cooking, for example. Or when her family ostracized her, she went into business for herself. But she could not recall a case of a working aristocrat.

"Ha! That sounds interesting." She could not help herself and said it out loud.

"Wait a minute! Wait a minute! You and I also have a business to negotiate, Lady Roseblood!" Shouted the dwarf with a piercing fire look and rushed forward when he heard Madame Vesnee grab the opportunity.

Eliz stared at the dwarf, again using the Potential to see who it was.

Kuron Frosthound

Trail: Maker, Architect, Clan Leader

Potential: Master of swearing, Goldsmith

Eliz ran her hand over her lips to hide the fact that she was twitching her lips. The master of swearing? Eliz swore she had to hear him curse at some point. She quickly got rid of the twitching corners of her mouth when she finally realized who it was.

As interesting as Madame Vesnee's offer was, it was something she wanted.

"Oh, the leader of the Frosthound clan! Did you come down from the mountain for our business? This is truly an honor for me." She immediately approached him and grabbed his large hand, squeezing it warmly.

Kuron was a little taken aback that this young woman knew him. He did not come down from the mountain often, and most aristocrats would not recognize him. The young lady had had did her homework. Quite capable. He had a good impression of her.

He returned the handshake. "Of course. My nephew said it was a big project and something like that only I can decide, and it's better to meet a possible future partner in person."

Eliz nodded her head in agreement. She agreed with that. When it came to business, face-to-face contact was best. "I'll make sure you will not regret it, clan leader."

Kuron snorted and waved his hand. "Kuron is enough, Lady Elizabeth. We are no longer strangers."

Eliz let go of his hand and smiled broadly. "Of course. I think we'll get along just fine."

"Ahem." Madame Vesnee cleared her throat to draw attention back to herself.

Eliz looked at her and put on an awkward expression. "Ah. I am sorry, Madame Vesnee. It wasn't polite of me to turn away from you like that. I got carried away with the excitement of finally meeting Kuron."

Satisfied with the apology, Madame Vesnee nodded her head indulgently. "It's all right, Lady Elizabeth. I had no idea that the leader of the Frosthounds had come to town because of you. I wonder what the occasion is?"

Eliz gave a small smile. "I am sorry, Manadam Vesnee, but this is private."

"Oh. I understand. In that case, I will not inquire further." Madame Vesnee retreated on the subject. Eliz noticed another man come up behind Madame Vesnee. She could not help but notice his wolf ears. But why were his eyes closed?

Of course, she also saw Miel Hadfield, but she intended to ignore him for now. He seemed unwilling to introduce himself anyway and was observing the situation curiously.

"And this gentleman is?" she asked aloud while using Potential on the wolf man. Eliz got used to it pretty quickly. It was a handy little thing.

Fraril Wildborne

Trail: Syndicate leader, Hidden Martial Artist

Potential: Spy Master, Wildborne

Eliz had no idea how she kept a straight face as she read that, but somehow she did it.

'This guy was dangerous as hell!'

Eliz's eyes, however, began to light up with anticipation.

'Damn, I want him!' she thought. She could not help it. This wolfman, Fraril, did not have a single ordinary Trail. Syndicate leader blue marked as rare. Hidden Martial Artist green is uncommon. And Spy Master's potential purple. Was not purple the designation for Unique? And although she had no idea what Wildborne meant, even that was marked gold as legendary. How could she not want it?

"Ah. This is Fraril Wildborne. A businessman like me." She introduced him to Madame Vesnee, and Eliz noticed the twinge of hesitation.

'A businessman, my ass. I do not know how to do it yet, but I will make you my subordinate!' Eliz smiled kindly at the man.

"It is a great pleasure to meet you, Master Wildborn." She extended her hand to him.

Wildborne squeezed her hand and was pleased with the strength of the squeeze. But at the same time, for some reason, a shiver ran down his spine, and his ears automatically lowered and pressed against his head.

He quickly withdrew his hand and sensed the smiling woman before him. Suddenly he felt as if a predator was staring at him. He had not experienced that in a long time. It was disturbing. How could such a young woman affect him? She was not even one of the Wolf Race.

"Quite the contrary. The pleasure is all mine." He replied, shaking off the feeling.

"Actually, I'd like to have a conversation with you, as well." He admitted.

"Indeed? Since I have the time, arranging it will not be a problem. And what about you, young Lord Hadfield? Do you have something to discuss with me as well?" Eliz finally responded to the presence of the young man who had been watching everything.

Without hesitation, Miel stepped forward with a sympathetic smile and bowed to Eliz before gently taking her hand and suggesting a kiss on the back of her hand.

"I am afraid I am only here as an observer, Lady Roseblood. Your captivating presence has distracted all my opponents, leaving me no choice but to follow. But I can not say that I regret it. The sight of your beauty is like a work of art." The sweet words came naturally from his mouth.

Eliz looked flattered and hid her true feelings.

'What a load of crap.' Did he think Eliz was an ordinary stupid and naive girl who fell for such embarrassingly sweet words?

Still, she admired the fact that he could say it without blushing.

Eliz smiled, wondering if she could make this womanizer blush. She would definitely enjoy trying.

She checked his Potential.

Miel Hadfield

Trail: Scammer, Seducer, Gold Digger

Potential: Puppet Master, Legendary Assassin

Swindler and Gold Digger were common, but Seducer was rare.

But what about his potential? Two unique options? Legendary Assassin and Puppet Master? That sounded really interesting. Could she bring out both in him?

"You are a very good flatterer, Lord Hadfield." Said Eliz, and when Miel stood up to let go of her hand, she squeezed it tighter and pulled him closer so that Eliz was looking into his eyes.

"But perhaps it is fate that we meet here. I have a proposition for you, sunshine." She told him in a soft voice before letting go of him.

Her behavior took Miel aback, and though he didn't fall out of character, his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Ah. Truly? I'd love to hear that." He responded a bit belatedly, unsure what to make of Elizabeth's address to him. Sunshine?

Eliz smiled. It was not true that it was fate.

She knew Miel would be here. She had come here originally just for him. There was one thing that no one knew about Miel. Actually, only the author and the readers knew that. Miel was not, in fact, as big a womanizer as he might have seemed. Not that he did not, but rather that he had to.

His family was on the verge of bankruptcy. This was how he raised money for his family to get out of debt. Bankruptcy was a serious matter for a nobleman. They could lose not only their property but also their title.

The only sad thing was that not even his family knew about it. His father was not very good with money, and Miel collaborated with the employee who managed their assets. Miel could have fixed things if he had married well, but even though Miel was a really nice guy, he still had some dignity left and did not want to marry for money.

Eliz thought that was selfish, but it was perfectly fine with her. Miel had already sacrificed more than enough. He did not need to sacrifice more.

Besides, there was one more hidden truth. His father may not have known how to handle money, but it was not his fault they were bankrupt.

How could it be otherwise than that their employee had embezzled their money?

According to the story, Miel did not manage to support his family for long and a year, and a bit later, they lost everything. Miel disappeared from the scene at that point, but it would not be a cliché story if he did not reappear in the future. And perhaps as an assassin.

Eliz looked forward to destroying this plot and gaining another follower.

How she loved to ruin these events!

As for the others, it was probably fate or coincidence. She had not expected to meet so many interesting people at once. This story might be a little munchkin?

Eliz raised her hand and called the waiter to her side. "I'd like a private break room." She asked, then looked to the others.

"I seem to have something to do with each of you. So I will speak with each of you privately. Master Kuron. If you will follow me?" She prompted him and made her way to the break room.

Kuron quickly found himself following the young lady.

"Huh? How did this happen?" He muttered in confusion. Since when was is he the one who followed?