Count Shairon's eyes widened at the unexpected words.
Whether it was true or not, the idea of expanding the factory wasn't a bad one.
Even if the Duke of Sorpel didn't have such an idea, it would be worth a try to convince him.
"Have you heard of this?"
"Pardon?"
"Luck and misfortune always come in a pair."
"Luck?"
As he stares in disbelief, Camilla hands him something she's been holding.
"What's this?"
"Luck."
Luck?
Camilla handed him a small gift box.
"Do you mind if I open it?"
"Of course."
Puzzled as to why she was suddenly giving him a gift, he unwrapped the ribbon-tied box.
"…"
Count Shairon's face hardened as he examined the contents of the box, and the butler next to him, Rube, frowned slightly.
'It's a natural reaction.'
Count Shairon was 49 years old this year. His wife was 48, a year younger than him.
They had an enviable relationship, and even though they had been married for more than 20 years, they still had a lot of affection for each other.
But there was just one problem with those two.
'They don't have children.'
Whether the gods were jealous or not, there was no love lost between the two, who were too good for each other.
Some people suggested adoption, but the Count of Shairon flatly refused.
He said that could not bring himself to love a child who did not have his wife's blood, and that bringing a child with such a heart would be unfortunate for both the child and the couple.
Instead, he and his wife were sponsoring several orphanages. Whenever he had time, he would personally visit the centers and care for the children.
They had given up hope of ever having a child, and Camilla gave them a gift.
"…These are baby shoes."
They were little shoes that babies wore.
"Isn't it cute?"
Count Shairon stared at Camilla with his jaw clenched.
'Are you making fun of me?'
Otherwise, there was no reason to give him such a gift.
"Take good care of it."
"Pardon?"
"You'll need it soon."
Camilla simply smiled at the frowning Count of Shairon, and then left without another word.
"…"
Count Shairon's face grew even colder as he glanced back and forth between the baby shoes in his hand and the departing Camilla.
But a few days later.
"Did you hear? The Countess of Shairon is having a baby!"
"I heard, but wasn't Miss Camilla who spoke of it first?"
"She gave Count Shairon a pair of baby shoes out of the blue and said he'd need them soon."
"I heard they were pink shoes, too. She could have hinted that the gender of the baby… so it might be a girl and not a boy!"
"I don't know about that."
A major event arose in the Countship of Shairon, and Camilla's name began to be mentioned in the same breath.
When the Count of Shairon learned of his wife's pregnancy, he visited Camilla and was overcome with gratitude.
He praised Camilla over and over again, as if she had been the one who had given them the baby.
"The other day, Viscount Basel brought in a new business partner, and Lady Camilla shook her head as soon as she saw him. He did some research and found out that the new partner was a scammer."
"She also guessed that the head maid's mother died! She told her to go home, and when she did, her mother had passed away."
"I don't think it's a coincidence that she had a dream about a fire the other night, do you?"
"It's so cool."
"Is My Lady receiving a revelation from God?"
"Is that really true?"
"It seems that she has a better eye than the famous fortune-teller in the capital."
"Don't you see how many kids are around her these days? They're asking for a reading, too…"
The ducal was abuzz. Everyone exclaimed in amazement and admiration at Camilla's recent display of mysterious abilities.
They could have dismissed it as a coincidence once, but the mysterious phenomenon was too much to ignore anymore.
"Camilla."
"Yes, father?"
That was also true of the Duke of Sorpel.
"What on earth is going on?"
The only difference was that, in addition to being surprised and impressed, he was also worried.
He was worried that Camilla's abilities might be causing her some harm, either mentally or physically.
"I don't know."
Camilla shook her head gently.
"Sometimes it's a dream— just seeing a certain person can trigger a strange scene."
"Your body."
"Pardon?"
"Does it hurt?"
"Eh, don't worry about that."
"…Alright."
Looking at Camilla, who smiled reassuringly at him, the Duke of Sorpel nodded slowly.
As if word of Camilla hadn't already spread far and wide, he's heard from the temple yesterday.
They want to investigate whether her precognitive abilities are related to divine power.
The Duke of Sorpel, of course, did not give them any leeway and coldly refused their request.
"If there's anything wrong with you, you should tell me right away."
"Yes, father."
Camilla gave him a faint smile again, then trailed off.
"By the way…"
"Hm?"
"I've been having a dream lately that I keep seeing over and over again."
"Repeatedly?"
The Duke of Sorpel's face hardened slightly at the mention of the same dream, not once, but many times. Her dreams could no longer be ignored.
"Is it a bad dream?"
"Not really."
Setting down the teacup she was holding, Camilla put on a false smile to reassure the Duke of Sorpel, who was staring at her.
"I'll check it out and let you know."
"Check it out?"
"Yes."
"Is it dangerous?"
"Not at all."
Unwilling to say what the dream was about, Camilla left it at that. The Duke of Sorpel did not probe further.
'Okay, now I've laid all the groundwork.'
Let's go find the Divine Beast's egg.
Chapter. Finding the Egg of the Divine Beast
"Phew."
Standing in front of the lake, Camilla let out a long breath.
She was dressed as lightly as possible. She stood in front of the lake, wearing only the simple pants and shirt she wore during her sword training.
You can't go in with a skirt on, can you?
"I'm not confident in swimming, but…"
She's had a lot of experience in swimming before. She's been taught by professionals.
This is because there are quite a few commercials, movies, and TV shows that require shooting underwater.
'Of course, the safety was perfect then.'
Because there was always a lifeguard around. But now?
Camilla turned to the two ghosts standing beside her, Herschel and Derrin.
She sighed as she saw the two excited, not worried about drowning.
'Okay, let's think positively.'
At least there's a ghost to show her the way.
It was a good thing she didn't have to blindly search for the Divine Beast's egg whose location she didn't know in the large lake.
"It's not that far away, is it?"
[Yes, trust me, it's not as deep as you think, you'll be able to get it out in no time.]
She wondered why Derrin was so confident today.
However, she wasn't going to come all this way and put it off for another day.
Recently, rumors of her precognitive abilities have been spreading, bringing more attention to herself. It was also very hard to get here without being seen.
Might as well get it done today and get it over with.
Camilla stretched lightly, double-checking her surroundings to make sure there were no people around.
"Let's get started."
[Yes!]
[Be careful.]
Instead of answering, he nodded lightly to Herschel. Derrin quickly dove into the water. Because he's a ghost, not a single ripple rose.
Camilla watched for a moment, took a few long, deep breaths, and dove into the water.
Splash!
She flinched at the temperature of the water, which was colder than expected, but soon opened her eyes to assess the situation.
Camilla nods when she sees Derrin, who is now closer and looking at her with concern. Only then does Derrin turn back.
Camilla followed him slowly.
Given her swimming ability, it wasn't too hard to keep up with Derrin, and kept up with him as best she could.
'The water is really clear.'
She could see very clearly into the distance.
[Here it is, Miss!]
Just as she was starting to get out of breath, Derrin announced that they had arrived at the destination.
[That's the Divine Beast's egg!]
'That one?'
Camilla looked at the object Derrin pointed to and was a little confused. She thought it was an egg or something.
'Isn't that a glass ball?'
A small glass ball, the size of a baby's fist, lay at the bottom of the lake.
It was a bit unusual that the colors changed from moment to moment due to the hazy light that seeped through the lake.
But even then, it was hard to call it an egg.
[Miss.]
'I got it.'
At Derrin's urging, Camilla hurried to gather the egg. She was already out of breath, and it was hard to stay there any longer.
And then it happened. Camilla's eyes widened as she started to swim back up.
She spotted someone swimming swiftly toward her with a stiff expression on their face.
'Is that Donna?'
Camilla was so taken aback by the unexpected appearance that she forgot she was underwater and opened her mouth to respond.
"…!"
She quickly realized that water was going in her mouth and tried to catch her breath, but her breathing was already disoriented and she was having trouble holding it.
[Miss!]
Derrin's panicked voice could be heard, and Donna's pace quickened as she moved toward her.
She doesn't really remember what happened after that.
"…iss!"
"Mi…"
"Miss Camilla!"
She was already out of the lake when she came to her senses.
Donna's face was pale and she was calling to her.
"Miss! Are you out of your mind?"
"You— cough!"