Chapter : 06
The Bachelor Noble Does Not Marry
“Good morning!”
As I was drawing the blueprint for a cooling device at the workshop desk, someone cheerfully burst through the workshop door. A woman with slightly unruly red hair and emerald green eyes.
Her name was Rouge, one of the employees at my workshop.
“A new magic tool request has come in!”
Rouge announced brightly and laid out the request forms on my desk.
Rouge’s job involved the workshop’s miscellaneous tasks: securing sales routes, handling deliveries, and receiving requests.
“Again?”
“It’s a good thing to have work. Don’t make such a sour face.”
“Well, yes, but the problem is that we have too few employees.”
Tristan shot me a slightly sarcastic look as he spoke.
“That’s true. Even though our sales have grown so much, we still only have two employees…”
Right. My workshop, Jilk Workshop, only had Tristan and Rouge as employees. Including me, there were only three of us.
“Hey, Jilk. Now that the refrigerator delivery has stabilized and we’re seeing consistent profits, isn’t it time to hire someone?”
“No need.”
Rouge said this in a nauseatingly sweet, coaxing voice, and I immediately rejected the idea.
“Why not? If we had more people, we could make more magic tools and increase workshop sales. There are plenty of people who want Jilk’s magic tools, you know.”
“I’ve said it many times: I make magic tools to make my own life comfortable. I have no lofty ideas about doing it for others. I just make what I want to make.”
Yes, I do not have the naive idea of bringing smiles to people or enriching the town with my magic tools.
Everything I create is solely to make my own life more comfortable. I sell the tools only to cover development costs and for my personal livelihood. I do not share Rouge’s passion.
“Sigh… Your way of thinking never changes, does it? Your inventions are amazing, yet you yourself are like this.”
People don’t change easily.
Even after dying once and living a second life, I hadn’t changed at all. I’m sure I’m not wrong.
For now, I checked the request forms Rouge brought.
I would only take on the ones I was interested in. Anything else, I would decline.
Rouge would handle sending the rest to other workshops or rejecting them—she could manage that.
“I still hope we can hire more employees!”
Even though I rejected Rouge’s suggestion, Tristan once again pleaded.
I wanted to reject him immediately, but perhaps he had some earnest reasoning, so I paused checking the requests to listen.
“Why?”
“Because at this rate, I’ll never get a girlfriend! Rouge is beautiful, but she’s married, there are no other women, and my only boss is a grumpy man! In a workplace like this, I can’t even meet anyone!”
I foolishly thought he might offer some multi-faceted opinion, but this was his reasoning.
How shallow.
“I’m about to turn eighteen. I want to start dating with marriage in mind!”
“A workplace is for work, not for meeting people. What do you think this workshop is?”
“Yeah, I get that, but I want some excitement in my life, and I want to get married too!”
“And what’s so great about marriage? Once married, you share property and can’t use things freely. You lose free time for leisure, hobbies, or work. Do you even have time to waste on women when you haven’t even qualified as a magic tool artisan yet?”
Tristan was an apprentice magic tool artisan, still unqualified.
To become a magic tool artisan, one must pass a national written exam and demonstrate their magic tool-making skills. Only then can one earn the qualification.
Without it, one cannot sell self-made magic tools or open a shop.
Marriage is expensive in itself.
Could Tristan, who is not yet independent, really walk the thorny path of marriage?
He should abandon such trivial thoughts and focus straight on becoming a magic tool artisan.
“Ugh… Rouge, Jilk is saying cruel things.”
“I can’t agree with everything he says, but in a way, he’s right… which makes it worse.”
Tristan looked half-crying as Rouge smiled wryly.
If Tristan had at least seriously said he was overloaded with work, I might have considered it.
Well, the fact that such a reason didn’t come up first probably meant he could handle the current workload.
Even though the conversation was fruitless, I had a good grasp of my subordinates’ work speed, so that was a plus.
“But Jilk, marriage isn’t all bad, you know? Sharing time with someone you love is wonderful, and you can experience the joy of raising children.”
“I like being alone. Spending every day with someone else would be nothing but misery. I don’t even like children.”
Rouge tried patiently explaining the joys of marriage, but I found none of it appealing.
When I casually dismissed it, the gentle expression on Rouge’s face fell away.
“…It’s a pointless topic we’ve discussed many times.”
“Exactly.”
A person who loves being single and a married person cannot reconcile.
No matter how much you debate, you cannot share views on marriage.
It’s more productive to discuss such matters only with those who share your perspective.
“That’s why Jilk can’t get married.”
“Don’t get it wrong. I’m not unable to marry; I choose not to marry. Don’t confuse the two.”
There were plenty of matchmaking offers. I could marry if I wanted.
But I like being single, so I deliberately choose not to marry.
I don’t want to be lumped in with someone like Tristan, who cannot marry.
Marriage holds no interest for me, and it’s unpleasant to be branded otherwise.
When I stated this, Tristan and Rouge exchanged exasperated glances.
“Tall, educated, high income, good looks… such a waste.”
Rouge’s sigh echoed unusually loudly in the workshop.
[Author’s Note]
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