Refuse Harem
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Prius
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Chapter 011 – Dear Tenma, I Am Now Seven Years Old
Tenma, I turned seven years old yesterday.
I had grown a little taller.
I doubt you will still grow taller, but I’m still in my growth period, so I was looking forward to that.
By the way… Do you think my chest will grow bigger?
Looking at Okaa-sama, I thought it would be just fine, but for some reason, I don’t think it will grow big.
No, that shouldn’t be the case, right?!
I’m sure my longing for unknown objects in my previous life has turned into fear, and I have begun to respect things I don’t possess.
Yes, that must be the case.
Yes, definitely…
But if it doesn’t grow bigger, then…
Sophie’s finger that held the quill-pen trembled at the terrifying possibility. Because of that, the ink began to drip.
As Sophie saw the ink spread into a terrifying shape, the sound of knocking on the door echoed in the room.
“Sophie-sama, Rio-sama has come to visit.”
“Oh!”
Rio had come to visit her many times since the picnic. However, the frequency of his visits had decreased recently. Today was his first visit in the last three months.
Sophie put aside the problem regarding her chest and hurried to Rio. She saw her friend, who’d grown a little taller, and his escort waiting in the hall.
“Rio, Al, it’s been a while!”
“Yea. Sorry for not giving notice ahead of time.”1
“There’s no need for that. Rio and Al are always welcome.”
As Sophie said that, she gave them a curtsy, and Rio replied with a smile. However, his face looked a little tired.
I guess rather than going outside, it might be better to relax indoors for today.
As Sophie decided this, she guided them to the reception room.
The reception room was lined with a carpet, which had a gentle shade of blue, and velvet chairs, which were a shade darker than the carpet’s blue.
The furnishings of the financially wealthy Linier house were all of good quality. Even if the boy, who looked more handsome than most people, and his escort were to sit there, they wouldn’t look out of place; it was proof of how good her father’s tastes were.
The maid served tea and sweets, then Rio opened his mouth after she left.
“Is this cookie made by Sophie?”
“Yes. It has a hard texture, since it contains a lot of nuts, but it’s nutritious.”
After Sophie explained, Rio happily ate it.
Lately, Rio seemed to have gotten used to Sophie’s cooking so he didn’t complain anymore. On the contrary, he looked happy.
Alright, I managed to completely food train him! Sophie felt a mysterious sense of accomplishment when she saw that.
“By the way, Sophie. I heard that you’ve been going to an orphanage lately.”
“Your information network sure is fast. Where did you hear it from?”
Before she told him anything, Sophie put the tea cup on the saucer with a small clatter as he told her what he heard.
“Perhaps the people who live in the health resort have a lot of free time that lets them hear a lot of rumors. So much so that you could still hear it even if you blocked your ears. Also, the commoners talked about some aristocrats doing charity.”
“Doing charity?”
“Didn’t you go there to do some charity?”
“I’m not doing charity there.”
When she flatly told him this, Rio’s face scrunched up in confusion.
“Then what are you doing in the orphanage?”
“I’m developing products and training human resources there.”
“…What did you say?”
“We are currently developing products together with the orphans. We are also training them as human resources accordingly.”
“…What did you say?”
“Rio, do you have hearing problems during the periods we don’t meet each other?”
“It’s because you keep saying unexpected things!”
Rio raised his voice. It felt surreal seeing Al, who was supposed to be Rio’s escort, doing things unlike an escort and quietly eating cookies in the midst of all this.
But since it was something Sophie was used to seeing, she just calmly said.
“Rio, I’m just a young child. I can’t get what I want on my own. I’m just a helpless, weak, and cute girl.”
“I won’t retort to that, okay. Al is enough for a fool.”
Even though Al was referred to as a fool, he kept eating his cookies silently. Despite it usually being him doing the talking, it seemed he was currently fascinated by the cookies.
“Yes, that’s why I want money. With money, I can get the things I want.”
“Do you have something you want?”
“For the time being, a salary.”
“Hah?”
Although Rio thought Sophie might answer with a dress, jewelry, or cute shoes fitting for a girl, he couldn’t help but doubt his own ears because of the answer that came out from her mouth.
“If I have money, I can pay wages.”
Sophie’s emerald eyes showed that she was serious.
Speaking of which, Rio finally remembered that this was the girl who answered “the market” when asked where she wanted to go.
“Being able to pay for wages means I can hire people!”
“What are you talking about?”
Although it was indeed an obvious thing, Rio found it hard to understand what she was talking about.
“On the contrary, I can’t hire people if I can’t pay wages! In other words, since I have no money, I’m unable to hire people!”
“Just ask your father for that!”
“Of course, I often asked my father for a lot of things. I was very grateful when he dispatched a new employee from the company to support me when I asked before. However, it makes it hard to say when I have already made too many requests. In that case, I realized that I won’t have such a mental burden if I handle it myself!”
Rio looked unconvinced, but it seemed he was trying to calm himself down as he took a sip of his tea. Sophie continued talking.
“The children in the orphanage agreed to my ideas. They all supported me, despite me not having any money. They are contributing to my future by working without wages!”
Sophie continued to talk with excitement.
“They are not paid wages! They’re all working for me, despite not being paid! I have to make it successful in one go as soon as possible, or I won’t be able to afford their wages!”
Rio was taken aback as he saw Sophie clenching her fist and moaning about the pain of working without being paid, as if she’d experienced it herself.
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She(former he) wanted to be a nun as per her promise, right?…
At this point, I’m not sure now.
she want to lay the groundwork so when she became a nun, she could at least led a decent life, since commoner standard of that era is just terrible
Ah, child labor. The power of capitalism shines brightly within Sophie I see.
anything goes for raising fund, and there no child labor law in other side either
Sophie promoting child labor xD Thanks for the chapters, always happy to see updates ^-^
well, she not exactly have luxury to employ people at her age, so she have to use whatever she could to have the manpower for her business
Oh these 8 yo children nowadays.
Always trying to create black companies without paying employees.
Thanks for the translation!
she tried to make it white company. she just don’t have the fund to pay them yet.
— Thanks for the chapter~ ^^
thx for the comments too