FVN Chapter 343: Another Business Venture
Chapter 343: Another Business Venture
Chapter 343: Another Business Venture
My knuckles rapped against the wooden door as I took a deep breath, still feeling slightly nervous despite this being the third time that I was coming to this house; I was still worried that one small slip might cause everything that I had been building up to come crumbling down, and it was a rather crippling fear...
And it was one that I needed to slowly work at since I had caught a glimpse at just how strong the Duchess was when she came to question me that first time, the potency of her mana enough to make my heart palpitate in fear even now.
Not only was her personal strength high, she also had good relations with the Queen, who was intimately tied to a Goddess; I was NOT going to try and test my luck to see if Reincantra or Demetra really cared about me enough to protect me from another Goddess.
I might do a few things that seem... odd in the pursuit of quenching my lust, but I wasn't stupid enough to invite the wrath of a Goddess just because it might potentially be deflected by my patron Goddesses.
Besides, I have no idea if they actually view me that favorably, or if I truly matter to them in any significant way; sure, I had that answered prayer back in the winter, and I had forged an item that was blessed by Reincantra, but did that mean they were willing to do anything more for me?
I doubt it, so I wasn't going to risk it.
The door opened a few moments later, taking me out of my thoughts and bringing me back to reality as I stared upon the slightly tired, yet beautiful visage of the Duchess, who was smiling softly at me as she asked "So you decided to come for the third day as well? Quite dutiful and diligent, Astra!"
A nice red silk robe was draped over her body, and a thin white cashmere was resting over her shoulders, keeping her warm and covered whilst barely concealing her succulent curves.
She uncorked the red first, taking a sniff of the deep red liquid and nodding again, bringing the vial to her lips and taking a sip.
The red wine had been made by my System, and while it wasn't out of this world impressive, it was a decent drink and quick to make; was on the drier side, but the wine was a bit fruity and went down smooth, though it burned quite a bit compared to the white.
"Mm... Strong, flavorful, smooth. Not the most impressive taste, and it is a bit dry, but it's a solid wine. Versatile too, since it's just flavorful enough to imbue something with a nice flavor, but not so overpowering that it can't be used to cook most things. Should be a nice cheap wine to sell. Ah, and don't worry; cheap wine is still two, three silvers a bottle on average."
I nodded, before I gestured to the white, which I was immensely more curious about; the Duchess sensed that and smirked, corking the red and uncorking the white, bringing it to her lips and sniffing it briefly, taking it in before taking a sip.
Almost instantly she nodded, staring at the liquid closely before swirling it around as she appreciated the flavor.
"Not too strong, smooth and sweet. Wouldn't advise cooking with it, but it's a really good flavor. The sweetness isn't overpowering, and the refreshing aftertaste makes you want another sip. Still, the potency is what holds it back. While it is a nice casual wine for keeping everyone sober, that's not going to sell as well, but still... Probably around seven silvers a bottle, maybe ten if you try to embellish the flavor profile and embellish the way magic was involved."
Corking the vial, the Duchess placed the two vials on the table and nodded, looking up at me with a smile as she said "All in all, not too bad for the first two batches. Though, I want to see consistency between the next few batches as well, and I would like to see a third wine to give some options to the consumer. Preferably something stronger. Maybe... Maybe a fruity red that has a bit more of a punch? A 'classic' wine. One that everyone knows, isn't special but... everyone wants it. Still, they were pretty good, Astra. Truly."
I let out a relieved sigh as I sat back, my eyes lingering on the vials for a moment before I looked back to the Duchess, who was lounging on her chair and staring at me closely, her blue eyes unreadable.