>The "cause and effect" you talk about has not presented itself yet and so far the story is just in the way it is now because of how passive and, at times, moronic the MC is.
Maybe you're just not paying attention because you're too passive and, at times, moronic?
Just trace back how'd Myne ends up here.
In the beginning, all she wanted was books.
She tried to make 'books' but failed and was about to just die.
Then Lutz appeared, and by deciding to help him achieve his goal she both gained the drive to live longer and start getting into merchant trade.
But that alone wasn't enough, it's because she did the calculation for Otto before and her usage of the shampoo that he was able to convince Benno to meet them.
Her making hairpin for Turi resulted in her meeting with Frida and learning of Consuming, and that connection saved her that one time she collapsed.
Hell, within this chapter alone, the 'you're like a noble lady' IS exactly why the next part happen.
Or if you want to talk about magic power, her having Consuming alone isn't enough to make her powerful.
It's her constant struggle with it (and a few other factors but those come in later). Each time she push it back down, it come back stronger for a reason.
And there's actually more that result from her struggle with the Consuming, some of wish become a key factor to certain things.