Chapter 10: Chapter 10

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arriving in the capital, luna first sought out a bank. there, she deposited half of the amount and exchanged the other half for immediate use in coins and various small checks.

of course, she didn’t feel particularly good about it. everyone knew that count peils was painfully poor, so it was no surprise.

when luna abruptly requested to exchange a significant amount of money, the bank employee gave her a suspicious look.

“…how did you get these check amounts?”

although tempted to be angered by the suspicious attitude, luna calmly requested to change the bank employee.

there was a fee for exchanging checks, and that fee would reflect the employees’ performance. therefore, when the bank employee, who was initially assigned to assist luna, was replaced, they contemplated the situation, while the new employee maintained a polite smile and efficiently handled the task.

‘now, i just need to go and throw all those checks right in seira’s face?’

just imagining it made her heart leap with joy. she smiled happily as she boarded the carriage, and one of the mercenaries sitting on the coachman’s seat asked her:

“are you going to buy a dress now?”

“a dress?”

taken aback by the sudden question, luna tilted her head, and the mercenary replied with a mischievous look in his eyes.

“oh, no? your attire looks a bit too light for the cold weather. i thought you might be planning to buy a dress or a coat.”

hearing his words, luna checked her own attire. it was indeed a thin and lightweight dress that didn’t suit the chilly weather, which was why she would even wear a cardigan indoors.

‘come to think of it, even if i throw money around in this attire… people might think i’m wasting my pride with money i’ve scraped together unnecessarily. they might even assume it’s money i earned by selling off a mansion.’

the sympathetic look in seira’s eyes, asking if she brought the money from selling a mansion, suddenly irritated her.

she should dress up as extravagantly as seira, from head to toe.

“yes, a dress. let’s go shopping.”

“yes!”

luna didn’t even mention which boutique the nobles like seira usually frequented, but the mercenary took the initiative and started the carriage. it seemed that being employed in the merchant guild had made him knowledgeable about various information.

the boutique wasn’t far from the bank. after leaving the bank, it didn’t take long for the carriage to enter a street filled with elegant buildings. it was a place where lower-ranking nobles like her wouldn’t even draw attention.

although she had plenty of money, her heart was still hesitant, causing her fingers to fidget needlessly. shortly after, the carriage stopped in front of a splendid building.

“we’ve arrived.”

the mercenary opened the carriage door and offered his hand as if he were guiding a poor soul to the judgment seat of the underworld.

‘it’s fine. i have a lot of money. don’t worry. even if i spend all the money on a dress and have nothing left, more money will come tomorrow and the day after.’

in fact, there was no need to worry about such concerns. noble families with gold mines were rare. even a small amount of gold had value as currency, and those who owned such gold mines earned enough disposable income to consider how to spend it more extravagantly.

recalling this, luna, who performed a mental self-control, took the mercenary’s hand and stepped out of the carriage, standing firmly in front of the tightly closed boutique door.

upon seeing her, the staff members inside, who would normally bow deeply and open the door for customers, looked surprised as they glanced over luna’s attire.

“…?”

luna’s confidence, which had just regained its composure, shrank again under their gaze. she should have scolded them for not opening the door and staring at her, but she didn’t have the courage.

so, once again gathering her resolve and filling herself with courage, just as she was about to do so, an unexpected voice came from behind her.

“huh? what’s that? a shabby and dull dress that doesn’t fit the season. it feels like i’ve seen it somewhere before.”

“oh my god, it can’t be that poor young lady!?”

“it seems so. even if she sold off her family’s assets, she couldn’t afford a single dress. what on earth is she doing here?”

“surely she wouldn’t dare ask the young master rodrian to buy it for her, right!?”

“i hope not! if that’s the case, i will never forgive her!”

…thankfully, thanks to those women who never ceased to mock her poverty, luna’s self-esteem, which had shrunk to the size of a bean, suddenly swelled up again, filling her with newfound courage.

luna turned around and examined the faces of those women who continued to mock her. it was clear that they were the same young ladies who had come to the baron’s estate and acted arrogantly.

how dare they belittle people just because of a little money?

because they were the ones who shattered their own self-esteem with just money, luna felt the need to show off, even if it meant spending all her money.

turning back again, luna commanded the still dumbfounded employee in front of the boutique with a determined expression.

“open the door. i will buy all the dresses in this boutique.”

“…”

there was a moment of silence at luna’s show-off statement.

instead of answering with a ‘yes, understood’, the boutique employee stared at luna with a bewildered expression, as if asking what she had just heard.

and then, in the next moment.

“…pfft.”

“pfft.”

as if they had heard the most hilarious sound in the world, the young ladies burst into laughter, mocking luna.

“did you hear that?”

“excuse me. did you think this is some lowly clothing store favored by commoners? you wouldn’t even be able to buy a single ribbon here.”

“you won’t understand until you buy a dress. you always wear clothes that seem to have been handed down through generations. isn’t that right?”

hahaha. laughter erupted once again, filled with amusement. the mercenary who had been observing this scene stared cautiously at luna. his face expressed frustration, as if his heart was being squeezed tightly without any water.

“i’m sorry for asking, but… is this… something you’re saying to the young lady?”

who else could it be?

concerning who might be a mercenary from the antares merchant guild, he was ready to get angry at the young ladies who laughed at her.

sending a gaze to a mercenary, luna was worried that might get angry because of her, so she spoke towards the still mocking noblewomen.

“you’re saying i can’t even buy a single ribbon, or would you like to bet that i can buy dozens of dresses?”

“what? a bet?”

“that’s right. it’s a bet where the winner gets three wishes granted by the loser.”

“oh my, do you really want to grant our wishes like that?”

laughter erupted once again. in the face of those women’s laughter that completely belittled her, luna felt a sense of satisfaction rather than humiliation.

‘yeah, keep underestimating me like that.’

although she had never seen how impressive and expensive the dresses could be, she was certain that they couldn’t compare to a gold mine, no matter how expensive they were.

the young ladies, who had been ridiculing luna’s proposition for a long time, nodded their heads and accepted it.

“alright. well, today you’ll find out just how foolish you are. and it just so happens that i have something i want to achieve.”

“that’s right. for example, at the upcoming party, you’ll confess, ‘i’m meddling between the young lady seira and the young duke fersen!’”

“that’s a good idea. it’ll be fun. you’ll be humiliated by your useless pride.”

“we’ll see who gets humiliated. hey, do you have paper and a pen?”

at luna’s question, the boutique employee finally retorted and led them inside.

“just in case, if esteemed young ladies might want to deny it later, so let’s leave a written record.”

“who would do such a thing?”

‘you’re setting a trap for yourselves.’

the unsuspecting young ladies, caught in the trap, filled out and signed the document without any suspicion. the witnesses were the boutique employees, who confirmed that the documents were all written identically.

there were a total of five sheets, three for the noblewomen, one returned to luna, and one to be kept at the boutique. an additional clause was added stating that if they didn’t comply, they would serve as the other party’s maid for a year.

“are you really okay with ten dresses? even one would be enough.”

“that’s right. just in case. if you sell that cheap mansion, you might be able to afford at least the cheapest dress here.”

“hehe, everyone. if we really do this, it’s going to be a big deal. let’s leave it like this. it feels good to think about making a wish.”

the laughing ladies happily discussed what they would do next. luna, who had thoroughly scrutinized those young ladies, took out the check she had kept in her embrace and placed it on the table.

“then let’s carry it out right away. ten dresses from the ones here, the most expensive ones. bring them immediately.”

“…!”

the employees, who had previously disregarded luna, quickly changed their attitude upon confirming the check she had exchanged at the bank, and hurriedly went to fetch the dresses.

the young ladies, sensing something amiss with the sudden change in attitude from the employees, whispered to each other, questioning what was happening. they took the check that luna had put down and checked it to verify its authenticity.

“…is this a lie?”

“now you’re even forging checks?”

“did you steal it from somewhere…!?”

there’s no way the crisp check she exchanged at the bank just now could have turned fake.

luna replied, grinning as if in disbelief.

“why would someone with a gold mine need to steal someone else’s check?”

“…gold mine?”

“you should lie more convincingly! are you saying that someone with a gold mine would live in such a dilapidated mansion and wear tattered clothes?”

“that’s right!”

the young ladies looked at luna with incredulous eyes, as if they couldn’t believe it. luna, who should have been angry, instead remained composed and raised the corners of her mouth as she made a new proposal.

“fine. let’s make another bet on whether or not i have a gold mine. how about staking the entire fortune this time?”

“in addition to the gold mine, all the wealth of a noble family. i will become a rich person.”

the mercenary had maintained silence throughout at luna’s command. although one would expect him to contemplate if it was a lie, there was a sense of satisfaction in his expression.

“t-this is ridiculous! suddenly claiming to have a gold mine…!”

only then did the young ladies realize that things were going wrong, and their faces turned pale. they began to deny reality, telling luna not to lie.

luna, who was struck by lightning in the dry sky, or her gold mine, smiled heartily at her young ladies as she sipped the drinks brought by the staff with friendly smiles.

“your first wish, would you like to hear it now?”