CHAPTER 21
“Yaaawn……”
Covering my mouth, I yawned as I stared at the gaming table.
The men sitting at the same table as me were all red-eyed with excitement.
Unfortunately for them, the only thing shining was my hand.
‘This is getting boring.’
It had already been a week since I started frequenting the casino each night to raise funds.
The money was coming in smoothly, but everything was unfolding with such predictable precision that I was starting to feel bored.
Life is only fun when unexpected fortune strikes.
Worrying about whether I might become addicted to gambling had turned out to be completely unnecessary.
‘I should stop soon.’
I never intended to gamble for long anyway.
It wasn’t honest money, and my goal wasn’t simply to become rich.
“Alright, let’s reveal our cards.”
Still yawning, I flipped mine over.
A back straight.
Needless to say, I had won.
As I dragged the towering pile of chips over to my side, one of the men watching in disbelief suddenly stood up.
“No way—she’s cheating! How else could this keep happening?!”
He pointed a finger at me and looked ready to charge.
I simply looked at him with boredom.
This kind of scene had played out countless times over the past week.
Then, one of his friends—who had been observing the game nearby—stepped in to restrain him.
“Tsk, just let it go. It’s over.”
“Let it go? I just lost all my money to this woman!”
Still too agitated to calm down, the man shouted. His friend leaned in and whispered—though I heard every word clearly.
“Hey, do you seriously not know what happens if you mess with her?”
“Who even is she?”
“Look over there.”
Instead of answering, the friend gestured with his chin.
Coming toward us with a grim face was none other than Wigg, looking more serious than ever.
The angry man saw him and quickly understood.
Tail between his legs, he made a hasty retreat.
I sighed as I watched him go.
‘Yeah, that’s another problem.’
Another big reason why I couldn’t keep gambling for long.
Since women rarely came to casinos in the first place, I had become famous despite wearing a mask.
People were saying a woman who knew exactly when to play and when to fold was sweeping through the casinos with a giant man in tow.
If people just feared me and avoided cheating, that’d be fine.
‘But now, they don’t even want to play against me.’
I tried moving to different casinos, but word traveled fast in the gambling world.
…Wait a minute.
‘Wigg’s face looks… serious?’
Sensing something ominous a beat too late, I looked up just as Wigg reached me.
Lowering his large frame, he whispered in my ear.
“B-Boss, we’ve got a problem!”
“What kind of problem?”
“The land you brought as your dowry… the Duke submitted it to the Imperial Family as tax payment…”
“……What?”
I was too stunned by the unexpected news to respond.
‘What the hell…!’
Thinking it over, I started to understand.
In my previous life, I’d personally handled the taxes around this time, so there’d been no way the land would’ve been turned over to the palace.
The land was supposed to be auctioned off later due to financial trouble—not handed over as tax this early.
‘Wait—were all those letters from the past few days about this?’
I had been receiving constant letters from Peidan recently.
Assuming they were petty threats, I had burned them all without reading.
Never thought he’d pay the taxes using my mother’s land!
Peidan likely planned to delay our divorce by claiming he couldn’t return the equivalent dowry right away because the land had already been handed over.
But even if he delayed it, the scandal that had already exploded wouldn’t just go away.
Which means…
‘This was purely to screw me over.’
I clenched my teeth.
“That bastard… So this is how he wants to play it?”
If the land had gone up for auction, I could’ve just bought it back.
But now that it belonged to the Imperial Family, buying it back with money was basically impossible.
“So… what now, Boss?”
I bit my lip and thought hard.
‘Is there anything in my past knowledge that could help in this situation?’
As I searched my memories for a solution…
Suddenly, one event came to mind.
‘Right! That incident!’
Around this time in my past life, Peidan had bought a necklace from an antique shop.
Turns out, the necklace had once belonged to the late Empress’s mother—an heirloom thought to be lost.
Peidan had presented it to the Empress, and it led to a favorable relationship with the Imperial Family.
If that’s the case…
‘If I find that necklace first, maybe I can use it to get my mother’s land back.’
There was no guarantee things would go as I hoped—but it was the only lead I had right now.
I had to get that necklace before Peidan did. No matter what.
“Follow me, Wigg.”
“W-Where are we going?”
I answered calmly as I strode ahead.
“When it comes to power, flattery and buttering up are always the answer, aren’t they?”
‘What in the world is she looking for…?’
Wigg watched Leticia’s back suspiciously as she entered the antique store.
It had already been hours since she dragged him out.
Leticia had been combing through every antique shop around the plaza.
She was clearly looking for something, but hadn’t said what.
‘She must have some kind of plan.’
He had been nervous back at the casino too, but she’d managed to raise the exact amount of money she set out for.
At first, he feared she might be cheating and end up chased by furious gamblers.
Thankfully, there had been no tricks.
‘I still don’t know what she’s thinking, but… she’s definitely not ordinary.’
It was hard to explain, but Leticia had a unique air of confidence.
And she had both the skills and luck to back it up.
So far, at least.
‘This is the last antique shop…’
He wondered what would happen if she couldn’t find what she was looking for here either.
While Wigg remained uncertain, Leticia calmly walked through the shop.
‘Not this… not that one either…’
Just like in the other stores, she browsed slowly and deliberately.
Then suddenly—she stopped in front of one display case.
It was the first time she had stopped walking.
‘Did she find it?’
Wigg peered into the case, wondering what Leticia had been so desperate to find.
Inside was a necklace.
A simple piece—a slightly faded gold chain with a ruby.
But while Wigg only saw something ordinary, Leticia saw it shining with golden brilliance.
“Found it. My hidden card.”
With a victorious smile, Leticia picked up the necklace.
Everything seemed to be falling into place—
Ding~
“…Leticia?”
—until she turned around to see Peidan entering the shop.
That jerk!!