Chapter 23
The beginning was peaceful.
On a morning no different from any other, Karin went out for a walk in the forest. The air felt especially fresh that day, so she ended up staying there longer than usual.
About two hours passed.
The wind had grown chilly, and she found herself craving a warm cup of tea, so she returned to the estate. Strangely enough, a sofa was being carried outside.
Why was a sofa that belonged in the drawing room sitting outside, and who exactly were the people moving it?
Passing the sofa and entering through the front gate, Karin’s mouth fell open in shock.
The mansion was in complete chaos. Men with their sleeves rolled up were carrying out every valuable item they could find.
A chest of drawers made from expensive timber, a custom-made bed, flower-patterned chairs crafted by master artisans, and more.
Some people were even taking paintings down from the walls.
This was the very definition of absurdity. Karin stood rooted to the spot as though nailed there.
‘I was only gone for a little while. What on earth happened here? More importantly, what was everyone doing while the house was being emptied like this?’
The answer came quickly.
She spotted the maids standing on the second-floor balcony, stamping their feet anxiously.
The moment Marie saw Karin, tears welled up in her eyes as she rushed down the stairs.
“Miss, where have you been? Why are you only coming back now?”
“What in the world happened here? Where’s Duke Tricia— no, where’s Father?”
“Well… the Master is in prison.”
“What?”
With tears streaming down her face, Marie explained everything that had happened.
By the time Karin finished listening, she felt a painful throbbing at the back of her head, as though her lifespan had just shortened.
The story went like this.
As usual, Duke Tricia had been spending his time in a tavern, drinking and gambling.
Then, as a joke, he made a wager with a certain nobleman for ten billion gold.
And he lost spectacularly.
Naturally, the Duke assumed it had all been in jest and tried to brush it off.
Unfortunately, the nobleman insisted that he be paid every last coin of the ten billion gold.
He even summoned guards and cited an ancient law that had long since fallen out of use, arguing that the debt had to be honored.
The Duke protested that it was ridiculous, but under the ancient law, he found himself obligated to pay.
The problem was that ten billion gold was no small sum.
It was comparable to the annual budget of a moderately sized nation.
No matter how wealthy the Second Duchy was, there was no way they had that kind of money lying around.
As a result, the estate and everything belonging to it had been handed over to the nobleman.
Even that wasn’t enough, so Duke Tricia had been imprisoned until the remainder of the debt could be paid.
“When did this gambling match happen?”
“Last night.”
So while Karin had been meeting Arken, enjoying tea afterward, and sleeping peacefully in bed, her father had been busy losing the family’s entire fortune.
She was so dumbfounded that words failed her.
“We only found out a little while ago ourselves. We haven’t even seen the Master’s face.”
Marie finished her explanation with a sniffle.
The first thought that came to Karin’s mind was:
“Serves him right.”
“Miss? What did you just say?”
“…Nothing.”
Karin waved away Marie’s question and continued cursing the Duke internally.
‘I always knew he’d cause a disaster someday.’
She couldn’t have been more irritated.
The man spent every day drowning himself in gambling and alcohol, and now he had finally accomplished something truly spectacular.
She should have known from the moment he sent his daughter to a conference because he wanted to visit a newly opened gambling hall.
Duke Tricia’s brain had clearly been pickled by gambling.
Who in their right mind would casually wager ten billion gold, even as a joke?
If it had been something modest, like a mine or two, that would have been one thing.
It would have been wonderful if he alone had to take responsibility for his actions.
Unfortunately, she was tied to that hopeless case.
Duke Tricia’s debt was her debt as well, which meant Karin was obligated to help repay it.
She clenched her teeth.
If she had followed her true feelings, she would have run straight to the prison and grabbed the Duke by the collar.
“Miss, what should we do? With things like this, there’s nowhere suitable for you to stay tonight.”
Marie was right.
Finding a place to stay needed to come first.
A bitter taste filled Karin’s mouth.
Being reincarnated into the body of a villainess had already been miserable enough.
Now she had gone for a short walk and come back to discover her entire family had gone bankrupt.
The one advantage Original Karin had possessed—being the daughter of a wealthy ducal house—had vanished overnight.
Karin let out a long, heavy sigh.
How was she supposed to return to her original life?
The best solution would be paying off the debt, but how was she supposed to gather such an astronomical amount of money?
This time, she couldn’t even rely on information from the original novel.
Scatterbrained… was fundamentally a romance story, not a guide to getting rich.
There had been no plots involving minerals that were initially worthless but later skyrocketed in value.
No abandoned land hiding diamond mines.
Nothing of the sort.
Under these circumstances, earning that much money in a short period was impossible.
She was truly about to end up homeless.
Her chest felt so heavy it was as if a boulder had been placed upon it, and she pounded at it with her fist.
“Miss, how about meeting the Duke first?”
After watching Karin with worried eyes, Marie made a suggestion.
“I don’t know.”
Karin answered listlessly.
Meeting that hopeless man didn’t seem likely to solve anything.
“I think the Master was tricked. Whoever that nobleman is, he must have planned this from the beginning. Otherwise, why would he go this far?”
Oh.
That actually made sense.
Following Marie’s reasoning, Karin began piecing together a picture in her mind.
If Marie was right, the nobleman likely harbored a grudge against Duke Tricia.
He must have carefully laid out a plan.
First, get the Duke drunk enough to cloud his judgment.
Then gently persuade him into a wager worth ten billion gold.
Winning the gamble would have been easy enough through cheating.
Finally, he could produce the law he had prepared in advance and demand payment.
And just like that, Operation Ruin Duke Tricia would be complete.
Come to think of it, there was no reason to wager ten billion gold or suddenly bring up an ancient law unless it had all been planned beforehand.
Karin herself had never even heard of such a law until today.
“You’re right. I should go see him.”
“There’s just one problem, Miss…”
Marie hesitated while studying Karin’s expression.
“Hm? What is it?”
“We don’t have a carriage anymore, so you’ll have to walk to the palace.”
“…”
And thus Karin accomplished the remarkable feat of walking all the way to the palace herself.
She had already been exhausted from her two-hour stroll through the forest.
The journey to the palace took another two full hours.
By the time she reached the prison, she was completely drained.
“I’ve come for a visit.”
Her body might have been exhausted, but her eyes were very much alive.
The guard seemed to sense the ominous killing intent radiating from her and visibly flinched.
Then he quietly allowed her to enter.
The first thing Karin saw upon entering the prison was Duke Tricia clutching his plump cheeks with both hands and opening his mouth wide.
“Karin, my beautiful daughter! You came to see your father!”
The Duke reacted with exaggerated delight.
Suppressing the urge to reach through the bars and smack him on the forehead, Karin spoke through gritted teeth.
“Congratulations.”
The Duke’s face immediately turned pale.
“How does it feel to lose the entire family fortune?”
The fresh green eyes that were usually so bright now bristled with hostility.
Avoiding her gaze, Duke Tricia mumbled quietly.
“…I honestly thought it was a joke. Baron Plang and I were both completely drunk. Neither of us actually had ten billion gold. I never imagined things would turn out like this…”
What?
Karin questioned her own ears.
“Mo… Baron Plang?”
No matter how hopeless someone was, how could they be this stupid?
A burning sensation rose from her core, climbing into her throat before exploding into a sharp voice.
“I told you not to associate with him!”
“My beautiful daughter, strictly speaking, you only asked me to cancel the contract. You never actually said not to associate with him…”
Like a scolded child, the Duke lowered his head and replied in a pitiful voice.
“…”
Karin was so dumbfounded that she couldn’t speak.
Marie had been right.
If it was Mustache, then he undoubtedly hated both her and Duke Tricia.
There was a one hundred percent chance this entire incident had been carefully orchestrated.
There was no need to ask whether cheating had been involved.
Of course there had been.
And there was absolutely no way a flower-brained fool like Duke Tricia would have noticed.
Even if she asked, he’d probably tilt his head and say,
“Cheating? Hmm, I don’t know.”
Hopeless and empty-headed.
How had someone like this ever become the Duke of an entire duchy?
Karin pressed a hand against the back of her neck.
She felt ready to collapse, but there was still one thing she needed to know.
“What exactly is this ancient law?”
“Well…”
After hearing the Duke’s explanation, Karin lost all will to continue.
It was absurd beyond belief.
Yet ironically, she couldn’t think of a single argument against it.
“Wow… damn.”
That mustached bastard was unbelievably meticulous and petty.
Instead of reflecting on his own mistakes, he resorted to revenge like this?
According to Duke Tricia, a trial would be held soon to determine the matter.
But from Karin’s perspective, there was no hope.
She had absolutely no idea where to begin unraveling this mess.
At this point, it seemed more practical to abandon life as a duke’s daughter and find another way to make a living.
The anger had long since faded.
Her mind cooled and began working rapidly.
A healthy adult woman wasn’t going to starve to death just because she needed a job.
If she searched, she would surely find work.
For example, she could become a maid in some noble household.
People would certainly point fingers at the once-famous Karin for becoming a servant after her family lost everything.
But what choice did she have?
She had to survive somehow.
Ah, what a pitiful life.
Karin crouched in a corner of the staircase connecting the palace to the outside world and lamented her situation.
Just then, she noticed someone ascending the stairs.
Stretching her neck to get a better look, she saw a man wearing a blue frock coat.
A thick stack of documents was tucked beneath his arm as he made his way toward the palace entrance.
Golden hair that swayed elegantly.
Refined turquoise earrings.
Normally, the sight alone would have made her heart flutter.
But this time, she felt absolutely nothing.
Still, now that she had seen him, she should at least greet him.
Karin raised a hand and called out to him.
