Chapter 73

“The Final Move”

“Piyoooo—”

As I stroked Piyo’s back, the inventory opened. I began taking out the 1 billion den in gold.

“Ugh, it’s heavy…”

“My apologies, I can only help carry it once it’s out,” Heros said, accepting the gold bars from me.

Since Piyo’s inventory could only be used by me, I had to do the heavy lifting—pulling out all the converted gold bars, one by one.

“Almost done. Let’s hurry.”

We were stacking the bars inside my office at the now-closed Sistina Orphanage, and Heros was helping arrange them.

“Whew… it’s done.”

I wiped the sweat from my forehead.

The gold bars—worth about 100 billion won in Korean currency—were piled up across the office floor.

The last thing I took out was a potion to fill Etias’s two remaining heart slots.

“I wonder if the letter I sent has reached the Revolutionary Army HQ by now.”

As I closed the office door behind me, I added,

“Probably has.”

[‘Use the money well, and drink this—it’s good for your health, Your Highness. φ(-｀Д´-)’]*

The 1 billion den I just left behind had come from scamming the Emperor, selling him the overvalued Ellemore mine.

It would be my final donation to Etias before leaving the Empire.

With his frozen assets and this extra funding, he should now be able to stabilize the country through the coming chaos.

And with Jeffrey Whistler, who wanted Etias’s lungs, now bizarrely turned into my “weird loyal companion,” I guess I really have paved the road with roses.

I glanced at Piyo’s inventory, which still had plenty of money left, and stroked his back again.

“Piyoo~”

This would be my travel fund, hard-earned by robbing the corrupt Emperor-faction nobles blind.

“Come on, Piyo. Time to go.”

Under the dim night sky, we left the Sistina Orphanage and boarded the carriage.

I didn’t know whether it would be tomorrow, the day after, or a few days from now—but the revolution was imminent, and my watch confirmed it.

Revolutionary Army Info:

Military Power: Stable
Supplies: Plentiful
Morale: 97%
Funds: 8,100,300 den
Revolution Progress: 97% (Imminent)

This carriage would run all night toward the border, where Lancelot of Montella was waiting.

“Wait! Stop right there!”

Just as the wheels began to turn, a few men—clearly revolutionaries—came running from behind.

I glanced at Heros, who quickly ordered the driver to speed up. The carriage lurched forward, accelerating fast.

There were no people on the roads this late at night, and thanks to the road renovation project I had funded, the route was smooth and fast.

“Wait! Stop! Plea—!”

Their voices faded away as we outpaced them.

I pressed my hand to my chest, exhaling in relief.

Gazing out the window, I watched the capital blur by. My reflection flickered across the glass.

“If I hadn’t decided to leave this place…”

Lately, Etias had started treating me differently. He seemed to realize I was helping him—maybe even siding with him—and had grown closer to me.

“Maybe… he’d even forgive someone like me?”

But there was no certainty.

After all, my father, Duke Ellemore, had committed unspeakable sins against Etius.

One of them, revealed through Aglia, was a horrifying truth: he might have been involved in the death of Etias’s mother, the late empress.

“Can Etias still protect me after learning that?”

Etius was a man of unwavering justice, with a perfect moral compass.

He wasn’t someone who bent his standards for emotion—not even for himself. That’s exactly what I admired about him.

“For both of us… it’s better to go our separate ways.”

To Montella, where I planned to spend the next three years—before returning to the modern world.

“His Highness Etias will definitely try to find you.”

Heros, now dressed not as a butler but in a full black Scavenger uniform, quietly murmured to me.

When I looked at him curiously, he smiled faintly.

“Miss, you don’t realize just how persistent someone like Etias can be. Men like him… they never let their prey escape easily.”

“Does he even have time for that now? He’s got a whole revolution to handle.”

In the original novel, Etias had been too busy during the revolution to focus on anything else.

“He can’t possibly stop nobles from escaping across the border.”

But Heros’s words still struck a chord.

“You gave him that extra time, Miss. Don’t forget that.”

My fingers twitched slightly.

I wanted to argue using the novel, but then remembered all those idiotic romance heroines who clung to the plot too tightly. Weren’t they just like… me?

Seeing my sudden serious expression, Heros leaned forward and met my eyes.

“But don’t worry, Miss.”

“Even if he thinks you’re a cornered mouse, he doesn’t know that I’m Jeffrey Whistler, king of the underground.”

That’s true, at least—another difference from the original story.

***

The next day, many nobles gathered at the imperial palace for Lady Katrin Ellemore’s title conferment ceremony.

“You know a few nobles were thrown in jail recently? There’s talk that it was all Lady Ellemore’s doing.”

“Seems like His Majesty now only trusts her.”

“Her influence is overwhelming. She could probably knock birds from the sky just by looking at them. Or should I say… Duchess now?”

With Katrin Ellemore being the hottest topic in the empire’s social circles, gossip buzzed louder than ever.

Among the crowd was Aglia, the head of the Parliamentarian faction.

“Ha, Duchess, my foot.”

Curling her lip in disdain, she whispered venomously to those around her.

“If she becomes a duchess, she’ll only make Prince Etias’s life harder. She’s even worse than her father—a hundred times more wicked.”

Meanwhile, whispers filled the grand hall—admiration, jealousy, and outright hatred toward Katrin all blending together.

Then—

A triumphant trumpet sounded, announcing the arrival of the Emperor.

Everyone fell silent and turned forward.

Deus Karl Clyde, the Emperor, appeared wearing a fitted uniform that hugged his thin frame. Draped in a royal cape, he walked out before the gathered nobles.

A golden crown sat on his head, and the imperial scepter in his hand glittered brightly.

As he raised the scepter, a thunderous cheer erupted from the nobles.