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"Haaah..."
I yawned, covering my mouth, and looked at the gaming table.
All the men at the same table as me were red-eyed and feverishly playing.
Unfortunately, it was my cards that were shining.
'Boring.'
It's been a week since I started frequenting casinos every night to raise funds.
Fundraising was going smoothly, but it was getting boring since everything was going exactly as expected every time, without a single deviation.
Life is fun because of unexpected luck.
I was worried I might get addicted to gambling, but that was an unfounded fear.
'I should quit soon.'
I never intended to gamble for long anyway.
The money wasn't earned legitimately, and my goal wasn't simply to become rich.
"Then I'll open the cards."
I yawned and flipped over my cards.
A straight flush.
There was no need to see more; I had won.
As I pulled the pile of chips towards my seat, one of the men who had been watching in dismay jumped up.
"No, is that woman really cheating? How can this be happening!"
The man pointed at me and looked like he was about to rush at me.
But I just looked at him indifferently.
This was something I had experienced countless times in the past week.
Then, an acquaintance who had been watching the game next to the man stopped him.
"Tsk, stop it. Let's just stop here."
"Stop what? All my money is about to go into that woman's pockets!"
To the man who still couldn't calm down, the acquaintance said in a small voice—though I could hear everything—
"Hey, you. Do you really not know what happens if you mess with that woman?"
"What about that woman?"
"Look there."
Instead of explaining, the acquaintance gestured with his eyes to one side.
In that direction, Wigg was approaching with a more serious expression than ever before.
Seeing him, the man seemed to understand his acquaintance's words and quickly backed down and ran away.
I sighed as I watched him go.
'Yeah, this is also a problem.'
One more decisive reason why I can't play card games for long.
Since there aren't many women who come to the casino in the first place, I quickly became famous, despite wearing a mask.
A woman who knows when to strike and when to fold sweeps through the casino with a huge man in tow.
It would be fine if they were just afraid of me and couldn't do anything foolish.
'The problem is, they've become reluctant to even play games with me.'
So I tried moving from casino to casino, but the rumors spread among the gamblers in an instant.
...Wait a minute, though.
'Wigg's expression is serious...?'
Belatedly sensing an ominous feeling, I looked up, and Wigg arrived in front of me.
Wigg lowered his large frame and whispered in my ear.
"B, Boss. We're in big trouble!"
"What's the big deal?"
"That land that was the Boss's dowry, His Excellency the Duke, he paid it to the Imperial Family instead of taxes..."
"...What?"
I couldn't help but be taken aback by the unexpected news.
'What the heck...!'
Thinking calmly, I thought I knew what had happened.
In my past life, I was handling the taxes until this time, so my dowry would never have been handed over to the Imperial Palace.
The land that was supposed to be auctioned off due to lack of funds later than scheduled was handed over as taxes.
'Could it be that the reason he's been sending letters every day for the past few days is because of this?'
Letters from Faydan have been arriving constantly for the past few days.
I knew they would be nothing more than ridiculous threats, so I burned them as soon as I received them without even reading them...
I never thought he would pay my mother's land as taxes!
Faydan seemed to be thinking of 'postponing the divorce since he couldn't return the equivalent dowry right away' on the pretext of handing over his mother's land.
But even if he postpones the divorce like that, the scandal that has already broken out will not subside.
So.
'It's essentially an action that has no meaning other than screwing me over.'
I gritted my teeth.
"That bastard... So you're going to be this petty?"
If the land had been put up for auction, I could have simply bought it, which would have made things easier.
But if it had passed into the hands of the Imperial Family, it would be virtually impossible to buy it with money.
"What do we do now, Boss?"
I bit my lip and pondered.
'Is there any information from the past that I can use in this situation?'
As I searched for a way to overcome this situation from my past memories.
Suddenly, an incident came to mind.
'That's right! That happened?'
Around this time in my past life, Faydan had bought a necklace from an antique store.
But that necklace turned out to be a relic of Her Majesty the Empress's mother, which had been lost.
Faydan, who presented it to the Empress, established a friendly relationship with the Imperial Family as a result.
Then...
'If I find that necklace, I might be able to get my mother's land back.'
I don't know if things will go as I expect, but that's the only thing I can hope for in this situation.
So I had to get that necklace before Faydan, no matter what.
"Come with me, Wigg."
"Uh, where are we going?"
I took the lead and replied casually.
"Isn't flattery and groveling the answer in the face of power?"
'What on earth are you looking for...?'
Wigg watched Leticia's back as she entered the antique shop with suspicious eyes.
It had been several hours since his boss had taken him out.
Leticia was rummaging through all the antique shops in the square.
It was clear that she was looking for something, but she didn't tell him what it was.
'I'm sure she has something in mind.'
It was uneasy at the casino, but she succeeded in multiplying the target amount as she had initially intended.
At first, I was worried that she might be cheating, or that she might be chased by gamblers as a result...
Fortunately, there were no such tricks.
'I don't know what you're thinking, but you're a special person.'
I can't put my finger on it, but Leticia had a unique sense of composure.
And there was ability and luck to support that composure.
Until now.
'This is the last antique shop.'
What will happen if she can't find what she's looking for here?
Unlike Wigg, who was half-doubtful, Leticia looked around the antique shop at a leisurely pace.
'Not this one... Hmm, not this one either.'
She looked around slowly as in the previous shops.
Suddenly, Leticia stopped in front of a display case.
It was the first time she had stopped walking.
'What did you find?'
Wigg looked inside the display case, inwardly anticipating what Leticia had been desperately looking for all day.
There was a necklace there.
A somewhat faded gold string with a ruby, just a plain-looking necklace.
But unlike in Wigg's eyes, it was shining in Leticia's eyes with a brilliant golden light.
"I found it, my hidden card."
Leticia picked up the necklace with a triumphant smile.
It seemed like everything would be resolved smoothly.
Clang—
"...Leticia?"
Until she ran into Faydan, who was just entering the store.
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