Adopting the Male Protagonist Changed the Genre - Chapter 112

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 112

 

“In the face of a business crisis that holds the fate of our family, all you can do is beg for sympathy. You don’t mind crawling like a dog for your purpose. How fitting for your lowly bloodline.”

 

Schubel felt as if he had been struck in the head.

 

When he discovered evidence that counterfeit chips were circulating, the first thing Schubel did was silence his employees.

 

If word got out about the counterfeit chips, the casino would lose credibility, and people would immediately try to exchange their chips for cash.

 

The problem was that if someone brought counterfeit chips during that chaos, the casino would have no way to distinguish them.

 

Therefore, to buy time until they could find a way to distinguish between counterfeit and real chips, he had tried to block Belinda’s entry, as she currently had the most chips in circulation.

 

‘But what? All of this was Belinda’s doing?’

 

Schubel’s face, which had gone blank from the enormous shock, slowly contorted.

 

Only now did Schubel realize that winning large amounts of money through gambling and exchanging chips with nobles were all part of Belinda’s scheme to naturally circulate counterfeit chips.

 

“You, you crazy bitch! If this goes wrong, the family could go bankrupt! And yet you dare do such things while bearing the Blanche name!”

 

“You seem to be mistaken about something, but I don’t care what happens to this pathetic family. The Blanche family means nothing to me.”

 

Belinda looked down at Schubel with a face devoid of any trace of laughter.

 

“Schubel, I’ve been thinking for a very long time about your advice not to show weakness. I wondered if even the trash who killed his own father could have something precious. Thinking about it, there is one thing. Something that vermin like you would even kneel to protect.”

 

“…Shut up.”

 

“To think this Blanche family was so precious to you—aren’t you being a bit too presumptuous? People should know their place.”

 

“I said shut up!”

 

Schubel, veins bulging in his neck, lunged forward as if he would strangle Belinda immediately.

 

However, he couldn’t touch a single hair on Belinda’s head.

 

“Aaaaah!”

 

A raven that sprang from Belinda’s shadow attacked him as if it would peck out his eyes.

 

Schubel, who had fallen flat, breathed heavily while glaring at Belinda with fierce eyes.

 

However, for the first time, Belinda read fear in those eyes. A thrilling satisfaction spread into a smile.

 

Belinda rose from her seat and declared like a prophecy.

 

“Schubel, from now on I’m going to take away everything you hold dear, one by one. Just like you did to me before.”

 

“…”

 

“So let’s enjoy this game until one of us dies.”

 

With those final words, Belinda turned her back defensively and walked away, but Schubel couldn’t even think of attacking her.

 

* * *

 

Through the carriage window, the brilliant lights of the Red House slowly faded into the distance.

 

I only leaned back completely against the carriage seat after the casino had completely disappeared from view.

 

‘It’s finally over.’

 

Forging chips, getting a bunch of new dresses tailored in styles I’d never normally wear to disguise myself as Adelia Blanche, pouring money to buy Suga’s blessings, and on top of that…

 

“So the job ends today?”

 

Jerry’s fee was more expensive than expected too…

 

I glanced at the small-framed man sitting next to Terry and nodded.

 

Jerry, an executive of the Sewer Rat whose specialty was disguise, truly showed amazing transformation skills.

 

One day he was a noble’s daughter who had come up from the countryside and, not knowing Belinda’s reputation, fearlessly asked me to teach her card games, and another day he was an old man who had lost his entire fortune at the casino and exchanged chips with me, asking me to wish him luck.

 

From softening people’s wariness toward Belinda to creating a chip exchange culture.

 

This plan wouldn’t have succeeded without Jerry.

 

“Here’s the rest of your fee.”

 

I settled the remaining fee in one payment right there.

 

Jerry casually took out a gold coin and bit it with his teeth.

 

“It looks like a real gold coin.”

 

Ah, this strangely nerve-grating way of speaking.

 

I looked back and forth between Terry and Jerry, who didn’t seem to resemble each other at all, and bluntly said.

 

“You said you were siblings, but looking at you now, you do look alike.”

 

“What? How do I look like this crazy dog? I have a mouse face, not a dog face!”

 

“That’s right, Master! I have a puppy face and that thing has a pure rat face!”

 

“What? Why does even the truth sound like an insult when my sister says it?”

 

The two immediately started bickering.

 

I couldn’t help but smile at what seemed like a perfectly ordinary sibling conversation.

 

Fighting while grabbing each other’s hair like that must be what normal siblings do.

 

“Really, I was being nice because we’re in front of the Master, but you saw it as an opportunity to be cheeky?”

 

“Oh, right. I was being cheeky on purpose because I know you’re putting on an act in front of the client? You just figured that out now?”

 

“You? You dare call me ‘you’? Really! You need a beating after so long to come to your senses!”

 

“Aaah!”

 

Hmm… probably?

 

* * *

 

“Mary, how is Schubel these days?”

 

At my words, Mary’s hands, which had been moving busily, paused.

 

“I don’t know well. He’s been so frantically busy lately that he hasn’t even been able to return to the manor.”

 

Yes, that makes sense.

 

‘He must know that immediately recalling all chips and completely redesigning them would be the simplest solution that would prevent greater damage.’

 

Even knowing that, he probably lacks the resolve to proceed.

 

The hope that there couldn’t possibly be counterfeit chips identical to the real ones must be blinding him.

 

What I counterfeited were only the golden chips.

 

Among the Red House’s chips, the golden chips worth 1000 gold were so precisely crafted that no proper counterfeits had appeared in the past 100 years.

 

With conventional methods, they even had invisible magical seals stamped on them, so his confidence that they couldn’t be counterfeited wasn’t a careless judgment.

 

If only the counterfeiter hadn’t been ‘someone who had once received education as the legitimate heir of the Blanche family,’ Schubel’s efforts to distinguish between counterfeits and real chips wouldn’t have been in vain.

 

‘Learning the chip counterfeiting method and what the hidden magical seal looked like through Belinda’s memories was a great help.’

 

Without that, I never could have dreamed of counterfeiting chips.

 

“Master, you said you were going out, but you’re planning to go dressed like that?”

 

It was just as I had finished getting ready and was about to leave the manor.

 

At Terry’s words, I looked over my appearance.

 

“You’ve only been wearing black dresses lately. It’s not that they don’t suit you, but… they look exactly like mourning clothes, so I don’t think they’ll give a very good impression to others.”

 

“They are mourning clothes.”

 

“What?”

 

Instead of explaining in detail to Terry, who asked in surprise, I adjusted the fit of the black dress I always wore except when visiting the casino.

 

“There’s someone I need to mourn.”

 

Probably Terry, no, no one in this world would know.

 

That the person I’m mourning is none other than Belinda.

 

Until this revenge ends and I claim the Blanche family’s crown, I won’t take off these mourning clothes that honor her.

 

Leaving the puzzled Terry behind, I went out for the first time in a while, accompanied by Penandel.

 

And not long after the carriage departed, I noticed that Penandel was different from usual.

 

Watching him sit across from me but never once make eye contact, constantly looking out the window, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

 

‘I think he avoided me like this once before.’

 

I suddenly spoke to him as he stubbornly kept looking out the window.

 

“Cheri, why don’t you take off your mask when your face has already been revealed?”

 

“…I would prefer if you called me Penandel.”

 

“Alright, Cheri. So how about taking off your mask when it’s just the two of us?”

 

Even after I said this much, Penandel stubbornly refused to make eye contact with me or remove his mask.

 

“Should I take it off for you?”

 

Feeling a pointless stubbornness, I carefully reached out to remove his mask, just like on that rainy day on the terrace.

 

“My heart rate has risen abnormally and feels like it might burst, so please don’t touch me without warning.”

 

“…?”

 

What kind of nonsense is this.

 

“My lord, did you have a chronic illness?”

 

“It’s not like that….”

 

“Not like that?”

 

“I, I’m shy around strangers….”

 

“….”

 

“….”

 

“Does my lord know that you truly have no talent for lying?”

 

“…I’ve been learning that lately.”

 

Lord Penandel affirmed with a sigh that seemed terribly weary.

 

I knew he was a rigid person who hesitated to remove his mask due to being bound by rules, but I still wanted to tell him just this one thing.

 

“Lord Penandel, there seems to be something you don’t know.”

 

“Yes, please command me.”

 

“I quite like Lord Cheri’s face.”

 

“…!”

 

I couldn’t see his expression behind the mask, but I could tell just this one thing.

 

Lord Penandel had broken down from just one sentence of mine.

 

A handsome man who doesn’t know he’s good-looking. This was quite precious and fun to tease, but I decided to stop here for now.

 

Through the carriage window, a small but old manor began to come into view.

 

It was the Rechel Family’s Mansion, today’s destination.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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