I Bought the Villains With Money - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 27
As the bank clerk’s voice grew louder, a murmur of attention rippled through the gathering. Fiona couldn’t see their faces, but she felt every eye upon her.
Fiona gripped the pen so tightly her hand trembled. Sweat slicked her palm, and the pen nearly slipped from her grasp.
“I… I suppose…”
Fiona had never learned to write. Even if she had, she couldn’t read—so what use would reading be? None, obviously.
Instead, she had learned to pronounce words clearly and to listen carefully to others. It had served her well enough in her quiet neighborhood.
But none of that mattered now, faced with a bank clerk rigid with procedure.
Fiona barely caught the sliding pen and dragged it across the paper in crude marks.
They’d asked for her signature, but since she couldn’t write, she’d scratched out whatever came to mind.
She’d made the marks herself—that ought to count as her signature, surely.
“Are you joking with me, grandmother? You’re not a child. What is this? You’ve ruined a perfectly good document.”
The man snatched the paper from her hands and tore it to shreds. With each rip that echoed through the room, Fiona felt as though she herself were being torn apart. She flinched and trembled.
“Either rewrite it or leave.”
The man tossed the remains aside carelessly. Fiona’s shoulders sagged with exhaustion. She had given up.
“Wait, please.”
A hand caught her arm.
“Just a moment, won’t you?”
From the voice, Fiona knew it was a young girl—not yet grown. The warmth woven into her words held Fiona in place, bewildered.
“I’ll help you.”
It was help she desperately needed, and yet Fiona doubted what a child could possibly do.
“Please wait. I promise.”
The girl left Fiona’s side and approached the clerk’s window.
“Good afternoon, sir.”
“This isn’t a playground, little one.”
The clerk’s frown deepened as an elderly woman was followed into the bank by a young girl seeking service.
“Did your mother bring you? Go play somewhere else.”
“I’m here to deposit something.”
From the girl’s hands emerged the Dragon’s Covenant.
“We don’t need children’s treasure maps here, miss.”
“Is there an appraiser? Call an appraiser so we can verify what this item actually is.”
“Go away. You’re putting me in a bad mood.”
The clerk pushed the Dragon’s Covenant back across the counter toward the girl.
“Diana Viola Irenberg.”
“What?”
“That’s my name—not ‘little one.'”
Diana removed her bonnet. Golden hair tumbled loose as she shook it back, and she turned toward the clerk with the brightest smile.
“You claim to be the young lady of the Irenberg Family?”
Diana’s radiant smile left the clerk momentarily speechless. The Irenbergs were nothing less than the wealthiest ducal house in the entire Kingdom.
The young lady of that house? Here?
There was no need to verify her identity further. No one in the Kingdom would be brazen enough to impersonate the Irenberg name.
Slowly, the clerk’s gaze shifted to the Dragon’s Covenant.
‘There’s a very good chance that’s genuine.’
The Dragon’s Covenant, brought forth under the name of the Irenberg Family itself. It had to be authentic.
The clerk rang the bell.
“Appraiser! Could you call an appraiser, please?”
The clerk scrambled from his seat, smoothed his hair, and gestured for Diana to sit.
“Please, won’t you sit down, Miss Irenberg?”
“Could you bring me some tea?”
“Of course. Right away.”
The clerk hurried back with a cup of tea. Diana stared at it for a moment, then pushed it away with a soft clink.
“The aroma isn’t very good. Do you have anything else?”
“The tea isn’t to your taste, I see. Let me bring something different.”
The second cup Diana didn’t touch either.
“Not this one either? I’ll prepare something else at once.”
The clerk scrambled without being asked, moving with hurried efficiency.
Just as he returned with the third variety, word came from the appraiser.
Throughout this exchange, the clerk had found himself sweating through his doubts as he navigated Diana’s capricious demands.
“It’s authentic? Truly authentic?”
“Yes, it is indeed genuine.”
The clerk’s expression, which had grown increasingly strained, bloomed into relief and wonder.
The teller exhaled deeply and spoke to Diana.
“It’s genuine, Miss Diana.”
“Did you think I’d bring a forgery to deposit?”
Diana shot back sharply.
‘Why is she like this to me? I heard the Irenberg Family was so accomplished, but their child-rearing is a mess.’
The teller cursed Diana under his breath while maintaining a polite smile. From the start she’d been finding fault with everything, and now she’d complained all the way through—this was a character problem, plain and simple.
“I trust you, Miss Diana, but the procedure was unavoidable.”
Still, the teller had no choice but to bow his head. Such was the sorrow of a banker.
“Procedure, that blasted procedure.”
Diana pouted. To anyone else it might have looked endearing, but to the teller it seemed positively demonic.
‘Not a person. Just money. Think of her as money.’
The teller chanted silently and pushed the contract forward. He wanted this deal desperately.
Deposit services for valuables didn’t bring direct profit to the bank.
But accepting such precious treasures as the Dragon’s Covenant meant the security was sound, and that in turn served as advertising to wealthy clients that the bank was trustworthy.
Therefore, it would surely draw new customers.
For some time now, Phoenix Bank had been in turmoil. Rumors circulated that as the bank struggled, it would lay off staff en masse.
The teller wanted to survive by any means. To survive, he had to prove his worth.
The Irenberg Family and the Dragon’s Covenant.
The teller intended to prove himself with these two things.
“Here is the contract. Please read it carefully and sign here…….”
“Ah, I’m too tired to read through all this.”
“……Would you like me to read it for you?”
“If you would.”
The teller read through the contract with clear, measured pronunciation. Since it concerned a deposit of valuables, the terms were extensive.
Whenever the teller paused, parched and needing to rest his voice, Diana urged him to read faster.
In the end, he read through the densely packed clauses without a single sip of water.
“……there we are. Do you understand?”
The teller set down the papers, his lips completely dry.
“Do you take me for a fool? I understood perfectly.”
The teller felt relieved. If he’d had to read it twice, his breath would have started to reek.
“You need only sign here.”
The teller positioned the contract where Diana could see it easily. She picked up a pen, then stopped, pen in hand.
“Is there a problem?”
“What should I do? I can’t remember how to write my own name.”
Diana feigned great surprise and held out the document and pen to the teller.
“Would you write it for me?”
“That would violate regulations…….”
“I see. Then I have no choice but to go to another bank.”
As Diana stood to leave, the teller hastily stretched out his arm and grabbed her sleeve. Leaning across his desk, he looked up at her desperately.
“Wait, please! If you can’t remember your name, perhaps a mark, or—no, if that’s too difficult, someone else can sign on your behalf. What do you say? If you’ll just consent, I can do it myself.”
“Ah…… really?”
A thin, cold smile crossed Diana’s face.
Her entire demeanor shifted in an instant. The teller found himself releasing her collar without quite realizing it.
‘But, but she’s just a child…….’
An unmistakable authority emanated from Diana—the kind one could not treat carelessly.
“Didn’t you just say you couldn’t do it?”
Diana spoke, glancing toward Fiona.
“Well, that is to say…… it depends on the circumstances. If someone else signs on the principal’s behalf with their consent…….”
“Then it’s allowed. Jenis, bring my grandmother here.”
Jenis, who had been watching from the side, moved with swift efficiency.
The teller had no idea what was happening or how the situation was unfolding—he could only watch as Diana acted.
When Jenis brought Fiona over, Diana rose from her seat and yielded it to her grandmother.
She personally guided Fiona to the chair and helped her sit, then spoke.
“Grandmother, I’m Diana Viola Irenberg. May I sign the Disability Allowance paperwork on your behalf?”
“The bank employee said it wasn’t allowed…….”
“He must have misunderstood. Isn’t that right, sir?”
Suddenly addressed after being nearly forgotten, the teller startled and quickly opened his mouth.
“Yes, yes! I was mistaken. Let me give you the forms—please fill them out.”
The teller became deferential. He asked Fiona for her name, which she provided somewhat bewildered, then looked back over the situation.
Fiona had been listening to the exchange between Diana and the teller. She hadn’t meant to eavesdrop; she’d been waiting to ask the teller again when she overheard them instead.
Diana, who had introduced herself as the daughter of the Irenberg Family, had conducted herself poorly. Fiona had thought that a family name alone could not guarantee dignity—
When the teller finally offered to sign on Diana’s behalf, Fiona had nearly wept at the kindness.
‘Was that performance for my sake? Clever child, remarkable for her years.’
“Thank you, Diana.”
“Not at all. May I sign in your stead?”
Her voice was entirely different from when she’d addressed the teller. Since Fiona could not see faces, she understood people through the texture of their voices.
Where she had seemed a scatterbrained child before the counter, now she sounded like a dignified noble—someone who carried the weight of her house.
“Of course. I would be honored if you would.”
Fiona’s head bowed of its own accord. Respect welled up unbidden.
“Please, there’s no need for such formality.”
Diana hastened to bow as well, though Fiona could not see her. A moment of silence settled between them.
Diana completed the documents while Fiona envisioned a bright future for the Irenberg Family.
“Here are the papers. Please check them carefully to make sure nothing is missing.”
The teller gave the documents a cursory glance and set them aside. He waited for Diana’s next words. The Disability Allowance application mattered far less to him than what she might say.
“Thank you for your trouble.”
Jenis stepped forward to assist Fiona, and Diana turned away without hesitation. The teller stood and called after her.
“Wait, Diana! What about the Dragon’s Covenant?”
Diana, who had been walking briskly, came to a halt.
“This? Rather than leave it here—”
Diana held the Dragon’s Covenant aloft. She glanced around the room. Fortunately, there were no nervous souls nearby.
“I think it’s better to destroy it.”
Diana tore the Dragon’s Covenant in two with a bright, cheerful smile.
“SCREEEEEEECH!”
“AHHHHHHH!”
A colossal Dragon Phantom materialized. The Phoenix Bank descended into chaos.
I Bought the Villains with Money (Serialized)
Author | Yi In-hye
Publisher | Kim Ju-hyung
Published by | J Plus Media Co., Ltd. — Tiramisu
Marketing | Han Jae-hyuk
Address | 11th Floor (8th Building), Acetech Tower, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong)
Email | [email protected]
Website | http://blog.naver.com/jayplemedia1
ⓒ Yi In-hye 2021
※This work is published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. under contract with the copyright holder.
The content may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
Violation of this prohibition may result in criminal and civil legal liability.

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