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Chapter 1
After the Final Notice
Serenia was summoned to the bank and given the final notice.
If she failed to fully repay both the principal and the overdue interest within exactly one month from today, the seizure process would begin immediately.
Giving an extra month to such an unreliable debtor.
Thinking the banks had become surprisingly generous these days, Count Barishart’s daughter, Serenia Barishart slowly walked out of the bank building.
[The play returning this winter, <Little Duke Razkal> — Starring Ain Reveron!]
Without even glancing at the dazzling theater posters lined along the bank wall, she leaned her back against it.
“Haah…”
A sigh escaped from her lips on its own.
“Maybe I should just marry into some rich family.”
Muttering to herself, she let out a hollow laugh.
Calling it marriage sounded nice, but in truth, it would simply mean selling herself — along with the succession rights to the Barishart County title — for thirty thousand crovats.
The thought made her feel miserable.
What difference was there between her and women who sold their bodies?
But what else could she do?
Once born as a noble lady in the Kingdom of Jigranto, her ending had already been decided.
The only things allowed to noblewomen were attending social events and managing household affairs.
A noble lady was nothing more than a living doll, raised beautifully only to be sold off for a high price.
Or perhaps a statue.
Or maybe a trophy.
It felt strangely sorrowful that the fate she had ignored all this time had finally arrived before her eyes in such a way.
Still, when she was standing on the edge of bankruptcy, what was so important about selling a body that would rot after death anyway?
Thinking of her father, who had remained unconscious for eight years, Serenia hardened her resolve.
“No matter what anyone says, I have to survive somehow.”
“And I still need to pay the hospital bills next month too.”
Having made her decision, she tried to think positively.
It was November, after all. The timing was not bad.
Every year, on the last day of November, a grand banquet was held at the royal palace to celebrate the kingdom’s founding anniversary.
Most nobles attended that banquet.
Surely she could find at least one suitable man willing to marry into her family there.
Just as Serenia was carefully organizing her thoughts, her vision suddenly darkened.
She looked up instinctively.
A strangely dressed man stood before her, blocking the warm sunlight while wearing a faint smile.
A coat that reached down to his ankles.
Dark purple-tinted glasses.
A wide black velvet hat that looked more suitable for a noblewoman.
And beneath the hat, pink hair sticking out awkwardly — most likely a wig.
‘What is this…? Some tailor shop employee trying to advertise?’
But his appearance was far too bizarre for that.
At the same time, every expensive item he wore strangely suited him perfectly, as if they had been made for him alone.
People said fashion was completed by the face.
Apparently, that saying was true.
Serenia frowned slightly at the man’s beauty, which could not be hidden even beneath the hat’s shadow and tinted glasses.
He looked warm yet cold, gentle yet sharp.
Beautiful like a narcissus flower, glamorous like a rose, elegant like a trumpet vine, and fragile like a pear blossom.
He seemed innocent like a young boy, yet beyond that innocence she sensed deep exhaustion and danger.
Without realizing it, Serenia swallowed nervously.
He was the kind of person impossible to define with a single word — contradictory and dual in nature, which only made him more captivating.
At that moment, a strong instinct crossed Serenia’s mind.
That handsome face had definitely made hundreds of women cry.
While she somehow arrived at the correct answer through a completely ridiculous thought process, the man’s smile deepened.
“Hello, my lady.”
Reflexively wary of his alluring smile, Serenia stepped backward.
But before she could even take half a step, her back hit the wall.
Watching her freeze in embarrassment, he smiled faintly behind his tinted glasses and spoke softly.
“My name is Ain Reveron.”
Standing before the man who quietly introduced himself, Serenia tilted her head.
‘Is he… asking to exchange names?’
The name sounded strangely familiar.
But Serenia was far too distant from refined hobbies like theater to recognize him immediately from that alone.
So she simply gave a polite nod to the protagonist of the theater poster she was unknowingly crushing behind her back.
“Ah, I see. I’m Serenia Barishart.”
At her answer, he smiled with a rather strange expression for a moment.
While she looked at him in confusion, he spoke again in a meaningful tone, like a broker offering a secret deal.
“Lady Barishart. If you ever think of me…”
He slipped a stiff card-sized piece of paper into her hand and continued.
“You can come find me anytime here.”
‘…What is this? So he’s not from a tailor shop? Just some flirtatious playboy? Or maybe… a host?’
While Serenia tilted her head in confusion, the man disappeared like the wind, leaving behind only a smile as beautiful as a rose.
Once again, Serenia was left alone in front of the bank wall.
“What was that…?”
Pouting slightly, she looked down at the paper he had given her.
Only a single address was neatly written on the white paper.
< Pledes District 3, No. 1013 >
She could not tell the exact location from the address alone, but one thing was certain.
The Pledes district lay south of the river that crossed the capital.
It was an area crowded with third-rate financial businesses.
In simpler terms, it was a dark underworld filled with loan sharks, debt collectors, and thugs.
Looking down at the address with cold eyes, Serenia nodded slowly.
“So it was loan shark advertising.”
Apparently, that man intended to expand his business among the nobles.
‘And I’m probably the first step in that expansion.’
Serenia let out a faint sigh and shook her head.
She had heard that illegal moneylenders were becoming especially active lately.
It seemed the rumors were true.
“Still, no matter what, I’ll never borrow from loan sharks.”
Muttering firmly to herself, she crumpled the note and was about to throw it away before suddenly stopping.
“…But littering on the street isn’t good either.”
Making an awkward excuse to herself, Serenia stuffed the crumpled paper into her coat pocket.
Time passed, and the last day of November arrived.
The founding anniversary of the Kingdom of Jigranto had finally come.
That evening, Serenia finished preparing herself to attend the special celebration banquet held at the royal palace.
It was not a new dress, but she had repaired it as neatly as possible.
It was not the count family’s private carriage either, but she had rented a shared carriage for the entire day.
Although doing just those two things had used up every bit of money she had left…
Because of that, Serenia climbed into the carriage with the determination of someone making her final stand.
If she failed to make a deal tonight, she would literally starve starting tomorrow.
With that desperate resolve, Serenia headed toward the royal palace in the capital.
The guards at the gate checked her invitation three separate times before finally allowing the carriage through.
As the shabby and gloomy shared carriage entered the magnificent banquet hall entrance, everyone’s attention turned toward it.
“Who in the world comes to the royal palace in a carriage like that…?”
“…Did their carriage break down on the way here?”
“No, but still…”
The people whispering among themselves glanced toward the stopped carriage, but the moment they saw the person stepping out, their eyes widened.
“Huh?”
“No way…”
“That’s her, right?”
“My goodness. She really has no shame.”
That Serenia Barishart had actually appeared at a banquet like this.
And wearing a dress from ten years ago, with no proper jewelry and not even an escort beside her!
A fresh source of entertainment had appeared in this boring party.
The guests smiled darkly, delighted to have such perfect gossip to enjoy alongside their champagne.
In a rather different sense, Serenia’s shocking dress choice turned out to be surprisingly effective.
It instantly attracted the attention of many men at the party.
Of course, it was not the kind of attention Serenia had hoped for.
Like a pack of hyenas discovering weak prey, the men gathered around her with grins.
“Well now. What an honored guest we have tonight.”
“Isn’t this the count’s daughter who’s harder to see than His Majesty the King himself?”
“Still, now that I see her in person, I can understand why she acted so expensive before. She really is pretty.”
“By the way, didn’t you once coldly reject my escort invitation, saying you had no interest in parties like this? So what brings you here tonight?”
Serenia forced herself to straighten her shoulders, which instinctively wanted to shrink.
Then, with difficulty, she opened her mouth.
“Perhaps… someone here might be willing… to discuss the succession rights to the Barishart County title with me…”
Before she could even finish asking if anyone was interested—
The men around her burst into loud laughter.
“Wahahaha!”
“Kuhahaha. I was wondering what she was going to say.”
Watching them laugh loudly enough to shake the banquet hall itself, Serenia’s expression hardened.
The men surrounding her continued talking among themselves with mocking smiles.
“I thought she’d finally come to her senses since she came looking like that.”
“This is the first time I’ve actually felt sorry for Count Barishart.”
One of the men, clicking his tongue mockingly, looked down at Serenia with contempt.
“My lady. You don’t seriously believe there’s an idiot in this world who would want something like the Barishart County title, do you?”
