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Chapter 9
“If You Ask Who I Am”
‘There’s still so much I need to do before sunset, but Raymond suddenly showed up and wasted so much of my time.’
Diabella grew anxious. She had only three weeks left.
There was something she absolutely had to accomplish before the divorce.
‘After the divorce, I’ll stand on my own. But to get started, I need the position of marchioness.’
So before the divorce, she had to make this succeed no matter what.
“Milady, we’ve arrived at Panople Square.”
The carriage stopped, and Diabella stepped out with a flutter of excitement.
Panople Square.
It was the most glamorous and crowded district in the entire Luten Empire.
In modern Korean terms, it would’ve been called a hot place. Lavish and magnificent buildings surrounded the square in a grand circle, perfectly fitting its reputation.
‘Wow… I’m really getting a European vacation I never had in my life.’
Back when she had lived as Hajin, she’d never even properly traveled within Korea, much less Europe. In high school, she’d managed to go to Jeju Island once thanks to scholarship support for a school trip.
Whenever she saw friends posting European travel photos on social media, it had felt so far removed from her life that she couldn’t even bring herself to feel jealous.
But now she was standing in the middle of a city even more dazzling than any photo she’d ever seen.
And she had arrived in a luxurious carriage, no less.
‘Thinking of it as a vacation actually makes me feel pretty good.’
Instead of thinking of this as some incomprehensible transmigration, maybe she should think of it as an extravagant trip made just for her.
Hajin, now living as Diabella, smiled softly.
Or maybe this was a life-reset simulation game with a starting capital of four billion won.
Either way, she liked it.
Because this was only the beginning.
* * *
“Nelly, wait at a café and have some tea until I return.”
Diabella handed coins to the maid who had accompanied her.
Living as a noblewoman definitely had its perks, but moments like this were inconvenient.
Wherever she went, she had to bring maids or attendants with her. She wanted time alone—free from other people’s eyes—so she could quietly think.
There was a lot she needed to plan for the future.
“Huh? How could I possibly let you walk around alone in such a crowded street, milady?”
Nelly looked horrified.
But then she met her mistress’s gaze as Diabella slowly closed and reopened her eyes.
“Hk!”
Nelly swallowed hard.
“I simply want to take a quiet walk alone.”
How could she possibly defy that command?
If her mistress wandered alone and got hurt, Nelly might be held responsible and die.
But disobeying her mistress’s order felt like she would die immediately.
The latter sounded far scarier.
“At least I should survive a little longer first…”
“Please be careful… and come back safely.”
With lightened steps, Diabella wandered through the streets.
She carefully observed what people were wearing and examined every store in Panople Square one by one.
‘This is where the empire’s money gathers.’
And also where the people who spent money most extravagantly gathered.
Which businesses should she invest in?
Diabella pondered seriously.
She had studied countless economic theories in college, but she’d never truly had the chance to apply them.
Back then, “economics” had merely been about surviving day by day and scraping together tuition and living expenses.
But now—
She had real money in her hands.
Now was the time to put theory into practice.
“Just wait. I’m going to become ridiculously successful.”
“I’m Jang Hajin—the top student of the economics department.”
She proudly lifted her chin—
Then froze slightly.
‘…Well. I did lose first place once.’
Her lips twisted bitterly.
At that moment, noisy shouting drew her attention.
“Please, just give me a little more time!”
At the edge of Panople Square, inside a tiny shop, a rough-looking man was throwing merchandise everywhere.
A skinny man clung desperately to the thug’s leg, begging.
“If you promised to repay the debt, you should’ve kept your word! How many months has it been now?! How long do you expect me to wait? Didn’t you say you’d hand over the building if you couldn’t pay? If you can’t pay, then get out!”
“My child has been ill, so the medicine cost too much… Please, just a little more time…”
The thug kicked the pleading man away and barged further into the store.
“Please! That embroidery was for our child!”
A trembling woman cried out while desperately clutching a piece of embroidered cloth.
The man shoved her aside roughly and threw the fabric onto the floor.
Then he lifted his muddy boot to stomp on it.
Or at least, he tried to.
“…What the?”
A glossy green enamel shoe lightly knocked his foot aside.
“Who dares interfere with me?!”
The thug glared upward.
Swish.
Diabella flicked back her softly curled wine-colored hair with one hand and blinked her long lashes.
“W-Who are you?!”
Her appearance and noble aura clearly unsettled him.
“I don’t know the full situation, but you shouldn’t treat a defenseless woman so brutally.”
“Brutally? I’ve already shown mercy for three whole months! Unless you plan to pay their debt yourself, stay out of it.”
“How much do they owe?”
“Ten million marks.”
…Whoa. That’s a lot.
Diabella hesitated.
Once she divorced, she wouldn’t have access to the marquisate’s wealth anymore. She didn’t even have a home lined up yet.
She couldn’t recklessly spend her precious settlement money.
“See? If you’re not paying it, then mind your own business.”
The thug sneered and started throwing more merchandise from the shelves.
“You think this junk can actually make money? How exactly are you planning to repay the debt?!”
Still not satisfied, he began stomping all over the items on the floor.
Watching the scene, Diabella bit her lip.
It reminded her of the day debt collectors came to her childhood home because of her father’s gambling debts.
They had thrown household belongings everywhere and repeatedly kicked the door.
Her father had knelt begging.
Her mother had shielded little Hajin behind her back.
Their purpose had been to terrify the debtors as much as possible, so they’d acted violently and cruelly.
But young Hajin hadn’t understood that.
She had only hidden behind her mother, trembling.
“N-no! My Tobi…”
Then her favorite stuffed rabbit—the only cherished doll she owned—had been thrown aside.
She had rushed forward.
But the debt collectors didn’t care.
They stomped all over the rabbit.
Her mother later washed it by hand, but the stains never fully came out.
And neither did the emotional scars.
Coming back to the present, Diabella looked at the woman’s tear-streaked face.
The woman trembled so badly she couldn’t even step forward.
Then suddenly—
“Ah! Not that!”
The thug had grabbed the embroidered cloth again and was about to stomp on it.
Diabella darted forward and snatched it first.
“Nice catch!”
“Listen, miss. If you don’t want to get hurt, leave.”
The thug scowled.
“Oh, I’m buying this.”
“Buying it?”
“You’re buying it?”
Both the thug and the woman looked bewildered.
Ah right. They said it was for their child.
Her excuse had failed.
Diabella casually improvised.
“I mean, I was planning to order something exactly like this. If you ruin it, I can’t place an order anymore, can I? You said they should sell something worth buying. Well, I’m buying it.”
“Hah. Like that thing would sell for much anyway.”
The thug scoffed and kicked more items around.
He even shoved and kicked the shop owner when the man tried to stop him.
Diabella clenched her jaw.
Then her eyes suddenly widened as she looked at the embroidery in her hands.
‘This is it.’
What she had been searching for all this time—
It was right here.
Now she finally knew what she had to do.
Diabella made up her mind and nodded.
Then she narrowed her eyes at her next target.
Gripping the fan in her free hand, she threw it without hesitation.
“Ghk!”
The fan struck the thug directly in the throat.
Yes!
She’d known it ever since the original story mentioned her throwing fans at people.
Apparently this body was specialized in throwing things.
Especially fans.
“You’ve been annoying me this whole time! I won’t let this slide!”
The thug clutched his throat and stormed toward her menacingly.
But the moment he raised his hand—
Diabella was faster.
Her small, gleaming enamel shoe—with its sharp pointed toe—drove straight into his groin.
“Gghk…!”
The thug collapsed from the unexpected attack.
Click. Click.
Diabella strode toward him elegantly and mercilessly stomped on his hand.
“Oh dear. My lovely shoes are going to get dirty. I’ll have to throw them away now.”
Wow. I really sounded like the actual Diabella just now.
Smiling in satisfaction, she twisted her foot over his hand like she was dancing.
“Ughhh! I-I won’t let this go! Do you even know who I am?!”
As the man gritted his teeth in pain, something fluttered down onto his head.
“Here. Ten million marks.”
“If you think paying ten million marks gives you the right to torment those people, then doesn’t that mean paying ten million marks gives me the right to torment you?”
Diabella said this while stomping on his other hand too.
“And more importantly—”
“Do you know who I am?”
“W-Who are you…?!”
“Me?”
Diabella lifted her chin more slowly and elegantly than ever before.
Then she lowered her gaze over him through long, fan-like lashes.
“Diabella de Crimton.”
