episode_0007

Felicia.

The nation of the cat beastfolk.

Here, in its top guild, Ganetocoville.

Miuna’s father had been the guildmaster of Ganetocoville.

He was diligent, highly respected, and well-regarded by the beastfolk around him.

Whenever disasters or plagues struck Felicia,

he was the one who rolled up his sleeves and selflessly helped everyone.

Ironically, the beginning of his downfall came from an unprecedented economic boom.

Twenty years ago, when Miuna was five years old.

Volkar, the nation of the dog beastfolk—Felicia’s sworn enemy—

collapsed overnight.

As a result, within just a few days,

Felicia’s national bonds and stocks related to the cat beastfolk skyrocketed fivefold.

Miuna’s father, who had always been driven by overflowing patriotism and nationalism.

The stocks he had purchased instantly yielded returns exceeding 500%,

bringing in profits of over 2 trillion Eldoris.

His wife believed this money would allow their family to live happily for the rest of their lives.

The members of Ganetocoville also rejoiced, thinking the guild would flourish endlessly from then on.

Young Miuna, too, ran around the house in excitement over her father’s windfall.

In Felicia, Ganetocoville, and Miuna’s household, laughter never faded.

It seemed as though those days would last forever.

But the greed of living beings knows no bounds.

Miuna’s father was suddenly consumed by overconfidence.

If he invested this money just a little more, he felt he could rule the entire world.

He deluded himself into thinking that if he could earn this much by sheer luck, he could amass even greater wealth with effort.

It would have been fine if it had remained a mere thought, but that delusion led to action.

Money earned with difficulty is lost just as easily.

Miuna’s father learned this the hard way—how quickly easy money vanishes into nothingness.

If only he had stopped there.

But Miuna’s father began borrowing money.

From Ganetocoville’s executives and members, from family acquaintances and even distant connections,

and even from Felicia’s citizens with whom he had no prior ties, leveraging his social status and reputation.

Before his eyes, the 2 trillion Eldoris danced like a dream.

He was certain that if he scraped together another 1 trillion Eldoris to reinvest,

he could not only recover his losses but regain the potential to dominate the world.

But the result was devastating.

A -99.94% return.

Years passed, but the debts remained unpaid, and the relentless collection calls never ceased.

Before long, Miuna’s home was plastered with seizure notices and curses,

and debt collectors swarmed the place without respite.

As the situation worsened, Miuna’s father turned to domestic violence.

He would return home drunk every night, assaulting Miuna’s mother,

and wake Miuna, not even ten years old, in the early hours to lecture her endlessly.

One day, when Miuna returned from school,

she was met with the sight of her father drinking in broad daylight

and her mother collapsed on the floor, blood streaming from her head.

Her father roared at Miuna to fetch cold water immediately.

Miuna was terrified.

She wished her father would stop now and return to the man he once was.

But he had already gone too far to turn back.

Miuna’s father made his final gamble.

The nation of the most powerful mages—the Arcelion Magocracy.

He had once built a connection with the prince of Arcelion through mutual acquaintances.

Though he had already been impeached from the guild,

he falsely presented himself to the prince as the guildmaster of Ganetocoville

and borrowed a staggering 4 trillion Eldoris under the pretext of investing in Felicia’s national projects.

He poured all of it into high-risk, high-reward investments.

The result was predictable.

Miuna’s father vanished.

The Arcelion prince, realizing he had been swindled, raised the issue diplomatically,

and the king of Felicia declared that Miuna’s father bore full responsibility.

The outcome was inevitable.

A nationwide manhunt was issued for Miuna’s father,

and the very guild he had once devoted himself to, Ganetocoville, now sought his capture with bloodthirsty fervor.

Miuna’s family, already battered by misfortune, faced one final calamity.

One day, men in red work uniforms came for Miuna and her mother.

They were from the infamous slave guild, Glaku, sent to seize them.

The cat beastfolk nation had abandoned Miuna’s family,

and the two were left without any legal protection.

The option to renounce inheritance did not exist.

Just as blood and sin are inherited, so too was debt.

In March of the year Miuna turned ten,

working for Glaku was a living hell.

Because she was a minor, Miuna was allowed to attend an educational institution during the day,

but after school, she was forced into menial labor without exception.

Her mother, despite enduring grueling work,

continued to sacrifice herself to make Miuna’s life even slightly easier.

In the end, Miuna’s mother did not last long.

So pitiful was Miuna’s plight that even fellow slaves pooled together condolence money for her.

On the day her mother was cremated,

Miuna stared blankly into the flames.

In the small wooden box she held,

were crumpled Felician banknotes.

She fiddled with the grimy money,

then gazed emptily at the fire—a cat beastfolk girl with nothing left.

Then, a familiar figure appeared.

Though his appearance had changed drastically, Miuna recognized him instantly.

It was her father.

She was overjoyed.

Despite the fear he had instilled in her through his misdeeds, she had always believed he would return someday.

Having him here, even like this, was better than not having him at all.

But that was a terrible delusion.

Miuna’s father approached his hopeful daughter,

…and in one swift motion, snatched the wooden box of condolence money from her hands before fleeing.

······.

Not long after, Miuna escaped Glaku with a few like-minded slave companions.

She changed her name to Miuna and found work at a leather workshop far from Glaku and Felicia.

But debt collectors and Glaku enforcers pursued her relentlessly,

forcing her to drift from place to place, never staying long.

Fortunately, her personality and looks earned her warm welcomes wherever she went.

For thirteen years, Miuna lived each day feeling both the cruelty and kindness of the world.

By then, her debt, with interest, had ballooned to 10 trillion Eldoris.

Then, one day, at twenty-five, she saw an advertisement with an unbelievable offer.

General Derek left the restaurant.

D-Did… Did the arranged meeting just fail for the first time ever?

If someone wasn’t interested during a blind date or meeting,

the universal truth, across all eras and cultures, was to excuse yourself to the bathroom and never return.

I glanced at Miuna’s expression.

The cat beastfolk’s face was scrunched up.

I’d expected this, but because I’d dared to hope, it hurt all the more.

I turned my head left to gauge Cosmo’s reaction…

The cat robot was gesturing wildly, urging me to say something.

Inside, I was already tap-dancing in despair,

but I forced the most regretful, sorrowful expression I could muster and spoke.

“…He might’ve really gone to the bathroom! Let’s wait 30 minutes!”

Miuna, on the verge of despair, clung to this last shred of hope.

······.

30 minutes later…

General Derek did not return.

I feigned calm and spoke again.

“…He’s taking a while, huh? Should we wait another 30 minutes…?”

······.

Another 30 minutes passed.

The warlord of Grayfell still hadn’t returned.

Tch… He’s really not coming, huh?

Well… At least the short-term goal is achieved.

Cosmo shook his head in dismay.

I stood up, pushed my chair in, and said,

“…Good work.”

Those three words said it all.

Miuna remained silent, still seated in the restaurant chair.

······.

As I stepped out of Eldoria Stew House…

Despite opening the door gently, I collided hard with something outside—BANG!

It was General Derek!

Without so much as a groan, he stormed into the restaurant.

But the state he was in after an hour’s absence was unbelievable.

Soaked from head to toe as if he’d fallen into a lake, dripping water onto the floor,

his left knee torn wide open on his grand marshal’s uniform from a fall,

and missing his right shoe, leaving him in just a sock.

…Barefoot determination.

Ignoring Cosmo and me, Derek stomped forward,

dropped to both knees before Miuna, and spoke in a grave voice.

“Is it… too late?”

Miuna rose silently.

Like a wind-up doll, she turned to face him,

then sank to her knees,

meeting him at eye level.

Clothes drenched, sweat-stained, and disheveled as they were,

she threw her arms around him and began sobbing.

No—wailing.

General Derek, too, wept openly and declared:

“If I left now… I knew I’d regret it for the rest of my life.

······.

Just as I paid dearly for you… I’ll love you dearly.”

······.

Wow…

That’s some next-level romance.

······.

Yeah.

Even though the sabotage operation failed again this time,

I’ll admit it.

As self-centered and extreme as I am,

this time, I felt a tear or two.

Cosmo rubbed his dry eyes and muttered to himself.

“I want to cry too… but no tears come out.

I don’t have tear ducts, you see.

Perhaps that’s just how things are.

That’s why I realized, far too late,

that being able to cry when you want to is a blessing.”

The next day.

True to Sunday form, I slept in until the sun was high.

Even in my dreams, I was handling matchmaking work,

but one of my middle-aged male clients suddenly confessed to me—

a full-blown nightmare.

I woke up screaming.

Just then, Cosmo greeted me, his heterochromatic eyes gleaming.

“You’re awake, Master Rosenheit!

How unfortunate that you had a nightmare.

But don’t worry!

Because you have 1 unread important message!”

…What kind of nonsense is that?

What does “don’t worry” have to do with a new message?

Still half-asleep, I checked the digital letter through Cosmo.

…It was from General Derek!

For a moment, I thought he’d sent it because he wanted a divorce after just one day.

But no such luck.

No, it wasn’t just “no such luck”—

Along with a deposit of 25,000 Eldoris, the attached file read:

「For introducing me to such a wonderful spouse…

I hereby offer you the Arshvolt warlords’ conquered territory, the Mirtail Magocracy!

President Rosenheit, please accept this and become Mirtail’s sovereign!」

······.

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