“Oh, Madam Mariposa?”
“Giselle, you’ve turned the wine cellar into chaos.”
Giselle beamed brightly and waved the ledger in her hand. “Oh my, Count~♡”
“What have you done?”
“Giselle drank until tip~sy! Then played a fun treasure hunt game~♡”
Kima squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again. What an outrageous way of speaking—no proper lady would ever talk like that! She was definitely going to get a scolding.
But Count Florette chuckled with satisfaction and asked. “I see. Did you find the treasure?”
…Huh?
“Yes~ I found a super~ adorable wine!”
“Enjoy it. Clean up after you finish drinking it all.”
Not only would typical noble ladies never behave like that, but shouldn’t they be getting reprimanded? That would be normal, right?
Kima couldn’t make sense of it at all. What on earth am I witnessing right now?
But just then, Mariposa, who had seemed somewhat sensible, turned red and blue with indignation.
“No, Brother! This isn’t right! Giselle did something bad. How uncomfortable must the cellar keeper be!”
He wasn’t uncomfortable, but…
Then Giselle quickly interjected. “Huh? This isn’t the time for that, is it? Because Giselle found something really interesting!” In Giselle’s hand was a ledger written in double-entry bookkeeping.
Mariposa roughly flipped through the ledger and looked at Giselle with furrowed brows. “What are you talking about?”
“Giselle found a ledger, and whoever kept these records is a genius! They wrote down all the old expenses and income!”
Kima’s eyes widened.
Giselle immediately handed the ledger to Count Florette with a smile. “Ah! Madam Mariposa, it seems like you’ve been embezzling quite a~ lot while running businesses under borrowed names?”
* * *
“This ledger, it’s called double-entry bookkeeping?”
“Yes. That’s right.”
“The transparency of the income and expenditure records makes it clear. There are numerous ventures that are financial black holes. Moreover, if these records are accurate, it seems embezzlement has taken place.”
Inside the study, Mariposa, Giselle, Kima, and the maid were all gathered.
Count Florette looked at his sister, who was nervously darting her eyes around. “Whether the embezzlement was intentional or simply mismanaged, I can’t say. But one thing is certain.”
“T-That’s…”
“My sister is incompetent. And the senate is likely the same.”
“B-Brother. I-I didn’t know! T-That’s…”
He declared coldly. “This ledger is revolutionary. But why was someone like this left in the wine cellar?”
“T-That’s…”
“Reconsider your actions, Mariposa.”
“Reconsider?! B-But, Brother, please calm down and listen to me. We need to find out how Giselle discovered the ledger and whether there was any tampering!”
Now that it had been exposed, it would be difficult for her to continue running her businesses under borrowed names, and her influence within the family would be at risk. Mariposa was desperate in her own way, but Count Florette sternly reprimanded her.
“I verified the validity of this ledger myself. Do you think I’m a fool?”
“N-No. That’s not it.”
“Or are you planning to blame the child who found the ledger?” He coldly pinned down Mariposa, who was quickly retracting her words. “Mariposa. For now, stay out of family affairs. Don’t attend social gatherings, and only communicate with the head maid.”
“Brother!”
“If you say more, I’ll take further action.”
Having said everything, Count Florette turned to Giselle. He looked at Giselle, who was sitting on the sofa watching Mariposa.
Giselle, sensing his gaze, met his eyes. And she smiled brightly.
“Giselle, how did you find this ledger?”
“By chance, while drinking?”
“I’m very pleased. Well done. This will be a great help.”
Now he could figure out the scale of past business much faster. He might even get three extra hours of sleep each day.
Giselle, who was like a lucky charm, beamed and waved her hand. “Then give me a reward!”
“Hmm? What kind of reward would you like? Just say the word.”
Giselle’s gaze shifted to the maid, May, whose cheeks were puffed out. “She called me Giselle without respect! Punish her!”
Calling Giselle by her name informally had been a common practice among Mariposa’s close maids. May, who was slow to catch on, shouted in protest. “I have something to say too. Wasn’t it the young lady who slapped my cheek first?”
“Yes, that’s right. I slapped your cheek, but the sound wasn’t satisfying. I don’t like you.”
“Is that so, Giselle?”
“Yes! Please kick her out immediately!”
Count Florette nodded as if delivering a judgment. “If you slapped her, there must be a reason, just like Count Sehera would have.”
“Yes, exactly!”
“As you said, I’ll dismiss that maid.”
Giselle grinned widely and waved her hand gently. “Send her away without a letter of recommendation or severance pay!”
May’s eyes widened. “I-I just. Madam! Please save me! Leaving without a recommendation is like a death sentence for a maid!”
Giselle laughed brightly and said, “Then go ahead and die!”
“You’re quite decisive.” Seeing her speak her mind reminded Count Florette of Count Sehera, and he nodded with a dignified smile.
Mariposa watched the two with a bewildered expression, her eyelashes fluttering in confusion. What kind of person was Count Sehera? No, more importantly, is he really dismissing her without even asking for a reason?
Mariposa frowned as she watched May being dragged out by the knights, her face filled with disbelief. There was something she simply couldn’t understand. Why did things suddenly turn this way?
Certainly, it was Giselle who broke the oak barrel and turned the wine cellar into a sea of wine. Yet, just before the embezzlement was about to be exposed, it was Mariposa who was placed under house arrest.
It’s as if all the happiness I’ve had until now was just a fleeting dream. It felt like the beginning of a nightmare.
Mariposa’s legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the floor.
* * *
Thus, the next morning arrived.
[<Special Report> Madam X Put on Probation Within Her Own Family—What Happened?]
[<Breaking News> Rumors of Discord in Family X? The Long-Standing Feud Between Lady and Madam, What’s the Story?!]
Though they’ll publish anything for money, it’s still surprising to see the newspapers criticizing Mariposa. You really do see everything if you live long enough.
With a bit of spice added to the headlines, the morning papers sold quite well.
Perhaps it’s because of my contract marriage and my reckless behavior. The world seems to be changing refreshingly, doesn’t it? Thanks to the proper execution of the original destruction technique, of course.
I smiled with satisfaction as I filled my arms with a box of money. “Now that I’ve got an artifact to store money, all that’s left is to earn it properly!”
I clicked my tongue as I looked at the slightly empty ‘money box’ after stuffing it with bribes. Currently, I have about 700 million in funds. It might sound like a lot, but it’s nowhere near enough to become an archmage.
I glanced at the article.
[Let’s Look into Lady’ Giselle’, Suspected of Alcoholism.]
It was an extra edition for this month.
I smiled slyly as I flipped through the newspaper. There are times when forced narrative development about me can be useful. With a small amount of money, I published a tiny article slandering myself, and it had blown up tremendously. At least my prospective mother-in-law must have thoroughly read the article, so this is a worthwhile investment.
With a terrible reputation in society, discord within the family, and even being an alcoholic, how many in-laws would want such a daughter-in-law?
All preparations to become unlikable were complete. Finally, it was time to meet my mother-in-law.
