The Villain Family Opposes Independence (13 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 10
Huh. After a quiet sigh, I opened my mouth.
“I’ll go with Carlot.”
The reason was simple.
Carlot was far easier to read and handle than Yansi, whose thoughts were utterly inscrutable.
Though, truth be told, it was merely choosing the lesser of two evils—both being equally terrible.
“Fine. I’ll inform Carlot.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Is there anything else you need?”
“I’m fine.”
Fine, my foot. There was something I desperately needed: getting rid of that useless escort!
But since he clearly had no intention of allowing that, I had no choice but to back down.
“The steward mentioned you haven’t been purchasing anything lately.”
“Oh, that’s….”
I used to summon tailors and merchants to the guest wing almost daily, buying every dress and trinket in sight.
But ever since regaining my past-life memories, I’d stopped all of that.
Back then, believing myself a true member of the Ferdia family, I spent money without a care. Not anymore.
Even the belongings I had weren’t truly mine, and the money I could use wasn’t my own.
So how could I possibly squander the family’s wealth recklessly?
“It’s not good to spend too much money, right? I’m trying to cut back.”
“Why?”
“Huh?”
“What do you think the Ferdias are?”
Why was he suddenly interrogating me just because I wanted to spend less?
Unable to answer, I stood there dazed and stiff until the Duke let out a soft sigh.
“This house isn’t so impoverished that it can’t afford even your dresses.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I’ll tell the steward to allocate an additional 100,000 Larits monthly to you, Elodie.”
“100,000 Larits?!”
One hundred thousand Larits.
Since one Larit was worth roughly 2,000 won, 100,000 Larits amounted to… a staggering 200 million won.
And on top of already having money to burn like water, he was now adding another 100,000 Larits.
‘Even for the Ferdias, do they really skip financial education entirely?’
Seeing my shocked expression, the Duke asked a terrifying question.
“Is it insufficient?”
“No, no!”
If this kept up, he might assign even more money to me, which would be disastrous.
Every coin I spent was under the Duke’s watchful eye anyway, so having more wouldn’t help—I had nowhere to use it.
“Therefore, stop overthinking and buy whatever you want. I’ll receive monthly reports from the steward, so keep that in mind.”
“….”
Reports, even.
It suddenly struck me.
Instead of praising my intention to live frugally, he was forcing me to spend by handing me more money.
Was this perhaps the “Ferdia method” of financial education…?
Utterly drained, I rose weakly from my seat.
“I’m sorry for disturbing you while you’re busy. I’ll take my leave now….”
Since I seemed to have no further business, I quickly bowed, and the Duke gave a slight nod.
The moment I stepped out of the bedroom, a sigh of relief burst out.
“Whew.”
Only then, realizing I was no longer in the same space as the Duke, did I finally feel like I could breathe again.
[This is the timeline separator]
Having unexpectedly met the Duke after visiting the Duchess, I returned to the guest wing utterly exhausted.
Martha, who had been pacing anxiously in front of my bedroom, widened her eyes the moment she saw me.
“Young lady, why are you so late? You’re really alive, right?”
“That sounds ominous, Martha.”
“Of course not! I’ve been waiting so anxiously—I was worried!”
Martha hurriedly checked me over head to toe, and only after confirming I wasn’t injured did she finally let me go.
She must have been deeply worried about my private meeting with the Duchess.
‘Truthfully, the Duke was far scarier than the Duchess.’
In fact, I felt I communicated better with the Duchess. Just recently, I’d been too busy avoiding her to even exchange a word.
Of course, that didn’t mean I’d forgotten my place. It was clear the Duchess was only being kind because she found me useful, not because she actually liked me.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have stared at me that day—when I was crying—like I was some mere object, even if I wasn’t her own child.
But from her perspective, it was only natural.
After all, I was a bastard.
So I’d stay just like this—quiet, unobtrusive—and leave when the time came.
Reaffirming this resolution, I dumped the pouch I’d carefully carried onto the bedroom carpet.
Clatter…
Shimmering gold coins spilled out.
“What on earth is all this?”
Martha stared in shock, glancing between the money and me.
“Well, it’s money.”
“I know it’s money. I’m not blind.”
Martha seemed curious about the source, but I ignored her and plopped down onto the carpet.
“One, two, three… ten!”
Ten gold coins, each worth 1,000 Larits—10,000 Larits in total.
Though I’d just heard the Duke Ferdia promise me 100,000 Larits a month, this money in my hands felt far more real.
In any case, I was thrilled.
“Money…!”
I’d earned money.
Personal funds entirely my own, untraceable by the family, no matter how I spent them!
The very first thing I did with this precious money was hand 2,000 Larits to Martha.
“Huh? You’re giving this to me?”
“Yeah. You got me that poison substitute. Consider it my thanks.”
“I only did what I was supposed to do… but I’ll gladly accept it!”
Since it equaled several months’ worth of a maid’s wages, Martha grinned ear to ear as she pocketed the coins.
I liked this mercenary side of Martha.
It was far better than someone who pretends loyalty while claiming it’s not about money, only to betray you later for a hefty sum.
As long as I provided clear rewards, Martha would remain loyal—she’d never betray me in the first place.
Still, even though I’d earned quite a bit, it wasn’t nearly enough to buy a house.
I could earn more by selling more antidotes, but that would take time.
Just then, Martha handed me something.
“Here’s the Mage Tower’s investment promotional flyer you asked for.”
“Thanks, Martha.”
I’d asked her to obtain this investment information, and since it came directly from the Mage Tower, it was trustworthy.
Risky as it was, investing was the only way to earn enough independent funds quickly.
I’d need to visit the Mage Tower myself soon—but what should I do about Carlot?
As I quietly pondered, carefully placing my hard-earned money back into my pouch, Martha stared at me intently.
“Now that I think about it, young lady… you’ve been acting strange lately.”
“Huh?”
Oh no.
I’d assumed that since my past-life memories had merely resurfaced—and that past me was still me—there shouldn’t be anything odd. But apparently, I was wrong.
Martha, being my personal maid who’d always attended to me, might have noticed something.
Nervously, I braced myself for her next words.
“Could it be… young lady…?”
Why did her gaze feel so piercing?
Then, her eyes narrowed.
“You’ve matured, haven’t you?”
I instantly deflated.
Of course. Martha was still Martha, after all.
[This is the timeline separator]Right now, I faced two immediate problems.
First: the Duke Ferdia’s monthly “assignment” of spending 100,000 Larits.
Second: convincing Carlot Ferdia—the unluckiest, most unbeatable opponent imaginable—to go out with me.
The first task was relatively easy. I just needed to sweep through the Twanette District’s dressmakers and jewelers, just as I used to before regaining my past-life memories.
‘Though the guilt will be mine to bear.’
Since I still remembered Yoon Ga Eul trembling over even 10,000 won, I clearly wasn’t the same person I’d been before.
My sense of money had changed drastically.
‘I am Elodie. Elodie Ferdia, who enjoys luxury. A bastard of the Ferdia house—and 100,000 Larits? Pfft. Peanuts. I’ll spend it effortlessly…!’
I vigorously reaffirmed this self-hypnosis and adjusted my parasol.
Given my poor stamina, a parasol was essential in summer; too much sun might make me collapse.
Soon, my steps led me straight to the entrance of the family’s training grounds.
The clashing of metal and splattering of sand from morning drills echoed vividly.
The reason I’d come to the training grounds—an activity I’d never cared about—so early in the morning was simply this:
‘Carlot is usually here.’
I’d come to fetch my precious escort.
Several days had passed since I’d reached an agreement with Duke Ferdia about my escort, yet I hadn’t encountered Carlot even once.
I’d been holed up in the guest wing, diligently brewing antidotes to fulfill the Duchess’s additional request.
I’d expected Carlot to storm over in furious protest upon hearing he’d been assigned as my guard—but that never happened.
‘Or… could he not have heard at all?’
Either way, since Carlot hadn’t come looking for me, I had no choice but to seek him out myself.
‘I absolutely must go out today.’
Reaffirming my resolve, I stepped into the training grounds.
Clang! Clang!
The sharp clashing of weapons grew even clearer.
“Where is that bastard Carlot?”
I muttered under my breath, scanning the large training field. The knights were too engrossed in their drills to spare me a glance.
Just then—
“Eeek!”
A knight’s shriek drew everyone’s attention in the training grounds to me.
Among them was Carlot, who’d been enthusiastically swinging his sword.
I casually waved toward Carlot, whose eyes had gone wide with shock.
“Hello, Karl. Good morning.”
“What? Why are you here?”
Carlot approached, wiping sweat with a towel and frowning.
No point wasting time with pointless pleasantries—I went straight to the point.
“You heard from Father, right?”
“Heard what?”
“You’re my escort.”
I said just that—and grinned.
“…!”
Clang…
Carlot’s face flushed as he dropped his sword—the very weapon a knight should cherish as his life.
“S-so… Father wasn’t joking?”
He must have heard it from the Duke but chose to believe what he wanted to believe.
After all, I hadn’t come looking for him in the days since.
He probably worried for the first few days, then completely forgot about it.
But regardless of Carlot’s situation, I needed him.
“Yep. So I’m going out today—come with me, Karl. I’m in a hurry.”
“W-why me?”
“Fine. Then I’ll just tell Father. That’s okay, right?”
“Go ahead and tell him!”
Carlot snapped, his face flushed with anger as he shouted pointlessly.
If I’d reacted like my old self, I’d have yelled back and started a fight. That would’ve caused a commotion, and once the Duke heard about it, he’d blame everything on me and cancel the escort arrangement altogether—exactly what Carlot wanted.
So instead of engaging, I gave a crisp bow and turned around.
“Fine. Keep training hard.”
I strode confidently toward the Duke’s office, but Carlot quickly cut me off.
“Go ahead and tell him! I won’t let it go!”
He tried to sound intimidating with his low, threatening tone—but it didn’t scare me at all.
It was like an angry cat growling.
Regardless, with the head of house’s order in my favor, I held the upper hand.
I deliberately smiled brightly and looked up at Carlot.
“So… are we going out?”
“Y-yes! I’m going!”
He barked again, snatched up his fallen sword, and glared at me.
“Wait! I’ll go wash up and change clothes!”
Honestly, his temper…
“Hurry back.”
When I waved my hand again, Carlot huffed and stomped back into the building.
“See? Easy to handle, just as I said….”
Ugh, such a simpleton.
Choosing the dim-witted Carlot over Yansi was an exceedingly wise decision.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (59)
Poor Carlot, she’s been tricked. Where did she go? I hope she wasn’t kidnapped.
- What is this? Has the hero appeared? But how does he know her name from her previous life?
What if Yansi is worse than Karl? I hope he doesn’t try to get rid of Lily.
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Miioo
Hahaha, yes, yes, you made a great choice, Lily. Teach him a lesson; I like his responses; he’s completely transparent.