Chapter 2.7

“Hey, Baron!”  

Flory stomped over and grabbed Rowen’s arm, halting his escort of Ariana. Rowen, interrupted mid-step, turned to Flory with a cold gaze.  

The icy look he gave her was entirely different from the respectful demeanor he had shown Ariana, causing Flory’s shoulders to flinch involuntarily. But her hesitation lasted only a moment. This was Earl Astaroth’s mansion, and her brother was the Earl. Flory felt free to act like an entitled noblewoman.  

“We were having a conversation! How dare you ignore me and just leave like that?”  

“A conversation?”  

Rowen frowned and tilted his head in apparent confusion.  

“Barging in uninvited and rambling on endlessly—that’s what you call a conversation? Out of respect for Lady Astaroth’s dignity, I tried to tolerate a maid’s rudeness. But this is too much to overlook.”  

“A maid?”  

Flory let out a disbelieving laugh.  

“Who are you calling a maid? I’m the Earl’s sister!”  

“The Earl’s sister?”  

Rowen repeated her words as though he hadn’t expected them. Flory placed her hands on her hips and raised her chin defiantly.  

“That’s right! How dare you mistake me for a maid? Apologize immediately!”  

“Oh, my apologies. You were so lacking in refinement that I naturally assumed you were a maid.”  

Though he said he was apologizing, his tone and attitude were far from apologetic.  

“Is that what you call an apology?”  

“Yes. Didn’t I just say I was apologizing? If this isn’t an apology, I’m not sure what is.”  

It was evident to anyone that this wasn’t an apology, but Rowen remained unapologetically confident. His expression mirrored Flory’s when she had boldly demanded an apology while lifting her chin.  

“Ha!”  

Flory, shrewd as ever, quickly realized that Rowen was mocking her outright.  

“If my brother hears about this insult, he won’t let it slide! Can you handle the consequences?”  

As always, Flory invoked her brother.  

Her brother was the Earl. While the man before her was also a noble, he was “just” a Baron from a small Principality. To Flory, who understood noble ranks only in terms of the hierarchy of “Duke-Marquis-Earl-Viscount-Baron,” this seemed like an established order. Thus, she concluded that her brother, as an Earl, outranked this Baron.  

This faulty reasoning gave Flory the confidence to act boldly in front of Rowen, assuming he would cower before the Earl’s authority and bow to her.  

But Rowen neither cowered nor bowed. To outmatch an audacious person, one had to be even more audacious.  

“An insult, you say? I merely pointed out a lack of refinement. Are facts considered insults now?”  

The staff at the Earl’s mansion usually complied when Flory threatened to “tell my brother.” She had no contingency plan for situations where the other party didn’t yield to the Earl’s authority. Cornered, Flory’s eyes darted around nervously before she clenched her skirt and shouted at the top of her lungs.  

“This is outrageous! I’m so appalled I can’t even deal with you right now!”  

With no other option, Flory chose to flee. Rowen clicked his tongue at her retreating figure.  

“What a bothersome nuisance. How have you tolerated her all this time?”  

“I haven’t tolerated her. I’ve respected her.”  

“Respected her? That?”  

“Until recently, ‘that’ wasn’t just ‘that.’ She was the sister of my husband, who generously paid off my family’s debts.”  

But now, she was merely the sister of a “contract-breaking scoundrel” who shamelessly flaunted his affair.  

“She’s probably running off to my husband as we speak. Things will get annoying if we stay here, so let’s leave quickly.”  

Ariana shifted her gaze from Flory’s increasingly distant figure and extended her hand to Rowen.  

“You said you’d escort me, didn’t you? There’s somewhere I need to stop by before the auction, so let’s hurry.”  

***

The Imperial Central Bank. Rowen glanced at the plaque at the building’s entrance and asked Ariana.  

“The bank? Don’t tell me you’re here to withdraw cash for the statue.”  

“Of course not. The payment for the statue can be made by check.”  

Ariana narrowed her eyes at Rowen.  

“What? Do you think a noblewoman wouldn’t know something as basic as that?”  

Her sharp gaze seemed to ask whether he thought she was foolish. Rowen raised his hands slightly in mock surrender, looking falsely aggrieved.  

“I just thought paying the auction price in cash all at once would make a strong impression in front of everyone. Isn’t making an impact at this auction part of the plan?”  

“That’s an interesting theory. Unfortunately, flaunting cash isn’t part of my plan.”  

“Then… what exactly are you planning to do?”  

“You’ll find out soon enough. For now, wait here. I’ll meet with the bank manager and be right back.”  

Ariana entered the bank, leaving Rowen outside. Her unexpected visit caused quite a stir among the staff. Clients as prestigious as the Astaroth family typically summoned bank employees to their residence for financial matters. Even during the family’s period of instability, Earl Astaroth’s household remained a VIP client of the Imperial Central Bank.  

“Lady Astaroth! What brings you here in person? If you had informed us, we would have sent someone to your mansion.”  

“I stopped by on my way out. I had some business to take care of.”  

“I see. Please, come inside so we can discuss matters comfortably.”  

The bank manager escorted Ariana to a VIP room behind the counters. Once seated, tea and refreshments tailored to her preferences were promptly served. Ariana took a sip of tea and requested the financial transaction records for the Astaroth family’s accounts over the past year.  

While she couldn’t access her husband’s private accounts, the family’s official accounts were easily reviewable. The records she received were appalling.  

‘Is this my account or that scoundrel’s family account?’  

Although it was supposed to be the Astaroth family’s financial records, the names “Madame Green” and “Flory Green” appeared repeatedly. The records showed checks issued from the Astaroth family’s accounts.  

Using checks was straightforward: one tore a check from the booklet provided by the bank, wrote the amount, and signed it. Merchants would then present the check at the bank to receive the payment from the linked account. Thus, transaction records clearly showed who had used the checks, when, and for how much.  

By principle, only the account holder’s signature was valid. However, her husband had authorized Madame Green and Flory to use checks under the Astaroth family’s name. He claimed it was his obligation to support his relatives, as he had inherited the wealth of the affluent Palvin family.  

Ariana understood this logic all too well, as she herself had been forced to accept a husband due to inheritance laws that only allowed men to become heirs. Madame Green and Flory’s situation didn’t feel entirely foreign to her.  

In the early days of her marriage, Ariana had tried to respect her husband’s opinions, including his claim that his mother and sister deserved access to the Astaroth family’s checks. As a result, Madame Green and Flory freely spent money under the Astaroth name, indulging in luxury.  

Their extravagant spending often left the mansion’s operational budget short. Ariana had accounted for this by requesting additional funds under a contingency category for the household budget, specifically to cover their expenses. However, her husband had no idea how much his mother and sister were actually spending.  

Before Rowen became the Earl, Madame Green and Flory’s consumption was modest, similar to that of wealthy commoners. Rowen assumed their spending habits remained the same. He was oblivious to the fact that they were now buying every luxury they could, claiming, ‘We’re nobles now!’ Instead, he believed Ariana was overspending and blaming it on his family.  

‘They’ve been having a great time, haven’t they?’  

As Ariana reviewed the transaction records, she scoffed. 5.4 million, 50 million, 12 million. None of the amounts were below 5 million. 5 million was far more than the average worker’s monthly salary.

“Please ensure that only my signature is valid for checks linked to this account.”  

“Then, what about the Earl’s signature…?”  

“My husband doesn’t manage the family’s affairs, so only my signature needs to be valid. He has his own separate account anyway.”  

If this were a typical noble couple, the bank manager might not have believed the wife’s words. But this was Earl Astaroth’s household, which had taken in a commoner as a husband. In a household where a commoner was playing the role of an Earl, it wasn’t unusual for all authority to rest with the Countess, who was the de facto head of the family. This was the convenience of Ariana’s birthright.  

Until now, Ariana had never wielded her inherent authority in front of her husband—not because she didn’t know how, but because she had no desire to. One day, Rowen Astaroth—or rather, Rowen Green—would come to understand this.  

The bank manager handed Ariana a document.  

“If you could put your request in writing, we’ll process it accordingly.”  

Leaving written evidence of the Countess’s request would protect the bank manager from any future complications. Ariana did not object and carefully wrote, “I request that only the signature of Ariana Astaroth be valid for checks linked to the Astaroth family’s account.” She added the date and her elegant signature at the bottom, completing the document swiftly.  

With this, checks signed by Madame Green and Flory would become worthless pieces of paper. Of course, the two would remain unaware and continue using the checks freely.  

‘Eventually, merchants trying to collect payment will realize the checks are invalid and storm off to find the Earl.’  

Only then would her husband clearly see the extent of his mother’s and sister’s extravagance—alongside the mountain of bills they had accumulated.