Volume 9 Chapter 3 The Season Of Schemes – Part III
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”O-okay, okay. Five hundred large gold coins, you say… Ah, all right~ I accept your challenge. I hope you’ll treat me well, Lord Aldo?”
”Yeah, sure. I’m busy too. I prefer to settle these things quickly.”
”Then, please sign here on this document.”
A document detailing the rules of their wager was placed before them.
Without even checking the contents, they both finished signing.
Hehehe, now the assets of Aldo and Kent will be mine~ With these assets, I’ll show you how I rise to the top.
And so, we began a high-stakes poker game where the winner takes all, wagering our own assets.
* * *
*Aldo’s Perspective
I seem to have gravely misunderstood this Lucy Blackberry.
I had absolute confidence in gambling, but now, facing the reality before me, I feel sick to my stomach.
She’s been increasing her assets by playing poker with nobles set for exile, and gathering the nobles dissatisfied with the capital into Lord Gilbert’s camp.
I visited her manor to contain her, but it seems I fell into her trap instead.
”Once again, it’s my win~ Your losses have now exceeded 15 hundred large gold coins, Lord Aldo. What will you do? Will you give up? Or perhaps you’d like to have Tifa undress for you?”
Lucy taunted me, shifting her gaze towards Tifa.
I had already lost 3 times; my entire fortune had vanished.
”No way. If I give up, I can’t get it back…”
”Then, would you like Tifa to undress? I can be flexible with another thousand large gold coins if it’s Tifa’s strip tease. How about it?”
Lucy’s words pushed my thoughts into a corner.
Already burdened with a staggering debt of 5 hundred large gold coins, my usually sharp mind was now completely rusted, unable to think of anything.
”Sir Aldo. If it’s me, I’ll undress, so please don’t give up! The Sir Aldo I know wouldn’t utter such weakness here.”
Until now, Tifa had been silent, but she finally spoke up, her words giving me the push I needed.
”Yeah… You’re right. It’s not like me to just give up here. I’m sorry, Tifa. I’m gonna rely on you now. Lady Lucy, I’ll put Tifa up as collateral. Lend me another thousand large gold coins.”
As Lucy listened to my offer, her face seemed to fill with an evil grin.
”Very well~. Then, Tifa, please stand beside me and remove your clothes.”
”Yes.”
Tifa stood up and stood next to Lucy, stripping down to her underwear.
She trembled with embarrassment, her body shaking.
Lucy didn’t hold back, adding to Tifa’s discomfort.
”Tifa, I won’t accept the debt unless you’re completely n*ked.”
Lucy held a feather fan in her hand, which she now poked at Tifa’s underwear, demanding she take it off.
Tifa’s face was on the verge of tears as she removed her bra and panties, standing there n*ked.
”S-sorry, Tifa. I’ll get it back right away!”
Lucy, looking at Tifa’s n*ked body, began to tease her nipples with the feather fan.
”You have such beautiful nipples~. Are they usually so…perky? And your pubic hair…”
”Ahh, Lady Lucy, please stop teasing me!”
Tifa tried to convey her refusal to Lucy.
But Lucy’s expression changed, and she twisted Tifa’s nipple.
”Ugh!”
”You are already my slave~, as collateral for the debt. I’d prefer you not talk back~. Isn’t that right~, Lord Aldo?”
Lucy looked at me with a triumphant smirk.
”Guh… Yeah, you’re right. Sorry, Tifa. Just bear with it and close your eyes.”
This is bad… I’ve reached my limit… I guess I have no choice but to play my trump card…
Seeing Tifa in this situation, I decided to use my last resort.
Kent might not like this, but I brought him along for this very reason.
Poplar and the old man might scold me later, but this was the only way to save Tifa from the mess my poor judgment had gotten her into.
”Lady Lucy, I must apologize, but it seems you’ve pushed me into a corner. I never wanted to resort to this method, but you have to vanish from the public eye. Rest assured, Kent will make you happy, so please don’t hold any resentment toward me. There are still things I need to take care of.”
Lucy’s expression shifted, her face radiating confusion at my words.
”I’m sorry, Kent. It’s all for Tifa.”
”Huh!?”
I removed Kent’s glasses and fixed my gaze on Lucy.
A heavy silence enveloped us for a moment.
It was Lucy’s laughter that shattered the quiet.
”Ahahaha! What has caused such turmoil in you, esteemed Chancellor Aldo? Is there some significance to removing Lord Kent’s spectacles?”
Lucy laughed heartily, her hand placed over her mouth.
She seemed to believe that my actions were the result of financial distress.
This… is absurd.
Why on earth isn’t Kent stepping in?
In a flurry, I turned to Ms. Miriallia and Ms. Lila.
Both were looking at me with awkward expressions.
Ms. Miriallia had even clasped her hands together in apology.
N-no way!
Had they prepared a decoy for this meeting?
No wonder Ms. Miriallia allowed Kent to run rampant──if it was a substitute, it all made sense now.
”N-no, I apologize, Lady Lucy. It seems I’ve become rather flustered. I will withdraw now. Please forgive me, but Tifa’s debts are off the table. I’ll borrow the missing 5 hundred large gold coins from Kent.”
”Oh? You’re giving up so easily? Perhaps Chancellor Aldo is not as grand as he seems. Tifa, you’ve got nothing to worry about now, have you? You can put your clothes back on.”
Tifa hurriedly donned her scattered clothes and rushed to my side.
”Sir Aldo… are you truly going to withdraw? I only need you, but won’t the Dracul family be ruined?”
”Heh, heh, heh, Kent really is interesting. He’s planning to use my invitation to snag himself a beautiful girl. He might just be a better schemer than me… No worries. Kent will pull through somehow. Though, I suppose I’ll have to give him something in return.”
I had always thought of Kent as a mere lecherous nobody, but this incident has made me vow to rewrite my image of him.
* * *
*Lucy’s Perspective
Aldo couldn’t resist the temptation to borrow money from me and had backed down, turning to Kent for a loan instead.
As I thought, Aldo is only so much.
He doesn’t seem like the kind of man who could handle the grand role of Kingdom Chancellor.
”What will you do, Chancellor Aldo, now that you’ve backed down? Will you be leaving?”
”Ah, I’ll take my leave… Kent, if you lose, take care of the debt together. I’ll pay if you bring me that paperwork. But only if Kent loses, of course.”
Aldo spat out some last words of regret and left the room.
Gilbert had told me to stop Aldo, but I thought that even letting such a man go wouldn’t hinder the success of this coup.
”Now then, Sir Kent, shall we continue our game? Would you be alright with raising the stakes to 2 thousand large gold coins?”
”Ahh! I’ll take you on. I’ll do my best for Aldo’s share too!”
The game progressed calmly, and thanks to my consecutive victories, my winnings had already surpassed the total assets of the Blackdagger household, which was 30 thousand large gold coins.
”Well then, there’s only Lady Miriallia and Lady Lila left to bet.”
Kent’s expression, which had been unchanging until now, flickered slightly.
”Kent… it’s alright if you bet me, you know.”
”Mr. Kent, don’t worry about it.”
They both seemed ready, quickly stripping off their clothes to stand n*ked before us.
Even as a woman of the same race, known as the beauty race, their n*ked forms were truly exquisite to behold.
”You’re both so beautiful. To have the Dream Demon’s Black Dagger and the legendary bureaucrat as my slaves… I am honored~.”
I was uncharacteristically excited, feeling as though I was just a breath away from having the illustrious Lila and her daughter, Miriallia, serve as my slaves.
But just as my excitement was building, a knock echoed against the door.
”Who? I’m busy right now, you know! No guests allowed!”
Ignoring my words, the door swung open, revealing a man accompanied by women of the Ogre race, who looked like bodyguards.
His face was eerily identical to that of Kent, right in front of me.
”Hold that thought! Sorry, but I’m taking this one.”
”Kent!?”
Miriallia gasped, her voice loud with surprise at the intruder.
The newcomer addressed the seated Kent directly.
”Miriel. Have Milly release the magic. There’s no need to pretend anymore. Isn’t it unfair for Milly and mother-in-law to leave me behind while you have all the fun?”
He chuckled at the sight of the two women in the room, who were completely nude.
That smile radiated a sense of dread to anyone who laid eyes on it.
”N-no! It’s not like that! I only got a stand-in for Kent’s sake! I was worried about you!”
”I know that, but isn’t it a bit cruel to put me to sleep with magic right after leaving Aldo’s mansion? Thanks to you, I woke up in the royal villa’s bed.”
As I listened to their conversation, it became clear that the Kent I had been competing with was actually this intruder──the real Kent Blackdagger.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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