RMCOM 2

Chapter 2

Thud.

A heavy sack filled with chips dropped to the floor.

She’d nearly dislocated her shoulder carrying it all the way here, but it hadn’t felt difficult at all.

After all, those chips would soon be turned into money.

Cersinia’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“Exchange these for cash.”

“H-Huh?”

The male clerk sitting at the counter widened his eyes in shock.

Yeah, figures. You’ve probably never seen this many chips before.

Feeling smug, Cersinia shrugged her shoulders.

Just imagining what she’d do first with all that money made her giddy.

“Um, well…”

But something was off about the clerk’s reaction.

Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as his gaze wavered, flustered—almost as if he didn’t have the money to exchange them.

Why did it look like that?

Cersinia’s expression hardened instantly.

“I said, exchange them.”

“Th-That is, I mean…”

As the clerk avoided her eyes and hemmed and hawed, her eyebrow twitched.

This wasn’t the reaction she’d expected.

She’d imagined him swiftly converting the chips in the sack into cash without a fuss…

Something was wrong.

“I—I’m so sorry!”

The clerk sprang to his feet and bowed at a perfect ninety degrees.

He rose so abruptly that the chair he’d been sitting on clattered backward and toppled over.

“For what.”

“Well, the viscount said he’d secure the money soon, so he asked if you could give us a little more time—”

“Huh? What kind of nonsense is that. Do it now.”

After all the trouble she’d gone through to win this money—was this supposed to be an answer?

Cersinia ground her teeth.

She needed enough money to live quietly for the rest of her life.

That was why she’d recklessly gone all-in with everything she had…

And now, just when she was on the brink of turning her life around, things were falling apart like this?

Unacceptable.

If anything dared block her path, she wouldn’t forgive it.

Veins bulged over Cersinia’s clenched fist.

“J-Just a few days… No, just one week, please—”

Before the clerk could finish, Cersinia lifted her leg high and slammed it down onto the desk.

Crash!

With a dull, thunderous sound, the solid wooden desk split cleanly in two.

The clerk stared, mouth agape.

“If you don’t want to end up like that, bring the money. Now.”

Despite having shattered a thick desk with a single kick, Cersinia’s expression remained eerily calm.

She felt only a faint vibration in her heel—no pain to speak of.

Which made sense. Cersinia had always been unnaturally strong.

She could easily subdue several grown men.

Otherwise, she never would’ve survived committing every evil deed imaginable.

After all, Cersinia was destined to die by the crown prince’s hand in the end.

A damnable author’s setting.

On the very first day after transmigrating—forgetting all about that setting—she’d smashed a table clean in half.

She’d only meant to set a cup down, but misjudged her strength and split both cup and table apart.

Since then, she’d learned how to regulate her power.

Not that she felt any need to restrain herself right now.

“P-Please! It’s such a huge amount of money—he said he needs time!”

The clerk quickly assessed the situation and dropped to his knees.

He begged desperately, rubbing his hands until they were warm.

Cersinia looked down at him with languid eyes, a faint killing intent flickering at their edges.

No cash flow in a gambling house?

Ridiculous.

She wanted nothing more than to burn every obstacle in her way to ashes.

But for the sake of a quiet, uneventful life, magic was off-limits—so she forcibly reined herself in.

Still… a little taste should be fine.

Just enough to scare him.

If he understood what kind of power she wielded, he’d never even think of cheating her.

Cersinia slowly inhaled.

Heat gathered at her fingertips.

It spread rapidly through her body.

As warmth flooded her from head to toe, her long red hair—previously lying still—began to sway as if stirred by a breeze.

In a room without the slightest draft.

The clerk’s face drained of all color.

You’ve probably never seen this before. Honestly, neither have I.

Using her full power wasn’t nearly as pleasant as she’d imagined.

It was nothing like lighting a gentle flame to cook food.

Planning to stop at intimidation, Cersinia extended her right hand.

“C-Collateral! I’ll give you collateral!”

Trembling in terror, the clerk suddenly shouted as if something had just occurred to him.

He yelled so loudly her ears rang.

With a displeased look, she lowered her hand.

If this was nonsense, she’d make him suffer twice as much.

The heat gathered at her fingertips began to dissipate.

“Collateral?”

“Yes! Over there—”

Following the direction of the clerk’s outstretched finger, Cersinia turned her head.

In the far corner of the exchange room, pressed against the wall, sat a young boy curled up tightly.

His hands and feet were bound securely with rope.

“…You’ve got to be kidding.”

She glared daggers at the clerk, utterly irritated.

“Are you joking? Since when is a person collateral?”

“He’s a slave the viscount bought recently!”

At that inhumane word, Cersinia’s face twisted further.

That settled it.

They were clearly trying to take her for a fool.

She had one more reason to teach him a lesson.

Cersinia focused again, trying to summon heat—

“He’s really expensive! That slave, I mean!”

Her concentration shattered instantly.

Along with her restraint.

“So you had money to buy a slave, but not to exchange my chips?”

“Ghk—!”

Realizing too late that he’d misspoken, the clerk clamped his mouth shut.

Her insides churned violently.

If she didn’t cool down right now, she might actually turn this place into an inferno.

Suppressing the tremor in her fingers, Cersinia sought another outlet for her anger.

Crash!

She grabbed a porcelain vase nearby and hurled it.

It struck the wall and shattered into pieces.

“Aaah!”

The clerk fell backward in a ridiculous sprawl.

Still not satisfied, she picked up a nearby chair and threw that too.

The chair hit the ground, its legs snapping uselessly.

Still not enough.

The unspent heat made it feel as though steam might burst from her head.

Cersinia huffed and puffed, shoulders heaving like an enraged bull.

“P-Please… If you take the collateral and wait, I swear the viscount will find the money somehow…”

The man whimpered, shaking uncontrollably.

“Hoo…”

A hot breath escaped with her sigh.

Cersinia roughly swept her loose bangs back.

No amount of venting at the clerk would produce money.

Forcing herself to think rationally, she calmed her mind.

Should I really take the collateral, then?

She glanced sideways at the child.

Perhaps terrified, the frail body was trembling.

“Please… save me…”

The pitiful, shaking voice reached her ears.

Her gaze naturally lingered on the boy.

He wore rags that could barely be called clothing.

Long, dark scars marred his limbs—some old and discolored, others fresh, still capped with dried blood.

This is horrific.

Her brow furrowed.

The boy’s emaciated body, little more than bones, had no uninjured place left to mark.

As the noisy room fell silent, the child cautiously lifted his head to assess the situation.

Cersinia stared intently at his face.

Through his unkempt hair, she glimpsed eyes of a dark violet hue.

How long would someone have to starve to end up like this…?

She bit her lip.

His sunken cheeks made his appearance unbearably pitiful.

Cracked lips were stained with dried blood, and his body—devoid of muscle or fat—looked as though skin barely clung to bone.

If she turned away after seeing this, her conscience would never let her rest.

Leaving him here would guarantee a sleepless night.

Had she never seen him, that would be one thing—but erasing this from memory was impossible.

“Ah, seriously…”

With no other choice, Cersinia approached the child.

Part of it was concern—but per the clerk’s words, she was also taking him as collateral.

She needed that money.

And she had to secure some means of getting it, one way or another.

Each step she took made the child recoil in fear.

With nowhere left to go, he pressed himself against the wall as if trying to burrow into it.

It didn’t feel good—being treated like a monster.

But given the number of wounds he bore, she decided to understand and let it go.

“Hey. Untie him.”

She ordered the clerk, who’d been standing there in a daze.

The clerk hurried over.

The ropes binding the child’s hands and feet fell to the floor with a soft thud.

“Let’s go.”

Cersinia held out her hand.

The boy stared at it blankly, then slowly lifted his head to look at her.

His eyes trembled minutely.

What he was thinking was written all over his face.

Stay here—or follow her.

Cersinia waited in silence.

She wanted him to decide for himself.

Several times, he hesitated, glancing back and forth between her face and her outstretched hand.

Ordinarily, Cersinia would’ve exploded with impatience by now.

But she was capable of enduring this much waiting.

Of course, the original Cersinia would never have bothered with something this tedious.

The boy swallowed dryly as he met her flame-red eyes.

His ice-cold body felt as though it were melting under that scorching gaze.

He couldn’t refuse it.

Captivated by the intense eyes that seemed to set even his heart ablaze, the boy slowly raised his hand without realizing it.

The moment his icy-cold hand rested atop Cersinia’s warm one—

“I’m taking you as collateral, just like you said. Tell the viscount this: if he doesn’t exchange my money in a week, I’ll tear everything down.”

The clerk nodded repeatedly, answering without words.

That should be enough for him to understand.

Holding the boy’s hand, Cersinia picked up the sack of chips and left the private room.

This was the first meeting between her and Ben.