The Heroines Are After My Fortune

10 – b*tch vs. Psycho – 1 (Revised)

There’s a famous saying, ‘If money can’t solve the problem, maybe you just don’t have enough of it.’ Is that really true?

“I’m very sorry, but the additional admissions for new students closed a long time ago…”

The entrance ceremony is just around the corner. Not only are the formal entrance exams finished, but the additional admissions for those from difficult circumstances or with noble recommendations are also closed. You might think bringing in this father-daughter pair with the promise of getting Sasha into the Academy was going to be a problem, but I was relaxed.

“That’s unfortunate. If additional admissions were still open, I was planning to donate a considerable sum in scholarships under the name of the Roen Merchant Guild to help students from underprivileged backgrounds, but I suppose I’ll have to look at academies in other cities.”

“N-No, w-wait…!? Did you say the Roen Merchant Guild…? Please wait one moment. I will bring the Chairman right away…!!”

The faculty member put the receiver down and rushed somewhere. It seems there were orders to bring any matter of large donations or investments to the highest authority instead of making decisions on their own. Soon, a deep-voiced old man answered the phone.

“Oh my, a pleasure to speak with you. I hear you’re with the Roen Merchant Guild, and might you be Baron Aiden Roen, the elder brother of the young lady, Elena Roen, who is starting this year?”

“Yes, that’s correct. I was told that additional admissions were closed, is that the truth?”

“Oh, nonsense, it couldn’t be. It seems the faculty member made a mistake. I will have a word with them. We were in the middle of considering a special intake for students as part of our social contribution this year.”

Now we’re getting somewhere. ‘Considering’ means it depends on the amount I’m offering. The Chairman asked, his voice trembling.

“Just, um, how much are you planning for the scholarship support…?”

“Well, for now, I was thinking of something light, around 10,000 gold.”

“H-hurk…!!”

The Chairman gasped for breath at the amount. To make it easy to understand, that’s around 10 billion Won, in Korean money. He was so shocked by the figure he couldn’t speak for a while. And when I said “lightly, for now”, it must have sounded like I could offer more if they’re good.

“…Baron Aiden Roen’s shining decision will, I am sure, be a ray of light for students in unfortunate circumstances.”

‘If money can’t solve the problem, maybe you just don’t have enough of it,’ that saying.

Yeah, yeah, incredibly, it’s true.

######

Inside the car heading to the Academy, Sasha, now officially a new student, had her first meeting with Elena.

“Hello, I’m Sasha! Nice to meet you.”

“It’s nice to meet you too! I’m Elena, and Roen…!”

Having lived her whole life as a commoner, Elena seemed a bit awkward with her newly acquired surname, still not quite used to it. Elena, who had never had a friend her age, quickly became close with Sasha, who was in the same boat. Officially, within the school grounds, Sasha was ‘a retainer assigned by the Roen family’, so she had to treat Elena with utmost respect, calling her ‘Lady Elena’, but when they were alone they decided to speak casually with each other.

‘But, wasn’t her father, Caesar, of noble birth from the start, and her mother a marquis’s daughter…?’

In front of others, Sasha, with her pure noble lineage, had to serve Elena, a commoner by blood. What an irony. Anyway, amidst the two girls’ chatter, we arrived at the Imperial Academy.

“Wow, so this is it…!”

The extravagant buildings and the beautifully arranged gardens of the Academy captivated the two girls at once. Even I, who lived in the Roen mansion which could rival any imperial family in terms of luxury, and thought myself used to this kind of scenery, was overwhelmed. If the genre of the novel I transmigrated into wasn’t grim romance, I might have gone to the academy myself and lived happily.

‘…No time for childish games at the academy.’

Elena had to go to the Academy to find a husband who could protect her for life, but not me. If I idly went to the academy as well, either Elena or I would end up caught in the explosive events of the original story, and could die at any moment.

However, I needed to enter the Academy from time to time for my plans. So, having just broken the record for highest donor ranking, I got a VVIP pass that allowed me to enter the Academy at any time. Sasha’s admission was a side benefit; getting this was my main goal.

“This way, I suppose.”

After sending the two in for the entrance ceremony, I sat in the seats for outsiders and watched. Even though it was a medieval-themed academy, the procedure wasn’t that different. The new student representative made a vow, the headmaster gave a speech, etc… Some of it was rather similar to the modern-day, which felt a bit out of place.

Whirr!

[New students, welcome. Our Imperial Vesta Academy, with its history and tradition, is the cradle of talent that will support the Empire……]

It was a welcome ‘video’ no less. They were projecting the video on a makeshift screen through a magic crystal projector. Despite being in black and white due to technological limitations, many students stared intently, amazed by it. Of course, I wasn’t that amazed. I just let out a long yawn.

‘So convenience-focused, this damned magic engineering…’

The emperor calls nobles on the phone when he has something urgent to say, there are flush toilets in every noble’s home, and they even have cameras, albeit in black and white. At this rate, they might even build airplanes later on.

‘Come to think of it, there was a movie theater, too?’

It seemed like the author wanted to include a scene of Elena going on a movie date, so they made a movie theater claiming ‘it’s magic engineering, anyway’. Of course, it was newly introduced, so the movies were only about 1930’s quality, which was even better. Having lived in the modern age and being a film major, how many areas of improvement could I see?

‘Maybe I should get into the film business as a hobby, like a chaebol. Buy up some theaters, and put my own movies up there.’

“Investments? What need is there for such nonsense.

I can just film it with my own coin.”

My mind started churning, quite seriously.

To craft masterpieces using techniques I learned in the modern world, achieve self-actualization, and then hit it big with the theater business – a double win, wouldn’t it be? Just as I was thinking I should have a word with the brass back home, the entrance ceremony ended.

“With that, the entrance ceremony is concluded.”

The headmaster’s declaration was met with a thunderous applause, marking the end of the academy’s induction. I clapped politely and then got up to join Elena, who was leaving to go to the next event.

“It’s a shame Sasha couldn’t come…”

“It’s a banquet only for nobles and influential people, there’s nothing to be done. I’m alright!”

Elena was quite attached, it seemed. After directing the driver to take Sasha home, the two of us entered the most luxurious building in the academy.

The place we were headed was the ‘Entrance Celebration Banquet,’ a gathering for the newly arrived students and their families to mingle. This was still a noble society, so there were rules. Those with lower titles were supposed to enter first. But I wasn’t a simple Baron; I was a Baron of ‘coin power,’ after all. As the owner of the empire’s largest trading guild, I could swagger in late and no one could say a thing to my face. Still, there was no need to give a bad impression to a bunch of random folks, so I decided to go early, as befitting a ‘mere Baron’.

Facing our first social debut, Elena and I were helped into our prepared attire by our servants. Elena, however, seemed to be having a rough time of it.

“Oppa, I can’t breathe…!”

“…Sorry, nothing I could do about that.”

Her face had gone white, seemingly from the discomfort of the corset. It wasn’t that I *wanted* to put her in something so bothersome, but…

‘My lord, even if the earth goes in my eye, I cannot budge on this…!’

‘It’s as good as fact that no noble young lady would avoid tightening her corset these days! Are you thinking of turning Lady Elena into a laughing stock…!’

The tailors had insisted they would never concede on this, so I’d had no choice but to give in. Elena’s dress was a simple, achromatic one under my orders. No fancy floral patterns or embroidery, nothing of the sort. I wanted to save the more flamboyant designs for later, but the unassuming simplicity also highlighted her beauty even more. The corset she was trying to wiggle out of, seeing it now, did have a noticeable effect on accentuating her waistline.

Elena took several deep breaths, seemingly getting somewhat accustomed, then, upon seeing me, she covered her mouth with both hands in awe.

“Oppa, you look incredibly handsome today…!”

“It’s lip service, I know, but thanks, Elena.”

“No, really, it’s—”

‘I threw a fortune at this, it better be worth it.’

Truth is, women’s clothing in this era is far more detailed, hence the price tag is significantly higher. But, this time I had a bespoke suit made by a master craftsman, one who only takes on around ten clients a year. My face isn’t anything special compared to my physique, so I have to do things like this to make up for it. Dressed and ready, Elena and I linked arms and joined the line waiting to enter.

“Baron Aiden Roen, confirmed.”

Standing before the red curtains at the party entrance, on the cusp of my social debut, I swallowed hard.

Considering the nature of this gathering, it’d be a rather plain crowd. Nothing much would happen. That was certain, yet…

‘…Why am I so uneasy?’

I didn’t know it then.

Those two women I’d meet today, they’d give me a massive headache for a very long time.