The Heroines Are After My Fortune

23 – An Overwhelming Debut – 1

“Each department, you must stand by quickly…!”

“Props team is ready!”

The scene turned with sharp precision.

It was the rehearsal on the very day of the 「Salome」 play.

This production would have a total of six performances over three days. As the beginning was crucial, everyone was bustling about, and Renée, too, was watching from the front lines, participating as a proper member.

“Stephan, your movement in Act 2 was a little different than usual.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“Director. When the actor carries in the silver platter, wouldn’t it be better to show the flat side to the audience rather than the side? It’s hard to distinguish from any angle.”

“I missed that. I almost went past without noticing, so thank you very much for pointing it out.”

Aiden hadn’t precisely assigned any tasks to her, but Renée went about picking up on things that even the director and other staff had missed, pointing them out. The cast involved in the play were simply amazed by her proactive behavior.

“I never thought at the first reading of this play that Miss Renée would participate so enthusiastically. She has the movements memorized perfectly. Thanks to her, we caught so many mistakes.”

“Didn’t he buy those fancy snack sets for the actors last time? If only my daughter could be half as good as Miss Renee….”

Renee’s image was pretty good.

At first, there was definitely a wall, but at some point, she started acting like she didn’t care about status. The more the stories about Renee grew positive, the more stories about Aiden followed.

“You two, you’re always locked in the conference room for ages, right? Could it be….”

“Could it be what? From what I hear, they’re meeting every day to figure out how to make the play better. Both of them are incredibly busy.”

The relationship between Aiden, the financial backer of this play, and Renee was a big topic among the cast, but opinions were sharply divided. Still, everyone agreed on one thing: there was definitely something subtle going on between them.

####

Clap clap clap————————!!!

The first performance ended without a hitch.

With a proven original work like Oscar Wilde’s *Salome* and a whole bunch of famous actors, there was no way it could be bad. Standing in the aisle, I overheard the departing audience members’ reactions; the response was very positive.

“That ending was like being hit hard in the head with a hammer. A string of intensely unforgettable scenes.”

“I’m planning to see it again tomorrow. It’s definitely worth spending money if you can see acting like that.”

It was all praise, praise, praise.

But things couldn’t be good all the time. I spotted a few people in the audience who seemed extremely uncomfortable.

‘Of course, the clergy from the Vatican, they look like they’re about to die from discomfort.’

Well, who’s a clergy member going to like a story where the king, tricked by the main character, beheads a saint blessed by god and hands it over to the main character? I quickly took the initiative, sensing that the uninvited guests I expected were about to show up.

“If the clergy comes, tell them I’m not here. No matter what they demand, just say, ‘Baron Aiden has authority over that, and there’s nothing you can do about it.'”

“Do you think that will really work?”

“No, they’ll be livid. Then tell them that we can talk after the evening performance. We have to get through tonight’s show at all costs.”

“…Understood for now.”

I spun a yarn for the director, and slipped out of the theater. After a long, aimless walk, I found myself in a shadowy alleyway. And there, I met Mary, the actress cast as the lead in the play, “Salome.”

“You’ve arrived, Baron.”

“Yes, Miss Mary. Impressive performance. You have a promising future.”

“…Thank you.”

The reason Mary and I met here separately. It was because she would soon suffer an unfortunate accident, and from the second performance onward, Rene would be filling in as Salome.

Of course, it was all agreed upon with Mary.

From the start, more than skill, the most important thing for the lead role was a difficult financial situation. Someone for whom money was more pressing than their pride as an actor. Having searched for someone like that, Mary, standing right in front of me, was the talent I’d found. She agreed to take part in this affair in exchange for a large compensation and a role in my next film.

“I swear on my honor, I will keep my promise. I’ll visit you in the hospital later, so please focus on your recovery.”

“……Yes, I leave it in your hands.”

She would need to be bedridden for at least a week.

No matter what means I used, her recovery would be impossible in such a short time.

“…Make it as painless as possible, Caesar.”

“I will.”

Without looking back, I left the alley.

#####

“This is outrageous. Miss Mary was in a traffic accident…!?”

“Unbelievable…!!”

The entire cast was thrown into chaos by the news that Mary, who’d gone out briefly to buy a drink, had been in a traffic accident and rushed to the clinic. This was a major setback for a production that had gotten off to a record-breaking start. And this wasn’t the only misfortune that had struck.

“Baron Aiden, we’ve done as you instructed, but….”

“Is there some sort of problem?”

“If you insist on pushing forward with this performance, the cast of this play may find themselves on the Vatican’s blacklist.”

““…………………!!””

*’So, that’s how they’re going to play it.’*

Being on the Vatican’s blacklist meant being denied blessings and healing services from priests throughout the Empire. It was a measure rarely invoked, only for the gravest offenses against the Church, and its mention threw the already chaotic situation into further disarray.

It could be a bluff, but the possibility that high-ranking clerics were pulling strings, finding our play offensive, couldn’t be ignored. In this suffocating gloom, the unspoken thought was echoing in everyone’s minds.

The dreaded words: ‘performance cancellation.’

“Everyone.”

““…………………?””

All eyes turned to Renée.

With her noble background, she was essentially the face of this production, and next to me, the most influential voice in the room.

“I imagine you’re all quite shaken. Mary, our lead actress, is unable to perform, and now the clerics are applying pressure on top of that. It’d be stranger if we *weren’t* falling apart, wouldn’t it?”

“………….”

“But, even when giving up, let’s look for solutions first. We worked too hard to just let it go, didn’t we?”

“Ugh…! We’d be lying if we said we weren’t heartbroken… but the situation we’re in now…it’s just so hopeless…!”

Despite her persuasion, some of the actors were on the verge of despair, tears streaming down their faces. That was a testament to the passion and dedication they’d poured into this.

“I’ll find a way to handle the Vatican’s pressure. I can use my family’s influence to shield you from harm.”

“Oh, if it’s the Este Marchioness, then for sure–!”

“To go this far for our sake… Thank you, Lady Renée…!!”

I could practically hear her already good reputation soaring even higher. But the biggest problem still loomed.

“However, filling the lead actress’s absence won’t be easy. Does anyone have a bright idea?”

“……………….”

“……………….”

Silence pressed down on them all.

No matter how hard they tried to cling to hope, this was something they couldn’t wiggle out of.

If this performance had been a famous play within the Empire, maybe there’d have been a chance. If it had been performed many times, there would have been a good number of actors with experience in the roles. But this was a first-time production, a different beast entirely. There was no way a replacement actor could be found on such short notice.

Rene sighed heavily. Then, her face hardened with resolve—

“Everyone, then how about I step into the role of ‘Salome’ instead?”

Her words, entirely beyond imagination, shocked the entire production team. Her personal guard was no different.

“Miss…! That would go against Lord Raphael’s wishes—,”

*BANG*—!

“Listen, listen here…! Miss Rene, do you think this play is some child’s game?!”

I cut off the knight’s words, slamming my fist on the desk and letting my anger fly. Why?

‘…This way I’ll have an excuse to give the Marquis.’

If I agreed to her going on stage so readily, they might think I’d been planning it all along, and shoot me those suspicious glares. It was necessary to establish a conflict, a disagreement with her from the get-go.

“Now, now, Baron Aiden…! What disrespect to the young lady—!”

“Hold on, don’t interrupt.”

“…Yes, understood.”

Everyone watched our tense exchange, holding their breath.

They’d probably never know. That this was all just a pre-arranged show.

“Miss, have you even memorized the script before saying such things? The stage is no place for actors who need to hold the script.”

“I’ve memorized it all. Reading it multiple times to understand the work, it just became memorized.”

“Huh, if that’s truly the case, can you recite all of Salome’s lines from page 21 of chapter 3?”

All eyes swiveled to Renée.

Without a single hesitation, she began reeling off the lines in response to my question.

“I don’t want her to dance. You swore it, didn’t you?”

“Your Majesty, I’m always waiting. Waiting for the slaves to bring the incense and the seven veils and take off my sandals.”

“There’s no sound. I hear nothing. Why won’t he cry out? This man!”

“……………!”

Even when I flipped through the pages repeatedly with different queries, she answered them flawlessly, without a stutter. Everyone was purely astonished at her perfect memorization of the script, to the point where it was hard to believe she’d achieved it simply by reading so much.

“Certainly, your mastery of the script is impeccable, but simple memorization and actually performing with the other actors on stage while conveying emotion, these are different things.”

“I can do it. I’ve watched countless times. The evening performance rehearsal, it’s still possible, isn’t it?”

“It is, but surely not…?”

“After the rehearsal, please gather the opinions of the entire cast. If I’m unqualified, I won’t try to force things further.”

“Hmm…….”

While I was feigning contemplation, someone came rushing frantically towards me.

“Milady—! You mustn’t!”

It was the guard knight from the family.

The Marquis Raphael had likely urged him to interfere and stop Renée should she attempt anything strange.

“Stepping onto the stage, that much is absolutely forbidden. Please reconsider…!”

“Why can’t I?”

“If you were to make even the slightest mistake there, Miss, you might become the laughingstock of everyone…! This could greatly affect your standing in society going forward—!”

*SMACK!!*

“Ugh…!?”

The knight’s head snapped to the side, the burning sting of the slap ringing in the air. I know that stinging sensation.

He was completely dumbfounded, unable to believe he’d been struck by the lady he served, his hand clutched to his cheek, unable to utter a single word.

“That honor, that reputation! I’m sick of it…! What does any of that matter right now? While you’ve been my guard, what have you even seen? Have you not noticed how hard these people have worked for this moment—!?”

“I have seen, I’ve seen it all, but… as a member of the Este family, Miss, there are proprieties to uphold…”

The knight was clutching at the weighty name of his family.

But the momentum had already shifted to Renee.

“Wouldn’t it be more unbecoming of a noble to run away to save face in a situation like this? How ashamed would our Este ancestors be of me! I don’t care if I am humiliated. If it means the people who have worked for this performance will receive what they deserve, then I will proudly step on that stage.”

“R-Renee-yang cares for us all so much….”

“How can such a noble aristocrat exist…!”

If the performance were canceled, as she pointed out, the actors and staff would be unable to recoup most of the money due to refunds for the remaining shows.

In this situation, with only one performance properly staged, the sudden end after pouring a month into this play would leave them struggling to feed themselves for a while. This was why, I think, the actors and staff were so deeply moved by Renee’s words. I shrugged, taking control of the situation.

“Haa, everyone, prepare for the rehearsal. If it looks like it won’t work, I won’t hesitate to cancel the whole thing. Focus.”

““Yes, understood……!””

The actors were full of vigor. For a brief time, they told Renee the things she absolutely needed to know, and before long, rehearsal began with Renee as the main actress.

And how did it turn out?

‘Kyaa, that’s it.’

There was no need to see any more. Not a single person objected.

She was cast as ‘Salome’ by unanimous decision.

####

Opening night, the second show—the evening slot—saw crowds thronging the auditorium. This performance was hotly anticipated, not just by those with pre-booked tickets but by hopefuls on standby for cancellations. There was a reason for the fervor:

‘Due to pressure from the Vatican, the play “Salome” may never be seen again after this performance!’

The thought that it could become a ‘legendary, lost production’ drew a significant crowd. Of course, the throng also included some Vatican officials who took a rather dim view of the play.

“This blasphemous play makes a mockery of the clergy. We must ensure it’s never staged again!”

“I have instructed my followers, stationed throughout the theater, to boo at any awkward scene. Heh heh!”

These men, eyes peeled for any excuse to pounce, mixed with the audience eager to witness a potentially final performance. A chaotic scene. The lights dimmed, a pause, then… before the play could begin, the lights flared back up, revealing not an actor, but Aiden Roen.

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I am Aiden Roen, producer of this play.”

He bowed deeply, but the audience stared at him with ‘Who are you, and why are you here?’ looks. He immediately continued speaking.

“The reason for my sudden appearance is that there is a matter you all need to know. Just before the performance, Ms. Mary, who was to play our lead, ‘Salome’, was unfortunately involved in a car accident and is unable to perform for the remaining shows.”

“…What, so the play’s cancelled?”

“Did he come out to give refunds?”

His words sent ripples of unrest through the audience. It was, in essence, a declaration that the play was effectively unplayable. Despite the mounting chaos, his expression remained unchanged as he went on.

“However, for the sake of the entire cast and crew who have worked tirelessly for this performance, and for the audience who have waited so long, someone has stepped forward. That someone is none other than Miss Rene Este of the Este Marquisate, who was in charge of planning this very play. She has willingly agreed to take on the vacant role of ‘Salome’, despite lacking any previous acting experience.”

““………………………!?!””

Unprecedented.

That a scion of a well-known noble house would risk ridicule by stepping onto the stage before a large crowd of strangers… This gave the audience pause. Though they had little expectation of her performing well, it was certainly ‘interesting entertainment.’

“Hey, this is a scoop…! Quick, call it in!”

“Wow, she’s insane. A complete beginner acting in front of this many people?”

A kaleidoscope of reactions erupted.

Feeling the need to wrap things up, he began his final address.

“We too are aware that this is an unprecedented situation. Those desiring refunds may find me after the performance, no problem. But of one thing I am certain. If you all just stay put for ten more minutes, you will see why our entire crew unanimously decided to trust her.”

“And you will witness it. Something never before seen.”

“The play, ‘Salome’.”

With those words, Aiden exited.

The theater lights died, and the murmuring audience fell as still as mice.

And they thought.

‘Is there really something to this?’

It was a tale logically impossible.

Yet common sense, at times, shatters intensely, forging new sense.

That was precisely this very moment.

‘…Holy, moly!’

‘What am I even seeing…?’

A massive shockwave, about to unleash turmoil on the cultural landscape of the empire.

Every audience member there was left with no choice but to be helplessly swept along.