I Wish I Could Predict Love, Not Fall Into It - Chapter 22

I couldn’t help but frown. He must have always threatened the witch like this. For the first time, I felt a little sorry for her.

“Should I go tell the emperor right now?”

“What do you want?”

I looked at Flip like he was a filthy bug and asked. Flip’s plump face twitched.

“What’s with the polite tone all of a sudden?”

I didn’t respond. Flip sneered and made a circle with his thumb and index finger.

“What I want is obviously money. Hand it over.”

“I don’t have any.”

I scoffed. Flip suddenly grabbed my shoulder harshly.

“Then go out and earn it right now!”

At that moment, my entire body froze. I couldn’t breathe properly, like I had turned to ice.
How badly must this man have beaten her for the body to react like this?

Though my mind wasn’t the witch’s, this body remembered Flip’s violence.
I clenched my teeth and glared at him.

“Let go of me. Your filthy hands.”

Flip flinched slightly at my sharp gaze.

“W-What, do you think you’re some kind of prophet now?”

I spoke quietly to the startled Flip.

“Don’t you think I’ve let you off easy all this time?”

His dirty face immediately hardened.

“You, how dare you talk back?! I’ll—!”

Whack—
Flip raised his hand with a furious look. I didn’t want to, but my body shrank back on its own.

It was pathetic, but the witch’s body didn’t listen to me.

“Stop messing around and give me the money!”

Flip shook me violently and yelled. I wanted to scream, but no sound came out of my mouth.

❖ ❖ ❖

When Flip and Anier’s voices grew loud enough to be heard from around the corner, Clark looked at Louisville.

“Shouldn’t we stop it?”

He couldn’t hear everything clearly, but the angry shouts and the word “money” were clear enough. Louisville uncrossed his arms and scratched his temple.

“Yeah. It’s getting unpleasant to listen to.”

Anier was the kind of woman who had confidently talked back even while holding a sword. But now, she seemed to be getting completely overpowered.

Clark drew his sword, preparing to step in.

“I’ll go—”

“Prepare gold coins and jewels.”

“…What?”

Clark paused, confused. Louisville gently brushed back his golden hair, shining even more under the sunlight.

“I’ll go myself.”

Even as Clark looked at him in confusion, Louisville walked away with long strides.

Turning the corner and walking along the wall, the first thing Louisville saw was Flip.

Flip was raising his hand to hit Anier, who had her shoulders tightly hunched.

He’s lost his mind.

At that moment, Louisville quickened his pace.

Grab—
He caught Flip’s wrist just before it could strike Anier’s head. Flip looked at him with wide eyes.

“It’s ready,”
Louisville said coldly to Flip.

“R-Ready?”

“What you wanted.”

With that, he pushed Flip toward the knights who had followed him. They immediately dragged Flip away.

Meanwhile, Anier straightened her back and shoulders and tried to catch her breath. She had probably been so frightened she couldn’t even breathe.

Looking at her, Louisville felt an odd sense of kinship.
That’s exactly how he felt when he stood before the Empress Dowager.

“It’s like looking at myself.”

“…What?”

Anier’s black eyes trembled as she turned to look at him.

“I didn’t grow up loved either.”

Anier’s expression grew deeper, probably thinking of the Empress Dowager’s cruelty.

Then she licked her dry lips and quietly spoke.

“But at least Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has a reason. My father doesn’t.”

“Who says he has no reason?”

Louisville narrowed his eyes and took the lead.
“Come with me. I’ll show you the reason.”

❖ ❖ ❖

Waiting for Flip at the main gate of the imperial palace was a pile of gold coins and jewels, like a sandcastle on the ground.

“W-What is all this?”

Greed filled Flip’s beady little eyes. Louisville smiled falsely and answered.

“I’m giving it to you.”

Then he looked back at Anier, who stood behind him, her face full of shock.

“Because I’m taking your precious daughter. Think of it as compensation.”

Flip fell to the ground and wrapped his arms around the gold and jewels.

“You’re really giving me all this?”

“Of course.”

Louisville watched Flip with a cold smile as he hugged the treasure like a happy child. Then he turned to his knights.

His smile disappeared completely as he gave a command.

“Take it all to his house.”

The knights immediately moved in sync, collecting the gold and jewels and leading Flip to the imperial carriage.

Anier watched Flip being taken away and murmured sadly.

“So that was the reason. But… why did you give him so much?”

Louisville turned to look at her. She was gripping the hem of her dress tightly.

“He’s just going to gamble it all away.”

“I know,”
Louisville replied firmly and began walking ahead.

Anier followed naturally behind him. A breeze carried his next words to her ears.

“Still better than giving you to him.”

Anier looked at Louisville’s broad back with grateful eyes.

Then Louisville slightly turned his shoulder and asked,

“Did you want to go back?”

“No.”
Anier answered right away.

“I like it here.”

Her bright, smiling face made Louisville quietly relieved.

If kind-hearted Anier had said she wanted to return to her father, he wouldn’t have been able to stop her no matter how much he wanted to.

But hearing her say she liked the palace, liked being with him, made him happy.
He didn’t regret a single coin he had given Flip.

❖ ❖ ❖

In the imperial carriage, Flip grinned so wide it looked like his mouth would tear as he stared at the gold and jewels sitting across from him.

“How much is all this?”

He excitedly opened the sacks of coins and started counting. But suddenly, he froze and clicked his tongue.

“Ugh, what if they get mad and say I broke my promise?”

He remembered the promise he had made.

After thinking for a moment, he shook it off. What’s done is done.

“Whatever. Then they can just give me more money.”

His small eyes gleamed with greed as he continued counting.

“If they come after me, I’ll just take this money and hide somewhere for a while.”

No matter how high their status, they wouldn’t chase him to another country.

Flip turned to look out the window. As he watched the palace fade into the distance, he waved.

“I’ll be back when I run out of money, my daughter.”

Flip felt truly thankful to Jen for tossing such a lucky charm his way.
It had been the greatest luck of his life when Jen died and Flip went to his house.

While he was counting coins, the carriage arrived near Flip’s shabby cabin.

“Thanks,”
Flip said with a lazy grin to the knight who had escorted him. He pulled out a gold coin and stuffed it into the knight’s breast pocket.

“Tch.”

The knight looked baffled. Flip just winked and turned toward the cabin.

But he stopped in front of the house. There was a letter in the mailbox.

“That old hag… When is she going to stop sending letters?”

Only one person ever sent him letters. He picked up the envelope and opened it, and his face twisted with annoyance.

[You rotten bastard, let me see my granddaughter. Do you think you’ll live long after locking me away in the middle of nowhere?]

He had sent the old woman to a nice nursing home. “Middle of nowhere,” really?

Flip grumbled and almost tore the letter in half until he read the P.S.

[If this continues, I’ll write directly to the emperor. I’ll ask him to find my granddaughter.]

“Has she gone senile?”

Flip tore the letter to shreds, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed it up. Then, with the sacks on his shoulders, he turned his back to the house.

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