Who Brought the Head Maid Back? - Chapter 7

“It belongs to our guild, alright. Do you plan on taking it all out?”

“Every single copper coin, down to the last one. Oh, and give it to me in gold coins from the early Imperial era.”

A suppressed heat could be felt in Amy’s voice as she replied. The Guild Master looked at her suspiciously for a moment before silently gesturing to a subordinate. The man turned and disappeared into the basement.

“…”

“…”

Perhaps finding the silence awkward now that they were alone, the Guild Master cleared his throat. He began to fiddle with the wooden plaque, subtly making conversation as a form of customer service.

“Seeing as the numbers on this plaque are embossed in gold, you’ve left a substantial sum with us. Are you planning to flee the country or something?”

“Mind your own business.”

Amy shut him down with a single phrase. The Guild Master nodded, looking embarrassed. Amy scanned the room with dry eyes, simply trying to pass the time until the money arrived. But in the next second, her eyes went wide. Wait, is that?

“My goodness.”

A sound that was half-admiration and half-groan escaped Amy’s lips. The Guild Master wondered what she was looking at, but he had already turned away, seemingly losing interest. Her face returned to a blank expression, but her heart was pounding like crazy.

That’s the crest, isn’t it? The symbol of the rebel group that started in the South.

Amy swallowed hard and, hidden from the Guild Master’s view, fixed her eyes on the tapestry hanging on the wall behind him. It was embroidered with a hawk diving down like a bolt of lightning. Heavens, it really was that crest.

To think that this guild was connected to the rebel faction.

Stunned, Amy stole a glance at the Guild Master.

This place was known for storing hidden slush funds and charging a commission. This guild, known only to those in the loop, was highly popular for strictly guarding its customers’ secrets. Amy had come here to secretly siphon off the slush fund that the Crown Prince had hidden away.

Since I’m the one who built this fund, he can’t say a word even if I take it.

Even if the Crown Prince found out later that Amy had cleaned him out, there was nothing he could do. The fund was illegal from its very inception. To whom would he complain? Surely not the Emperor. If he were even suspected of trying to build his own power base using a slush fund, he would be stripped of his title as Crown Prince in a heartbeat.

Before her regression, as she lay dying in that cold prison, she had ground her teeth at the thought of her hard-earned wealth being handed over entirely to Lady Esmain.

But now.

Now, it will become the Second Prince’s settlement fund for the North.

Wasn’t that better than it being spent on the luxuries of the ungrateful Crown Prince and Lady Esmain?

Amy, who had been smiling happily, snapped back to reality and looked at the tapestry out of the corner of her eye.

Now is not the time to worry about this.

She scrambled through her memories. This was a massive opportunity granted by heaven. And Amy was not one to let an opportunity slip through her fingers.

Come to think of it, by now.

After organizing her thoughts, she spoke up.

“There’s something I want to ask.”

The Guild Master, who had been twitching his fingers with a bored face, looked up.

“What is it?”

“How are things in the South lately?”

“…”

Perhaps the question was too broad, as the Guild Master didn’t speak immediately. Amy bit her lip anxiously. Since this guild was connected to the leader of the rebellion that started in the South, she couldn’t ask for details.

What if he gets suspicious of how I know and locks me up or tortures me?

The ankle that Lady Esmain had injured felt like it was aching even more. Amy made a firm vow to herself. Never, ever would she experience something like that again.

The motto of her second life was peace and comfort: eat well and live well.

The Guild Master spoke with a listless expression.

“The South? Well, I suppose it’s the same as always. They farm hard, they get ignored by the people in the capital.”

The words that came after a long silence were hollow. Amy grumbled to herself that she could have said as much, but just then, the subordinate returned with a small pouch.

The Guild Master checked the contents of the pouch first. He then placed it on the table and pushed it toward Amy.

“Check if the amount is correct.”

“…”

She quickly scanned the inside of the pouch. It seemed about right. Since these were gold coins circulated in the early days of the Empire, even a few of them held immense value. Amy packed the pouch with satisfaction when a thought suddenly occurred to her.

“What is it?”

The Guild Master and his subordinate tilted their heads as they saw Amy suddenly stop moving. Amy looked up and spoke.

” I need to open an account. I’m going to deposit some gold coins.”

“Go ahead.”

“It’s not in my name, but that doesn’t matter, right?”

“No problem.”

“The person who meets the conditions I specify will be the owner of the account.”

“Does that mean we don’t even need to check with you whether that person is the right one or not?”

The Guild Master’s eyebrow twitched. It was common for nobles to open accounts under false names when they didn’t want to pay taxes on inherited property. But in those cases, the beneficiary was always clearly specified to ensure no one else could take it.

However, the suspicious woman before him was opening a transaction entirely for someone else, under conditions where someone other than the intended person might benefit. It was a first for him, and he found it intriguing.

“What are the conditions?”

Amy replied nonchalantly to the Guild Master’s question.

“Currently twenty-three years old, male, and blue blood of blue bloods.”

The Guild Master’s expression changed. “Blue blood of blue bloods” was a term used to refer to the Imperial family. Amy added, acting as if she didn’t notice.

“And, someone related to the number of gold coins exactly like this one.”

Amy took an early Imperial gold coin from the pouch and tossed it. The Guild Master caught it instinctively. That single coin was worth a thousand of the gold coins currently in circulation.

Someone related to the number 1,000?

He couldn’t grasp it at all. Just then, Amy let out an “Oh,” took something from the inner pocket of her skirt, and tossed it again. He caught it, and this time it was a regular gold coin.

“The total is 1,001. Keep that etched in your mind.”

Amy spoke boastfully. The Guild Master was puzzled, but he nodded without showing it. However, Amy keenly noticed his reaction.

He’s connected to the rebel group, but he doesn’t know much about that person.

That was for the best. Later, when that person came and saw the funds prepared for him, he would be more curious about her than the Guild Master.

“And, can I borrow a quill?”

She requested to write a brief note to be placed in the vault along with the money and stood up. She then left the place, satisfied with her unexpected achievement. The Guild Master and his subordinate could only stare at each other, feeling as if a storm had just swept through.

After leaving the guild’s pub, Amy wound her way through the complicated streets of the market to avoid any potential tail. After some time had passed.

No one is following me.

Only after she was certain did she turn toward the place where she had promised to meet the Second Prince.

People from all over the Empire gathered at the capital’s market. That meant all sorts of rumors were flying around. Amy listened to the many stories as she walked. As always, most of them were garbage rumors. But then, someone’s words caught her ear.

“They say a rebellion broke out in some province in the South.”

Her pace slowed. People continued to whisper.

“I heard that too. They say they’ve already crossed the Ren River.”

“Then the capital isn’t far away, is it? I thought it would be suppressed quickly, but they’re holding out better than I expected.”

Amy etched the words about the rebels crossing the Ren River into her mind and sped up again.

The First Prince is quite something.

She marveled to herself. The First Prince Amy was thinking of now was not that enemy-like Crown Prince. He was the hidden son born to the Emperor’s first Empress, born earlier than the current Crown Prince, and the owner of the funds she had left at the guild.

She had learned about him in her previous life, while she was starving to death in prison after being kidnapped by Lady Esmain.

The chatty jailer used to tell all sorts of stories to Amy, who couldn’t speak because her tongue had been cut out. That day, he shared news that had set the capital abuzz.

Apparently, the real Crown Prince had appeared.

It was a shocking story, but Amy had no strength to react and could only blink as she lay there. The jailer talked incessantly, as usual. Thanks to him, she learned the following facts.

The disturbances in the South were all his doing, and the Emperor, in order to calm the massive rebel forces, had decided to depose the current Crown Prince and appoint him as the new one.

It was said that if the Emperor continued to oppose him, the Empire would be at risk of being split in half. Apparently, the hearts of the people in the South and even the central regions were all following him.

Hearing that, Amy twisted her dry, cracked lips into a smile for the first time in years. The thought of Lady Esmain’s situation, having her prize snatched away, was incredibly satisfying.

Walking along the market street, Amy sank deep into thought.

In the past, it took almost three years from the time he first revealed his existence until he became the Crown Prince.

Her eyes sparkled.

Would it be a problem if it happened a bit earlier? The position of Crown Prince belongs to him anyway.

Amy planned to subtly lend him a hand to complete her revenge against the current Crown Prince. Along the way, she could also solidify the Second Prince’s position.

She smirked. It was like killing two birds with one stone, so how could she not be happy?

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