MLS Chapter 36
by Brie“What?”
“You said stray dogs bite their owners when provoked. That means you can bite me once.”
“……Hah.”
The scoff Miguel let out quickly turned into a chuckle, and soon after, it became full-blown laughter.
The man even covered his face with one hand, laughing loudly for a long while.
He was definitely enjoying himself more than the day before.
Miguel had always found Lorena’s bold remarks entertaining, so this time, she had more or less given the right answer.
“So, just once—you’re saying you’ll let me bite however I want.”
“Just not too painfully.”
“I’ll try to be gentle. But I can’t guarantee it.”
Why did that sound so suggestive when it wasn’t even an inappropriate statement?
Lorena felt her body heat up for no reason.
“No betrayal, either.”
“I don’t do disgraceful things like that.”
Miguel’s mood seemed to have completely improved, and Lorena felt relieved.
The man, still gazing at her with impressed eyes, smoothly changed the topic.
“By the way, the money I deposited has nothing to do with me becoming your lapdog, Lorena.”
After circling around, they had finally returned to the main topic.
It seemed he was now in the mood to have a proper discussion.
“You already know, but I’ve been a valued customer of this bank for years. I just happened to have extra money with no immediate use, so I deposited it. Well, I suppose I won’t be touching it for at least the next five years.”
“…Even if something unexpected happens and you can’t withdraw it right away, I promise I’ll repay you.”
“I’m not a bank, Lorena.”
Miguel lazily intertwined his fingers behind his head as he grinned.
“Lending money isn’t my job. Strange, isn’t it?”
“Even so.”
“All I have to do is withdraw my money five years from now. I don’t care how it’s used in the meantime. There’s really no need to be that grateful.”
He spoke as if it wasn’t a big deal, but it was obvious that he had specifically chosen Klein Bank for her sake.
Yet he was pretending otherwise, keeping up the act of indifference.
Would it be too rude to think that he looked a little cute because of it?
“Ah, right. Reporters followed me all the way to the bank earlier. I was going to ignore them, but I figured leaking that I hold Klein Bank’s credit in high regard wouldn’t hurt. So I ran my mouth a little.”
Miguel spoke carelessly, but what he had done was anything but.
“The high nobles might side with Levantes, but Bessen is full of wealthy bourgeois as well. They follow the flow of money, so they won’t harm the bank. You’ll see it in the newspapers tomorrow. I imagine your bank consultants will be busy handling new account inquiries all day.”
“…….”
“So, Princess. What else do you need?”
No—calling him cute was far too inaccurate.
Lorena humbly revised her previous sentiment.
Simply by speaking to the press, he had attracted a flood of potential new clients.
If one photograph of Lorena had a value of mere hundreds of Peseca, then one sentence from Miguel was worth tens of millions.
“Really, I have no idea how to properly thank you.”
“Hmm, it’d be troublesome if you kept misunderstanding things like this.”
The playful smirk Miguel had been wearing all along faded—just slightly.
And yet, simply by erasing the curve from his lips, he could completely change the atmosphere.
“I told you, didn’t I? I’m not a philanthropist.”
“…….”
“You’ll have to give me something of equal value to what I offer you, Lorena.”
They were partners, accomplices.
Lorena recalled the ultimate goal of this alliance.
Lorena would destroy Levantes, and Miguel would bring down the Bessen royal family.
It was not two separate matters but rather one and the same.
“I spent some time thinking at the hotel—wondering why I’ve been feeling so off lately. And then it hit me: I know far too little about you.”
“…….”
“So far, we’ve only had very one-sided conversations. And when I realized that, it struck me as odd. Even a stray dog on the street knows that I despise the royal family. But I have no idea why the Duchess of Levantes hates her husband so much.”
“…….”
“What kind of marriage leads to such complete and utter ruin?”
“…….”
“And that’s not all. I don’t even know the specifics of what you need to achieve your divorce. There are still so many secrets between us, Lorena.”
Each and every one of these topics was deeply troubling for Lorena.
And yet, Miguel wasn’t finished.
“And one more thing. When we first met, you thanked me. But I have no memory of ever helping you, and yet you continue to act as if you owe me a great debt. Why?”
Lorena could tell he had no intention of letting this slide.
But it was a story far too long and far too unbelievable to simply explain.
Should she tell Miguel the truth—about her past life, about her return?
And even if she did—would he believe her?
She had never heard of any legends or myths about someone turning back time.
“Be honest, Lorena. If anyone understands the importance of trust, it’s you.”
Miguel gave her a moment.
After some time, as Lorena carefully gathered her thoughts, she slowly opened her mouth.
“Do you believe in the existence of God?”
“God?”
Miguel rubbed his chin, as if slightly troubled.
His curved eyes held no emotion.
“You know I’m a well-known nonbeliever.”
His strong resentment toward religion was already infamous.
That meant it was best not to mention her return.
But since she had already spoken too much to him in the confessional, Lorena chose her words carefully and adjusted her story.
“By God’s grace, I received a vision of the future. In that dream, my family and my bank were utterly destroyed. And the one who killed my father—was my husband.”
“…….”
“I don’t care whether you believe me or not. What matters is evidence. And I found it in the Duke’s vault—proof that he conspired with the Bessen Crown Prince and the high nobility to bring down my father’s bank and my homeland, Ingerd.”
“They called that operation… ‘Canary.’”
Miguel’s gaze changed.
A breath—a sigh, almost like a murmured exclamation—escaped his lips.
“Ah, Canary.”
That word had been nagging at his mind for some time now.
“That is certainly a believable story.”
Miguel smiled harmlessly, but he did not fully believe the tale she had just told him.
<Father, I took my own life. But by God’s miracle, I have returned from beyond death.>
Divine grace, miracles, dreams?
Miguel did not believe in God.
Not out of childish rebellion or sheer arrogance.
To him, in the strictest sense, a God who does not answer might as well not exist.
Every event with causality is always the result of human action.
“So, ultimately, what your husband is trying to accomplish is the downfall of the Republic of Ingerd. And behind this operation stands the Bessen royal family. That’s what you’re saying.”
“Precisely. That’s why my goal doesn’t stop at just divorce. Something that trivial wouldn’t make Levantes or Bessen lose anything.”
Even if she called it a dream, even if she claimed divine grace, even if she had returned in time,
Even if her father and brother were still alive—
It did not erase the past Lorena had suffered.
In this second life, if necessary, she would grind herself down to drag Bessen and Levantes into ruin.
She briefly summarized how Levantes had exploited Klein Bank.
From one of the worst mass withdrawal crises in history, to the false charges of espionage against Vicenzo, to the collapse of Ingerd’s industries and the fall of its republican government.
“I see.”
Miguel, who had been listening intently, muttered as if to himself.
“So Levantes tried to frame your father as the cause of the republican movements within Bessen.”
“Yes. They accused my father of being a spy who infiltrated Bessen with ulterior motives.”
And then they killed him.
Lorena straightened her back, forcing herself to remain composed.
Miguel, as if in passing, asked:
“Then I assume you don’t have a favorable view of republicans. You as well.”
“I don’t hold personal grudges. But as long as I remain in Bessen, I must avoid being labeled as a republican at all costs. I have a bank to protect.”
“I see…”
His words trailed off meaningfully.
Lorena, unbothered, continued speaking.
“The most important task is to find Levantes’ deposit certificate, which should be somewhere in the palace. It’s the document that grants the Duke the right to withdraw the fifty million Peseca he placed in Klein Bank.”
“Of course, we’ve maximized the bank’s cash reserves and are maintaining its credit, so even if they attempt to withdraw the full fifty million at once, it won’t immediately trigger another mass withdrawal crisis…
But it still bothered her that the wealthy clients who attended Nas’ banquet were all aligned with Levantes.
If they banded together and simultaneously withdrew astronomical amounts, Klein Bank would stand no chance.
No matter how wealthy Miguel or their general clientele were, they couldn’t compete with the combined wealth of Bessen’s most powerful nobles.
“Otherwise, I’ll have to take more than fifty million Peseca from him through an alimony or asset division lawsuit. The problem is that it would take at least half a year… Either way, this is my biggest challenge right now. Does that satisfy your curiosity?”
“For the most part.”
“Then now I want to ask something. Miguel, do you have a plan?”
“What kind of plan?”
“Obviously, a plan to take the crown.”
From what Lorena knew, Miguel harbored deep hostility toward the royal family.
He never attended the royal family’s breakfast gatherings, nor did he show up at the king’s birthday celebrations or national commemorations.
Even as a Duchess who had frequently visited the palace, she had never once encountered him there.
He even refused to use the surname ‘Reyes’, the royal family’s name.
And yet, the people of Bessen adored him.
If he could just establish the right justification, seizing the throne wouldn’t be difficult—nor would securing public support.
“A plan, huh? Well…”
A shadow fell over Miguel’s reddish-brown eyes.
“I simply move wherever my mood takes me. I don’t live with grand ambitions.”
“…….”
“When I was a child, I was taken away by my birth father.”