“If the Young Master’s keepsakes being thrown away is the problem, then...” I trailed off before continuing, “I’ll keep them myself."

‘Seriously, how far is this going to go? Damn it... I’m starting to get hungry now...’ 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Naturally, this insane situation had to be stopped. Things were escalating further and further into madness, so there was no choice but to intervene instead of just standing by and watching.

Silence filled this massive mansion for an unknown amount of time, and silence descended once again because of what I just said.

What was really baffling was that my statement wasn’t appealing to Jin’s subordinates at all. The old man who had been calling me a snake since earlier, the brat who looked so young that it seemed like he had yet to hit puberty, and the quiet Yongwol stared at me with even more hostility than before.

They looked like they were thinking, ‘And why the hell are you going to keep them?’ No, more than that, their expressions looked like they were asking just how much longer I intended to mock them before I would finally be satisfied.

The old man’s face turned red with fury. Judging from how he was trembling all over, it looked like he was about to unleash the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Technique.

I was certain that if Jin Cheong hadn’t been present, he would have already been shouting, “You bastard!” with his robes billowing out dramatically. It definitely felt like the misunderstanding had only deepened, but...

“...”

‘No, you guys said throwing them away is unacceptable. If that's the case, someone has to keep them, right? This is the compromise here.’

There was no room left to retreat. The one who ought to keep his belongings didn’t necessarily have to be a sinister snake from the Democratic Country, but honestly, who else suited the role of preserving Jin Young’s possessions aside from me?

The entire hall was overwhelmed by my shocking declaration. When I stepped forward, Wanggang flinched in surprise, shoved her sword back into its sheath, and hurriedly dropped to one knee.

“M-Master!” she exclaimed.

‘Th-this idiot, no, forget how quick she is at reading the room, what the hell is with that speed?’

“Master!”

“Master!”

Once Wanggang knelt, even the people behind her naturally knelt one after another. Complete disbelief appeared in Commander Jin’s eyes as he watched the entire scene unfold. His expression clearly said that he couldn’t understand this insane turn of events, but honestly, I could sympathize with him.

Damn it, I also had no idea what was going on. What was going on here? Had an instinctive DNA response unconsciously placed me into the position of a potential mistress?

‘Yeah, that’s the problem. Things are too ambiguous, so of course, people are objecting.’

It felt natural to conclude that the most definitive way to resolve this incident was to completely seal the deal.

“What an unnecessary commotion on such a nice day...” I complained.

“...”

“This is truly a situation beyond understanding,” I said. I needed to press every ounce of charisma into my voice. This was the moment to radiate the vicious dignity and poisonous aura of a ruthless imperial consort who no one could easily defy.

“I’m aware that raising my voice here as nothing more than a guest is an act of disrespect toward Commander Jin, the master of this estate, but given the circumstances, how can I possibly remain silent?” I questioned.

“...”

“I almost feel bad for Commander Jin, as he has to command subordinates so ignorant that they understand only one thing and nothing beyond it. To think his own hands and feet can’t even comprehend what kind of gathering this is or how this situation came to be.

"Commander Jin is really generous. To house and feed such incompetent fools free of charge... you people are so useless and tactless that it wouldn't be surprising if he had long thrown you out,” I said.

“...”

“The very fact that you dare call yourselves Commander Jin’s hands and feet is already shameful enough. Is this how the Republic treats its guests?” I asked.

Naturally, Commander Jin was left speechless. Even he probably had nothing he could say in response. Of course, I was the spark that started this mess, but who could possibly have predicted that the retainers would stage a coup?

“Especially when you know absolutely nothing about Young Master Jin Young, yet you're still pretending like you're doing something for him. It’s honestly laughable,” I added.

The moment I pressed the berserk button that they had barely been holding back, I heard a roar.

“H-How dare you speak of the Young Master that way!”

The roar had come from Old Man Han. I thought Yongwol would jump out first, but it seemed she was still too busy recovering from the wound Commander Jin had dealt to her earlier. Even after all this chaos, she still seemed determined to maintain her goal of not wanting to fall out of favor with Commander Jin.

Wanggang immediately moved to stop Old Man Han from raising his voice, but I gestured for her to stand down. It meant I intended to hear what the old man had to say.

“How can someone like you, who knows better than anyone how the Young Master had died, dare to talk about him?! If you had even the slightest shred of shame, you wouldn't have dared to set foot in this estate!” Old Man Han added.

‘I knew it. These bastards have really been holding a grudge this whole time. They’re finally showing their true colors.’

As expected, it seemed they still carried resentment over the fact that the Young Master had died within the Blue Guild. Jin Young’s death was framed as a noble sacrifice made to save the continent from disaster, and in truth, many citizens of the Republic accepted it that way, but these retainers who had endlessly longed for the Young Master’s return couldn’t take the same stance as everyone else.

Naturally, they needed someone to blame, and I was the perfect target.

‘The funniest part is that these bastards have never even met Jin Young.’

Perhaps they were unconsciously replaying memories they supposedly shared with Young Master Jin Young in their heads. Anyone watching would think they had raised him themselves.

In fact, Jung Ha-Yan and Han Sora even looked like they genuinely believed that.

“Wasn’t it you who drove the Young Master to his death?! You returned to this estate after leaving behind such a massive wound, only to burn and carve that wound open again!

"I don’t know how exactly you bewitched Commander Jin, but don’t think your glib tongue and sinister eyes can deceive the spirit of this estate as well!” he shouted.

‘He’s got guts.’

“Even if this estate falls into your grasp, you’ll never shake the spirit within it nor our loyalty!” he added.

‘No, if I get the estate, that’s the end of it. I’m not interested in the spirit or loyalty inside it, old man. You aren’t included in the estate assets.’

“Even if I must scatter my blood across this estate...” he muttered

‘Why are you splattering blood around a perfectly fine estate?’

It was about time to shut that noisy mouth of his up. I slowly walked forward and picked up Jin Young’s belongings with both hands. I heard people gasp as if they had decided to stop breathing altogether. Then...

Crash!

“Wh-what do you think you’re doing! You bastard!” Old Man Han yelled.

“...”

“Stop this at once!” he shouted.

“...”

“Oh no... oh no! Hngh... Young Maaaster!”

“...”

“Commander! Please stop that man!” he begged.

“...”

“Kill me instead! Cut me down instead!”

As I wandered through the estate, I grabbed everything in sight and hurled it to the ground.

Crash! Bang! Crash!

Of course, some things didn’t break because I lacked the strength to do so, but what mattered was that I showed them the act of throwing everything onto the floor like a madman.

“No... hngh... please stop... please, I beg you!”

“What are you doing?! Let go of that this instant! Wanggang! Do you truly wish to see the Young Master’s belongings shatter before your eyes?!” Old Man Han questioned.

“Don’t say another word, Old Man Han! That’s the only way you’ll keep your life...”

I had to have looked unbelievably vicious because even the fiercely loyal Wanggang had tears welling in her eyes. Deep down, she was still one of this estate’s people, but even so, she dared not oppose me.

“Hngh...”

“O-Old Man Han!”

“You bastaaaaaard!”

“Please stop this at once! I’m begging you, so please stop!”

“Didn’t you say I should kill you instead?!”

“Hnghh... hnghh... Young Master!!! Young Master!”

“Waaahhh... please forgive us... please... we were wrong... so please stop...”

The retainers screamed whenever I threw something to the ground. I wasn’t even exaggerating when I said they reacted like they were watching the Young Master himself being tortured.

Some of them cried so hard they outright fainted, while others couldn’t hold back anymore and tried to rush forward, only to be restrained by Wanggang’s men.

Meanwhile, Commander Jin stared blankly at the sight. He'd occasionally react like that whenever I showed him something completely beyond his expectations, but this time, he looked genuinely unable to comprehend what was happening.

Confusion was written all over him. He kept mumbling, “Wh-What... what are you doing right now... L-Lee Ki-Young...”

Unfortunately, the chaos in the mansion was so loud that I could barely hear him.

‘Now that they’re actually breaking, you finally think it's a waste? Well, this stuff is expensive...’

Even Kim Hyun-Sung looked really flustered, but I continued to hurl the keepsakes until the very end. The only reason it finished quickly was that Jung Ha-Yan joined in halfway through and threw the random things around with me.

“...”

Eventually, the event more or less reached its conclusion. While the retainers sobbed as if their world had collapsed, I slowly but firmly said, “These are merely objects.”

“...”

“Meaningless objects,” I added.

“Hngh... hnghhhh...”

“These aren’t the Young Master’s legacy... They’re nothing more than meaningless things,” I said.

“...”

“Young Master Jin Young’s true legacy was never something like these objects,” I said.

“...”

“Even after all this, have you still understood nothing? Have you still failed to realize why Young Master Jin Young chose to study in the Democratic Country? Why did someone who loved the Republic so much still chose to leave for the Democratic Country?

"Why did Young Master Jin Young decide to devote everything he had in a distant foreign land?” I questioned.

"???"

“The reason I came to the Republic... was to share his legacy,” I said, revealing the truth.

A memory I had almost forgotten suddenly resurfaced. It seemed those retainers weren’t the only ones struggling to come to terms with Jin Young's death.

I was so shocked by his death that I had forcibly erased my own memories of him as well. Now that I remembered those memories, I also remembered how Commander Jin’s son from that distant foreign land once followed me around so fondly.

We ate rainbow cotton candy together, played together, and spent happy times together. The image of that lovely child looking up at me boldly flooded my mind.

‘Harmony. That’s what I want.’

A few days later, almost as if he had sensed his own fate, he cast a gaze full of sorrow and self-deprecation at me before muttering, “Thank you for everything until now.”

“Hm? What’s wrong, Young Master?”

“It’s nothing. I just wanted to say it. I suddenly realized how lucky I am to have you around, hyung...”

“Haha... really?”

“U-Um... hyung.”

“...”

“Please take good care of Papa.”

Tears instantly burst out of my eyes...