The place Elise found was a pawnshop that only people from Tetris would know about.
Pawnshop K.
Though called a pawnshop, this was a place that lent money without asking any questions.
At first glance, it seemed like a good place, but the reality was different.
At Pawnshop K, there was no one who borrowed money and didn’t pay it back. They made sure to recover the borrowed money by any means necessary.
I didn’t want to think about the variety and novelty of their methods.
Elise pulled her hood tighter as she looked at the shabby sign.
‘I never thought I’d come to this place.’
She learned about Pawnshop K because of Magnus. It was because Magnus’s former king had borrowed money from Pawnshop K to raise an army to participate in the gate subjugation.
‘The amount borrowed was so massive that I remembered it.’
It was an unbelievable scale for an ordinary pawnshop run by a businessman.
So I had wanted to meet the owner of Pawnshop K at least once, but I never thought I’d visit as someone borrowing money.
I really didn’t want to borrow money, but it would only be for a month at most.
Once a month, Jasmine sent money to Elise.
Until last month, she had invested that money entirely into the hot spring business in the Dex territory, but this month, Elise intended to use it for herself first.
So just borrow for a month.
Elise tried to keep her mind at ease as she knocked on the door of Pawnshop K.
Creak. The door opened and a boy came out.
“Yawn. Who knocks on a pawnshop’s door at the crack of dawn?”
The crack of dawn? Elise thought she might have lost track of time as she looked up at the sky. The sun was high and bright.
“It’s noon. Are you not open for business yet?”
The boy yawned hugely and scratched his cheek.
“We’re not officially open yet……. But I can open right away depending on who the customer is. Our boss is quite capricious, you see. Where are you from and who might you be?”
Elise debated whether to reveal her identity. But to borrow a large sum without any collateral, it seemed better to disclose it.
“Elise Worton, fiancée of His Highness Karan.”
“Huh?”
The boy’s half-closed eyes shot wide open.
Huh, huh, he made some strange sounds then shouted “Just a moment!” and slammed the door shut.
He closed it so forcefully that the wind from the door made Elise’s hair flutter.
****
“There’s a situation! A situation!”
The boy who greeted Elise was named Schule.
“What’s going on, Schule. Don’t make a fuss. I’m reporting last month’s business profits to His Highness.”
And the owner of Pawnshop K was Karan.
“Aah, that’s exactly the situation!”
“This kid, just trying to get His Highness’s attention by causing a ruckus again? Listen, you’ll have to wait 20 years to take over the pawnshop from me.”
The well-dressed gentleman Dimitris smacked Schule’s bottom.
“Owwww, I’m telling you it’s a big situation!”
It seemed like just a light smack, but Dimitris was one of Karan’s warriors. To Schule, who had never been on a real battlefield, Dimitris’s casual kick felt like a heavy cudgel.
“Will you quit your blubbering?”
Just as Schule raised his leg again,
“Enough.”
Karan set down the report. Pawnshop K was being operated exceptionally well.
“Tell me, Schule. What big situation has occurred?”
“Ahem, as expected of Your Highness, so intelligent, wise, charming, and handsome…”
“The situation.”
Karan rapped on the desk twice.
“Ah yes, the situation! Your fiancée is outside right now!”
“My fiancée?”
“Yes! Lady Elise Worton!”
Karan closed his mouth. Dimitris’s eyes rolled back and forth. Dimitris grabbed Schule’s ear and yanked it hard.
“Have you gone mad wanting to die? How dare you lie using someone’s name?”
It looked like Dimitris was abusing Schule, but in fact he doted on Schule like a son.
Despite his seemingly frivolous behavior, Schule was actually quite deep and diligent.
Since Dimitris couldn’t just guard the pawnshop forever, he would eventually have to pass it on to someone. In his heart, he had picked Schule as his successor.
He didn’t want to lose the foolish Schule over some reckless lie. That’s why he disciplined him first.
“Let him go, Dimi. I’ll confirm it myself.”
“There’s no need, Your Highness. This kid just wants to get your attention…”
“Dimi, quiet.”
Karan rose to his feet. When he stood up, it seemed the small room might burst apart.
Schule quickly opened the door. Karan went through first with a slight bow, the others followed after.
Dimi didn’t forget to smack the back of Schule’s head on the way out.
Karan tried to gauge if Schule’s words could be true.
It was unthinkable for Elise to be outside the palace, let alone at Pawnshop K. But why did it feel like Elise could actually be out there?
It was because of Elise’s past actions. Her movements had always been hard to pin down.
Perhaps this time too…
Karan used a device to observe outside from his office. The mirror reflection and telescope lens rendered the visitor’s silhouette quite clearly.
“Elise…”
A sigh-like utterance escaped his lips. What was she doing here? Could she know he was here? It was truly unbelievable.
Only he, Haltbin, Dimitris, and Schule knew that he himself owned Pawnshop K. Since there was zero chance any of them told Elise, then Elise coming here could only mean.
“She needs money.”
Karan turned from the mirror to look at Dimitris.
“My fiancée, so is this how she should be greeted?”
Gulp. Dimitris swallowed hard. Schule proudly squared his shoulders.
“See, I told you I was right.”
“Receive her properly.”
With those words, Karan retreated into the small room. He would observe from the back. Absolutely no mistakes allowed.
Dimitris checked his appearance and stood before the door. As soon as he opened it, he bowed deeply.
“Please, come inside.”
“But I was told you’re not open for business yet.”
Having straightened up, Dimitris was taken aback three times in that brief moment.
First that it really was Elise Worton before his eyes, then by her dazzling beauty, and finally by her gentle voice.
‘No wonder His Highness is smitten.’
“No, the staff made a mistake, it seems. Business begins the moment a customer arrives. Please come in.”
“Ah, the boy I saw earlier…”
“Schule.”
“Yes, is Schule the owner of this pawnshop you spoke of?”
The capricious one, she didn’t finish saying.
Elise held her tongue out of consideration for Schule.
“The owner? Me?”
Dimitris’s shoulders jumped up dramatically.
“You’re not?”
“Ah, well not exactly, but…”
Everyone except Karan, Haltbin, and Schule believed Dimitris was the owner of Pawnshop K.
So he should confirm it, but he didn’t want to lie to Elise.
‘Oh, Lady Elise, the real owner is your fiance, His Highness Karan.’
Inwardly confessing the truth, Dimitris smiled awkwardly.
“I am the owner.”
On the surface, at least.
“Please, come inside.”
Worried Elise might ask more questions, Dimitris quickly stepped aside towards the wall, clearing the entrance.
“Thank you.”
Elise nodded slightly and stepped into Pawnshop K.
Pawnshop K had a unique layout, with rooms connected directly without any hallways. After passing through two rooms, they arrived at Dimitris’s office.
It felt far more upscale than the previous rooms, but was just as cluttered with scattered documents everywhere.
“Please, have a seat over here.”
Dimitris hurriedly tidied up some papers as he spoke.
“Oh my, I worked through the night. I work so diligently like this. Be sure to remember this scene and tell others later.”
“Tell who?”
“Pardon?”
“Who should I tell about this?”
Dimitris froze. Pondering deeply like a philosopher faced with a monumental problem, he finally broke into an awkward laugh.
“Hahaha. Later when you need to borrow money? Hahaha.”
Elise nodded her head. Fortunately, she didn’t seem to have any particular suspicions.
For example, that there was a separate real owner of Pawnshop K.
Dimitris exhaled in relief and took a seat opposite her.
“What brings you here today?”
Dimitris finally spoke like a proper pawnshop owner. He was rather proud of himself for not faltering in front of her.
“I’ve come to borrow money.”
Well of course, what else would someone come to a pawnshop for? As he was thinking his question was redundant, Elise kindly provided an answer.
‘A beautiful person who is also kind.’
Even removing the title of Karan’s fiancée, Elise was someone who inspired affection.
“Yes, how much would you like to borrow?”
“You don’t ask for collateral? Or even my name?”
Dimitris realized his mistake.
“Ah, I heard from Schule.”
“I see. But I should still properly introduce myself since you’re the owner. Elise Worton, the prospective fiancée of His Highness Karan Lysandro of Tetris.”
“Greetings! I’m Dimitris. Please feel free to call me Dimi!”
Without realizing it, Dimitris shot up and bowed deeply again.
Just as Elise was taken aback by his excessively formal greeting, more than even palace nobles received, Dimitris flustered her further.
“I can lend to you without any collateral. How much do you need? 500 gold pieces? 1000?”
Lending without collateral and the astronomical figures he quoted were far beyond Elise’s expectations.
‘Is this how much His Highness Karan trusts her.’
And for such a famous pawnshop, it seemed too lax. How could they just lend money on merely hearing her name without any verification process?
‘Perhaps they’re confident they can recover it.’
She recalled the rumors that Pawnshop K could revive the dead to recover debts, chasing debtors to the very edge.
‘They must be so confident in recovery that they can be so lax.’
Elise found her own answer to the questions.
“I don’t need quite that much. 300 gold pieces would be sufficient. How much interest? And could the repayment date be set for one month from now?”
“Pardon? Interest? Repayment?”
Dimitris questioned back. Elise’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Seeing that she has to raise the obvious points made her skeptical of the other person.
‘Is this person really the owner?’
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