I Became a Fortune Teller in the Game My Little Sister Made – Chapter 11

I decided to think that good is good.

“What exactly is good…?”

The unbearable feeling of self-loathing surged up, making even that hard to bear.

Well, I can mess up when handing out tarot cards. I’m not a fortune-teller or anything; I’m just moving my hands while looking at the opponent, so mistakes can happen.

But why did I have to give such a card?

“Why did I have to draw the Lovers card?”

Did I just ask if she ‘understood?’ ‘Just keep it in mind’ after handing over the Lovers card?

In that moment, my complexion turned pale from the waves of self-loathing crashing over me.

…But why did Rain not say anything even after seeing the Lovers card?

“Oh, was she going to say something?”

No wonder she hesitated before leaving; it must have been because of that.

Probably, she couldn’t say anything to me because of how shy she was and just left. I genuinely felt sorry for Rain.

“But now to clarify…it’s…?”

Meeting privately with Rain and saying, “The Lovers card was a mistake, I actually meant to give you the Clown card that you’re traumatized by, haha,” how could I possibly say that?

It’s not just that I could die from embarrassment, but showing that side of me could get me labeled as a ‘weakling’ in her eyes.

It’s better to be misunderstood than that.

“I’m glad I’m a guy.”

If I had been reincarnated as a female protagonist, it would’ve been a huge deal. Being a guy is lucky, but the desire to kill that crazy girl is only growing.

When I return to reality, I’ll definitely grab her by the collar and drag her home.

Anyway, as the male protagonist, all connections and events beyond a romantic interest should be locked off, so there shouldn’t really be any issues with the Lovers card…Since Rain’s personality means she probably won’t directly ask me why I gave it to her, I should be able to handle this appropriately…right?

As I executed my mental victory laps and managed to suppress my self-loathing, I finally took a proper look around.

Blackout curtains surrounded me, the floor looked luxurious, there was a purple tablecloth, a reasonably sized round table, and candlesticks illuminating the dim interior.

“This is quite an impressive fortune teller’s shop.”

When I first received my skills, I was unsure, but this could definitely be used until I build a real fortune teller’s shop.

The only downside is I have to wait three hours to re-enter once I leave? But that’s not bad considering it’s essentially passing through different dimensions—three hours is quite reasonable.

It would have been nice if I could just sleep here, but lying down is too cramped, and since I managed to squeeze out 200 million from kind Liu, there’s no real need to linger here.

“I should probably head back.”

I was worried about running into Rain if I rushed out too quickly, so I had been stalling, but I should be fine to leave now.

As I drew back the blackout curtains and stepped back onto the alleyway, I quickly hid and looked around.

“…Nobody, right?”

After confirming a few times that Rain was definitely not around, I sighed and stepped back onto the main street.

It was still midday, and it was about time to look for my original target.

“First, I have one skill left.”

Out of the three skill slots, the ones currently occupied are the job skill, Fortune Telling, and the general skill, My Own Little Fortune Teller’s Shop. Cleanliness doesn’t take up a slot, so I don’t need to worry about that.

Eventually, I’ll have to replace My Own Little Fortune Teller’s Shop with another skill, but for now, it’s sufficient. The skill slot is down to one, and I already have picked out what I want to learn.

“Let’s go.”

First stop was the hardware store.

*

The royal quarters for the royalty at Romance Academy.

Romance Academy is far from a place of equal education. The very prerequisite for admission is being a ‘job holder,’ which constitutes only a minuscule portion of the world’s population, with some exceptional cases allowed as students.

However, they cannot be utterly discriminatory towards the students, so they adopt a stance of letting everyone from upper-class to lower-class find their own place and attend classes on their own.

Even so, an empire as powerful as the Unified Daehan Empire, especially with royalty, has dedicated buildings even within the academy.

The level of luxury—including splendor, size, facilities, staff, and all—that is miles above the norm is at the top tier of this already elite location.

“Damn it.”

Crown Princess Kim Eun-ha of the Unified Daehan Empire was internally cursing out loud.

To be more precise, she was feeling disgusted.

“So you’re asking me to help you with your love life?”

“Yes, I’m counting on you, little sister.”

What on earth is this idiot talking about right in front of me?

As her biological brother tried to speak as gently as he could, Kim Eun-ha barely managed to choke down the bile rising within her.

“…Older Brother. You seem a bit unwell. Maybe you should sit down while I fetch someone…”

“No, it’s only my heart that’s racing like a madman.”

“Ah, haha…is that so…”

No, you’re not the type to use such sentimental expressions.

Kim Eun-ha seriously considered whether to smack the head of the Crown Prince Kim Sung-il, who was half-bowing in front of her.

She thought he wanted to talk about the Unified Daehan Empire’s status, the Special Class, or maybe even heir rights, but—

“Love advice? Has my brother truly lost it?”

Perhaps I was hallucinating.

She thought it might be better if I were.

Letting her hair be tugged or pinching her tongue didn’t change the fact that the brother in front of her remained the same.

…Okay, let’s gather our thoughts.

“Older brother, is this someone you’ve liked for a long time?”

“No!! The moment I saw her, my heart started pounding intensely…!”

“Don’t speak like that! It’s truly revolting!”

If they were in the imperial palace, she would have just beaten him up. But, in the academy, where there are many eyes and ears, she couldn’t act normally.

Kim Eun-ha barely restrained her fist that was on the verge of flying out and sighed internally.

But he fell in love at first sight?

…No way.

“What, if this is hypothetical. You’re not talking about a girl you fell for after taking your dedicated exam today, are you?”

“That’s right!! I knew it was a good idea to consult you!”

Damn it.

It felt like the situation had soured well beyond bearable, and Kim Eun-ha frantically gestured off to the side.

…She sent a signal, hoping that the attendants would block any potential eavesdropping or information leaks, whether by physical or magical means.

However, this isn’t the Daehan Empire, and in a place like Romance Academy, where people from all over the world convene, they couldn’t drag this out for long. She needed to wrap this up quickly.

If all else fails, she’d resolved to physically knock him out just to finish the discussion, and she turned her gaze to Kim Sung-il.

“Speak. From beginning to end.”

“Well, it was when I was trying to pass my dedicated exam and looking around. It wasn’t quite as good as the palace, but the garden was rather well-maintained, which made me feel somewhat nice. I thought I could secure the top spot, and while savoring the garden’s beauty, a pigeon suddenly landed right in front of me! It was sudden, but I cleverly responded—:”

Crunch!

Muttering as she crushed an apple solely with her grip, Kim Eun-ha interjected.

“Summarize.”

“Uh, yeah! I was just walking after the exam was over!”

“Next?”

“Right! Well, while I was walking like that, the sunlight suddenly became harsh. So, I shielded my eyes and happened to glance up! At that very moment, a female student was rushing somewhere from a building balcony! At first, I clicked my tongue at her lack of manners, but it was truly a bold act. With her long hair flowing and an alluring charm, she rushed ahead and then—”

Snap.

At the ominous sound, Kim Sung-il stopped speaking and looked down, only to find a massive crack forming on the table before him and his sister.

Realizing that the next item to crack could be his bones, Kim Sung-il hastily dialed back his speech.

“To summarize, I fell in love at first sight when I saw her.”

“The first in line for the Unified Daehan Empire throne fell in love at first sight with some female student at the academy? This is no romance novel…”

“First in line or whatever, it doesn’t matter! I’m serious about her!”

“Older Brother, please cut the nonsense. If I become empress, I might just banish you to an island first.”

“Okay, got it.”

“…Huh.”

Kim Eun-ha closed her eyes, seemingly contemplating, and seeing that her mood was shifting, Kim Sung-il straightened up in apparent tension.

Although he was born before her, years of relentless physical training had created a habit of reflexively defaulting to a somber demeanor.

When the princess who had just threatened the future emperor opened her eyes, she asked,

“Who is she?”

“Uh, hm?”

“The female student. You’ve already looked into it, haven’t you? With the imperial authority being strong enough now, if the qualifications are met, you could take her as a concubine.”

“Y-yeah! Thanks, little sister!”

As soon as she permitted, Kim Sung-il momentarily forgot his antics and rejoiced, while Kim Eun-ha let out a hollow laugh.

Seeing her biological brother and future emperor ask for permission to marry someone when he was actually ranked higher in the line of succession than her was quite a bizarre scene.

But since Kim Eun-ha was the behind-the-scenes power of the imperial family, it was inevitable.

Her brother Kim Sung-il was able to be the first heir because she, who had no particular interest in the imperial throne, had yielded.

“So who is she? Preferably someone from the Daehan Empire.”

What Kim Eun-ha was worrying about was that aspect. If it was someone from a faraway country, then even a concubine would have little political benefit given the emperor’s prospective marriage.

Japan, where relations had been improving lately, would be a pretty good option, but if they were from countries like China or Russia, things would get too complicated.

Well, considering the current strong imperial authority, marrying someone shouldn’t be an issue, but it would cause considerable backlash and political shock internally.

Still, being a brother, he should at least be able to handpick one woman to truly love without regard to political gain.

Yet now, rather than complicating matters, her wise brother came to consult her directly when he could have easily just handled it…just as she was about to sip more of her tea.

“I don’t know!”

“………What?”

“No, I guess it’s the truth that I don’t want to know. I fell for her, not because of her background or upbringing! I don’t need to investigate to show that love can overcome such things!”

“……Wow.”

Kim Eun-ha was genuinely impressed by Kim Sung-il’s brave declaration.

After all, he was declaring that he was willing to get hit for his freedom.

“Older brother?”

“Huh?”

“Then can you overcome this too with love?”

“What do you—──—Guh!”

Before he could even respond to Kim Eun-ha’s question, her fist swiftly landed on Kim Sung-il’s abdomen.

Boom!!!

He flew like a cannonball, crashing into the wall and creating a significant crack.

She stood up, prepared to land a few more blows, but once she confirmed he was limp against the wall, she clicked her tongue.

“Tsk, how weak for a guy.”

“Mon…ster….”

Bam!!!

…Well, he really fainted.

Cracking her knuckles a few times, Kim Eun-ha left the now artfully decorated state of her brother and stood on the balcony.

Caught in a dilemma that needed solving, she let out a deep sigh, one that only grew more prominent the more she thought about it.

“First…I need to look into that female student, and if I claim the wall was an accident, the academy won’t fuss too much about it…Also, I really need to educate my brother about proper conduct…”

Although there were several reasons, she had given up her aspirations for the crown based on her brother’s competence; somehow, it felt like her tasks were multiplying instead of diminishing.

It was infuriating, should I just hit him again?

After careful consideration, deciding to land just three more punches, she clenched her fist again at that moment.

“…Ah.”

Fortunately for Kim Sung-il, a certain individual, who had constantly been on her nerves, caught her attention.

A male student in a red shirt and black suit, carrying something while walking somewhere, donned in white gloves.

Fortuneteller, Namgoong Min.

“The Academy’s…second-best.”

With royalty like hers, they were expected to deliver exceptional results wherever they went.

Thus, it hadn’t been for naught that she had trained that brother of hers from a number of years ago since the moment the academy admission exam was confirmed. After all, future emperors needed to at least secure top positions.

“He’s someone who’s even beaten me.”

Right, she had intentionally given up her claim to the throne, so to avoid any chatter about it, she couldn’t be superior to him. But of course, that didn’t mean she could compromise on her entrance.

Naturally, Kim Eun-ha aimed to place second. With Crown Prince Kim Sung-il taking the first place, she would elegantly join in as the second, thus enhancing the royal status within the Unified Daehan Empire.

“…But it’s curious.”

While she was eyeing the results for exactly when she’d be taking second place, Namgoong Min had already disappeared somewhere when she passed through.

Well, it wasn’t a significant concern. Eventually, Namgoong Min was a citizen of the Unified Daehan Empire, and the Crown Prince hadn’t chosen to take first place, so her achieving the second rank was a ‘should be nice’ level.

The doubts brewing in her mind were regarding Namgoong Min’s capabilities.

“A fortuneteller is second?”

Among the few job holders, the one considered the ‘most useless’ class is the Fortune Teller. Its core job skill is so inferior that it merely makes the job holder more physically capable than regular people—end of story.

Yet he was second with that? Kim Eun-ha’s eyes gleamed ominously.

Fortuneteller Namgoong Min became a figure worth remembering, at least as a fellow classmate in the same class.

As the princess followed Namgoong Min’s steps, her gaze suddenly halted.

“…Hmm?”

She spotted him pulling out a shovel and pickaxe from the bulky load on his back and starting to dig up a perfectly fine flower bed.

Surrounding pedestrians glanced at him as though he were some crazy lunatic, and while he was in the midst of digging, the academy guards rushed over to intervene.

Eventually, they physically dragged him away with his arms subdued.

“What on earth is this…?”

His abilities and now his actions.

He was indeed a fortuneteller filled with questions.