I Became a Fortune Teller in the Game My Little Sister Made – Chapter 18

“That’s the answer, the answer.”

Crown Princess Kim Eun-ha frowned as if her head were spinning from shock.

What kind of answer were they expecting? Did they want me to admit it out loud?

…It’s frustrating, but I couldn’t deny that the initiative had already slipped into the hands of that fortuneteller.

“That was intentional.”

“Intentional… you say?”

“This card, it can’t just be coincidence.”

So I had no choice but to charge head-on.

The <Strength> card drawn at this very moment could not simply be deemed a chance occurrence; just mathematically speaking, that was one out of 78 tarot cards.

Of course, the fortuneteller’s intent had to be involved. Whether it was sleight of hand or divination, the result was unmistakable.

Major Arcana #8, <Strength>.

It seemed to tell the secret that bound her all at once.

That was why she had to go even stronger.

“What do you want?”

“………”

“The answer you know, what do you want by spending your whole life keeping quiet about it?”

Kim Eun-ha boldly threw down a blank check. The fortuneteller seemed slightly bewildered by her unexpected response, tilting her smiling face.

I felt a thrill at having landed a punch against her calm demeanor, but most importantly, since she had taken a step back, this reaction was anticipated.

‘There’s no need to poke the bear unnecessarily.’

She wasn’t a fool. This was actually an opportunity.

What if that fortuneteller revealed the secret of the answer to foreign countries or press? Though it could be smoothed over eventually, it would still be a hassle, and the nation would have to concede significantly.

Naturally, neither she nor the imperial family wanted that. If possible, it would be much cheaper to just give her what she wanted and silence her.

“Money? I could offer you even billions.”

“Honor? I could advocate for you at the imperial level. I could make you the most famous fortuneteller in the world, surpassing the Unified Daehan Empire.”

“Women? I’ll present you with all sorts of beauties. If there’s an unattainable woman, I’ll assist until she’s within reach, or if you just want to break her, I will cooperate.”

“So just tell me.”

What do you want?

Her sharp and confident gaze faced the fortuneteller. Despite being in a subordinate position, at some point, she had regained control of the conversation.

This fortuneteller must have had a desire that prompted her to approach with the Crown Princess’s secret. And the Crown Princess had the means to grant whatever she wanted.

She was the Crown Princess of the Unified Daehan Empire, someone who stands above and does not beg for mercy below.

Even if pushed into a corner, Kim Eun-ha would always remain dignified.

The smile of Namgoong Min, watching her, deepened.

“What I want is but one thing.”

“Speak.”

“I would like your assistance.”

“So, what do you want help with?”

No, more importantly, he needed to contact the imperial family first.

He had to hurry and call the <The Mediator>, who could enforce their promises…

“What do you mean? Didn’t I mention it earlier?”

“………. Yes?”

“We need to break down the walls. That’s why I said I need the Princess’s power.”

“………”

──What does that even mean?

Is she trying to deceive me? Does she mean that this deal is inadequate? Is she threatening me to humble myself?

……… Or does she really mean that? Not money, honor, or women? Just that?

“I don’t like jokes in this situation.”

“Oh, if you took that as a joke, then that would be my mistake. Ahem, then let me say it again.”

Suddenly, Kim Eun-ha realized.

This fortuneteller… had shown only smiles since the moment they met until now.

Making playful remarks. Threatening her. She presented the conditions. And even now, as she opened her mouth again.

All she could see was the smile.

‘…Then how is that different from an emotionless face?’

For a very brief moment, just a fleeting second.

Kim Eun-ha felt that this fortuneteller was … scary.

“I need the Crown Princess’s power.”

The hand passed over with a smile.

“Let’s all break down the walls and escape!”

The even wider smile and her lively words.

“……….”

Unable to fathom her intentions.

That was why she…

*

Bang! Bang! Bang!!!

“Break through! No matter what, break through!”

“Mages! Where’s the magic?!”

“There’s too much debris here!”

“Smash it somehow!!!”

‘Damn it.’

Liu Yan desperately looked up at the sky, tossing all sorts of supplies from her possession.

Current time, 11:59. Just under a minute left.

All that remained was a single wall. Through the cracks and shudders of the crumbling wall, the outside of the maze could be seen.

“Damn it! Hurry up and eat this!”

“Th-thank you, Liu Yan!”

“Shut up and run after you eat!”

Why was I moving so eagerly── that question had long since flown out of my mind.

This was a transaction; she had agreed to cooperate with Namgoong Min in exchange for hearing his secret.

‘That’s all there is to it!’

What did it mean to the students, all striving desperately for a single goal?

After all, this was likely to lead to failure. That fortuneteller had said that would happen…

“Everyone back off! The magic is ready…!”

“That’s Lucas’s orders! Everyone step away from the wall!”

“Everyone, back off!!!”

As Lucas, leading the mages, shivered and squeezed out mana to complete the magic, the mages behind him were no different.

In an instant, dozens of magical circles rose into the air, releasing dozens of spells proportionately.

Boom!! Crash!!!

“Get out of the way!!”

“R-Rain…!”

Rain Arthur halted the debris of the crumbling wall in midair and hurled it back into the wall.

Teleporting quickly, using telepathy to command students to retreat, and reinforcing everything with psychokinesis.

In a way, that girl might truly be the protagonist of this place, Liu thought absentmindedly.

“Charge! Even if you get hit by those fragments, it’ll just knock you out temporarily!”

“Follow Sasaki! The combat jobs should bump bodies! Non-combat jobs can throw stones!!”

“There’s one minute left! Just one minute!! We can’t stop here!!”

Students wielding swords, those with hammers, and even bare-fisted students, even non-combat classes, all charged toward the wall.

“For sure!! We will escape!!!”

“……Right.”

Wait, what did I just say? Liu was startled and covered her mouth.

Did I just resonate with them? Those guys? Without even doubting?

Liu stared blankly ahead.

The fortuneteller had said it would be hard to reach the last wall.

…Little by little, the last wall was crumbling.

“We did it!”

“Who just said that? Which bastard said that!”

“Has it collapsed?”

“I didn’t mean to say flip it!”

“Please just break down!!”

“This is annoyingly solid!”

But the last wall remained in place.

Despite the onslaught of all sorts of magic and physicality, and the impacts, it still stood.

“Damn it!!”

Initially there to keep an eye on the fortuneteller, but now the warlock, having poured everything into magic, was on her knees.

“Haa… Haa…”

The psychic, having pushed her body to the point of no job skills left, was panting heavily.

“……Damn it.”

“Agh, seriously!”

“It… won’t break….”

The swordsman and other students, battered by debris and rubble, fell.

“……Those guys.”

And the rich tycoon, who had been watching the whole scene alone, clenched his fist unknowingly.

“Where the hell is she?”

Though he inwardly knew she wasn’t one to run away. Yet, ultimately, wasn’t she absent from this very spot?

Liu poured out her resentment. Doubting the fortuneteller.

Having tasted hope for a moment, despair felt all the more profound.

For just a fleeting instant, as she escaped the madness of suspicion, she was again submerged in the delusion of doubt. More intensely, more deeply──

“That damn fortuneteller! She planned this from the beginning, scheming against everyone!”

“Against everyone, what do you mean?”

“Of course, she would abandon everyone! Run… away…!”

“Who? Me?”

──Before she could sink in further, a single fortuneteller stopped her.

“Uh… huh?”

“I’ve arrived, Liu. There’s not much time, so I’ll explain later!”

With the same smile she always wore, Namgoong Min passed by her.

Liu merely watched the back of him running away.

“Everyone! Truly, you’ve all worked hard; without you, we wouldn’t have gotten this far!”

“I-I’m Namgoong Min!?”

“The fortuneteller! The fortuneteller has arrived!”

“Hey! You started this, so think of something! There’s less than a minute left, not even twenty seconds!”

“Haha, don’t worry. I’ve brought the resolver!”

…Resolver?

The students, upon hearing Namgoong Min’s voice, murmured the strange title absentmindedly.

Just as Namgoong Min reached out towards the wall, a shadow leaped above him.

“Go! Crown Princess Punch! Crown Princess Punch!”

“Don’t call it like that!”

The wall, which neither the warlock, the psychic, nor the rich tycoon, nor hundreds of students could break.

A single fist swung toward the still-standing wall.

When the frail, delicate arm collided with the wall—

Boommmmm!!!

“I-It’s… breaking?”

“The wall! The wall is breaking!!”

“Who is that! Who the hell is that?!”

“Wasn’t the fortuneteller talking about the Crown Princess Punch?”

“……..Crown Princess? Kim Eun-ha, the Crown Princess?”

The wall, which had remained stubborn, now crumbled like a cookie.

Having experienced firsthand how solid that damn wall was, the sight looked even more unreal.

In a way, it could be called futile.

But what the students felt was entirely different.

“It… broke!!!!”

“It flew away! Just like paper, it flew away!!”

“Crown Princess Punch! Crown Princess Punch! Crown Princess Punch!”

“That girl is a goddess!”

As the last wall stood steadfast, and the more it bore up against all assaults, the students’ despair only grew.

It was only natural for them to be thrilled by the Crown Princess, who had blown all those negative feelings away with a single strike.

“There’s no time to celebrate! Let’s hurry and get out!!”

“R-Right! There’s no time!”

“Everyone run! Squeeze out the last of your strength!!”

“Anyone still with energy, grab the ones who can’t move!!”

“Don’t forget the mages, either!”

Yet, it was still too early to feel joy. As soon as Namgoong Min’s orders snapped the students back to reality, they hurried into action.

These were the students who had fought against the common foe, the wall, for a full hour. They were not just looking out for themselves but helping others who had fallen or were exhausted.

Some sense of camaraderie must have emerged.

Liu was led away by other mages, while the fallen Rain was taken away by her faction’s students.

And Liu…

“Did you bring the Crown Princess?”

“Exactly. Who else could be better than the Crown Princess in this situation?”

“Haha. Normally, no one would even think about that, you crazy bastard. You brought the Crown Princess to break the wall? What a lunatic…”

Liu, who was chuckling at Namgoong Min’s confident words, soon cast an uncertain look at him.

“What did you do?”

“What?”

“The Kim Eun-ha I know would never engage in this for free. She’s a definite ‘give-and-take’ person.”

“………..”

“She must have paid a price. What was it?”

“Ahem, that part is no comment…”

Well, knowing this fortuneteller, I expected her to say that. She wouldn’t reveal it easily.

But.

From having been on the receiving end of that smile too many times, I wanted to twist that smile at least once.

“I’ll help.”

“…Excuse me?”

“I’ll cover the price you paid to the Crown Princess.”

Dusting off her clothes as if it were nothing, Liu Yan looked up at Namgoong Min.

No matter how much that price was, it was pocket change for Liu. If she didn’t want to spend it, she could easily hide the cost like last time; if she decided to use it, whether it’s hundreds of millions, billions, or even trillions, she could easily spend it.

Considering her total wealth, it wouldn’t be a significant expense. It would be the kind of amount she would recuperate in the stock market after a bit of time.

If it meant serving him a slap in the face over that damn smile of his, it was definitely a worthwhile venture.

That’s why she said it.

“Oh. Um.”

For the first time, Liu Yan saw the surprised expression on Namgoong Min’s face.

“Why? Did I surprise you by saying this is something I would never say?”

“N-no. It’s just that…”

“But what of it? What will you do if I just act as I like?”

“I-really? That can’t be…”

Namgoong Min was a prime object of suspicion. Both his capability and nature posed enough of a threat to Liu Yan herself.

This implies there was also some deliberate intent in approaching him.

She couldn’t leave it to those other suspicious fellows. The information I find out myself would be the most reliable.

…And Liu Yan felt she was beginning to understand Namgoong Min a bit.

Not from the words on the report discovered in her investigation, but.

About the ‘real’ Namgoong Min.

“You… are surprisingly weak to this, huh?”

“N-no, I’m not.”

“No, you are. I can see your eyes rolling. What’s the matter? You’ve got a debt to pay off and want it erased?”

“Why are you doing this to me!”

Liu Yan smiled brightly.

It was a grin that seemed familiar from somewhere—a sly smile.