I Became a Fortune Teller in the Game My Little Sister Made – Chapter 207

“Please foretell my survival after being expelled.”

My smile dimmed slightly at such ominous words.

It was clear that this wouldn’t simply end with a fortune-telling here.

“…So it’s because I’m involved.”

The first to rise from their seat was Lucas.

At first, I hadn’t thought it was that serious; I had come across Lucas midway. But when it came to matters related to Kim Ha-neul, the underlying motives were obvious.

Where would Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul go after dropping out? Of course, to the Daehan Empire royalty.

For some unknown reason, Orkel Andrew was trying to meddle in the affairs of the Daehan Empire royalty.

Simultaneously, Lucas was subtly prompting me to leave this place.

He wasn’t the type to stay here after hearing the words about Kim Ha-neul’s survival.

‘Namgoong Min, just listen.’

‘…Is it a new spell?’

‘It’s a spell that allows communication through thoughts, limited to the physical contact of the target. Since I’m a subordinate of Arthur, I can’t interfere with the issues of the Daehan Empire royalty. But…’

‘Don’t call Eun-ha and Crown Prince Kim Sung-il.’

‘…Why? That guy Orkel seems to be operating in secrecy regarding those two. You might end up in an odd circumstance.’

‘Rather, I see it as an opportunity. Ah, please call Kim Woo-sung instead of those two.’

‘…Alright. I won’t let him in; he’ll wait outside.’

‘Make sure he overhears our conversation.’

‘Okay.’

Kim Eun-ha, Kim Sung-il.

Honestly, talking to those two about issues related to the Daehan Empire royalty would be the best option, but── I still had time.

Since the last faction fight, I had unofficially gained some clout and reputation in the Daehan Empire, and I had even received one of the royal treasures from Kim Sung-il.

Even if it meant being implicated in treason, I could somehow manage to be forgiven and escape through it.

So, rather than promptly informing them, it would be better to figure out what this Orkel guy plans to do before bringing them in.

Yet it was difficult to act alone, so I called upon a reliable ally.

‘Kim Woo-sung is fantastic.’

A second-year student at the Academy, a distant royal of the Daehan Empire, nearly at the forefront among them, with sharp political sense and intuition.

If it’s Kim Woo-sung, he would understand the meaning of the message I had sent through Lucas and would deftly eavesdrop using the <Archer> skill.

The probability of Orkel noticing… Well, Lucas had just used magic right in front of him and he didn’t catch on, so that should be the end of that.

As soon as Lucas completely closed the student council room door and left, Orkel looked at me, wiping any trace of amusement from his face.

“I heard the rumors, but… your connections are impressive, Namgoong Min. A friend of the subordinate of Arthur?”

“They simply regard me well.”

“Well, I’ve heard that subordinate is a complete meritocrat… but, whatever. That doesn’t concern this matter. He is, after all, a subordinate of Arthur.”

“Meaning he’s not affiliated with the Daehan Empire royalty.”

“You are sharp. No need for elaborate words.”

Was it genuine praise, or was he cautious?

Yet in the end, Orkel was the one asking for help, so it would be laughable if he was wary of me. If he was going to be so suspicious, why did he even ask for help in the first place?

‘To pull me into this?’

For now.

Listening to his words was my priority.

“Li-am, that idiot has now been excluded from Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul’s faction. Ever since you and Crown Princess met on that flight, he has effectively been pressured to leave the faction.”

“Hmm…”

“Honestly, it doesn’t matter much. The important thing is that he held on until the end. He managed to cling onto the faction while taking on the toughest tasks. It seems Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul considered this and kept him around. However, recently he secretly transported some documents, and that idiot ended up seeing one of them.”

“…Was it the dropping out application?”

“Exactly. This is it. Though this is a copy… it was brought just yesterday.”

Why on earth would Kim Ha-neul trust such an important document to Liam Andrew, who was on the verge of being kicked out of the faction?

Considering her personality during our encounter on the plane── was she trying to utilize Liam’s desperation in some way?

Having been entrusted with carrying documents, he would surely do his utmost to complete the task.

But if that was indeed the case…

“That’s a rather… foolish choice.”

“Which side are you referring to?”

“Of course, Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul. While the idea of utilizing another’s desperation was good, she failed to consider that person’s loyalty. Look how the dropping out application has been leaked like this.”

“…Hmm, loyalty is indeed a problem.”

“Excuse me?”

“The fact that Liam brought this application to me… was because he wanted Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul not to drop out.”

In other words, he didn’t bring it to threaten Kim Ha-neul for information, or to seize control of the faction after her drop-out.

He just took it to Orkel to prevent Kim Ha-neul from dropping out?

‘Liam is a distant branch of the Andrew family. Judging from his flirting with Liu the other day, he doesn’t seem particularly bright. Considering that he doesn’t even recognize the face of a Rich Tycoon, he’s surely disconnected from political matters and connections.’

So then.

“Are you kidding?”

“Exactly as you’ve guessed. He like, has feelings for Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul. He brought this thinking it would win her affection, isn’t that quite amusing?”

“…Impressive. In many ways.”

“Well, nonetheless, it is an opportunity for us.”

Us?

Was he trying to imply that I would benefit from joining as well? Quite the strategist, he is.

“Fortunately, we have a tad bit of connection to the Daehan Empire royalty. According to my sources, Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul is currently favored by the next Crown Prince, Kim Sung-il.”

“Hmm.”

“I’ve heard you’ve been getting rather friendly with Crown Prince Kim Sung-il and Crown Princess Kim Eun-ha in the Special Class. Couldn’t we say that you just consider it some help for a friend?”

“Umm…”

“So, based on my understanding, after Crown Princess Kim Ha-neul drops out, there’s a high likelihood that once she returns to the Daehan Empire…”

“Exile, imprisonment.”

“Or even silencing her.”

“…Aren’t you overstepping? The prestige of the royal family will surely plummet.”

“That’s precisely the goal. Of course, there would be a plethora of hunting dogs ready to carry out such tasks for the royal family, but is it a problem to raise just one more?”

“……”

I had been probing several times, but this confirmed it.

“So what do you want from me?”

“I told you from the start, didn’t I? I just want a skilled fortuneteller. Someone who can predict my future.”

Orkel seemed to desire my involvement in this matter.

Despite the pretext of fortunes and whatnot, ultimately.

He wanted the fortuneteller known as Namgoong Min to be involved.

‘Why is that?’

What could possibly be the benefit of including me in this?

Well, there are those in the royal family who know me. They know I hold complete trust from both Kim Sung-il and Kim Ha-neul. Interestingly, even in the highest echelons of the royal family, only a select few are aware of my existence, so if they realize I am behind the Andrew family’s affairs, everything should work out fine.

The seven ministers, The Oppressor, and even the dictatorship—they all must know my name.

However, Orkel couldn’t know that. This meant he was seeing my value in a different light.

What could that possibly be?

“…It feels too burdensome; I’m still inexperienced and young, so I hesitate.”

“I trust the insight of President Lily. After all, the Crown Prince acted during the student council presidential election, didn’t he?”

Shit, so that was it.

It seems Orkel has deduced that my friendship with Kim Sung-il is of considerable magnitude based on that incident.

Indeed, I may have gone a bit too far back then… but I couldn’t resist 30 billion.

‘So, I’m essentially insurance. Even if something were to go wrong, I could somehow survive using my friendship with Kim Sung-il as leverage.’

Would things turn out so smoothly? That seems unlikely.

However, it could be a chance to deal with Kim Ha-neul and become a hunting dog for the royal family. If I succeed, that would be fantastic, but if I fail, the entire Andrew family would likely face some repercussions.

Essentially, Orkel was gambling the entirety of his family on a once-in-a-lifetime bet.

In such a gamble, if there’s even a slight chance of survival after failure, then obviously, he would try to grasp it.

This confirmed it.

Even if I resisted a bit, Orkel would definitely try to hold onto me.

‘Are you trying to play it cheap by pretending to just receive a fortune?’

This Orkel is quite a character. I can’t even fathom why he’s behaving so slimy next to Lily.

Yet, it was simultaneously infuriating.

He intended to use me unilaterally, didn’t he? I couldn’t allow that.

“So, about the fortune…”

“100 billion.”

“What?”

“It seems you really desire my fortune, Orkel senior, so I have no choice but to do my utmost. Naturally, I have to charge a hefty price.”

“…President Lily only needed 30 billion!”

“If this matter is lighter than the student council presidential election, then that’s fine by me.”

I casually threw out a jab. I was already fully aware of his schemes, so hand it over obediently.

Orkel seemed to sense this as well, but no matter what, 100 billion was still a hefty sum, and he wore a hesitant expression.

“Still, paying 100 billion for a fortune seems…”

“If what Orkel senior plans to do requires that level of endeavor, and you seek to gain momentum, it’s only natural to receive a fair price.”

“How about 50 billion?”

“100 billion.”

“60 billion…?”

“100 billion.”

“70 billion! I can’t go any further! I’ve already exhausted the family’s cash on that amount!”

“100 billion.”

“80 billion…!! This is really my limit! My limit!!”

“100 billion.”

“Fine! This is insane, 100 billion!!”

“Okay, thank you!”

*

“So, did you really secure a promise of 100 billion?”

“I had him write a check on the spot. Check it.”

“……It’s real. Incredible.”

“Now you won’t kick me out due to debts again, right?”

“I truly apologize for that! It triggered my traumas!”

“Trauma?”

“Even being a distant royal, there are times when debts leave you no choice.”

On the way back to the base.

After joining with Kim Woo-sung, who had been waiting outside, we exchanged some casual banter.

Kim Woo-sung’s role in the upcoming events was particularly crucial.

“So what do you think?”

“If you, Namgoong Min-nim, have decided, I will follow whatever it is…”

“Do you think it’s a foolish thing? I think so too.”

“………….”

“So be honest with me.”

“…If I may ask one thing: why did you accept this?”

“Hmm.”

“Of course, I know that Namgoong Min-nim is very close with the Crown Prince and Princess. Even if Orkel’s plan were to fail, you would certainly pocket the 100 billion and be assured of your safety.”

“Then isn’t that fine?”

“In return, you’ll inevitably be under suspicion. Not by the Crown Prince and Princess, but by their subordinates.”

“………….”

Thinking back, that had indeed been the case when I first got involved with Eun-ha.

While Kim Sung-il regards Eun-ha as family and a sister, his close aides see her as a rival for the next emperor.

As a result, they sent assassination threats, and even if they didn’t kill her, they ensured she didn’t appear on the official stage.

If things could happen to a direct royal like Eun-ha, how much more for a fortuneteller?

Historically, if a fortuneteller was a close friend of the emperor, and that fortuneteller profited from their friendship, would there not be those trying to kill the fortuneteller, claiming the emperor had fallen for them?

“And I’m sure Namgoong Min-nim must be aware of this.”

“You’re overestimating me.”

“If it were truly an overestimation, I wouldn’t be here as your subordinate. So, what do you plan to do?”

“Umm.”

What am I going to do?

Well, obviously.

“About that 100 billion.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t you think it’s a little low?”

“………Huh?”

“Honestly, I’ve been troubled about my debts, so this turned out well.”

Regrettably enough, my deal with Orkel was solely to read fortunes.

So even if I engage in other schemes, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?

“Let’s get moving.”

“…Where do you intend to go?”

“Where do you think?”

To meet Liam Andrew.

“First, I need to talk to the culprit behind this.”

How much does that blonde tanning idiot have?

Deception, and fraud.

Things I had always despised.

──Junior, life is troubled.

──At least from my perspective, junior, you’re making splendid progress.

With those words of encouragement from the ‘senpai,’ I would do my utmost.

…While also trying to pay off my debts as much as possible.