KFBRV Ch 42
- Jan 25
- 6 min read
The Kleist Bank
It was a building that looked more like an opera house than a bank. The structure appeared practical, yet it never sacrificed aesthetic beauty—a perfect reflection of its master.
She stopped her horse in front of the building, which reminded her of the Beaux-Arts style she had studied during her life as Han Suwan.
[Odette] "Whoa, easy now."
Dismounting, she bit her lip as she checked a watch engraved with the crest of the Marquis von Kleist through the fine mesh of her veil. It was already eleven o'clock. She was much later than she had intended to be.
The delay was entirely Theodore’s fault. When she had tried to lead the children out of the containment zone, he had screamed in a fit of rage. He could not accept the fact that only Karl was being left behind.
[Theodore] "Everyone is wary of Karl! They’re clearly planning to kill him!"
The boy had wept, convinced that she intended to murder Karl.
Persuading him had been an exhausting ordeal that drained her of all her energy. If Karl had not eventually knocked the boy out with a swift strike to the back of the neck, it would have been long past midnight by now.
She rubbed her shoulder, which was bruised from Theodore's struggling, and pulled a letter from her pocket.
I’ll just ask the bank manager to deliver this to Zion and head straight back to the mansion.
She gripped the letter she had scribbled hastily while on the train. The core of the message was simple: she wished to purchase every scrap of information the Marquis held regarding Karl.
That wretched man would undoubtedly demand a steep price in return, but she needed to send the letter before the day ended. Gathering and organizing such information would take time, after all.
Zion had once mentioned in a letter that if she ever needed anything, she should go to the bank and show them the necklace.
The effect of the jewelry was immediate. The moment the private soldiers guarding the main entrance saw the necklace she presented, their posture shifted instantly.
[Guard] "Please wait here for just a moment!"
The guard hurried inside and returned shortly with the bank manager in tow. The manager, a man in his mid-thirties, practically ran into the lobby and bowed a full ninety degrees to her.
[Max] "Greetings, my lady. I am Max Kleist, the manager of the Capital Bank. Please follow me; I will escort you to the VIP reception room."
Behind her veil, she blinked in surprise. She had not expected this.
To think the manager of the capital branch is Max.
She recognized his face. He was a character she had encountered in the game's "Zion Route." As a collateral relative and the third son of the Marquis von Kleist, he was a man with no title to inherit.
His character setting mentioned he was gifted with economic savvy, but I never imagined he would be working this closely with Zion.
This was because Max was one of the antagonists in Zion’s route. He had been a staunch opponent of Zion's marriage to a commoner like Charlotte, arguing that it was madness for the head of the Marquis family. He had even suggested Zion take her as a mistress instead. Despite Zion repeatedly telling him to be silent, Max had remained stubborn until the end, resulting in Zion stripping him of the Kleist name entirely.
They must have been on good terms originally, if Zion trusted him with the capital bank.
Then again, perhaps Zion felt he had to sever such close ties to prove his sincere love for Charlotte.
[Odette] "This is our first meeting. It is a pleasure to meet you, Max."
She greeted him as if she didn't know him and held out the letter.
[Odette] "There is no need for the reception room. My business here is quite brief. I simply wish to have this letter delivered to His Excellency as quickly as possible. That is all."
This would be incomparably faster than using the central post office. The Kleist Bank surely maintained its own private communication lines between branches. However, he shook his head with a troubled expression.
[Max] "I have orders from His Excellency. He specified that any matter involving the lady carrying that necklace must be handled by him personally after a face-to-face meeting."
This is inconvenient. I don’t have enough time for a personal meeting.
[Max] "His Excellency has sent word that he will arrive within five minutes. I beg you, please allow me to settle you in the reception room."
Given his firm stance, she had little choice.
Five minutes or so should be fine.
[Odette] "Very well. Please lead the way."
She followed him toward the reception room.
Upstairs, Max glared at the Marquis with a look of utter disgust.
[Max] "What kind of new madness is this?"
[Zion] "Shut up."
[Max] "Do I look like I’m in a position to shut up? The Chairman, whose only redeeming quality is his punctuality, is currently sitting here wasting time like a fool."
Max checked his pocket watch once more, his anxiety growing. It was nearly midnight. Despite his confident promise that the Marquis would arrive in five minutes, Lady Albrecht had been waiting for almost an hour.
If he was going to be like this, I should have just taken the letter myself.
Max grumbled internally.
The reception room where the veiled lady waited was directly on the floor below them. Max could not fathom why Zion, who had arrived long ago, was wasting time in the manager's office.
[Max] "Why are you in such a foul mood anyway? Didn't you just spend the evening happily tormenting Count Albrecht at the Imperial Palace?"
Max was certain that Zion had toyed with the Count. He had likely promised to meet any condition if the Count would just get the Crown Prince purified.
Starting tomorrow, he would probably continue the "hope torture," telling the Count that while this current berserk episode had passed, it could happen again, and that he would provide the promised reward for purification in advance.
While Count Albrecht was busy being filled with false hope, Zion’s subordinates were working hard to launder the Count’s illegal funds. Every bit of that cleaned money was being funneled into the vaults of the Kleist Bank.
With things going so well, what reason could Zion possibly have to be in such a bad mood?
[Max] "Seriously, if you were going to act like this, why did you come charging over here thirty seconds after the news like an excited monkey?"
He found it ridiculous to see Zion sitting in the high seat of the office, flipping through documents as if he had suddenly become a brooding philosopher.
He had suspected something was wrong when the "reading monster" began scanning the pages so slowly.
[Max] "If you’re going to read those documents, at least do it properly. Why are you reading them upside down?"
At his question, Zion uttered a foolish sound of realization and flipped the papers back over.
[Zion] "...Ah."
Even then, the way he kept his head stubbornly lowered reminded Max of a sulky child.
It was a word Max never thought he would associate with his cousin, who had always been a world-class bastard.
[Max] "I am asking you! Exactly! When! Are you going? She is right downstairs! Downstairs! Why are you wasting time here? Your personality might be the worst in the empire, but at least you never break an appointment. That was your only strength, wasn't it?!"
[Zion] "I told you to shut up. I can’t go."
[Max] "Huh? Why not? Did you break your leg or something?"
He looked at Max with an expression of pity and let out a long sigh.
Is he crazy? I’m the one who should be pitying him.
Max grumbled to himself.
Exhausted, he complained.
[Max] "Good grief. I’m the one who’s going to look like a liar to that beautiful lady. You really are a selfish piece of work."
Even knowing her reputation as a villainess, he found Odette to be exceptionally beautiful. He was genuinely worried that he would appear incompetent to her.
He recalled the lady in the reception room and clicked his tongue. He remembered how shocked he had been when she removed her veiled hat, and he realized the person holding the necklace was Odette.
That upright posture, those polite pleasantries—he couldn't believe such a sophisticated person was the villainess from the rumors. His face had burned with embarrassment when she had rung the bell after thirty minutes of waiting and quietly asked.
[Odette] "I wonder when His Excellency might arrive?"
[Max] "Fine. Forget it. I give up. The Marquis has always been emotional whenever the name Odette is involved."
He noticed Zion’s arm flinch.
[Max] "I know all too well how much you loathe her. From your perspective, you probably can't even stand the sight of her face."
[Zion] "That isn't it. It's not like that."
He denied it immediately in a suppressed voice, but Max took that as a confirmation.
Max figured that for a man who wasn't just obsessed with time but practically had a phobia of being late, there had to be a reason for this.
Despite checking his watch dozens of times with an anxious expression, Zion still couldn't bring himself to face Odette.
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