"What is justice? The justice we see is always veiled and obscured. To witness true justice, you must summon your own courage! Only then can you see the justice that belongs to you!"

The middle-aged man stood before me, his face radiating unwavering righteousness as he spoke passionately.

"So that’s your excuse for peeping at the women’s bathhouse??"

I stood to the side, gripping the rope that bound him.

"Exactly! For me, breasts are justice!!!"

The uncle remained utterly solemn.

"Alright~~ We’ve got his confession! It’s definitely him!!"

I turned and handed the rope to the guard.

"Don’t block my path to justice~~ You hypocritical commoners~~~ Help~~ I don’t want to go in~~~ I can’t stand seeing hairy chests in prison~~~"

The righteous uncle was dragged away by the guards.

【Mission Complete! Rank C: Capture the peeper lurking near the women’s bathhouse.】

With injured adventurers still recovering, we had to tackle urgent city tasks—like catching that peeper just now.

"Shouldn’t this be the guards’ job?!"

I grumbled in frustration.

"The guards handle patrols and posts, so the Adventurers’ Guild takes these cases,"

Aerin explained.

"Don’t you think this is a dead-end path?!"

I didn’t want to end up in another world only to mediate neighborhood squabbles daily.

"Uh… you might be right."

Aerin stroked her chin, deep in thought.

"Tell me! Why did you become an adventurer in the first place?!"

I pointed at her.

"Uh… uh… to find the killer who murdered my parents."

Aerin’s expression turned serious.

"Exactly! So what are you doing now to find them? Even if you did, could you take revenge?!"

"Uh… uh… uh…"

Aerin fell silent.

"And you!!! Did you reach Gold rank by doing tasks like this??"

I turned to Tia.

"Of course not! I earned my Gold rank through constant study and training."

Tia replied earnestly.

"Then what are you learning or training by doing these chores daily??"

"…………………"

Tia lowered her head, silent.

"My husband is right!! We should seek stronger opponents and dangerous missions to grow."

After a moment, Tia declared firmly.

"B-but where do we find strong fighters? Where can we train?"

Aerin looked lost.

"Didn’t you mention a Labyrinth City before!? Let’s go there."

I recalled Tia mentioning it earlier.

"That’s worth considering…"

Tia seemed to weigh the idea.

"No more thinking!! Pack up and let’s go~~~"

"Give me a few days to discuss with my current parents."

Tia turned and left.

"I’ll go pack my bags."

Aerin rushed off excitedly.

"Why so pumped all of a sudden?"

She’d been speechless moments ago.

"Because I want to get stronger too!! And this is my first trip far from home since I grew up… Never mind, I’ll pack. Call me when it’s time."

Aerin dashed away.

"Finally! My real otherworldly adventure begins."

Once they were gone, I glanced around—alone—and cheered quietly.

===========================================================================================================================================================

Now, I stood before Tia’s mansion. Three days had passed since our farewell, yet Tia had vanished. We’d agreed to head to the Labyrinth City together, but she’d disappeared.

"Hey~~ Anyone home~~~"

I called from the iron gate.

"Shh~~~~ Don’t shout!"

An old butler in formal attire suddenly popped out of the bushes.

"Jeez! Must you hide in the bushes??"

I stared at the elderly man.

"Monitoring the master’s estate is my duty."

The butler stated firmly.

"Duty or not, where’s Tia? We planned to go to the Labyrinth City, but she’s gone missing."

I pressed for answers.

"Oh~~ So you’re the fiancé my young mistress chose herself. Perfect timing—the master and mistress wish to speak with you."

The butler stepped out, opening the gate for me.

"Me???"

I looked at him blankly.

"Yes, you. Stop dawdling. Follow me inside."

He led me into the mansion.

Though my pockets were full of coin, as a former salaryman, this was my first time in a mansion. Gleaming marble floors and lifelike corridor statues made me nervous.

"How shall I address you, sir?"

The butler turned to ask.

"Just call me Pupil."

My voice carried a hint of tension.

"Master Pupil, then. I’m Barst. Try not to be nervous."

He smiled warmly.

"Easier said than done. I’ve never met nobles before."

I chuckled, scratching my head.

"Nobles??"

Barst echoed the word.

"Haha~~ Ignore that. It’s just where I’m from—no such classes exist."

"Please wait here. I’ll fetch the master and mistress."

Barst seated me in a conference-like hall.

Were they discussing the engagement? I hadn’t taken it seriously, but Tia had. If I said, "Sorry, I was joking with Tia," I’d look like a heartbreaker.

As I pondered, a woman in lavish noble attire sat across from me. This must be Tia’s aunt—her adoptive mother. But where was her uncle? Shouldn’t both parents handle marriage talks?

"You…"

"Let’s cut to the chase~~~ How much to leave my daughter?"

Tia’s mother opened bluntly.

"What!???"

I was in an isekai world, right? Like a light novel. Why did this feel like a K-drama?

"To be clear, we’ve arranged Tia’s marriage to the Chancellor’s son in the Empire."

She stated formally, dropping a bombshell.

"What!? The Chancellor’s son?? Would Tia agree??"

Impossible—the Empire was Tia’s greatest hatred.

"It’s necessary for peace. This alliance is unavoidable."

Her tone was matter-of-fact.

"I refuse!! Absolutely not!"

I knew Tia would say the same.

"Will one million gold coins suffice? Leave my daughter."

She signaled a servant to place a chest of gold between us.

"Huh??????"

Should I say money can’t buy our love? No way—I wasn’t following K-drama tropes.

"Stunned, poor boy? Take the money and go!"

She sneered.

"Ten million gold coins to cancel Tia’s imperial engagement!"

I pulled ten million gold from my inventory, dumping it between us.

"Hah!? These… these are shimmer coins??"

She froze, then rushed to inspect the massive sack. I wasn’t sure about "shimmer coins," but I’d heard they ranked above gold—crafted from diamond and gold.

"Is this all you offer to dismiss me?"

Now I sneered back.

"Damn you!!!! Twenty million to leave my daughter!"

She ordered servants to bring a chest of shimmer coins.

"Annoying!!! Fifty million to cancel Tia’s imperial betrothal!"

I tossed four more sacks.

"W-what…"

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

"Not enough? Here’s another fifty million—a hundred million to end the imperial match."

I added five more sacks.

"I… I… I… I…"

She stammered, wavering.

"Still not enough? Take this [Sovereign’s Heart] necklace too. Even money can’t buy this!"

I pulled the level-50 pink accessory from my equipment slot.

The exquisitely crafted, magic-infused artifact left her utterly defenseless.

"I… I… I… I…"

Her eyes gleamed with greed.

"I… I must consult the master!"

Overwhelmed, she fled while she still could.

"Heh~~ Trying to outspend me?"

All those gacha pulls hadn’t been wasted.

Soon, Tia’s mother returned with a handsome, stern-faced man—her uncle.

"I refuse!! No amount of money will change my mind!!!"

He strode in, ignoring the coins entirely.

"I refuse too!! Tia must never marry into the Empire!"

I shouted back.

"Your refusal means nothing!! This concerns the nation—you can’t decide alone."

His words left no room.

"Will marrying Tia bring peace? Even kids back home know that’s impossible."

"At least it buys temporary peace!!"

He shot back firmly.

"Tch!"

Stubborn uncle. Did everyone here have rocks for brains?

"Take your money and leave!! I annul Tia’s engagement to you now. Don’t bother her again."

He turned to go.

"So unreasonable???"

"Hmph!"

He glared back fiercely.

Annul it—I hadn’t cared about the engagement anyway. But Tia would never marry into the Empire. As I gathered the coins into my inventory, I plotted my next move.

"Since you won’t take my money openly, I’ll have to play dirty."