Count Pablo looked around the village that he all but owned.

There was not a single person in this village who was not under his debt, yet they were all trying to defy him by letting someone else have his treasure.

'These ants refused to give me the rights to that mana mine no matter what I did to them. But they gave it to that kid just because she asked. How dare they discriminate against me!'

The Count felt annoyed and angry at the same time. But he plastered a smile and went to the mayor's office.

"Mayor, I am here to ask for payment once more. Would you not consider giving me those mines of yours? I will forgive all your debts if you do that-"

"There is no longer a need for that, Count Pablo. Here, I will repay all the debt and the interest we have accumulated over the years. Are you satisfied now?"

Count Pablo blinked as he looked at the money plaque that he was being given. It had more than the amount these people needed to pay back, including interest.

But despite the money being paid back, Count Pablo did not reach for that money. He knew he would lose this negotiation battle the second he accepted this money.

'No, I cannot let things end like this! I must drag this out longer and keep these people under my debt. Only then will I feel satisfied and have a chance to get the mining rights.'

For the first time that day, the Count panicked, but he did not allow it to show. Instead, he scoffed as he looked at the mayor in front of him calmly.

"Mayor, do you think this much would be enough to repay me for my generosity? How can you treat me so coldly after all I did for you? I even pushed back your deadlines so that you could pay your debt freely.

Why are you being so distant from me now that you have money? Did we not used to be close?"

The count asked as he tried to entice the mayor. But all his efforts fell on deaf ears as the Mayor tuned him out.

"I am sorry, but whatever relationship we had is over now. We, the villagers, have repaid our debts and would like to live a free life now. Please, leave us villagers all alone."

The mayor said, but the count was not ready to face this reality. He had spent a lot of time and money on these people and refused to be defeated by them.

"Count, please calm down! We can still think of something else-"

His subordinate tried to calm him down, but the Count had enough of this behavior.

"Fine! If you are like this, you should prepare to face me. Guards, make a mess of this place and do not leave anything untouched. You have my permission to do whatever you want in this village.

After all, it is no longer under my protection, and I don't care what happens to it."

The count permitted his people to trash this village, and they all looked delighted.

"Please stop it, Count Pablo! At least, you will regret this in the future. Are you sure you can handle the consequences of what is happening?"

The mayor asked in a regretful voice.

He did not stop the Count because he knew he did not have the power to do that, but he could warn the Count.

If the count continued like this, then a disaster would occur.

Now that this place had been purified and the curse had been lifted (the Mayor and the others felt the intense divine energy as it purified it), their guardian had also been woken up.

And the count would become a victim if he continued like this.

"Oh! So now you have enough sense to treat me as well? Very well! Show me what you can do if you are going to be like this. I would like to check what you have in store for me as well-"

The count spoke, but he never finished.

The Mayor blinked as he watched something heavy hit the Count and knock him out.

"Oops, I did not mean to hit him that hard. Do you think I killed him? I am sure I gave him brain damage for sure. Ugh, Miss Layla would chew my head off for this mistake."

The familiar pink-haired maid sighed as she looked down at the man she had knocked out.

Despite her words, her tone told everyone she was not the least scared of what she had done.

"Y-You! How dare you…everyone, attack her and make her regret ever being alive. We need to save Count Pablo from that pink-haired maid."

The other guards that Count Pablo had brought with him looked stunned until they snapped out of it and regained their wits.

Mary was suddenly a prime target for them to attack and eliminate.

But Mary only sighed as she was singled out and cornered from all sides.

"What a headache. You all have so much potential and are wasting it on this little old me! But I will happily answer all your hopes since you asked me so nicely."

Mary picked up her axe, and she faced the guards.

Despite this being a 10-vs-1, it was clear that the pink-haired maid was in control. She played around as she picked up her axe and made flashy moves. No one could even come close to her, much less harm her.

"Aww, is that all you can do? You all lack stamina and discipline. It looks like I will have to show you how to behave."

Mary spoke before she picked up her axe for the final time and hit the opponents with her flat side. She knocked out all the guards in record time with a smile.

Once no more enemies were left, Mary playfully flexed her stiff shoulder.

"Hmm, that was fun! I want to do that again sometime soon. I hope Young Miss lets me."