Spoiler - A Con Artist But That’s Okay (2024)

MC is pained at how much money donating for children requires, but also likes watching them bc her father was overly strict and didn't let her run so freely or be anything less than perfect. So, she imagines what if she could also have a cheerful childhood like that and had friends.

She comes across a bunch of kids bullying Cedric, the boy ML brought into a side branch. The bully is the villain marquis' son and he's even more trash than his dad. He insults MC, says she won't be able to do anything to him bc she needs to keep the kind-hearted image, and he's underage, so she can't retaliate. He happily calls himself an underage criminal. He's also known for making other children and adults suffer. Urgh, reminds me why I'm a childfree childhater. MC agrees and then brings in Azlynn aka *drum roll* another underage criminal.

Azlynn beats him up, then smears his blood on her face, puts on a white lotus act like he bullied her, and all the ladies around them side with MC against the trash kid.

Ok so it turns out that for a brief period, there was another girl in prison with them. A red-haired gambling cheater.

So, they could still earn money in prison and they earned a lot, enough to get at least one or two of them free to avoid execution. MC had the key to the safe. And then it turned out that that girl replaced the key and stole all their money; that was the only reason she came into their cell, to betray them for cash. She traded that money to buy her own freedom and they didn't have enough for a bribe, so they couldn't avoid execution and died together.

MC realises that ML likes her and, even though her own feelings have grown, but she puts distance between them since she's planning to leave in a year and doesn't want to ruin his life. They have a year-long contract marriage, if you've forgotten, so he knows she's *supposed* to leave.

Anyway, to attract her attention, ML goes to the casino. Since she thinks he's a pushover, she follows him in secret. She hesitates at first but then she sees the red-haired girl who indirectly killed them in her past life in the casino.

Anyway, MC and her girl squad get into shenanigans. When ML is playing with the red-haired girl (she's the official owner of the casino btw), they cause chaos and cause a massive diamond chandelier to fall down. MC escapes with ML, and the red-haired girl's hand gets stabbed in the crowd.

MC stabbed her bc to the redhead, without her cheater gambling ability, it's worth than death and she's considered useless by her backer. MC doesn't want her to have an easy death. She also doesn't want Azlynn to kill anyone in this life.

MC and ML run away into an alley. ML reveals that with his final card, he could have won the game even if MC didn't interfere (MC created chaos bc he plays the image of a super proper man and he flunked all his other bets, so she didn't want him to lose. His wager if he lost to the villainess was that he would need to take off his mask, and rumours of the empire's protector gambling losses would have destroyed their image).

She tells him she's not the way she presents and loves money. He gives her the biggest diamond from the chandelier; apparently it was the reason he went to the casino and made the wager. If she loves money, he sees no problem, she can relax.

They kiss.

Funny fact: the morning after, all newspapers post about them kissing in an alleyway lol. The newspaper comes right when MC is trying to convince her girls that nothing's going on between ML and her.

Also, some time later, they again have the convo along the lines that MC isn't a great person. But ML tells her to use him and that she doesn't need to consider his feelings at all; he never even expected her to care or worry about him. He basically just wants her to stay while he gives her money and jewels. He doesn't care what she does (being a swindler is okay lol). He kisses her hair on the bed, too!

Oh, at some point MC also does ask ML whether he likes her and he says why ask what she already knows. They're pretty clear with each other on this point. MC also comes to grips with her own feelings more.

There's a funny moment when she talks out loud about the great qualities ML has as a husband, thinking it's Lia... and then ML puts his hand on her neck and she realises she's been saying it all to him XD

MC gets more clues about the final member of their 5-member past life prison girl squad, puts everything together and realises that Cedric that she's met earlier is Theodora.

I'm still not sure if Theodora was originally a boy who disguised as a girl/changed sex (Theodora's specialty was the ability to change her appearance into absolutely anyone. In fact, MC and others originally disliked her bc it was said that Theodora took over the appearance and life of the people she killed at will. But later, when seeing her sad and quiet personality, she tells Theodora that she doesn't believe that her killings were bc of cruelty; she must have had a reason) or if she's always been a girl but disguises as 'Cedric' right now. But MC hasn't confronted Cedric about Theodora yet; she's happy to let the past be. However, she feels very sad than now, no one except for her remembers Theodora in this life.

Cedric arrives to live in the mansion with MC and ML. He's the youngest of them, around 16 I think (though looks waaaaaaaay younger tbh). Has a great relationship with Azlynn.

Now that her fam is complete, MC is thinking about staying at ML's manor more than that year (!!!)

An interesting fact!!! In her past life, Theodora blamed herself for their deaths before the execution. Before they died, she gave MC a star-shaped locked which was super precious to her and a relic of her mysterious father. She told MC it would be helpful to her. Now, there hasn't been anything else said about this locket yet but personally, I think it must be the reason why MC regressed.

It turns out that the main villain (Marquis) is behind the casino and that red-haired villainess. ML dupes nobles into becoming witnesses or paying astronomical sums. Because a lot of nobles were involved in the dealings, there are now many vacancies and ML is planning to fill in the places on his own, judging by the results of the interviews and the like. Bc ML is the head of the personnel department.

This is going to both cut a huge amount of money from the marquis and reduce his influence.

So, remember the trash ex-husband of Lia? Well, that rubbish brought a doctor from the north who treated the amnesia of Marquis' redhead henchman. It's the guy who was searching for ML, and MC fed his party forgetfulness poison.

Anyway, he remembered that MC hid the ML and treated him. He and Marquis shamelessly made everything out to be like MC created ML's accident and helped him so she would get married to him. She's smeared in the newspapers and they hang their crimes on her.

The reason she's arrested isn't because of this though but because they also found and brought to light the crimes she committed in the south for 3 years with her group. ML uses his influences to move her from prison to a cabin that looks awfully like the one where they hid when she treated ML 3 years ago. ML moves in with her. But MC is afraid of how much this damages his reputation and doesn't wish to cause his downfall.

ML's sisters decide to use their own powers to do their best to save her.

Aaaaaaand- yep, that's about when the chapters I found end! It's a cliffie!