I Thought a Villainess' Divorce Would Be Easy

“I don’t understand why there’s such a rush when it comes to buying the Duchess’ trousseau. The Duke family has already prepared everything.”

 

“Still, familiar items would be good for Anne, or rather the Duchess, to use.”

 

“It may be the case among the Counts, but in the Duke of Gwynted we have procedures. You can’t help but carry the burden like this.”

 

“A letter was sent, but I think it arrived before me.”

 

“That is rude behavior that ignores procedures. Hmm, I don’t think the Count did that on purpose.”

 

“Okay. There were a lot of rude comments from early on.”

 

It was a scolding tone and attitude, as if he had put Count Leslie under his control. It was he, Dan, who visited without prior notice and carrying enough luggage to block the gate. However, it was not serious enough for the maid to find fault with him by setting up the successor of the Count. Rather, her position as chief maid was in jeopardy because she failed to treat Nathan, an heir, properly. Nevertheless, it was true that Nathan was in a hurry to see Anthea as soon as possible, so he agreed.

 

Rosa had no choice but to take a step back due to Nathan’s obedient attitude.

 

“You can go inside.”

 

Rosa was satisfied with delaying the time and turned around because she could not gain any more ground against Count’s heir. The carriage, which had been stopped for a long time, started moving again and not long after, Nathan was able to set foot in the Duke’s mansion. The head deacon, who had already heard the news, must have been waiting for a long time and greeted Nathan, sweating even in the cool weather.

 

“Welcome, Count Leslie, I will take you to the drawing room.”

 

“Thank you for your hospitality, but I will first bring in wedding favors for the Duchess and then rest.”

 

Nathan had come a long way and could take a breather, but he started with work for Anthea. Unlike the perplexed butler, the coachman and workers who had already prepared themselves immediately unloaded the luggage and looked at Nathan.

 

“Shall we bring the furniture inside first?”

 

“Shall we take the ingredients straight to the kitchen?”

 

“Everyone come this way!”

 

Both the head butler and the employees were busy due to the workers coming into the mansion frantically. In an instant, colorful and diverse items began to pile up in the hall of the mansion. Even the workers who arrived late heard Nathan’s name as Count’s heir, and were able to immediately recognize his identity. The hostess’s ex-fiancé, who was newly welcomed a few days ago. It was a visit from Nathan Leslie.

 

After Anthea was chosen as the Duke’s marriage partner, several rumors circulated among the people through the main maid, Rosa. Rosa was outraged in front of the employees, saying that a woman from a poor family and who even had a fiancé was taking her place as Duchess. All the vulgar stories she heard at that time were bound to be interesting, and Anthea was imprinted in the minds of the workers like a rare femme fatale. However, Anthea, who had actually entered the Duchy’s family, was such a delicate and lovely young lady that one worried that she would fly away when the wind blew. She was like a delicate girl, and the presence of her fiancé was no different from being married to Anthea. After the head maid came out with the news of Nathan Leslie’s visit, the maids were not able to leave the hall and were snooping around. If it were modern times, they would not have wanted to miss the highlight of the final drama. The entrance to the mansion was noisy due to the sound of luggage being carried, Nathan’s instructions, and Rosa’s meddling that followed. Meanwhile, the maids were frantically fighting with their eyes to see who would deliver the news.

 

Anthea was so surprised by the news of Nathan Leslie’s visit that she lost sight of the glass she was holding.

 

“We have a guest from Count Leslie?”

 

At those words, Anthea stood up from her seat without the slightest hesitation. She quickly walked straight towards her door, Julie following along with her towel.

 

“Ma’am, I haven’t even dried your hair yet.”

 

“If you wait a moment, I will quickly get you dressed up for you to welcome them.”

 

Despite the two people’s persuasion, Anthea did not turn around. When her maids who had gathered in front of her door moved out of the way, Anthea’s steps quickened.

 

“Ma’am, please at least put your shoes on!”

 

Ellie, who hastily took out her shoes, was greatly embarrassed to see Anthea already running down her hallway. The ones chasing Anthea were the maids who came with her flushed face. A feeling of excitement appeared on the faces of users who rarely expressed their emotions. At that moment, the owner of the house, who was heading inside to order her various items, saw the maids rushing out and Anthea running and stopped.

 

“You guys don’t clean the halls and just wander around somewhere… lady? Where are you going in a hurry, dressed like that?”

 

“Sorry, I’m busy right now!”

 

Even though it was inside the mansion, Anthea’s current attire was too light to show off in front of her guests. Even the owner of the house was embarrassed and chased after her, while Anthea arrived in front of the stairs leading from this floor to the first floor entrance. Through the wide open entrance of the mansion and the endless luggage coming in, a very familiar light brown hair came into view.

 

“Brother!”

 

Nathan, who had been watching the porters, raised his head at the joyful shout that came out without the slightest hesitation. Nathan’s jawline was sharp, as if she had lost weight in only a month of not seeing each other. Soon, a very familiar and friendly smile appeared on Nathan’s face.

 

“Ann.”

 

‘Ah. This is not something I can tolerate.’

 

Anthea couldn’t stop the longing she had suppressed until now from bursting out at the sound of her name being called by Nathan. The tears she had been holding back as she wrote down each word in her letter burst out helplessly at Nathan’s sweet call. Nathan walked into the duchy without hesitation as Anthea let out her tears as she clung to her steps. He was about to put down the luggage after hearing Rosa’s complaint that she could only enter after checking what she had brought, but that warning no longer remained in Nathan’s mind.

 

Nathan, who ran up the stairs a few steps at a time and stood in front of Anne Shea, held his breath in his surroundings and slowly stretched out his hand as if he had even forgotten the presence of her predecessor. Anthea didn’t even think about wiping away her tears, so she just cried and called Nathan.

 

Nathan’s hand, wiping away Anthea’s tears, trembled slightly.

 

“Don’t cry, Anne. Crying more sadly than I imagined…”

 

Nathan’s eyes turned red, unable to finish his sentence. Anthea couldn’t believe the warmth that touched her cheek.

 

“Brother.”

 

“Anthea.”

 

Anthea’s hand trembled like an aspen tree as she fumbled and held onto Nathan’s hand that touched her cheek.

 

“Brother, really… Oh my brother?”

 

“Yes, Anne.”

 

She couldn’t even think of how to cry prettily, so even though she was crying with her distorted face, Anthea was still lovely enough to make her heart cry. Everyone was whispering as they looked at Anthea, who greeted Nathan in unkempt clothes with her hair not even fully curled.

 

“Was the rumor that was going around before the owner arrived true?”

 

“I guess so. “Then is this Count Leslie So?”

 

“Oh my god, look at how affectionate it is.”

 

The person who visited the new Duchess was none other than the man who was once rumored to be her fiancé. The watching eyes were full of curiosity and interest. Anthea, who had been listening intently to their whispers, was able to take this castle that flew by for a while.

 

“Anthea, what if you wear something this thin? What if you catch a cold?”

 

In fact, Nathan focused entirely on Anthea and noticed her thin clothes. Nathan took off his cape and wrapped it around Anthea’s shoulders. Even amidst this commotion and curious gaze, Nathan always looked at Anthea.

 

Anthea was able to control her overflowing emotions due to Nathan’s unwavering affection.

 

“Thank you, brother.”

 

Nathan, who was smiling at Anthea with a bright smile, focused on her bare feet. Anthea was so embarrassed that her tears stopped as she saw Nathan’s laughter cool down in an instant. In fact, Nathan sent a harsh gaze towards Anthea and the maid behind her.

 

“Are you just standing around while your lady is shivering from the cold?”

 

‘Oh my brother, calm down.’

 

“I guess that ability to serve the master is a maid’s ability. The negligence of letting the Duchess walk around dressed like this must be questioned.”

 

As the arrow headed towards the servant, Anthea quickly hung on Nathan’s shoulder.

 

“I rushed out because I missed my brother so much. It’s all my fault.”

 

“This… Then I guess I’ll have to get punished. What punishment will you give me?”

 

The rhythm went well together, as if they could only see each other. What’s worse, Rosa wouldn’t even come close to them at this golden opportunity and would just gape at them at the bottom of the stairs. Anthea held out both of her hands in an attempt to strike Rosa, who was sensitive to manners and etiquette, and to appease Nathan, who was angry with her maids.

 

“Brother, please carry me to the room.”

 

At that moment, everyone held their breath.

 

‘Oh my god, are those words coming out of the Duchess’ mouth right now?’

 

Everyone’s eyes said that. Surprise, astonishment, and absurdity passed through the eyes of the user who had been excited just a moment ago. The knight who was guarding the entrance came and stood next to Anthea and Nathan like a priest.

 

“We will take you inside.”

 

The Duke’s knight suggested it first, but Anthea, who was already clinging to Nathan, snuggled even deeper into his arms. Each of these actions was very natural to Anthea. Afterwards, both the knight and her servant, who saw Anthea’s blushing cheeks, bowed their heads. Somehow they felt guilty seeing the Duchess’ face like that.

 

‘As expected, everyone is naive.’

 

Anthea, who had been with the dukedom’s knights for the past month, found out that they were not as simple as they seemed. With Anthea clinging to Nathan, they couldn’t say much anymore and even took a step back. Regardless of loyalty to the Duke, this situation was unfamiliar, uncomfortable, and even embarrassing.

 

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Translator Note: