The Villain Is Obsessed With His Fake Wife

11. Mine

“Do you smell someone else?”

She doubted her ears for a moment.

‘Why can I feel hostility in your voice?’

And it didn’t seem like she was the one with that hostility. For some reason, the red mark on her wrist felt hot, so she pulled it out and asked awkwardly.

“Does it smell that strange to you?”

“Originally, I am sensitive to body odor.”

John, who had been looking at her wrist for a while, met her eyes.

“So, who is him?”

There was no reason why she couldn’t answer, but the strangely coercive atmosphere made her hesitate to say anything. Then John opened his mouth again in a voice that had lost his laughter.

“Who.”

“…I came to see Baron Boulogne in the study. Are you talking about him?”

John’s eyes widened slightly. He asked, tilting his head a little more.

“How do you feel about meeting Erich?”

She thought this question would come up.

‘In the original story, Estelle tells John about his men.’

Apparently, the original Estelle had expectations of her husband, who treated her well from the first day of their marriage, so she did it. But she certainly wouldn’t fall into this trap.

‘I feel much more at ease now that what I know comes out.’

“Baron Boulogne was a very nice man. At first, he seemed surprised that I went to the study, but later we became close enough to talk about books together.”

One of John’s eyebrows rose slightly, disapprovingly.

“What book were you talking about?”

“About the book in general? It didn’t sound like a big deal.”

“Anyway, it looks like it was pretty fun.”

John put an elegant smile on his lips. But for some reason, unlike usual, it seemed that the tips of his lips were slightly twisted up.

‘Ah! It’s dissatisfying that his underling and I get close.’

It seemed to be a problem even if the revenge target and subordinates got too close. Because she might be doing something stupid. It’s a relief that it’s easy to understand because it’s a sound she heard often in Libertan. She shook her hands and smiled brightly.

“After that, nothing happened. I immediately left after recommending the book.”

“Lie.”

John’s large hand gracefully approached her eye. His thumb lazily ran over her eyes.

“What are these tear marks?”

“Oh, this.”

Perhaps because of the previous contact, they react sensitively to even the slightest movement. Unknowingly, she wrapped her cheeks and quickly cleared up the misunderstanding.

“This is because dust got into my eyes and I cried.”

It’s true that she had a fight with Erich, but the reason she cried was because of the dust. So there was no lie in her words.

“I tend to cry a lot, so I tend to cry over trivial things.”

When he put his hand up and touched her eyes, he grabbed her hand as if to cover it and put it on the pod. She could feel the masculine knuckles. John, who was silent for a moment, said something completely different from what she expected.

“Isn’t it unfair that people hate you?”

Suddenly, her eyes widened. But it wasn’t a very difficult question.

“Who hates me so much?”

“You understand my question.”

“Hmm. But I really don’t know.”

She looked into John’s red eyes and shrugged her shoulders.

“Because no one here hated me that much. And even if it is, I don’t feel it’s unfair.”

“Why?”

“That’s right, it’s only natural that they hate me here.”

John tightened his grip on the hand holding the pod.

‘Is this an answer too unbecoming for a daughter of a Libertan?’

However, to be honest, there were so many unfair and difficult things to come to the Blanchett family, so she couldn’t make it up to that.

“I’m not the daughter of the Libertans, and I couldn’t bring a dowry. The Duke of Libertan isn’t even a helpful parent to the Blanchett duchy…”

After saying this, she realized her situation.

‘I’m really useless.’

Perhaps John would not have dared to marry her if it had not been for revenge.

“That doesn’t mean that I personally have connections that are helpful in the social world, or that I don’t have any special abilities.”

If she went into detail, it’s very disastrous.

‘It’s not common to have a marriage broken up twice.’

As soon as she was adopted, she broke up with Yestella’s fiancé, and then with the Crown Prince, who was being talked about in a good way.

‘Even if it’s not my fault.’

It couldn’t be helped that she, who was in the middle, looked particularly bad.

“So how do I look good? Even I wouldn’t like it if someone like me came in as the Duchess.”

The summer wind swept between them. John looked at her blankly, holding her hand tightly.

“Don’t you think it was worth taking such a loss?”

“Is it worth that much to you?”

“Indeed.”

John straightened her hair that was disheveled in the wind with an arrogant smile.

“Do you say I look stupid?”

“Ah… Are you?”

“I never make a losing trade. That’s why I chose my wife.”

The man in the sunlight looked confident in himself. It was so wonderful that she was momentarily stunned to see it.

“What if I’m the Duke’s first failure?”

He had already failed because she didn’t deserve his revenge. Even if someone like her was killed in the most painful way, the Duke of Libertan would never suffer. Rather, he would think that it was fortunate that she was not their own daughter.

‘But I can’t say this.’

Strangely, her voice was watery.

“To be honest, it’s not like you can just keep succeeding just because you’re a Duke.”

“It can’t be.”

John held her chin with his free hand and made her meet his eyes.

“Because I don’t do things like failure.”

“…”

“If you don’t believe it yourself, just trust me.”

The sound of her heart beating loudly thumped near her ears. The way he looked at her was arrogant, but kind and comforting.

‘I can see why I fell in love in the original story.’

The warm sunlight, the warmth that covered the skin moderately, and the eyes that made her feel special just by looking at them. All of this was a complete lie. Even she, who knew it was fake, wanted to move on knowing it.

“I will go inside now.”

She stood up before things got any worse.

“If my wife ever has a hard time, you can tell me about anything.”

“Really anything?”

“Yeah, anything. Whatever comes to mind.”

John said in a soft voice.

“For example, you can go see your parents.”

“Already?”

Most aristocratic women did not visit their parents for a while after getting married. He shrugged lightly.

“What does it matter if my wife wants to go?”

But now the Duke and Duchess of Libertan would be in prison.

‘Still, even if he wasn’t executed right away because he was a Duke.’

At least it was clear that she, the daughter, was not in a position to go see them. Above all, from John’s point of view, it wouldn’t be a good idea for her to go. Because she was more likely to find out the truth.

‘The fact that he said it anyway.’

Chills ran down her spine. Darkness didn’t work without any purpose. For some reason, she had a hunch that something unknown had happened while she was unaware.

‘Now I have to look as harmless as possible.’

She shook her head.

“I’m fine. More than anything else, I haven’t adjusted well to the Blanchett family yet.”

“You’ll still miss them a lot, right?”

The red eyes looked sharp as if they could see right through her.

“No way. It doesn’t matter that much.”

“Really?”

John stood up and grabbed her hand. She stared blankly at him.

“But don’t get used to being too patient.”

What he put in her hand was a bag of cookies. As soon as he checked the bag of cookies and met his eyes, John raised the corner of his mouth.

“This is the reward for that time.”

It must have been that the cookies she gave him were very impressive.

“It’s okay if you don’t take care of this…”

“I give because I want to give.”

John covered her fingers holding the bag of cookies and squeezed them tightly.

“And make sure to eat this alone.”

“I don’t usually eat food with others.”

“Still, this is all done for my wife alone. Because it’s my wife.”

John’s sharp eye corners curled up and he smiled. Her heart was beating wildly again.

“Can’t I give it to the Duke too?”

Then John nodded his head.

“Yeah, me too.”

A strange feeling seemed to come from her toes. She held the cookie bag with both hands.

“Well, then I’ll eat well. Thank you.”

So she stood up and got out of the garden tree. She walked so as not to feel like she was running away, but it seemed like she was running away. Even so John’s smiling face was not erased from her mind.

‘Why am I like this?’

That’s right, the words on his lips meant ‘give me a cookie’. Or perhaps what John said did not mean it. If so, the plan to get revenge on her would still be there.

‘My cookie, mine.’

She felt like she was going to lose the cookie, so she held it until it was about to break. It’s funny, but for the first time, it felt like she had something hers. It was so strange, she felt like she needed to be alone.

* * *

Rosalia, Duchess of Libertan, clutched her bars with her hands. For the never-to-be-troubled Duchess, the prison life was terrifying.

‘How long do I have to stay in this place?’

All because of the sudden downfall of the Duke of Libertan. No matter how evil they were, they were dukes. No matter how great the crime of treason was, even if there was no money in the family, there had to be at least an opportunity to protest.

“No one asks for a visit to the Duke and Duchess of Libertan.”

While the family was in huge debt, the allied families they trusted had long since turned their backs on them. Even the Emperor, who was the only lifeline, turned away from them.

“His Majesty the Emperor refused to interview the criminal.”

Until the trial just before her execution, the Duke and Duchess of Libertan had to be held in prison without doing anything. Everything was too fast.

‘Okay. It’s like…’

It was similar to when the Duke Blanchett, whom they hated so much, fell. As if someone had prepared their downfall. Rosalia, biting her lip, turned her head towards Duke Libertan.

“Honey, have you not heard from the spy of the Duke of Blanchett yet? He said he was going to get her out.”

Even if all the spies sent to the Blanchett family disappeared, there was only one. Luckily, there was one left.

“Wait. Things will be resolved that quickly.”

“How long do I have to stay here? Really like this, you might be executed.”

Rosalia brushed off her husband with her anxious eyes. She even said that she would admit all her sins if she would let her meet Estelle. Duke Blanchett gave them no answer as if mocking them.

“You don’t know her? As long as she knows about us, she will come running right away.”

“That is true. Yes, she can’t stay still.”

The image of Estelle, who was stupid, passed through Rosalia’s mind. Her stupid adopted daughter who only looked at her unchangingly no matter how much she loved or bullied her.

‘But I don’t know why I’m so nervous.’

Lately, Rosarlia’s memories of her, which she hadn’t even been aware of, suddenly came to her mind, making her more frustrated and frightened. But she soon shook her head.

‘It’s strange that I’m imprisoned.’

Estelle, just looking at her will give her a way to resolve the situation in some way.

* * *

Erich arrived at the office. John was sitting and working, perfectly dressed as usual. John asked Erich without taking his eyes off the paperwork.

“Have you met my wife?”

“Yes. We met in the study.”

“How did you feel about meeting her?”

“It was as expected. She was immature at how much she was loved and raised in Libertan.”

Unknowingly, Erich recalled the moment he met Estelle. When he found an innocent and shy smile on the woman he thought he could hate, he couldn’t stand her staying there.

‘It was only shaken for a moment.’

So, inside Erich, he tried harder to deny the anxiety. He himself could not have dared to sympathize with Estelle.

“The mere existence of her made me uncomfortable. The whole time I was dealing with her, I felt so bad that I couldn’t stand it. But fortunately, as expected by the master, there seemed to be no problem in using her for his plans.”

John put his hand on his desk and clamped it. It was not a big deal, but the moment-to-moment movement gave a strange beat, giving the viewer a sense of tension.

“So did you say that?”

“That?”

“She was called an unqualified wife.”

John’s red eyes sank even more heavily.

“Why did you dare to say such a thing?”

“That… sorry. It’s my fault for not managing my emotions properly.”

Erich assumed that John’s rebuke came from almost ruining the plan. It would be a big deal if Estelle accidentally noticed the downfall of the Duke of Libertan.

“I will be careful next time.”

“No. There is no need for that.”

John spoke in a slow but determined voice.

“I have a new mission for you. The Blanchett duchy will be vacant for a while, so there’s no need to be careful.”

“What is the mission?”

“It’s to investigate the orphanage where Lexius Polman and Viscount Gaspeare were involved.”

Erich opened his eyes wide at the rather sudden mission.

‘If it was a simple investigation, I wouldn’t have to go?’

Although he had personally taken part in important matters, this time it was not so urgent that Erich, who was closest to him, had to go. He also felt quite impatient. But there was always a reason for John’s actions.

‘This mission must also have a reason…’

At that time, Erich saw something that did not suit John’s office. It was a bear-shaped cookie.

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