She opened her eyes wide when she saw John.
“Du-Duke?”
“…ah.”
John made a soft sound as if he had just come to his senses. The corners of his mouth rose smoothly.
“Ma’am. Have you been changing clothes?”
“Oh, that’s right. Therefore…”
“But what is that?”
John gestured to the slip in Betty’s hand. Betty quickly covered up the slip, but it was already too late to fix it.
‘It’s so crazy!’
Without realizing it, she quickly covered herself up with the blanket in front of her.
‘How did it end up like this?’
She heard John walking.
* * *
It was around the time she returned from the tea party. When she returned to the room, Betty came running to her, furious.
“My lady. I’m so angry.”
Betty has never expressed anger in front of her.
“Did something happen?”
“Yes. I heard that the crazy, no, super crazy Count Hettel’s daughter came to visit master and my lady at night!”
“Betty did you hear that too? How?”
“Of course I seduced the servants around here… No, that’s not what’s important right now.”
Then Betty shook her head and clenched her fists.
“Because you stay quiet, they keep doing really ridiculous things. Why are there all families like that?”
“These are people I won’t see anymore if I leave tomorrow anyway.”
The rain stopped, and the muddy ground dried up. Now she could leave this tired Count Hettel castle.
‘I stayed longer than expected.’
Still, it didn’t mean there was no income.
‘I got the key to the Imperial Central Bank vault.’
To be honest, she needed a slush fund, but she ended up with money that no one knew about. Looking at the document, the amount seemed to be significant.
“That’s right, but… Hmm, I still can’t forgive them. Please come here for a moment.”
Betty dragged her into the room. And she took something out. It was something she didn’t even know existed. They were translucent slips with a subtle color.
“This… slip?”
“I took it just in case. But madam, did you know that that crazy woman came wearing a slip that was thinner than this one?”
It was a thin slip that seemed to show all of the skin. But she came wearing something thinner than this.
“That’s because she barely has any clothes on.”
“Yes. That makes me even more angry.”
Betty handed her the thin slip she was holding in her hand.
“By the way, madam, how about wearing this slip and waiting for master tonight?”
She almost nodded without thinking and then slowly blinked her eyes.
“…Why is the conversation suddenly going in that direction?”
“That’s because I’m a good maid who wants the relationship between my master and my lady to become closer.”
“I have a scar…”
The reason why scars should not be revealed was not simply because they were terrible to look at. That was everything that explained her situation. A daughter who was not loved by Libertan, a fake who could not be the target of his revenge.
‘If that happens, I will be of no use to John.’
Then there would be no reason for John and she to pretend to be a couple.
Betty spoke in a lively voice.
“You can just turn off the lights and wait! And you’re so pretty that my master won’t even see any scars.”
“Betty…”
“Sorry. I spoke too enthusiastically. I’ll take this.”
Betty said with a shy expression. After thinking for a moment, she grabbed Betty.
“Okay, then I’ll just try it on once. But really, just try it on and I’ll wear the dress again.”
“Yes! Great!”
And she actually tried to change and put the dress back on, just like she talked to Betty about. At her urging, Betty quickly took the slip and tried to disappear. What she didn’t expect…
Suddenly-
The moment she was putting on the dress, John suddenly came in. Betty was seen holding a slip next to her.
* * *
She ended up hiding again and became worried.
‘How can I really do this!’
Her heart was pounding excessively. She continued to hold on to the blanket that covered her tightly as if it were her last lifeline.
The sound of footsteps stopped.
‘Could it be that John is in front of me right now?’
Her face grew hotter when she thought of John standing in front of her. John, who had been waiting quietly, hugged her covered with a blanket. Then he remained silent and said nothing.
“Oh, Duke. Are you going to keep doing that? I have to put my clothes back on now.”
“What if I plan to keep doing this?”
“Then I can’t change my clothes?”
“You can change in front of me. What is there to be ashamed of? Huh?”
John’s sweet voice whispered across a blanket. Since she couldn’t see the other person, she was more concerned.
However, John seemed to be able to see through the blanket, so he found her hand under the blanket and squeezed it tightly.
“If you want something, you have to put conditions on it. If you want me out, tell me what my wife can do for me.”
“Is there something I can do for you?”
“There must be a lot. If my wife can’t remember, I’ll tell her what I want.”
She swallowed dry saliva. What was he trying to ask for?
‘Is it about revenge?’
If it was too much, she had to find another way. While she was preparing to run away with the entire blanket, even though it was someone else’s castle, John opened his mouth.
“I hope from now on my wife will call me by my name.”
“…yes?”
“If possible, it would be better if you use informal language.”
It was completely unexpected.
“It’s not a difficult condition, right? We spent the first night together.”
“Well, we just pretended to have it!”
“But still, first night is first night. Because what happened doesn’t become something that never happened.”
The more they talked, the more she felt like her mind was becoming dizzy. As expected, Black Man was very good at speaking.
“But why are you suddenly asking me to call you by name and speaking informally?”
“I don’t know. For some reason, I thought it would be more appropriate for you to speak informally to me.”
The softly whispering voice seemed to see right through her. Suddenly, she remembered the time when John went on a rampage.
‘Did this happen because I used informal language in front of John back then?’
Then no way…
‘You probably didn’t find any memories from when you went on a rampage, right?’
At that time, the lies she told in front of John kept coming to mind.
‘I just said at the time that we were in love with each other.’
At that time, his arm burrowed into her body wrapped in the blanket. The hard chest pressed against her from behind. John urged.
“Or is there some reason why my wife is having a hard time listening?”
“No!”
She said, shaking her head.
“I will.”
Since she was still speaking informally inside, there was nothing to hesitate about. The problem was that she didn’t understand why John was asking for this.
‘It’s not because you really remember the time when you went on a rampage, right?’
John let out a low laugh and placed his mouth near her shoulder.
“Then you should call me that right away. Otherwise, I won’t go out. Until the end of today’s dinner.”
“John.”
But when she actually said it out loud, she felt a little embarrassed. She spoke more casually to hide her embarrassment.
“John.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Quickly remove your hand and get out.”
“…”
“Can’t you hear me?”
Suddenly John became quiet.
‘Did I speak too loudly?’
It felt like the dissatisfaction that was inside her came out without her knowing. In a very tense moment, John began to laugh softly.
“Ah really.”
John whispered as he hugged her tightly once again.
“As expected, I thought informal speech would suit my wife.”
“…Are you satisfied now?”
“Enough.”
She didn’t know how things got like this.
* * *
After John left, she quickly put on a new dress and went outside. It seemed like embarrassing moments would keep coming back to her when she was in the room.
“Duchess Blanchett. This is how we meet.”
It was Prime Minister Orteca.
“Oh, I see. Were you on a walk?”
“That’s right. For some reason, when I look at these trees… ”
Cold green eyes leisurely scanned the trees in the garden.
“I had a feeling there might be some secret I was looking for.”
“What secret are you looking for?”
“I can’t explain it to you because it’s a secret.”
She thought for a moment.
‘I’m sure you’re not looking for what I hid among the trees again, are you?’
When she thought about it, in addition to the key, there were also lists and documents of other nobles who had received bribes from Libertan. If the Emperor had sent Libertan away for treason, it was worth finding it. But she smiled sheepishly, pretending not to know anything.
“I completely understand. But I thought Prime Minister Orteca would ask me that secret.”
“Hoo. Why is that?”
“That’s because you praised me by calling me Princess Armatis.”
Princess Armatis was the most outstanding bride in imperial mythology. But she wasn’t someone they routinely used when giving praise.
‘It comes to a tragic end.’
And that too while keeping her husband’s secret. So Princess Armatis’ nickname was also a noble secret. Chancellor Orteca smiled.
“What if I complimented Duchess Blanchett because I thought it suited her?”
“It must have been a minor mistake on my part for not understanding the joke. So, Prime Minister, do you think I made a mistake?”
“That’s amazing. It is exactly as the Duchess thought.”
Chancellor Orteca lifted the corner of his mouth as if interested.
“I somehow think Duchess Blanchett knows the secret I’m looking for.”
“But I don’t know anything unless the Prime Minister tells me about the secret?”
“Still, I can’t help it. I feel so sad too.”
Unlike John, she was reluctant to talk to the Marquis of Orteca. Chancellor Orteca’s green eyes shone darkly.
“Since you listened to my story and understood it, I think I should tell you something else.”
“What is that?”
“It is said that Countess Hettel put great effort into her dinner today. To the point where it’s too much.”
The Marquis of Orteca struck a stone at the bottom of the garden with his staff. And he looked at her and smiled.
“I heard she especially prepared something very rare for dinner. I think it would be good if the Duchess would also look forward to the main dish of the evening.”
A woman’s voice was heard calling the Prime Minister from the back of the garden.
“Prime Minister Orteca! Are you here by any chance?”
She seemed to be the second daughter of Count Hettel. Chancellor Orteca lifted his staff gracefully and bowed lightly.
“Then I’ll see you tonight.”
* * *
After parting ways with the Marquis of Orteca, she was troubled by unexpected information.
‘The question is what will happen…’
So many things were predicted that it was a little difficult to act. At that time, Betty came to the garden to look for her, and as soon as she saw her, she smiled brightly.
“My lady! Since it’s a dinner party soon, is it okay if I dress you up one more time?”
Perhaps because they and the Marquis Orteca were scheduled to leave soon, Count Hettel had invited several guests. So, as Duchess Blanchett, she also needed to put effort into her outfit.
“Ok, fine.”
“The main character of today’s dinner will also be Madam. You must be the most beautiful lady.”
Betty nodded her head, her face full of enthusiasm.
“But Betty. Can I ask you something?”
“Sure. Ask for anything.”
“What was it you were doing at the Blanchett family before?”
“Yes? I worked as a maid.”
“That’s not all.”
“Yes…?”
Betty blinked her gentle eyes at the unexpected words. She smiled kindly at Betty.
“Not the maid work, but the work you usually do. Can you tell me what you were doing before you came to spy on me?”
Betty’s brown eyes wavered.
* * *
Count Hettel walked anxiously around his office. Countess Hettel, who was displeased with what was happening, shouted.
“Honey, it’s an important dinner coming up, so why are you acting like this without any help?”
“But ma’am.”
Count Hettel said, unable to hide his nervousness.
“Can I really believe that bastard? As you know, if this goes wrong, we’re done…”
“What’s there to be anxious about?”
Countess Hettel scolded her husband harshly.
“The situation is already over, and we hastily obtained verification magic tools to confirm. We have to take advantage of the opportunities given to us, we can’t live like this forever.”
“That’s true, but…”
“Honey. Think of our Lotte and Flora.”
Countess Hettel seemed to have abated her anger and wrapped the Count’s hand in hers.
“Right now, it’s rumored that I’ve been disgraced in social circles, so my children can’t even get married. You can’t leave it like that.”
The Count nodded his head innocently. The Countess relaxed her disapproving face again. She honestly didn’t know she would be this useful until she hid Baron Penula. She was planning on kicking her out before she got annoying.
‘I guess this luck came to me because I lived a good life.’
It was dinner time. Her guests gathered at Count Hettel’s beautifully decorated banquet hall. And in the very center of the banquet hall, Duchess Blanchett, who looked more beautiful than anyone else, was standing with her husband.
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Translator Note:
Hello there! This is RJR. I hope you liked it <3
If you like my work please support me with Ko-fi or Patreon. Next post will be released on December, 1.
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