IBACM Chapter 58

Chapter 58

When Dedrick flinched, I patted the back of his hand.

“Don’t worry, The Grand Duke’s wife won’t investigate you.”

If she got caught doing that, she would have to face the Empress. Delani didn’t want that.

Even if she found Perez annoying for supporting Dedrick, she wouldn’t dare make enemies with the Empress.

But if her plans kept failing, who knows?

The Emperor was supporting the First Prince right now. So, it wasn’t impossible for her to reach out to him.

For the Grand Duke’s wife, forming an alliance with the concubine might actually be a better opportunity.

I needed to keep an eye on that.

“So, did you find anything?”

Dedrick asked, curious. But Perez shook his head regretfully.

“Not at all. I looked for every kind of monster, but there’s no record of a monster living in a closet. There are similar ones, but they don’t look the same. And they’re definitely not as cute.”

“Hehe.”

Did you hear that, Didi? He said I’m cute!

I nudged Dedrick’s arm playfully, and he subtly moved to shield me from Perez’s view.

“So, there’s no information at all?”

“I tried my best. I’ll keep searching and bring you information personally next time. We wouldn’t want the Grand Duke’s wife to open my letters without permission, would we?”

That was true.

Especially when it came to Dedrick—she would try to see everything.

“That’s a good idea!”

“Thank you, Marilyn.”

Whoa.

Someone other than Didi called me by my name! Not “closet monster,” but my actual name!

I couldn’t help but smile.

“Oh, and be careful.”

“About what?”

“I found out something by accident.”

“…?”

“Lady Ebony Silius seems to be really interested in you.”

Dedrick’s face twisted in frustration.

---

Late at Night

I suddenly opened my eyes and perked up my ears.

I could hear Dedrick’s steady breathing.

‘He must be asleep.’

It was time to move.

I quietly made my way to the Perez’s closet and carefully opened the door.

He was fast asleep.

‘Of course.’

It had probably been a long time since he slept this peacefully.

Perez’s health was getting worse day by day.

Because someone was targeting him.

I took a piece of paper and, with my clumsy handwriting, wrote down my request. Then I gently shook Perez.

If he screamed, I was ready to cover his mouth.

“Wake up.”

“…”

“Come on, wake up.”

“…”

“Wake up!”

I kept shaking him, but he just groaned and rolled over.

“Mmm…”

“Wake up! Please!”

I shook him even harder, even hitting him lightly.

I needed him to take this request!

Finally, after all my effort, his heavy eyelids opened.

“Who dares…”

I waved the paper in front of him.

He flinched when he saw it.

I was ready to cover his mouth, but he didn’t scream.

Instead, he calmly sat up and spoke.

“Marilyn?”

What?!

That easily?!

I nodded quickly, waving the paper up and down.

“Why are you here so late? Have you finally realized that I’m the better master?”

“You must still be half-asleep. You’re talking nonsense.”

Ignoring his nonsense, I waved the paper again.

He looked at it closely and then sighed.

“This isn’t how you write a request.”

He took my paper, crossed out a character, and rewrote it.

“You wrote is ‘례’ instead of ‘뢰.’ What you wrote means ‘ceremony,’ not ‘request.’ Good thing I’m smart enough to understand.”

“Oh, wow, you’re so amazing. Ugh.”

I clenched my fist in frustration, and he chuckled.

“So, what is this ‘request’?”

I quickly scribbled my request.

[Please make earrings with the jewel I gave you!]

“Hmm. No spelling mistakes this time.”

“Ugh! Just focus on the meaning, not my spelling!”

I banged on the desk in frustration, and he laughed softly.

“That’s an easy request. But what will you give me in return?”

[I’ll let you sleep peacefully!]

“Hm. This says ‘at ease.’ It should be ‘Comfortably.’”

“Aaaargh! This will never end!”

I was still learning, okay?!

I pinched his hand lightly out of irritation, and he burst out laughing.

“You’re cute.”

“Gross.”

Ignoring him, I took the jewel from my horn and handed it to him.

He examined it closely.

“I’ve never seen a jewel like this before… It looks similar to sapphire, but the quality is different. It’s very beautiful.”

Thanks for the compliment.

I scribbled again.

[Make the earrings super elegant and beautiful! Find a good jeweler! It’s for Didi!]

“I know a jeweler, but ‘쟝인’ isn’t the right word…”

“STOP IT!”

I slapped his hand in frustration.

He crossed his legs and smirked.

“So, in return, you’ll let me sleep peacefully?”

[I’ll also save your life.]

Now I was keeping it short.

“You mean ‘목숨.’”

“STOP MARKING MY SPELLING!”

My paper was covered in red marks. I wanted to cry.

“Ugh. Didi said I was good at this.”

“Huh, really? How?”

[Lately, your head hurts a lot, right? You feel weak, and your face looks pale.]

“You mean ‘혈색.’”

I angrily drew a big circle around my writing. He chuckled but nodded.

“Yes, I haven’t been feeling well. I assumed it was just exhaustion.”

[It’s not exhaustion.]

He corrected my spelling again. I gave up caring.

“Then what is it?”

[Check the inside of your palace bed. Something’s there.]

After fixing another mistake, he tapped the desk thoughtfully.

“I’ll check it. Then I’ll decide if I accept your offer.”

I took back my jewel and hung it on my horn again.

Then I wrote:

[Okay! Come back soon!]

“This time, no mistakes.”

Should I hit him?

As I tried to take the paper back to burn it, he snapped it away.

“I’ll take care of this.”

I felt uneasy.

I quickly wrote:

[You can’t let the Grand Duke’s wife see this! If my identity is exposed, I can’t protect Didi.]

“Don’t worry. I won’t let that happen.”

Why was he keeping it?

Seeing my suspicious look, he added:

“I won’t let your secret get out. If you think you can take it back by force, go ahead and try.”

“Ugh!”

I failed miserably and was quickly sent back to the wardrobe where I originally was.

I hurried back, but he had already hidden the paper, so I couldn’t find it.

---

Two days later, the final banquet went smoothly, as if the previous commotion had never happened.

The nobles’ dissatisfaction, caused by Delani’s threats, had been somewhat calmed with a luxurious banquet and expensive gifts.

‘It’s time to begin.’

At Delani’s signal, a young girl smiled and spoke in a slightly louder voice.

“Everything is going so smoothly without that unlucky young lord around.”

The nearby nobles, who had been eavesdropping, quickly gathered around her.

“Unlucky young lord? Who are you talking about?”

“Oh my, have you already forgotten? The youngest son.”

“Ah, that gloomy one…”

“Didn’t he always seem a bit dark?”

The girl deliberately encouraged their agreement, and the gossip-hungry nobles eagerly nodded along.

Lowering her voice, as if revealing a secret, she continued.

“Strange things always happen whenever Young Lord Dedrick is around. Isn’t that too eerie? Remember when something happened to Lord Somerset and Lord Axel? Dedrick was always nearby at the time. Isn’t that suspicious?”

The nobles didn’t care about the truth—they just wanted something to gossip about. And Dedrick was the perfect target.

Although he was part of the Blackwood Ducal family, his status was lower than that of a commoner. They enjoyed belittling him.

“Yes, he did look quite unlucky. Even at the banquet, the Duchess seemed troubled, didn’t she? She said the rumors were exaggerated.”

“That’s right. I overheard the maids talking. They said that if it weren’t for Dedrick, the leader of the White Hawk Knights wouldn’t have resigned, and Lord Somerset wouldn’t have been punished for a month.”

All of this was a trap set by Delani, and the young noblemen and noblewomen eagerly fell for it.