TVIOWHFW 14

John’s gaze was fixed on me, and I didn’t know when it would finally leave. I looked at John and smiled brightly.

“It’s okay now. You can do whatever you want.”

“Really? I can do what I want?”

His red eyes shone faintly, as if trying to probe me. The feeling was different from usual. But I couldn’t tell what kind of emotion was hidden inside.

‘I’m just feeling anxious for no reason.’

All I could tell was that John seemed to be going even more crazy.

“Yes. I was just scolding him directly because he was trying to slander the Duke as he pleased!”

I wondered if I should raise a strange flag, but I decided to keep it as it was since I couldn’t waver now.

“It’s just that, so now you can do whatever you want. Kill him or spare him—do as you wish, Duke.”

I kept a smile to show that I was sincere.

“Estelle. Don’t you find me scary?”

A strange tension started to build between us.

“Why would I think you’re scary, Duke?”

If I didn’t fear John, that would be a lie. I am very afraid of him. I’m afraid of my future being trampled on, betrayed, and ending in death. But right now, what made John scary was a different matter.

“I’m not afraid of you, Duke.”

“You saw everything.”

John whispered in a languid voice.

“I’m someone who can easily trample over and kill people more than anyone else. Did you hear about the murder case that happened in the capital?”

“…”

“Knowing that, it would make things easier to talk about.”

His gaze became more intense.

“Do you think you can handle it, my wife?”

Swallowing hard unconsciously, I nodded.

“…Was it for no reason at all?”

“Your innocence is charming.”

A deeper smile spread across John’s lips.

“In such actions, the reason doesn’t matter. What’s important is the result. You shouldn’t look for the reason behind heinous crimes. Otherwise, the essence gets blurred.”

John portrayed himself as a villain, condemning himself.

“If there was a proper reason, would it be okay to act like that? Can you trust that the reason is true?”

John deliberately kicked Anton’s head with his foot.

“Even after seeing me handle people like this firsthand?”

His elegant, noble demeanor made his cruelty even more apparent. But I shook my head.

“If the Duke isn’t scary, then?”

“Why wouldn’t I find this scary?”

That sounded like a sneer.

“You’re not so stupid as to not understand what I mean.”

John tilted his head slightly, meeting my gaze. His deep crimson eyes seemed to sink into me. What he didn’t realize was that I wasn’t as altruistic, kind, or cautious as he thought.

‘Why does the reason matter so much?’

Having been mistreated in Libertan for my unreasonable whims without reason, I couldn’t relate to John’s words. The world isn’t only about results. And above all, I wasn’t very sympathetic.

‘Compassion is for people with leisure.’

There was no room for leisure in my life now. So there was no space for others. Especially not for trash like that.

“Think carefully before you regret. Your husband isn’t such a good person that you’d defend him so blindly. He’s actually closer to a terrible person.”

Sorry, I know that.

“Then? Do I have to hate John over something I don’t even understand?”

John clenched his jaw. Seeing the taut muscles in his neck, I looked straight into his crimson eyes.

“If John is really such a terrible person, then what’s the point of giving me warnings like this?”

“Just to reassure you like this.”

“In that case, I can’t do anything.”

The smile that had been formal on John’s face disappeared. My heart started pounding inexplicably.

‘Maybe I haven’t done anything wrong after all?’

The point where I started to truly fall in the original story was right after I confessed my love to John. But even before that, Estelle had often shown her affection through words. Precisely, she hadn’t made a love confession, but her words were close enough. So perhaps even this level of affection was just on the borderline. The atmosphere grew cold and tense. An odd pressure seemed to weigh down on me. Still, I refused to look away or change my words.

“Even if from the Duke’s perspective, I seem incomprehensible or foolish, I can’t help it.”

“…”

“Because that’s how I truly feel.”

Seeing me tremble with fear for no reason, John covered my eyes with his big hand and burst into a clear, bright smile.

‘Why is he smiling all of a sudden?’

John is truly unpredictable. After chuckling for a while, he tilted his head slightly towards me.

“…Do you realize how dangerous your words are right now?”

“Me?”

I think I only said something that was believable but not entirely true.

“What did I say?”

“I thought you didn’t know.”

“You didn’t even consider the fact about your family?”

“I’ve heard about the Duke of Libertan.”

Anyway, I had heard everything from outside. I answered nonchalantly, grumbling inwardly.

“Don’t worry. I don’t believe a word that unreliable people say.”

“She always tells me not to worry.”

“But there’s really no need to worry.”

There’s no shock in hearing facts I already know. I had already felt that shock sufficiently just by recalling the original story.

“What I heard was that the culprit who owed money to my husband was the Duke of Libertan.”

At that moment, John’s face stiffened slightly.

“So I wondered why you brought me here as a condition to forgive that debt. I remembered what you told me back then.”

John wouldn’t tell me anything for revenge anyway. I didn’t hold any false hope. So I smiled softly.

“You told me I was worth that much.”

“…”

“So I decided to trust that a little more.”

His large hand, which was holding mine, tightened. His crimson eyes looked at me with some confusion. Perhaps to cover Anton’s death, the servants of Blanchet Duchy were moving around nearby. Among them, I recognized one.

‘Lady Patricia Gillette.’

Her neatly tied dark brown hair, her cold teal eyes, and her expressionless face like a wax figure. Even standing still, her strict and meticulous attitude was palpable.

‘The head maid of the Blanchet Marquis household.’

In the original story, she was the woman who bullied and ostracized me inside the house. I had thought I would meet her someday, but I never expected to meet her in such a tiring situation.

‘She’s even more exhausting than Erich.’

Erich, John’s aide, I didn’t see him often, but Patricia, as the head maid, was someone I clashed with frequently. Unlike Erich, whose past was somewhat revealed, Patricia’s background was still a mystery, making her harder to deal with.

“Good day, madam. This is Patricia Gillette, head maid of the Blanchet household. I’ve been so busy I couldn’t properly introduce myself earlier.”

Patricia bowed politely as she approached me.

“Are you feeling well? I heard you had a hard time because of my mistake. I apologize—”

My vision suddenly blurred and became more hazy than before.

‘I shouldn’t show such a bad side from the first meeting.’

I staggered, unable to resist the heat rising from my head. John, who was holding me, hurriedly embraced me.

“Madam. Why do you have a fever—”

In the dimly fading vision, I saw the confused faces and the shocked eyes of John and others.

~·~·*· . ·**##^^##**· . ·*·~·~

Hey there, It’s Green Rose 😉

Since I human I might have make some mistakes while translating so please if you find them let me know here in the comments or in the Discord group so I can correct them and be careful in the future so they do not repeat.

At the end I won’t be using the coins sytem with this serie just yet, even so, if you find any roblem or dificulty please let me know!!

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

~~~Next Chapter~~~

Next chapter will be released Tomorrow.

See you then!!