Duke, Please Fail! - Chapter 46

Episode 46

‘Staying quiet makes it hurt less.’

I’ll probably be better after sleeping, right?

I should get up. But I didn’t want to take that medicine again. If it’s diluted and it tastes this bad, I can’t imagine how awful the undiluted version must be. Just having it touch my lips might be enough to send me into shock.

“Oops!”

I get it now! I know why it failed!

While I was lost in thought, Leonel pulled the blanket away.

“Why are you like this? Are you in pain?”

“Water…”

Leonel got up and went outside, but I didn’t have the energy to pay attention. It was because I had just realized a very important fact.

“It was the water!”

It was because I diluted the plant poison with water. It turned into fertilizer. Just like how diluting poison turns it into medicine!

“It wasn’t about adding water. Adding water…”

As I muttered to myself, I burst into laughter uncontrollably.

Mary, who had come in with water, stopped in her tracks, startled.

“Miss, are you alright?”

“Yes…”

“The Duke asked me to bring water for you. He said he’s stopping by the castle for a bit.”

He didn’t have to come back.

But why on earth does he keep staying by my side? Isn’t there any way to get rid of him?

As I pondered, my eyelids grew heavy.

“It seems the Duke will order the reinstallation of the chimes you had removed.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re not feeling well, Miss Nelly, and if you ring it, I’ll come.”

“You don’t have to…”

My pronunciation became slightly slurred. I need to sleep for now.

As I relaxed my body, I saw Leonel entering the room. To avoid making things more awkward, I simply closed my eyes.

And then, I fell asleep.

* * *

“Have you arrived, Your Highness?”

Adelhardt nodded and took off his coat. The butler accepted his clothes and handed them to a servant.

“Do you have good news? You seem to be in a better mood than when you left.”

“Oh, yes…”

Adelhardt couldn’t help but burst into laughter instead of sighing in amazement.

“I saw something interesting while I was out.”

When Nelly was chasing a pickpocket through the square, Adelhardt had been there too. He had seen Nelly following the pickpocket into an alley.

Adelhardt wasn’t exactly a paragon of virtue, nor was he so cowardly as to ignore someone who was clearly in danger. He thought he would rescue her and then playfully lecture her to instill some caution. He took a shortcut and followed Nelly.

However, at that moment, an unexpected figure appeared – Leonel Altwood.

“I’m curious about what you saw.”

The butler’s words reminded Adelhardt of Nelly, clutching her purse and trying to escape. He recalled how she hadn’t gotten more than a few steps before Leonel grabbed her by the back of her dress. The image of her being dragged away still made him laugh.

“Hahaha!”

The butler looked at Adelhardt, who had collapsed onto the sofa, clutching his belly.

After watching him in that state for a while, Adelhardt, who had momentarily stopped laughing, took a deep breath.

“Leonel Altwood followed a woman to Dames.”

“You mean Duke Altwood?”

“Can’t you believe it?”

“Yes.”

“I wonder who she is.”

“I will find out.”

“You will? She had brown hair and green eyes.”

One person immediately came to the butler’s mind.

A few months ago, there had been a woman who had appeared with Leonel and caused a stir in the social circles of Braushtete. She, too, had brown hair and green eyes.

“I think she’s the rumored manager of the estate.”

“Manager?”

“Yes.”

Adelhardt’s face showed a hint of admiration. He had heard that the manager of Altwood was thoughtful enough to look out for the Queen’s concerns.

But coming to Dames just for that reason seemed unlikely.

“Didn’t you contact Elling?”

“He said that the manager takes good care of the estate residents.”

“Is that all?”

“Yes.”

“That’s unimpressive. Not realizing a spy.”

He wanted to know more about the manager’s character and abilities.

“Elling is coming back in two months, right?”

“Yes.”

“Tell him to stay longer.”

“For how long?”

“Well…”

Adelhardt seemed to ponder for a moment before smiling.

“Until my interest wanes.”

“I understand. I will include that in the letter.”

“Also, find out as much as you can about Nelly Pepper.”

“Yes.”

After the butler responded, Adelhardt remained still. He seemed lost in thought, tapping his foot lightly, and then his face lit up as if he had a good idea.

“There’s a ball coming up soon, isn’t there?”

“Yes.”

“Nothing beats seeing it in person. Send invitations to Duke Altwood and his manager.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Adelhardt had been looking forward to the upcoming ball. To him, a ball was nothing more or less than an opportunity to find a partner. Marriage was not on his mind yet. Besides, the way people looked at him as if he were a valuable stallion, made him uncomfortable.

‘They may not understand, but…’

Adelhardt is a half-prince. The queen and her husband had no children. Adelhardt, a member of the royal family by blood, had lost his parents to a plague.

Adelhardt, who belonged to the royal bloodline, was orphaned.

The Queen adopted him as her son, but their relationship was distant from that of a typical family. The royal couple had hoped for a perfect heir, and although Adelhardt had tried his best, he couldn’t meet their expectations.

On the other hand, Leonel, the Duke who had earned great recognition in wars, easily satisfied the Queen. 

‘Still, we got along quite well when we were younger.’

That might have been a poison in disguise. Leonel’s presence next to Adelhardt caught the Queen’s eye.

‘With him around, perhaps they won’t give me the crown prince title.’

The Queen mentioned that she might consider passing the throne to Adelhardt in the unofficial setting as long as Leonel was there to support him. This rumor spread like wildfire. 

Subsequently, there was an overt push for Adelhardt to find a spouse and get married. This situation made him reluctant to attend balls. He didn’t want to abandon the throne, but he wished to be acknowledged for his abilities.

‘If I’m lacking, I can always appoint someone competent beneath me. That’s also a virtue of a king.’

If Leonel’s manager was so competent, then he wouldn’t mind taking her away.

Adelhardt eagerly awaited Leonel’s response. However, all he received was a polite refusal. On top of that, contact with Elling, who had been planted at the Altwood estate, was severed.

‘Could it be that he’s been exposed? But that’s highly unlikely.’

Adelhardt knew Leonel well. To avoid suspicion, he had sent a thoroughly prepared individual to the Altwood estate. While he didn’t mind losing his life in an unfortunate accident, he couldn’t shake his unease.

As he sat on the couch, tilting his head back, he heard the sound of the terrace door opening.

“Your Highness.”

“You!”

Adelhardt abruptly stood up and turned towards the voice.

“Why did you come in through the window?”

“It’s cool, isn’t it?”

“You’re still missing a screw, I see.”

Elling scratched his head and walked towards Adelhardt.

Adelhardt gave him a once-over from head to toe. He didn’t seem to be injured.

“I thought you might have had an accident. Are you okay?”

“Yes, as you can see.”

Elling spun around in a circle. Adelhardt, unable to contain his amusement, waved his hand dismissively and sat back down on the couch.

“Since I hadn’t heard from you, I thought you might have changed your mind.”

“I don’t think so. There’s been another spy sent from somewhere else, and because that person got caught, security has tightened.”

“Two spies, huh? As expected, those who have the Queen’s expectations are different.”

“That’s right. Being popular is tiring.”

Agreeing in a resigned tone, Elling let out a big yawn.

“Sorry about that. I ran here in a hurry and couldn’t sleep.”

“It’s okay. I told you to take it easy.”

Elling nodded and blinked once before getting to the main point.

“Anyway, they seem to be examining all incoming and outgoing letters. They’re keeping more detailed records of comings and goings.”

“How long do you think he’ll be doing that?”

“I don’t know. Given the Duke’s personality, maybe for the rest of his life.”

Elling shrugged his shoulders. 

“I came here to say that we might need a different way to communicate.”

“Right. Well, take your time to think about it. But there’s something else I’m curious about.”

“Yes?”

Adelhard straightened up and looked at Elling with a serious face.

“Why did she decline my invitation?”

There was a moment of silence. That’s all he had to say with a serious face. Elling’s nervous face turned a little shaky.

He had an idea of who it was, but out of politeness, he asked again.

“Who is it?”

“It’s Leonel’s manager. There’s no reason for her to refuse. It’s a prince’s invitation, after all.”

Elling, who knew how to read lips, could roughly understand what they were talking about just from seeing Adelhardt’s mouth move. 

On the day the invitation arrived, he happened to be observing Nelly Pepper. He recalled their conversation and replied.

“It seems like the Duke is being a bit inquisitive, wondering if she and the prince are on friendly terms.”

“Well, that damn paranoia of his.”

“Maybe she refused to go because she got fed up with it, thinking that if she accepts the invitation, she’ll only arouse more suspicion.”

“Have they progressed to such a level already?”

“It doesn’t seem like they have that kind of relationship.”