Duke, Please Fail! - Chapter 90

Episode 90

“Your Grace, you look tired.”

Leonel, who was holding his head, raised it.

Levance, while tidying up his desk, observed Leonel’s complexion.

“You couldn’t sleep again?”

“No.”

“Are you overworked?”

“No.”

Levance was about to tell him to go in and rest, but he kept his mouth shut. He remembered that Leonel’s complexion had been perfectly fine during dinner. He had started complaining of sudden fatigue after seeing off the guests. 

What had the dangerous Devondus done?

With a worried heart, Levance approached Leonel.

“Did you perhaps ingest poison?”

“Perhaps.”

Leonel replied dully.

Levance’s eyes widened in astonishment and then returned to their normal size after a while.

“But why do you look so well then?”

“I vomited it out.”

“When did you vomit it out?”

“As soon as I left the dining hall.”

Vomiting out poison immediately after ingestion could reduce the amount absorbed by the body. Levance heaved a sigh of relief.

“Do you know what kind of poison it was?”

“I asked for an investigation, so we’ll know soon.”

“Where was it kept?”

“Strawberry compote.”

Levance easily recalled the scene where Nelly was swapping her strawberry compote pudding with Leonel’s salad. If Nelly hadn’t swapped with Leonel, the poison would have been ingested by her.

“So, it was aimed at Nelly.”

“Yes.”

“What are you going to do?”

“It seems I haven’t thought of that yet.”

“We’ll figure it out soon.”

Just as the two were briefly interrupted in their conversation, someone knocked on the door, and Arette entered.

Leonel took off his glasses and asked.

“Did you find out?”

“Yes, it was in the strawberry compote…”

“Aaaah!”

A high-pitched and sharp scream drowned Arette’s voice.

Leonel jumped up from his seat. His body wavered slightly, and Levance hurriedly supported him.

Soon, they opened the study door, and a servant rushed in.

“Your Grace! Th-there’s a corpse…!”

Of all times, it had to be a corpse. If the person who had put the poison had taken their own life, it would complicate matters.

Leonel pushed Levance aside. He gritted his teeth to suppress the headache and followed the servant.

In the maids’ lounge, a slender woman lay dead.

Looking at the clear rope marks on her neck, Arette examined the scene and approached Leonel.

In her hand, she held a single letter. It was a suicide note.

[I became jealous of the suddenly trusted estate manager and attempted to poison her with Agathium Van. I am afraid I will be found out, so I am committing suicide, I am sorry.]

Under the brief message was the name of the maid.

“The poison in Your Grace’s strawberry compote was Agathium Van.”

The suicide note crumpled in his hand. With the culprit leaving a suicide note, there was no pretext for an investigation.

The person who had orchestrated Nelly’s poisoning had successfully cut off all leads and escaped.

‘They are becoming increasingly cunning.’

If they had targeted his life, he could let it slide. But if they had targeted Nelly, the story changed.

Ignoring the rapidly encroaching fatigue and headache, Leonel gave an order to Arette.

“Immediately find the source of the poison…”

He had tried to issue a precise command, but he couldn’t finish his sentence, and his body gave way.

“Your Grace!”

Levance rushed to him in alarm, but Arette’s actions were faster. He lifted Leonel and rushed into the room. Levance followed closely behind.

Hearing the commotion, the butler entered the room. Arette, along with Levance, gently laid Leonel on the bed while the butler examined his pulse, breathing, and skin.

Muttering to himself, Levance said.

“He said he vomited everything earlier…”

“It seems that the poison wasn’t completely expelled.”

As the butler finished speaking, Levance, driven by a sense of urgency, hurriedly left the room.

* * *

The path to the back door was also blocked by Frer. I looked around while feeling his hand gripping my shoulder. There was a large window nearby, but in front of it, there was a bed.

I had no confidence in moving faster than Frer, and there was an obstacle, so I couldn’t escape through the window.

‘What should I do?’

My fingertips felt cold and stiff. Why were they after me? Did they realize my true identity and want to eliminate me as a witness?

As I struggled to breathe, Hadiger walked over, looking embarrassed and apologetic.

“Why are you so scared? I’m trying to keep a smile on my face, you know.”

He playfully lifted the corners of my mouth with his finger. I was already so terrified that his actions sent shivers down my spine.

“Ugh!”

I bit down on my lip and held my breath, but Frer held onto my shoulder and walked towards the table.

“You get even more scared when I smile.”

“I’ve never heard that before. Isn’t a handsome face supposed to make people less nervous?”

“Are you saying it with your own mouth?”

As they seated me in a chair, Frer and Hadiger exchanged banter as usual. They sat close to me, which was unusual for them, but perhaps they were just trying to put me at ease with their lighthearted conversation.

Were they trying to lull my guard down with their playful conversation? I couldn’t afford to let my guard down. At any moment, they could be after my life or trying to extract information from me…

As I pondered their intentions and my escape plan, Hadiger suddenly leaned in.

“What are you thinking so hard about?”

“…”

I didn’t answer, but there was no sign of anger on my part. He maintained his gentle smile and asked me.

“Do you know who I am? I’ve been trying to make it easy for you since you didn’t recognize me the last few times.”

He is Hadiger.

But I know that this is not a question. I observed him for a moment.

His hair was dazzlingly blond, and his eyes were as blue as the sky. His tone was slightly lower than usual, and his manner was strangely playful.

The face was that of a stranger, but the atmosphere was familiar. Moreover, with blond hair and blue eyes, if it’s someone who knows me…

‘Prince?’

In shock, I almost shouted, but I reflexively covered my mouth.

Why would the prince come here? And in disguise at that. Moreover, during his stay in the domain, he didn’t seem to do anything in particular. Could it be…

“Did you poison Leonel?”

“Huh? No. You’re making scary accusations, Nelly.”

“How am I supposed to believe that?”

“We’re friends.”

He shamelessly called himself my friend. He had deceived me all this time!

Anger surged, overpowering the fear that had been consuming me. I glared at him. 

Seeing my reaction, the prince, with an apologetic smile, looked at Frer. He playfully tilted his head and then went back to where he was making a potion.

Hadiger glared after him, then put his fist on my hand and patted it.

“Don’t be so angry, Nelly.”

“Please don’t call me by my name.”

“It’s just too cold. I didn’t know you’d be this angry. I’m sorry.”

“…”

“I didn’t have any malicious intent coming here. I told you, I wanted to get to know Nelly.”

“You said you wanted a relationship.”

Frer turned his head and looked at Adelhardt. His gaze was piercing.

He approached and took my hand out of the prince’s grip. While the prince tried to explain, Frer didn’t seem to listen at all.

Why are they both so fine now that they’ve been caught spying? I couldn’t get used to the lighthearted atmosphere.

“I came to find out who Nelly really is.”

“Someone of your rank could enter officially.”

“Leonel wouldn’t allow that. If I went, there would be too much public attention on Nelly. There are other reasons, of course.”

The prince spoke with a bitter smile.

“And if my identity were known, Nelly would be more cautious about her actions, making it harder for me to know who she truly is.”

“So?”

“My goal was to convince Nelly to come to me if she thought I was a decent person. Even if I failed, I wanted to be friends. So, before leaving, I wanted to reveal my true identity.”

I couldn’t tell what part was the truth and what part was a lie. When someone you consider a friend tries to convince you rationally, it’s natural to want to believe them. But once you trust and let your guard down, your life could be in danger.

Has Leonel always lived in such situations? Did he endure betrayals and suffer, and then decide to be alone because he would rather doubt everything?

I raised my head, pondering these thoughts.

“Then please provide the antidote to Leonel for now.”

“If Nelly speaks more comfortably to me.”

The prince sighed, resting his chin in his hand.

“By the way, my name is Adelhardt. You can call me Adel if you’d like.”

I didn’t like it, but I didn’t make the mistake of blurting out my true feelings.

“Okay. I’d like to go back to the castle for now.”

“That’s troublesome.”

“…You said you just came here because you wanted to be friends with me. So, it shouldn’t matter, right?”

“I do, but he doesn’t.”

Adelhardt pointed his finger at Frer. He had a glass bottle filled with a brownish liquid, which looked like the antidote, in his hand, and he leaned against the countertop with a stoic expression.

“Besides, Nelly knows my true identity. If the duke consumed poison and a prince is hiding here, who would be blamed for being the culprit?”

“I promise to keep it a secret.”

Of course, I planned to tell the truth as soon as we returned. Adelhardt also seemed skeptical of my words.

He just brushed it off and changed the subject.

“What poison did Duke Altwood ingest?”

Reluctant to reveal the information, I remained silent until Frer answered in my place.

“It seemed to be Agathium Van. Has it been about 30 minutes since he took it?”

I hesitated before answering.

“…Yes, quite some time.”

“Then you shouldn’t worry. Typically, he’d already be dead if it was a lethal dose.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Occasionally, during the detoxification process…”

“Wait.”

Adelhardt interrupted Frer’s explanation, and I heard a faint sound from outside.

“I hear the sound of hooves. Who’s coming?”

Frer, who had seemed indifferent to everything until now, slowly tensed up. I probably had a similar expression.

Within the domain, only the knights could freely ride horses. 

For a knight to visit Frer at this time indicated that someone had a problem with their health. And the most likely candidate was Leonel, who had probably ingested the poison.

“Elling.”

“Yes?”

Frer responded to the unfamiliar name. I suppressed my breath in the overwhelming sense of betrayal. While I struggled with this realization, their conversation continued.

“Make sure to deliver the antidote to Leonel. If possible, confirm that he drinks it and then return.”

“Yes.”

Deliver the antidote and ensure he drinks it. The person who had come without malice was giving an order that had a disturbing aspect.

Was this an opportunity to poison Leonel more decisively?

‘I can’t let Leonel consume an antidote made by a spy. I have to go back and inform them.’

Hadiger was in front of me, and I glanced briefly at the back door. It was a significant distance away.

Would shouting for help attract the knights’ attention? As I took a deep breath to shout, Hadiger covered my mouth with his hand.

From behind, he embraced me, restraining my struggles, and continued the conversation.

“Give him the medicine and then run away.”

“Yes.”

“If you happen to get caught, just tell them where I am. Given Leonel’s personality, he won’t kill or torture you.”

“Oh, goodness…”

Frer sighed as if the weight on his shoulders was about to break him. 

Hadiger laughed, and for a moment, his grip loosened. I didn’t miss this opportunity, and I swiftly stomped on his foot and twisted my body.

‘I’m free!’

I had to call for help. I turned my body to run towards the back door, intending to scream.

However, my attempt was not successful. Before I could even take a step, I felt a strong impact on my neck.

-Knock, knock, knock!

Just as I desperately knocked, my consciousness started to fade.