I Become the Villain's Bride - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

‘It’s a threat.’

Although he formally proposed to her, the man with the pleasant voice refused to become the Emperor’s son-in-law. Saying such things to someone who rejected the proposal would only make him dislike her even more.

To ask someone to marry her because she knew their secret…

As expected, he responded with an even more severe tone.

“I am not a dog of the imperial family.”

“I didn’t mean that!”

“Your attitude like this only makes people sick of you.”

She didn’t know who it was, but the merciless tone made her stomach churn.

Regardless of being a princess, it seemed a bit too much. The man systematically pointed out the princess’s mistakes and firmly expressed his own intentions.

“If I marry the princess, I won’t gain any benefits, and I am not interested in how great the family of the person I marry is.”

“But!”

“I will choose the person I marry with my own hands, at least it won’t be the Princess, so please leave me alone.”

The cold statement struck the girl’s heart like a nail.

As harsh as it may seem, there was not a single wrong word.

‘Now is not the time for this.’

While the voice was quite pleasant to listen to, there was no thought of just standing there and listening. She had a goal, and she needed to find Duke Crawford.

Trying to slip away cautiously, the moment she was about to escape,

“Oh dear!”

She accidentally stepped on the edge of her dress and stumbled forward. The scream she unintentionally let out caused the distant conversation between the man and woman to abruptly stop.

‘This is bad.’

As the footsteps approached, fear surged. She had no other thought than to desperately run away.

She tried to hurry, but the man was faster. Approaching quickly, he caught her wrist as she was attempting to escape, then checked her face from head to toe.

Terrified, she scrambled to her feet, hoping her hands would become feet.

“Please spare me!”

Without even confirming his face, she bent her waist and begged for her life.

“I hadn’t intentionally eavesdropped; the voice just suddenly reached my ears as I was passing by.”

She tried to make excuses, but it was too late.

Having heard the princess’s secret, if things continued like this, she might end up in prison on charges of eavesdropping.

“Raise your head.”

Swallowing the desire to cry, she raised her head with great effort.

However, as her eyes met with the person in front of her, somewhere in the distance, it seemed like a bell was ringing.

“No way….”

Although the descriptions of his handsome appearance were mentioned several times, seeing him in person was beyond what she had ever imagined. She was so stunned that no words came out of her mouth.

“Who are you?”

“I got lost.”

The overwhelming emotion of surviving was more urgent than the emotion of meeting him.

Certainly, it was unintentional eavesdropping; I just happened to hear a voice while passing by.

“Excuse me, where is this? I want to go home.”

“The ballroom is on the opposite side.”

A familiar voice, and she could sense kindness in it.

“Please, let me go. I got lost.”

“Who is that?”

“Sister, are you here?”

After more than an hour since she disappeared, it seemed like Lily had come all the way here to find her.

As she was about to say she was here, the sharp eyes of Duke Crawford met hers.

‘Wait a moment. If those two meet…’

What would happen if the world’s greatest beauty, Lily, and the world’s strongest Duke Crawford met? Even if Duke Crawford himself didn’t show much interest, if the Duke admired Lily, the course of the story would change drastically.

‘But our Lily is really cute.’

It’s not just because she is her sister. Lily Devlanc’s beauty was already well-known in high society.

Even if she didn’t show much interest, Duke Crawford, who is looking for a marriage partner, might… It would be a terrible outcome.

“I’ll excuse myself now.”

In a hurry to escape, her shoe came off.

But at this moment, there was no way she had the composure to pick it up.

‘I’ll just buy new shoes. Life is more precious.’

Since she hadn’t revealed her name, it would be impossible for him to find her. Leaving only one shoe in front of Duke Crawford, she hastily escaped.

* * *

“What’s with this shoe?”

Jade, the butler of Duke Crawford, was quite bewildered as he looked at the item raised by his master.

“I picked it up.”

Even at this moment, the deadline set by the Emperor is approaching.

Duke Crawford, Wilfred, placed the cream-colored shoe adorned with elegant ribbons and pearl decorations on the desk. He then checked the list of prospective brides that Jade had prepared.

“Is it her?”

“Yes. The one at the top is the most ‘ordinary’ lady in the capital right now.”

Out of excessive loyalty, Jade strictly followed the words as they were spoken.

Wilfred, in the process of opening the file to check who the chosen partner was, felt a sense of déjà vu as soon as he saw the woman in the portrait.

“I, I got lost.”

The frightened deer-like woman. The woman in the portrait was undoubtedly a face that Wilfred was already familiar with.

It seemed like an unfortunate fate. Her face was strikingly similar to someone he had seen before.

‘Lost her way, huh?’

Judging by the shoe she was wearing, it was clear that she came from a well-off family. Today’s ball was held in conjunction with the grand noble assembly. Although even a mere viscount’s family could participate, a family that could afford such shoes was limited.

And the voice that was searching for her sister.

If it was a noble with a younger sister of the appropriate age for a ball, it wouldn’t be difficult to pick her out.

“Freesia Devlanc.”

“Maybe her younger sister is more suitable…”

“Wait a moment.”

Interrupting Jade, Wilfred read through the contents of the file in order.

If it was the Devlanc family, they undoubtedly owned an estate in the capital, and Rose, the successor, was already known to some extent.

‘Not from a poor household.’

Today’s meeting had brought up the issue of the troublesome Rose Devlanc.

‘It’s probably to interfere with my succession.’

She deliberately poured out unpleasant words in front of Wilfred, and she must have cried a lot when she returned home.

To make matters worse, her younger sister became one of Wilfred’s prospective brides.

There are three sisters in the family, and coincidentally, very little information about the second one.

“Is the investigation incomplete?”

“We’ve used all available resources, but no information has surfaced. However, if we look at her younger sister…”

For some reason, Jade actively emphasized that they should look at the portrait of her younger sister together.

Though she was undoubtedly beautiful, a beauty that was too conspicuous did not meet his criteria.

“Freesia, you said.”

Disappointedly looking at Jade, he scanned through Freesia’s profile.

Despite the efforts of his capable subordinates, they had brought back only perfectly ordinary women according to his command.

* * *

Her height was average, her weight was average, her academic achievements were average. Even her appearance was average and unremarkable.

Finding a flaw or peculiarity in her seemed impossible. Moreover, she had the audacity to eavesdrop on his conversation and then try to escape.

“It turned out well that I had to return the shoe.”

Considering the haste with which she fled in fear, he wouldn’t mock her openly, but silencing her would be better.

He looked at the emotionless Freesia in the portrait with a cruel smile.

“Indeed, you shouldn’t have eavesdropped on others’ conversations so recklessly.”

If the matter with the princess leaked out, it would cause trouble.

With a cruel smile on his face, he took out Freesia’s photo.

Although he had no interest in marriage, a tiny bit of curiosity had arisen.

* * *

“Where on earth were you?”

Matthew bounded back and forth, complaining that she disappeared while dancing with other ladies.

“I told you I got lost.”

“That’s why I said I’d stick by your side.”

“I lost my shoe too.”

Normally kind Matthew tended to be overly protective, especially during moments like this.

Although it was a pity to lose the shoe she cherished, she returned to the ballroom wearing spare shoes.

“You get lost a lot,” he said,

“so you’re going to stick close to me from now on.”

Matthew, who had become cheerful all of a sudden, even volunteered to be her bodyguard.

‘I’m in trouble.’

It wasn’t the plan to be like this. I only came to the ball as usual, but today nothing was going as planned.

“Come to think of it, why is Rose still not here?”

“Right. Father has already arrived.”

Matthew’s father, Viscount Naphier, had already joined the party, but there was still no sign of Rose or Duke Crawford.

She planned to go home together if her sister arrived, but now that it had come to this, it might be better to keep an eye on her so that she wouldn’t run away.

“Let’s go home.”

“Already?”

“It’s late.”

The gazes aimed at Lily, who wanted to play more, were truly irritating.

‘The night would have been better if my sister were here.’

Rose didn’t show up until the moment they left the ballroom.

Helplessly, Freesia decided to leave for home first.

“Sister, I’m sleepy.”

“I knew this would happen.”

It was already past 2 in the morning.

Lily, who had been dancing all day, began to doze off.

Leaving the two sisters alone at this late hour might lead to some trouble, so Matthew personally carried Lily and put her in the carriage.

“Thanks every time. What am I going to do with you?”

“We’re practically like real siblings. Lily is practically my younger sister.”

“Matthew, do you have anyone you like?”

Even though they grew up like real siblings, becoming the future Viscountess Naphier might make her sisters jealous.

Considering their parents’ concerns, it would be better to choose a marriage partner in advance.

Come to think of it, she had never heard about Matthew liking anyone.

“There is someone I like.”

“Who is it?”

“There is. A very dull and indifferent woman.”

* * *

Inside the carriage, Lily, who was half asleep, mumbled, “Freesia, you should find someone to marry too.”

Freesia chuckled at Lily’s random comment.

“Sure, I’ll think about it.”

As they approached their mansion, Matthew gently woke Lily up.

“We’re home, Lily.”

Lily rubbed her eyes and looked around.

“Are we already home?”

“Yes, let’s go inside. Freesia, take care of Lily. I’ll go get her things.”

“Sure, Matthew. Thank you for today.”

While Matthew went to fetch Lily’s belongings, Freesia and Lily entered the mansion.

As they walked through the corridor, Lily suddenly whispered,

“Freesia, are you keeping any secrets from me?”

Freesia was taken aback by the unexpected question.

“Secrets? No, Lily, why would you think that?”

Lily tilted her head,

“I don’t know… you seem different lately. And you disappeared at the ball for a while.”

Freesia forced a smile,

“It’s nothing, Lily. Just some personal matters. Don’t worry about it.”

Lily didn’t look entirely convinced but dropped the subject. They reached Lily’s room, and Freesia helped her change into comfortable nightclothes.

“Goodnight, Lily. Sleep well.”

“Goodnight, Freesia. Thanks for today.”

Freesia left Lily’s room, but the question lingered in her mind. She wondered if keeping the truth from Lily was the right choice.

“Smile Love”