The Villainess Captured The Grand Duke - Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Raygrain continued to touch her hand. Frustrated, he spoke seriously.

“Then I won’t touch you strangely.”

In response, Scheuer reluctantly yielded.

“Well, then I’ll call you by a strange nickname.”

A strange nickname? A topic he had never considered before, and Raygrain responded with a serious expression.

“For example?”

“Baby… kitten…?”

At the unfamiliar nicknames, he squinted his eyes and asked seriously.

“Have you never shaken hands with anyone else?”

“I’ve only held hands with Your Grace for the first time. We’ve only talked with others.”

Scheuer replied confidently in a whisper. Raygrain, who had been silently staring at her, extracted his hand as if freeing it from her grasp.

“I’ve known it since you brought the chicken. Your standards are strange.”

“It’s probably because Your Grace left so suddenly. You should be responsible for your actions.”

“I have never used physical force against you.”

“That’s just words. Do you understand? You made a promise with me. If you don’t keep it, I’ll really start calling Your Grace ‘baby kitten’ in front of everyone from today.”

Raygrain, unable to escape Scheuer’s determined grip, finally surrendered.

“Fine.”

Raygrain stood up as if he were fed up.

“You’re strange.”

Unable to endure the glances of those around them, Scheuer grinned and said, 

“Oh, a secret conversation for a moment.”

Watching them with interest, Silcaro smiled calmly. 

“You two look good together. I didn’t know His Grace had such a side. Well, if you’ll excuse us for a moment.”

Led by Silcaro, Erina and Raygrain disappeared, leaving Betty and Scheuer alone. Anxious, Scheuer stared at the place where they had vanished.

Eventually, Betty brought up the topic first.

“Um… should I call you ‘Miss Nettri’?”

Only then did Scheuer recall her presence and quickly replied, 

“Oh, I’m not using the Nettri name anymore. I’ve changed it due to a scandal.”

Surprised that she had brought up such an uncomfortable topic out of the blue, Scheuer belatedly realized and greeted her.

“Hello, Miss Betty. I’ve met Lord Chetron, but it’s an honor to meet you like this. Please call me Scheuer.”

“No, no! For some reason, my father recommended going out for tea, which he usually doesn’t. It seemed strange.”

It seemed she had heard about tea time from Lord Chetron. Scheuer hadn’t been wrong in her first impression of the Lord.

Scheuer smiled gently and said, 

“Did Lord Chetron raise the camellia tree by any chance?”

“Yes! My father suddenly asked for something different a while ago, and I was confused.”

“Sorry. I asked the Duke for flowers, and he went to you to get them.”

“How romantic. Seems like you get along well.”

Betty’s eyes sparkled as she spoke with an excited tone, 

“Lord Blen always has an expressionless face. People say it’s scary because you can never know what he’s thinking. What attracted you to him?”

Without much thought, Scheuer answered,

“His calm demeanor.”

“Ah, do you really fall for that?”

Betty asked in disbelief. Scheuer responded, folding her fingers one by one.

“He clearly distinguishes between work and personal matters, takes responsibility, and cleanly ends things. Moreover, he has great patience and tolerates a lot. So, I fell for that.”

Scheuer took a moment to groom herself and continued with a more detailed explanation, leaving the room with a sense of regret for leaving her album behind. If she ever opens a shop, Betty would be a good customer. Scheuer cleared her throat and began the full explanation.

“Is that how you always see it?”

In response to the familiar voice, Scheuer raised her head. It was Raygrain, looking down at her from behind.

“Did you hear?” she asked.

“I could hear your voice from beyond the corridor,” he replied.

Laughter mixed with amusement could be heard from behind as Scheuer turned her gaze toward the source of the sound.

“It seems like it’s the first time seeing Lady Betty being so talkative,” someone said.

“Oh, I apologize,” 

Betty said, realizing she had been caught up in the conversation about the Duke.

Scheuer, however, had a different concern. Erina was nowhere to be seen.

‘Why did they leave together, and the Duke returned alone?’

Scheuer scrutinized Raygrain with an uneasy glance, as if trying to inspect him thoroughly. Without any hesitation, he raised his hand, asserting his innocence.

“You don’t need to worry about that.”

Even as Raygrain spoke, Scheuer could sense that Silcaro still held an amused smile, showing no intention of hiding the slightly parted lips.

“It’s such a shame that Lady Erina had to leave early due to some matters. It’s been a while since she met her sister,” Silcaro remarked with a polite response.

Scheuer and Betty echoed their understanding, but the air still carried an undertone of mystery and tension. Deciding not to dwell on it, Scheuer steered the conversation toward more neutral topics, hoping to enjoy the rest of the gathering without unnecessary concerns.

Moreover, Nettri must be famous for her relationship with her sister. Does Silcaro truly not know the reason she faced a scandal? He feigned ignorance about “Scheuer Nettri” as if he only knew her by name. However, Silcaro knew Scheuer well. He had to. Even before his engagement to Erina, he had been paying close attention to her surroundings, and it would be strange if he didn’t know. Moreover, Silcaro was the one who drew a clear line with Scheuer, someone who openly showed affection and interest in him. It was a natural response since he had an intended fiancée at that time.

“At that time, Scheuer was a bit…”

An unpleasant thought that she didn’t want to recall flashed through her mind. Scheuer involuntarily tightened her clenched fist.

What she did now wasn’t the same, but it was true that Scheuer had once followed Silcaro around, displaying obsessive behavior. She even had a fortune teller create an absurd prophecy, telling him that their fates were intertwined. It was rather cute that she had done such a thing.

Once, there was an incident like this. The small garden behind the palace was a place where Silcaro often spent time secretly. Taking advantage of the valuable information, Scheuer visited the palace, armed with a watering can, watering the flowers while waiting for him. She repeated this for several days. Silcaro, who couldn’t imagine that Scheuer would be there, as usual, fell asleep while reading a book in the garden. Waking up from the sound of a few drops of water falling on his face, he saw Scheuer standing there with a watering can.

“Scheuer.”

“My lord, I have something to tell you.”

“Stop using Netri Gongjak’s name like this to enter the garden. He wouldn’t appreciate it.”

“Smile love”