The Villainess Captured The Grand Duke - Chapter 39

Chapter 39

It seemed instinctive for the chicken to come to the garden, which was the warmest place in the Northern Region, aside from the Blen family mansion. Leilda silently observed the movements of the chicken. The actions of the chicken reminded her of someone.

“Hey, have you ever heard that you look like someone?” 

What answer could a chicken give? It simply continued clucking and tilting its head. After wandering around for a while, the chicken picked up the daisy that Leilda had plucked and brought it over.

Leilda grimaced and said, “Doing the same thing.” The chicken appeared in a place where it shouldn’t be and clearly didn’t fit in with the Northern Region. It was definitely an incongruous presence.

Just like the precarious tightrope walking on the verge of breaking, he appeared like an acrobat, slowly expanding his territory. Why did the Duke feel some emotion toward her?

The chicken bowed its head and placed the daisy in front of Leilda. Pressured by the Central Region, with the encroaching demons, there was nowhere to retreat. If that was the case, why not try hanging hope once? Leilda stared silently at the flower the chicken had laid before him.

***

The atmosphere was clearly different from yesterday’s banquet. Yesterday’s event was hastily arranged, so not all the nobles from the Central Region could attend. Scheuer looked around the hall, noticing many unfamiliar faces. It seemed like everyone who could come to the palace had attended. Among them was Jess.

“Have you arrived, Your Highness?”

Unlike in the Northern Region, Jess was properly dressed, but his frail appearance somehow seemed even more pronounced. He extended a polite greeting to Scheuer.

“Congratulations on becoming the official Duchess. Your Highness.”

“Thanks, Jess. I didn’t see you yesterday. Where were you?”

“I came after meeting my brother at the training grounds. We rarely meet because you’re in the Central Region.”

So, Jess went to the training grounds because of his brother. Scheuer proudly showed him the flowers as if boasting.

“Look at this. I got flowers here too.”

“Yes. It seems my hard work paid off.”

Jess looked at the flowers with a disgusted expression, yet he wasn’t even considering turning away. The tranquil waltz playing in the hall made it seem quiet despite the busy conversations.

The silence amid the apparent calmness was all due to one person. Even though everyone was talking, their eyes were calmly fixed on the direction of Raygrain. Among the gazes were those of Silcaro and Erina, and…

“I greet His Grace.”

“Pavel Nettri Marquis.”

Pavel Netri Marquis was also present. When Raygrain acknowledged the greeting, Pavel chuckled. The fact that he was here in this position today clearly indicated that he had heard about Scheuer’s visit to the Central Region. Especially for Pavel, who was involved with Silcaro, it made sense for him to rush over, feeling uneasy even if he tried to conceal it.

He smiled and spoke to Scheuer who was standing beside Raygrain, 

“You did well, deceiving everyone. We were quite worried when you were left alone. But it turned out fine.”

Pavel subtly smiled, examining her from her head accessory to her dress and even her hands. It was unclear what he meant. To an outsider, they might seem like amicable women. However, Raygrain cut off Pavel, who was pretending to be close to her instead of Scheuer.

“Pavel Netri Marquis.”

Before he could say anything else, Scheuer, with a bright smile, spoke first, 

“Your Grace, is Marquis Netri always this casual?”

Her expression seemed genuinely curious, as if she were dying to know. Even a naive look followed, emphasizing her sincerity. The tone suggested she didn’t know Nettri at all.

In reality, this was almost like a rumor to her. Now that she was the Duchess, saying such things about Pavel was absolutely inappropriate. Rygrain and her remark meant that spreading rumors was dangerous. Now that Scheuer was the Duchess, making such comments about her would be even more unacceptable.

Pavel quickly caught on to Raygrain’s and her subtle cues.

“I apologize, Your Highness,” he bowed his head, “I only mentioned it because I thought it might be helpful to renew old ties amid the current unfavorable conditions in the North. I didn’t mean to offend.”

Only then did he bow his head. 

“I just wanted to ask if it would be beneficial to renew old ties, given the current difficult situation in the North. I’ve heard you haven’t been in the best of health lately, dealing with an abundance of demons in the North, and not participating in the subjugation for quite some time.”

“I am participating,” Raygrain replied sharply to Scheuer, gesturing strongly.

“The delay in submitting the marriage announcement was due to the affairs of the subjugation unit,” she explained.

The news from the North seemed slow. “Even Erina seemed to move quite swiftly, though.” Scheuer felt a sense of discomfort in Pavel’s words and actions, and instinctively, her attention became blurry.

Pavel, quick to change the topic, laughed and said, 

“You’ve called me out. It was just a matter of submitting the document later due to the subjugation forces.”

Before Scheuer could respond, Pavel wisely withdrew his gaze.

“Perhaps I’m too old to catch up on the news. Well then, please enjoy the congratulatory feast….”

As he left, Raygrain turned his head coldly and said,

“Be cautious from now on.”

Satisfied with his response, Scheuer smiled broadly and nodded in agreement. Behind him, Lady Betty and Lady Annabelle were signaling urgently.

When Scheuer and Raygrain’s eyes met, the ladies pointed towards a corner while looking anxious. Understanding their intentions, Scheuer nodded confidently.

Seeing Scheuer about to turn and follow them, Raygrain’s path was unexpectedly blocked.

“Hey, who else do you see other than me?”

“Did you see me first?”

“Oh, did I?…”

While Scheuer was talking nonsense, Lady Annabelle and Lady Betty were visibly agitated, pointing in the direction they had indicated earlier. In a swift move, Betty relocated first.

Raygrain looked down at Scheuer with a cold gaze. 

“Is there something you shouldn’t see?”

“No, not in that sense. Why does Your Grace look so impressive even from below? Would you consider having a serious discussion on this topic?”

“It’s a pointless argument.”

“Well, if you just tilt your head down a bit, my eyes will be so happy. Oops, if you look down like that, I get nervous.”

Raygrain moved his head again in the direction Scheuer had seen earlier. She also tilted her head along with Raygrain’s gaze.

Although she couldn’t perfectly block his view due to the difference in height, Scheuer did her best to stand on her tiptoes and press against him. Annoyed by the fact that Scheuer’s face was attached to his view from every angle, Raygrain’s expression became somewhat fierce.

“Why are you looking like that?”

“I’ve always looked at Your Grace.”

“I’ve never seen you do that.”

As if waiting for it, a large tray was brought in from behind by the courtier’s hand.

On top of it was a large three-tier cake.

Only then did Scheuer exhale a sigh of relief. The courtier placed the cake in the center of a long table positioned on the outskirts.

Scheuer finally allowed Raygrain’s gaze to wander freely after holding it for so long.

“Smile Love”