When the Villains Unite - Volume 1 - Chapter 9; Part 5
I hadn’t been in contact with the Duke of Euassis since the day of my unintentional kiss with Ashik. The day after that tumultuous encounter, I was passed out until almost dinner time. At dinner that night, I made it clear to them what my relationship with Ashik was like.
I didn’t want the Orca brothers to have any more misunderstandings, so I told them that we were simply friends who counseled each other on our problems. Furthermore, Ashik had a crush on someone else, another nobleman, that is not me.
“What is your relationship with the Duke of Euassis?” Damian asked sharply.
I considered for a moment whether to answer. Since the problem was resolved and I didn’t want any more secrets, I casually told them it was a relationship counseling session and made a request of him. Since I made a scene at the New Year’s ball, they knew what I was talking about.
“Then, you deliberately…”
“Sooner or later, we’re going to have to get rid of the Duke of Euassis in the future.”
I said those words in hope that they would ease their hostility towards Ashik, but I accidentally increased the brothers’ fighting strength. Well, at least Ashik is alive and well.
The Orca brothers, for all their venomous words, do not do anything I dislike.
Anyway, what the hell is going on in that country that even the Crown Prince skips work?
I felt a headache coming as I thought of Bellamy, who was probably hard at work in the palace at this house.
“Okay, so where do we go from here?”
I’m not seeing Damian for the rest of the week, so I thought I’d hang out with him tonight. It’s been a while since I had a date with him anyway.
“How about we see the play?”
“No way… The Joy of Daisies?”
The only play that is going on right now is the Joy of Daisies at the Sharon Theater.
Mr. Sharon is a genius playwright in this world. I’ve always wanted to go see one of his plays, but I never found the time. When I tried to get tickets on the day of the show, it was so popular that I had to give up.
As I looked at Damian in anticipation, the corners of his eyes wrinkled and he pulled out two tickets from his pocket and waved them in front of me. My eyes lit up.
I really wanted to go!
“Amazing! What time does it start?”
“It will probably take an hour to get there from the mansion, so right about then.”
“Oh my, I’ll get ready and we can leave!”
“You know we can’t just leave like we normally do, right? So, come here first.”
That’s right. He was in a sticky position, wasn’t he? So was the Crown Prince, but still, it wasn’t a good thing to see the Crown Prince’s personal guard out and about on a weekday.
After telling me to follow him, Damian grabbed my hand and led me to his room.
When we entered the room, I realized that he was more neat than I thought. In fact, it was more like he didn’t have much furniture and only what he needed. Even the angle of his quilt made me think that I was in the room of a neat knight, the opposite of his rambunctious personality.
“Sis, put this on.”
He rummaged through the closet and pulled out an outfit similar to a commoner’s. When did he get clothes like this? Not to mention, he also had two wigs.
When I asked, he said the Crown Prince occasionally disguises himself as a commoner to keep an eye on the people, and he usually goes along for the ride. He ordered my clothes on his own, anticipating he would come out with me like this one day.
I took the clothes and changed in front of him. Damian stiffened at the sight of me and immediately turned around. I laughed at his unnecessary actions since he already saw everything. It was nothing new…
As I smoothed out my clothes, he changed into his as well. He wore a bronze-colored wig over his golden hair, while I wore a black wig. We couldn’t hide our golden eyes, but our hair color and clothing were enough to hide our identities.
In truth, we were a bit too good looking to be considered as commoners, but what the hell, it was just enough to keep us from being recognized.
“Shall we go, then?”
I took his hand and we left the manor. We decided to ride into town on a single horse.
Horseback riding was something I’d only done at the ducal residence, and it felt fun to be dressed differently and doing something new. I felt like I could forget my princess persona and duties for a while.
Damian lifted me up by the waist and helped me onto the horse, quickly getting on behind me. Then, he slipped his arm around my waist and went off.
Oh, this position is weird. I feel like I’m barely hanging on. My skirt isn’t a riding dress so I can’t sit with my legs apart. I can only sway to and fro, clinging onto him to keep from falling.
“Sis, you’re falling. Hold on tight.”
His hint of laughter was sparked by seeing me desperately clinging to him.
We made it to the theater a little while later. Time was running out before the show, so we left the horse at a nearby stable and hurried inside. However, how would Damian and I, who were dressed as commoners, use our VIP tickets, which were reserved for nobles?
We may have had the clothes and hair to match, but we still looked too awkward. Surely, he didn’t try this when he was with the Crown Prince?
Bellamy, Damian, and even the Crown Prince were so unaware of the world outside of aristocratic society. They say they’ll do anything for me, but when it comes to disguises, they’re so weak…
I don’t know how they’ll ever make it in this harsh world.
“This was the only place left.”
I looked at Damian in disbelief, and he must have read the look in my eyes, because he immediately came up with a good reason.
Ehhh… I guess we’ll go with what we can.
Luckily, the VIP room at Sharon Theater had windows that didn’t allow anyone to see the inside of the terrace from the outside, and it had a soundproofing spell cast.
Naturally, I grabbed his hand to escort me.
“One would think you were a rich nobleman.”
“I paid a lot of money to come here, but I could never imitate those pompous aristocrats.”
“Ha…” I laughed at his sarcastic retort.
It was Damian’s way of playing his character, even if he sounded like a back alley hustler.
We were escorted into the VIP room by a servant. As soon as the servant closed the door to the VIP room, I took off my wig. The moment it was removed, my dark, navy blue hair cascaded down.
Damian pulled me into his arms and sat down on the couch with me. He buried his face into my hair and took a deep breath.
I turned in his arms and looked at him. The frizzy, bronze-colored hair looked so out of place on his pretty face.
His shiny, blond hair covered his forehead when I pulled his wig off.
It had been so well-groomed when he returned from the palace, but now it was a mess thanks to the wig.
I ran my hand through it to try to smooth it down, and his soft locks followed. I was admiring his hair, but then our eyes met as he stared at me. His eyes were calm and soothing, but held a glimmer of mischief. I knew exactly what those eyes meant.
I pretended not to notice, straightened my posture, and placed my hand on his. It would be a shame to come all this way and not see Sharon’s play.
“It’s about to begin.”
Then, the bell rang, signaling to lift the curtain, and I turned away to focus on the stage. Damian leaned his head on my shoulder.
This is the best he’s listened to me in a long time.
I stroked his hair as if I was pleased. He buried his face in my shoulder.
It’s the moderator.
The moderator came out from behind the curtain and gave a brief explanation of the background of the play, then it began.
The Joy of Daisies is a story in which the main characters don’t all die and find love in the end, ending the fortress-like cultural trend of tragedy. I wanted to see a happy ending for both the male and female protagonists beyond their forbidden love.
Daisy Connor, the heroine, falls in love with Cesare Opal, the hero, at first sight on the day of the Imperial ball. Before Daisy’s father, the Marquis de Connor, was knighted, he ran over a man with his carriage at night, killing Count Opal, Cesare’s father.
this play is CLEARLY just another plot of the typical knovel anyway u should donate to my Kofi