Chapter 12.1

I was scared that my hamstrings would numb at the bloody momentum, but I persevered.

This place is definitely inside the temple. Even if he was Duke Janus, he wouldn’t be able to do anything to people in the temple.

If we get into the car like this, I’m sure I’ll be stuck with him again, so I have to fight here.

“You’re really…… You’re teasing me to the top of my head…….”

Hiickk!

The sunken red eyes seemed to choke me even more terrifyingly at any moment.

The shadow of the slowly approaching boy came vivid over my head. Only his blood-red eyes gleamed over his face hidden in light shadow.

My head clamored thinking of securing a safe distance, but my body didn’t listen, like a herbivore standing in front of a beast.

That’s right.

‘I’m going to get hit…… !’

Instinctively, I gave a lot of strength to my tightly closed teeth.

Bump–

“Do you think I’ll just let you go if you made such a cute face?”

Eh?

I was puzzled. The boy’s big hands, which seemed like they were about to strike me down at any moment, were cupped around my cheeks.

He rubbed the ten-year-old’s soft, supple flesh like a rice cake.

“Ah, it hurts. It hurts.”

“Of course it has to hurt, you will be punished.”

No, what kind of fifteen-year-old’s hands be so rough?

His hands, which looked simply long and delicate, were full of calluses that made it hard to believe they belonged to a minor. For putting such a hand on a soft child’s cheek, what kind of punishment is there like kissing a father’s beard?

“You disappeared like that, do you know how……bothered I am?”

“Then you don’t have to look for me, ouch……!”

“Talk back, talk back again.”

Tears welled up as he grabbed my soft cheeks and began stretching them.

My cheeks are going to fall off, you bastard!

“Uwaah, stop! Stop now!”

“Oh, are you the one to decide that? It’s a punishment until you’re not cute.”

“How is that!”

“If you don’t like it, it’s okay to not be cute, right?”

This, this, freak!

All the pretending to be angry up until now must have been a build-up for this moment.

While I was being punished similar to kissing a father’s beard, someone grabbed the Duke’s arm.

“Stop it. The child doesn’t like it.”

A boy with dark hair and blue eyes.

A beautiful appearance comparable to that of the sub male lead, Duke Janus, but the impression of a completely opposite atmosphere. Appearance of someone in their mid-teens, with the fabric itself being luxurious, but the outfit is neat and simple.

I immediately realized the boy’s true identity. He would later become betrothed to Princess Katerina, the female lead of the original work. He was Ernhard Ignia Gladio, the Young Duke who was connected to Christine, the real female lead in <JaSV>.

“I know. She is being punished, so she wouldn’t like it, should she like it?”

It was a sour reply, but Duke Janus’ gray eyebrows furrowed, perhaps his heart was firmly twisted by the Young Duke’s intervention. In any case, I was freed from the Duke’s clutches.

My cheeks tingled as he rubbed them so hard. The Young Duke’s well-groomed brow, which glanced at my face to see if it was red and swollen, was also distorted.

“It is a temple. Please be aware of your identity.”

“Oh, you mean my identity?”

The duke pointed at himself with a deliberately elegant gesture, but it was a gesture full of sarcasm. His face, which had a slight sneer on it, had something unrivaled.

“I forgot. I thought I became an Aunt Sally because some punk without a title started talking casually.”

Young Duke was not a title.

Strictly speaking, he is the ‘son of a noble’, not a ‘noble’ itself. It was just a courtesy for those around to call him ‘Young Duke’.

In noble society, a lower ranking person was not even allowed to greet a higher ranking person first. It was only right that the conversation could start after the higher ranking person recognized the lower ranking person and decided whether to greet him or not.

Young Duke Ernhard bowed his head respectfully.

“I  have witnessed injustice towards a child, so I committed rudeness. Forgive me with your generosity.”

Wow, that’s a real talk back.

I was amazed at the Young Duke, who was not at all frightened by the Duke’s momentum.

Duke Janus’ lips curled up slowly.

“Well, isn’t my middle name ‘generous’? If you survive the first expedition, I will forgive you.”

The Young Duke replied with a respectful bow and headed into the temple. It seemed that he had visited the temple for something related to the ‘first expedition’ mentioned by Duke Janus.

Duke Janus, who inherited the title at a young age, already had experience on going for expeditions. And before that, he had proven his ability by surviving alone in the process of selecting Janus’ successor.

Even in the original story, he was always sarcastic about Young Duke Ernhard, saying he had grown up too pampered, so I knew all too well the reason for Duke Janus’s hostility.

“Let’s go.”

The Duke, feeling uncomfortable, also quickly picked me up, put me on his side, and strode out.

‘Ah!’

If I get into the car like this, I’ll be stuck in the duke’s house until spring, and then I’ll be enrolled in guide training school. I tried to struggle, but I was already firmly held.

“Why? You said your leg hurts.”

Resistance was futile.

I had no choice but to quietly climb into the car.

***

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