CH 66

“—What?”

Fleur replied with a surprised face. 

“You were surprised to see us earlier.” Sylvester looked coldly down at Fleur and said. “Why? Are you surprised my wife came back alive?” 

Gasp! Fleur held her trembling hands together. 

“I, I don’t know why you’re saying that. I just looked at the Duchess when she came back from a long absence.”

“Really?”

Sylvester twisted the corners of his mouth, scanning Fleur from head to toe.

“What I mean.” He took a step closer to Fleur and said. “I was wondering who the rat in the Imperial family was all the time.” 

“That’s—what do you mean?”

“I didn’t know the rat would be you. I thought you wouldn’t be as clever and sneaky as a rat.”

“Duke!” Callian intervened. “What are you trying to say to Fleur?” 

Callian shouted, grinding his teeth.

Sylvester turned to Callian only then.

“You were wondering why there were so few monsters in the forest, right?”

Sylvester continued to speak slowly but clearly. 

“What would you say if they were attracted by the scent of Kerban flowers and chased someone?” 

“What?”

Callian’s eyes shook. He looked back at Fleur. Fleur hurriedly lowered her gaze.

“Oh, on second thought, I don’t think she’s a very smart rat. If she was really clever, she wouldn’t have been doing that in front of everyone.”

Callian doesn’t seem to be getting angrier because he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. 

He just looked at Fleur, me, and Sylvester.

“Anyway, we’ll get going now.” 

Sylvester wrapped around my shoulder and nodded. 

“We need to spend some quality time together.” He smiled and looked at Callian. “But it would be impossible for Your Highness.”

Callian and Fleur, who had an affair, meant that they could not go back together. 

After noticing this, Callian’s face turned red.

“Duke! Be careful with your mouth!”

But Sylvester didn’t care a bit. 

“Yes, I have to be careful, so I’ll go back. Your Highness will be lonely alone.” 

“Duke!”

Callian grabbed the back of his neck and shouted, but Sylvester just took me past him.

By the time I got away from them and reached the carriage, Sylvester breathed in, letting go of his hand that grabbed my shoulder. 

“It’s nice.” He giggled and said. 

“Is it okay to do this?”

I was a little worried. This is because Callian seemed to be firmly angry.

It wouldn’t be of any benefit to me in the future if I provoked him like this—. I was worried. 

“You told me to seduce the Crown Prince. But if I provoke him like this, I will have a hard time later.” 

“Ah.”

Sylvester narrowed his forehead.

“That’s—”

Sylvester muttered and bit his lower lip. 

That’s? 

I waited calmly for the next word.

Then Sylvester sighed for a long time and swept his face down with his palm. 

“I’ll have to think about it more.”

What else is he thinking about? I tilted my head.

“About what?”

“The suggestion I made to you.”

“About seducing the Crown Prince?”

“Yeah.”

I looked at Sylvester with an astonished look.

“Are you going to change your mind now? No. I’ve been working so hard for this whole time!”

Now I can get more money! You can’t do that! 

I almost clung to Sylvester and worked hard. 

“Think about it again. It’s good in many ways if I seduce the Crown Prince. Don’t you think so?”

“….”

Sylvester remained silent. He stared at me while doing that. 

How long has it been silent? 

By the time I thought something was wrong, Sylvester opened his mouth. 

“Do you like the crazy Crown Prince that much?”

And this is what he’s saying. 

Excuse me? 

Do I look like someone who likes Callian? 

I was really speechless.

“What? No, that’s—”

“Never mind. I won’t listen to your answer.” 

But Sylvester didn’t listen to me until the end. He swept his hair roughly and clicked his tongue.

“Let’s go back for now. I’m tired.”

Then I got on the carriage. 

As soon as he closed his eyes, I was puzzled by Sylvester, but I couldn’t do anything more, so I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut. 

*****

Now that Sylvester and Ophelia have left. Callian narrowed his forehead. This is because what Sylvester said does not leave his mind.

‘You wondered why there are so few monsters in the forest, right?’

‘What would you say if they were attracted by the scent of Kerban flowers and chased someone?’

Come to think of it, Ophelia’s clothes were really disorganized. The dress was torn in several places. 

What if Ophelia’s scream came from being attacked by Monsters? And what if the cause is Fleur?

“….”

Callian knew what the noble ladies were talking about. The story is that the perfume that Fleur had brought was broken and Ophelia went to the lake to wash her hands.

If it was a perfume made of Kerban flowers, and if Fleur deliberately broke the bottle in front of Ophelia and made her a prey for monsters—.

It continued to fill his head. 

Callian had always thought of Fleur to be an innocent and pure woman. Yet, she is altruistic, always thinking of others and being a compassionate woman. 

But if that’s the case, if Fleur really did—. 

‘Maybe Fleur is not the woman I thought she was.’ 

Terrible thoughts dominated Callian’s head. This was a thought that he really didn’t want to imagine. But the whole story was going in the direction of his assumptions being right. He feels dizzy. 

“Your Highness?”

Fleur caught Callian’s arm like that.

“Are you okay?”

She asked with an innocent face. Callian’s breath stopped for a moment. 

“Fleur.” He said to Fleur. “Can I trust you?”

Fleur’s pink eyes shook. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

She spoke with a face full of tears as if she were about to cry. 

“I really— I really didn’t do anything.”

Looking at her pure face, Callian deeply regretted that he had doubted Fleur for a moment. How could such a naive Fleur come up with such a cunning scheme! 

It’s all made up of Sylvester and Ophelia. 

They are trying to plant seeds of distrust in my heart!

“Yeah.”

Callian replied, breathing heavily.

“I will believe you.”

He hugged Fleur and patted her on the back. 

“I will never fall for the words of the wicked people.”

Fleur replied thank you and hid her face as if digging into Callian’s arms. So Callian couldn’t even see what expression she was making.

******

Returning to the mansion, I had to face Irene’s scream for now. 

“Oh my goodness, Madam! What’s wrong with you!”

Irene freaked out and shouted. 

“How did this pretty dress get to be like this? What’s with the hairstyle? You didn’t go to a hunting contest, you came to be hunted, did you?” 

In a way, what she says it’s true but—.

I got awkward and scratched my cheek. 

“I can’t believe everyone saw this! I feel so embarrassed as your maid! If I knew this would happen, I would have followed you!” 

“Other people probably haven’t seen it a lot. Maybe?”

“It means they have seen it. Oh my—”

Irene staggered and rubbed her forehead.

“I’ll definitely follow you when we have the next meeting. What did you do to look like this? Whew!”

Irene led me by scolding me.

“You have to wash up. I prepared it.”

Irene was a bad maid who was harsh on me, but she was good at work. I followed Irene calmly, and soon after, I was able to soak myself in a warm bath.

“Ah, it’s nice.”

When I dipped myself in warm water, I felt like my fatigue melted away like snow. I felt better and dipped myself to the bottom of my nose. 

As my body became so tired, my head became a little clearer. 

Now I was able to think a little bit. 

Just about what happened today.