CH 8

The Count’s pleading voice didn’t go through.

Rather, I suddenly remembered the firm words Bianca had told me before I became the Grand Duchess.

‘Rienne, even if the Grand Duke happened to have a mistress… just pretend like you don’t know.’

Since everyone would keep their mouths shut, and he would still have another lover.

This had been what Bianca had given as advice to me, who didn’t have a mother.

Those words that I hadn’t kept in my mind at that time, along with the Count’s weeping, echoed in my heart.

What was worse was that on top of that, when I had been insecure due to my sick body, so weak that I was unable to prop myself up on the bed with my own strength… 

‘If you had kept another healthy and beautiful woman as your mistress, how could I possibly tell you not to?’

I guess it was inevitable for me to also have those sort of thoughts at times.

So, even though I was suffering alone, I was able to feel reassured and repeat our secure relationship in my mind through presents and letters that were full of love.

Because he was always so sweet, so warm.

Because he treated me so delicately, as if I was a marionette made of glass.

‘But why?’

Why did Novian have a mistress who resembled me this much?

The same face, height, body shape, even the colour of our eyelashes was the same.

Just what did you discover was so new from this woman?

If it was black hair, then this country was overflowing with them.

Most of those passing by outside had brown or black hair.

Did she happen to catch Novain’s eye, just because he happened to have such terribly consistent preferences?

Then, what were the affectionate feelings that he and I had shared all this time?

We could’ve had sex if he really wanted to.

When we were on our honeymoon, when we had just been newlyweds, my body wasn’t going to shatter as if it was glass yet.

‘Because you’re precious to me.’

Those words which had warmed the anxious body and mind of the new bride, had let me to believe that this man was going to be my companion, whom I would be able to fully trust and my heart with.

At 20 years old, I had still been young. 

At 28, he was already much older than me. 

Everyone in the aristocratic circles was well aware of the fact that Grand Duke Novian, who had a young bride, was extremely devoted to his wife and in-laws, the Piretta Duchy.

Adrienne was the beloved Grand Duchess. 

At least it seemed so from her husband, Novian Trovica. 

[ / / / ]

pls do not share this anywhere or the transmigration gods will transport u into boku no pico !! this translation has been stolen from mioscorner.wordpress.com, pls only read there i’m begging u :kneels:

On a cold windy day.

Neil felt a terrible chill and was more nervous than ever. 

His master, Roadnez, hadn’t been able to fall asleep ever since he returned to the capital.

His reaction had been so big that anyone would’ve thought that he was the husband of the Grand Duchess Trovica.

Although everyone had merely thought that it had been due to the Mad Dog Prince’s odd whims, Neil, who had served him closely for two years, had a different opinion.

Roadnez had clearly received a huge shock upon hearing the death of the Grand Duchess.

The reason had been very easy to understand. 

Right in front of his very own eyes, a wind, colder than the northern Trovica estate, was blowing right now.

“Duke.”

This was because, within the very imperial palace in which he was meant to be respected and honoured in, Roadnez was facing his uncle with a cold expression on his face, his bare body wrapped in bandages with only a jacket to cover him and a cast on his arm.

‘Please don’t say anything weird and just walk past him.’

Neil who was standing behind him, held his breath in the unusual atmosphere. 

Grand Duke Novian’s haggard face was so precariously distraught that anyone who saw him would want to comfort him.

The Grand Duke bowed his head slightly first.

He looked gaunt, dark circles underneath his blue eyes which were normally always sharp and cold.

On the other hand, Roadnez, who was equally haggard and gaunt, but seemed to have all kinds of airs, did not bow his head. 

His eyes which shone a bright red in the light, dared to look down at his uncle who was of similar height to him.

‘Is Adrienne Piretta really dead?’

All you have to do is spit out that one sentence. 

Contrary to the arrogant expression on his face, Roadnez’s mouth was completely dry and he couldn’t seem to be able to open his mouth.

“I heard that they were holding some useless event called a victory ceremony…”

“Congratulations on your victory, Your Highness.”

“Of course, the Grand Duke will brighten up the place.”

“…”

Neil tugged at Roadnez’s jacket slightly from behind, as if to tell him not to open his mouth, but his lips didn’t stop.

“I’ll be disappointed if you don’t come, especially since I won the battle due to the troops you dispatched to the battlefield.”

“I understand, however…”

Novian’s blue eyes swiveled to look directly at Roadnez.

“I’m in mourning right now.”

“…”

“I have to guard my wife’s last path she’ll walk on, so I’ll be leaving court for now.”

Novian’s harsh voice echoed through the chilly hallway soon after.

Roadnez forcibly kept his head up.

The last path.

Those words deafened his ears.

“…I’ll go pay my condolences then.”

mio: god why are they both so FINEEEE

Novian forced a smile onto his lips. 

It was unknown whether that smile was out of gratitude or not.

Novian, who had a subtle and sorrowful smile, bowed his head and left. 

With trembling hands and feet, Neil, who had been watching this senseless fight, moved closer to Roadnez who was still standing tall and motionless.

“Haven’t you already paid your condolences, Your Highness?”

“Since I haven’t confirmed the corpse yet, it doesn’t count as paying condolences.”

“The Grand Duke must’ve already been informed of Your Highness’ attendance.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“But, Your Highness, after the first day of the funeral, the Grand Duke hasn’t taken out the corpse again.”

Vincento, who had been quiet, spoke up.

“…”

“He told the Emperor directly and said that he didn’t want the Grand Duchess’ corpse to become a spectacle.”

“Woah, isn’t that coming off too strongly? As expected of the romantic of the century…”

“But I wonder how many days the Grand Duke will be able to last? After all, this is still a mandated tradition that even the deceased Empress Lettina couldn’t avoid. If you wish to pay your respects formally, just follow the official procedures.”

“There’s no need for that.”

“Pardon…?”

“There’s no way that bastard will let go of her dead body.”

“What sort of…”

As if letting out a breath he had been holding back for a long time, Roadnez let out a deep sigh while combing his fingers through his hair and abruptly opened his mouth again.

“…Send an invitation to that damn victory ceremony to the estate of Count Acacia.”

“All of a sudden?”

“Wouldn’t they be absent since they’re a vassal of the Grand Duke?”

Even the master had said he wouldn’t attend, so how was it possible for a vassal to haha hihi hoho laughing and talking there?

Neil muttered back and forth with Vincento for a while before looking up at Roadnez abruptly again.

“Perhaps…?”

“The lady of the house is a young woman. Then there should be at least one maid that will accompany her.”

Neil and Vincento both stopped at the same time and opened their eyes wide.

“Are you going to meet Lady Marge in person?”

“Why the Acacia County’s maid all of a sudden…!”

Roadnez, who had stood tall, staring at the hallway where the Grand Duke had disappeared, suddenly disappeared in the other direction without answering their questions.

[ / / / ]

I shut myself in the mansion for a while in shock.

Although I was browsing through the newspapers and gossip magazines that Marge had brought me, my will had disappeared and my body, which had been brimming with strength, suddenly sagged.

“A ball to be held to commemorate the victory of His Highness, the Second Prince, Roadnez. The recently trending dress and hat brands that will captivate and capture the mysteriously beautiful yet dangerous single prince will be…?!” 

All I could see whilst browsing the gossip tabloids was news about Roadnez, the Second Prince.

The news of him returning to the capital earlier than expected after recently wiping out all traces of the western rebels and the remnants of their troops seemed to be of considerable interest to the aristocrats.

That was understandable.

The Second Prince, Roadnez, hadn’t been back to the capital in these few recent years.

With the Crown Prince and his wife taking the lead with external activities, the princes and princesses underneath them didn’t show their faces here and there unless they had other people who they were privately acquainted with.

Although the Second Prince, Roadnez, was rumored to be such an exceptional figure that he appeared frequently in the gossip tabloids, he still preferred to roam around the battlefield in order to accumulate merits instead of at a party with dancing and music.

Perhaps the moment the Crown Prince, who is also his older brother, ascends to the throne, he would be recognised for his achievements and receive a fief as a Grand Duke or Duke, just like Altoran.

‘Just like Novian.’

My heart suddenly felt stuffy as soon as I thought of Novian.

“I don’t want to be involved in this anymore. I don’t want to be stuck like this between the two of you. Wasn’t the reason why we had that nonsensical wedding between you and I in the first place, just so you could legally become the Grand Duke’s mistress?”

Count Acacia had told me about it plainly.

The reason Blair married him was to become Novian’s “legitimate” mistress.

‘It’s not even funny.’

There’s no such thing as a legal mistress in the first place.

That meant that he had just tacitly gone according to the custom within high society, which was to not take unmarried men or women as an outside lover.

This empire was truly broadminded, to be so tolerant to having outside lovers, even if their partner was standing right in front of them, to even wash away the guilt of having one by specifying that only those who were already married were qualified to be mistresses.

“Ha-”

Although it was a position I wasn’t aware would make me feel so dirty and disgusting until later, that was how everyone lived.

Everyone… 

“Madam. The dresses you were fitted for have arrived.”

“Dress?”

It was the maid Yona, who broke my pessimistic thoughts that followed. 

It was Yona, who was in charge of me along with the head maid, Marge, the child who talks to me often despite being so afraid of Blair before.

“Yes, I tweaked it just as you ordered it last time.”

I thought of the things that were crammed into the dressing room. 

As Adrienne, I rarely ever wore clothes that were made for outside wear.

However, although I had received quite a few clothes from Novian in the name of maintaining dignity, Blair had an absurd amount of clothes for the size of this mansion.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to make your debut this season?”

Yona asked curiously when I furrowed my eyebrows and didn’t think to answer.

A debutante.

Originally, a debutante is not just held once, but throughout the season at parties.

Of course, the original me didn’t participate in many parties since I received a proposal letter from Novian right after my first debutante.

“I…haven’t even made my debut yet?”

“Didn’t I just say that?”

“Aren’t I already twenty two years old?”

“That’s right! You felt so mortified and depressed since you weren’t able to even hold a single debutante at the age of twenty two so you told the Count that you’d burn down the entire mansion if he didn’t prepare for it properly.”

My face turned red in an instant.

Although it wasn’t actually me who said it, the embarrassing thing was that I had actually possessed this sort of person.

What the hell was this Blair woman thinking to have said that? 

In any case, it’s clear that she’s not of noble origin anyways.

“So…where are my dresses now?”

[ / / / ]

Matias, who worked in Madame LeBlair’s boutique, swallowed his saliva dryly.

The reason was because Countess Acacia, who was called the pushover amongst pushovers, was furrowing her eyebrows while looking at the bill today for some reason.

Although she didn’t have an eye for products and was a pushover, she still had a formidable temper.

He felt dizzy just remembering when she had thrown a perfume bottle at his head after blaming him for the insufficient dress hemming.

‘But so what if you know?’

Although it was impossible to deceive the outstanding noble ladies, the humble families that tried to chase after the trends of the great nobles were perfect prey.

All it took for them to start nodding their heads was a short, ‘It’s because you don’t know what you’re talking about, if we’re talking about this part…’, and they were fooled, deceived by the fancy rhetoric since they felt inferior.

Countess Acacia was exactly one of these customers. 

It was because after placing an order for ‘the best thing’ or ‘the most impressive thing’, they still weren’t able to tell if the gem was real or not, since it didn’t fit their budget.

However… 

“Ha, this scam, I’m done with trying to do this legally.”

The cold voice of Countess Acacia, the pushover amongst pushovers, resounded through the main hall.