🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 44
As if he really meant to kiss her on the cheek, Cardin puckered his lips and stepped closer to my brother. Startled out of his wits, my brother grabbed me and retreated backward.
“Unfortunately, it seems His Excellency isn’t in the mood to receive a kiss of affection from me today. My lips are always ready, so please let me know whenever you desire one.”
“That’s enough, Duke Le Tourneau!”
Grinding his teeth, my brother shouted at Cardin’s slick remark. Cardin chuckled softly at his reaction, then met my eyes.
“I’ll be heading back now. We’ll meet again soon.”
The lips that had been mocking my brother curved into a beautiful smile as he looked at me. I could hear my brother grinding his teeth with a crrk, but I quickly nodded and replied.
“Please travel safely, Duke.”
“Not ‘Duke.’”
“Ah, Cardin.”
At my habitual form of address, Cardin’s expression darkened slightly. Glancing once at my brother to read the room, I called his name properly.
Just like before, Cardin’s ears turned red as if embarrassed, and he smiled brightly. My brother’s face, on the other hand, twisted like that of an enraged demon.
I waved at Cardin, who was walking away at an intentionally slow pace, clearly reluctant to part. When he awkwardly waved back, I couldn’t help but laugh.
That man was surprisingly cute.
Then, noticing my brother glaring at me with murderous eyes from beside me, I quietly lowered the hand I’d been waving.
I heard through a letter that Harna had started a new job.
She said that now that she was an adult, she wanted to live on her own without relying on Father. Her words deeply moved Haren. Wanting to give her some special support, he secretly visited the mansion.
It absolutely was not to spy on Cardin and his sister’s affectionate antics.
Seeing filthy lips touch the white, soft cheek of his sister—a cheek he himself had never dared touch since her childish years—Haren nearly drew his sword without realizing it.
But he restrained himself, not wanting to see Harna apologizing again like she had last time on behalf of him and their father. Instead, he rushed forward and stepped between them.
Still, even after committing such an outrageous act, Cardin had gone so far as to offer his own cheek for a kiss, and that filled Haren with nothing but rage.
“If only he weren’t a duke…”
Unconsciously scrubbing his cheek hard, Haren quickly erased Cardin from his thoughts when he noticed Harna watching him nervously from the side.
Looking at Harna’s innocent face beside him, he let out a sigh.
It had been dangerous. It was infuriating enough that she hadn’t avoided that man’s lips—but they’d even called each other by name, as if they were close.
Haren decided an emergency meeting with Father was necessary. And after today, he resolved to change his routine—rather than staying at the imperial palace, he would commute from the mansion instead.
I returned to the mansion with my head drooping.
Contrary to my expectations of an imminent scolding barrage, my brother silently escorted me to my room, told me to rest, and then left.
I felt a little uneasy, but part of me was relieved. Cardin’s sudden cheek kiss had been shocking, but being caught in the act by my brother was even more embarrassing.
Then Cardin’s face flashed through my mind—the way he’d smugly tried to kiss my brother’s cheek too, claiming it was a “kiss of affection.”
“Is he always like that?”
I recalled the novel’s title. It definitely said The Cold-Blooded Duke, but after experiencing him firsthand, The Slick Duke felt far more appropriate.
“Ugh, stop thinking about it. Work. I need to work!”
Shaking my head, I cleared away my pointless thoughts and returned to the study, taking my seat.
I picked up my quill, dipped it into ink, and tried to resume sketching the see-through dress I’d been working on before Cardin’s interruption. A single drop of ink fell with a plop onto the parchment, leaving a dark blot.
“Haah……”
I couldn’t focus. Realizing Cardin was the reason my mind was in turmoil, I let out a deep sigh.
That evening, Derek Jurne returned to the mansion. With a tired face and furrowed brow, he sat on the study sofa and noticed Haren waiting for him. His eyes sharpened.
Seeing his son slowly rise and approach, Derek sensed something was wrong.
“Speak.”
There was no need to ask what had happened. If Haren—who normally handled his own affairs—was waiting with such a grave expression, there could be only one reason.
Something had happened to Harna.
“The duke came.”
At the word duke, Derek’s expression stiffened. At his father’s silent gesture to continue, Haren forced his lips to move, saying what he least wanted to say.
“The duke kissed Harna on the cheek—”
Crash!
Before Haren could even finish, the vase on the desk shattered into pieces and fell to the floor.
Though he’d destroyed the glass vase with his own aura, Derek’s fury didn’t subside. He slammed his fist down on the desk. After silently suppressing his anger for a long while, he finally spoke in a low voice.
“A monster appeared in the Bron Forest.”
“The Bron Forest?”
The sudden change in topic caught Haren off guard, but recognizing its importance, he listened intently. A monster appearing in the Bron Forest—so close to the capital—was shocking, especially since none had appeared there since the founding of the Empire.
Seeing his son’s reaction, Derek rubbed his furrowed brow and continued.
“Some time ago, High Priest Arsen sensed a sinister presence and discovered a monster there. But it wasn’t an ordinary one.”
He walked to the window and gazed into the darkened night. It was peaceful—too peaceful for what had emerged.
“It was a chimera. A grotesque creature created by forcibly combining at least four monsters. Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—the side effects of that forced fusion meant it was already dying when the priest found it. Still, upon hearing the report, His Majesty grew deeply concerned.”
Guessing what came next, Haren asked,
“Then the knight order is being dispatched?”
“Yes. Our order will investigate the Bron Forest and eliminate any remaining monsters. I’ll likely be away from the mansion for some time. And yet, in such a critical moment, that blasted duke dares to lay his hands on my daughter!”
Seeing his father’s clenched fist trembling with unresolved rage, Haren stepped closer.
To them, Cardin—hovering around Harna—felt even more dangerous than the appearance of monsters in the Empire.
Sensing his father’s anxiety, Haren spoke quickly.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure the duke doesn’t pull any nonsense.”
“Can I trust you?”
“You can, Father.”
“Very well. Protect Harna in my stead. I’m counting on you.”
Derek patted Haren’s sturdy shoulder—the only one he trusted with Harna—and let out a long sigh. It was a night heavy with worry.
“Haaahm.”
I stood in front of the dining room door, letting out a long yawn.
Last night, my mind had been full of Cardin. I couldn’t focus on work and barely slept. I was exhausted, but since Father had sent a maid early in the morning asking me to dine with him, I hurried to get ready and came straight over.
When I opened the door, Father and my brother were seated neatly at the table. Smiling brightly at them, I took my seat.
The cheek‑kiss incident I’d worried about most was, as if by unspoken agreement, completely excluded from the conversation. In fact, Cardin wasn’t mentioned at all.
I was relieved to avoid the uncomfortable topic, but knowing it wouldn’t end there left me uneasy.
After dessert, Father looked at me intently and spoke.
“Harna, I’m sorry, but it seems I’ll have to be away from the mansion for quite some time.”
“What? Why?”
Startled, I asked with wide eyes.
“By His Majesty’s order, I have an investigation to conduct. Oh—and the priest you asked me to look into is perfectly fine, so don’t worry.”
“Really? That’s such a relief!”
“Yes. He left to report to the Pope, and once that’s done, he’ll return to the capital.”
“Thank you for checking.”
I let out a sigh of relief upon hearing that Arsen was safe.
“But what are you investigating, Father? It’s not dangerous, is it?”
I trusted Father, who had reached the realm of a Sword Master—but I couldn’t help worrying.
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll return safely to your side. By the way, Harna—apparently Duke Le Tourneau visited yesterday?”
The sudden question hit like an ambush. I flinched and forced an awkward smile.
Looks like he heard everything from my brother.
As I struggled to respond, Father gently took my hand and said,
“Harna, always remember this. The only men you can trust are me and your brother.”
“Of course. I know that.”
“Do you? Then repeat after me. Men are wolves!”
“What?”
I looked at Father in disbelief and sent my brother a pleading glance for help—but he simply gestured for me to hurry up and say it.
“Go on.”
Under Father’s urging and my brother’s silent pressure, I bit my lip. After checking to make sure no servants were around, I muttered in a tiny voice,
“Men are wolves.”
“Louder!”
“Men are wolves!”
Heat rushed to my face in embarrassment. But Father, apparently not done, continued sternly.
“No physical contact before marriage! Say it.”
“Father!”
“Say it.”
Desperate to escape the breakfast table that clearly wouldn’t end otherwise, I covered my face with both hands and shouted,
“No physical contact before marriage!”
Ah… I wanted to crawl into the ground and disappear.
