OYVT 19

Chapter 19

“You shouldn’t be looking for your wife through me. I’m not sure where she is.”

At that moment, the Empress answered casually.

“I saw her from afar earlier. She seemed to be with some other young ladies. I think they said they were going to the café on 52nd Street.”

“I understand.”

Zachary bowed politely to the Empress and strode away.

“Hey now, Duke! You’re leaving without speaking to me any longer?”

Even though the Emperor called out, he couldn’t stop Zachary from walking away. The guards moved as if ready to chase after the insolent duke, but the Emperor waved them off.

“It’s surprising that he’s looking for the duchess. I heard he had absolutely no interest in that political marriage.”

The Empress spoke first.

“To think the great imperial family is being used as a communication network to find his wife. Duke Killerster is really something.”

The Emperor chuckled.

“Didn’t you say the duke skipped his own wedding last time?”

“That’s right. The servant we planted at the ceremony reported it.”

“Then why does he suddenly seem interested in his wife?”

“From what I saw at the last Killerster banquet, it looked like he was acting in order to suppress the rumors. But if what we just saw was also an act, then he’s quite meticulous.”

“The duke I saw seemed more violent and dull than meticulous.”

“Haha, the Empress has judged him well.”

With a meaningful expression, the Emperor watched Zachary’s retreating figure until he became no bigger than a bean.

Back at Café Raelie on 52nd Street

“Duchess, I’m so sorry to bother you when you’re busy. But I’m so anxious… he’ll be returning to the capital soon.”

Yurita was once again surrounded by young noble ladies, tarot cards in hand.

This was how it started:

That morning, she had stopped by Café Raelie to refresh herself. Since the weather was nice, she went for a walk in the park afterward.

While walking, she ran into several young ladies she knew. All of them had received at least one tarot reading from Yurita back when she had been paying off her debts.

Incidentally, half of the women whose fortunes she had read had already obtained engagement rings.

A fifty-percent proposal success rate.

Among unmarried noble ladies, Yurita’s tarot readings had already become famous through word of mouth.

So it was obvious what would happen when unmarried ladies met Yurita in the park.

After barely greeting the Empress, they quickly escorted Yurita right back to the café on 52nd Street.

Yurita didn’t really mind. Making extra money that had nothing to do with the Killerster family fortune—and money she alone could use—wasn’t a bad thing.

Thus, Yurita once again pulled out her tarot cards. Luckily, she always carried them in her bag.

“Let us divine the path of your love, hoho.”

Using a businesslike tone she hadn’t used in a while, Yurita spread the deck into a crescent shape.

The ladies couldn’t take their eyes off the way she handled the cards.

“You are… oh dear, the Tower card appeared. You should check whether that man has a history of cheating. It’s a complete disaster.”

“Oh my goodness! I knew that count was suspicious! I heard he did all sorts of things overseas!”

When the Death card appeared for another lady, Yurita firmly shook her head.

“That man won’t do. He may have money, but he won’t respect his wife.”

In truth, her words weren’t entirely baseless. The men the ladies asked about were supporting characters from the original novel, and Yurita knew a fair amount about them.

Yurita gently patted the shoulder of one gloomy-looking young lady.

“Don’t worry. The Death card can also mean a new beginning. A new love will come to you.”

“Really? Will I also be able to enjoy a happy marriage like yours, Duchess?”

Crack.

Yurita could practically hear the sound of her smile breaking.

‘Did my marriage really look happy to them?’

Thinking about it, she had openly danced with Zachary at a banquet in front of everyone, and recently Zachary had put a bracelet on her wrist and even kissed her in front of Lady Nora.

It seemed the talkative Lady Nora had already spread rumors among the noblewomen and young ladies.

After all, no nobles had actually witnessed the groom skipping the wedding, so it was merely hearsay and easy to bury.

Yurita brushed the amber pendant hanging from her bracelet.

‘Is my marriage… really happy?’

In the end, it was all just an act.

There was a high chance Zachary’s heart already belonged to Helena, the heroine of the original story.

Yurita had never properly seen them talking, but Zachary probably met her while he was out and about.

Bang!

At that moment, the café door was flung open violently.

Everyone’s attention turned toward the frightening man dressed entirely in black who stepped inside.

“Z-Zachary?!”

Yurita shouted without realizing it.

Amid the panic-stricken crowd, Zachary’s gaze was fixed solely on Yurita.

With every step he took toward her, the young ladies surrounding Yurita took a step backward.

“Oh my, the Duke has arrived.”

“We’ll be going now, Duchess.”

“We’ll send payment for today’s tarot reading through a servant!”

Even as the ladies left the café in groups, their eyes remained fixed on Zachary and Yurita. Their quiet giggling suggested they thought this was yet another sweet Duke and Duchess Killerster moment.

Yurita, however, was simply dumbfounded.

“What’s your problem?”

she asked.

Zachary plopped down in front of her.

“I’ve been looking for you forever.”

“Why were you looking for me? We’d see each other again at dinner anyway. Because of you, all my customers ran away!”

“You’re a duchess. Why are you taking customers again? Are you short on spending money? Want me to give you more?”

“This is my hobby, you idiot! Why are you acting so weird all of a sudden?”

Zachary stared at Yurita with a sulky expression before speaking.

“How did you do it?”

“What?”

“How did you make me fall asleep so quickly?”

“You chased me down just because you were curious about that?”

“Yeah.”

For some reason, Yurita suddenly felt deflated.

It wasn’t anything special. She had simply drawn the blackout curtains, used aroma oils, and helped his body relax so he could sleep better.

They were common methods in modern times, and she had only tried them so she could observe Zachary more closely.

But Zachary looked at her as though she had done something extraordinary.

“It’s nothing special. I just tried what I knew. Anyone else would’ve gotten the same result.”

But Zachary didn’t seem to be listening.

There was something oddly deep in his expression, making Yurita want to get up and run away.

“Why… are you looking at me like that?”

“You… by any chance.”

Zachary leaned against the table and moved closer.

“Are you really a witch?”

‘What is he even talking about right now?’

Pretending to stay calm, Yurita asked:

“A witch? Out of nowhere?”

“You shouted it at those kids before. Said you really were a witch. Is that why you cured my insomnia so quickly too?”

Ah, was this because of what she had said to the children bullying Theo at the boarding school?

“The rumors about your sister being a witch are true. She comes at night to eat nasty children.”

To children, it certainly sounded terrifying.

But for an adult to believe it? Wasn’t that too childish?

“I only said that to scare them. Do witches really exist in this world?”

“When you read my tarot before, you warned me to be careful not to get anything on my shirt. That really happened too.”

“……”

“I think you’re hiding something.”

‘Well, I am hiding something. I’m someone who transmigrated into this world.’

But from Zachary’s perspective, Yurita probably looked like some mysterious being who could predict the future and cure insomnia.

‘This is dangerous. If people think I’m a witch in this world, I might end up in prison.’

It would be best to position herself as merely an ordinary woman with a mysterious aura.

“Well. I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

Yurita briskly gathered up the tarot cards and stood.

The two called for a carriage and headed back to the mansion. During the ride home, neither of them spoke first.

‘How will Zachary react from now on?’

Now that he suspected she was a witch, he might react negatively.

Still, since he wasn’t showing much reaction for the moment, she figured she should just go to sleep.

After arriving home, the two walked up the stairs side by side and stopped in the hallway.

“Good night.”

Yurita greeted him first and turned to enter her room, but Zachary’s large hand caught the tips of her fingers.

A low voice flowed from his pale red lips.

“Sleep with me.”