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Chapter 07
I slid my foot forward and put it down on the floor.
I wanted to act as if nothing had happened, but the bouquet—obviously ruined and strewn all over the floor—kept catching my eye.
Maybe because I felt like I’d made a huge mistake, a chill ran down my spine.
Even when I tried to make an excuse, my lips wouldn’t move.
I couldn’t bring myself to lift my head and look at him. I couldn’t even imagine what expression he might be wearing.
All I could do was keep my eyes down, staring at the floor.
“Next time, bring a bouquet you actually like so it doesn’t get stepped on,” he said.
The villain bent down, picked up the trampled bouquet, and tossed it into the trash.
I didn’t know why his quiet voice sounded so frightening. Maybe because I already knew, deep down, what a terrible thing I’d done.
“I came because I received your letter.”
“…Are you angry?”
“Do I look angry?”
I couldn’t form words, so I nodded.
“…No. I’m not angry. So don’t be afraid.”
“Are you really not angry?”
“Yes. I’m not angry at all, so stop making that face.”
His hand stroked my cheek. The moment I raised my head we met eyes.
He didn’t exactly look furious. That relieved me a little.
His fingers traced down my cheek and then brushed my neck, making me flinch in surprise.
“Yulia. Is the reason you’re wearing a dress that covers your neck… because of me?”
“…Who else would it be for?”
“That you dress like that because of me is flattering.”
Is he sane? Seriously, is this guy crazy?
Putting that aside, the distance between us felt way too close.
“Sit down and let’s talk.”
“All right.”
He sat down right in front of me. His red eyes seemed to be looking only at me, and I felt pressured.
“…Why did you come? You sent a letter.”
“There wasn’t a proper date. It felt like the Princess felt no responsibility at all.”
“…I want to marry the person I love. Chester, do you love me?”
“What do you mean by that?”
What do you mean by that? Of course I mean “do you intend to marry me or not?”
“You don’t love me, Duke.”
“…Is that how you feel?”
“Don’t you want my body, rather than love me?”
When I said that, he frowned.
“Do I look like that kind of trash to you?”
Oh—so not? In the original story you were basically the worst kind of villain.
You who killed an entire family just because a girl who liked you was annoying — if that isn’t trash, what is?
Of course, that hasn’t happened yet.
“…You never say you love me.”
That seemed like a useful excuse.
If I used that, maybe I could avoid getting tangled with the villain. If I didn’t bother him, then my father and brother wouldn’t be in danger of being killed.
For that reason alone, I had to stay away from him.
“I don’t love you either, but I don’t want to marry a Duke who doesn’t love me.”
“Does love have to be only emotional?”
Then what—if it isn’t “emotional” love?
“Does the Princess not even consider physical love as love?”
The moment he heard that, he was at a loss for words.
“I want emotional love.”
“I’ll give it to you.”
“…Give you what?”
“Shall we start with dating?”
“…….”
I had nothing to say. I’d just been clumsily trying to say I hated him.
Me—dating anyone? I definitely didn’t want to get involved with the villain even a little bit.
And yet he tells me to start by dating him?
“No. The Duke—”
“We agreed you could call me Chester.”
“…You also call me Princess.”
“Then from now on I’ll call you Yulia.”
No, that wasn’t what I meant…
“So no stiff titles like ‘Duke’—call me Chester.”
“Anyway, I have no intention of dating… Chester. And I have even less intention of marrying him.”
“Yulia.”
I tensed, not knowing what he might say next.
After all, he wasn’t some gentle secondary lead pretending kindness—he was the villain.
“You know, although contraception was used, it’s never perfect.”
“…Then?”
It felt like blood drained from my face. A wave of dizziness hit me.
“You never know. There might already be my child inside you.”
I felt my blood run cold. I mentally rechecked the timeline for fertility.
Of course it was an awkward day. My head got messy.
“Yulia. Again, I am a very responsible man.”
“…That won’t happen. It absolutely won’t.”
“Do you really think that? From where I stand you look like someone who just wants to deny the truth.”
“I heard you’re looking for someone!”
I had heard that if there was someone waiting for me, he had someone he was looking for as well.
It would probably be related to the original female lead, so surely he was searching for Cecile.
He stayed silent, as if daring me to say more.
“…I won’t marry anyone who doesn’t love me and is thinking of someone else.”
“Well then, if I said I would only look at you, Yulia—would you marry me?”
“…I know who you’re looking for.”
For the first time I saw surprise in his eyes.
He looked restless, not the always composed languid predator he usually seemed.
Right—after all, the villain would turn away if he met the heroine. So cutting him off was the right thing.
“If you find that person, you wouldn’t marry me.”
“Do I look like such an irresponsible person to you?”
“Even if you married under the pretense of ‘responsibility,’ I imagine you’d divorce the moment you met the person you’d been desperately searching for.”
“…So you think I’m that kind of trash.”
He furrowed his brow—an expression that made him look very displeased.
But he didn’t say we were unnecessary. After all, he was that madman from the original story.
He wore the mask of a decent man, but his heart was cruel and cold.
Someone like that didn’t know love, and probably didn’t even know what tenderness meant.
“Yulia.”
“Yes?”
“I don’t know why you see me that way in your mind, but could you at least give me a chance to change that perception?”
I had read the book. And besides, he was more violent than tender in bed.
“Meet me five times. If after meeting me five times you still don’t intend to marry me, I’ll withdraw all further marriage proposals.”
“…Really?”
The offer was tempting.
“Yes. If after five meetings you feel even a little inclination to marry….”
“All right. Then I’ll marry you then.”
That would never happen.
In the original story, when the villain played the role of the secondary lead, he could be very considerate and sweet, but his dates with the heroine were always disasters.
Granted, that was more due to circumstances than his fault.
And if he happened to meet Cecile by chance, he would surely lose interest in me entirely.
After all, the person the villain had been desperately searching for was Cecile.
“Fine, Yulia. Don’t go back on your word.”
“…Don’t come closer now.”
“All right. Let’s keep this distance for now.”
“Then see you tomorrow. Should I come to the Duke’s mansion?”
I worried that if this villain came to the capital, he might run into my family, so it would be safer if I went to him.
“Yes. I’ll go for today. See you tomorrow, Yulia.”
He stood as if to leave the reception room.
As he reached for the door handle, he seemed to recall something and said,
“Yulia, you look very lovely today as well.”
That was all he said, and then—as if with no lingering attachments—he left.
Left alone in the room, the tension in my body completely relaxed.
I could hardly ever feel comfortable while in the same space as the villain.
If there was anywhere I felt comfortable, it would be my bed… no, that’s not the point.
I wobbled and made my way back to my castle.
“Ma’am… The Duke of Ziegbert sent another gift.”
“…What?”
“It’s completely different from what he sent this morning.”
What a crazy man. There was another letter.
{The morning ones seemed not to suit you, so I bought completely new ones. I hope you like this present.}
And beneath that, something else seemed written.
{If you send these gifts back as well, I will punish every servant who chose the returned gifts. They clearly don’t match the taste of the future Duchess.}
It was a threat. My fingertips trembled. Maybe that was why I felt so numb when I stepped on the bouquet.
And why on earth is he putting the lives of his servants on me?
“Your Highness… what shall we do?”
“…Have the governess keep them safe.”
“Yes! I will!”
“…And remember, you’re meeting the Duke of Ziegbert tomorrow, governess.”
“Of course!”
The governess’s eyes sparkled in a way that made me uneasy. I wondered what she was thinking.
“Your Highness, is that man truly the Duke of Ziegbert?”
Hic—!
Startled by the sudden question, I hiccuped.
“If he is the Duke of Ziegbert, I think he would be the most suitable husband for the Princess. Isn’t he a war hero after all?”
“…Hmm.”
Well… the person he’s searching for isn’t me. If anything, he threatens to topple the royal family—there was no way I wanted to be involved.
I decided to let the governess believe what she wanted. That would be better for my mental health.
