IDEFYEM - Chapter 5
Black Man, I'll Do Everything For You Except Marriage!
When I saw Sarah's smile, I felt a little embarrassed for a moment, but I did my best to ignore that feeling.
'No matter how evil she is, she won't be able to touch the Duke's family alone."
Moreover, as a warlock, Sarah was living in hiding from the eyes of the Empire.
The reward for reporting her disguised as a Duke's maid would be well over the price of a house...
She was determined not to risk her life for that much money.
I was thinking about various things while holding a lukewarm ice pack to my cheek.
It was already lunchtime, and there was a knock on the door.
Thump thump.
"Sarah, who is it?"
"I'll go out."
Sarah, who had been spending a leisurely afternoon with me, got up and walked towards the door.
Soon, a familiar face appeared beyond the open door.
'She's Martha's closest maid.'
My expression crumpled. A person who fills her self-esteem by torturing me, a noblewoman.
"Lady Martha is taking a walk, so please take a different route."
"I will give this dress to Lady Martha. Wouldn't you want to go to someone whose clothes make you stand out more?"
"You think the food is spoiled? Lady Martha didn't say anything, so it might be difficult to change that."
The way I was treated during that time flashed through my mind. But even she seemed to turn into a gentle sheep in front of a truly evil woman.
"Why are you looking at people like that?"
"I'm sorry, my eyesight is a little bad. What happened?"
I guess I was overwhelmed by Sarah, who was looking down at me with a hardened expression.
Martha's maid spoke with a rare sign of shrinking.
"The Lady wants to tell you that she wants to have tea time with her sister."
Ugh, no!
You couldn't see it, but I shook my head vigorously against the back of Sarah's head.
"Today is difficult because Miss Enrica is sick. Please tell her sorry."
Yhud!
Sarah closed the door without answering. I looked at her in bewilderment. Do warlocks have eyes in the back of their heads?
"Sarah, how did you know I didn't want to see Martha?"
"Am I stupid if I don't know that?"
Anyway, I thought I had overcome one crisis. It was the moment when I relaxed and stretched my body on the chair. A few minutes later.
This time the door opened without knocking.
"Sister!"
Ah, blood pressure.
Martha, with drooping eyebrows, was walking towards us with long strides.
"Martha, what happened?"
"I came to you because I was worried because you said you were sick enough to refuse the invitation. However...."
Martha's face stiffened slightly as she looked at me with a disgusted expression.
At first, I probably thought of laughing at it. However, even she seemed a little surprised that the wound was worse than expected.
This would be the first time I encountered myself with traces of direct violence.
"It must have hurt a lot. No matter how much this is, father was harsh...."
Even after I said this, Martha hesitated as if to say,
"Oops."
"Oh, no. By the way, you there. Did you handle this properly?"
But why are you touching Sarah?
I covered my mouth in shock.
"I applied ointment yesterday."
"What if she gets a scar on her face?"
"That won't happen. If even one mark is left, I...."
I had an ominous feeling that I shouldn't let Sarah finish her sentence.
"Stop. Martha, as you can see, my maid is taking good care of me, so I'm fine."
For a moment, I was taken aback by the unexpected reaction that seemed to blatantly take my side.
If you put two people together, I don't think there will be any heart left.
"Hmm...."
Martha's eyes, which were looking at Sarah, soon returned to their usual state and briefly twinkled.
"Okay, how about having tea time together in the garden? You'll feel better."
If I send Marta back who came all the way here, things will get too noisy.
Sarah was looking at me with concern, but I couldn't help it.
"Okay, I'm going out."
I reluctantly nodded and said.
A sunny afternoon with a cool breeze.
A kettle filled with fragrant jasmine tea.
Everything was perfect except that it was Martha sitting in front of me.
As I was pouring some tea, I suddenly got lost in thought.
'Why do my father and sister hate me so much?'
There must be something I don't know. I felt like I was missing something.
'It's impossible to ask out loud.'
Perhaps because she sensed a subtle glance, Marta slowly opened her mouth first.
"Actually, I wanted to hear about yesterday's banquet. I heard from my father that you met with His Highness the Grand Duke."
Ugh, I totally forgot.
"He looks really nice on the outside, doesn't he?"
Marta's face looked like that of an ordinary girl and her cheeks blushed slightly.
How handsome is he to me Martha to do that?
"Is it? I don't know."
Even so, it's probably not as good as Kael.
Martha, who flinched when I answered indifferently, quickly muttered mockingly.
"Okay, what would you do if you had a handsome face? He is a murderer who killed her entire family to take over the title."
He is a murderer.
Since I already knew this well. I wasn't impressed.
It's fortunate that it's just his family, but he's the type of person who would murder a bride on her first night.
As I lightly ignored it and drank the tea, Martha's eyes wavered.
"You're not speechless because you're shocked, right? You said he was the one sister was going to marry?"
"I'm fine, Martha."
My hand holding the teacup trembled slightly. She seemed like someone who wanted to give me a big shock.
"I heard he's violent? They said he enjoyed drinking every night and hitting on women."
It's okay because I have faith in myself.
It was sad to think that Enrica, who was weak in the original, would have burst into tears upon hearing these words.
Martha continued to press her lips as if evil had taken over my inaction.
"Don't you hate it? Your marriage is going to be terrible! Sharing a bed with a homicidal maniac and getting beaten every day...."
Martha's face suddenly turned pale.
Even I, who was listening with one ear and letting it out with the other, immediately noticed something strange.
What, what on earth did you see?
“Aaaah!”
At best, I turned around, imagining a large bug, but even I was surprised by the sight that unfolded before my eyes.
"Ka, Ka, Kael? What are you doing here?"
He is standing in the outdoor garden of the Duke's residence. It was a scene I had never imagined.
Questioning my eyesight didn't change the fact that Kael was here.
As he got closer, a large shadow appeared over his head.
"I promised to come see you quickly yesterday."
That's right, but it's still too fast!
"How did you get into the Duke's residence?"
"I came in as usual after identifying myself and asking for permission. The doorman was quite friendly."
In the midst of being taken aback by the man's driving force.
A strange sound began to come from behind.
"Hiccup. Ta, hiccup."
Meanwhile, Martha, whose face was bright red, was trying to stop the hiccup from coming out of her mouth.
'What? Why was she more surprised than me?'
She started freaking out as if she had seen something he couldn't see and eventually started hiccuping.
Kael said to me who was puzzled.
"It looks like good weather for a walk. Why don't we take a walk in the garden?"
"Yeah, that's right."
It seemed like he was saying this to get me out of this situation.
Anyway, it was hard to keep listening to those hiccups. I quickly got up from my seat and headed to a secluded part of the garden with him.
I couldn't even hear Martha muttering behind me.
***
"Uh, what should I do?"
After Enrica left, a girl with a pale face stuttered.
"Today, this time, I really didn't plan on doing that. I just...."
The ointment in Martha's hand fell to the ground with a thud.
"I'm just jealous...."
***
Refreshing lush greenery and birdsong. The Duke's well-maintained garden was especially beautiful on a summer day like today.
As he got some distance away from the tea time spot, he slowly opened his mouth and spoke.
"That cheek."
Since you didn't mention it until now, I thought you were just passing by without noticing it.
Kael's gaze was focused squarely on my swollen cheek.
"I didn't mean to let you go yesterday just to see you like this."
"Oh, it's no big deal. Just...."
Suddenly, my ears felt a little hot.
From the conversation with Martha earlier to my father's violence. I thought that my position in the family had already been revealed.
'Now, this is our house.'
Wow, that's really good... good...
I brought home a friend I had just met.
Do you feel like you were immediately caught out that you belong to a rare bean powder family?
"... Would you believe me if I told you I just fell and got hurt?"
"If you want, I will."
I said this without much expectation, but to my surprise, I received a friendly response saying yes.
Feeling secure in that attitude, I sighed once and opened my mouth.
"As you can see, I didn't grow up being loved."
"I heard that the Duke cares so much for his eldest daughter that he doesn't even allow her to go out."
"It's all lies."
The man's brows narrowed slightly.
"He said you were his favorite child and demanded a large dowry."
"My father really likes money."
I answered sullenly, but soon noticed something strange and asked a gain.
"Yes? He asked for a dowry?"
"That ... I heard that he was said to the Grand Duke."
"Now this might be a fact I need to take note of."
“Aha.”
Yesterday, he didn't even know that I had been proposed to the Grand Duke. So you found out the rumor for me.
Feeling a little better, I took the opportunity to say thank you.
"I was surprised, but thank you for coming to keep your promise today."
Added giggles and laughter.
"Martha was more surprised than me."
Kael looked down at me with eyes that were so kind that it was almost misleading and then answered.
"I met your sister at a banquet a few years ago. You probably remember my face."
I blinked like I just did and then asked again.
"What does that have to do with Martha's surprise at you?"
He wiggled his eyebrows as if he really didn't know.
"Well, I might be surprised if I run into someone I know while gossiping."
Having convinced myself, I nodded.
Then Kael, who had lowered his head as if he was a little embarrassed, blurted out.
"Do you believe all the rumors about the Grand Duke?"
This is Grand Duke Kronhardt.
In fact, there wasn't much information about him in the original work. It was so secretive that neither the past nor the family was mentioned at all.
'Most appearances were with Sarah.'
Still, it doesn't seem like a popular villain would hit a woman.
What if he kills me again?
I thought about it carefully before answering.
"I don't believe it. I'm not trying to avoid marriage for that reason."
The man's eyes seemed to sparkle for a moment at my words, but then quickly faded.
'Did I see it wrong?'
I tilted my head, then suddenly looked around and asked.
"And where are we going now?"
As I was concentrating on the conversation, my toes were already out of the garden.
"I'm going to get lost at this rate. I have to go back to where I came from...."
"I'm coming to my carriage."
"Yes?"
Kael said it as if it were obvious.
"Did you think I would let you stay here after seeing those wounds?"
So where are you going?
The man who seemed to have read my confused mind answered.
"Let's go home, Enri."
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