IELNDMH - Chapter 67 < The Reason I Invited You >
I Ended Up Living Up Next Door With My Ex-Husband
At a time when I was being captivated by the bright colors of the champagne fountain.
Emperor Letitz, who happened to spot Cedric, waved his hand high.
“Oh, Cedric! You’ve finally arrived!”
At his happy shout, all eyes in the banquet hall turned to Cedric and me.
Unlike me, who felt burdened, Cedric walked leisurely as if he was already used to such gazes.
Of course, he naturally held my hand.
At that time, one step closer to the Emperor, who was smiling brightly.
Soon, Emperor Letitz's smile began to distort awkwardly.
"Ah... Haha! Our Twins Grand Duchess has also come.”
After saying that, Emperor Letitz looked at the man standing next to him.
“Prime Minister Diat. Why don't you lighten up your expression, haha...”
The man who was called ‘High Minister of Diat’ by the Emperor had the image of a housemaster.
He already had a strict and strict look, and his face became even more stern as he looked at Cedric and me alternately. Like a person who is very displeased with something.
“It’s been a while since I saw you, Your Highness. Is this the first time we’ve seen each other since you put the Vatican’s seal on ‘that document’?”
There was clearly a thorn stuck in the words of Minister Diat when he asked that question.
“That’s the way it is.”
Cedric was still faking an expressionless expression, but I could feel that he was suppressing his frustration.
'The two of you seem to be in quite a bad relationship. But... It's worth it.'
I nodded slowly.
A ‘High Priest’ is a person who serves God and the Pope.
In a way, it was natural that he would stand in opposition to Cedric, who was no different from the leader of the mixed-race demons.
'Besides, we went against the Pope's will and went through a special divorce process, so he probably won't like it that much either.'
Sure enough, there was a clear look of disapproval in the eyes of the Minister of Diat looking at me.
“Her Highness the Grand Duchess Twins... I see you.”
He paused and barely finished his greeting.
He seemed dissatisfied with having to call me ‘Her Highness’.
“Nice to meet you, Minister Diat.”
I responded with a slight smile, but the Minister of Deart just looked away without answering.
The air-cooled in an instant.
In that cold silence, an earthquake occurred in Emperor Letitz's pupils.
He continued to roll his eyes and then let out an awkward laugh.
"...Hahaha! By the way, our Grand Duchess seems to have become even more beautiful!”
Emperor Letitz was very desperate.
I nodded as if trying to help the poor man.
“Of course, His Highness needs to be nice to you these days.”
Then, another earthquake occurred in Emperor Letitz's eyes.
"...Grand Duck?”
When I blinked exaggeratedly, the Emperor seemed to have finally noticed and nodded vigorously.
"Ah! Ah, yes, yes! I have heard that you and Cedric are getting along really well these days!”
I even clapped my hands and joked.
“Oh my, did the rumor spread all the way to the capital?”
"Then! I don’t know what it is like in the capital, but first of all, there are a lot of rumors in the imperial family!”
Minister Diat did not hide his bewildered expression at the desperate conversations.
“Your Majesty, I don’t know if you would do that...”
As High Priest Diat frowned, Emperor Letitz glared at him and secretly whispered.
“Hey man, a promise is a promise. Can you guess the rhythm roughly?”
Then, Minister Diat took a step back as if he had no choice. His gaze eventually landed on Cedric's and my hands holding each other.
“...Yes, I heard that rumor too. It seems like the rumors are true.”
“...”
“I see you even holding hands, which is unusual for the two of you.”
At first glance, these words seem to agree with the Emperor's words, but their true meaning is completely different.
'No matter how much it's a show, it's hard to see a divorced couple holding hands.'
The look in the eyes of the Minister of Diat that says, ‘Just looking at it is blasphemous.’
Slowly, I started to feel sad.
Emperor Letitz, who happened to spot Cedric, waved his hand high.
“Oh, Cedric! You’ve finally arrived!”
At his happy shout, all eyes in the banquet hall turned to Cedric and me.
Unlike me, who felt burdened, Cedric walked leisurely as if he was already used to such gazes.
Of course, he naturally held my hand.
At that time, one step closer to the Emperor, who was smiling brightly.
Soon, Emperor Letitz's smile began to distort awkwardly.
"Ah... Haha! Our Twins Grand Duchess has also come.”
After saying that, Emperor Letitz looked at the man standing next to him.
“Prime Minister Diat. Why don't you lighten up your expression, haha...”
The man who was called ‘High Minister of Diat’ by the Emperor had the image of a housemaster.
He already had a strict and strict look, and his face became even more stern as he looked at Cedric and me alternately. Like a person who is very displeased with something.
“It’s been a while since I saw you, Your Highness. Is this the first time we’ve seen each other since you put the Vatican’s seal on ‘that document’?”
There was clearly a thorn stuck in the words of Minister Diat when he asked that question.
“That’s the way it is.”
Cedric was still faking an expressionless expression, but I could feel that he was suppressing his frustration.
'The two of you seem to be in quite a bad relationship. But... It's worth it.'
I nodded slowly.
A ‘High Priest’ is a person who serves God and the Pope.
In a way, it was natural that he would stand in opposition to Cedric, who was no different from the leader of the mixed-race demons.
'Besides, we went against the Pope's will and went through a special divorce process, so he probably won't like it that much either.'
Sure enough, there was a clear look of disapproval in the eyes of the Minister of Diat looking at me.
“Her Highness the Grand Duchess Twins... I see you.”
He paused and barely finished his greeting.
He seemed dissatisfied with having to call me ‘Her Highness’.
“Nice to meet you, Minister Diat.”
I responded with a slight smile, but the Minister of Deart just looked away without answering.
The air-cooled in an instant.
In that cold silence, an earthquake occurred in Emperor Letitz's pupils.
He continued to roll his eyes and then let out an awkward laugh.
"...Hahaha! By the way, our Grand Duchess seems to have become even more beautiful!”
Emperor Letitz was very desperate.
I nodded as if trying to help the poor man.
“Of course, His Highness needs to be nice to you these days.”
Then, another earthquake occurred in Emperor Letitz's eyes.
"...Grand Duck?”
When I blinked exaggeratedly, the Emperor seemed to have finally noticed and nodded vigorously.
"Ah! Ah, yes, yes! I have heard that you and Cedric are getting along really well these days!”
I even clapped my hands and joked.
“Oh my, did the rumor spread all the way to the capital?”
"Then! I don’t know what it is like in the capital, but first of all, there are a lot of rumors in the imperial family!”
Minister Diat did not hide his bewildered expression at the desperate conversations.
“Your Majesty, I don’t know if you would do that...”
As High Priest Diat frowned, Emperor Letitz glared at him and secretly whispered.
“Hey man, a promise is a promise. Can you guess the rhythm roughly?”
Then, Minister Diat took a step back as if he had no choice. His gaze eventually landed on Cedric's and my hands holding each other.
“...Yes, I heard that rumor too. It seems like the rumors are true.”
“...”
“I see you even holding hands, which is unusual for the two of you.”
At first glance, these words seem to agree with the Emperor's words, but their true meaning is completely different.
'No matter how much it's a show, it's hard to see a divorced couple holding hands.'
The look in the eyes of the Minister of Diat that says, ‘Just looking at it is blasphemous.’
Slowly, I started to feel sad.
That was when he frowned and turned his head.
“Haha, everyone is here!”
Someone naturally joined the group, accompanied by the voice of a boisterous middle-aged man. After confirming his identity, I had no choice but to harden my face.
“Your Highness the Grand Duke, have you been safe with Her Highness?”
It was Duke Bold.
He, who had been glaring at me from afar just a moment ago, immediately stood next to me and looked at the Emperor.
“Your Majesty the Emperor. You remember, right? I'm the head of the Bold family, the Duke of this Western Empire, and the father of Her Highness the Grand Duchess.”
His smiling face, with his eyes wide open, looked very cunning.
“I was thinking of greeting His Majesty first, but I thought it would be better to greet the Grand duke and his wife when they come, so I was waiting.”
His status was only that of a Duke, and he was not the head of a powerful family in the Western Empire, so it was difficult for him to ask the Emperor for a conversation first.
Emperor Letitz also smiled weakly at that shabby excuse.
“Your Highness the Grand Duchess, I am also a member of the Twins family, so I have sent you messages several times to ask you to join me in greeting Your Majesty at this banquet... Have you not seen it?”
...Ha? Since when have you been part of the Twins family?
I looked at Duke Bold with an absurd expression, but he continued acting, immersed in his role-play. His role seemed to be that of a pitiful father who was abandoned by his daughter, who became the wife of a powerful man.
“Well, this isn’t the first time Her Highness has ignored my complaints. I'm probably getting used to it now, but maybe it's because I'm older. I keep feeling sad...”
Looking at Duke Bold like that, a feeling of disgust arose.
But I had to grit my teeth and endure it.
His real purpose would be to create a topic of conversation at this banquet hall where all the nobles of the empire gathered.
"I am… Could it be that you did that on purpose, Father...?”
He tried to raise the corners of his mouth, but he could hardly control his facial expression. It was a time when I turned my head slightly to avoid seeing him even for a moment.
“It’s been a while, Duke Bold.”
After saying that, Cedric wrapped his arms around Duke Bold's shoulders and pulled me towards him.
Suddenly, I was in his arms, and I made eye contact with Emperor Letitz, and we both blinked.
Emperor Letitz looked as bewildered as I did.
Cedric continued to speak to Duke Bold, whether he was aware of the surrounding situation or not.
“I already had something to talk about when I met with my father-in-law separately, but we ended up meeting here.”
Cedric, who said that, was clearly smiling, but there was a coldness in his eyes between his curved eyes.
"With me... Are you talking about just the two of us?”
"Exactly."
After saying that, Cedric asked Emperor Letitz for permission to leave.
Then he grabbed my wrist and took a slight step back.
“Rebecca, I have something to talk about with Duke Bold, so at least exchange greetings with people you know.”
“If anyone I know...”
As I looked around, the only person I knew was Adrian.
“Oh, I will.”
At my words, Cedric's eyes followed me.
After confirming the end of his gaze, he resolutely shook his head.
"No. Not Adrian.”
Cedric's expression was quite serious.
“Why? The only person I know is Adrian.”
“In that case, it would be better to talk to someone you don’t know. Not Adrian.”
Seriously, do I have to have my ex-husband interfere with who I hang out with?
I suddenly became irritated and looked up at Cedric. He looked like he would never leave until I said he would. In the end, I had no choice but to nod my head.
“Okay, okay.”
Cedric, who seemed satisfied only then, let me go and disappeared somewhere along with Duke Bold.
***
Unlike the crowded banquet hall, the corridor was dark and quiet.
When Cedric, who had been walking ahead, stopped, Duke Bold also slowly stopped in that spot.
“Isn’t it Your Highness who rarely gave you the opportunity to talk alone with me? First of all, thank you for giving me this opportunity. Because I’ve lived so long, these kinds of things happen.”
Duke Bold's deep voice rang through the empty corridor.
However, even though he spoke first, for some reason Cedric just turned around and remained silent.
Duke Bold, who had been tilting his head in response to Cedric's long silence, opened his mouth once again.
“Your Highness, why did you ask to see me?!”
Duke Bold's face, as he continued speaking, suddenly became as frozen as ice.
Cedric's cool eyes slowly look back at him.
Eventually, as a bitter mockery crept into his mouth, Duke Bold realized that his bones were full of pain.
Soon, an insidious bass sound like that of a black beast descended into the dark corridor.
“Duke Bold, what do you think I called you for?”
Duke Bold just swallowed dryly.
When he followed Cedric to this remote corridor, all he could hear was the sound of coins jingling.
From the day he first became the Grand Duke's father-in-law until today.
Contrary to his wish to carry out various businesses with Cedric's help, he rarely met him separately.
Given the situation, it was true that he was overjoyed when his son-in-law told me to see him alone.
Now like this...
He might see Cedric's face so cold that it makes his spine tingle.
“Duke Bold, didn’t I ask? Why do you think I called you out separately?”
“Well, well, I...”
In order to cover up his feelings of inferiority, Duke Bold had been putting down Cedric, a half-blood demon, by calling him lowly.
In front of Cedric like that, he was so scared that he even stuttered.
It was a moment that deeply wounded his pride, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Cedric, the leader of the mixed-race demons.
From him, Duke Bold felt an instinctive sense of fear.
“That’s not the answer I want.”
Cedric looked down at Duke Bold and tapped his head with his fingers.
“Again, think carefully.”
He had the graceful life of an absolute top predator.
It was Duke Bold who had always thought that Cedric was ignoring him as his father-in-law.
But now he realized that all this time, Cedric had been just looking after him like he was treating a small animal.
'Could it be that you realized that I was trying to hand over Lillian's heart to the Kingdom of Katziis?'
An eerie energy came up the back of his head. Was it possible to hear those inner thoughts?
Cedric shook his head as if he felt sorry.
“No, Duke Bold has something else that really makes me angry.”
“W-what...”
“I was suspicious the whole time, but there must be a reason why I just tolerated your impure intentions until now.”
“...”
“Your plan is actually... It was so cute that it felt sad.”
Cedric let out a slight sneer.
“As you know, I am a half-blood demon. So in the human world, I try not to get angry as much as possible.”
“...”
“Because a certain amount of demonic blood flows through my veins, once I get angry, the way I vent his anger seems quite... in the human world...”
The tips of Cedric's lips turned up in a long bow.
“It seems cruel.”
Cedric's eyes, looking down at Duke Bold, became cold again.
“But then you tested my patience.”
After saying that, Cedric brought his face closer to Duke Bold.
Cedric smiled elegantly as he listened to Duke Bold's frightened gasp.
“Hey, father-in-law.”
Although there was a clear smile on his face, Cedric's mood was nothing short of eerie.
“What if? If there is someone who dares to strangle my wife...”
Soon, darkness mixed with moonlight fell coolly on Cedric's face.
“Aren’t you curious about how I will deal with that person?”
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