"...Of course."
Edward, who had been rolling his eyes, said with a smirk after a while.
"I have the sheet music too."
"As expected."
Ariana opened her eyes indignantly. Edward felt even better at the sight of her full of nursery rhymes. It certainly seemed that the girl's ire was now in his grasp.
Yes, Ariana often followed her maternal grandfather when she was young. Eduardo also used to call Ariana his granddaughter and adored her. Edward smiled crookedly as he recalled the memories of his childhood when he had been looked down on.
"Give it back. It's my sheet music. It's my music that my maternal grandfather made just for me."
"Oh, Duchess Heigenberg."
Edward shook his head with a smirk.
"You're not a Lopez anymore. If it's my maternal grandfather's sheet music, it's our family heirloom, so I can't hand it over to some other woman."
Sparks flew into Ariana's eyes.
"I can't understand. Where did you hide it? Is it in the safe in the office?"
That was something Edward was curious about as well. Judging from Ariana's reaction, it was clear that there was unpublished sheet music, but where on earth could it be?
It wasn't in the safe in the office. When he became the eldest, he searched there first, but all he found was Part 3 of <Fantasy Butterfly>.
As Edward was thinking about it and remained silent, Ariana gasped.
"Get out of the way. I'll go and see for myself."
"Where are you going?"
"Now that I know that the sheet music is still there, I won't go back until I get it back. Not only the safe, but even the secret space inside it has been thoroughly searched!"
'... A secret space?'
Edward paused as if he had been struck by lightning. There was a secret space inside the safe? It was the first time he had heard that. However... If he thought about it carefully, it wasn't impossible. It was common for nobles to have a more secret space inside the safe.
'Why is this girl the only one who knows about that? Damn grandpa. Even if you show favoritism, it's not enough.'
Ariana tried to leave the room after a brief pause. Edward hurriedly stopped her.
"You're crazy. Now you're going to search a place that's not even your house? Do you want to be stopped by the guards and be humiliated? If the Duchess does something like that, it'll be a disgrace to the Duke's name."
Ariana flinched as if bringing up the Duchess had worked. Edward grumbled.
"Go back properly, you damned bitch. Do you think you have everything in the world now that you're a Duchess? You haven't even won the Duke's favor, after all."
Contrary to expectations that she would act like an eyesore as soon as she became a Duchess, Ariana became a shut-in as soon as she got married. Why didn't she attend even one social event with her husband?
If his wife is pretty, a husband would want to show her off wherever he goes, but seeing him hiding her, the reason was obvious.
"So, let's stop talking and-"
Knock, knock!
At that moment, an urgent knock was heard.
"My, my lord. I think you should come out."
"What are you fussing about? I'll go out soon, so wait."
"Um, I think you should come out right now..!"
It was the moment Edward looked at the door in annoyance. The servant hurriedly said.
"His Excellency the Duke of Heigenberg has come to visit!"
"... What?"
Edward's eyes widened.
***
"..."
The moment a man appeared beyond the door, the party hall fell into silence. A tall man with beautiful features that seemed to have been drawn. Above all, sharp red eyes that could be cut with a single brush. No one in the room could guess the man's name.
"I heard my wife came out for an outing."
Dante began, looking around at the faces facing him in silence.
"Has anyone seen her?"
The people exchanged glances and whispered serious questions.
"Oh my. The Duke himself..."
"Where, where did the Duchess go?"
"She moved places with the Count earlier. I haven't seen her since then..."
"Hey... Go find the Duchess quickly."
Elena was among those who were flustered.
'Are you really here to find my sister?'
Wasn't he losing interest in Ariana?
Since Edward wasn't here, Elena would have to welcome the distinguished guest, but Elena couldn't bring herself to say anything. She remembered the day of Lucas and Ariana's wedding when she saw Dante as a guest and thought he had come to see her. However, that was her mistake. She had been so shocked and angry when she witnessed Dante kissing Ariana.
Now, seeing him looking for Ariana with such fierce eyes, it seemed like those feelings were coming back to her. Unlike Elena, who was stern, Adolf's eyes sparkled and he approached Dante, pretending to know him.
"Your Excellency the Duke! I introduced myself to you before, didn't I? It's an honor to meet you again. I'm Adolf Schmidt, who greeted you last time."
"I'm not in the mood for frivolous greetings right now."
A cold voice cut off Adolf's words. Dante looked around the banquet hall with eyes dripping with discomfort.
"I haven't seen my wife for half a day."
"... I'm sorry."
Adolf bowed his head in confusion.
'For half a day...?'
'Oh my. The newlyweds are really hot.'
'Some sly rumors were going around that the Duchess wasn't favored... That's not true at all?'
"So..."
Dante opened his mouth amidst the busy exchange of glances.
"Where is my wife?"
He asked, casting his gaze over the frozen audience. His red eyes did not hide their dry longing at all. A young man whose eyes met his unluckily opened his mouth, trembling.
"The Duchess moved to speak with the Count a little while ago..."
"Alone with the Count?"
"Yes, yes. It was like... but..."
Tsk. Dante clicked his tongue lowly and muttered some curse. His unbridled murderous intent swelled as if it would explode in an instant. People understood in their bones at that moment how a man who had only seemed handsome and scary was called a terrible nightmare and murderer on the battlefield.
Someone, please bring the Duchess to that person. What would it feel like to face a wild beast outside of a cage and not have any bait in your hand?
The people who had been enjoying the banquet until a moment ago were now of one mind and one heart, desperately searching for Ariana.
"Your Excellency."
At that moment, an old butler stepped in front of him.
"I will guide you to where the Duchess is."
"Go ahead."
The people watched the backs of the two, impressed by the butler's courage. A servant who had been desperately shouting across the room from the middle of the hallway spotted him and gasped.
"Master! The Duke is looking for the Duchess right now, so hurry... Heek!"
Dante ignored the servant who had fallen on his butt and strode forward, then roughly opened the door.
"What the! I said I would be out soon, how dare you be so arrogant, huff."
In the room, Edward, with a terrified expression, and Ariana, whose eyes were also wide like a rabbit, looked at him at the same time. Dante smiled crookedly.
"Isn't that my damn brother-in-law?"
"Duke... Your Excellency."
Edward's whole body froze like stone. The word brother-in-law had never sounded so terrifying as it did today. He didn't even have time to consider whether it was right to call him brother-in-law.
Dante looked back at Ariana. The moment he saw her surprised eyes reddening, his red eyes hardened terribly.
"Did you make my wife cry?"
"Oh, you misunderstood."
Edward's mouth went dry. Dante took a step closer to Edward. The physical difference between them became even more obvious as Dante got closer, overwhelming Edward.
"You shouldn't touch Ariana with your hands or mouth."
A large hand grabbed Edward's collar and lifted him up.
"K, kekeke, what the-."
Edward's eyes bulged as he hung in the air. Tears began to form in his eyes due to his difficulty breathing.
"My wife might have been generous and let me take a shin."
Dante's mouth curled fiercely.
"Not me."
Finally, when Edward's eyes were redder than Ariana's, Dante released his collar, seemingly satisfied.
"Cough, cough!"
Edward coughed violently and sank to the floor. Edward's face turned pale with humiliation and shame. It seemed that the Duke knew that he had slapped Ariana in the face in a fit of anger the last time she had visited the house.
Damn you, you're telling me all this now!
Edward was furious, but he couldn't say anything. Standing before those arrogant eyes, he felt like a cornered rat. He was humiliated and ashamed, but his instincts warned him not to say a word.
'Damn it... Wasn't I just being a simpleton?'
Wasn't that the gaze of a male who was wrapping up his precious thing!
Edward was gripped by fear and
despair.
'What if Ariana were to pressure the Duke to let her search the secret vault?'
Edward had already figured out that there was an unreleased sheet music in the secret space of the vault. He had not even known about its existence until a moment ago, but now it was a treasure that could never be taken away. Fortunately, Ariana asked the Duke with a slightly embarrassed face instead of tattling on him.
"Your Highness. How did you get here?"
"You're really good at saying sorry, my wife."
For a moment, the onlookers doubted their own eyes. The fierce gaze that had been there until a moment ago had softened in an instant as if it had been hit by a warm breeze.
Dante smiled brightly and hugged Ariana's waist with one arm. A small exclamation of "Oh my" erupted from the crowd of onlookers who had followed him in silence.
"I went home, but you weren't there. So I had no choice but to come find you."
A sweet and earnest voice as if honey was dripping down. The ladies blushed and glanced at the scene. Amidst the pouring gazes, Ariana opened her mouth with a troubled expression.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but... I was planning on getting back on time."
"That's right."
Dante smiled and continued.
"You have to play tonight too."
"... "
At the words "tonight" and "play," Ariana bit her lower lip without realizing it. As the Duchess' cheeks turned red, the ladies' eyes sparkled and whispered through their fans.
"Did you have a secret?"
"You talk nonstop. Oh my, you're so sweet together."
The two of them looked like a perfect couple who couldn't take their eyes off each other for even a moment. The rumors that the Duchess was being neglected and didn't go out in society would be completely dispelled after tonight.
Elena gritted her teeth as she looked at the sight.
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