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Translator and Editor: Lea and Aki

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Chapter 25

"Are you really sure Irelle didn\'t commit suicide?"

His eyes subsided.

"What makes you doubt me?"

But he did not get angry. He knew he had to listen to her reason first.

On the other hand, it was not easy for her to say it because it alone overturned the premise on which she verbally signed a contract with him. However, they might also catch an innocent person while looking for a criminal who, perhaps, didn\'t even exist in the first place. Or it could continue to lead to futility.

And if they can\'t find the so-called criminal, Selena would eventually face the damage, let alone Kalcion. She would not be able to return to her original world.

It was like a stage play for her. No matter how perfect the plot was, she didn\'t want to spend her entire life acting here.

"I think the enemy might not always be from outside.""The Baron\'s daughter might have chosen to commit suicide because of the excessive pressure around her. Do you want to go with this inference?""Yes."

He quickly recognized the subject.

"Be specific."

First and foremost, she was relieved. But, she spoke of a word that could be said to clear doubts within a family.

Kalcion was more sober and rational than expected. Mrs. Janet was almost like a family based on the fact that she had devoted her loyalty to Renbird. Selena did not want to be presumptuous when Mrs. Janet had always been a loyalist.

Nevertheless, it was no exception for Kalcion. Selena was relieved as well as she was scared. She was close to a position where she could find faults in Kalcion\'s decisions, but how?

\'If they decide to clean anything up, they\'ll probably cut it off with a sword.\'

She choked, nervous about what to speak of.

"The \'means of death\' was suicide. If someone was driven to kill themselves, it is suicide. How can it be murder?"

Before making a deduction, she asked for an important premise.

He slowly exhaled, his fingers tapping on his knee. Tap, Tap.

​ The tapping became longer. Evidently, he was deeply troubled.

He wouldn\'t be able to answer easily.

If he admitted it to be a suicide, he should also consider the situation in which the criminal would be eliminated. On the contrary, if he considered someone had killed his fiancée, he\'d have to get revenge on someone who did not even let their hands be directly painted in blood.

It was a problem for ordinary people to trust according to their individual beliefs, but Kalcion was different.

He was the Duke of Renbird and the ruler of the North. His sole will was the will of the North. In other words, the revenge could end in a personal duel, but it could be largely a war.

"......That is to be judged by a murder."

The Duke of North was proud.

"Anyway, I\'ve also counted those who have been tormented to the point of death for the Duchess\' position as potential suspects.""The first to be is Mrs. Janet?""Yes, second is the ladies-in-waiting in the capital."

He asked, raising his chin.

"What did you hear from them?""Mrs. Janet said she\'ll do anything for Renbird\'s honor, and the maids were very gossipy.""Well, it doesn\'t depend on what you hear.""From the Duke\'s point of view, yes."

Kalcion did not respond much. It would be difficult to choose either way. Rather, he should just stay silent.

Selena sat up, reeling under the sudden movement. The Northern Duke, who lived without any reason to sympathize with others, needed an eye-level conversation.

"L-Look carefully.""I am.""Does the Duke ever risk his position on someone else\'s assessment?""No, I don\'t.""Do you feel uncomfortable when you\'re around people you don\'t like?""That never happened.""Is there anyone who wants to protest against the Duke for his rudeness?""The ones who want to die?"

Selena shook her head.

"That\'s the difference. The Duke has a lot to spend, while a person like me has nothing, and if someone doesn\'t have anything, they have no choice but to be wary."

He stared agape at her face before closing his mouth. The silence continued for a moment.

"Why do you think you have nothing?""I have an aunt.""........"

No rebuttal had been returned.

"Ah, I mean, I have a personality, and I have a family that cares for me, so I do have a lot of them.""........"

The silence still lingered on.

"However, it\'s the same thing that I have to live with people who like my beauty.""An anecdote of a beautiful woman who doesn\'t matter.""On the surface, I\'m still very flat. But inside, you\'re living like a pig \'cause it\'s very scary to die of thick skin."

In fact, no matter how good her acting ability and appearance was, it was not directly related to money. It would be a horrible thing to do. If you\'ve got a rat\'s tail, it\'s even scarier to lose it.

For example, the honor of a Baron.

"What about Irelle?""She was poor enough to be starved to death…...""What if she had the honor of a Baron?"

He furrowed his forehead.

Honor.

It was a sensitive literary talent. The contract with Selena was also made due to the honor and pride of Kalcion Renbird. She sympathized herself with that part.

"The Duke definitely didn\'t care about what Irelle was doing, but did he draw himself?"".......""In a sense of crisis such as a scandal, is it true that she might get debarred?"

While she asked, Selen felt emotional without realizing it.

Since it was a job to reveal one\'s self in front of people, she naturally stopped. Even if one threw a single wrong glance at a private meet, it\'d chase them everywhere. It would be a waste.

No matter how careful she was, she didn\'t have to be alone. She might be disrespected for the expression in her eyes, considered arrogant for wearing sunglasses, and get gossiped about for greeting people or even when she would not (greet).

If this or that situation continued, people would freak out.

Still, Selena was able to hold on well thanks to her seniors and mentors who guided her.

What if they weren\'t there?

Did Irelle have people like that?

"What is the word that can drive you to the point of death?""I don\'t understand what you mean.""Anyway, isn\'t it important that she had a sense of crisis in which she might be debarred?""Whatever the scandal was, I wouldn\'t have written a new rule.""That\'s what the Duke thinks.""No, the deal with the Baron was simple. I provided them with money, while they helped in filling the position of Duchess.""Well, that\'s not complicated. What if she had a presence?""Like?"

Kalcion asked sharply.

"Like playing around in the capital so promiscuously that there\'s no man who hasn\'t touched her."

…...Gasp.

Selena bit her tongue, surprised by the words she spoke absent-mindedly. She tried to bead the words more properly from what she heard from Juna, but it came out wrongly.

She was thinking about how to put out the invisible fire, even if it was there when Kalcion asked.

"What\'s that?""........Sorry?"

He growled sarcastically.

"What\'s the problem? What\'s wrong with that?""Uh, Huh? What?"

Kalcion\'s cold smile grew wider.

"Isn\'t that normal? Everybody lives like that, be it one or two, it\'s not such a big deal about the Duchess of Renbird."

Selena held her poor breath, sensing a definite fire within him. She still could not tell whether he was angry or not.

"The Duke could have, but some people might think it\'s better to die if you were gotten rid of and abandoned by your family."

Kalcion breathed heavily, while Selena repeatedly exhaled, trying to calm down her flushed mind.

"......Even if the rumors were true, I wouldn\'t have had anything to do with it.""......Yes."

His eyes darted to Selena\'s. They were so sharp that it made her scared.

"I know. No matter what anyone says, you don\'t have to be intimidated. Unless you run away. Then, I won\'t have to break the contract first."

Overwhelmed by his serious look, she only nodded.

"And, don\'t make a scandal with anyone else when the contract is active."

He did not tell her the reason.

***

"Sure, I\'ll see you again in the capital, Your Excellency.""I\'ll see you soon, Your Excellency!"

The next morning, Rosalyn and Fionel announced their sudden leave.

"Your Excellency will come to learn from me, and I\'ll never forget this feeling!""I ran into him while I was walking."

It really was. Selena was the one who asked her to join for a walk.

Selena heard through Juna that Rosalyn and Fionel were getting ready to leave. Juna had already acted as a loyal servant.

\'They know that Lady Selena was going to the capital with His Excellency, and thus, they\'re in a hurry. ‘To order more fancy clothes and accessories, and to spread the word\', was what she said.

In other words, they were going to prepare for her harassment. A villain must be diligent.

"It\'s from the capital."

Selena didn\'t even get a chance to greet them, but she pretended to be happy. She knew that the more she’s stepped on, the more annoyed she\'d be.

"Then, we\'ll be taking our leave, Your Excellency.""I\'ll see you soon, Miss Rosalyn~"

Rosalyn did not care to turn her head like Fionel, nor did she ask to see her again, not even as a courtesy.

"If that happens."

Rosalyn smiled, getting on her wagon with a short remark. The sun was warm but failed in eliminating the cold.

\'If that happens.\'

Was she saying Fionel was going to die in the hands of the people Rosalyn planted before she even sets off for the capital? Or something was to happen on the path to the capital?

She might not simply mean an unspecified reply that \'the Duke will abandon you\'. That was something Fionel would say.

"We should stick together more often from today."

Selena bounced onto Kalcion\'s arms. He stood frozen until the carriage left his view before looking down at Selena. She gave a tight squeeze on his arm.

"From now on, I think we\'ll be entering a battlefield of flying swords."

He clenched his fist in response.

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