Chapter 97
Not the reason I wished for you to come
“My sister is in the lounge. It seems the alcohol made her quite nauseous.”
“Please tell me where she is—”
“Duke.”
Atria cut off Izar, her eyes flashing. She knew all too well that the bastard dared to harbor disgusting affections for this man. It was obvious to anyone that those eyes, filled to the brim with overflowing emotions, yearned for him.
But the problem was this man.
‘I’m not sure. I can’t figure him out.’
Throughout the entire interaction with other nobles, he showed no particular consideration for the bastard and didn’t touch her at all. Even when Atria led her away to another group, he firmly turned his back.
‘Yet why does his indifference bother me so much?’
It felt as though the Duke was deliberately putting on an act.
Atria crossed her arms and lifted her straight nose high.
“Surely, you haven’t developed feelings for that bastard, have you?”
“Ha. Lady Atria.”
“It would be problematic if you forget our deal.”
She needed to show this man just how formidable she was. After all, in relationships, establishing dominance was crucial.
“Thanks to my mother and me, you can erase the stain of that bastard from the Arcturus lineage forever, right?”
“Hah…”
“I’ll remind you, I am not as forgiving as my mother. I might rather provide a proper courtesan, but I cannot bear to see you mingling with a bastard.”
Izar looked up at the ceiling and let out a low sigh. Hearing that, Atria rejoiced internally.
Her father made that exact sound when he lost an argument to her mother and had nothing left to say.
‘Yes, the Duke must have no retort.’
However, when Izar lowered his head slowly, Atria unconsciously took a step back. He was like a man carved from white marble and ice.
Yet those golden eyes, gleaming in the darkness, carried the ferocity of a predator.
“Lady Atria. You had deceived me up until the day of the wedding. Yet where do you get the gall to hold your head high?”
“…! Duke, that was…”
“Were you not among those who smiled in delight before His Majesty the Emperor?”
Atria shrank back, terrified by his sudden rough tone and menacing aura. The respectful manner in which he addressed her as “Lady” now felt like he was talking to a common thug.
“Having pocketed the rewards for deceiving me, you act like a noble lady while behaving like a vulgar swindler without shame.”
Atria instinctively clutched the hem of her dress. This precious blue dress was made from the fabric bestowed by the Emperor as a reward for deceiving Izar.
“I-I didn’t know until the very end…”
“And now you speak of the Arcturus lineage…? Ha!”
A sharp, dark laugh escaped Izar’s lips.
To dare presume to worry about his family. From the day he saw his father take his own life at ten years old, he had fiercely protected his lineage.
“Hah…”
Yet simultaneously, for the first time, he felt that this duty was instead a curse. It seemed as though he was forcibly ignoring the most fundamental things.
But at this moment, he needed to remind this fearful girl, who couldn’t even endure Freesia’s stare, who had dared to threaten him so arrogantly.
“Do not be insolent, Lady Atria.”
“Duke…”
“If you threaten me again with that deal, your family will be the last to receive my help.”
“…!”
Atria’s eyes widened in shock.
“Let’s see how long you’ll reign in the capital after your estate has been torn apart by monsters.”
Atria’s entire body stiffened at the sincere warning. Though she had never seen a monster in person due to living in the safest part of the capital, she had heard the recent rumors of their frequent appearances, even out of season.
No matter how established the Antares family was in the capital, a noble’s greatest assets were their ancestral lands and the surrounding tenant farms.
Atria hurriedly replied with a polite tone, trying to save face.
“It wasn’t my intention to distress you, Your Grace. I was just concerned…”
She clasped her hands together, her eyes welling up with tears.
“Is it really okay for me to think you have no feelings at all for my sister?”
She showed no signs of stepping aside without an answer. Her wide eyes were fixed on him, but everything about her was unlike Freesia, which disgusted him.
He replied irritably.
“Yes, there is nothing. Now or ever.”
***
Freesia stared blankly at the maids adjusting her appearance. It was still incredibly difficult to move on her own due to the lingering effects of the d**g.
However, seeing what they had brought made her mouth twitch. They even dabbed the running stain with cloth to make it look like menstrual blood. How much must they have relished treating her like an animal?
With an uninterested voice, Duchess Antares gave casual instructions to the maids.
“Leave this girl where I told you.”
“Yes, Madam.”
“If anyone asks where she is, say you don’t know.”
“Yes.”
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