Chapter 33
Mention of that day made Viern frown, trying to control the unruly sensations it stirred.
“I believe I have already… provided ample assistance.”
“What are you talking about? We haven’t even done it properly yet!”
Diana spoke with a genuinely aggrieved expression.
“Do you even know what that ‘proper’ thing entails?”
“Of course I do. It’s when the man’s reproductive organ thrusts deeply into the entrance of the woman’s womb.”
“……”
At the utterly vulgar and crass expression, Viern covered his face with one hand and let out a pained groan. Where on earth did she learn such language? Could it be that this bizarre phrasing was also part of that damned effort to cater to Aisen’s tastes?
“What’s wrong, Duke? Are you in pain?”
“……”
Diana watched his condition with a puzzled face, but Viern, having lost any desire to respond further, pressed his lips tightly together.
“If you’re not feeling well, I guess there’s nothing we can do today…”
Scratching her cheek awkwardly, she got up.
“Are you leaving?”
“Mhm.”
As if that was the only reason she had come to find him, Diana nodded without any reluctance.
“Let me escort you.”
“It’s fine. It’s not that far a walk.”
Irritated by her apparent reluctance, Viern felt a stubborn impulse rise.
“It hasn’t been long since you recovered. To avoid causing trouble for everyone by getting injured again, please quietly accept the escort.”
“Hmm, okay, Duke.”
His mood soured considerably at the sight of her nodding half-heartedly, but he tried not to show it. Above all, the way she kept calling him ‘Duke…’, ‘the Duke is…’ had been grating on him intensely since earlier…
“Duke?”
Feeling his gaze, Diana tilted her head and called to him.
“Nothing. Let’s go.”
Feeling upset over such a trivial reason—that she wouldn’t call him by his name, a childish complaint fit only for immature children—was unacceptable to his lofty pride. So, as he ignored his true feelings and escorted her out into the hallway…
“Oh my.”
Sophia, who had just happened to come looking for Viern’s office, spotted the two of them coming out together and widened her eyes in surprise, then promptly bowed in greeting.
“Sophia of the Silberk Marquisate greets Her Highness Princess Diana. May Laurelai’s blessing be upon you.”
“Um… hello. So, Lady Silberk?”
Diana, who had received the greeting rather awkwardly, glanced at Viern, sending a silent plea for help. No one except Viern, his aide, and a few of the Princess’s attendants knew about her head injury and memory issues. They couldn’t reveal that the kingdom’s sole heir had a critical problem. Even if Diana was merely a figurehead princess.
Thus, officially, she was known to have recovered from an ankle injury. It would be troublesome if the two women engaged in conversation and Sophia noticed something odd. Therefore, Viern stepped forward and approached Sophia.
“What brings you here, My Lady?”
“I came to return the clothes you left behind last time.”
Sophia smiled faintly and handed Viern the men’s jacket she had draped over one arm.
“You left it in my room that day when you rushed out.”
Pause.
Viern’s eyes hardened imperceptibly as he took the jacket. Going to her room and leaving clothes behind? A conversation perfectly designed for misunderstanding. Viern ground his teeth, irritated by Sophia’s blatant attempt to provoke Diana, and quickly glanced back.
But whether this should be considered fortunate or not, Diana herself seemed to have no thoughts on the matter. She didn’t misunderstand, which should have been a relief, yet he felt strangely hollow inside.
“More importantly, are you feeling well, Your Highness? I heard you fell from a great height…”
Sophia’s gaze flickered toward Diana’s ankle, hidden beneath the hem of her dress.
“You seem perfectly fine.”
Her tone carried a hint of accusation, as if suggesting Diana had feigned illness to hold onto Viern. Given Diana’s notorious history of misdeeds toward Viern’s other female acquaintances, it wasn’t unreasonable for Sophia to think so. The Diana of the past would have instantly caught the hidden meaning and retaliated sharply, but…
“Yeah, thanks for your concern, Lady Marquis.”
Having already dropped her guard, Diana replied with a bright, completely unhostile smile. Sophia looked slightly taken aback by Diana’s demeanor, and Viern’s expression, watching from the side, also began to shift strangely.
He felt odd. A bit bewildered, perhaps. Diana, smiling and responding amiably to his prospective fiancée. Of course, he had hoped Diana would maintain the harmonious relationship between the royal family and the Erkman ducal house by refraining from harming his prospective fiancée, but he had never once imagined her standing face to face with the woman who would become the future mistress of the Erkman house, smiling like this.
Suddenly, Viern felt he might understand the source of the hollowness he’d been feeling since earlier. The fact that the filly-like woman who would fly into a rage just from him making eye contact with another woman no longer existed… this reality was piercing through him so starkly.
“That’s truly a relief. I was worried my busy fiancé might get even more swamped with work.”
Sophia, having smoothed her expression, chuckled gracefully and continued the conversation smoothly.
“Ah, yes, the wedding is really not far off now.”
“Wedding…?”
Diana blinked her eyes, looking at Sophia, then turned to look at Viern. Under that gaze, Viern’s mouth went dry for an inexplicable reason. He felt he needed to explain something again. But, what exactly?
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