Translator and Editor: Maru and Aki

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Chapter 9

Swallowing a bitter smile, Ravia continued.

“Isn’t it because I didn’t run into father while I was outside?”

“That’s not the problem. You should’ve notified me before you went out. I was worried something bad happened while you’re outside.”

“Are you worried about me?”

The question made Duke Leontine crease his eyebrows. He couldn’t exactly interpret what Ravia meant by that.

Was it a positive or negative question?

Whether she was asking if he was worried about her or she was doubting if he truly is worried about her,

He didn’t care either way.

He didn’t give an answer either.

Ravia took off the cape draped around her shoulders and hung it on the chair.

“Don’t be anxious just because I escaped your eyes for a while, father. I’m not hurt anywhere, and you can know where I went if you ask the coachman. So please ask him.”

“Ravia, are you rebelling now?”

“Rebelling…”

Ravia thought about that word over and over again. Rebel. Rebelling?

“If I’m rebelling, I wouldn’t have been doing this here.”

“What?”

“Haven’t I done everything you told me to? Become someone worthy of succession, don’t stand out, give your spot to Tidwell, and get married.”

Were there any instances where she rebelled against him? Ravia’s voice was sharply jabbing Duke Leontine.

“To think you deemed me rebelling for taking a night stroll….. You wouldn’t say that if you have any shame.”

“Such an insolent mouth!”

“Yeah, I have no manners. I can’t help it. I grew up without proper care from my mother and father after all.”

Ravia smiled, then she shook the bell placed on her dressing table.

When the clinking sound was heard, the maid opened the door. She combed her dry hair and ordered the maid to prepare a bath.

Until all that was done, she acted as if Duke Leontine did not exist in the room.

It was different from the past when she always glanced over him in order to start a conversation.

She threw off the accessories and gloves she had on, then she looked back at Duke Leontine as if she just remembered his presence before leaving the room.

“I’m going to take a bath. Are you going to stay here?”

There was no answer. He only cast a deadly stare.

Did he feel a little embarrassed because he just vexed me for nothing?

Ravia couldn’t know for sure.

“You must have liked the sofa. I’ll have the servants move it to father’s room later.”

Thud. She shut the door and walked out.

***

After Ravia moved the sofa to Duke Leontine’s room, the answer she received was probation.

‘Well, whatever.’

Duke Leontine wouldn’t tolerate any retaliation against him. Ravia knew that side of him very well.

The Duke would never slap her or raise his voice because of his dignity, but it was already expected that he would give her a penalty.

So during that time, Ravia decided not to do anything.

‘The weather is nice.’

Of course, it was because aggravating Duke Leontine any further won’t do any good to her. But the person that Ravia should be alert with wasn’t Duke Leontine, but Tidwell.

The mansion began to change drastically after Tidwell came.

The servants who attended to Ravia began to pay more attention to Tidwell, and Tidwell gradually established his footing inside the mansion.

The process was so quick and secretive that if Ravia hadn’t known the future, she might have gone crazy because of desperation.

‘So it’ll be best not to draw attention for a while.’

While Tidwell was gradually gaining influence, everybody was likely to misunderstand and accuse her of being delusional even when she just went out.

There was no need to raise her guard again, so Ravia planned to just eat, play, and sleep in her room until her appointment with Herod and take her sweet time meaninglessly like a jellyfish.

Of course, that didn’t mean she would sit still.

‘You must’ve been taking lessons for succession and keeping the guys in the underworld under control at the same time. What a busy life, Tidwell.’

Ravia thought so as she crumpled the note in her hand.

She was now sitting under the shade of a tree for two reasons.

First, this place wasn’t easily noticed by people. Second, it was the best place to listen to the servants.

“No matter how much I think about it, our young master fits Leontine better than our Lady.”

“True. She doesn’t even have silver hair, so how can she identify herself as a Leontine?”

The servants here were very engrossed in Leontine’s affairs.

They had been working here for generations and are greatly indebted to this family.

That great loyalty made them hostile towards the stupid successor and welcome the new successor that they deemed worthy instead.

“Now, our lady must fight for her place. Or else she will be a married daughter that is no better than an outsider.”

“Master had a lot of worries because of his business trip, so this is rather fortunate.”

“The butler is also relieved that our master is going to hand over his office to the young master, right?”

‘Of course, Tidwell’s decoy managed to steer public opinion, but…’

So far, it was still within the expected range.

Since it was easy to attract attention if she roamed around, Ravia chose to hide herself in the corner of the garden and gather information.

‘It’s a good thing I bought a courier in advance.’

And it was three days before Tidwell came.

The first thing Ravia did after crying for a long time was buy a courier who knew about the situation in the underworld.

It wasn’t that difficult.

Since the book explained Tidwell’s connections with the people in the underworld, she was able to buy the courier without hassle.

There was not much to ask:

Watch Tidwell’s behavior, and report it.

He came into her room every day with bowls of food for lunch, and the message was the same today.

‘Drug.’

It was written on the note today as well.

Since it was related to Tidwell, she couldn’t disregard it.

[The dark flower is inside the mansion.]

It was the last line of the note. The dark flower here was implying a drug.

Medication that gave extreme pleasure but destroyed the mind and body of the consumer.

There was a reason why Tidwell had to bring that item into the mansion.

‘So you want to get your lackeys.’

A small dose of the drug could lead to temporary hypnosis. In that state, he would instill suggestions with subtle speech and make them obey him.

That was part of Tidwell’s chess play.

Tidwell was really establishing his footing in Leontine.

With his own method.

‘He will soon feed my father with the drug, and…’

He would brainwash her father to put him into the family register, and take over the duchy quickly.

It was a classic trick, but it worked just fine. Especially in the case of Duke Leontine, who knew nothing.

In fact, Tidwell used this trick to occupy Leontine quickly.

Ravia swallowed the crumpled note. It wasn’t very pleasant, but it was the safest way. If Tidwell found out anything suspicious, the boundaries that she had worked so hard to lessen might quickly go up.

‘But since I did something suspicious last night, it’s no harm to be careful.’

Ravia recalled what happened last night when she returned to the room after her bath.

It was already late when she returned to the residence, so everyone was asleep except for a few servants who attended to her.

It was a long awaited serenity. She felt at peace because she had accomplished a big mission, which was to meet Herod.

Ravia was sitting on the bed and took out her book entitled [The Sophistry and Hypocrisy] to read before she went to bed.

She planned to sleep when her hair was completely dry.

With that in mind, she was about to go to her bookshelf, but it became loud outside.

It wasn’t a knock, but instead, the sound of footsteps.

It was quiet, so she could also hear the rustling of one’s coat.

‘Who’s coming at this late hour?’

Feeling curious, Ravia opened her mouth.

“Sister.”

But the uninvited guest outside the door was faster.

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