Translator and Editor: Effe and Nabi

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

Chapter 32

Glancing up, he could see Anriche looking at him with a confused face.

‘Oh, I was lost in my thoughts.’

Even though there were people in front of him, he was dozing off in his mind instead. Alexei offered an apology in an awkward voice. “Oh, sorry.”

“No. That’s not what I mean…”

Even with open words like that, Anriche gazed at Alexei’s for a long time. Before long, she opened her mouth as if she had made up her mind.

“I’m thinking of firing some of the maids.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, of course. The duke may think that I am overly punishing…”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“…What?” Anriche, who was trying to make an excuse for the remark, opened her eyes wide confusingly.

Alexei shook his head neatly.

“As I said before, I am not misunderstanding you for this.”

“Yes?”

“Because I know roughly what happened.”

‘Heeeh…?’ What is this stubborn Alexei saying now?

She couldn’t get used to the current situation. But his words continued to go on. “This time, both Liliana and Elliot had a hard time in their hearts.”

“Yes. That’s true, but…”

“Well, and the madam is just doing what she has to do. I can’t interfere.”

‘…Alexei, did you eat anything wrong today?’

But she and Alexei would have eaten the same food, so that shouldn’t be the case since he had breakfast at the townhouse today…

As Anriche was desperately trying to guess what caused him to behave so abnormally, Alexei dropped the bomb.

“You… you did a good job.”

Alexei, who said so, turned his head away as if he was a little embarrassed. The nape of his neck rose red and he resembled his son, Elliot.

“Uh…”

Anriche was left dazed. ‘What is this… that Alexei is giving me all the compliments?’ Still, it wasn’t a bad feeling. No, to be precise…

‘…Happy.’

Both her cheeks were blushed brightly at the thought.

All this time, she had tried so hard to break down the walls of the heart that the two had built. It seemed that the effort had been paid off a little.

‘I think I’ve gotten a little closer to you now…’

“Well, um. Thank you…?”

“You’re welcome.”

At her shy voice, Alexei gently shook his head.

“I’m a little ashamed, but more than that…”

“What?”

“I used to say to Elliot, ‘eyes to see people’ and ‘insight’.”

Alexei was talking with a bitter face. Pondering for a moment, he continued, “But… I didn’t even notice the disrespectful movement of the maids. How pathetic is that.”

It was a voice with a deep sense of shame.

Hearing his words, she gazed at him and shook her head firmly.

“Duke, don’t say that.”

At the unexpected words, Alexei’s eyes widened a little.

Though she spoke clearly.

“I’m the Mistress of Valois. It’s also what I had to do to get discipline inside the house.”

Anriche straightened her waist and peered straight into his eyes. “So, I’m responsible for this incident.”

“…Madam.”

“This happened because I haven’t properly cracked down on the employees so far.”

She vividly stood out in his gaze.

Anriche is now humbly admitting her own fault. It was something unimaginable if it was her former self.

“I can’t undo my previous insincere appearance you’ve seen before, but I’ll try harder in the future.”

“That means…”

“I’m going to take control of the inside and outside of the family so that this doesn’t ever happen again.”

Violet-colored pupils were as united as never before.

“It’s… it’s the duty and the rights of the Mistress of Valois.”

As she showed a sense of responsibility as the Mistress of Valois, Alexei felt a new feeling erupting. Together with seeing her sparkling pretty purple eyes filled with enthusiasm…

‘It’s… very nice.’

Alexei never thought that there would be a day when he would think about Anriche like this. It’s a peculiar feeling, but he felt good.

Alexei had to go to great lengths to keep his mouth down.

“All right. Though, I think the madam may suffer a little in the future, so I’m worried about that.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“If the madam is going to clean up all the maids involved with Liliana’s incident…”

Alexei anxiously blurs his words. “Wouldn’t it be a little hard for you to run the townhouse without the maids?”

To be honest, it would be that way because all the maids, including Meg, were maids with a long history with the duchy. So, when all those maids are out, there would only be new maids left, which means that the burden on Anriche will be even greater.

“Until the new maids get used to the job, the madam will have to look carefully at everything in the townhouse, mainly by herself.”

“It’s okay.” She replied immediately.

“Honestly, I think it’s good to have an opportunity to change the maids as a whole.”

“May I ask why you think so?”

“Even though I’m not good at it myself because it’s a problem that can be solved by taking the time to learn, but…”

Anriche’s expression subsided coldly. She glanced and met his gaze. “As much as bullying children… I will never forgive it.”

“…Madam.”

“And those maids have already done harm to Liliana once.”

Looking at her right now, he fully understood her intentions. She was lighthearted. Anriche didn’t just decide that because she wanted to ‘fire all the maids’ blindly. She sincerely thought she ‘should,’ as it is something she must do, so she made that judgment.

“Even though we might have to suffer a little, it’s better to do this for the long run.”

Anriche made eye contact with Alexei. The eyes that were staring straight at him had a firm conviction.

“Liliana is my family. Rather than being hostile to Liliana…”

At that, she calmly concluded. “I need to be on Liliana’s side, and I intend to let her know that in the future, she can have a comfortable life in the Duchy.”

Alexei, chewing on Anriche’s words for a moment, nodded lightly.

‘…That’s reasonable.’

She didn’t simply just say, ‘because I am an adult, I have to care for my children,’ and neither did she appeal to those emotions. Instead, Anriche stated clearly, ‘I have to be on Liliana’s side and make her life in the duchy comfortable.’

She presented the benefits.

Also, Alexei knew. To move a person, it is much more efficient to offer visible benefits than to appeal to emotions.

“Besides, I can’t always get angry at them one by one if something like this ever occurs again.”

Smiling softly, Anriche playfully shrugs her shoulders. “Isn’t it time for me to get out of the stigma of being a ‘villain,’ anyway?”

“What, a villain? What is that…!”

“Ah, am I not that villainous woman?”

“No!”

Alexei screamed without realizing.

At that appearance, she burst into laughter. His swift denial was quite funny to see. And after a while, she finally straightened her chest.

She declares in a confident voice.

“Please trust me and leave it to me. I won’t disappoint you.”

However, her mouth was faintly twitching nervously. ‘Well, I spoke as confidently as possible… But, I’m still nervous!’

Just when she was crying inside…

“Yes, I will.”

As he whispered, a smile was painted softly on his face.

‘Wow… what is it now?’ Seeing his gentle behavior, her eyes went wide yet again. ‘No, now… Did Alexei really just smile at me?!’ As he smiled, the man who was always cool like a sharp blade changed his impression that instant.

At the smile that was as soft as the spring breeze, Anriche was captivated.

“Why are you looking like that?”

After a while, Alexei, feeling Anriche’s gaze, said so with a rather embarrassed expression.

She replied with determination.

“Because when the Duke smiles, you’re really handsome.”

“…Huh?”

“So, please smile often in the future.”

To be able to transform from a cold man to a handsome man with a single smile…

‘Besides, I am that person’s wife, so I can legally enjoy that beauty, right?’

What, being a Villainous Duchess is also worth it!

While Anriche was busy being all excited by herself, he quietly glanced at her. When she smiles brightly like that, it felt as if the depths of his chest were being tickled like being rubbed by feathers…

Strange, indeed.

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

Advanced Chapters!

Rate the novel on Novel Updates.

Join our discord to receive the latest updates as soon as possible!