A Runaway Villainess, Now Healing In An Enemy Country - Chapter 46

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 46】

 

What does that mean.

 

I crossed my arms and tilted my head. Then Mel started babbling without even wetting her lips.

 

“Well, apparently the Duke begged His Majesty to forgive you? So His Majesty forgave you.”

 

“…What?”

 

Have my ears gone deaf? I’m hearing all sorts of strange things.

 

It didn’t sound like the same country’s language at all, so I frowned, and Mel scratched the back of her head with a sheepish laugh.

 

“This rumor was going around among the maids in the Imperial Capital. It does sound like bullshit, right? There’s no way the Duke would do that for you.”

 

“…Do you want to get hit?”

 

“No! But it’s true that your wanted order was completely withdrawn after the Duke had an audience with His Majesty the Emperor.”

 

Saying that, Mel pulled out a newspaper from her shabby robe and handed it to me. It was still warm, seemingly just published today.

 

I sat in a chair and unfolded the newspaper.

 

There was nothing particularly special about it.

 

The newspaper was still making headlines about the Prince and Countess’s engagement, and everything else was talking about the Duchy’s festival.

 

The only difference from before was that my face had disappeared from the wanted posters in the corner of the newspaper.

 

“…It’s real.”

 

Under Imperial law, newspapers were required to include wanted posters of fugitives being tracked by the Imperial Court.

 

But unlike before when it was ‘temporarily suspended’, I was suddenly erased as if I had never existed from the beginning. The meaning of this fact was clear.

 

“The wanted order was completely revoked! This actually worked. How did this happen? Baltres is amazing. As expected of a corrupt family.”

 

She seems to assume that things worked out luckily through some kind of deal between the Emperor and Father…

 

There’s no way such a convenient solution exists.

 

‘…Did he really not abandon me?’

 

The cold and rational Duke of Baltres wouldn’t make such a foolish choice. It’s a problem that could be easily solved by just abandoning me.

 

Just a few months ago, he was the one who unilaterally broke off my engagement and tried to give that position to Lishie.

 

But in a situation like this? Whatever he paid the Emperor as compensation, it wouldn’t have been trivial.

 

“And also, Miss.”

 

I snapped to attention at that playful voice.

 

Mel spoke with exaggerated gestures.

 

“Exactly next week today! After holding the engagement ceremony in the Imperial Capital, the Prince and Countess will ride a flower carriage in a parade around the Duchy.”

 

“Do you think I wouldn’t know that? Just go down to this inn’s dining room and everyone’s talking about it.”

 

It was information I’d known since the first day I arrived in the Duchy.

 

It’s good for attracting attention and good for blending into crowds. Most importantly, it’s the day Lishie comes out of the Imperial Capital, so we decided that would be our day of reckoning.

 

“Hehe, that’s not the end of it. The Imperial Capital is quite chaotic right now and the Countess… ah, this isn’t certain so I’ll tell you later. For now!”

 

“What’s with the suspense?”

 

Then Mel held out both hands to me with sparkling eyes. It meant to pay additional fees.

 

I thought about punching her, but just pulled out some gold coins from my pocket and placed them on Mel’s palm.

 

Mel smoothly pocketed them and said,

 

“I figured out the escort routes for the parade. Since you’ll probably cause quite a big incident that day, Miss.”

 

“You…”

 

“You need it, right? The number of escorts is no joke.”

 

Her intuition is really sharp.

 

When did she figure out that I was planning something that day? I looked at Mel with displeasure, and she stretched her mouth into a cat-like smile.

 

“But Miss, of all places to run away to, you went to Belmayer. What did you come back to obtain?”

 

“…How did you know that too.”

 

“Trade secret. And that pink-haired one is quite a famous person. Among the border region scouts… they call him the Pink Ghost.”

 

Jepi, who was suddenly pointed out, tilted his head.

 

“Me? No way.”

 

“He’s so elusive that initially they really thought he was a ghost. Some people still think so.”

 

“What do you mean no way. It’s definitely you.”

 

I felt a headache coming on and pressed my forehead.

 

Anyway, Mel’s information was definitely useful.

 

I was about to ask more about it when Ally, who had been fiddling with her ‘arm’ in the corner, suddenly squeezed between me and Mel.

 

“It’s not because of what she wanted to obtain. Irene is kind, so she came all this way thinking of us.”

 

“Huh? Miss, what’s this one?”

 

Unlike Jepi, she doesn’t seem to be well-known.

 

Ally slapped away Mel’s pointing finger and replied quite prickly.

 

“I’m her personal maid.”

 

“What maid? You haven’t worked long and don’t know much about Miss, do you? Our Miss isn’t kind at all.”

 

“You’re the one who doesn’t know. Our Irene is such a kind pushover. I’m worried she’d give away her liver and gallbladder.”

 

“Huh? Who are you talking about? I’ve never seen a woman as brilliantly wicked as our Miss!”

 

Have these girls gone crazy? Why are they suddenly like this?

 

‘Besides, both of them… only sound like insults.’

 

Watching them bicker over me, each insisting they were right, I felt my headache getting much worse.

 

“Both of you shut up.”

 

I separated Mel and Ally.

 

With their mouths tightly shut, glaring at each other, they seemed to have become mortal enemies who had crossed a river of no return. Good grief. In such a short moment?

 

As I was clicking my tongue at the sight, Mel snorted and turned her head sharply away from Ally.

 

“Hmph. Oh right, Miss. If you have nothing else to do until then, why don’t you go see the festival?”

 

“Me?”

 

“You were curious about the street festival.”

 

…Well, I did have some romantic notions about it before.

 

Living busily made it all fade away. Now I’m a bit curious but I feel more like ‘why bother’.

 

“That’s old news. Why would I go now?”

 

“Where are you going?”

 

Then Davuer appeared without a sound.

 

Water was dripping from his damp silver hair, but he approached me without even trying to shake off the moisture.

 

“A festival?”

 

“…Davuer, first dry your hair.”

 

“You can do it for me.”

 

It was a brazen request as if he had entrusted it to me.

 

At the shamelessness I could read from that expressionless face, I couldn’t even argue back and dried his hair with magic.

 

The small bathroom attached to this inn room was something I had simply modified, so it was decent enough to use.

 

Actually, Davuer doesn’t need to eat or sleep, and apparently doesn’t particularly need to wash either, but he showed unexpected diligence by dousing himself with water twice a day.

 

“All dried.”

 

“…”

 

Even though I did as he asked, his eyes seemed somehow strangely dissatisfied. He ran his hands through his hair as if shaking it out and sat in the chair across from me.

 

“That person, the one from before…?”

 

Mel was staring at him with her mouth agape.

 

Since his face was covered with a hood before, even though this was their second meeting, it would be the first time Mel was properly seeing him.

 

After a long moment, Mel came to her senses and became extremely serious, then whispered quietly to me.

 

“Miss. His face is too exposed.”

 

Smack!

 

I flicked her forehead before she could finish speaking.

 

The loyal retainer(?) with tears welling up in her black eyes shouted as if pouring everything out.

 

“Ow, that hurts… Miss! This is all advice that will benefit you. Handsome men are worth their face value!”

 

“Mel.”

 

“Look at His Highness the Prince too, he just sucked out everything he could get from you! Like a pig!”

 

She’s spouting things that would be big trouble if anyone heard.

 

Mel grabbed both my shoulders and warned me in a clearly articulated tone despite her excited manner.

 

“That man is excessively handsome. You’ll surely be left with nothing but bones! Then who’s going to give me generous compensation for my efforts?!”

 

…Right, that last part was the main point.

 

Thwack!

 

After flicking her forehead again, I got to the main topic.

 

“Enough, just tell me what else you know.”

 

“Miss! You really need to heed my words?!”

 

Thwack!

 

“One hit per syllable of nonsense.”

 

Mel seemed to think I had eloped to Belmayer for love, advising me until the moment before leaving, “You’ll ruin your family!” she kept saying.

 

From the moment she learned Davuer’s true identity as a demon Duke, she became even more extreme. She was practically shouting that I should rather elope to the countryside with some commoner named Hans…

 

Unfortunately, her brain seems to be pickled in romance.

 

“…Hans?”

 

This man isn’t quite sane either.

 

Davuer was questioning with his eyes who this guy was supposed to be. His cold gaze seemed to be brewing a blizzard.

 

“There’s no such person.”

 

“…”

 

“Really. Why does she keep saying unnecessary things.”

 

I blamed Mel, who had just disappeared after receiving a new mission from me, and turned my gaze to the open window.

 

It’s absolutely not because his gaze was burdensome.

 

Unlike the first day when the streets were chaotic with festival preparations, now the atmosphere was heated up with the bustling festival mood.

 

“A festival… huh.”

 

Maybe following Mel’s advice wouldn’t be so bad. I don’t have anything to do for a while anyway…

 

“The Fringe Theater Troupe is performing ‘The Countess’s Chronicles’!”

 

“Receiving acclaim for the terrifying villainess makeup!”

 

“Anyone curious about how justice strikes down the villainess, come this way! Special discount on ticket prices!”

 

…What kind of play?

 

It was obvious who the motif of that story was.

 

The voices promoting on the street reached my ears vividly, not knowing that the terrifying villainess herself was listening to it all.

 

“Those bastards…”

 

“Is it about you?”

 

Davuer gestured toward the window with his chin.

 

Then without waiting for a reply, he spoke bluntly.

 

“Let’s go see it, that play.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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