Grand Duke, Please Stop Obsessing Over Your Wife! - Chapter 66

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

66.

Not long after, Isaiah returned from the capital with an invitation to the Foundation Festival.

The Foundation Festival of the Holy Empire was a grand imperial celebration held annually to pray to the Sun God for prosperity.

‘Though hosted by the Temple, the Imperial Family, nobility, and even foreign envoys all gather. It’s the perfect environment for incidents to occur.’

A major incident had happened in the past as well.

‘On the day the envoys from the Kingdom of Ainac Desert arrived, they brought a fake corpse of the Third Prince to the Imperial Palace, claiming they had found it.’

With a dagger from the desert kingdom still embedded in the body.

The Emperor, upon discovering her son’s corpse, refused all food and drink.

‘Taking advantage of the Emperor’s mental breakdown, Kukseo confined the desert kingdom’s envoys in the banquet hall and publicly announced that the Third Prince had died at the hands of desert kingdom assassins.’

After the Emperor died as well, it was chaos for a while. It was divine fortune that the Third Prince stopped the Crown Prince just before he could ascend to the throne.

Though they succeeded in defeating the Crown Prince, too many sacrifices followed.

“Since they spread word that the Third Prince died, they’ll prepare a fake corpse of the Third Prince to match the rumors. Before they can pin it on the desert kingdom, we’ll bring the Third Prince and have him make his appearance.”

Just announcing the Third Prince’s safe return would complete half the plan.

The other half was stopping the Crown Prince’s faction and the Temple, but there was a way to do that too.

‘After all, I know the past.’

“Families invited to the Foundation Festival must bring tribute. You can see the list here. …”

Annelize, who had been continuing her explanation, raised her head.

It was because of the Duke who had been staring intently at her from earlier.

“Do you have something to say, Your Grace?”

The Duke rested his chin on one hand and pulled up the corner of his lips at an angle.

It resembled a smile. His golden eyes curved gently.

He replied in a languid voice.

“You’re cute even when you’re chattering away with such a serious face.”

Flinch. Annelize’s expression contracted as if bracing for the loud crash that should follow, then relaxed again.

She looked puzzled at the Duke who sat quietly without breaking anything.

“You haven’t been breaking anything lately?”

“Ah. I decided not to break things for a while.”

The Duke answered in a proud tone.

[My lord. I understand you’re excited, but how about showing your affection in moderation?]

The Duke remembered that period.

After realizing that Annelize Solariccen was cute. The time when he couldn’t control himself for a while.

His body would spring into action impulsively before he could think twice.

And the results of those impulses weren’t very good.

[The lady finds it burdensome, doesn’t she? You can’t just push your own feelings. Laughter doesn’t come when one is uncomfortable.]

Isaiah’s words made sense too.

He was making an effort for Annelize’s smile, after all.

‘Not burdensome, not uncomfortable.’

Annelize was still maddeningly cute and dazzlingly beautiful.

The urge to destroy something was still there too.

‘If it’s for Annelize’s smile.’

And he had been doing quite well so far.

‘I hope Annelize becomes comfortable by my side soon.’

The Duke didn’t know.

That at that moment, one of Anna Rose’s questions flashed through Annelize’s mind.

[Then you’d be fine if the Duke found someone else cute. What do you think would happen if he suddenly developed feelings for someone else?]

Annelize muttered something.

“What did you just say?”

“I said that’s good. There are still many icebergs to clear in the North. If I can no longer borrow Your Grace’s power-“

“No. I can do it anytime you want.”

“I understand.”

Annelize’s eyebrow rose to one side then came back down.

Her gaze returned to the paper in her hands.

She had been busy writing something continuously with her pen since earlier.

As she lowered her eyes, Annelize’s long eyelashes cast shadows.

Her platinum blonde eyelashes fluttered delicately.

‘Not burdensome. Not uncomfortable.’

The Duke gritted his teeth.

The urge to break anything right now surged, making his fists tremble, but he barely held back.

To escape from those feather-like eyelashes that drove him wild, the Duke lowered his gaze.

It was the wrong choice. His lips twitched and hardened in dismay.

‘How can even her handwriting be cute.’

The handwriting created by her small hand gripping the fountain pen and moving it here and there was art itself.

Her writing perfectly resembled its owner – appearing delicate yet having strength.

‘Damn.’

His insides boiled. Every moment was a test directed at him.

The Duke steeled his resolve again.

“That pen you’re holding. It’s cute.”

“This pen…?”

“Yes.”

Annelize looked at the pen with a confused face.

Actually, the pen wasn’t important.

If it was in Annelize’s hands, even a roadside twig would look cute.

She stiffened as if remembering something she had forgotten.

Annelize’s expression became serious.

“This is the first time you’ve called something other than me cute.”

“What?”

“What else do you find cute?”

Well… The Duke searched his memory. There were many things he had seen, heard, and felt while thinking of Annelize.

“The little bird I saw in the meadow the other day was quite cute.”

The tiny thing chirped and flew around so well. Annelize is small like that too.

A small bird that could fit in his palm and a human dozens of times larger. Physically, the bird was certainly ‘smaller’ than her.

But from his perspective, their smallness was about the same.

“And the cookies in the dining hall too.”

The bite marks Annelize left were so cute.

Various other things poured out after that. All were related to Annelize. The Duke felt helplessly charmed by everything connected to her.

After the silence, Annelize spoke.

“Your Grace… finds quite a lot of things cute.”

“That’s really true.”

Things he had never paid attention to before gained special meaning through Annelize.

It wasn’t a bad sensation.

“Oh, one of the maids came wearing a light purple ribbon.”

Annelize reacted immediately to those words.

“…So you found that maid cute?”

Her tone was dry and emotionless. As if deliberately hiding her feelings.

“No. The ribbon was cute. But why are you asking about that? Do you know that maid?”

“It’s nothing. Let’s just finish talking about the Foundation Festival.”

Annelize picked up her pen again with an indifferent expression.

Pointing at the list with her pen, she frowned.

“The Foundation Festival is an event where the Temple legally extorts donations. If you don’t pay, you’ll be on the Temple’s bad side and won’t be able to buy crop seedlings for the next year. Everyone pays reluctantly.”

“Hmm.”

After answering, the Duke lowered his head as if pondering for a moment, then seemed to catch himself and pulled away from her.

“What’s wrong? You can hug me if you want to.”

“No. It’s fine. We did it this morning. We don’t need to do it every time.”

“Well, if you say so….”

Annelize stared at the empty space where the Duke had been even after he disappeared.

What is this feeling?

What does it matter whether the Duke clings to me less than before or not.

‘Shouldn’t I be happy that the burden has been reduced?’

[What do you think would happen if the Duke cherished someone other than you, Sister?]

She gritted her teeth and drove Anna Rose’s voice out of her head.

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