I Seducing the Black-Hearted Duke Wasn't Me - Chapter 22

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 22
How on earth had things come to this?
“Good heavens, what a mess this has all become. Everyone’s in an uproar. Surely… you didn’t actually propose to Valentine, did you?”
“Of course I didn’t.”
“I should think not. Until recently, you had no thought of marriage whatsoever.”
And yet suddenly, I had proposed to him—the very man whose name alone used to make me grimace.
Laura shook her head in disbelief.
Then she stopped.
“Good Lord, there’s more chaos here. This is Evening Bell, isn’t it? The place that spread baseless rumors about you not long ago.”
“Let me see that.”
What had they written this time to make Laura react like that?
[Accusations are pouring in that the Marquess of Zacherete has been playing both sides. One young lady tearfully expressed relief that the truth was finally coming to light. Meanwhile, certain circles in society are questioning whether the Marquess truly possesses some special charm to captivate even a Grand Duke, with some going so far as to suggest that House Zacherete must possess some secret technique for ensnaring men, passed down through generations. Whispers are even circulating that now they understand why Roar, the Zacherete family enterprise, has flourished so spectacularly under the current marquess. The entire empire is ablaze with the scandal.]

My hand crumpled the gossip sheet.
This had gone too far.
“How dare they touch Zacherete and Roar?”
“If I may ask—is the family and the business more important to you now than your own honor?”
“Of course they are! It’s the legacy my ancestors built, and everything Father has protected and raised alone for me.”
My own reputation could be dismissed as idle gossip, but I could not bear to hear Zacherete and Roar slandered.
Should I just sue them outright?
‘But as long as the Ring remains in their possession, anything I say will lack credibility.’
God, this is infuriating.
‘It’s all because of that foreigner.’
Why, of all things, had he pawned that Ring to a pawnbroker?
‘And I can’t even steal it back.’
Rage choked the breath from my lungs.
Those around me attack both me and my house, and even the household servants regard me with eyes full of suspicion and anxiety.
Yet the cruelest part was that I had no clear way forward.
What could I possibly do?
“Heavens, I’m truly worried.”
“…About what?”
“About His Highness, of course. He must have seen this article too.”
Ah.
At Laura’s words, I froze.
Laura exhaled slowly, her voice tinged with unease.
“What do you suppose His Highness is thinking as he reads this?”
Indeed.
‘I hadn’t even considered that.’
My mind went blank, and a chill crept down my spine.
The heat of my anger drained away, replaced by a cold, biting cold.
If Leon had seen this article. Then what… what would he think?
“My lady.”
While I stood lost in thought, the butler entered with a bow.
“The Grand Duke Bernstein has come to call.”
Perfect timing. Or rather, the worst timing.
A single moment of silence.
The air in my study seemed to crystallize.
“…I’ll be down in a moment.”
I rose from my seat.
* * *
Had my feet ever felt so heavy on the way to the entrance?
It was a path I walked every day, yet today it felt impossibly distant.
Even my lightweight dress seemed to wrap around my legs, and the carpet beneath my feet felt as though it were pulling me back with each step.
By the time I reached the landing at the top of the stairs—
A figure stood before the door below, and my eyes found him immediately.
A face I hadn’t seen in some time.
As always, he was immaculate from head to toe, yet something unfamiliar emanated from him now.
It felt like the cold, crisp air of early morning.
“Leon.”
“Ah, Erna.”
At my call, his head turned toward me at once. The moment our eyes met, a subtle smile played across his lips, and those blue eyes drew me in.
What is this?
‘I think I’m nervous right now.’
With that heavy feeling settling over me, I descended the stairs and approached him.
“Why are you waiting here instead of in the reception room? I heard you’ve been busy lately. Suitors lined up at your door, no less.”
“I know. It’s absurd—proposals for a man who’s already spoken for. These people must’ve lost their minds.”
Leon seemed genuinely astonished at how much the world had changed during his time as High Priest.
He even looked a little tired.
“It just means you’re a desirable prospect, that’s all.”
“A false listing—that’s what you’re talking about, isn’t it? I’d rather be called that. At least then things weren’t so troublesome.”
There were people who could be annoying, but they at least knew when to stop, he said with a sigh.
“I wonder when someone’s finally going to take you off the market.”
As he said this, he looked at me intently, and an awkward laugh escaped me.
What’s wrong with me? For some reason, I can’t seem to smile naturally.
“Um, anyway, what brings you here?”
“There’s something I want to ask you.”
Leon smiled warmly and suggested we move somewhere else.
Assuming he was conscious of the surrounding eyes, I nodded and led him to a small garden behind the mansion.
Once we were in the quiet space, he pulled something from his coat.
A newspaper clipping.
It was a piece riddled with ridiculous lies—showing Jerold Valentine being interviewed with a sorrowful expression.
The moment I saw it, my body went rigid.
Leon regarded me silently and asked.
“Erna, is this true?”
At his question, my mind moved sluggishly.
I had to repeat the cycle of breathing in and out several times, my breath growing shallow, before I could manage to speak at all.
“N-no.”
“Really?”
“I know my word doesn’t carry much weight. Regardless of the reason, it’s true that my Ring is with Yeong-sik right now.”
“…….”
“But I didn’t give it to him. The Ring—I lost it. Or rather, I did pawn it, but I didn’t… it wasn’t me, it was that woman… no, what I mean is, I did pawn it, but…”
Damn it. What do I do? My mind’s gone blank and the words won’t come out right.
This would only make him suspect me more.
But why?
‘I don’t want to be suspected by him, of all people.’
That I was involved with Jerold Valentine. That I was playing both sides between two men, shopping around for the better offer.
That I’d ultimately chosen the Grand Duke based on nothing but advantage.
Society had already painted me as a contemptible woman, but none of it was true.
“I’m sorry. Just saying no without anything to back it up won’t make it believable, I know. I understand if you think I’m lying, and I can’t blame you for it…”
“Erna.”
Leon said my name gently and took my hand.
“It’s all right. Calm down.”
Calm down? What does he—I started to ask, but only for a moment.
I could see my hand trembling finely in his large grip.
What? I… when did I start shaking?
I was too startled to say anything, and in the next instant, warmth enveloped me.
“I believe you didn’t do it. So calm down.”
What is the weight of those words?
Suddenly relief flooded through me, and all the strength drained from my body.
“……Sob.”
Unable to hold back, I let out a small cry and buried my face in his shoulder.
“I don’t care what people say around us. I’m well practiced at ignoring that sort of thing. Whether others misunderstand or point fingers, it doesn’t matter to me.”
“…….”
“But I have to get the Ring back no matter what… It’s an heirloom of Zacherete, but more than that, it’s a memento my father entrusted to me with faith…”
Though I’m not the type to dwell on jewelry, this Ring was different.
In front of the servants, I’d pretended to be unbothered, acted strong and said it was fine—but the truth was, I felt completely lost.
I couldn’t see any clear way forward.
I don’t know what to do.
I couldn’t bring myself to say it aloud, so I swallowed the words again and again.
But that was the thing.
‘Why do I fall apart like this in front of him?’
I should have felt ashamed, should have been mortified.
Yet none of those thoughts came.
In the end, I stayed wrapped in his arms for a long time—until I finally steadied myself.
“……Ahem. I’m sorry. This isn’t the time for this.”
“It’s all right.”
“No, it isn’t. I shouldn’t be speaking weakness. Somehow I have to find a way to get the Ring back…….”
“Erna.”
He pulled my arm close again, holding it firmly. Then he lowered his head, bringing his gaze level with mine.
The soft upward curve of his eyes deepened into a more gentle arc.
“I told you. It’s all going to be fine.”
……
“The truth is, I have a way.”
“……What?”
A way? What did he mean?
I lifted my head sharply to look at him, and as he held my gaze with those tender eyes, he smiled—brushing away the moisture at the corners of my eyes with his thumb.
As if there were nothing left to worry about.
As if asking me to trust him, just this once.

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