I Seducing the Black-Hearted Duke Wasn't Me - Chapter 40

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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 40
Serbando’s eyes blinked slowly at the cold, unsettling tone of voice.
Why was he saying such things?
And what did he mean he was holding something? What could it possibly be?
“Ahem. In any case, I’m afraid I cannot grant my approval. All matters must proceed fairly under the regulations, after all.”
“So you intend to obstruct my betrothal to the very end.”
“Heh. Your words have been rather peculiar since earlier. I am not trying to prevent Priest Leon’s engagement, you see. Rather, I mean that one appointed as a Priest must not leave a precedent of treating his sacred calling lightly for personal attachment.”
“…….”
“A Priest’s marriage is no simple matter. Especially not for one with the qualifications of a Guide Priest as yourself. Believers seek the will of the divine through their Priests. Should such a person become entangled in the bonds of worldly interest, where does the Temple Authority stand?”
Serbando continued smoothly.
“I worry for your future, truly. Should you make a hasty choice in the fervor of youth and later fall into profound regret—who then bears responsibility? I mean this only with good intentions, out of genuine concern. I hope you won’t take offense…….”
“I understand.”
What? He understood?
Leon gave a nod and simply turned to leave.
At how readily the young Priest withdrew, Serbando’s lips curved upward.
Perfect. His words had taken hold.
See how simple it was!
‘Of course. My powers of persuasion can move hundreds, even thousands of Believers—surely they’re not inadequate for one young Priest. This is precisely the caliber required to serve as High Priest.’
Serbando continued to congratulate himself, inwardly exulting.
“I’m truly relieved you grasped my meaning. Now, I hope you will stop wandering and return to your proper place. Priest Leon.”
“I will give it thought, then. I shall take my leave now.”
He said he would give it thought.
‘Impertinent boy. This is precisely the problem with young people these days.’
It would not have been too much to expect him to bow his head and beg forgiveness on the spot.
But there would be ample time for penance.
If the Duke resumed his duties as a Priest.
If he became that brilliant asset once more.
‘So I must not push too hard and spoil the matter.’
Maintaining a benevolent countenance. A generous demeanor.
Serbando smiled warmly, bidding him think carefully as an encouragement.
After all, so long as he did not ratify the Resignation Request, the Duke remained his to command.
At this thought, Serbando’s lips rose triumphantly, premature victory already within his grasp.
Unaware that he had just overlooked something of supreme importance…….
* * *
As Leon emerged, Vincent, who had been waiting outside, approached him.
“Ahem, uh, Your Grace.”
Vincent, whose eyes had been fixed anxiously on his master, spoke with caution.
“Surely not…… or am I wrong? Please tell me you’re not thinking of doing that…….”
“What are you babbling about?”
“Don’t play innocent with me! I’ve been listening to every word the two of you said in there!”
It was true. Vincent had been pressing his ear to the door the entire time, eavesdropping on their conversation.
And now he was in shock.
That foolish High Priest seemed oblivious, but Vincent was not.
He had stood at Leon’s side far too long.
“Even if High Priest Serbando secures his reappointment, he will not let you go.”
“Of course not.”
“And now that you’ve confirmed this, you surely have some course of action in mind.”
Vincent posed the question with a probing air.
At this, Leon’s lips began to curl upward slowly.
Just as he thought!
“How should I go about it?”
“Yes, indeed. I never imagined I would need to use it in such a manner.”
Vincent nodded at Leon’s words.
The “it” they spoke of was none other than the collection of materials documenting High Priest Serbando’s misconduct.
Leon’s reason for gathering it had been straightforward.
The man kept overstepping.
‘The sheer audacity of it.’
In truth, Leon harbored no particular grievance against his life as a Priest.
The man sitting above him seemed lost in his own world, dragging Leon about for some misguided satisfaction, but Leon himself did not share that view.
He found it rather amusing, the way Serbando carried himself as though he were some king.
But there are limits to how far one should push such things.
Fundamentally, the Temple is a place that must never take political stances.
Yet this High Priest had lost his mind, attempting to use me to interfere in Central affairs, so I positioned myself at his side and gathered evidence just in case.
I simply never imagined I’d be stepping down from my priestly duties and actually needing to use it…….
“It’s the most straightforward and effective method. Though the real concern is this: given Serbando’s temperament, he absolutely won’t step down without a fight.”
“Then there’s no helping it.”
“When you say there’s no helping it……?”
Why did those words, which should have sounded helpless, strike him as so terrifying?
Vincent swallowed hard, his eyes fixed on his master.
Leon’s lips no longer curved in that gentle smile from before—instead, a meaningful smirk was etched plainly across his face.
And that was, with high probability, a very bad sign.
“There’s no point continuing to talk to someone who won’t listen to reason.”
“Eep!”
Vincent quickly stifled his own gasp.
So his master was now…… No, his master truly was……!
“If he becomes an obstacle, then there’s no helping it. The only solution is to remove him physically. It’s far simpler and more efficient that way.”
“Your Highness, if the Duchess were to find out…….”
“Just in case.”
Leon’s voice turned glacial as he issued a warning against Vincent’s careful objection.
“You’d better not let Ernahart hear even a whisper of this. She’d only worry for nothing.”
Is that really the issue right now?
Remove him.
The meaning behind those words was far too transparent.
Even more unsettling was that his master’s expression as he spoke was as bright and cloudless as a pristine sky.
Never mind that Vincent’s own heart was churning with dark, ominous clouds.
‘For heaven’s sake, you made a promise to the Duchess just days ago. Is this really all right?’
What if things went wrong because of this?
What if rumors spread across the entire empire that the Grand Duke of Bernstein was actually a person of broken character?
All manner of grim thoughts swirled through Vincent’s mind.
‘Should I just tell the Duchess? Your Highness clearly intends to handle this!’
No, wait—if he said that, his fiancée might take fright and flee in panic.
The Duchess had accepted His Highness largely because of his character; if even the smallest flaw in that character were exposed…….
‘That can’t happen.’
It might be far worse than the High Priest quietly vanishing somewhere and being killed without a trace.
Vincent’s head throbbed as his face twisted into a grimace.
‘Why is something as simple as an engagement—something everyone does—so difficult?’
If an engagement was this complicated, how many people would have to bleed before reaching marriage?
He didn’t even want to imagine it.
* * *
“Wow, what beautiful weather.”
I gazed up at the sky leisurely and murmured softly to myself.
“……How dare he throw me out.”
Irritation surged up inside me all over again.
What important conversation were they having without me?
But I couldn’t very well stay put when Leon told me to leave.
So I ended up being practically shoved out.
“You can look around from here on your own, yes?”
The Guide Priest the High Priest had assigned to show me around had also hurried off, claiming he had other matters to attend to.
Which left me abandoned alone in the vast Temple complex.
“Is this how they repay someone who hasn’t donated to the Temple regularly?”
Then again, even if I got lost, I was still inside Temple grounds.
With nothing better to do anyway, I simply kept walking.
“Wait—isn’t that a Libarne Work? I heard it sold for ten thousand gold coins at auction not long ago, but why is it here……? Oh my—that one too! A Sengarge Collection piece! That’s genuinely rare.”
The paintings filling the corridor were all rather unusual.
Every last one was a familiar work—and expensive ones at that.
“With just a few of these, you could easily build an entire small temple.”
So why were they here?
Could these be what the nobles had claimed to donate?
Sensing something amiss, I began examining my surroundings carefully.
As I continued my own investigation, something caught my eye.
“Oh, look there!”
I caught my breath.
The sudden shout startled me, and I spun around.
In the distance, a group of men in pristine white uniforms that seemed vaguely familiar came rushing toward me.
Those uniforms were…….
“You’re Marquess Jaherrete, aren’t you?”
“Ah, I’m…….”
A cluster of strapping men, all of them practically vibrating with excitement, encircled me at once.
The red-haired one among them, grinning wider than the rest, blazed out with gleaming eyes.
“The supreme beauty who conquered even our Captain—a man who’d never given a woman a second glance! The most popular woman in the entire Orden Empire!”
“They say a single blink of those eyes stops hearts cold.”
“And doesn’t light just pour out from all directions whenever she smiles?”
“I heard she’s even tall—nearly as tall as the Captain himself……?”
“……Though she seems smaller than I pictured?”
“Hush! She’ll hear you!”
Oh yes. I heard every word.
What had begun as excited declarations had somehow descended into nothing but questions.
I kept my expression as blank as stone.
“You’ve mistaken me for someone else.”
That’s not me. Everything except the name is wrong.
Though in truth, something about the whole affair threatened to become tiresome, so I decided I might as well disown the name entirely.

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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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