I Thought It Was the Monster Duke's Fake Sedative - Chapter 84

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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 84
It seemed Edward and the Second Prince were planning to go hunting together.
‘…There’s nothing unusual about that.’
Banquets typically featured not just socializing and dancing, but also impromptu musical performances, competitions, and exhibitions.
Luciana herself had prepared several performances.
So it wasn’t particularly surprising that a hunting competition would be held at a banquet hosted by the Duke of Teseron, a man who hunted magical beasts.
No—it was almost an honor.
Not elsewhere, but here in Teseron; and Edward, who wore a bored expression at other banquets and participated in no competitions whatsoever, was hosting his first hunting competition.
“My! A hunt with the Duke?”
“Goodness! This is a rare opportunity, is it not?”
Thanks to the stir, the entire confrontation that had unfolded between Luciana and Erenta’s Daughter was quickly forgotten.
The northern gentlemen who took an interest in hunting were equally excited.
“Might we join as well?”
“A hunt led by none other than the Duke of Teseron himself… I can scarcely contain my excitement!”
Edward, who bore the weight of all these expectations, meanwhile….
‘…looked thoroughly unmoved.’
Which made sense.
He seemed reluctant just dealing with the Second Prince alone.
To a man who hunted magical beasts, a bird hunt would feel trivial at best.
He didn’t even particularly enjoy hosting banquets; why would he care for a hunt attached to one?
‘But then why….’
Why go hunting at all?
Setting aside the fact that the banquet’s mood had grown more animated because of it.
What bothered her was that Edward hadn’t taken his eyes off her for a long time.
She couldn’t quite say why, but it felt as though the reason for this hunt might be related to her somehow….
‘…I’m overthinking it.’
While she wrestled with the flutter in her chest, the noble ladies watching their excited husbands looked rather troubled.
“More hunting, after coming all this way….”
“Should we go along? I didn’t bring a rifle.”
“Neither did I. I left my hunting clothes behind, thinking they wouldn’t be needed.”
It was Rozendale who appeared and clarified the situation.
“I would advise staying behind. The Snow-light Bird Habitat of Teseron lies in treacherous mountains—you would find it difficult to ascend in banquet attire.”
Indeed, the Snow-light Birds were creatures that dwelled mostly on the cliffs of Snow Mountain.
Erenta had no such high ranges; the birds there nested only on low hillsides.
Several gentlemen who learned this fact now waved their hands in surrender, claiming they couldn’t climb cliffs, and withdrew.
The Second Prince flinched at this newly learned fact, but gritted his teeth, determined not to back down from a proposal he’d made so eagerly.
“Then what should we do while we remain?”
“We’ve already drunk quite enough wine….”
Confused, the noble ladies received a meaningful glance from Rozendale directed toward Luciana.
Luciana, catching his eye, nodded in response.
Then she brought up the explanation they’d prepared beforehand.
“For those remaining in the hall, I’d like to arrange other competitions and theatrical performances!”
“The Duchess herself?”
“Yes! You can look forward to it! I’ve prepared the performances myself.”
The guests began moving to another hall, guided by Luciana and Rozendale.
“…I shall catch a Snow-light Bird and present it to my betrothed!”
Though he spoke with bravado, the Second Prince’s hands trembled, and Erenta’s Daughter’s expression darkened considerably at his gaze.
Shortly after, the Duke departed the castle with the Prince and his retinue.
…….
The hunting party dwindled to specks and finally vanished from view.
Erenta’s Daughter, who had deliberately stayed behind in the hall rather than follow Luciana’s group, suddenly began to run in another direction.
Pitter-patter.
Her expression grew darker with each passing moment.
‘It’s ruined!’
The letter the Dowager Duchess had sent them surfaced in her mind.
[There is a task you must accomplish.
Once you enter Teseron, insult that lowborn creature and question the Duchess’s qualifications.
Should the Duke respond to it….]
‘…she said to demand proof of being a True Mate again!’
The task was to dig into the Duchess’s past and sow doubts among the guests about whether she was truly his True Mate.
So it was to have her display the Sacred Mark on the back of her hand to everyone, revealing a moment of communion with the Duke.
That was what the Dowager Duchess had requested of them.
To be honest, she’d been flustered when she first received the letter.
The woman acknowledged as the Duke’s True Mate at his very wedding, no less.
It seemed pointless to demand proof of her mate credentials, but….
“That can all be arranged.”
“Pardon?”
“Our great-aunt must have her reasons for sending such a letter!”
The Second Prince, sensing that he knew something of the matter, pushed the idea through with stubborn insistence.
Erenta’s Daughter felt a touch uneasy about it, but she was willing to trust her fiancé and the Dowager Duchess, and to press Luciana hard on the matter.
After all, it wasn’t wrong that Luciana came from humble common stock.
‘I do understand why the Dowager Duchess would find it objectionable.’
The problem was that her fiancé, the Prince, had made an impulsive move by proposing a hunting competition to the Duke.
‘I knew he was impetuous, but…!’
Whatever had passed between him and the Duke, he must have let his temper carry him away.
The more she thought about it, the worse it became.
The Duchess was already proving to be far less accommodating than she’d expected, and with matters unfolding this way, there was no atmosphere for her to press the matter of proving mate credentials!
Cursing her fiancé in her mind changed nothing.
She needed to inform the Dowager Duchess of the situation at once and discuss countermeasures.
‘I need to get to the Guest Room.’
If things went wrong, the Dowager Duchess had instructed her to go to the Guest Room of the Ducal Castle.
Her people would be waiting there, she’d said.
So the moment Erenta’s Daughter entered the Ducal Castle, she’d already made note of where the Guest Room was located.
‘It’s fine. If she’s there, we can smooth this over quickly.’
The Annex Building where the Guest Room was situated lay quite a distance from the main residence, and she’d lost her way in the middle of it all, which cost her more time than expected, but Erenta’s Daughter finally managed to arrive at the Annex.
“I… I made it….”
Having spent over an hour hurrying about in her shoes, her legs trembling beneath her, she steadied herself and pushed open the door to the Guest Room.
Erenta’s Daughter froze momentarily, taking a step back.
“Who are you…?”
“Ah. Are you a guest attending the Banquet?”
A man with long, pale blue hair carelessly tied back was sprawled against the sofa at an angle.
Dressed smartly and possessed of a fair face, he appeared to be a noble guest invited to the Banquet like herself.
But the mysterious Magical Artifacts held in the man’s hands made Erenta’s Daughter uneasy.
‘Where is everyone else?’
There should be someone here—the Dowager Duchess’s servant, a handmaid or attendant of hers.
Erenta’s Daughter carefully rolled her eyes and asked cautiously.
“I am the fiancée of Erenta’s Second Prince. Might there be another servant here…?”
“Ah! Erenta.”
The man smiled thereafter.
It was the sort of smile that carried an ominous undertone.
“If it’s that matter, you should speak to me. It seems an unexpected situation has arisen?”
“…Are you… the servant of the former Teseron Duchess… the Dowager Duchess?”
“Indeed.”
The man, answering without reservation, produced a Handkerchief from his garment.
It bore the emblem of Erenta, embroidered by the Dowager Duchess’s own hand.
Seeing it, Erenta’s Daughter opened her mouth, tense.
“Yes. Things have gone wrong.”
“How so?”
“The Duke has gone Hunting with my fiancé instead of how we planned….”
Click.
The man gently rolled the Magical Artifacts in his palm, and the corners of his mouth slowly rose.
“So the Duke is away, then?”
“…Yes! And it’s been quite some time now. Except for those with mobility troubles or who cannot climb mountains, all the men have gone with them. By now the Hunting must be in full swing….”
Still.
The man came to a halt at those words.
“How fortunate. Ha ha. How very fortunate….”
Then, cutting off Erenta’s Daughter’s words, he burst into laughter.
Watching him, the hair on the back of Erenta’s Daughter’s neck stood on end.
She hastened to spur him on, masking her anxiety.
“Wh-what exactly is so fortunate! This is no time for laughing! We need to come up with another plan somehow….”
“If there is another plan, I already have one, Miss.”
“Then we must put it to use at once!”
“Yes. How fortunate indeed. That I can do this….”
“…What did you say?”
Erenta’s Daughter froze at the words that fell from the man’s mouth.
As if uncertain whether she had heard correctly.
“The problem is… it requires a small amount of life force to activate.”
“…….”
“You won’t die. It’s merely a matter of a few years shaved from your lifespan.”
A chill swept across Erenta’s Daughter’s entire body in that moment.
Crack, crack.
The Magical Artifacts in the man’s hand began to fracture slowly, emitting light.
“Since you stand with the Dowager Duchess, Miss…”
“…….”
“Surely you can spare a few years of your life to fulfill the Dowager Duchess’s wish?”
“Th-that is… aaaaaaah!”
The scream that tore from her throat was swallowed by the sparse Annex Building.
And….
“……!”
The one who had witnessed all of it slipped from the Guest Room like an arrow loosed from a bow.

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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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