I Will Become the Ex-Wife of the Beast - Chapter 38

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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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Not a single person remained in the hall, for my Rose had already herded everyone away like a shepherd driving her flock. Just a few steps off, laughter spilled over in one corner, yet here, lightning seemed to be striking.
My mouth was bone-dry. If anyone would rescue me from this situation, I’d gladly kneel and bow to them.
“…Greetings to Your Grace the Grand Duke of the North. And to Your Grace the Grand Duchess Consort as well.”
“Hmm…”
Kiers didn’t so much as flinch at the sudden voice. He simply stepped aside, as if he’d known all along.
Who on earth could it be? Half relieved, half still on edge, I turned toward the unexpected savior.
“Ah…”
Not one, but two.
They looked perhaps a year or two younger than me. Both were lovely, graceful young ladies. The Grand Duke’s Castle did employ female servants in the kitchens, but this was the first time I’d actually exchanged greetings with any of them. Judging by their clothes and bearing, they didn’t look like ordinary servants at all.
“U-um, we were sent by Count Hellas to assist Your Highness…”
“…Me?”
Both of them were trembling terribly in front of Kiers, unable even to introduce themselves properly. It was painful to watch.
Hey, he’s a beast, sure, but he isn’t that terrifying of a man.
I stepped forward as if to speak in his defense, but Kiers promptly caught my wrist.
“Madam, where do you think you’re going?”
“No, well, someone’s greeting me… and I think they might have some business with me, too.”
Thanks to them, I’d escaped the danger of being devoured right here on the spot, so I felt I owed them a debt of gratitude. Well, to be honest, I was itching to run away as fast as I could.
“Then I’ll head upstairs first.”
“Already?”
“Yes. The meal is over, after all.”
“…Wouldn’t it be better for you to stay by my side?”
“No. Our views differ quite a bit on that.”
Please. I smiled with my teeth clenched, and the usually grave Kiers quirked one corner of his mouth and let out a small snort. His lazy gaze swept over the trembling young ladies.
“Very well. If you’re so eager to go, then by all means, go.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
What’s this? Such an easy surrender.
Suspicious as it was, I had to get my feet moving before he changed his mind. Behind my hurried steps, Kiers’s voice, barely audible, carried a strangely meaningful tone.
“It’s no loss to me, after all.”

◇ ◆ ◇

Hmph, what was that supposed to mean?
Even after I returned to my room, that nagging doubt refused to leave me. Still, I wasn’t alone anymore, and first I had to get to know these new people.
Perhaps because they had come just when I was in such a bind, I felt fond of them before we had even properly introduced ourselves. As soon as I set my gloves down on the vanity, I approached the two young ladies standing side by side.
“Oh, I’m sorry… so you two are Sir Jerome’s younger sisters, then?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I am the elder, Renie, and this is my younger sister, Rea. We just graduated from the Academy attached to the Tulang Monastery in the North.”
“Ah…”
Now that I looked closer, the two of them resembled each other greatly.
Both had lush chestnut hair like Jerome’s. Renie had blue eyes, and Rea had black ones. What’s more, I was startled to learn they were fraternal twins.
“Then Sir Devon and Sir Aiden, your brothers, are twins too!”
“Yes. Our family has always had a remarkable number of twins.”
“Wow.”
Is your father a soccer fan, by any chance?
I nearly asked it out loud before catching myself. Their father was, of course, the Starfield Count, a diligent and hardworking man. …Still, I never imagined he’d be this devoted, day and night.
As I gazed at them in wonder, my own father inevitably came to mind. We both had plenty of children, yet how could things be so different? The dresses Renie and Rea wore right now were so splendid and luxurious they could have graced High Society that very moment.
“It’s a pleasure, but honestly, it’s a bit overwhelming. You aren’t mere maids, but daughters of the Count’s House.”
“Not at all. Serving Your Grace the Grand Duchess Consort is our honor!”
“Absolutely! We’ve dreamed of this ever since we were at the monastery!”
“….”
The eyes of these previously demure young ladies suddenly shone, and I flinched without meaning to. Even though I had become the Grand Duchess Consort, I’d wondered whether the daughters of a Count would resent serving a Viscount’s daughter like me. Their reaction was unexpected.
The reason was both plausible and simple.
“Goodness, I can’t believe you actually considered marrying the Grand Duke. It’s truly remarkable!”
“Exactly! I’ve never seen a lady as brave as Your Highness in my whole life! We would never have dared to imagine such a thing!”
“…No, well, that’s…”
“We admire you so much!”
“We want to learn from you!”
“….”
The twins are always like this, huh.
Whenever I say one thing, they come back with two, so I was outnumbered from the start. To sum up: the dreamy young ladies, raised like hothouse flowers, have gotten all worked up over the idea of a woman who’d marry a beast. Having only “experienced” the world through books at the convent-run academy, they must see me as somewhere between a warrior maiden and a beast tamer.
“How can one become as brave as Your Highness?”
“Please, I really want to learn your secret!”
“Hmm…”
…If there’s a secret, it’s only that I was born to a father who happens to be the King of Destruction.
Unable to shake off their dazzling, sparkling eyes, I could only force out a pained smile. I couldn’t possibly tell them to send their own fathers, who work so diligently for the realm, off to the gambling dens. If I ruin other families just because my father is the way he is, what kind of punishment would I ever receive for that?
I stroked my chin, as if deep in thought.
“Well. Everyone faces dangers they never see coming, don’t they?”
“Oh!”
“And getting through that moment… that takes courage, I suppose.”
Honestly, this bravado of mine is really something.
Going along with all of this left me feeling utterly pathetic.
Still, there’s no harm in winning over Sir Jerome’s younger sisters. They come from a good bloodline, and when the day comes that I leave this place, they might prove to be of some help.
“Anyway, it’s lovely to meet you, Renie, Rea. Sir Devon and Sir Aiden have been so fond of our Rose that I never imagined she had younger sisters. They never said a word about you!”
“Ah…”
They had been gazing at me with admiration, but now they exchanged a rather secretive glance. What’s this? I tilted my head, puzzled.
“Are you all right? Why are your expressions like that…”
“Oh, it’s nothing. And you must drop the formal speech! That’s proper etiquette!”
“…Well, fine. I suppose I can.”
Under Renie’s insistence, I had no choice but to go along with what they wanted.
Truthfully, since Kiers is of the imperial family, it isn’t hard to understand why noble young ladies would come to serve here. Moreover, the Grand Duke’s Castle is strictly off-limits by Kiers’ order, so the selection of staff had to be all the more rigorous. The Count must have picked and chosen only people from families he could fully trust.
“Whew.”
I let out a small sigh and rested my hand on my hair. Taking that as a cue, the two who had drawn near on either side set to work, loosening and combing it out without a word.
Being a Grand Duchess isn’t so bad, after all.
I had spent my whole life cleaning up after my older sisters, so being waited on by others felt strange. Awkward, yet not entirely unpleasant. Even when they looked at my lace gloves, their edges scorched, they showed no sign of distaste at all, only a full measure of admiration.
…These young ladies have read far too many books.
Anyone could see they were imagining me leaping from a burning carriage with a child in my arms, or pulling a dragon’s heart out of its chest and coming back exhausted. Real life is the true practical course, though. Thinking back to how I’d trembled at nothing more than a name just two or three hours ago, I couldn’t help but smile wryly.
Still, it’s comfortable just to sit here quietly.
My whole body was already going limp and heavy, and my eyelids were drooping. I was worried about Rose, but the mass of guardian knights wouldn’t let a single step go unwatched. Once the twins left, I’d take off these stifling clothes first… Wait, why are they already off?
“Eek! Renie, Rea!”
“…What’s wrong?”
“Ah, no, why are you taking off someone’s clothes without asking!”
“Of course you should take them off. It’s your wedding night.”
Renie’s smile was cheerful as it fell on my neck, now plainly exposed. Rea, too, had already moved behind me and was pushing up her dress sleeves.
“A wedding night? What on earth are you talking about!”
“We’ll take care of everything for you, so please, Your Highness, just trust us…”
“Eek!”
Startled, I clutched what remained of my clothes and shook my head, but I could hardly hold my own against these young ladies, who could have run down a real dragon. The sly, giggling way they lunged at me made it clear they hadn’t read only one genre.
“Would you please take everything off?”

◇ ◆ ◇

“…I wonder if they’ll be all right. My sisters can be a handful, after all.”
“If she insists on going in herself, let her.”
Kiers stood leaning against a gray silk chest, a mischievous glint in his face that he didn’t seem to notice himself. The dismissive tilt of his chin as he half-listened to Jerome was regal.
“It’d be better for her to realize it on her own, at least once.”
“Pardon? Realize what, exactly?”
“Well…”
That nothing good comes from wandering off from my side without permission, I suppose.
Tap, tap. Kiers drummed his fingers in a steady rhythm and shook his head. Truthfully, if he considered her comfort, it would be best to keep her close, but he was a man, after all. Frankly, he couldn’t say the situation sat easily with him.
“Count, the twins only just left the monastery, didn’t they?”
“They did, Your Highness. Though the monastery rarely turns anyone out, so it’s hardly a stretch to say they’re returning to the Starfield Count Family’s patronage.”
Beside them, the Count, lost in old memories, adjusted his glasses with the look of a man who found the matter all too familiar. He was also an old friend of Jerome’s father, the Starfield Count.
“When the daughters were first arrested for possessing seditious books, the Count gave us no small amount of grief. So much so that he had them all sent to the monastery before any charges were filed. I’d wager he aged ten years in that stretch alone.”
“…They’re my sisters, but whatever possessed them to get so caught up in such books.”

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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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