I Won’t Pick Up The T*ash I Threw Away Again - Chapter 188

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#188

 

So Fillen came. What nerve does he have to come here?

 

I frowned deeply.

 

“He ended up coming here after all.”

 

The Duchess clicked her tongue and muttered quietly.

 

“He kept coming asking to meet Baron Aster, and now he’s finally come here.”

 

He came? Where?

 

Don’t tell me…

 

“Did Duke Williot come to Duchess Cloud’s Residence?”

 

“He did.”

 

The Duchess answered nonchalantly while picking up her teacup.

 

“He’s been coming several times from the day the Baron started staying at Duchess Cloud’s Residence until this morning.”

 

“I had no idea.”

 

“Of course you didn’t know. I told them not to tell you. I even lied saying Baron Aster didn’t want to meet him and sent him away.”

 

These were all things I was hearing for the first time.

 

If Fillen had come to Duchess Cloud’s Residence several times, I should have heard about it at least once, so the fact that I didn’t know until now was simply surprising.

 

“Did I perhaps do something unnecessary?”

 

“Not at all. Even if you had told me, I would have refused to meet him.”

 

“We were on the same wavelength. How wonderful.”

 

Countess Cloud laughed like a girl and drank her tea.

 

The Duchess’s appearance reminded me of Diane, making her feel familiar.

 

“What will you do, Baron?”

 

I sat back down and answered.

 

“Tell him we’re receiving other guests, so he should return.”

 

Sara rolled her eyes and asked cautiously.

 

“Is that alright?”

 

He was once a master she served, and since he’s a duke, it felt difficult.

 

I nodded and spoke matter-of-factly.

 

“No matter how much of a duke he is, coming without an appointment is rude behavior. And the Duke shouldn’t be visiting me privately.”

 

Because I wrote a notarized wish.

 

To completely disappear from my life.

 

“Just relay my words to the Duke as they are.”

 

“Ah, understood.”

 

After Sara left, I picked up my teacup.

 

Though I was pretending to be calm, a storm was raging in my head.

 

Why did Fillen come looking for me?

 

Seeing how he came several times, it seems like he has something important to say.

 

Should I have just met with him?

 

No. If I meet him once, he might do it again.

 

If it was something important, he would have asked the Duchess to relay it.

 

Don’t let your heart weaken and give unnecessary openings.

 

Steel your heart.

 

As I was drinking warm tea and steadying my wavering heart, I heard another knock.

 

Don’t tell me Fillen didn’t leave and is persisting?

 

“If Duke Williot doesn’t leave and persists, I’ll step in.”

 

The Duchess said to me.

 

“It’s fine. I’ll handle it.”

 

“He’s a duke, what power does a baron have to handle it? It’s better if I handle it. I’m a princess, after all.”

 

Though the Duchess spoke jokingly, it was all true.

 

It would be much more effective for the Duchess to step in than me.

 

“Still, I can’t cause trouble…”

 

“As I said before, we’re family. It’s natural for family to help each other, right?”

 

Her winking expression reminded me of Diane and made me laugh.

 

Countess Cloud, who had seemed so intimidating, now felt familiar.

 

“Then I’ll be in your debt.”

 

“That’s right. Ah, tell them to come in. Let’s hear what this is about.”

 

I nodded and said it was fine to come in.

 

It was Nes who opened the door and entered.

 

Nes bowed and stated the reason for coming.

 

“Baron, the Duchess’s guards have arrived.”

 

So it wasn’t about Fillen. The tension I had been holding loosened slightly.

 

“Where are they?”

 

“They’re in the foyer now.”

 

“I see.”

 

I left the drawing room together with Countess Cloud.

 

Walking straight toward the foyer, I could see the guards standing majestically.

 

Among them was a shabby-looking girl who was restlessly looking around.

 

“…”

 

Upon confirming the girl’s face, I stopped abruptly.

 

“Ah, Miss?”

 

The girl also saw me and was startled, opening her eyes wide.

 

“Do you know her?”

 

At the Duchess’s question, I nodded.

 

“She’s a girl I saved before.”

 

In the past, when I came to the capital to attend His Majesty the Emperor’s coronation banquet.

 

Kalian and I had saved her from being dragged away by loan sharks.

 

“Oh, so that means she repaid kindness with enmity.”

 

“No, no!”

 

The girl was startled and waved her hands frantically.

 

“Re-repaying kindness with enmity! I never did that! I swear…!”

 

“You’re the one who planted seeds in my garden?”

 

Not wanting to have a long conversation, I cut off the girl’s words.

 

The girl flinched and looked at me, then nodded.

 

“That’s right…”

 

“So it really is repaying kindness with enmity.”

 

The Duchess covered her chin with her fan and snorted.

 

“No, no!”

 

The girl jumped up and down as if wronged.

 

“I swear I didn’t know anything! Even now I don’t know what kind of seeds they were!”

 

Looking at her desperate expression, it seemed true that she didn’t know about the seeds.

 

“That doesn’t make your crime disappear.”

 

I stared coldly at the girl and said.

 

“The crime of planting seeds in my garden and causing me trouble doesn’t disappear.”

 

The girl’s eyes filled with tears.

 

“I’m sorry…!”

 

The girl, who had been holding her hands tightly and bowing her head deeply, prostrated herself on the floor and shouted.

 

“They said it was just ordinary seeds! They said they’d give me a lot of money if I just planted those seeds in Miss’s garden…!”

 

“…”

 

“With that money, I wouldn’t have to worry about Mother’s medicine and living expenses for a while… I’m sorry. I’m really sorry!”

 

It wasn’t just a lie to avoid crisis, but knowing it was real made my heart feel heavy and frustrated.

 

She had been used from the beginning after all.

 

I let out a deep sigh and extended my hand to the girl.

 

“Get up.”

 

“Ah, Miss.”

 

“Hurry up and get up.”

 

The girl hesitated before taking my hand and standing up.

 

“So, did you see who gave you the seed?”

 

The girl clasped her hands tightly together and shook her head.

 

“No. They wore their hood pulled down deep, so I couldn’t see their face properly.”

 

“But you must have heard their voice. Their build, or any other distinguishing features?”

 

The girl thought for a moment, then began speaking haltingly and incoherently.

 

“Their, their build was about the same as yours, Miss, and their arms were very thin. And their voice was beautiful like a nightingale too.”

 

“What else?”

 

“Also, and… Ah! Their hair was golden! Brilliant blonde hair!”

 

At those words, Britina Baroness’s mistress naturally came to mind.

 

Sisly as well.

 

Were these two the same person, or different people?

 

I wanted to quickly catch that mistress and find out.

 

Kalian was using every method possible to catch that mistress, including strengthening inspections, but the mistress remained elusive.

 

To be precise, it was hard to catch her because we didn’t know her face.

 

There were many beautiful women with blonde hair and blue eyes.

 

Just in the entertainment district alone, five out of ten had blonde hair and blue eyes.

 

Moreover, there was a possibility that she had dyed her hair with magical hair dye, making it even harder to find her.

 

Since there was nothing I could do about that part, I’d leave it to Kalian and do what I could do.

 

First, I needed to punish the girl.

 

Just because she was pitiful and unfortunate didn’t mean I couldn’t punish the crime she committed.

 

But there would be some consideration.

 

“I need to take the girl to the estate guards.”

 

“I’ll do that.”

 

Countess Cloud said as she folded her fan.

 

“I have an appointment and need to go that way anyway.”

 

“I’ll ask you to do that.”

 

The Duchess left the manor with the girl.

 

While seeing her off, I looked around to see if Fillen was still outside, but fortunately Fillen was nowhere to be seen.

 

It seems he gave up and left.

 

Relieved by that fact, I was about to enter the manor when the doorbell rang.

 

There are many guests visiting the manor today.

 

…Surely it’s not Fillen again?

 

Hiding my anxious feelings, I instructed Sara to go check.

 

“His Majesty the Emperor has sent me.”

 

Fortunately, it wasn’t Fillen this time either.

 

A soldier in uniform stood at attention and conveyed Kalian’s message.

 

“He said to quickly enter the Imperial Palace as Andant Tebesa has been captured.”

 

Andant Tebesa has been captured?

 

Wasn’t he unrelated to this incident?

 

Kalian had said so too.

 

It was puzzling, but Kalian wouldn’t have captured Andant without reason.

 

“I’ll go right away.”

 

After the palace soldier left, I was preparing to go straight to the Imperial Palace when I belatedly realized there was no carriage.

 

‘I’d have to wait at least another hour for Hanson to return.’

 

Kalian had said to enter the palace quickly, so I couldn’t wait until then.

 

I had no choice. I asked the guard knights that Countess Cloud had assigned to me.

 

“I need to enter the Imperial Palace urgently, so could I use one of the horses you rode here?”

 

“Then please use this one’s horse. It’s gentle, so it should be easy to handle.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

I changed into riding clothes and mounted the borrowed horse.

 

“Hiya.”

 

I gripped the reins and spurred the horse. The guard who hadn’t lent me his horse followed behind me.

 

Though gentle in temperament, being a stallion, it was rougher and faster than Ilena.

 

Handling the horse was somewhat difficult, so I couldn’t pay attention to anything else and focused solely on riding.

 

As I was heading to the Imperial Palace, kicking up dust, someone suddenly jumped out from an alley and blocked my path.

 

It was a hooded figure and a child whose arm was being grabbed by the figure.

 

At this rate, both of them would be trampled by the horse.

 

“Get out of the way!”

 

I shouted urgently, but they didn’t move aside.

 

“Waaaaah!”

 

“…”

 

To be precise, the child tried to run away, but the hooded figure stood firm.

 

Why on earth were they standing firm?

 

At this rate, both might die, so why!

 

“I said get out of the way!”

 

The distance closed helplessly.

 

The horse, already at full speed, couldn’t be stopped at my will.

 

‘I have to stop.’

 

Whether the other party did it intentionally or not, the moment I hit them, I would become a murderer.

 

I didn’t want that. I didn’t want to kill anyone.

 

But how could I stop?

 

How could I…

 

A scream boiled up in my mouth.

 

Not knowing what to do and gripping the reins tightly, I soon squeezed my eyes shut and yanked the reins sharply.

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