I’m in the Arms of the Cursed Grand Duke - Chapter 40

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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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Chapter 40

 

Harvie had lived his entire life conducting honest business. What Zephyrus said casually sounded like an insult to Harvie. No matter how foolishly he had acted just moments ago, this wasn’t right.

 

Harvie took a deep breath inwardly and regained his composure. However, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes at Zephyrus’s next words.

 

“I heard that Noven’s Subprime Lord came. It seems he’s having problems. If it can’t be resolved even with the guild’s influence… Poison? Did that bastard use poison?”

 

He had deduced a similar situation with just a few clues and conditions.

 

“If you need medicine, there happens to be a physician in the domain who is obsessed with… devoted to medicinal herbs.”

 

“…I’m aware.”

 

“I see. So it is related to medicine.”

 

“Yes…”

 

“Do you still have no intention of telling me the exact circumstances?”

 

“…Even if we resolve this problem, similar incidents will repeat.”

 

Harvie’s unexpected words.

 

Clemente, who had barely been following the conversation between the two, tilted her head. Not understanding the context, she was hoping Harvie would provide additional explanation.

 

“Do you think everything will be resolved if I leave this room?”

 

“Those who act recklessly without knowing their place would decrease.”

 

“…What if I can’t leave?”

 

“It can’t be helped. The connection between Your Highness and myself would end here.”

 

Zephyrus slightly lowered his head. His silver hair fell down, hiding his expression. His palms were damp.

 

It meant that him handling most affairs from his room wasn’t enough. The Duke’s work didn’t revolve around paperwork alone.

 

‘Right. I need to see this through to the end from the start.’

 

He had no intention of staying confined to his room with Clemente by his side.

 

“Whatever the Guild Master’s circumstances, I will help. So please trust me as well.”

 

Along with his tone colder than frost, ice fragments began to sparkle around him.

 

“I’ll show my trust first.”

 

Zephyrus wanted to hide his curse as much as possible. That was an unchanging fact.

 

The fear that he might still harm someone would continue to follow him like a shadow.

 

‘However, if there’s one thing different from before…’

 

Zephyrus glanced at Clemente. Seeing her watch his conversation with Harvie with an excited expression made him feel slightly annoyed.

 

Zephyrus clenched his sweaty hands tightly.

 

The feeling of holding Clemente’s hand.

 

When he looked at Clemente again, their eyes met this time. Her lips moved greatly.

 

You’re, doing, well.

 

Yes, he wanted to do well.

 

He wanted to do well and surprise Clemente.

 

If he finished the meeting with the Guild Master well, she would be prouder than anyone.

 

‘Of course, that’s a bonus. The most important thing is the vassals.’

 

He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them.

 

He still lacked experience and couldn’t be considered exceptionally capable.

 

But he had instinctive intuition.

 

Decisions for better choices. The most important basis for that. What had changed from before!

 

‘Now I can control my curse.’

 

A controllable curse wasn’t a curse. It could be considered Zephyrus’s new power.

 

Even if he could control just half of half of what Clemente could, his chances of going outside had increased.

 

Dangerous situations might arise, but it would be fine.

 

He would always keep Clemente by his side.

 

So Zephyrus could decide quickly.

 

The conversation going in circles. The hesitating Harvie. The decision to drop a bombshell on the Guild Master who kept demanding trust from him.

 

“Can the Guild Master handle my secret?”

 

Even moderately revealing his curse was difficult. Making it seem like it wasn’t a curse was even more so.

 

The sparkling ice fragments that appeared and disappeared momentarily combined and became fist-sized. When that ice struck the desk directly, the desk froze too.

 

As Harvie couldn’t even blink, the floor beneath Zephyrus’s feet began to freeze. He hadn’t intended this much.

 

His eyelashes trembled helplessly.

 

“Oh my. Master. Steady your heart again. You’re doing well.”

 

Then Clemente, who had been quiet, slightly extended her foot toward Harvie.

 

The freezing floor melted away instantly.

 

“Now then. Please continue your conversation. Hoho.”

 

An awkward laugh that seemed to imitate Rossia.

 

Zephyrus came to his senses and focused again.

 

“This is my secret. The reason I couldn’t leave my room. I trust the Guild Master will keep this secret until I can leave my room.”

 

Referring to Nerhi as ‘that bastard’. Forcing trust upon Zephyrus.

 

To Zephyrus, all of Harvie’s actions sounded like pleas to save his life.

 

He knew well enough, despite his lack of experience, that trust wasn’t built through a few words of conversation. But what if he revealed his secret?

 

Wouldn’t it be easier for Harvie to say more about what he was hiding?

 

Zephyrus closed his mouth after asking him to keep his secret.

 

He needed to focus on controlling his curse.

 

Harvie would also need time to organize his thoughts.

 

He had done everything he could.

 

Now it was Harvie’s turn.

 

**

 

Cold sweat ran down Harvie’s spine.

 

It wasn’t that he hadn’t been curious about Zephyrus’s circumstances.

 

Whether he was ill somewhere, or had mental problems.

 

He could handle it all. If Zephyrus seemed completely hopeless, he would have sought other methods too.

 

He couldn’t spend his life being dragged around by someone who threatened with human lives.

 

‘But this…’

 

His wavering eyes couldn’t leave the desk frozen white.

 

“Since when…”

 

He immediately closed his trembling lips.

 

He could tell without asking.

 

Since the small, dignified child who always stayed close when meeting the previous Duke had disappeared from sight.

 

Asking why this happened wasn’t a good question either.

 

If he had known, he wouldn’t have hidden for this long time.

 

What he should ask about now wasn’t the past, but the future.

 

“Your Highness. May I ask about your future plans?”

 

While waiting for an answer, Harvie took a deep breath.

 

His body kept getting hot with fever, so he seemed quite excited without realizing it.

 

“First, let’s resolve the Guild Master’s problem. We’ll discuss Pruina’s future after that.”

 

The Duke’s voice was consistently calm. However, the Duke’s eyes. His clear silver eyes were saying.

 

That he was now breaking out of his shell. That he would soon start flapping his wings.

 

Harvie swallowed his dry saliva once and opened his mouth.

 

“Since it’s come to this, I’d like to have a long conversation.”

 

But there was something to resolve first.

 

“That bastard. Nerhi’s spy has entered the Ducal Palace. We need to catch that bastard first-”

 

While he was speaking, Zephyrus suddenly turned his head.

 

“But…”

 

Harvie also moved his gaze accordingly and trailed off.

 

A man wearing a clearly suspicious hood.

 

Clemente with that man pinned under her feet.

 

Feeling the attention focused on her, Clemente tilted her head and clapped her hands.

 

“Ah. This? Should he speak first?”

 

Then with an excited face, she slapped the unconscious man’s cheek.

 

It didn’t work.

 

Something cold touching him would probably wake him up.

 

She stared at Zephyrus intently.

 

Then she shook her head and pointed to the teacup on Zephyrus’s desk, requesting Harvie.

 

“Please pour that tea on him.”

 

“…Me?”

 

Harvie looked at Zephyrus. It meant to punish this maid’s rudeness.

 

But Zephyrus nodded as if it were completely natural.

 

He even froze the tea in the cup cold and moved away.

 

Telling him to come and take it.

 

Harvie stood up weakly.

 

Splash—

 

The icy tea water hit the man’s face directly.

 

It seemed to contain Harvie’s resentment.

 

“Cough, ugh!”

 

The man woke up.

 

Clemente pulled out the cloth that had been stuffed in his mouth and threw it in the trash.

 

“Ugh. It’s your turn now. Tell your story.”

 

“You, you monster!”

 

The man’s eyes were full of fear. Even with his wrists and ankles tied, he tried to get away from Clemente.

 

Harvie and Zephyrus’s eyes turned to Clemente.

 

Clemente shrugged her shoulders.

 

“I was just at the stables and caught him trying to steal a horse. Ask quickly. It’s almost time to sleep.”

 

“Ahem.”

 

There were many things he wanted to ask Clemente too, but there were priorities.

 

Zephyrus cleared his throat once and looked down coldly at the man Clemente had caught.

 

“Did Nerhi send you?”

 

“You won’t get anything even if you kill me.”

 

“You sent a note to Noven, the Caravan Leader?”

 

“…”

 

The man closed his eyes without saying anything.

 

Zephyrus narrowed his brow.

 

When asked if Nerhi could earn such loyalty from his subordinates, Rossia had answered no.

 

But Hasu was like that, and now this guy too.

 

Not a single testimony related to Nerhi came out.

 

Either Rossia’s judgment was wrong, or there was another method. It had to be one of the two.

 

He had already confirmed that there were no magical factors affecting Hasu’s body.

 

“We already know your master is Nerhi anyway. There’s no point hiding it. It would be better to tell us what you know and at least save your life.”

 

Harvie also stepped forward.

 

But even then, the man maintained his silence.

 

Neither Harvie nor Zephyrus had experience directly interrogating anyone. As they were wondering what to do, Clemente suddenly interrupted.

 

“He seems scared though. Mister. Is this person called Nerhi scarier than dying?”

 

The man trembled violently.

 

“Or am I scarier?”

 

“Ugh…”

 

He squeezed his eyes shut completely.

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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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