The Circumstances of Being Chosen as the Villainess’s Favorite - Chapter 23

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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 23

“….”

Is this really something worthy of praise?

Lady Claudius asked me another question.

“Then there’s no new man you’re interested in?”

“Not particularly?”

“Really? Someone who looks handsome, or is kind, or even just slightly caught your interest! There’s absolutely no man like that?”

At that moment.

I suddenly thought of one man.

Platinum hair that resembled moonlight.

Deep blue eyes that seemed carved from a piece of bitter winter…

A dazzlingly beautiful man.

But what impressed me most was.

“Then what are your thoughts, Lady?”

Lord Claudius naturally asked for my opinion and listened attentively to my words.

It was the first time.

The first time I had clearly expressed my thoughts about art in front of another person.

And.

“That’s a unique interpretation. Very interesting.”

…It was also the first time my thoughts weren’t dismissed.

While trying to shake off the persistent thoughts about Lord Claudius.

I answered even more firmly on purpose.

“There’s no one.”

“Really? For someone saying that, you seem to get along quite well with my brother?”

I stiffened my shoulders with a start.

Somehow I felt like she had hit the mark.

Lady Claudius continued with a cynical tone.

“Honestly, my brother’s face is somewhat tolerable. Though his personality is still annoying.”

“An-annoying?”

“Of course! How dare he threaten me with my dignity maintenance expenses?! How petty!”

Lady Claudius, it seems you still haven’t gotten over that incident…

I smiled awkwardly.

Lady Claudius rattled on with complaints about Lord Claudius.

“Honestly, my brother is quite prickly, you know? He pretends to be polite on the outside, but inside he’s incredibly demanding. But…”

Lady Claudius’s gaze lingered on my face.

“You seem to interact with him quite naturally, Lady Ansi.”

But I was skeptical of those words.

‘How could that be?’

Lord Claudius is the male protagonist of this world, and someone who will fall in love with Seraphina someday.

More than that.

“Um, Lady Claudius. Why do you keep asking about my love life?”

Then Lady Claudius answered confidently.

“They say when you have a pajama party, you’re supposed to talk about romance.”

“….”

I was left speechless.

It seems Lady Claudius has some ridiculous fantasy about pajama parties…

* * *

As time passed.

“Lady Claudius, if you’re tired, please go to sleep.”

Unable to watch Lady Claudius nodding off, I spoke up.

Then Lady Claudius’s eyes widened.

“I’m not sleeping! I’m not… sleeping…?”

But with those final words.

Lady Claudius collapsed onto the bed.

Soft breathing sounds echoed.

Even the way she curled up and slept really was like a cat.

Chuckling softly, I pulled the blanket up to cover Lady Claudius’s neck.

Then I quietly got up.

‘Maybe I should go get some fresh air.’

Perhaps because I was in an unfamiliar bed, I couldn’t fall asleep at all.

I draped a shawl over my shoulders and walked toward the balcony.

Click.

As I pushed open the balcony door,

Whoosh—.

Night air carrying a faint rose fragrance flowed in.

The feeling of my hair fluttering in the breeze was pleasant.

I closed my eyes and savored the wind.

But then.

“Lady Ansi?”

Startled, I turned my head.

On the balcony right next to mine, a man was standing.

It was Lord Claudius.

Unlike at the salon, Lord Claudius was dressed casually in a light shirt and cotton pants.

Platinum hair flowed softly over his forehead.

Even so, his distinctive aristocratic atmosphere remained, so he didn’t look disheveled at all.

Lord Claudius, who had widened his eyes, soon smiled gently.

“It’s late at night, but you’re not sleeping.”

“I couldn’t sleep… so I was getting some fresh air.”

After answering sheepishly, I hastily added.

“Oh right, Lady Claudius is already asleep.”

Then Lord Claudius slightly furrowed his brow.

“You must be having a hard time because of Evangeline.”

“Not at all. I’m always indebted to Lady Claudius.”

“Well, I think I can imagine how much that girl bothers you without you having to say it.”

Lord Claudius shrugged his shoulders and added lightly.

“Anyway, it’s nice to see your face like this.”

Was it because of the magic of moonlight that gently bathed everything?

I found myself nodding as if enchanted.

“Me, me too.”

At that answer, Lord Claudius’s eye-smile deepened a little more.

Looking at Lord Claudius as if enchanted, I carefully spoke up.

“Um, Lord Claudius. This might be somewhat presumptuous, but may I say something?”

Lord Claudius lightly shrugged his shoulders.

“Please speak comfortably.”

Gulping down my dry saliva, I continued.

“Well, there’s something you’re misunderstanding, Lord Claudius.”

“A misunderstanding?”

“Yes. You said Lady Claudius bothers me… but that’s not the case.”

Suddenly, a strange light flickered in Lord Claudius’s blue eyes.

“I don’t find Lady Claudius bothersome at all. Because…”

I took a short breath.

Honestly, bringing up this topic required great courage from me as well.

This was practically my shame, after all.

But.

‘I hate seeing Lady Claudius receive such misunderstandings even more.’

I straightened my back.

“I was originally friends with Lady Lopez since we were young.”

“Lady Lopez… you mean the lady called the lily of High Society?”

“Ah, so you know of her too, Lord Claudius.”

Well, Seraphina is quite famous for her beauty and kindness after all.

Besides, Lord Claudius is destined to be with Seraphina.

I smiled bitterly.

However, Lord Claudius’s following words were somewhat unexpected.

“Well, Eva complains about her so much, you see.”

“Complains?”

“That…”

Lord Claudius made a somewhat troubled expression and trailed off.

“…How should I put it, Eva has a very clear personality when it comes to likes and dislikes.”

And I could immediately read between the lines what Lady Claudius had been complaining about.

Of course I could.

“Lady Lopez is totally annoying.”

Lady Claudius’s grumbling voice was vivid in my ears.

I couldn’t help but smile slightly.

“However… Lady Lopez and I had some personality differences, so we ended up falling out.”

I tried my best to remain calm as I gripped the hem of my dress tightly.

“Everyone else wouldn’t associate with me, but Lady Claudius was the only one who accepted me as a friend.”

Lady Claudius.

My former fiancé Gregory, and everyone else in High Society.

They all perceived me as merely ‘Seraphina’s maid’ and looked down on me.

She was the first person to extend her hand to me.

Though it was a relationship where we cooperated out of mutual need, still…

‘Lady Claudius became my ally.’

I hadn’t known until now.

How enjoyable it was to look into someone’s eyes together, laugh and chat, and share small daily moments.

So.

“…Lady Claudius became a great comfort to me.”

I concluded my words firmly.

“At least for me, Lady Claudius is a very good person.”

“…”

Lord Claudius gazed at me quietly.

At the same time, I suddenly came to my senses.

‘Oh no.’

Did I overstep?

My shoulders stiffened with tension.

“…I see.”

After a moment of silence, Lord Claudius spoke with a renewed tone.

“So our Eva… can also be a good person to someone.”

“Lord Claudius.”

“I thought I was the only one who cherished that child…”

Lord Claudius, who had been murmuring quietly, slowly lifted his gaze.

Dazzling moonlight poured down.

Over his handsome face bathed in moonlight, a joy whiter than the moonlight itself spread clearly.

“Hearing you say that, Lady Ansi, truly puts my mind at ease.”

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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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