The Male Lead Is Targeting Me, Not My Younger Sister - Chapter 47

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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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The Male Lead Targets Me, Not My Sister — Episode 47
“I apologize. I have failed in my duty.”
Tap. Tap.
In the heavy silence, Ludwig tapped his fingers lightly against the armrest.
By maintaining his silence, he only reinforced his authority and rank all the more. The longer Ludwig kept his mouth closed, the worse the other man’s complexion became.
‘Something feels…….’
Of course, it wasn’t as though she had never seen Ludwig’s cold side before.
But the Ludwig she glimpsed now seemed somehow like an entirely different person.
‘Was he always like this?’
The apathy and arrogance etched into that devastatingly beautiful face. It was quite different from the way he’d turned his edge against Lydia back at the Military Academy.
Then, if anything, he’d been emotional—but now…….
“That’s all. You may go.”
“B-but Your Highness…….”
Ludwig didn’t answer. He simply fixed his gaze upon the man.
Just that single, inorganic stare.
That alone was enough to make the man flinch and bow his head deeply.
“My apologies. Next time, I shall bring results without fail.”
Yikes.
Lydia hastily leaned back, sensing the man was about to exit.
Sure enough, moments later the melancholy-faced man yanked the door open and stepped out.
‘……If I go in right now, he’ll figure out I was eavesdropping, won’t he?’
“Come in.”
……?!
Lydia froze in surprise, hesitating, when she heard the voice again.
“I know you’re out there. Just come in, Lydia.”
Damn. So he’d caught on.
Lydia shuffled in sheepishly, her courage utterly gone.
“……To be clear, I heard nothing. I just arrived moments ago.”
“Quite the cliché response from someone who’s heard precisely what they shouldn’t have. No matter. You may have heard—I don’t mind.”
Ludwig stood with his legs crossed, casually thumbing through documents.
The posture was more relaxed than composed, yet somehow conveyed no openings whatsoever.
‘Well…… I’ll just say hello and leave, I suppose?’
It wasn’t particularly different from his usual demeanor, yet today he felt oddly distant. She suspected it was because of what she’d glimpsed earlier.
“So, what brings you?”
“Ah, well…….”
Lydia forced out a greeting.
“I came to thank you for the gift. I heard you chose the dress yourself. My maids just helped me into it…….”
Then Ludwig slowly lifted his head.
“…….”
“…….”
‘……What is it?’
Those deep blue eyes swept across her, from crown to toes, with meticulous precision.
Wherever his gaze touched, her skin seemed to burn.
Lydia’s eyes darted about nervously.
“……Did I put it on wrong, perhaps?”
But Ludwig simply regarded her in silence.
After a long moment, he finally spoke.
“No. It suits you well.”
‘Does it really suit me? It doesn’t feel like it.’
His expression remained unchanging, making it impossible to tell if he was sincere.
‘At least he’s not as cold as he was to that man earlier, though.’
Sensing an odd discomfort in the air, Lydia decided to speak first.
“You seem busy, so I’ll be going. I only came to offer my thanks. Then I shall…….”
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
Ludwig rose from his seat and stepped toward Lydia.
Then, with an unhurried hand, he adjusted the ribbon decoration that had come loose around her neck.
“Your ribbon was twisted.”
“Oh.”
It must have caught against the wall when she’d tried to slip away earlier…….
“Thank you. I’m afraid I’ve been rather clumsy.”
She was turning to leave after that polite farewell when Ludwig continued to fidget with the ribbon.
“…Thank you?”
Fidget, fidget.
“Excuse me?”
As Lydia began to sense something amiss and reached to gently withdraw her hand, there came a knock at the door.
Tap, tap.
“Your Highness, it’s Edgar, your butler. May I enter for a moment?”
At the courteous voice, Lydia glanced toward the door, then looked back up at Ludwig.
‘He’ll let go now, surely.’
But he seemed oblivious to the summons, his attention wholly absorbed in her ribbon.
His fingers moved with unhurried leisure, and Lydia found herself swallowing dryly, caught in a strange tension.
With the butler waiting beyond the door, she felt as though she were complicit in something improper.
“Come in.”
It was only after several more minutes had elapsed that Ludwig finally spoke.
The moment permission was granted, the butler pushed open the heavy door and stepped inside with careful discretion.
Lydia pulled away from Ludwig as if released from a spell, flustered.
“Oh, so you’re here as well, Miss Lydia.”
The butler approached Lydia after setting down a bundle of letters on the desk with practiced courtesy.
“As it happens, I have something for you as well.”
“For me?”
Lydia accepted the letter the butler offered, her expression puzzled as she examined it.
‘This is…’
The moment she read its contents, her face hardened.
Ludwig’s gaze sharpened, reading that transformation with precision.
Once the butler had completed his duties and taken his leave, the silence lasted only a heartbeat before Lydia spoke.
“I need to return home. Immediately.”
Ludwig raised one eyebrow.
‘Surely Joachim hasn’t already run into trouble.’
The letter was from the Frestin household’s butler.
[Joachim is suffering greatly from a fever of unknown origin. As the boy continues to hide his illness, your direct intervention appears necessary.]
A fever of unknown origin.
‘It’s certainly related to his Awakening.’
The last time she’d observed him, Joachim’s aura had been remarkably stable.
Based on that assessment, she’d judged it safe to leave him and come here without taking special measures.
She hadn’t brought him along.
His existence had to be kept hidden at all costs.
‘I should have done differently.’
It was a clear miscalculation.
A profound guilt washed over her.
“There’s been a problem at home. I’m terribly sorry to descend on you so suddenly and leave just as abruptly—it was entirely my own doing. I promise I’ll repay this kindness later.”
She knew it was shamelessly rude, but there was no help for it.
Without waiting for Ludwig’s permission, Lydia turned on her heel.
‘What do I do now? I need information about Awakeners—should I call Ricardo? But what would I even tell him? He knows nothing.’
As she moved toward the exit, her mind churned with cascading concerns.
Then came a voice from behind her.
“Is there nothing I can help with?”
Lydia stopped dead in her tracks.
An Awakener.
Information.
Help.
‘…’
She turned back around.
Ludwig regarded her in utter stillness.
In the backlit glow, his blue eyes gleamed with subtle intensity.
‘Could she trust this man?’
It was a mad thought. No matter how comfortable things had become between them lately, he was still *that* Ludwig.
And in truth, she had no idea what he was concealing.
‘But what if I could simply use him strategically?’
A bitter smile crossed her lips.
Use him? Ludwig?
It was an absurd notion, nothing more. Who was using whom, exactly? She’d be fortunate if she didn’t end up being devoured instead.
And yet… precisely because it was Ludwig, there were certain advantages.
To assess Joachim’s condition, she needed the help of an Awakener.
But every Awakener in the Empire served the military. Which meant she couldn’t expect them to keep secrets for Lydia’s sake.
Ricardo was trustworthy, but there were other complications. In the original story, his family became entangled in the Ainz Incident later on. She couldn’t layer the volatile variable of Joachim onto that.
So it had to be Ludwig.
“Can you help me?”
Only he could move with complete freedom.
‘It’s a gamble, but I don’t have any other choice anyway.’
At her words, Ludwig’s lips curved up with elegant grace.
“Of course.”
Like pressing her own throat into the jaws of a viper, Lydia felt the weight of the moment as she parted her lips to speak.
* * *
“Where is Joachim?”
“Baroness!”
The servants rushed forward anxiously to greet Lydia upon her return, nearly ten days later.
“He’s in his bedroom on this floor. His fever is severe, but no medicine is working. Several doctors have come and gone, but none of them could determine the cause.”
Of course not. It was Awakening Fever.
Lydia felt a dull throb in her temples as she moved toward the stairs. There was not a moment to waste.
“Forgive me, but… who is this gentleman?”
The butler who’d been leading her hesitated, casting an uncertain glance behind her.
Sensing the presence of the man at her back, Lydia raised her voice so all could hear.
“This is the Grand Duke. He is an honored guest, so see that he is received with all courtesy and respect.”
There was no turning back now.
Lydia reached the door to Joachim’s room at last.

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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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