The Puppet Villainess’s Splendid Rebellion - Chapter 69

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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 69

“Thank you for inviting me today, Your Highness.”

“I enjoyed it as well.”

“Please be sure to invite me again next time.”

The tea party concluded successfully.

I stood at the garden entrance, seeing off the young ladies as they boarded their carriages.

While the carriages departed one by one, only Harper Countess remained hesitating without boarding her carriage. Even though the coachman held the door open for her, her gaze was directed somewhere in the garden.

“Does Harper Countess have something left to say to me?”

“Ah…”

The young lady flinched. Bewilderment crossed her pale face.

“Well, that is…”

She trailed off and lowered her gaze. Her fingers fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. She kept parting her lips as if to speak, then closing them again.

I waited quietly.

After a long moment, she carefully opened her mouth.

“…Do you happen to know anything about His Grace the Duke’s recovery?”

“Recovery… you mean regarding the mana poisoning?”

“Yes. It’s so different from the rumors.”

The young lady’s voice grew smaller.

“I heard he had collapsed from being tainted by mana, but His Grace the Duke looked truly healthy when I saw him earlier. The mana in the Duke’s Mansion is also thin…”

She paused before continuing. Her voice became increasingly cautious.

“I heard that the amount of purification stones supplied by the Imperial Family has decreased recently, but His Grace the Duke doesn’t seem to be affected by that… I wondered if there might be some special secret…”

She looked restless. She seemed to know that asking such questions in front of Loreia might be rude. Her pale cheeks flushed red.

But it also meant she was that desperate.

‘As expected.’

I smiled inwardly.

Since there were problems with the Imperial Family’s purification stone production, naturally the supply would be cut off starting from the remote territories.

If this child was this vulnerable to mana, her mother would probably be in worse condition. The thicker the mage bloodline, the greater the effect of mana. If the young lady herself was in this state, how much worse must her mother be?

“Well.”

I tilted my head and answered.

“As you know, I haven’t been staying at the Duke’s Mansion for very long either. Wouldn’t His Grace the Duke know the details?”

“…I see.”

Disappointment crossed the young lady’s face. But she soon bowed her head.

“I’m sorry. For asking such an unnecessary question…”

“No, it’s fine.”

I smiled gently.

“If you need to know, ask His Grace directly.”

“Pardon?”

The young lady raised her head. Her eyes were surprised. She looked as if she never expected such words.

“He’s generous enough to accept even me, Loreia, as his ward. He might give you an answer.”

Harper Countess’s expression became subtle. Well, seeing that fierce face earlier, the word ‘generous’ might sound strange. But every scheme requires a bit of deception.

I shrugged my shoulders.

“If you’re curious about something, asking directly would be faster.”

The young lady stared at me blankly for a moment. Eventually, a faint light appeared on her face.

“…Thank you, Your Highness.”

She bowed her head deeply.

“Today was truly enjoyable. And…”

The young lady paused briefly before adding.

“Your Highness is kind and gentle, unlike the rumors. I would like to meet you again.”

Her pale cheeks flushed pink.

‘I didn’t expect this kind of praise.’

At the unexpected compliment, my own cheeks grew warm without realizing it.

“Travel safely, Harper Countess.”

“Yes. Please take care as well, Your Highness.”

The young lady boarded her carriage. The coachman closed the door and the carriage began to move slowly.

I waved my hand until the carriage disappeared from view.

When that child returned home, this news would surely reach the Count and Countess as well. A household with a daughter and mother suffering from mana couldn’t ignore this.

I turned around and muttered.

“I hope the contact doesn’t come too late.”

* * *

“So, was the tea party successful?”

A few days later, right after morning training had ended.

Demian set down his sword and plopped down beside me. He swept back his sweat-soaked hair and asked.

“Didn’t I follow Your Highness’s plan even while receiving troublesome glares from my father?”

“Ah, that.”

I handed him a water bottle familiarly as I replied.

“The tea party itself was successful. The young ladies’ reactions weren’t bad, and they took the bait well. But the contact is a bit late.”

“Contact?”

“Yes. Surely by now the news should have spread and then some.”

About a week had passed since the tea party ended. The young ladies would have gone home and told their parents, and those rumors would have spread to their surroundings.

But no news had reached us at all.

‘That’s strange.’

Harper Countess had definitely shown interest. She even told me to try contacting the Duke. If she seemed that desperate, why is there no contact at all?

Maybe I was expecting results too hastily. No matter what, reaching out first to the ‘cursed House of the Duke’ could be burdensome.

Should I call that pink-haired man again and ask him to gather information? What kind of talk is going around among the nobles, what their reactions are like. Whether some variable we don’t know about has emerged.

Press.

“…Hm?”

While I was seriously pondering, a touch suddenly reached my forehead.

Demian was pressing my brow with his finger.

“What, what is it?”

“Smooth out those wrinkles. Why are you making such a serious expression?”

Demian said as he withdrew his hand. His eyes held a playful glint.

“With that small face of yours, you look like you’re carrying all the world’s worries. If you have so many concerns, why don’t you finish your training instead?”

“I don’t want to.”

I shook my head firmly.

Am I crazy to do more training?

“I’m dying from exhaustion. After swinging a sword for a whole hour, I feel like my arms are going to fall off.”

I’m sure I rested for over 30 minutes while Demian was training, but both my arms were still trembling. Why is a wooden sword so heavy when it’s just a wooden stick?

“At first, you couldn’t even lift this.”

“…”

“You used to collapse after swinging it ten times, but now you last 10 minutes. That’s tremendous progress.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

“Of course it’s a compliment.”

Demian chuckled.

Now I know that expression. He’s definitely teasing me. He’s teasing me with all his might.

I narrowed my eyes and glared at him, then asked as if retorting.

“Well then, Young Master, have you made any progress in resonating with the holy sword?”

“…Ugh.”

Demian’s expression became troubled. The teasing face from moments ago disappeared, and he slyly averted his gaze.

“I’ve gotten used to handling it. The problem is that’s as far as it goes.”

Demian muttered as he raised his calloused hand.

“It’s like something is completely blocked. I can’t go beyond a certain level. Swinging the sword is no problem, but when I try to draw out more power than that, I feel like I’m hitting a wall.”

‘As expected, it’s still too much.’

The holy sword is a double-edged sword. If you can handle it, it becomes a powerful weapon, but if you can’t, it actually harms the user. To use it properly, resonance with the sword was absolutely necessary.

However, that resonance was never an easy thing. The holy sword only responds when you reach the state where you and the sword become one, but Demian had made no notable progress since his first reaction.

‘What was the trigger for his awakening before the regression?’

I tried to recall my memories, but nothing came to mind.

‘If I knew, I could have at least given him a hint.’

Regret washed over me. To think I regressed but don’t know the information I actually need.

My worries deepened as well.

That’s when it happened.

“Your Highness.”

I turned my head at the familiar voice to see Mia standing at the entrance to the training grounds.

“The master is calling for you.”

“…Me?”

“Yes. He says he has something to ask you.”

Suddenly?

I looked at Demian with a bewildered gaze, then got up and followed Mia.

When I arrived at the study, Carlos was sitting at his desk. He looked up and lightly waved a letter envelope held between his fingers.

“Is this your doing?”

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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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