The Villain Who Will Kill Me Is Too Handsome, It's Troublesome - Chapter 15

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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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Episode 15.
“Well, we lost.”
“We can’t compete.”
“Ugh, and my captain…”
“Didn’t I tell you to give up? We’re just ordinary souls.”
They’d been secretly hopeful, since it had been confirmed the captain wasn’t a monster.
Those who kept the rules, lived orderly lives, followed God, and walked the path of justice and righteousness earned Holy Power in return—and because of the good deeds they performed, their souls were cleaner and brighter than ordinary people’s.
It might have seemed ordinary to Artiela, but…
“To be honest, it’s not like our souls are ugly or anything.”
Someone’s moment of self-reflection brought silence.
They stole a glance at the handsome nobleman standing beside Artiela. Even at a passing glance, he was devastatingly beautiful. If someone were that perfect in appearance, wouldn’t their soul be beautiful too?
But the Duke Kirien, no less?
The one rumored to control the wealthiest territory in the empire?
“They say he’s already been introduced to the Holy Maiden.”
“She was even studying what he likes.”
“And Count Soltis came and met with him too, didn’t he?”
“An official meeting of families?”
The dispirited paladins kept their heads bowed, tearing bread and dipping it in soup. Their mouths were full of the broth, but somehow the bread tasted especially dry today.
“Still, our captain is the Holy Sword’s master, so…”
“She’ll always be our captain.”
That was enough.
Artiela was both a respected superior and an admired knight.
Master of the Holy Sword—a distinction granted only to the most just and righteous knights. Learning from the captain, training alongside her, fighting together to protect the world’s goodness—it all felt like it could sustain a day endlessly full of holiness.
What nourished their faith was not God, but the Holy Paladin Order’s captain and the Holy Maiden.
“You know, the soup tastes especially well-seasoned today!”
“Wipe your nose first.”
“It’s tears!”
As they comforted one another, the volunteers helping serve food watched Artiela and her companions in awe.
“Wow, the Holy Sword’s master is impressive no matter when you see her.”
“Who’s the gentleman beside her? The one in back looks like Count Soltis.”
“My family’s maid said she saw an angel following the Holy Sword’s master and explaining things—that must be him. They said he was a trainee paladin?”
“Is he a commoner? I don’t think I’ve seen him at social gatherings.”
Today, Edelion was filled with young noblewomen from great houses who’d come hoping to assist in the Empress Selection.
After the new Emperor ascended, it appeared to outsiders that the Temple and the Imperial Palace exchanged visits frequently and were on good terms—a misunderstanding born from the fact that the Emperor’s closest aide was the Holy Maiden’s family.
So even the noblewomen who normally would have sent their maids were volunteering in person today.
Wondering if the Emperor might visit again.
Rumors of a brilliant trainee paladin had played a part too.
“I know who he is. I saw him at the New Year Festival before the chandelier fell. He’s Duke Kirien.”
“The one whose beauty blinds you at first sight?”
“I thought he was a being from myth!”
“Forget empress—should we aim for duchess instead?”
It was natural to be drawn to beauty.
Heaven itself dwelt in Duke Kirien’s face.
There were persistent rumors that the Emperor harbored a secret lover he’d kept hidden for years. But the Duke’s side remained untainted by such whispers.
“Why is the Duke trying to become a trainee paladin?”
“Maybe he grew tired of all those noblewomen chasing him and wants to leave the secular world? What a shame.”
“Paladins can marry, unlike priests.”
“If he’d accept my confession, I’d give up trying for empress!”
Though there were rumors that every young noblewoman who’d confessed to him had been rejected.
“…”
“Sigh.”
“Please…”
The ones who’d confessed happened to be in the Temple.
The moment they spotted the man Artiela was escorting, their heads snapped down. The dreadful memory of that day came rushing back.
Kirien himself had no recollection of who they were.
“Thank you, sister.”
Artiela accepted the food and offered her usual bright greeting.
“P-please, enjoy your meal.”
“Is something wrong?”
Artiela stood before a devotee whose hands trembled noticeably as she ladled soup. Was she a first-time volunteer from a noble house, perhaps? Was she nervous?
“If you’re unwell, I’ll call for the priests. Service is admirable, but your health must come first.”
“No, it’s not that—hic.”
At Artiela’s gentle question, the young lady lifted her head slightly, then startled and lowered it again.
‘Is it because of the Duke?’
She couldn’t even meet his eyes—was she that embarrassed? But then, why was she trembling?
Artiela, tilting her head in confusion, only then grasped the mood that had settled over the Dining Hall. Without exception, every eye had turned toward Kirien as he entered.
Most of it was curiosity, though a thread of wariness ran through it.
The weight of their gazes was palpable.
“Duke, why don’t you and your brother find a seat while I fetch your meal?”
“That won’t be necessary. I’ll be staying at the Temple for a while, and I’d like to accustom myself to it.”
Kirien’s face was ashen. A faint tremor ran through his fingertips.
His Aura flickered and threatened to surge once more. Artiela attempted to soothe the Duke with her own Aura, but his tension ran too high; it wouldn’t respond.
Then he held out his meal tray, following Artiela’s lead.
Rattle-rattle-rattle. The woman’s trembling visibly intensified. The soup in the ladle shook like the surface of a lake caught in a storm, and finally the contents leaped back into the pot.
“P-please, save me!”
Suddenly, the young lady collapsed onto the floor.
On the opposite side of the line, another young lady dishing out soup hurled down her ladle with a cry. Elsewhere, carefully baked bread tumbled to the ground.
They all burst into tears at once.
Dangerous.
Artiela’s reflexes took over—she seized Kirien’s hand. The moment his Aura rapidly settled, she exhaled in relief.
“Yikes, we’re not about to have another collapse, are we?”
Bleo’s muttering sent ripples through the hall.
“Kyaaaah!”
“R-run! The walls might come down!”
“Nobody confess anything! We’ll all die!”
Today, it became clear which young lady had confessed to Duke Lupel and been rejected. Along with why those others hadn’t dared a second confession.
Kirien, the bringer of misfortune.
The cursed Duke was now etched firmly into the world’s awareness.
* * *
The Temple, which had been peacefully dull, suddenly erupted in commotion.
Yusiel led the priests out and brought order to the chaos that had erupted in the Dining Hall.
“My apologies.”
Though he’d done nothing, Kirien had somehow become the cause of the disaster. He walked with his spirit crushed, offering his repeated regrets.
“It’s quite all right. A little tumult like this now and then reminds us that Edelion is a place where people truly live.”
Artiela gave Bleo a sharp jab in the ribs. But her unspoken request fell on deaf ears.
Moving silently with a dejected expression, Bleo muttered to himself.
“My popularity was fake. Sigh.”
That wasn’t helpful at all!
“Good grief, he refused their love letters and marriage proposals and still they followed him relentlessly, bothering him—and now look what’s happened.”
Bailey caught his sigh like a contagion.
And then it passed to Kirien.
Like a man buried in darkness, he muttered with anguish etched across his face.
“Ah, perhaps I shouldn’t have wounded her back then…….”
Caught between these three sorrowful figures, Artiela’s eyes darted back and forth. The oppressive atmosphere made it hard to breathe.
But this was absurd.
“Those young ladies were far too fragile, don’t you think?”
The Duke wasn’t the sort of soul to speak cruelty.
At most, he would have warned them to stay away unless they wanted to die—the same warning he’d given to her. He would have tried to save those girls just as he’d tried to save her.
What could be more romantic than having the man you secretly love rescue you in a moment of crisis? Yet there they were, making such a fuss, treating him like a monster.
It was too much.
“No, they never truly loved the Duke in the first place.”
“That’s right! If they’d genuinely loved the Duke, they would have respected his wishes when he refused them and waited patiently.”
Of the three, Bailey was the first to recover her spirits.
“Duke, don’t burden yourself with guilt toward those women. There’s no sin in not returning someone’s feelings.”
Artiela spoke with a fierce expression. Kirien found himself nodding mechanically.
“Yes, I understand.”
“And you, brother! Your pride isn’t wounded, is it?”
“No, not at all.”
Bleo gazed toward distant mountains, his eyes glistening with tears.
Once her consolations were complete, Artiela led the three of them to the Garden. Beneath a cherry tree whose buds were preparing to burst into bloom, she spread out a straw mat and unpacked the food she’d brought from the Dining Hall.
“Why don’t we all finish our meal?”
What had become of this gathering, at least it felt like a picnic now.
The sun had vanished, darkness descended, and the owl’s desolate cry hung over the straw mat with a melancholy weight.
What was this mood?
Unable to bear it any longer, Artiela sprang to her feet.
“Your Grace, are you thinking of taking revenge?”
An unjust smile bloomed at the corner of the righteous knight’s mouth.

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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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