The Villain Who Will Kill Me Is Too Handsome, It's Troublesome - Chapter 31

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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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Chapter 31
“Are you quite all right, madam?”
Kirien pressed a handkerchief into her hand before Artiela could react.
“My, how thoughtful of you.”
The Countess took the handkerchief and quickly dabbed her eyes, then, as if nothing had happened, tapped her daughter’s foot lightly—a silent signal to introduce him properly.
An instruction, plain as day.
“Your Grace, this is my mother.”
“Lillian Solti.”
She had rushed here upon hearing that her daughter had spent the night in a man’s quarters, and at that moment had been too flustered to get a proper look at him.
She’d had to grill her husband to learn that the man in question was none other than Duke Kirien—lately the talk of every salon in the capital, though the rumors about him contradicted one another wildly. She’d come today with the express purpose of seeing him for herself.
In truth, the mother had never trusted her daughter’s judgment.
To abandon the Emperor, a man devoted to her since childhood, and for what reason?
That doubt evaporated the moment she saw him. Her daughter took after her.
When a woman possessed ability, appearance in a man was everything.
“I’m so glad we finally meet—I was disappointed not to see you properly last time. What an honor.”
Artiela, unsettled by her mother’s polished charm, took a step backward.
“It is my first pleasure to meet you, madam. I am Kirien Rufel.”
When on earth had he learned that?
Kirien placed his right hand over his left shoulder in the salute of the Holy Knight Order, and the precision with which he bowed—angles held sharp, his line clean—was textbook perfect.
Artiela found herself watching, transfixed.
Kirien absorbed everything with remarkable speed. When she thought about it, he’d spent most of his life as a commoner, yet now he moved with the bearing of a natural aristocrat. Perhaps that was why.
‘Should I really have him enlisted?’
As a public pretext to keep him at her side, it was the most fitting option. Talented, suited to discipline and routine, conscientious.
And best of all, after the holy trial, she might not need to arrange for his psychological support.
Oh, foolish.
Artiela shook her head at the unexpected fantasy that had surfaced.
“My, what’s gotten into you, daughter?”
At that moment, Lillian waved her hand cheerfully in front of Artiela’s face.
“Hmm, but why this sudden visit to the temple, Mother?”
“Well, you’ve been hiding your young man away so closely……”
Before Lillian could finish, both of them cried out at once.
“That’s not it!”
“Not yet, madam.”
“Not yet?”
“That is—I mean to say……”
Kirien simply broke down. He stammered, dropped the book he’d been holding.
At least the training had improved his Aura control enough that it didn’t flare wildly.
At such a level of agitation, one would expect him to lose command and have it seep out unbidden, but his Aura seemed content to stay hidden.
“But why were you really crying?”
“I’m not sure—is it some midlife melancholy? Suddenly I found myself remembering the old days.”
“When you saw the Duke?”
“When you declared you’d become a Holy Knight. Do you remember why I opposed it?”
Of course she remembered.
A gifted Holy Knight, her mother’s dearest friend.
The youngest Aura Master ever, possessed of considerable Holy Power, and everyone believed she would become the wielder of the Holy Sword—until a Dark Mage unleashed a calamity of monsters, and she went missing on the mission to stop them.
Even then, that stubborn Priesthood was the problem, delaying her Holy Sword trials again and again because she was a woman.
The mother, terrified of her daughter walking such a perilous path, had simply had to oppose it.
“You were reminded of her?”
“Yes—I don’t know why he suddenly came to mind. We don’t even know if she’s……”
Lillian’s eyes grew distant for a moment, but then a quiet smile returned to her face.
“I apologize for showing such an embarrassing side at our first meeting.”
“Not at all. It has been an honor to meet someone warm enough to shed tears for a cherished friend.”
“Goodness, you’re as lovely in your words as in your face.”
Lillian seemed quite taken with Kirien.
‘No one’s said anything yet.’
Yet here her mother was, all but calling Kirien her boyfriend.
“Thank you for your kindness, madam.”
Kirien, too, seemed to have settled. The tension had eased from his face considerably, and when Lillian offered her hand, he took it with assurance, offering his arm for an escort.
“But I wonder—why is our Duke serving as a novice Holy Knight in Edelion?”
This was a problem.
Kirien is someone who doesn’t know how to lie. Lillian comes from a background of seasoned parenthood—she’d spent years unraveling the falsehoods of three children.
If Kirien starts spilling the truth like this, though…
‘Disaster.’
Lillian Soltis is the Rector of the Royal Academy. Her specialty: magic. Her minor: tracking and eliminating Dark Magic.
Mother would choose to kill Kirien before the source of evil awakened—she would marshal every connection and resource at her disposal without hesitation.
While the thought of her mother’s terrifying nature lingered, the two of them had already slipped quietly out of the archive.
“Wait!”
Artiela rushed after them urgently.
“Sister.”
But she was blocked by the priestess in charge of the archive.
“Does one person make the mess while another cleans it up?”
The priestess pointed to the books scattered across the floor moments before.
“Couldn’t they simply clean up quickly before leaving?”
“That won’t do. The Holy Knight Order Commander must set an example. Please tidy up according to protocol and move along.”
This is too much.
Then Kirien’s reply drifted to her ears.
“I remained here to seek instruction from Commander Artiela regarding the control of Aura, as I have encountered many difficulties on account of it.”
Kirien was someone with sharp intuition. It seemed he had caught wind of where the conversation between mother and daughter was heading.
Watching him glance back at Artiela and nod gravely, she felt he would handle this well enough without resorting to falsehood.
“I believe you, Duke.”
Artiela clasped her hands together, speaking half to herself.
At that, the priestess beside her let out a deep sigh.
“Dates in the archive are forbidden from this point forward, Sister.”
This was quite unfair.
* * *
A desolate wind swept through the building once called the Magic Tower. The wild grass grown tall had lost its vitality, withering until it rattled loudly in the breeze.
The space where life had expired did not permit even sunlight to touch it.
Oddly enough, darkness detested such places.
—How annoying. Why don’t they all just die already.
—If they won’t listen, beat them until they do.
—You dare disrespect me, the head of this household? Bring me money!
—Your husband exists? Any woman in my domain belongs to me. Drag her here.
A place where the filthiest and most sordid desires of mankind congregated.
From within, eyes of deep crimson suddenly snapped open.
“Thank you for looking upon me so kindly, madam.”
Someone’s overflowing emotion was transmitted. Presumptuous—for a vessel, no less.
Until now, humans had been far too frail to contain it. So it had feigned being sealed, searched diligently, and swallowed a righteous and formidable vessel it found. The way that shining star, once radiant with nobility, had crumbled into despair—how delicious that had been. And now, perfectly bound to that creature. Who would have thought.
Well, it mattered little. After all, it could now move about freely and without restraint, possessing its full power intact.
“Shall we start moving?”
It had been separated far too long. If that creature committed even some small transgression, it would prove troublesome. All the Evil Deeds had to remain his responsibility—they couldn’t be lost.
So how should it proceed?
—I truly wish to become a real family with these people.
Quite a charming wish.
It was more than prepared to grant such a thing.
“Why not dispose of the obstacle first?”
Corrupting a righteous soul remained its favored indulgence.
* * *
Some time later, Artiela finally caught up with the two of them.
“Don’t worry about the nobles’ complaints. My husband and I will see what we can do.”
“Thank you.”
“Would you mind if we invited you to our home next time? I’ll show you the things you said you were curious about.”
“It would be an honor, Mother.”
What? When did those two get so close? When did their way of addressing each other change? Artiela followed quietly behind them, her eyes narrowed with disapproval.
Soon the three came to a halt at a special place.
“Thanks to you both, I’ve returned here again.”
It was a Shrine Fence laden with Wish Notes written by the faithful.
“Do you have memories here with your friend?”
“Yes. She would come here to find the weakest among the faithful and rescue them.”
“Truly? Could that have been the secret to her Holy Power?”

“That’s right. They say it’s a Holy Knight’s duty to carry light even to places where it doesn’t reach.”
Lillian regarded her daughter with an approving gaze. Kirien observed the two of them for a long moment, then pressed his fingers to his temples.
“But why are there so many people here at this hour?”
Artiela tilted her head in puzzlement. Despite the evening hour, the crowd tying wish notes showed no sign of thinning.
A worshipper who had just finished fastening her notes offered the answer.
“They’re saying the Empress will be chosen in ten days.”
Peter seemed to have composed himself 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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