The Villain Who Will Kill Me Is Too Handsome, It's Troublesome - Chapter 59

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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 59.
“What? What happened to the Time Magic I cast?”
“Well… it was definitely intact just before…….”
When had she last checked it? Once in Count Bertia’s Tomb, and after that, once she’d found the key…….
‘Back then I only saw the key and put it away.’
So when exactly had the spell broken and the curse grown? The sinister mark that had lingered on the back of her hand had now crept up to her wrist.
Kirien spoke up hesitantly from beside her.
“Is it possible something went wrong when I unsealed it at Yuphailer’s villa?”
Apart from that, she couldn’t recall doing anything else.
Or had there been an issue when she’d faced the fox tainted with Magical Taint? Perhaps the Dark Mage had pulled something while fleeing.
Either way, she needed to fix it quickly.
“Just a moment.”
Artiela rummaged through the pocket inside her dress and found a note.
“Mother wrote this out for me just in case something like this happened.”
The spell was complex enough that the slightest misalignment would cause side effects. Ushiel calmly gathered Holy Power and the surrounding Mana, then froze the time on her right hand again.
“If the spell breaks again, it’ll be serious. The growth rate is far from normal.”
“Tell me about it…….”
When she wasn’t paying attention to it, she hadn’t noticed, but now she could see her hand had taken on a faintly bluish tint, and the area that had itched like a mosquito bite now ached with a dull pressure.
But Artiela didn’t let it show.
She hated how much her family worried because of her. Since the moment she’d picked up a sword, she’d known she was always the source of their concern, so she smiled brightly.
“We just need to fix the Emperor first, and then we can search Yuphailer’s villa or his territories thoroughly. Let’s stay strong.”
“I’m sorry, Ati. They said you had the greatest Holy Power in generations, and it’s all useless.”
Ushiel’s shoulders sagged.
“I should have investigated Yuphailer’s movements more thoroughly…….”
Bleo, who hadn’t been able to provide rear support, looked equally wounded.
“It’s all because of me and my mother…….”
This could turn into a real disaster if he wasn’t careful.
“No, I’m really fine! Let me show you how well I can do without my right hand?”
Just as Artiela was about to draw the Bardo, a priestess came running from across the way, waving her hand eagerly.
“Artiela!”
It was a familiar face.
“Raiji, what brings you here?”
“I heard news from Daisy. She wouldn’t stop bragging about meeting a knight.”
She’d come here on purpose because of that.
“She even complimented your boyfriend, saying how handsome he is.”
“Ahem, ahem.”
Kirien reflexively coughed beside her.
Ushiel, who understood the situation, stayed quiet, but Bleo gasped and pointed repeatedly at Kirien.
“B-betrayer!”
Ushiel quietly covered her brother’s mouth. Thanks to that, Artiela could converse comfortably with Raiji.
“And I got in trouble for it.”
“Why?”
“Daisy asked me to deliver something to the knight as a token of her gratitude if I ever saw him again.”
Raiji opened the pouch at her waist and pulled something out. But this was hardly the sort of thing children from poor families would possess.
A small jeweled box decorated with delicate gems?
“This is… far too generous a gift…….”
“Oh, no. When Daisy was kidnapped, that bad man found this in the Underground Dungeon and was overjoyed about it.”
Artiela’s eyes widened.
That villain — it was Jeongori.
Now that she thought about it, the jeweled box caught her eye again.
It had a small lock, and there was a keyhole that looked like it would fit perfectly with the key she’d found this morning.
“He kept muttering that as long as he had this, he would absolutely be safe? That’s why Daisy really wanted to give it to you. She said she’d picked up a talisman.”
“Our Daisy has such a pure heart. How does she repay kindness like this?”
“Will it be of help?”
“Yes, it certainly will.”
Artiela offered a prayer of thanks to the Divine.
‘I’ll live a better life.’
Good deeds were always repaid—that much was certain.
* * *
“Ah…… Has the Divine abandoned me?”
Inside the carriage, Artiela sighed repeatedly. She’d tried inserting the key several times now, but it simply wouldn’t fit.
“Why won’t it go in? It looks like it should fit perfectly.”
Bleo tried again.
But Ushiel struck the back of his hand, and he withdrew.
“We can’t risk breaking it.”
There was another seal on the lock itself. That’s why Kirien wouldn’t let anyone touch it.
He feared that if they unsealed it the way they had at Yuphailer’s estate, the curse binding Artiela’s arm might break free again. Brute force was obviously forbidden as well.
“I can sense a sacred power, though…….”
Ushiel took the box from Bleo and examined it.
“Is it on the level of a holy relic?”
“Possibly?”
“Indirect purification won’t work then?”
“Probably not?”
“What if we opened it knowing another spell would activate?”
“Unless it’s the Tears of Goddess, I’d wager half your arm gets consumed this time.”
By Ushiel’s assessment, this damnable curse seemed to grow fiercer in its backlash every time one of its mechanisms was dismantled.
“Oh no, so what do we do?”
“Let’s take it to the Sacred Tree later and see. Besides, that key might mean something entirely different.”
“Right.”
“Once we settle the Emperor’s matter, we can unseal it far away from the Duke and check what’s inside. There will be plenty of options then, so don’t worry.”
“That’s true. We’ll figure it out.”
Hope kindled anew in Artiela, and she sprang to her feet. Bleo’s eyes darkened with disapproval as he stared at his sister.
“But Arti.”
His voice was graver than ever.
Unusually so.
“Since when have you been courting the Duke?”
Only the rumble of carriage wheels answered.
“And Duke, didn’t I write that you wouldn’t speak of such things in our correspondence?”
“I apologize, Bleo.”
“If you’re going to court my sister, shouldn’t you have asked my permission first?”
“Would you give it if I asked?”
“No! If His Majesty sees you two together, he’ll go absolutely mad—so how could I?”
Bleo’s voice rose.
His finger had been pointed, but he soon lowered his hand and clutched his head.
“Ah, it’s my fault. My fault.”
“……Is the situation at the Imperial Palace very dire?”
“Yes, there’s been chaos because every noble lady His Majesty chose as a consort candidate has problems.”
It seemed Bleo had been exhausted these past few days as well.
“Don’t even mention it. Because His Majesty has been stoking things, the noble families have fallen into quarrels, and now there’s talk of Territory Disputes breaking out.”
Ushiel shook his head.
“At this rate, the empire’s nobility will splinter before we even settle on an Imperial Consort.”
Had the Imperial Consort Selection ever caused this much strife before?
“So in frustration, I suggested bringing over foreign royalty…….”
“And?”
“I was banned from the Council Chamber.”
Bleo grinned broadly and seized both of Kirien’s hands.
“Officially, it was likely processed under the Lufel Duchy’s name.”
Kirien carefully withdrew his hands.
His face fell with disappointment, and Bleo slid his hips backward. The youngest among them glared at him with a terrifying gaze and shook his head, standing beside Kirien.
“Does His Majesty still have designs on Arti?”
Bleo lifted his shoulders.
“He denies it, but honestly, I can’t fathom him anymore.”
He said the Emperor had hardly been attending the Council Chamber of late.
As a result, the Imperial Palace had become a battlefield of raised voices every single day—as if to prove that an age of confusion, with evil itself descending, had truly arrived.
The carriage, now shrouded in silence, soon passed through the Imperial Palace’s main gate.
The Princess Palace stood far from the Main Palace where the Emperor resided. Yet the carriage halted at a Garden not far from the Main Palace.
As Artiela and Bleo descended to escort the others from the carriage, the First Princess approached.
“Welcome, Duke of Lufel.”
“Oh, you really did come?”
The Second Princess, uninvited, had come as well.
The moment Kirien laid eyes on the Second Princess, he recoiled with visible distaste, taking a step backward.

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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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