The Villainess Duke Lady Hides Her Identity - Chapter 79

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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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79

At Rudeuum’s words, the boy could only tremble, unable to open his mouth.
Reponya was an adoptee—a half-noble without the blood of House of Craitan flowing through her veins—but Rudeuum was different.
He was the legitimate heir of the Billemen Family, the Duke of Billemen himself, called the youngest duke.
So the second son of the Delcun Marquis Family had no grounds whatsoever to talk back to Rudeuum.
“Did you say those words knowing full well you were contradicting the decision of Duke Craitan and mocking the decision of His Majesty the Emperor, who approved it?”
“I—ah, I, I… I am…”
“I wonder if the Delcun Marquis shares your thinking. Yeongshik.”
“N-no, sir. No, Duke Billemen, sir.”
“Let’s see if you can say the same thing in front of Duke Craitan when he arrives. Yeongshik of the Delcun Marquis.”
“A… ahhhh… aaah…”
The boy hadn’t anticipated that Duke Craitan would come here, and his face drained so completely of color he looked ready to faint.
‘If the Duke and Havelian get here and hear this… they’ll be upset.’
It wasn’t even lies he’d spoken, but every time Reponya heard herself called an adoptee, the Duke and her two brothers somehow always seemed more upset or angry than she did.
They’d even stepped away right now to have words with the nobles who’d been disparaging her.
“Rudeuum.”
Reponya reached out and tugged at the sleeve of Rudeuum, who had risen to his feet.
“It’s all right.”
“Reponya.”
Rudeuum addressed her with an expression that made clear he wouldn’t let this pass, but Reponya had no intention of making a scene.
“You’re not still going to insist I should step aside, are you? The Duke and my brother are coming too.”
Reponya asked the boy while still gripping Rudeuum’s sleeve—or rather, she issued a warning.
That he’d do well to run while he could.
“Y-yes! Yes!”
The boy understood the warning perfectly well. But just because he’d spoken truth was no reason to let him off gently.
“Yeongshik of the Delcun Marquis.”
Reponya called out to the boy, who was wheeling around in a panic. Perhaps because Rudeuum stood beside her, he didn’t ignore her and looked back at her instead.
“Aren’t you going to apologize?”
What the child had said wasn’t a lie. Every word had been the truth.
But truth doesn’t necessarily carry respect and consideration within it.
“You should apologize for being rude before you go.”
“That was… to me just now? …Sir?”
“Yes.”
Reponya blinked her wide eyes carelessly as she spoke. At the word apology, the boy’s face scrunched up for a moment.
But the instant Rudeuum clicked his tongue, it smoothed back out again.
‘So Yeongshik of the Delcun Marquis carefully measures rank as he tucks his tail between his legs.’
Given that he’d grown this large without much restraint, it seemed the Delcun Marquis himself was probably the same sort.
Deciding that she’d do well to reveal her status first if she ever ran into the Delcun Marquis later, Reponya opened her lips again.
“You don’t have time to dawdle like that.”
The boy, a half-noble like Reponya, bridled his lips as if apologizing to her wounded his pride—but he couldn’t help it.
Her next words snapped him to attention.
“I told you a moment ago. The Duke and my brother are on their way. When those two arrive, even I won’t be able to stop them.”
“I was wrong! I’m sorry, I apologize!”
He felt anew just how great House of Craitan was. The very child who’d mocked her just moments ago was trembling with fear, spouting apologies without thought.
“Then I hope you won’t make the same mistake next time.”
Reponya accepted the apology cleanly, right there in front of everyone, and turned her head away.
It was a signal that he was dismissed.
Sure enough, the quick-witted boy caught the signal and vanished as if fleeing to the farthest corner of the world the moment she gave it.
“…Those types need to be taught a lesson once in a while to come to their senses.”
“It’s fine. Everyone here just saw it, so word will spread from mouth to mouth. That much will feel plenty harsh enough to young Yeongshik.”
Reponya pulled on Rudeuum’s sleeve and drew him down to sit beside her. Though he could have resisted, Rudeuum offered no protest and simply flopped down next to her.
“Don’t tell the Duke or my brother about this.”
“Why?”
“Because if they found out I heard such things, they’d be even more upset than I am.”
“You don’t think about me being upset?”
“Huh?”
Reponya turned to look at Rudeuum. He raised his eyebrows, his expression clouded with displeasure.
“You’re upset too?”
“Did I look happy just now? I don’t think so.”
“Well, no, but—”
“What bothers me most is that I can’t do anything when you hear words like that, Reponya.”
Rudeuum released her sleeve and took her hand firmly in his own.
‘A friend is a good thing,’ she thought.
Even though he shared no blood with her, Rudeuum blazed with anger on her behalf, and Reponya felt laughter rising in her chest.
Turning it around in her mind, she knew she would feel the same fury if someone ever dismissed Rudeuum in such a way.
“If I hear words like today’s directed at you again, I swear I’ll make sure your lips are either fused into one or scattered into a hundred pieces.”
Either way, his face wouldn’t remain intact—but strangely, the fear of it didn’t frighten her. Because it was for her sake.
“Understood. So we’re keeping this from the Duke and my brothers, right?”
…
Yet Rudeuum didn’t answer, reluctant to let such a matter pass as merely a secret to be forgotten.
‘At times like this…’
Reponya extended her little finger.
“We’re making a secret that only the two of us know, aren’t we? A memory just for us.”
When she emphasized that it was a secret and memory only he and she would share, Rudeuum linked his little finger with hers as if he’d been waiting for it all along.
“A secret. Even if I’m tortured, I’ll never tell.”
“No one’s going to torture you over something like this, so don’t worry, Rudeuum.”
Reponya curved her lips upward and waggled their linked little fingers.
Perhaps because he’d taken a liking to the idea of a secret shared between just the two of them, when Duke Craitan and Havelian returned, Rudeuum kept his promise and held his tongue.

* * *

“Wow. Wow, amazing.”
The Graduation Exam held at the Training Grounds proved far more splendid and entertaining than she’d anticipated.
Since those who’d confidently chosen Swordsmanship as their Specialty Exam were facing off against one another, the spectacle was certainly compelling.
But among them, Fellens stood out head and shoulders above the rest.
“Fellens really is strong…”
“Well, if you’re fighting someone younger than you, you’ve got to actually win,” Havelian murmured softly from the seat beside her.
Reponya’s muttering drew his quiet whisper.
‘He’s not wrong,’ she thought.
Since this was a Specialty Exam, Fellens refrained from using his Aura, meeting his opponent with pure Swordsmanship alone.
Yet he never faltered in strength, endurance, or speed, and his technique was nothing short of masterful.
‘Even if Fellens couldn’t wield Aura, I’m certain he would have chosen to fight with a sword anyway.’
And naturally, he would have become a proper knight.
Reponya watched Fellens move with such ease, his sword flowing, and her eyes sparkled.
She’d never seen Fellens execute his blade with such intensity before, and she found she couldn’t tear her gaze away.
Since it was a Specialty Exam, passing a certain threshold of points secured graduation.
Most other students had secured the necessary points early and now moved through their bouts half-heartedly, trading blows without commitment, or else struggled desperately, clenching their teeth to wield their blades because their scores fell terribly short.
But Fellens was different.
Though he’d already surpassed the required score, he conducted himself without the slightest carelessness. He moved with ease, yet showed no mercy to his opponent—each victory was thorough and clean.
“Damn it! You already got all your points—show some mercy!”
The student who’d crossed blades with Fellens hurled his sword away in frustration.
Beside her, Havelian clicked his tongue.
“A man who handles swords, throwing his blade on impulse because he’s angry? Your very stance is a mess.”
“Havelian.”
“What?”
“I think Fellens might actually…”
Duke Craitan, who’d been watching Fellens’s exam alongside her, turned his head at her murmur.
“He might actually place first in the Graduation Exam.”
Reponya clenched her fist, her face bright with anticipation.
Fellens had told her countless times: in this Graduation Exam, he would absolutely graduate in first place. Each time he’d said it, she’d simply thought they should focus on graduating at all.
‘Honestly, I never thought he’d be this good.’
She never imagined she’d see only Fellens’s blade moving like this.
“Hmm. Considering my own experience placing first in the Graduation Exam—”
Havelian cleared his throat meaningfully, taking the opportunity to mention his own record.
“The Specialty Exam alone isn’t what matters. The written and practical exams count just as much. If Fellens scored poorly on those, first place would be difficult to achieve.”
“He seemed to do well on those too.”
“What?”
“When I came into the Academy just now, I saw the written and practical exam scores and rankings from two days ago posted up.”
“Oh, oh my.”
“I didn’t get a proper look since I was in such a rush, but… well. Fellens came in first in both the written and practical exams?”
“That reckless fool?”
Havelian objected in a tone of surprise. Reponya flinched and glanced around nervously.
If they were at the Estate, she could call him that freely as usual, but here they were at the Academy where Fellens studied.
It would not do for House of Craitan’s honor to suffer in a place where so many nobles gathered.
“Havelian. You shouldn’t call your brother reckless like that.”
Reponya lowered her voice and made the point gently.
“Ah. Right. Sorry. I was just shocked.”
“…Well, I suppose you can be shocked.”
Reponya nodded, her eyes following the large numbers displayed beyond the Training Grounds.
“Fellens looks like he’s about to break your record soon.”
“What?”
Havelian turned his head in alarm.
The numbers displayed prominently at the top of the Training Grounds.
They showed the name and score of the student who had received the highest marks in the Swordsmanship Specialty Exam among all those who had taken it so far.
There was Havelian’s name and score.
Though it had been long since Havelian graduated, his record still stood unbroken.
And today.
“Ah. The record’s been broken.”
Fellens had shattered it.

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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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