The Villainess Lives Twice - Chapter 57

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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 57

Aubrey was the youngest daughter of Count and Countess Jordin. When Sedric last met her, she was a spoiled 15-year-old girl.

And his memories of her at seven or eight years old were even more vivid.

“Aubrey? Is that you?”

Sedric was startled.

“You’ve grown so much.”

“Yes, Your Highness. I’m an adult now too. I’m already 18 years old.”

Aubrey looked up at Sedric as if clinging to him.

Sedric gently waved his arm to push Aubrey away. When she was young, he had treated her like a cute little sister, but now she was too old for that.

Aubrey looked shocked. This was the first time Sedric hadn’t embraced her when she clung to him.

Margaret quickly grabbed Aubrey’s arm and pulled her to stand beside her. Then she bowed her head.

“I apologize, Your Highness. I have raised my daughter poorly.”

“No. It’s just that she’s happy to see me after so long. To think Aubrey has already grown this much—it really makes me realize how long I’ve been away.”

“Your Highness has also changed greatly.”

Aaron quickly interjected with a hearty laugh to keep the atmosphere from becoming awkward. Sedric also laughed.

“Three years ago, I was just a greenhorn.”

“Your Highness was never really a naive greenhorn, even when you had just turned twenty.”

“Does that mean I look old?”

Sedric touched his cheek with slight concern. Then he glanced surreptitiously at Artizea.

Artizea tilted her head.

“Why?”

“It’s nothing.”

Sedric scratched his slightly reddened cheek with his index finger. Then with a gentle expression, he extended his hand to her.

“Let’s go to your room first. After you warm up and rest, I’ll show you around the castle. We can think about greetings or banquets tomorrow.”

“You said it was still autumn.”

Artizea smiled.

“I’m talking about you, not me. You’ve been on a ship for over a month, and your lips are white right now.”

“I’m not that tired.”

Artizea said this while placing her hand on Sedric’s. Then Sedric turned his hand over and grasped Artizea’s hand.

Artizea flinched. Her startled fingers twitched and scratched Sedric’s palm.

Sedric succeeded in maintaining a normal expression. But his earlobes turned red.

Seeing this, the people of the ducal house exchanged glances among themselves without a word. Unspoken thoughts echoed in the air, but no one voiced them aloud.

Alice and Sophie smiled contentedly with satisfaction.

Artizea turned her gaze elsewhere. Her hand was cold, and Sedric’s hand was hot.

But strangely, she had the illusion that even her own hand felt hot.

It was a lie to say she had gotten used to it. Rather, it became increasingly unfamiliar, and even the slightest touch made her mind go blank.

For no reason, her breathing became labored. The memory of the embrace she had felt through thin nightclothes kept resurfacing.

She had no idea when that memory would fade from her skin.

“Let’s go inside.”

Sedric whispered near Artizea’s ear in a voice lower than usual.

Artizea bowed her head. Sedric pulled her hand and made her link arms with him.

Aaron hurriedly took the lead.

“We have prepared a clean room for Your Highness to use. We did our best to arrange it, but we were worried it might not be refined enough, so we didn’t add decorations. Perhaps you could do it yourself.”

“Understood.”

Artizea tried to suppress her clamoring heart while outwardly feigning composure.

Then she suddenly felt a gaze and turned around.

Aubrey was glaring at Artizea with an expression burning with hatred, not even trying to hide it.

‘Oh no.’

Artizea was troubled.

This kind of situation was difficult to handle. But she couldn’t pretend not to notice either.

It would be different if she were hiding her emotions. But wasn’t she openly showing such a hateful expression? If such insubordination were left unchecked, household discipline would collapse.

Sedric gently shook her hand to focus her attention on him.

When she looked back with a questioning gaze, Sedric smiled. He hadn’t called her for any particular reason.

* * *

Artizea’s bedroom was adjacent to Sedric’s bedroom. It was said to be the space traditionally used as the bedrooms of the duke and duchess.

There was a door between the two rooms so they could come and go without using the corridor.

“Both sides can lock it. The keys for each side are different, so if one side locks it, the other side cannot open it.”

Artizea laughed at Aaron’s explanation.

“Is it for marital quarrels? Rather than that, it would be better to just prepare rooms at a distance… Ah, you’ve made a passage in case of emergency.”

“The escape route is on my room’s side. I’ll show you how to open it later.”

Sedric said this.

“Isn’t it a secret passage?”

“The way to get from inside to outside isn’t a secret. It’s for emergencies. Since there’s no one who would conspire with Karam, all the retainers of the fortress know about it.”

“Ah, yes. If that’s the case, I should learn about it too.”

The toilette room and small bathroom were on the opposite side from Sedric’s bedroom. A space suitable for use as a study was also prepared next to the audience chamber.

The bedroom was not large. Furs hung seamlessly on all four walls. The floor was also covered with fur so plush it would reach one’s ankles.

Artizea reached out to touch the wall.

“Because large spaces get cold quickly, all rooms are made small. There are plenty of empty rooms, so please let us know if you need additional space.”

“Is this bear fur?”

“Ah, yes. This blocks drafts better than tapestries. If you don’t like it, we’ll hang something else.”

“No, it’s not that I don’t like it, but isn’t this excessive luxury…?”

Artizea muttered this.

“The previous duchess also hung furs in all her living spaces. It’s fine for now, but in winter, people not from this region find it difficult to endure.”

“I see. I understand.”

Artizea replied and looked back at Sedric. Sedric nodded.

“The warmth seems sufficient. Stay warm without overexerting yourself. The servants will take good care of things, but… the one thing you can’t do is take care of yourself.”

“When you put it that way, I sound like a very incompetent person.”

Sedric smiled slightly.

“Rest first. I’ll come get you when it’s time for dinner. I need to receive reports on the territory’s affairs first.”

“Yes.”

“Let’s discuss what to do starting tomorrow at dinner. There are various matters I’d like your opinion on.”

“Yes.”

Sedric reached out his hand.

Artizea was startled and stiffened. Sedric’s thumb gently brushed past the area around Artizea’s eyes once.

“Rest.”

He said affectionately and left.

Aaron and the other retainers bowed in greeting and followed Sedric out.

“Young Lady, please sit down.”

Sophie helped Artizea remove her cloak. Artizea sat in the armchair.

She hadn’t been conscious of being that cold, but when she sat in front of the fireplace, her body warmed up.

The brooch Sedric had fastened for her bothered her for no reason. Artizea was caught up in subtle feelings as she fidgeted with it in her hand.

The brooch was engraved with the crest of House of Evron.

In the capital, she had been too busy to think carefully about it. During the ship journey, perhaps because it was an extraordinary space, she didn’t feel real about being called Your Highness.

But coming here, she suddenly realized that she had gained the title of Sedric’s wife.

Even if it was only formal, she was the mistress of this fortress for the time being.

Come to think of it, why had she never thought of marriage even once in her previous life?

Artizea suddenly had such a question.

I had never particularly thought that I disliked political marriages.

When I was young, I thought my mother and brother were everything in the world. But as I grew older, I should have wanted to escape through marriage.

It wasn’t as if no men had approached me at all.

Even when I became Marquess Rosan, and even after Lawrence’s position as crown prince had stabilized, there were men who approached me targeting my status and wealth.

Artizea had never once shown interest in any of them.

‘Was it because I could see right through them?’

I should have been swayed by even superficial kindness. Just like when Lawrence occasionally treated me well.

Or perhaps it was because I knew deep down that I would eventually be purged.

“Sigh.”

Artizea leaned her neck against the backrest, closed her eyes briefly, then opened them.

“Rizhe, go and call Margaret. I should properly greet her now.”

“Yes.”

Rizhe swiftly went outside.

Margaret was waiting outside with the butler, head maid, and several other senior employees. When she heard that Artizea was calling for her, she hurried inside.

After receiving greetings from the employees, Artizea said this:

“Managing the household of the fortress is no small matter, and it would be rather troublesome for someone who stays only a few months a year to take charge. Please continue as you have been. If Lord Sedric trusts you, then you are trustworthy to me as well.”

“Thank you.”

“Most of my personal care will be handled by the maids I brought with me. But since there aren’t enough of them, Head Maid, please select and send a few good people if you have them. I hope there won’t be situations where they can’t speak up when they should or can’t give orders when they need to, just because they’re my maids.”

“Yes.”

That was all she had to ask of the employees.

After dismissing the butler and head maid, Artizea looked at Margaret.

Margaret was extremely tense.

Margaret had no intention of looking down on Artizea just because she was a young, newly married mistress.

She was the duchess chosen by Sedric. That alone was reason enough for loyalty.

But aside from that, Artizea possessed a dignity that made it impossible to relax and treat her casually. She seemed like a completely different person from when she had been holding hands with Sedric and blushing shyly.

“Margaret, as you know, I didn’t bring a single lady-in-waiting from my family home. That’s because I have no suitable relatives or social connections.”

Artizea spoke in a slow voice. Margaret answered respectfully.

“Yes.”

“I intend to select ladies-in-waiting from among the daughters of families with deep ties to the Evron Duchy. I would like your advice on this matter.”

Anticipating what would come next, Margaret swallowed.

“First, I’m thinking of Miss Aubrey. As the daughter of Count Jordin, her status is beyond reproach, and so would be her loyalty. Since we’re similar in age, we should get along well in conversation. I believe Miss Aubrey could be of great help in adapting to life here.”

Artizea said this.

The hierarchy needed to be established in advance.

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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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