Chapter 2
---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------
#2.
Arkid pulled me behind him, creating distance between myself and the Marquis.
The Marquis was already seething with rage, his eyes blazing with fury. He issued a commanding order.
"Step aside, Your Highness."
"I will not. Do not lay a single finger on my wife, Marquis Lorke."
"The Grand Duchess insulted me. Did you not witness it yourself?"
"Revealing one's own foolishness through your own words hardly constitutes an insult."
"What do you mean by that...?"
"I was aware. That you deliberately imposed excessive studies upon me."
"...How dare you!"
Marquis Lorke recoiled as if struck, sputtering indignantly.
I stared blankly at Arkid as he stood against the Marquis.
'That's my boy!'
Why did it bring me such joy to see Arkid defy the Marquis?
Yet I could see his shoulders trembling slightly—fear of the Marquis still gripped him.
I wanted to give him courage, so I grasped his hand firmly. I wanted to tell him he wasn't alone.
Fortunately, it seemed to help. He found his resolve and continued speaking.
"I have endured enough. Until now, you have only done this to me."
"What are you saying?"
"What you do to me is one thing, but not to my wife."
Arkid's voice carried an unmistakable weight of authority. He truly was the man destined to become a formidable second lead.
Marquis Lorke flinched. The Arkid he knew was docile and never defied him, making this outburst all the more shocking.
The Marquis seemed to belatedly swallow his anger. He had realized that raging at a young couple would only make him look foolish.
'Damn, that was the perfect opportunity to end this once and for all.'
I had been planning to scream dramatically and wail if he touched me, making a complete scene.
Unlike Arkid, I was not one to suffer in silence.
As I was clicking my tongue in disappointment, Marquis Lorke responded with a sly smile.
"I had no idea Your Highness harbored such misunderstandings of me. All of this must be due to my inadequacy as a teacher."
"..."
"I apologize for my rough conduct and words."
The Marquis bowed gracefully like a gentleman.
I wanted to shove his head and knock him down, but Arkid was blocking my path. The Marquis spoke again.
"I shall take my leave now. I hope there will be no further interruptions to our lessons next time."
"I'm sorry for calling you a complete idiot, Marquis."
"Yes, I shall accept your apology..."
"But then again, no matter how much you tell a complete idiot they're an idiot, they'll never realize it themselves. Isn't that right, Hannah?"
I smiled innocently as I asked, and Hannah bit her lip, suppressing her laughter.
But the Marquis surely saw through it all.
"You...you...!"
The Marquis's rage flared anew as he ground his teeth, but this time he did not act rashly as before.
It seemed Arkid's involvement had made him realize that my situation was far from favorable either.
He flicked his jacket roughly in frustration and stormed out of the room.
No doubt he was rushing off to tattle to his younger sister.
'Excellent! Exactly as I hoped!'
I let out a dismissive snort. That's when Arkid turned back and asked.
"How much longer do you intend to hold on?"
"Oh."
I flinched at his cold tone and released my grip. Then Arkid spoke.
"I don't know what sudden whim possessed you to help, but you've done something unnecessary."
"Is helping my husband unnecessary?"
"Your husband? Have I ever truly been your husband?"
Arkid's expression turned bitter as he turned away. His heart seemed troubled.
I called out after him as he left.
"Make sure you get that wound treated! Otherwise, I'll come find you!"
Arkid paused for a moment before speaking quietly.
"Yes. I'll conceal it well so as not to cause you trouble. Please don't worry."
I stared blankly at the empty space where Arkid had been and muttered.
"That's not what I meant..."
It seemed I would need more time to win back Arkid's heart.
* * *
Sure enough, as evening fell, Grand Duke Hadelus summoned me.
I went straight to the Grand Duke's Study. Upon entering, three people greeted me. Arkid stood with his head bowed, silent.
Grand Duke Hadelus appeared to be in a foul mood, likely because Lady Lorke beside him was whimpering incessantly.
The moment Lady Lorke saw me, she sobbed even harder, playing the pitiful victim. After quickly assessing the situation, I spoke calmly.
"I heard you called for me."
"Yes. I called you because I have something urgent to discuss with you."
Grand Duke Hadelus nodded with his legs crossed, gesturing for me to sit beside Arkid.
I gracefully lifted my dress hem and sat beside Arkid with proper etiquette. Then he whispered quietly.
"I will handle it myself."
His words meant he would bear Grand Duke Hadelus's anger in my stead.
'Why is he being so dependable? Heart, calm yourself!'
I felt my lips quiver at how Arkid was looking out for me.
But I had no intention of passing my own mistakes onto him. I whispered carefully, gauging the Grand Duke's mood.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of it."
Then Arkid forgot what he was whispering and stared at me blankly.
Thinking I'd been fooled all along, I smiled sheepishly, and he bit his lower lip before looking away.
That's when Grand Duke Hadelus spoke.
"What are you two whispering about?"
"It's nothing important. But what did you call me for?"
As I changed the subject, the Grand Duke's eyebrow twitched.
But rather than quibble over words, he cut straight to the matter at hand.
"I hear you disrupted Marquis Lorke's lesson today."
"Ah."
I let out a shallow exclamation as though I'd only just realized.
"Regardless of your station as Grand Duchess, Marquis Lorke is still the Grand Duke's tutor. So you've acted rashly again."
Grand Duke Hadelus emphasized "again" with a disapproving click of his tongue.
It seemed he was referring to the endless complaints and incidents I'd caused ever since I'd married into this household.
In truth, I felt wronged. All of that had been done by the original Rhoena and Hadelus before I possessed her body.
But there was no one who would believe such a thing, so I simply worked hard to clean up the mess Rhoena had left behind.
'Well, I've already gotten to see my favorite in person—cleaning up this much filth is nothing.'
I straightened my posture and smiled sweetly before speaking. My target was not Grand Duke Hadelus, but Lady Lorke.
"Lady Lorke, did Marquis Lorke only mention that I disrupted his lesson?"
Lady Lorke, unprepared for the question directed at her, showed a sharp reaction.
"Are you suggesting my brother hid his own faults and only spoke of things favorable to him?"
"Well, I didn't exactly say that, but it seems something struck a nerve."
"I, that is...."
Lady Lorke trembled and couldn't continue speaking. But having already obtained the reaction I wanted, my gaze turned toward the Grand Duke.
"I did disrupt the lesson. But I had good reason to set aside courtesy."
At my overly confident demeanor, Grand Duke Hadelus tilted his head and asked.
"What do you mean by having good reason?"
"Because Marquis Lorke was abusing my husband under the guise of corporal punishment."
"...Abuse?"
The Grand Duke's eyebrows twitched at the word abuse.
"Yes. Today I heard something fall heavily in Arkid's study."
"...."
"Worried that something urgent might have happened, I asked for the key to be brought."
"And then?"
As Grand Duke Hadelus urged me to continue, I exhaled a long breath.
After a moment's pause, I shuddered slightly as though reluctant to recall it, then continued.
"When I entered, my husband was collapsed with blood streaming from his head. A sharp quill and an inkwell lay scattered beside him."
Of course, this account was colored by my omniscient fan perspective and somewhat exaggerated, but there was no need to explain that.
"I was so shocked that I did raise my voice rather forcefully to Marquis Lorke. But anyone who had seen that sight would have acted as I did."
"...."
As my eloquent explanation ended, the Grand Duke's gaze naturally turned to Arkid's forehead. Then he immediately reached out and brushed back his bangs.
As his forehead was revealed, the marks of stitched and treated wounds became visible.
"This is...."
The Grand Duke's words trailed off upon seeing Arkid's wound. As though he'd never imagined Marquis Lorke would strike his own son.
Then again, he'd shown no interest in what his son did, so he wouldn't have noticed his forehead was split open.
"...."
As Grand Duke Hadelus's expression hardened at once, Arkid spoke.
"I'm fine."
"Fine? Blood was dripping everywhere! He threw it so hard that my husband couldn't even get up off the floor."
As I made a fuss, Arkid looked at me with suspicion, as if questioning my motives.
I had a habit of exaggerating my explanations, which only made matters worse.
Arkid seemed to want to end things quietly on his own terms, but I had other plans.
After all, I had deliberately waited for the right moment to interrupt Marquis Lorke's lesson.
'I'll make sure Marquis Lorke never lays a hand on my husband again.'
As I steeled my resolve, I suddenly heard sobbing—the sound of Bestia Lorke weeping.
---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------