Hush Now, Saintess! - Chapter 115

Chapter 115

Translator: Yonnee

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“I mentioned that I would, but we haven’t signed the contract yet. We’ll probably do it next time we meet.”

The duke silently stared at me before speaking in a grumpy tone.

“So, why are you only telling me this now?”

“Pardon?”

“The matter you had with the Young Duke, and just now as well. Why does it always seem like I’m the last to know?”

“Um, well, you weren’t in the capital until recently.”

Tsk. The Duke clicked his tongue, as if he had nothing to say.

“That may be true, but still… hmph.”

What’s this attitude?

Don’t tell me…

“Are you… upset?”

“Upset? Who, me?”

I had thrown the question out there, just in case, but his quick, defensive answer made everything clear.

‘Oh, he is upset.’

One hundred percent upset.

What do I even do in a situation like this? Lately, I’ve been dealing with so many unfamiliar things.

After thinking for a moment, I decided to compare it to another situation.

‘Let’s think of it like when the boss gets upset because the part-timers are only close to each other.’

Surprisingly, that analogy worked pretty well.

With a shameless expression, I shrugged my shoulders.

“Now that I think about it, it’s only natural you didn’t know.”

“What?”

“Actually, the first person I’m telling you about this is you.”

Twitch.

The corners of the Duke’s mouth slightly twitched.

“You haven’t told anyone else?”

“No.”

“…Not even Graham?”

Why is the butler being brought up here?

I didn’t quite understand, but I nodded anyway.

“That’s right…”

“So, I’m the first to hear this?”

“Yes. Who else would I tell something this important to before my father?”

“…Ahem. Well, that’s true.”

Okay. Situation resolved.

I internally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Well, it’s a good thing, regardless.”

Now we can properly show those who dared to look down on us.

“Wait, what was that?”

“Nothing. Anyway, is it true that things are over between you and the Young Duke?”

“Yes, it’s true.”

I nodded, and the duke’s eyes turned fierce.

Wait, did I do something wrong?

However, his gaze wasn’t directed at me.

“I see. So all the rumors were true, then.”

* * *

The duke was simmering with rage.

He had been away from the capital due to some things he needed to take care of in the estate, and while he was gone strange rumors had reached his ears.

—I heard Her Ladyship was crying her eyes out?

—What? The same Ducal Lady we know? She always seemed like the type who wouldn’t shed a single tear, no matter what!

—I’m telling you, she was bawling in front of a huge crowd. She collapsed on the ground, sobbing like no tomorrow…

As the rumors spread from the capital, they grew more and more exaggerated.

By the time they reached the Brietta estate, Roella had become a tragic woman, weeping in the town square after having the man she loved stolen by her cousin.

Of course, if you wanted to be technical, Roella’s feelings were one-sided, so the word ‘stolen’ wasn’t quite accurate…

—They were practically a couple, you know?

—Right. Actually, I heard that they were in a secret relationship.

—Wow. And her cousin got in between them? I’d cry too if that happened to me!

Even Roella’s words, where she supposedly muttered something like, ‘You said I was the only one, but you’re a liar, Young Duke. Well then, please be happy,’ had been wildly exaggerated.

When the duke heard this, he nearly clutched the back of his neck, feeling his blood pressure skyrocket.

Roella, crying?

In front of people, no less?

The image of Roella shedding tears after being threatened by a maid flashed through his mind.

He had been so shocked to see her crying, a girl who hadn’t known tears her whole life.

But now, she had apparently wept in front of a crowd.

Because of that punk of a young duke?

‘It’s good that she gave up on him, but still…’

The duke had never approved of Roella’s one-sided love for Demos.

He hated how she was so fixated on him, causing one problem after another, but it wasn’t just Demos himself he disliked.

To be precise, it was the family he came from that the duke despised.

Duke Killian was the current emperor’s older brother and held the title of First Imperial Prince during the reign of the late emperor.

In fact, he should have been first in line for the throne given his position in the imperial family, but he had too many flaws to be a proper successor.

He was indulgent, greedy, and cruel.

As a result, the current emperor, the second prince, had been named crown prince instead.

Not long after that, the first prince renounced his imperial title and became a duke of his own accord.

‘Everyone thought it was odd.’

A man as ambitious as the first prince, willingly giving up his imperial title?

There were whispers among the high-ranking nobility.

They speculated that the first prince had committed some grave crime and, as part of covering it up, he had been forced to relinquish his claim to the throne and was essentially exiled.

It wasn’t just baseless gossip—most people knew there was truth behind it.

Naturally, Roella being infatuated with the Young Duke from such a family was unacceptable.