When the Nemesis Eats the Wicked Woman

Chapter 59

At that confession, my heart was warm and then cold.

Thinking that he might someday hate me with such desperation in the distant future, my heart became as cold as ice.

Conversely, when I think of the days of that young child, the boy, the youth and the man who thought of me without changing for a single day…

My heart felt like it was on fire.

I didn’t know what to do, but I grabbed his arm that was holding me tightly.

‘If I confess everything right now, will you accept me?’

“Rixus…”

It was when I opened my mouth despite not knowing what to say.

Toktok–

My thoughts were broken by the sound of a knock coming from outside.

I heard a servant’s voice asking if he could serve the dessert since the meal was over.

I struggled to control my emotions, but eventually, I calmly opened my mouth.

“No need for dessert.”

The sound of the servant retreating could be heard softly.

Soon after, it was just the two of us again. Rixus carefully pulled me out of his arms and looked at me.

“Let’s take it slow.”

His unwavering gaze calmed my heart.

“What are you going to do slowly?”

“When we get married, and have a child… If I spend a long time with you as an unchanging figure…”

“……”

“The fear will disappear in no time.”

“……”

“I’ll get rid of it.”

His willingness to defeat even my fear reached me.

Just by saying that, it felt like my anxiety and fear had been relieved to some extent.

I laughed hard.

“Candy, there’s nothing to be anxious about, nothing to rush.”

It was the first time. To have someone tell me this sort of thing.

Ever since I took possession, I always trembled in the fire alone and endured each day with a feeling of being chased.

The words, ‘Take it slow, there is no rush.’ It was not a big deal, but I felt strangely touched and my eyes were heating up.

It felt like my heart, which had been exhausted from returning countless times, was relieved a little.

And strangely, the periphery of the heart became heavy and tight.

“…I’ll get going now.”

I felt like I was going to cry, so I quickly settled down and walked away from him.

He said sweetly,

“I’ll take you to your room.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“I want to take you. The Imperial Palace is wide, so my wife might get lost.”

…Sly like a fool.

I turned to him and narrowed my eyes.

Then I stretched out a finger and exclaimed firmly.

“It’s forbidden to be clingy.”

He smiled softly with his eyes closed and let out a low laugh.

“Ah… I’m going to go crazy because I want to be clingy.”

Until recently, he was a strong adult, but now, he was like a bad rascal.

That was kind of cute.

“I’m really going to go now.”

It was when I grabbed the doorknob. He called my name.

“Berylia.”

“……Yes?”

“From now on, don’t feel sick alone, and tell me anything.”

“……”

“I’ll listen to everything.”

“……”

I slowly looked at him.

My worries could be shared with anyone in the world if I decided to do so.

But if there was only one person in the world who I could not share it with, it was Rixus.

‘How could I when my worry is you.’

But I wanted to put his heart at ease, so I raised the corner of my lips and smiled.

“I told you everything today, so don’t worry, because there’s no more.”

I lied.

Fortunately, he smiled playfully and nodded as if he believed my lie.

Only then did I leave the dinner room with relief.

* * *

‘What are you hiding?’

Rixus remained alone, staring at the door she had exited.

Although he was originally sharp, he had developed even better senses when it came to detecting changes in Berylia’s expression, eyes and mood.

It was his own outstanding ability that he naturally acquired after getting to know Berylia.

When one fell in love with a woman who pretended to be strong all the time……

He was concerned about what kind of weakness there was.

If he noticed, then she wouldn’t stand alone. 

“…….”

Rixus looked at the plate Berylia had left behind.

For some reason, her anxious expression while not touching her food, remained as an afterimage and tormented him.

“I don’t think she said everything…”

Rixus sighed as if he was tired, and wiped the corners of his eyes with his large palm.

Obviously there was something more.

It didn’t seem like Berylia wanted to tell him, but something was constantly making her uneasy.

What in the world was it?

“Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

Then the door suddenly opened and there was a belated knocking sound–toktoktok.

Ires asked, sticking out his head from the open door.

“…You seem to have been thinking hard, should I come back later?”

“No. What’s going on?”

Ires entered the room and spoke politely.

“I have prepared a carriage for you and Her Majesty.”

It was ordered by Rixus himself before lunch.

Originally, he had planned to go outside the Imperial Palace after eating dessert with Berylia.

“As you instructed, the shock-absorbing magic is applied, so riding on it will be amazing! You’ll love it, Her Majesty too.”

Ires smiled brightly without any sense.

Rixus waved his hand.

“I no longer need it. Put it back.”

Ires eyes, that were behind his monocle, widened.

‘Did he get dumped by the Queen again?’

At the last banquet, didn’t Her Majesty the Queen crumpled the note that his master carefully wrote, as if it was a piece of tissue paper?

It was when Ires was shaking his head.

“Ires.”

At his master’s call, Ires quickly raised his head.

“Yes!”

“Is there still no contact from Archduke Marquis?”

By now, they should have heard the news that the marriage permit had been stamped.

No, in fact, it was a time when the ink of the stamp should be dried.

It was customary for the result to be notified within three days after the first night of the engagement.

“There has been no contact from the Archduke yet.”

“Why is it late?”

“Well. I asked the butler for information, but he’s a very obnoxious person…”

Ires shook his head as he thought of the butler of Archduke Marquis.

“However, he said this – ‘This time, I will thoroughly examine the public opinion of the nobility.’”

“!”

“I think he wants to see more of the nobles’ public opinion. And what is really important is the margrave’s will, isn’t it?”

* * *

The ‘someone’ that Yuria called for at Deborah’s request was the margrave.

It was for this reason that he returned from the borders and first visited the residence of Marchioness Ilmare.

To see his niece, Yuria.

It was unexpected to hear shocking news on the spot.

The margrave was with Deborah in the drawing room of the Duchy of Mavis.

“I didn’t want to tell the Margrave because I was afraid you would be worried.”

Deborah rubbed her teacup and carefully lowered her eyes.

The margrave was glaring at her with a piercing gaze.

Actually, he was just looking at her, but it felt like he was glaring at her.

He answered with a harsh voice that had rested in the harsh winds of the borders.

“This marriage is an important matter that affects the harmony of Aktoum and Spinel. There is nothing that this Gautier is not aware of.”

“Of course, it is. All imperial marriages in the past have respected the opinion of Sir Margrave.”

“So tell me.”

“But…….”

Deborah was deliberately more reserved. If one listened in a frustrated and angry state, the other person’s words would sound much more negative.

Just as expected. The margrave’s eyebrows twitched when she changed her character in a hurry.

“But?”

“Presumably, the public opinion of the nobility already favors Her Majesty, the Queen of Spinel, so of course the marriage will proceed.”

Bang! The margrave slammed the table with vigor.

“Of course nothing is going on. If this marriage goes wrong, the first thing to break is the borders.”

What he said was true. Originally, it was a kind of ‘custom’ to ask for the margrave’s will when it came to the marriage of an imperial family member.

In this marriage, the margrave’s will would be particularly important.

If the unity of the two countries was strained, the borders would be the first to suffer.

“Then I have no choice but to tell you.”

‘The poison has risen. We should talk now.’

Deborah pretended to be worried and started telling bad stories about the crown prince and his wife-to-be.

It was exactly what she had said at the tea party of Marchioness Ilmare.

The margrave’s expression darkened as he listened to the story.

“They aren’t getting along well even before getting married.”

“Because they probably have nothing in common in their customs and way of life.”

“…….”

“It’s common for couples who have lived their entire lives in different cultures to get married.”

Deborah slowly glanced at the margrave’s face.

In fact, she was deliberately leading the conversation to remind the margrave of his wife.

Margrave Gautier Mavis.

He lived his whole life as the guardian of the borders, and then married a foreign wife from the Delts.

‘It’s said they didn’t get along well.’

It was said that they fought endlessly. Because their cultures didn’t match at all.

‘It was because he married such a savage woman who was stupid and unpleasant.’

Eventually, the woman died in the chaos that took place at the borders.

Deborah spoke to him cautiously.

“I wonder, for the Crown Prince and Her Majesty the Queen… wouldn’t it be difficult to understand each other?”

“……”

“Like Sir Gautier and his deceased wife.”

The margrave’s face darkened even more. He breathed slowly.

“Ah…! I think I made a mistake.”

Deborah pretended to be embarrassed and covered her mouth with her peacock feather fan.

“No.”

The margrave added that it was okay, but his expression, which had darkened like hell, didn’t improve in the end.

And after a few days.

The ‘Holy Marriage Public Opinion’ survey had arrived at the Duchy of Mavis for the margrave.

It was a piece of paper where one simply had to write ‘agree/disagree’ and sign it.

“…….”

The margrave was troubled with the survey in front of him.

His hand hesitated for a moment, trembling in front of the paper.

“Chief, when are you going to check?”

The knight closest to him asked cautiously.

“I…….”