After Linking the Villainess and Male Lead (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 19
But Kaern remained silent as ever, his attitude unchanged.
‘Why is he acting like this?’
Kaern’s sudden appearance had cast a heavy, awkward atmosphere over the room.
“Your Grace?”
As I stood there, bewildered by his inexplicable reaction and unsure what to do, only my eyes moved.
After a long silence, Kaern’s lips—seeming as if they might never part again—finally opened.
He looked at Lucas with a face utterly devoid of emotion and spoke.
“The Aiker family?”
“Yes, that’s correct. My name is Lucas Aiker.”
“The maidservant told me dinner was already over—was she mistaken?”
“Yes?”
“Given how late it is, I believe it would be best for our guest to take his leave, now that dinner is finished. Hmm…”
When Lucas failed to grasp his meaning immediately and asked for clarification, Kaern quickly added more.
Only then did I understand his intent—and Lucas seemed to realize it as well.
Lucas’s expression twisted painfully at Kaern’s blunt dismissal, coming right after his greeting had been ignored.
“I was in the middle of having tea with Helena.”
Kaern’s gaze shifted to the teapot I was holding.
“Helena, what do you think? Since it’s so late, perhaps it would be better to postpone your tea with your friend until another time?”
This time, he was asking me.
“Oh, well…”
I hesitated for a moment, unsure what to say.
I had a premonition that my answer would drastically alter the situation.
But my indecision didn’t last long.
Unlike Lucas, who clearly wished to leave soon, I had been hoping Kaern would come to the capital as quickly as possible—even better, that he’d visit our home as a guest…
Though I felt sorry for Lucas, there was no room for hesitation.
“I was actually just going to replace the tea—it had gone cold.”
At my words, Lucas’s face brightened, while Kaern’s brow furrowed.
Afraid either of them might misunderstand, I hurriedly added,
“But now that I think about it, it really is quite late. I’m sorry to say this so abruptly, Lucas, but I think you should head home for today.”
“What? Helena…?”
Lucas stared at me, dumbfounded, as if he’d never expected me to say that.
“The Duke has just returned from the capital, and I have matters to discuss with him. I’m truly sorry. I’ll treat you to tea properly another time.”
I gave Lucas a faint, sincere smile as I apologized.
“Oh, alright. I suppose there’s nothing to be done, then.”
Fortunately, Lucas accepted my words without further protest.
“But promise me you’ll give me more time than today when we meet next.”
“Huh? Ah, yes. Of course I will.”
I replied, pouring my apology into my answer.
“Alright. Then I’ll take my leave now. Duke of Lavellion, though our meeting was brief, it was truly an honor.”
After finishing his farewell to me, Lucas turned and bowed to Kaern as well.
Worried Kaern might ignore Lucas’s greeting again, I watched the two of them anxiously.
“Lord Aiker.”
Thankfully, this time Kaern responded to Lucas’s greeting.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
The two men locked eyes.
“Were you unaware, my lord, that Lady Rosentia already has a fiancé?”
But what escaped Kaern’s lips wasn’t a final farewell—it was something entirely unexpected.
“No, of course I know. And I also know that her fiancé is none other than yourself, Duke of Lavellion, standing before me now.”
“How fortunate. I assumed you had no idea. But if you do know, then your actions strike me as even stranger. I believe it’s improper for a man with no relation to a woman to stay alone with her so late into the night—especially when she’s already betrothed. What is your opinion on this matter?”
What’s going on?
Why are they suddenly talking like this?
I listened to their exchange, utterly bewildered, until I snapped back to my senses.
Just as I was about to interject, Lucas spoke first.
“Your Grace, that’s…”
“Helena and I are friends. Are friends not even allowed to share a meal together?”
“Friends… just friends…”
Kaern murmured those words in a slightly colder tone.
“I hope you’ll remain only friends from now on.”
“Lucas, I think you should go now.”
“Helena…”
“We’ll talk again next time, okay?”
The atmosphere had grown as tense as walking on thin ice, and I felt I couldn’t let things continue like this.
So I quickly urged Lucas to leave.
At my insistence, Lucas’s lips twitched briefly before he pressed them shut.
“…Alright. I’ll contact you again.”
“Yes. Please take care on your way.”
With those words, Lucas finally left the parlor.
Even as the door closed, his uneasy gaze remained fixed on me.
But the moment he disappeared from the room, I let out a silent sigh of relief.
Now that I’d sent away the source of this mess, I could focus solely on Kaern.
Of course, figuring out why he was in such a foul mood wouldn’t be easy.
“Your Grace…”
When I cautiously called his name, our eyes met immediately.
“Did your business conclude well?”
I tried to steer the conversation as if nothing had happened.
But he only stared at me with that same cold gaze and offered no reply.
“Well, Your Grace, I was just…”
Everything I’d planned to say to him now seemed entirely inappropriate for this situation.
I attempted to lighten the mood with some casual talk, but my mind went blank.
Eventually, I fell silent—and then his voice, even lower than before, reached my ears.
“You’ve been friends with Lucas Aiker since the academy?”
“Huh? Yes, that’s right.”
Why has he been fixating on the word ‘friend’ since earlier?
Though the question crossed my mind, I answered his query without delay.
“Yes, we are friends. As I mentioned before, we attended the academy together. Oh—you remember Evelyn, whom we met at the banquet? Both Evelyn and Lucas were close friends of mine back in academy days.”
“Close friends?”
“Yes. Not as close as Adelia, of course. Oh, Your Grace, please come sit over here. I just happen to have some wonderfully fragrant tea—would you care for a cup?”
I offered the sofa to Kaern, who had been standing the whole time.
Thankfully, he slowly nodded and took a seat.
“Then please wait just a moment. Amy!”
“Yes, miss.”
At my call, Amy, who’d been standing outside the door with a surprised look, entered the room.
“Please prepare some fresh, warm tea. And bring some cookies to go with it, if you would.”
“Yes, I’ll get it ready right away.”
“Thank you.”
Amy left the room, and the door closed behind her.
Once again, Kaern and I were alone.
I stared quietly at Kaern seated across from me.
By the way—when did he return to the capital?
Was it today?
‘But he didn’t come straight from the estate, did he?’
His attire wasn’t the formal uniform he usually wore at home or for brief outings.
And his clothes—uncharacteristically wrinkled—seemed to suggest he’d been riding for a long time.
“Did your business go well? When did you return to the capital?”
I asked again, hoping to finally receive the answer I’d missed earlier.
“Today.”
“If it was today, did you arrive around this afternoon?”
“No. I’ve only just returned.”
“What? Right now? So you came straight to see me as soon as you arrived in the capital?”
Instead of answering, Kaern simply nodded.
But why?
Why did he rush to see me so urgently?
“Do you have something you wish to tell me?”
“Must there always be a reason to visit one’s fiancée?”
“Well… no, but…”
Afraid this topic would only lead to unnecessary words, I quickly changed the subject.
“Oh, right! Last time I visited the garden, I did a bit of tidying up—did the butler happen to mention it to you?”
“No. Not yet.”
“Ah, of course—you came straight here after returning to the capital, so you wouldn’t have heard. Since you gave me permission to visit the garden whenever I wished, I went. I planted many new flowers this time—I think you’ll like them.”
“Was there anything else noteworthy?”
“Huh? No, as promised, I only visited the garden.”
With Kaern away, there really wasn’t anything else I could possibly have done at the estate.
Top Celebrity Younger Brother Bears Her Child (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: Forced to live stream romance with a top celebrity in a female-dominant world.
Yan Jin transmigrated into a brothel, with a fellow transmigrated junior beside her.
Hearing the obscene words coming from outside, the unfortunate junior covered his ears tightly, his cheeks flushed red, and whispered to comfort her, “Don’t worry, I will definitely help you escape.”
“Don’t worry, I will definitely defend your chastity.” Yan Jin looked at the flawless and delicate features of the unfortunate junior and gently comforted, “Because we have transmigrated into a female-dominant world.”
※※※
Top celebrity Yu Shu suddenly fell into a coma during a concert.
Research scientist Yan Jin fainted in the lab after working overtime.
Two people with no connection were rushed to the same hospital.
Three days later, neither of them had woken up.
Suddenly, the entire nation discovered that a live streaming app had been forcibly installed on their phones.
Upon opening it, they heard the two discussing how to escape from the brothel.
The entire internet was in an uproar.
After the two successfully escaped from the brothel, Yu Shu’s fan group rushed to make a banner and sent it to the hospital overnight.
“Big sister bravely took action to defend the chastity of our idol!”
※※※
When Yu Shu was diagnosed with pregnancy, Yan Jin stared at his belly for a long time.
Covering his stomach, he muttered gloomily, “If you don’t like it, I’ll go get an abortion.”
“It’s not that I don’t like it.” Yan Jin hugged Yu Shu and said softly, “I just feel like I’m not human.”
Yu Shu comforted Yan Jin, “I was already an adult when we got together.”
Yan Jin hesitated, “But you won’t be of legal marriageable age even after giving birth to the child.”
At the same time, a flood of bullet comments appeared in the live streaming room that the two couldn’t see.
[Although it’s inappropriate, I also want a young and handsome boyfriend to have my child.]
①Male pregnancy (highlighted)
The female lead is five years older than the male lead, and the male lead is already an adult when he appears.
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If there is a person checking these comments. Can you please add a word/letter count to the bottom. Also sometimes the comments don’t stay within the chapter you read but throughout the whole book, please fix that glitch. Another, per book- hour limited to how many comments can earn cookies – it’s better you write that somewhere or give a notification to the commenter about that. The notification about the 3/3 free reads glitch too, sometimes it says 3/1,1/3,1/1 or not work. The cookies glitch sometimes too, id have 10 but when I try to unlock chapter it keeps saying I have none. Love yalls work!
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