“This audacious person!”

Duke Bold grabbed my shoulders firmly and shouted.

Surprised, I bit my lip and tried to push him away.

However, overcoming the strength of a sturdy middle-aged man was no easy task.

“Let go of this!”

“After making me wait for a whopping five years by postponing our promise! And now, you’re reaching into another pocket?”

Duke Bold, as if his anger had surged again, shouted fiercely, glaring at me.

“Was this your plan from the beginning? To use me to secure the position of the Duchess and leave with your share only?”

“Stop it! Stop the nonsense and let go of this!”

I struggled with all my might to break free from Duke Bold’s grip.

But then, Duke Bold, who had bitten his teeth, rushed at me again. He started pressing hard against my throat, which was now pinned to the wall.

“Ugh…!”

The strength of Duke Bold, who held onto my throat, gradually increased.

I tried hitting his hand with my fists, kicking him, but it was all in vain.

Duke Bold, who had been glaring at me fiercely, suddenly started laughing like a deranged person.

“Do you dare to think that you can easily escape from my grip after using me?”

“Ugh…”

“If you come out like this, I’ll divorce you, bring one of the daughters from my officials into the family and reinstate her as the Duchess. But you?”

An unpleasant aura emanated from his twisted eyes.

“Do you think I’ll let you live like this?”

It felt like I would be suffocated and choke to death at any moment.

For a moment, he looked down at me with a calm expression as I suffered.

Just for a moment. Duke Bold loosened his grip a bit, then leaned close to my ear and whispered.

“So, let me say it nicely… Bring ‘Lillian’s heart’ in front of me.”

With that, an even stronger odor of alcohol emanated from him.

Hearing the unfamiliar words, I glared at him. Duke Bold, who noticed, shouted with his teeth clenched.

“Otherwise, I’ll kill you right here… Ugh?!”

At that moment, with an outer scream, Duke Bold’s head snapped back sharply.

“Who dares to kill someone in the Dark Mansion now?”

With a chilling voice, I, freed from Duke Bold’s pressure, bent my waist and gasped for breath.

After recovering my breath for a while…

“This… I can’t let go of this!”

Duke Bold’s frightened voice finally reached my ears.

I slowly raised my head and looked around.

… Minah?

Not only Minah but also several maids responsible for the Duchess’s mansion were present.

Unlike usual, wearing loose maid outfits, all of them were dressed in black activity attire.

The change wasn’t just in their outfits.

The cheerful faces that usually smiled were nowhere to be found.

All of them were now glaring at Duke Bold with a stern expression.

Duke Bold, facing these expressions, turned as pale as a sheet in an instant.
It also seemed that the energy was emanating from them.

“Oh… Don’t come any closer!”

Duke Bold gradually shouted at the maids who were approaching him.

However, like predators finding their prey, the maids slowly loosened their bodies and continued to approach him.

Minah sneered at the frightened Duke Bold.

“What should we do? Dying in this place today is not for our Duchess….”

Then, she whispered near his ear.

“It seems like you’re a Duke?”

Duke Bold, trembling violently while Minah held his neck, soon shouted harshly.

“I can’t let go of this! How dare you do this, thinking you can easily escape from me!”

As Duke Bold, tortured by pain, stepped back, a maid standing behind Minah approached and twisted Duke Bold’s arm.

“Ack…!”

“Especially you, Duke. Who did you think this person was to treat her so recklessly?”

The maids, with even more fierce expressions, ground their teeth.

“Ugh, this… Let go!”

Duke Bold, suffering in pain, stepped back.

Then, Minah, releasing his neck as if throwing away trash, approached me.

“Are you okay, Your Grace?”

Contrary to a while ago, she had a kind smile on her face as usual.

I stared at Minah’s face in bewilderment.

Although I knew she had been hiding her strength in front of me, seeing it directly made me dumbfounded.

“Your Grace, just give the order. If you want me to send Duke Bold away, it’s a pity, but I’ll just send him away. And…”

“….?”

“Fortunately, if you want me to bury him, I’ll be happy to bury him in a pleasant place in the demonic forest!”

Minah smiled brightly and said, “Then no one will know!”

When I raised my thumb in admiration, Duke Bold’s complexion turned even whiter.

“This… You crazy people! You’re not ordinary crazy! How dare you say such things towards someone!”

Duke Bold shouted, arms bound by the maids.

His lower jaw was shaking continuously.

Whether it was due to extreme anger or fear of the gaze of the lively women, I wasn’t sure.

“How dare you say such things to the Duke of the Empire! This… the immodest nature of the, the, the half-blooded demons is beyond belief!”

Facing his provocation, the maids’ expressions became even colder.

As the chilling silence continued for a while.

“….Ugh!”