Cedilroy didn’t get angry. Instead, he looked at Mayana with a hollow gaze. He seemed to be accepting her words with his whole body, feeling disheartened, but also appeared to be scoffing as if to say, “What do you know?”
Mayana said,
“Now I understand.”
“Understand what?”
“The attitude of the servants in this mansion. To me, it was unbelievably rude to the princess. No matter how troublesome she was, it wasn’t the way to treat the only heir of the Ducal house. I mean everyone. But there was a reason for all of that. You knew all along, yet you let it be, Duke.”
A shallow furrow appeared on Cedilroy’s forehead.
In fact, he didn’t know the Duke’s situation as vividly as Mayana thought. He had only been interested in the major issues, primarily the economic and administrative aspects of the duchy.
He had left most of the trivial matters to Joslyn, and there had been no problems until now. As for Ariante…
Mayana continued,
“What’s with the rumor that the Duchess fell into the lake and passed away? The princess’s biological mother… Was she really… Did she really take her own life?”
Cedilroy looked at Mayana with a scrunched face.
“That’s nonsense. Liriya is…”
His words momentarily trailed off. Mayana felt a strange chill penetrate her body like a shiver, but she quietly waited for Cedilroy’s words.
After a moment of silence, Cedilroy said,
“Both Liriya and Berbo died by falling into the lake.”
“How did it happen? Were you there at the time, Duke?”
Cedilroy’s gaze fell downward.
“Yes, I was. But by the time I realized what had happened, it was already too late. Berbo and Liriya appeared before me as cold corpses.”
“So it was an accident.”
“The boat seemed to be broken below. It wasn’t big enough to withstand the water coming in. The two of them didn’t take any attendants to the lake… So no one knew. We only realized something was wrong late at night.”
Mayana took a ragged breath. The truth and falsehoods mixed in rumors were not mere idle curiosity. Whoever started those rumors clearly harbored malice.
Just to hurt Ariante.
“Really…!”
Mayana, who was about to raise her voice, closed her lips tightly and glared at Cedilroy. He tilted his head slightly to one side and rubbed his face with his palm as he said,
“You may think it’s pathetic, but I didn’t know everything like you said.”
Mayana sneered.
“So you’re saying it’s not your fault at all, Duke?”
“I didn’t say that.”
Mayana abruptly stood up, her emotions reaching a boiling point.
If she continued to face Cedilroy like this, she felt she might kick him out, just as she had done to Lord Povec.
“I may not have known everything until now, but that’s good. You should think about what to do for the princess now that you know. Firing me is no matter, but it would be good to have people who will do their best for the princess regardless of her background. For her sake.”
With a stiff expression, Mayana bowed and said,
“I’ll take my leave now.”
Then, without waiting for Cedilroy’s permission, she quickly left the bedroom. Cedilroy turned his head and watched her leave, then said,
“Jemero.”
Jemero, who had been waiting outside, quickly approached Cedilroy.
“You called, Your Grace?”
Cedilroy let out a deep sigh but soon stood up with an unperturbed face.
“Call for the Head Butler Joslyn.”
“Understood.”
The command was given, and Zemero immediately left his seat. Sedilloi, leaning his arm against the window frame, wore a dark expression that quickly turned into a complex worry, a look of frustration that seemed strangely mournful.
(Time separator here.)
When Mayana went down to the dining room, contrary to her worries, Arianthe was quietly sitting, waiting for her.
“Why on earth, my goodness! You’re not messy children, so why carry this around?”
Maid Kosha grumbled as if Mayana should hear her. Mayana pretended not to hear Kosha’s words, hugged Arianthe, and left the dining room, asking,
“Princess, why is Miss Kosha acting like that?”
Then Arianthe, mischievously laughing, whispered to Mayana,
“I gave her a cicada shell. Do you know how loudly she screamed? It sounded just like a horse’s cry.”
“A cicada shell?”
It was what she had hidden in her pocket… Mayana’s eyes narrowed, and Arianthe promptly turned her head with a sly expression.
“I didn’t give it first. Kosha asked what was in my pocket first.”
“I didn’t say anything, Princess.”
“I know what people are saying just by looking into their eyes.”
Mayana chuckled and pinched Arianthe’s round cheek. It was a nonchalant reaction, but on reflection, it was a bitter statement. Knowing just by looking, a sense too keen for a child.
“Really? What do you think I said?”
“You called me a troublemaker. In your mind.”
“Hmm, this time you’re wrong, Princess. I never said that.”
This time, Arianthe’s eyes narrowed to follow Mayana. Mayana said,
“You just said ‘Liar!’ in your mind, didn’t you?”
“Then tell me, what did I say?”
“I admired how you thought of such a brilliant prank with a cicada shell!”
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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