No Evil Lady in the World (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 14
Ariante’s chubby cheeks flushed bright red in an instant. Her flustered eyes darted wildly, and her confused mind seemed almost visible, unsure of how to respond.
“Well, a child is still a child.”
Meiana thought to herself.
No matter how clever or smart she tried to be, a seven-year-old was just a seven-year-old. A seven-year-old, no matter how mischievous or naughty, could never do anything as sinister or scheming as adults. They didn’t know how to craft elaborate lies or feign indifference.
Just like how Ariante right now couldn’t hide her emotions at all.
“Answer me, my lady.”
At Meiana’s words, a sharp glint flashed in Ariante’s eyes. Perhaps out of frustration from lacking a response, she tried to push Meiana’s shoulders with both hands, but even that failed.
Meiana, who had already seen through Ariante’s patterns, easily blocked the small hands.
“See, I don’t do that, do I?”
“Just because you don’t doesn’t mean you like me. You’re just pretending.”
“Pretending? Me?”
Meiana burst into laughter.
“Why do you think I’m pretending to like you, my lady?”
“Because Father gives you money.”
A sudden silence fell. This time, Meiana was the one caught off guard. Ariante, seeming to think the silence was her victory, flashed a triumphant smile. But she looked uneasy. It was clear she found this situation, this conversation, uncomfortable and wanted to avoid it.
Meiana, who had been staring at Ariante, spoke.
“Beinti probably gets paid more than I do, you know?”
Ariante’s eyes blinked in confusion. Meiana, carefully tying the laces on the child’s shoes, continued in a casual tone.
“Kosha probably gets paid much more than I do too. And what about Teacher Biman? The head chef, or Joslyn, the head butler—they surely earn more than I do. They’ve worked at the ducal estate for a long time, after all. But those people yell at you, don’t listen to you, and tell you to do things you dislike, don’t they? Yet I, who earn far less—a pittance, really—don’t do that to you. Why do you think that is?”
Suddenly, Ariante furrowed her brows.
“What’s a pittance?”
Meiana spread her thumb and index finger slightly, exaggerating a frown as if mimicking Ariante’s expression.
“It means very little. Anyway, I earn less than the head butler, Kosha, the head chef, or even Beinti, but I don’t yell at you. I’ll listen to everything you say. So please don’t say I’m pretending to like you because of money. It hurts my feelings.”
“What does it mean to hurt your feelings?”
“It means my heart aches.”
Ariante’s eyes blinked subtly. She looked deep in thought.
Why was it that she never flinched at any other words but reacted so seriously to “my heart aches”? What on earth was going on in this little child’s mind?
“I really need to have a parent-teacher conference. If I’d known it’d be like this, I should’ve eavesdropped when her mother was at the meeting.”
Meiana thought, holding Ariante’s small hand.
Duke Valterminster, or rather Sediloi, returned to the duchy the day after Meiana had a heated argument with Teacher Biman.
He returned after dinner time and briefly visited Ariante’s room. Meiana, sitting on a sofa doing needlework, glanced at the peculiar reunion of father and daughter.
“Father.”
The moment the door opened, Ariante spun around, about to run with a bright smile, but suddenly hesitated and stopped in place.
That alone was strange enough, but Sediloi, too, couldn’t hide an awkward, distant expression despite seeing his daughter after days apart.
“Ariante, have you been well? Have you studied hard?”
Ariante glanced at Meiana, likely checking her reaction. Meiana pretended to focus solely on her needlework, acting as if she had no interest in Ariante.
“I studied hard.”
Her voice was small. She knew she was lying. Meiana, suppressing a smile, finally set her needlework aside and stood up.
“Welcome back, Your Grace.”
“I was about to leave again soon. You could’ve greeted me then, you know?”
Meiana, who had slightly bowed her head, rolled her eyes to look at him. Was he joking, or was this a genuine rebuke? It was hard to tell.
“I’m sorry. I was distracted by my needlework.”
At that moment, Ariante cut into their conversation.
“Father, I… I drew a picture. It’s of you. Would you like to see it?”
A flicker of panic crossed Sediloi’s face. But it quickly turned into a gentle, perfect, fatherly smile.
Ariante reacted keenly to every shift in his expression. Like a small animal perking up its ears at the slightest rustle, she clearly couldn’t relax under Sediloi’s gaze or even his breathing.
Watching this, Meiana pursed her lips unnoticed.
“No matter how you look at it, something’s off.”
Sediloi spoke.
“If it’s a picture you drew, of course your father should see it. Will you fetch it?”
“Yes! Just wait a moment!”
Her cheeks flushed red, Ariante ran toward the study. Left alone in the room, Meiana and Sediloi’s eyes met. Their gazes seemed to probe each other. Instead of scolding Meiana for her less-than-servile attitude, Sediloi sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
“As soon as I returned, Teacher Biman cornered me with a long lecture. Seems I have a lot to hear from you.”
Talk about fast moves. Meiana inwardly scoffed. She could vividly picture Teacher Biman charging like an angry rhinoceros, demanding she be sacked the moment the duke stepped off his carriage.
Meiana responded.
“I also have much to say to you, Your Grace. Mostly about the young lady’s daily life.”
Sediloi’s eyebrow twitched.
“Ariante can be a handful, I know. But…”
“No, it’s not about her causing trouble or me wanting to quit. It’s not that…”
Just then, Ariante ran back, clutching a piece of paper, interrupting their conversation. Meiana pretended to focus on her needlework again while listening to the father and daughter.
Taking the drawing from Ariante, Sediloi’s eyes moved as if unsure how to react.
Ariante hesitantly spoke.
“Father, did I… did I draw it badly?”
Meiana’s head snapped up. Sediloi, for some reason, glanced at her instinctively. Meiana’s wide eyes seemed to say, “Just try saying it’s bad.”
“It’s… very well drawn!”
As soon as Sediloi spoke, Meiana slapped her forehead and lowered her head. But Sediloi, unaware of what was wrong, continued his awkward praise.
“It’s a splendid picture, Ariante. Hmm… you’re very talented.”
“Really, Father? What’s splendid about it?”
“Well…”
Sediloi’s eyes darted around. Pointing vaguely at the entire picture, he continued.
“These… parts. The colors and such. They’re splendid.”
Meiana sighed.
“Read a book, for heaven’s sake. Even a puppet would act more naturally.”
Ariante, with a faint smile, took the picture back from Sediloi.
Though her face wasn’t visible as she turned away, Meiana could tell how dejected Ariante must look. Just seeing her small shoulders slump, it was clear she knew Sediloi’s response was half-hearted.
Sediloi patted Ariante’s head, repeating meaningless praise, then left the room citing work. Staring at the closing door, Ariante looked down at the picture in her hands once more, then suddenly tore it to pieces.
“My lady!”
Startled, Meiana tossed her needlework aside and stood up.
Ariante, having thrown the torn pieces, turned around, her eyes red and swollen. For a seven-year-old, the expression was too sad and empty, leaving even Meiana at a loss for words, staring blankly.
“My lady, your picture…”
“I don’t want to hear it!”
Screaming, Ariante ran into her room. She slammed the bedroom door shut, and loud noises came from inside—whether she was throwing things or crying, it was hard to tell.
Meiana sighed, picking up the scattered pieces of the picture. Amid the pity, she couldn’t help but smile.
The figure had an oversized head, arms sprouting directly from the neck without shoulders, and was holding a giant sword—a bizarre depiction, but clearly of Duke Valterminster. The right hand, stretched out horizontally, even had a ring drawn on it.
Sighing, Meiana folded the picture and tucked it into her pocket, then put away her needlework. With a resolute expression, she left the room.
Even after returning to the duchy, Sediloi had little time to rest. Checking all the changes in the duchy meticulously recorded by Joslyn during his absence was no small task.
And then there were the piles of documents awaiting approval… Though the Valterminster duchy was part of the El Bruen kingdom, administrative matters within the estate were the duke’s responsibility. Naturally, this included financial matters like imports and exports.
A knock came at the study door. Sediloi, signing a document without looking up, said,
“Come in.”
It must be Joslyn, he thought. Probably with another stack of documents…
But his guess was wrong. It wasn’t Joslyn but Meiana.
“Sorry to interrupt while you’re busy.”
At the clear but bold voice, Sediloi glanced up. Realizing it was Meiana, he furrowed his brow and set down his pen.
“What’s this about all of a sudden?”
“As I mentioned earlier, I have things to discuss regarding the young lady. I’d like you to spare me some time. And didn’t you say you had things to hear from me as well?”
Sediloi’s fingers tapped slowly, as if playing a piano. Tilting his head slightly, he stood, the lamplight flickering.
Pointing to the sofa, Sediloi said,
“Let’s sit and talk.”
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
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It was her who made that old lady blind?? What an awful person……or maybe not, but still she is really disgusting.
BOY DONT PLAY WITH ME. OMG NO WONDER THE CHILD IS BEHAVING LIKE LOOSE GOOSE
Very matured. Just blaming anyone but yourself on your inadequacy.