Reforming the Villain Family (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 9
“……I’m so sleepy.”
While checking the precious treasures I’d gathered in my bag, I let out a big yawn. If I couldn’t leave tomorrow morning either, it would be my third failure.
“I never realized running away from home would be this difficult.”
My gaze drifted to the cookie resting on top of the bag.
Without even realizing it, my fingers twitched, reaching for the cookie.
“No, no, I have to save it.”
Earlier, I’d even tried discreetly poking Delma to see if she’d give me one more cookie.
But Delma, unaware that I hadn’t eaten a single cookie in the past two days, shook her head firmly, saying absolutely not.
“You’ll get scolded if Lady Sophia catches you!”
Sophia was kind, but strict when it came to rules. It was obvious she wouldn’t budge if I asked her for another cookie.
Yet taking extra bread from meals would be too noticeable—Sophia and Delma might get suspicious.
I suppressed my craving for the cookie and firmly locked my bag.
“By the way… I accidentally spoke informally to the Duke.”
It really wasn’t intentional—it was because I’d been consciously practicing my speech to match Sophia’s instructions.
“You must speak informally to us. From now on, you are the sole young lady of the Duke’s household.”
Ever since hearing that, I’d always made a deliberate effort to adjust my manner of speaking.
But when I ran into the Duke that day, I’d been so flustered I completely forgot I was supposed to speak respectfully to him.
“Still, he didn’t seem upset.”
Was it because of the cookie? Since he didn’t say anything about it, I just kept speaking informally.
“……Was it really because of the cookie?”
In the original story, the Duke was said to dislike sweet things, yet from what I saw, he clearly liked cookies.
“Well, chocolate cookies are delicious, after all.”
Having firmly packed extra cookies just in case, I sank back into thought.
“When exactly can I leave the house without running into the Duke?”
Since I couldn’t know the Duke’s schedule precisely, I kept bumping into him every morning. Frustrated, I finally jumped up from my seat.
“I should ask someone else.”
“Young lady, where are you going?”
Sophia, who had been tidying up toys beside me, asked. I turned to her and asked,
“Sophia, do you know what time the Duke leaves tomorrow?”
“The Duke? Hmm…”
Sophia pondered for a moment, then shrugged.
“I’m not quite sure about that. Why do you ask?”
Before I could answer, Sophia nodded knowingly and continued,
“You’re planning to see the Duke off again tomorrow morning?”
I was startled—how did she know? Apparently, my expression gave everything away, because Sophia chuckled softly and said,
“People have been saying that—you go out early in the morning to see the Duke off. They say you somehow know exactly when he leaves and appear right on time to greet him.”
That it had become common gossip made me feel deeply wronged.
It truly wasn’t my intention to time it with the Duke’s departure. To Sophia, who had no idea, I probably seemed admirably thoughtful.
“How thoughtful of you! I’m sure the Duke appreciated it.”
Hearing Sophia’s words, I recalled the Duke’s actual reaction.
“That Duke?”
I carefully searched my memory. The Duke’s expression in my recollection didn’t look like he’d appreciated it—
“More like he was mocking me.”
I pouted slightly.
Of course, unlike the Duke, other people clearly showed their affection whenever they saw me.
Though, admittedly, it felt a bit overwhelming from my perspective.
Either way, I couldn’t possibly explain this to Sophia.
I let out an involuntary sigh.
“Running away from home is really difficult.”
[This is the timeline separator]
It was a pitch-black night, with only deep shadows falling—so dark even moonlight failed to shine through.
Kyleius had already lain down in bed early.
He paid attention to unfamiliar footsteps echoing in the corridor.
Not just one, but two sets. One belonged to a skilled individual; the other seemed utterly careless about hiding their presence.
The door silently opened. Kyleius, who had been waiting for intruders, immediately leapt from his spot the moment he sensed killing intent.
“Damn it!”
The intruder, startled, briefly retreated. Regaining his balance, he aimed for the Duke’s throat. Yet his swiftly swung dagger only sliced through empty air.
Kyleius stepped back slightly to evade the blade and assessed the man with an expressionless gaze. A masked face, brown eyes—an unfamiliar figure.
Kyleius drew the concealed sword he carried and targeted the man’s arm, not his throat.
Expecting an attack on his neck, the assassin failed to dodge. Instantly, deep red blood dripped heavily from his right arm.
The wound wasn’t deep. After a brief hesitation, the assassin lunged straight at Kyleius.
Kyleius swiftly adjusted his grip and blocked the blade aimed at his throat.
At the same moment he deflected the strike, another presence was felt near the door—the remaining one of the two presences he’d sensed earlier.
This second intruder seemed somewhat clumsy for an assassin; no killing intent radiated from them at all.
Though caution was warranted, the level of incompetence was almost laughable. Kyleius didn’t even glance toward the door.
Twisting his blade toward the assassin’s throat, he simultaneously noticed the clumsy presence approaching the doorway.
Was this one the assassin’s accomplice—or another intruder sent from elsewhere?
“Huh!”
At the sound of a youthful voice, Kyleius sharply turned his head.
“Why is that child here…?”
Seizing the opening, the assassin’s blade precisely targeted his heart.
“No!”
The child screamed.
[This is the timeline separator]In the middle of the night, lights blazed brightly throughout the Duke’s residence. Alarmed by the commotion, people hurriedly rushed upstairs.
While everyone’s attention was fixed on the child, an opening appeared. The assassin wisely chose to flee, seizing this first and final opportunity.
Gazing out the dark window where the intruder had vanished, Kyleius issued a chilling command.
“Pursue him.”
Knights receiving his order immediately dashed out of the room.
“First poison, and now an assassin?”
Philen, entering the room, felt utterly shaken. Moreover, his lord had let the assassin escape—did that mean the assassin was truly formidable?
As Filen stood bewildered, a sudden possibility occurred to him. Lowering his voice, he subtly asked Kyleius alone,
“My lord, you intentionally let the assassin go—to uncover who’s behind this, correct?”
Kyleius’s eyebrow twitched faintly.
“…Yes.”
“Just as I thought.”
Otherwise, there was no way his lord would have allowed the assassin to escape. Filen immediately understood.
At that moment, Kyleius bent down. In his hands now dangled the child who had entered the room.
“Ah!”
Hearing the startled, youthful cry, Kyleius loosened his grip slightly—but didn’t fully release the child.
He’d just seen the child reaching toward the fallen dagger on the floor.
“What trouble are you trying to cause now?”
Narrowing his eyes, Kyleius pulled the child closer. The child squirmed, trying to break free.
“Okay, okay! I won’t touch it!”
Philen quickly moved the dagger far away from the child.
“Young lady, you must never touch that—it’s extremely dangerous!”
“I know! But it’s fine if I just hold the handle!”
“Even so, it’s hazardous for you. Especially since that blade is coated in poison.”
“Poison?”
“Yes, an exceptionally deadly poison. If it seeps into a wound, the injury won’t heal—your flesh will rot while you’re still alive…”
“Philen, aren’t you busy?”
Kyleius cut him off lightly. Meeting his icy gaze, Filen promptly fell silent and busied himself pretending to tidy up.
With Filen gone, Kyleius interrogated the child.
“Who gave you permission to come in here?”
“Me? Um, well…”
The child dragged out the words, likely thinking up an excuse. The longer the delay, the colder Kyleius’s expression became.
Just then, an elderly physician burst breathlessly into the room.
“My lord, I’ve arrived!”
His attention momentarily diverted, the child swiftly wriggled free from his grasp.
Kyleius tracked the child with narrowed eyes.
Clearly, the child had been in the hallway while the assassin passed through.
Fortunately, the assassin had been focused solely on his target—if his attention had shifted to the child even briefly, the child’s life would have been in grave danger.
Realizing this, Kyleius’s anger surged to the top of his head. He felt his fingertips grow icy cold.
“What was that child doing alone in the hallway that night?”
He intended to interrogate the child immediately.
At that moment, the child spotted Sophia, who had just arrived upon hearing the news, and quickly dashed toward her.
“Young lady!”
“Sophia!”
Clutching tightly onto Sophia’s clothes, the child buried themselves in her embrace. Small shoulders trembled visibly.
Seeing this, Kyleius’s words faltered awkwardly. The sentence he’d meant to say—ordering the child brought to him—stuck in his throat, unspoken.
……So much for pretending to be fine.
Under normal circumstances, interrogating the child would have been the right course of action.
Being outside his own room at that hour was certainly suspicious enough.
“The child…”
“Shall I bring the young lady?”
A nearby servant quickly offered. But the words remained lodged, refusing to come out.
He sighed involuntarily. Staring at the child nestled in Sophia’s arms, Kyleius reluctantly said,
“No. Tell them to take her back to her room.”
[This is the timeline separator]That night, I couldn’t sleep at all.
Apparently, to Sophia and Delma, it seemed I was frightened. They stayed by my side all night, repeatedly reassuring me everything was alright.
“It’s alright now, young lady. Everything’s fine.”
But I truly was fine—I hadn’t been threatened by the assassin, nor had I suffered any direct harm.
Though, admittedly, my still-young body reacted against my will; my lips kept trembling, making it hard to speak.
Unable to sleep, I spent the whole night thinking about what I’d witnessed.
Actually, the reason I’d ventured alone into the hallway last night in the darkness was my plan to run away from home.
Since I’d kept failing every morning, I’d decided to try escaping at night instead.
But while passing through the hallway, I spotted an unfamiliar figure.
Assuming it was just one of the estate’s servants, I waited for them to finish their errand and leave—only to see them draw a sword from within their clothes.
I’d secretly followed the suspicious person to confirm my suspicions.
If my guess was right, then—
“It was the Duke they were after.”
The suspicious figure had stopped right in front of the Duke’s door.
“First poison, and now an assassin?”
I’d overheard Filen saying that, too. The scene I’d witnessed before flashed again in my mind.
The sight from a few days ago—when the Duke killed a servant.
“Back then, it wasn’t really a servant the Duke killed.”
I’d been thinking too simply. Of course I’d assumed the villainous Duke had killed someone on a whim.
“That day too, it wasn’t a servant he killed.”
I recalled an incident from the original story.
“What the Duke actually killed back then was…”
A light knock came at the door. It opened soon after, and Filen appeared.
“My lord requests the young lady’s presence.”
[This is the timeline separator]Sophia and Delma didn’t want to let me go, but they had no choice—they couldn’t disobey the Duke’s command.
I’d have to face him eventually anyway. Calmly composing my thoughts, I followed Filen to the room where the Duke waited.
It wasn’t the Duke’s usual room—likely changed deliberately after the assassin had infiltrated it once.
As soon as I entered, I felt the hairs on my neck stand on end.
Just then, the Duke lifted his gaze.
“Sit over there.”
The sharpness in his eyes softened slightly. Simultaneously, the chilling coldness that had filled the room seemed to ease considerably.
I walked quickly to the sofa he’d pointed to.
“So.”
The Duke approached me.
“Why were you alone in the hallway last night?”
Here it comes. I unconsciously swallowed hard.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (110)
How childish the Duke is! Why is he doing this to our little one?
Why is he angry? When will they tell us her name? It’s so boring.
Hahaha, the Duke is very jealous! What, you’re not a child?
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Miioo