The Villainess Doesn't Want Love (20 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 10
The next morning.
Karina went for a walk in the ducal estate’s garden, accompanied by Mikhail.
The northern garden, blanketed in pristine white snow, was serene.
Rugged yet tastefully shaped rockeries and elegant statues subtly harmonized with one another.
Unlike the vibrant, colorful gardens of the capital, it lacked flamboyance—but the winter flowers, resilient against the cold, possessed a graceful and dignified beauty.
Karina and Mikhail walked along the neatly laid stone path through the garden.
“Haaam. This is truly relaxing.”
Mikhail yawned after gazing up at the cloudless, crystal-clear sky.
“Relaxing is a good thing.”
Karina had decided to drop honorifics when speaking to Mikhail after hiring him as her bodyguard.
It would be odd for a duchess to use formal speech toward her own guard.
“I assumed someone in your esteemed position, Duchess, would be ceaselessly busy all day long.”
Mikhail turned to look at Karina and asked again,
“Are you really allowed to stroll around so leisurely like this?”
He had expected a demanding schedule and strict security—but since becoming her guard, all he’d done was follow the duchess around while she enjoyed rest and walks.
Karina responded flatly, her expression blank.
“What? Do I seem like I’m just idling away with idle chatter?”
“Yes.”
‘Ugh… This guy’s too honest.’
At his immediate reply, Karina shot him a sideways glance.
“You didn’t even consider lying just a little and saying ‘no’?”
“Uh… Should I have said no?”
“Never mind.”
She absolutely refused to endure any poking in the ribs.
‘But he’s not wrong, either.’
Ordinarily, as duchess, Karina should have been overwhelmed—managing the household affairs of the estate and overseeing countless internal and external events, needing ten bodies just to keep up.
Yet in reality, Karina’s daily life was vastly different from that expected role.
Because Caroline had seized all the duchess’s authority and refused to relinquish any of it.
More importantly, Karina herself had no particular interest in those rights.
‘Do I really need to go through the trouble of taking it back? I’m leaving this place anyway. Even if I did get it, it would just be a nuisance.’
Until she left the ducal house, Karina simply intended to stay comfortable and carefree.
‘Speaking of which.’
Karina turned to Mikhail with a serious expression.
“You said you’d tell me later—don’t tell me you’ve forgotten?”
Since the topic had come up, she intended to get a clear answer right here and now about exactly what was going on.
“Mikhail. What’s your true identity? And what’s your connection to the Mage Tower?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure where or how to start explaining.”
Scratching his head and hesitating briefly, Mikhail finally spoke.
“You asked first about my identity, so I’ll answer that directly: in one word, I’m an ‘apprentice.’”
He emphasized the word ‘apprentice.’
“Apprentice?”
Hearing such an unexpected reply, Karina looked puzzled.
“I still have many shortcomings. My master even kicked me out, telling me to leave the Mage Tower and gain more worldly experience.”
Mikhail scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
“If I went around openly declaring I was from the Mage Tower and accepted treatment as a full-fledged mage, my master would scold me severely. That’s precisely why I didn’t reveal my affiliation from the start.”
Smiling gently, he asked,
“Are you a bit less suspicious of me now?”
“Well… for now, yes.”
Mikhail’s explanation wasn’t illogical.
But Karina couldn’t shake the feeling that he was still hiding something.
Just then—
“Karina.”
A voice, light as if floating on air, called out to her.
“……!”
Recognizing the voice immediately, Karina’s expression twisted as if she’d bitten into something foul.
Composing her face, she turned to see Caroline approaching with a large retinue of maids.
“So it’s the Grand Duchess. What brings you here?”
Karina’s tone turned sharp at Caroline’s habit of addressing her by name as though she were a subordinate.
Caroline’s maids, too, mimicked their mistress, holding their chins high with arrogant pride.
“I always take a stroll through the garden at this hour. It’s one of my daily routines.”
“Oh, really? How diligent of you.”
Karina replied absently to Caroline’s boastful remark.
“I’d love some rest myself, but I’m swamped with endless tasks. Take this garden—even though it looks unchanged, it becomes difficult to maintain its neatness if I neglect it even for a single day.”
“…Is that so?”
Gardeners handled the garden’s upkeep.
All Caroline actually did was point out areas she disliked or give instructions about which flowers she wanted planted next.
Even then, due to her lack of basic knowledge about plants, she often demanded out-of-season flowers or tropical trees that couldn’t possibly survive the harsh winter.
Whenever the gardeners dared refuse, insisting it was impossible, she inevitably flew into a rage.
After venting her frustration, she’d routinely dump the whole mess onto the head maid, claiming it was too bothersome.
‘How absurd.’
Karina scoffed inwardly.
Knowing all this already, Karina could only find Caroline’s pretentious claims laughable.
“But Karina, what brings you to the garden at this hour… Oh.”
Caroline’s eyes sparkled as she noticed Mikhail.
“So this is the mage who was at the center of yesterday’s commotion?”
“He’s the mage who’s now working as my bodyguard.”
As Karina introduced him, Mikhail gave a small nod in greeting.
“My name is Mikhail.”
His seemingly impolite behavior made Caroline’s maids frown in disapproval.
But Caroline didn’t seem to notice his rudeness at all.
News had already spread throughout the estate about Mikhail—how he’d defeated one of the strongest knights in the entire order and secured the position as Karina’s personal guard.
Yet when Caroline met him face-to-face, she found herself distracted not by his strength—but by something else entirely.
‘I was curious because they said a young mage defeated a candidate for knight-captain… but I never imagined he’d be this stunningly handsome.’
Mikhail’s beauty wasn’t merely that of a young, good-looking man.
Even she—whose standards for male beauty had become impossibly high thanks to her handsome younger brother—was left utterly speechless by Mikhail’s extraordinary appearance.
“Hmm, truly impressive.”
She scrutinized him head to toe as if appraising an object, then lifted her chin with haughty arrogance.
“So the Duchess does have rather refined tastes after all.”
Caroline gave Karina a suggestive wink.
‘…What’s that supposed to mean?’
Annoyed, Karina had no desire to keep standing face-to-face with Caroline.
“If you’ve nothing else to say, I’ll be excusing myself.”
She gestured for Mikhail to follow and tried to quickly walk past Caroline.
But Caroline grabbed Karina’s arm and spoke.
“Karina. What happened at the banquet was a misunderstanding.”
One of Karina’s eyebrows arched sharply.
“Excuse me?”
“I did my very best to help you prepare for the banquet. Please don’t misinterpret my intentions over some trivial misunderstanding.”
“….”
‘So that’s what this is about.’
Karina was rendered speechless by Caroline’s audacious pretense.
‘Does she really think I still know nothing after everything that happened at the banquet?’
Karina was genuinely curious—how thoroughly must Caroline despise her to act so brazenly?
“You understand, right? Everything I did was for your sake. It’s just that the merchant started doing odd things on his own, which caused some trouble—but I truly had no idea about it.”
‘Sigh… She hasn’t changed at all.’
Hearing the exact same excuse she’d heard in the past, irritation surged within her.
Caroline was blaming Abdul—the merchant—for everything and claiming complete innocence.
“If I’d known he was such a fraud, I never would’ve sent him to you.”
Her pitiful expression and feeble voice, feigning distress, were utterly loathsome.
“Even now, just thinking back on it makes my hands tremble—I was so mortified.”
Caroline even dabbed at the corners of her eyes as if wiping away tears.
‘She’s trying everything, isn’t she?’
It was so blatantly insincere, yet she insisted she knew nothing—it was all Karina could do not to burst out laughing.
Karina stared blankly at Caroline.
She wanted to see just how far she’d take this act.
“But Karina, you were far too reckless as well.”
“….”
Misinterpreting Karina’s silence as guilt, Caroline raised her voice slightly and began scolding her.
“If you were unsure what to wear, you should’ve simply come to me! What would people think of the ducal house if you barged into a formal banquet dressed like that and caused such a spectacle?”
At that, Karina frowned.
Caroline openly loathed and avoided Karina like a pest.
Yet outwardly, she pretended to deeply care for her and act in her best interest.
In her past life, before her return, Karina had believed that act completely.
‘Back then, I truly thought Caroline was on my side.’
But later she discovered Caroline had secretly orchestrated the maids’ harassment of her—a truly vile scheme.
How furious she’d been when she realized the truth.
‘Disgusting.’
As Karina silently swallowed her anger, Caroline stepped even closer.
“From now on, always consult me before doing anything. I’ll offer advice to ensure nothing like the banquet incident happens again.”
Pfft.
“?”
Karina couldn’t suppress a scoff that slipped out.
“Did you just… laugh?”
Annoyance flickered in Caroline’s eyes.
‘Of course. Just as I expected.’
Karina wore an expression of utter weariness.
At first, Caroline blamed the merchant and claimed innocence—yet inevitably twisted it all back onto Karina, making it seem like everything was her fault.
And now she was acting as if she held authority over the duchess herself, insisting Karina should have consulted her before making any decisions.
‘How tiresome.’
That single word perfectly summed up Karina’s feelings.
“Karina. Is this really a situation to laugh at?”
Caroline adopted a stern expression.
But Karina didn’t care at all.
Instead, she met Caroline’s gaze directly and replied, her voice low and sharp.
“Caroline. You keep saying everything you did was for my sake.”
Karina lifted one corner of her mouth in a mocking smirk.
“Please, stop with the nonsense. It’s tiresome.”
“What… did you just say?”
Stunned by Karina’s unexpected retort, Caroline’s face twisted instantly.
Karina leaned closer so Caroline could hear every word clearly.
“You know better than anyone exactly who caused all this, don’t you?”
It was an unmistakable accusation: that Caroline’s own scheming behind the scenes had caused everything.
Introducing that clumsy fraud Abdul to such an important occasion.
Deliberately sidelining and ignoring her—young, inexperienced, and newly married into the ducal house.
Even instructing maids and servants to deliberately mistreat her…
Caroline.
It was all her doing.
“I simply can’t bear to listen to your ridiculous claims any longer.”
Caroline’s face froze, rigid as stone.
But in the next moment, she covered her mouth with her hand and feigned shock.
“Goodness, Karina! Are you truly unaware of your own wrongdoing? I suppose that explains your behavior.”
She continued in a lecturing tone.
“Still, it’s unbecoming to always blame others. You must learn to admit your mistakes. Didn’t they teach you even this basic common sense back in the Marquis’s household?”
Having insulted even the Marquis’s house, Caroline looked at Karina with an expression of pity.
“To lack even such fundamental manners… How disappointed Jeremiah would be if he knew!”
She even dragged Jeremiah into it, trying to manipulate Karina entirely within her grasp.
Karina didn’t bother hiding her contempt.
Back then, she’d been fooled due to ignorance—but now she saw through Caroline’s blackened heart with perfect clarity.
“Caroline. Those are the words I’d like to say to you. When someone does wrong, they should admit it. And when you’ve already been caught, shamelessly pretending otherwise only makes you look more pathetic.”
Karina swept her gaze over the line of maids standing behind Caroline.
“Among all your maids, not a single one had the decency to tell you the truth? How pitiful.”
At the word ‘pitiful,’ Caroline’s eyes widened in outrage.
“Karina! What did you just say?”
“Oh dear, didn’t you hear me? If your hearing’s already failing you, that’s quite serious.”
Karina’s mocking retort prompted one of Caroline’s maids to shout furiously,
“Lady Karina! How dare you show such disrespect to the Grand Duchess! Apologize this instant!”
‘Lady Karina?’
Karina’s brow furrowed deeply.
‘A Grand Duchess’s maid dares to address me—the Duchess—by my given name so casually?’
Karina fixed the maid with a sharp, piercing glare.
Unfazed, the favored maid continued boldly,
“Since you married into the ducal house, you should make an effort to become one of us! Such rudeness is unbearably vulgar…!”
Slap!
“Aaah!”
Karina struck the maid’s cheek before she could finish her sentence.
She’d hit so hard her palm stung.
‘How hard I tried back then.’
Karina knew all too well how meaningless and futile those efforts had been.
That’s precisely why she couldn’t possibly stay silent and endure such nonsense.
Just then—
“What’s all this commotion about?”
Jeremiah emerged from the direction of the training grounds.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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Chapter Comments (10)
Inline Comments (158)
“I can help you—with the Duchess’s divorce.”
And then get with him.Even though he’s hiding things, he still seems more honest and trustworthy than the duke at this point.
“I can help you—with the Duchess’s divorce.”
Let him see we need a fallback plan.
"You should consider yourself honored just because I came all the way here to me
“The lady doth protests too much, methinks.” What else do they say, “pride cometh before the fall?”
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I love when it’s just them
i’m really hoping for divorce next chapter
why did I unlock all the chapters? I wish I didn’t do that because he’s irritating me.