I Stole The Duke - Chapter 93
“To think someone as delicate as you were attacked by assassins… It must have been terrifying. Are you all right now?”
“I’m fine, really. The arrows never reached me, and the assassin guild has already been completely taken down.”
“You dealt with the guild and its backers in under a week… I have nothing but respect for His Grace the Duke’s power and decisiveness.”
“Oh my, Duchess—your dress feels so southern in style. A corset-free dress that looks so comfortable… Where did you get it?”
“If you visit Flencia, you’ll find one like it at just about any boutique.”
“Ah, then I must visit the South for this winter’s retreat.”
“I’ll have to talk to my husband about that, too.”
“If you do go, I recommend watching the sunset at Flencia Beach. It’s breathtaking.”
Led by the Marchioness of Rancelloti, all the noble ladies from the Emperor’s faction flocked to Eliana. Just exchanging greetings with each of them made her throat sore.
“My lady, here’s some water.”
“Oh, thank you.”
Taking advantage of a short break in conversation, Eliana finally managed to take a sip of water and breathe for a moment.
“Duchess, please forgive me for greeting you so late.”
“It’s lovely to see you, Lady Riela.”
Eliana’s tone lifted noticeably. She was finally speaking to someone her own age—and someone she was truly happy to see.
“There’s been so much going on with you lately… I’m sorry I haven’t been in touch.”
Besides the brief greeting they exchanged during the hunting tournament, Riela hadn’t had the chance to check in with Eliana, and she felt a little guilty about it.
“Oh, it’s all right. But what about Sir Joel?”
After tonight, she probably won’t see him again until the engagement ceremony. Shouldn’t they be together now? Why is she here alone?
“He’s… being dragged around by my father.”
Eliana followed Riela’s gaze.
“Hohoho! You probably already know, but this young man is my future son-in-law!”
“It’s a pleasure! These days, if you don’t recognize his face, you’re hardly a true Wespa noble.”
“A pleasure to meet you. Joel Terius.”
The Marquess of Rancelloti was parading Joel around, making sure he greeted everyone in sight. It was painfully obvious—he wanted to stamp the seal on his popular future son-in-law before someone tried to steal him away.
“By the way, where did you get that watch you’re wearing? It looks remarkable.”
…Poor Joel.
Eliana couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for him. It was supposed to be a holiday, but it clearly wasn’t one.
“Duchess, if it’s not too bold of me…”
The Ducal family of Ascher was scheduled to return to the South the next day.
“Not at all. Please go on.”
“…Would it be all right if I wrote to you? If we exchanged letters?”
Riela finally gathered her courage to ask.
“I’ve actually wanted to stay in touch ever since we first met… but after the last tea party, we never had the chance. It’s been such a shame.”
A month had gone by far too quickly. Riela felt the weight of two regrets—the short time she had left with the man she loved, and the fact that she hadn’t had time to build a closer bond with Eliana.
“Of course, Lady Riela.”
“I wouldn’t dare speak your name without permission, but… if you could just call me by mine, it would mean so much to me.”
“Of course, Riela.”
Eliana smiled warmly. For the first time in this world, she felt like she might have found a female friend she could truly open up to.
Meanwhile…
“……”
He had fought off those monster-like creatures and finally made it—just a few steps away. He was now face to face with the fairy he had wanted so badly to see up close.
“Nun—!”
The moment Olive lifted his hand in excitement, yet another wall stood in his way.
“Do not approach the Lady any further.”
Sir Ista, assigned as her escort for the day, quickly stepped in to block the boy’s path.
‘Oh come on, what now?!’
“Why won’t you even let me say hello to my sister?”
The thrill quickly turned into irritation.
“Sister? Are you saying you’re close to the Lady?”
Surprised by the word, Ista carefully examined Olive’s face. As far as he knew, the Lady had only one older brother.
He doesn’t seem like a Northerner…
The expression on his face didn’t look like a lie. But there was something in the boy’s eyes—a strange longing—that rubbed Ista the wrong way.
“We’re close enough that I wanted to express my gratitude.”
“If that’s truly the case, then please wait here. I’ll ask the Lady myself.”
‘Even greetings need permission now?’
This was already the third obstacle. At this point, it was hard to tell if the Duchess was being protected or surveilled.
“My lady, there’s a boy here who says he knows you. Do you recognize him?”
Ista approached Eliana, who was chatting with Riela, and asked quietly.
“I do know him, but…”
Eliana’s eyes widened as she followed Ista’s gaze. To call it a close relationship would’ve been a stretch—they had only seen each other once or twice in passing.
“Nunim!”
At last, Olive’s eyes met Eliana’s. He beamed with joy.
“Hello.”
Eliana raised her hand slightly and offered a somewhat awkward greeting.
“It’s my first time at a palace banquet, and I was nervous… But you helped me fit in without anyone teasing me. I really wanted to say thank you, and I happened to spot you.”
As if he were saying something meant for Joel, Olive stepped in closer and spoke directly to Eliana.
“I said it before, but—I really like this cravat.”
“She is not someone you can speak to so casually. Show respect when you address her.”
Ista, now standing close by as if monitoring them, leaned in and gave Olive a quiet warning. Even His Grace spoke to the Duchess with proper decorum—he couldn’t tolerate a boy of unknown background treating her so informally.
‘Now that you’ve said hello, you should leave.’
He added a silent glare for pressure, emphasizing the point.
‘Should I just get rid of him too?’
Ista’s interference made Olive’s blood boil. Around the fairy, there were nothing but annoying men getting in the way.
[Hey, Perrow.]
It was time to use his last card.
[Yes, Master.]
The mage’s reply came quickly. Having seen his fellow mages called in one by one, he had already braced himself.
[Get rid of the man standing next to me.]
Olive figured if he could remove this guy, he could talk to the fairy without anyone interrupting.
‘That woman beside the Master…’
And then, the worst-case scenario unfolded. The silver-haired woman standing near the Master—he recognized her immediately.
[Master… That’s the Duchess of House Ascher.]
[You think I don’t know that?]
The imperial family and House Ascher were not to be trifled with.
[We cannot afford to stir conflict with House Ascher.]
[Perrow. Do you want your research budget cut? Remove that escort now.]
The mage’s face darkened. A threat like that—for something this petty?
‘How can someone so powerful think like such a child?’
Perrow began to seriously question the new Tower Master. He had heard Olive was a master of time magic.
‘Could it be… he turned back the clock on his body to become younger? Did his mind regress too?’
Still, even he couldn’t imagine that the Tower Master was literally just a child.
“Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
While Olive was arguing with the mage through their mental link, Eliana offered a polite farewell. She didn’t feel any real bond with the boy, nor did they have much to talk about.
“Ah… Nunim, wait—”
“Are you feeling hungry, my lady? Would you like something to eat?”
Ista cut in smoothly, blocking any chance for Olive to continue clinging.
‘That damn escort! I don’t want it to end like this. What is Perrow even doing?!’
“Until next time, Duchess of Ascher.”
“Eek!”
Just then, the mage appeared right next to her, and Eliana let out a startled cry.
‘Karahan?!’
It was the same mage’s face she had seen at the hunting competition.
“My lady! Are you all right?!”
Eliana turned pale and staggered back, and Ista immediately moved to steady her.
“Are you okay, Duchess?”
Riela, who was still by her side, also looked at her with concern.
“Haa… haa…”
‘Dream. Image search.’
[Beginning image search.]
Her heart had nearly stopped. Eliana tried to calm her breathing and summoned the system.
[Image search complete.]
‘So it’s not Karahan…’
After checking the result, she finally let out a sigh of relief. It wasn’t Karahan—but it seemed he had borrowed the mage’s appearance to get close to her once before.
“I’m all right, Riela. I was just startled because he appeared so suddenly.”
[I told you to get rid of the escort—not startle the Duchess!]
Olive glared at Perrow and sent him a sharp message.
[I… I didn’t expect her to react that strongly. My apologies.]
“What kind of rudeness is this?!”
Naturally, the escort’s full attention was now focused on the mage.
“I simply wanted to properly apologize for my earlier rudeness with the teleportation circle.”
“We already settled that matter at the hunting grounds, didn’t we?”
‘Hunting grounds?’
Ista’s curt response made Perrow frown slightly in confusion.
‘I settled something… at the hunting grounds?’
He hadn’t had the chance to offer a proper apology back then. In fact, he had been so tired that he never even left his tent.
“Are you saying I apologized at the hunting grounds?”
When a mage was this suspicious, it had to be addressed. In the end, unable to resist his curiosity, Perrow turned to Ista.
‘Ah… That was the master’s teacher…’
This was exactly why they shouldn’t let mages get involved. If he had stuck to long-range spells, this wouldn’t have happened. Now things were getting messy.
[That’s enough. Just go.]
“Wait—Mage.”
At that moment, a message telling Perrow to leave and a voice calling him to stay echoed at the same time.
“Michal.”
Hearing the familiar voice, Eliana finally relaxed. Michalis was walking toward her, quick and steady.
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