Chapter 178

Chapter 178

Chapter 178. It Might Not All Be Good

Valdrova Castle, Underground.
— How about trying to build some camaraderie with the young lady?
— With the young lady?
Valdrova, who had been studying writing, turned her head.
Ruri did not like seeing those golden eyes shining.
— Uh, what kind of person is she?
Suppressing her pounding heart, she asked cautiously.
Feeling pathetic over that appearance so far removed from a Supreme Sovereign, she replied calmly.
— From what I hear, she is similar to you, Master.
— If she is someone similar to me… will we get along?
Indeed.
Those words rose to her throat.
— There is no need to worry. They say she has a silver tongue and is lively, so they say you will get along.
— Then she isn’t similar to me?
Indeed.
Who would dare speak first to a dragon and try to chat uselessly?
A dragon reigns over all things, a crystallization of wisdom and experience hundreds of times longer-lived.
Human politics is child’s play, and even important matters end up as trivial gossip to a dragon.
Yet that is only according to human judgment; Valdrova preferred the small talk shared by women.
‘Chatting with a young human lady.’
Why does this make me so tense?
Fear came first, and the urge to refuse surged.
But if not now, who knows when another opportunity will come.
— I, I will do it.
Suppressing her heart that was beating kungkungkungkung, she asked.
— When should we do it?
— She says she is coming right now, so if you prepare, it should be fine.
— R-right now?
— If it is a burden, we can reschedule the appointment.
— N-no! Let’s do it! They say strike while the iron is hot!
— Then I will prepare.
Ruri bowed her head and withdrew from her seat.
While watching her leave the room, Valdrova remembered something she hadn’t thought about.
‘Come to think of it, for Ruri to suggest something like this so suddenly.’
Ruri did not like Valdrova mingling with humans.
Because a dragon approaching humans only benefited humans, and they might even try to use the dragon.
Especially since the naive Valdrova had often suffered such things, Ruri did not look favorably upon Valdrova interacting directly with humans.
How long did it take for her fiancé Ferda to propose the first tea party?
‘Does Ruri trust humans a bit more now?’
The serious girl, expressionless like a doll, becoming more human.
Such a change made Valdrova happy.
But Ruri had not changed.
‘A tea party with humans…’
Her disgusted heart remained so even now.
Yet Ruri had no choice.
When Ferda contacted her suddenly and said he would bring Ludmilla Purity with him, Ruri said this:
— Are you in your right mind?
Ruri genuinely hardened her expression.
— Valdrova-nim is a dragon. That young lady is a trivial human; do you think I would allow such a flippant audience?
— I understand.
— If you understand, why are you saying something nonsensical?
— Of course I knew I had to act with propriety. Even so, I must do it.
Pain leaked from Ferda’s voice.
He swallowed his grief several times and then said this:
— Penelope.
— ….
— That damn demon bitch… is Her Highness the Archduchess’s first friend.
Penelope.
A pink-haired demon, her behavior extremely frivolous.
A trivial existence whose neck she would have snapped long ago if Ferda hadn’t sincerely pleaded that she was an important person.
— My friend…
When she introduced her shyly back then, Ruri felt as if she had been struck hard.
The feeling of seeing a daughter you raised pretty and proper saying she will marry a thug picked up from the street.
She bit her lip hard until blood dripped.
— Furthermore, do you want to see that bitch who targets not men but women clinging to her?
— ….
— If you remember the tears of blood we shed that day, you must find her a new friend even a day sooner.
Only then did Ruri realize.
This was not the time for empty words.
— I will carry it out.
That demon must be eliminated.
Absolutely.
— They say Ferda-nim has arrived. It seems he will come with the young lady, so I will guide her.
— Y-yes!
A table filled with snacks, her wearing a dress.
Since it wasn’t a tea party with her fiancé, they held it in the spring-filled garden, not the playroom.
The thick floral scent made it feel special.
We are having a true girls’ time.
— Master. The young lady of the Purity Family is entering.
The main door opened and a woman entered.
She was a cute person with a smile on her lips.
— I greet Her Highness the Archduchess, I am Ludmilla Purity.
Valdrova could not answer properly and merely nodded.
Ludmilla entered carefully and sat on the opposite side.
For the first time, someone other than Ferda sat across from her at this table, in this space.
— It is like this that we greet each other for the first time. I should have greeted you when we met.
Valdrova tilted her head.
— Have you… seen me… before?
— I saw you at the Spring Festival. You danced with the Regent, right?
— Ah…
Valdrova’s face turned red.
For others it might not be, but for her it was a dark history she had rushed into driven by feelings of jealousy.
Good thing she wore the mask.
This time Valdrova tried to start a conversation.
— I… heard you got engaged.
— Yes, I have decided to become the lady of the Consillus Family.
— Congratulations…
— It is an honor that Her Highness the Archduchess blesses me. And please, speak comfortably.
— Speak comfortably…?
— Yes! Just call me Ludmilla comfortably, and treat me comfortably like a friend!
— F-friend…
A lively atmosphere beyond measure made her recoil sharply.
If she used honorifics once more here, it would seem she was keeping her distance, so she reluctantly abandoned them.
— Lu-Ludmilla…?
— Yes, Archduchess-nim!
Ludmilla clapped, delighted.
Seeing that bright smile, Valdrova’s heart was also put at ease.
She could understand why Ruri, unlike her usual self, had allowed this.
— May I ask one thing?
— Yes.
— Why do you wear a mask?
A bold question beyond measure.
— Does this look weird?
— No. Not weird, but I wondered if there is a story behind it. I’m sorry if it’s a sensitive question.
— No, it isn’t sensitive…
She was surprised, but did not think it was rude.
Rather, isn’t this side the rude one?
She shows her face like this, but this side doesn’t show hers…
— Does Ludmilla want to see my face…?
— Gasps, can I see Archduchess-nim’s face too?
— If it is a burden, you don’t have to look.
— No, no, no! I really want to see it!
Seeing her deny it so actively, she thought she couldn’t take it back.
Valdrova carefully took off the mask and revealed her face.
Ludmilla, who had her hand over her pounding heart, opened her mouth wide.
— If I may ask a rude question… did you put on makeup or something?
— Huh? No.
— Wow. Being this beautiful even without makeup…
She even felt embarrassed.
Thoughts of putting the mask back on kept surfacing.
— These aren’t empty words, you are more beautiful than Princess Olivia.
— I don’t think it’s that much…
— If you groom yourself just a little bit more, that’ll be enough! Wear some accessories and just a little powder, and you will be waaaay more beautiful than Princess Olivia.
Grooming was always done by Ruri in her stead.
Yet Ruri, raised as a warrior from birth, had no connection with such feminine skills, and adding anything to a perfect dragon was in itself a sacrilegious act. Unlike Ruri, Valdrova was interested in such styling.
— Are you good at such things?
— Of course! I always braided my sisters’ hair! My sisters are super picky, but after I did it for them, they always asked me to do it!
— Mmm… must have been hard?
— No! I like these things, so it was fine. I also like making lunches for my brothers!
— You know how to cook too?
Valdrova’s eyes changed. Ludmilla read those eyes.
— Are you interested in cooking, by any chance?
— T… that is… Hesitating, she answered shyly. —A little.
Valdrova wondered what she could do for Ferda. What could let him know that she loved him deeply, even without showing her face.
One of the things that came from that was cooking.
— I have thought that I would like Ferda-ssi to eat food that I prepared…
— I know! That feeling…!
Ludmilla brought both hands together to her chest and finally even shed tears.
Valdrova felt bewildered.
— Why, why, why are you crying?
— No. I just thought it is really fortunate that I asked to speak with Valdrova-nim. There really aren’t people with whom I can have this kind of conversation.
— What about the other young ladies?
— They are completely different from Valdrova-nim! If I tell other young ladies that I like cooking, do you know what they say? They say it’s something low-class maids do, looking down on me! They say I should prepare to go to a household without even a proper chef!
— That is too much.
— I do it for the people I love, what is there to complain about?! They only know how to receive and not be grateful; calling them beasts is exactly what beasts do, isn’t that right?
— Yes, that’s right.
— Besides, wealth and family aren’t everything. Even if it is due to family pressure, if there is a heart to understand each other, that also becomes love, right?
Valdrova felt Ludmilla’s words touch her heart.
It was exactly the emotion she felt toward Ferda.
She felt she could share these emotions more with this girl.
— Ludmilla…
— Yes, Archduchess-nim.
— Uh, by chance… this might be a strange story, but…
— It will absolutely not be strange! You can say anything!
— Then, can you be my friend?
She thought she would be dumbfounded, but Ludmilla’s eyes shone like the sun in the sky.
— Of course! That’s what I wanted to say! I kept thinking it would be nice to be friends with Archduchess-nim!
Ludmilla stood up and gripped Valdrova’s hand tightly.
— I am so happy to become friends with Archduchess-nim.
Valdrova felt bewildered by her proactive action, but only for a moment.
Unlike other young ladies, Ludmilla’s hands were a bit rough.
— I am also very happy to become friends with Ludmilla.
Those rough hands were so pleasant that she kept caressing them like silk.
While the women were enjoying their time in the garden, Ferda was facing Arwen and Jed, the three of them, in his office.
— Pwahahaha!! This is fucking hilarious!
Jed laughed so hard that the castle shook.
Arwen frowned and asked.
— What’s so funny about this?
— Of course it’s funny. They say your future brothers-in-law persistently aimed for the groin, which is absolutely forbidden in sparring, so how can one not laugh?
They say life is a comedy from afar, a tragedy up close. For Jed it was comedy, for Arwen an absurd tragedy that almost happened, and for Ferda a story whose outcome he didn’t care about.
— Even so, you look quite intact for something that was rather vicious.
— I might look intact, but I passed out three times. They didn’t hit my face, but they persistently aimed for the groin, so my guard was a bit ambiguous…
— Wow, the heir apparent of the Purity house is a capable man who directly creates rules if there is no disqualification.
Jed burst into laughter.
— What do you mean you got trapped by a woman, tsk… are you a man?
Jed teased Arwen endlessly.
Ferda looked at Jed with pathetic eyes.
— You are not in a position to talk about others, are you?
— What about me?
— Aren’t you completely dominated by the Merchant Guild Master?
Jed flinched and trembled.
— What nonsense? When did I? I still seduce women and have fun. Like before…
— The last time I saw you, it looked like you were asking for permission, was it my imagination?
— Oh, I suddenly remembered an unfinished business, I have to go! I had fun today!
— Yeah, go ahead, the wife is calling.
Jed ran away with his tail between his legs because he was at a disadvantage.
Ferda watched his back with a pathetic gaze.
— …Regent-nim.
The man with his head bowed, Arwen, called Ferda.
— Why?
— Could you… keep a secret? You seem to be discreet, and I have nowhere else to say this…
— Try saying it.
— The thing is… I am only saying this to Regent-nim…
Arwen stuttered, unlike a knight.
— Back then, that… wasn’t done with mutual consent…
— …What nonsense? Did you really rape her?
— …Yes.
He continued with the difficult words again.
— Only that the one who raped wasn’t me…
….
Ferda understood those words and looked at Arwen’s body.
Solid enough that 10 generals charging at once couldn’t easily subdue him. Hard to believe a guy like that was raped by a woman.
— Was her strength that great?
— No. She was fragile. So a bit…
— I couldn’t use force. But could you have subdued her?
— Ludmilla said this… chivalry my ass, if you don’t hold me right now I’ll know you don’t love me and go get engaged to someone else…
— …Blackmail, huh?
— So… yeah…
….
Ferda thought an image was forming from those words.
“Don’t tell me…”
“What if there was a lady’s calculation within that purity felt from Ludmilla? A Duke’s young lady and a frontier knight. What if Ludmilla already knew there was an insurmountable gap between them? If she had simply presented him as a man she had in mind, both, and even Family Head Valeri Purity, would have opposed.”
Other young ladies would have chosen childish protests like running away from the family.
Ludmilla chose to cause an incident instead.
She already knows it is easier to seek forgiveness than permission.
Ferda thought. “What if this engagement progressing all at once was her plan?”
Just when the story ended, the door to the garden where the young ladies’ conversation took place opened.
Valdrova and Ludmilla walked out side by side, and even as they came out, the conversation did not stop.
They kept talking non-stop, then saw Ferda and shut their mouths.
They swept their hair back awkwardly, fidgeting restlessly.
Ludmilla, enjoying the fresh reaction, didn’t know what to do with her hands and then cleared her throat.
— Today was truly delightful, I hope we can arrange another gathering like this with Her Highness the Archduchess again.
— Anytime is go…od…
Valdrova replied in clumsy royal speech.
Since others were present, she watched their reactions unnecessarily.
— When would be good? No, it would be rude of me to decide, so that won’t do? If Archduchess-nim sends a letter at any time! No problem! I’ll come flying back like an arrow!
— Uh, yes…
At the lively and bold appearance, Valdrova burst into laughter.
Ludmilla boarded the carriage, waving her hand until the very end.
Valdrova also waved her hand, sending her off.
— Was it enjoyable?
Valdrova nodded.
— Yes, very much. Ludmilla seems to be good at everything I’m interested in.
— I’m glad it was enjoyable.
He felt a sensation similar to when the story of Penelope came up.
Ferda felt relieved inside.
She is finally making a real friend.
— Ludmilla is getting married this year.
— She is of marrying age, and well… a lot of things happened, so…
— I see.
Envy overflowed her tinged breaths.
— Ludmilla said…
— Yes.
— If you want to get married quickly, trying to rape Ferda-ssi is also good.
….
— What could that mean?
— …I don’t know either.
Making a friend might not be something to simply be purely happy about after all.