Chapter 7

Translated by XyeHeart Edited by XyeHeart

Meriel entered the city wearing blooming flowers from the field on her head, socks of various colors, and matching shoes. The rugged bag paired with the lace dress made her look like a ridiculous clown.

Nobody imagined Meriel as an imperial princess. Those who knew her, however, recognized her as the imperial princess the moment they saw her. Her orange hair and dark pumpkin eyes matched those of the previous empress.

“I want to live, Kiyan.”

Kiyan remained silent as Meriel finished her sentence. Despite his confusion, he had no ill will toward her. Meriel also knew he wouldn’t say anything bad to the Grand Duke. While they were traveling together, she felt a sense of kindness from him. He was grumpy, caring, and unknowingly friendly, so she didn’t expect him to say anything negative.

“…this isn’t going to be easy, what are you going to do?”

“Ummm… Should I do something I’m good at?”

“You have a talent for something.” Kiyan stated.

“..hmm..?” She waited for a response.

Meriel sat up slowly, thinking that her last meal with him had been quite enjoyable.

“Freely entering someone else’s room,” he muttered as he stared at her.

As he continued to stare at her as if thinking about something else, he blushed and turned red, then jumped up from his seat.

“Come on, you little witch!”

“Huh?”

“Uh!…I….ah……Damn it!”

Kiyan, who was about to say something, bit his lower lip and stormed out of the restaurant.

Meriel covered her mouth and held back her laughter when she saw his weird behavior. Kiyan only said goodbye after walking her to the inn in a righteous indignation.

It wasn’t a large area, but the inn wasn’t bad because it wasn’t uncomfortable to stay there. Meriel rechecked the proposal in her bag and sat down on the bed.

She closed her eyes, ready to tell the Grand Duke what she planned to say the next day. She was reminded of Kiyan, who was indignant and had his ears dyed red, as she closed her eyes.

“..Ksst…”

The sound of her own laughter squeezing between her lips startled her, and she raised the duvet to the top of her head.

Meriel needs to make plans, but she can’t stop thinking about how embarrassed he is, so she has to fidget around in the duvet for a while.

She couldn’t sleep because she was thinking about how she was going to meet the Grand Duke the next day.

Her concerns, however, were for naught.

When the next day arrived, the magnificent Grand Duke’s carriage was waiting in front of the inn. The old butler with white hair bowed his head and said politely.

“I heard the princess is staying here,” he explained.

“..ah..”

“I apologize for not getting to know you ahead of time and for allowing you to stay in such a shabby place.”

“The Grand Duke generously assigned me the task of looking after the princess, so I’ve come to pick you up.”

“Oh!.. that’s….”

“The Grand Duke invited you to supper today.”

“Huh?”

Meriel considered her options. She stated that she had hoped Kiyan would be nice to her by speaking well of her to the Grand Duke, but not to this extent.

He couldn’t have treated the foolish princess of the empire with such eagerness.

Above all, the Grand Duke has never met her. She didn’t know how long Kiyan had been talking about her, but Meriel was taken aback by his generous hospitality.

Kiyan might have wanted to retaliate in this way for laughing at him the day before.

With an awkward posture, Meriel spoke to the butler.

“However, it’s still early in the morning…”

“I’ve been directed to accompany you around the Grand Duke Estate until dinner.”

“but…why…no…”

“Princess, please get in the carriage.”

The old butler was courteous. He pushed open the carriage door and waited for her to climb. Every step she took was difficult, but she couldn’t say no.

It would have been impossible to discuss their marriage if she had refused the Grand Duke’s kindness and never met him.

First and foremost, she desired to meet Kiyan. She was curious as to what he had said to the Grand Duke.

* * *

Meriel was perplexed.

She was dragged here and there by the butler as soon as she arrived at the Grand Palace. She was even greeted warmly by maids, who gave her instructions on how to use everything in the palace, including the room she will be staying in. After Meriel took over the body of the foolish princess, she experienced the first proper ‘management’ and ‘hospitality.’

“Princess, you have lovely skin.”

“Oh! With a little care, your hair will be shiny…”

“You have very good proportions for your small stature.”

Meriel was taken aback by the words of the maids, who lavished her with praise to the point of being impolite. She cringed at a compliment she’d never heard before.

“Did the Grand Duke invite you to dinner? I’m surprised that you’re not the person who was rumored to be.”

“It was true that there was nothing good to say about the capital.”

“You are stunning.”

The maids erupted in laughter. Meriel was embarrassed to discover that their genuine admiration for her was not a ruse.

All of the compliments she received in the Imperial Palace were laced with sarcasm.

Along with the compliment that she was beautiful, she felt mocked, and they made up a rumor that didn’t exist, making her a laughingstock.

She was used to being mocked, so their genuine compliments surprised her.

“…thank you,” she said, her face flushed.

The maids dressed up were taken aback and quickly smiled softly. Meriel was overcome with awkwardness. She felt good after saying thank you nobly, but she was quite embarrassed.

She questioned whether it was necessary to do this in order to meet the Grand Duke, but she did not refuse. It was the first time she had been arranged nicely with someone’s touch.

As a princess, she never attended a ball or received assistance from palace maids.

Because she simply wore her clothes and ran around as she pleased. In any case, this touch made her feel wonderful.

Meriel was astounded to see herself becoming more attractive in her mirror.

Time flew by as she ate a delicious lunch and chose a dress to wear to dinner.

Meriel awkwardly clutched the hem of her dress as she stood in front of the dining hall.

She didn’t have any flowers in her hair, as she usually did. Her wavy short hair ran behind her ear as she swallowed her saliva.

She stood up again as she gulped for the nth time.

The dining hall’s door was opened.

Meriel’s gaze was drawn to the silhouette of a man standing at the Grand Duke’s large chair.

Meriel, who was nervous, entered the dining hall.

He then gradually revealed himself through silent steps.

When Meriel noticed the person who seemed to permeate the light, she slowly opened her mouth.

It was a sight she had never seen before in her life.

‘The Grand Duke? Is he really the Grand Duke…?’

Blue eyes shine like jewels between long, gently blinking eyelashes in silver hair with only one side of the hair slicked.

The monster grand duke, as rumor had it, did not resemble a monster at all. Meriel thought having a hideous face would be okay, but he looked so handsome, or at least on one side. He had a scar on the left side of his face. But that wasn’t enough to classify it as a monster.

“Princess..”

“Oh, my name is Meriel Chrysila. Grand Duke, thank you for the invitation.”

“I’m Klaus Dustin.” He made a gentle bow.

The chair was naturally drawn out for Meriel by the Grand Duke.

There was an awkward silence as he sat in his chair, not too far away.

“I’m sure you’ve worked hard to get to Dustin Estate…..and you might want to take a break.”

Klaus broke the silence by lightly lifting a glass of wine.

Meriel, who was looking at a table full of colorful food, raised her glass with a smile.

Meriel’s distinct smile hardened Klaus’s expression slightly.

“Do you think I can?”

“What?”

“I mean, can I really relax?”

“Of course. We make certain that nothing is lacking during your stay.”

Meriel raised the corners of her mouth as she sipped the bitter, sweet-scented wine.

“All right, as the Grand Duke has said so, I’ll relax.”

“……..”

“I just couldn’t think of anywhere else to go.”

Klaus’s face hardened once more as a result of Meriel’s gentle smile.

As she looked at the main course steak, Meriel grabbed a fork and bit into it. The juice of ripe meat spread throughout her body and made her feel better.

That’s exactly how Meriel feels right now. The flavor of the well-cooked meat is as good as the flavor of the meat, but it’s not just the juice that spreads in her.

Whatever her marital status, she had a reason to stay proudly here.

Klaus, Meriel thought, was such a sloppy man that he didn’t fit the description of a ‘Monster Grand Duke’.

‘If only I could get married and live here for the rest of my life…’

Meriel recalled the existence of her marriage proposal, which she had secretly brought with her.

“Can you tell me then?”

“What?”

“The real reason you’ve come here.”

She reflected on the question he had posed at the end of the meal. Kiyan was the only one who knew the true reason for her visit to Dustin Estate. Kiyan was said to be the Grand Duke’s closest confidant, so she assumed he had already told him the story of the marriage proposal.

‘Well, I didn’t think of you as a man with a light mouth…’ she reflected.

Meriel gently rubbed her throat, kicking her tongue inside. Klaus’ eyes, staring at her, appeared to be a mix of clear skies and clear seas. There was also no great emotion, only a question about oneself.

“Would you mind taking a look at this?”

She presented him with a proposal that she had secretly been holding in her arms.

He was deafeningly quiet as he gazed at the envelope on the table.

The red envelope was clearly a proposal. The Empire’s proposal was delivered in a specific envelope.

“Can you explain what this means?”

“That’s what it’s all about.”

“I have no idea why.”

“I’ll go over it with you so you understand.”

“You mean marriage?”

What kind of woman approaches him and asks for his hand in marriage? She didn’t admit to liking him, and she didn’t have a political commitment.

The situation seemed absurd and ridiculous to Klaus.

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