The Role of Grand Duchess - Chapter 8

However, Rowena, who could also be seen as a benefactor for helping her earn money, didn’t even glance at Eileen, as if she wasn’t even there. Her eyes were only on Caelus.

Princess Rowena was like a racehorse with blinders on, focused solely on the finish line. As she got closer, it was obvious that her deep sapphire eyes were artificially tearful, but she didn’t care.

“Where have you been all this time? I’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

As the distance closed, the princess, fluttering her dress, looked like a blooming rose. But Caelus, her destination, lightly dodged Rowena, who was trying to embrace him.

Instead, he scooped up Eileen, who was standing next to him, into his arms.

Rowena, missing her prey, lost her balance and staggered greatly. The maids who had been panting as they followed her managed to catch her before she fell to the garden floor, but her face was already horribly distorted.

That damn fox was in the arms of her beloved Caelus.

“Eek-!”

Furious, Rowena rushed at Caelus again. But this time, she was blocked by Empress Pamela, who had followed her.

Guards, acting on the Empress’s orders, quickly stood in front of Princess Rowena. Caelus, indifferently looking at Rowena’s fierce appearance, who was red-faced and panting, turned his head to look at Empress Pamela.

“We’ll be going now.”

“……Alright.”

Eileen, held tightly in Caelus’s arms, barely managed to bow to the Empress before his long legs strode forward.

Empress Pamela’s eyes narrowed as she watched Caelus’s retreating figure, as if he were holding a precious treasure.

That guy has changed. And it seems that woman is the cause.

“Hmm, this messes with the plan…”

“Mother!”

“Quiet. I’m thinking. Take the Princess to her room. Immediately.”

“Mother!”

“One more outburst and I’ll lock you in the top of the south tower.”

“……”

No matter how wild she was, Rowena couldn’t beat Pamela, who was one step ahead of her. Her resentful eyes reached Caelus’s back, already far away from her mother.

I will kill that bitch, no matter what. Just you wait.

Rowena gritted her teeth and followed the knights. Empress Pamela, having sent all the escorting knights with the Princess, stood there, contemplating something.

“There seems to be a change, but the curse doesn’t seem to be lifted, does it?”

To the question that came out like a monologue, the air momentarily trembled, and a chilling voice, like scraping metal, echoed.

“The mark of the curse is still well hidden. But it has weakened a little.”

“There won’t be any setbacks in the plan, will there?”

“No, as long as the mark doesn’t break, the curse can be reapplied. Don’t worry.”

“I’m relieved if you’re so sure. Don’t neglect your surveillance. Understand?”

“I will. Everything is according to the will of the demon Baal.”

“According to Baal’s will.”

At Empress Pamela’s response, the wavering in the air disappeared in an instant. Empress Pamela, having watched for a moment the place where Cantus, the black magician of the Rumenta Empire, her family and the secret support of the current imperial family, had disappeared, quietly turned and began to walk towards her residence.

***

The assigned accommodation was spacious and luxurious, befitting Caelus’s noble status.

The uniforms and dresses that Count Roang had brought were neatly hung on one side, and there was also a terrace with a clear view of the Imperial Palace’s rear garden through a large picture window.

It was a luxury that Eileen was experiencing for the first time. Especially the bright scenery outside touched her heart deeply.

In the barren north, where snow never melted all year round, there were hardly any clear days, always suffering from hunger, and barely surviving under the threat of monsters and northern barbarians.

Her father had also lost his life in the war against the barbarians long ago. Most of the young people in the territory had died then.

Thus, only women, children, and the elderly remained in the poor territory.

The complaints of the territory’s people, who had lost their breadwinners and had to work to support their livelihoods, naturally turned to Eileen and her mother, the Countess, and from then on, her mother changed.

She turned the entire Count’s residence into an orphanage and took in all the war orphans, calling herself their foster mother. In the meantime, her own daughter, Eileen, was pushed far out of her interest.

Life after that was poverty itself. Whether it was food or clothing, Eileen was always the last.

She understood it in her head. This was her mother’s atonement for her father. And the best way to protect and care for the territory’s people. Finally, a mother gritting her teeth for her daughter, who would one day inherit and rule the poor and barren territory.

But it was too harsh a choice for the young Eileen, who knew nothing.

If only our territory was not always cold and barren land, but a safe and fertile place where bright and warm sunshine shone all year round.

If only we could farm the fertile land and raise livestock without the invasion of barbarians and live stably…

If that were the case, wouldn’t I have been able to live loved in my parents’ warm arms?

Eileen’s face grew darker and darker as she pondered the past that she could never change. Caelus, who had been quietly watching it, stepped in the moment her large, innocent eyes began to moisten.

“It seems like it’s time to prepare for the ball.”

“……Yes.”

Eileen barely swallowed the tears that were rising at the man’s low voice, which broke her reverie, and answered softly.

Not long after, Caelus, who had been staring intently at Eileen, who had regained her usual calm expression, grabbed the long rope hanging next to the bed. Soon, maids entered in a row.

“Help the Grand Duchess with her preparations. Make sure she shines the most beautifully at today’s victory celebration ball.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The maids, answering demurely, surrounded Eileen.

This was also the first time she had received such service, but Eileen entrusted herself without showing it.

The maids’ skills were extraordinary. The touches, from bathing to dressing and applying makeup, were very delicate and familiar.

In the meantime, the maids exchanged glances. Their gazes lingered the longest on Eileen’s hands. Rough hands that didn’t match her white and beautiful skin. In short, the traces of hardship.

The imperial palace maids served the imperial family, but they were basically noble ladies. No matter how much she imitated a beautiful noble, they couldn’t help but know that Eileen’s life was different from theirs, which was evident in her hands. But they couldn’t show it because Grand Duke Caelus’s eyes, who was standing right behind them with his arms crossed, staring intently at his wife, were too fierce.

They also knew the nickname “the demon of the battlefield” who beheaded enemies, regardless of gender or age.

In a strange atmosphere, the preparations were completed.

A bell dress with a subtle blue hue, elegant makeup that brought out her white skin, a soft neckline that stood out with her hair tied up in a bun, accessories decorated with emeralds the same color as Eileen’s eyes, and diamond shoes.

Even the maids who helped with the preparations were impressed by her appearance, which was like a work of art hanging in the imperial palace’s art gallery.

“Beautiful. So much…”

Eileen’s cheeks were tinged with a subtle rose color at Caelus’s low murmur.

The maids, feeling the pink atmosphere flowing openly between the two, with the Grand Duke’s eyes looking like he was in love and the Grand Duchess’s shy appearance, covered their mouths.

There was absolutely no room for the Princess to squeeze in.

The maids greeted with gloomy expressions and went outside. Their next destination was none other than Princess Rowena’s residence.

When they were alone, Eileen took a deep breath that she had been holding in. She had never tightened a corset this much before, so it was stuffy.

“Haa, the nobles of the capital live a hard life. I won’t even be able to drink a glass of champagne like this.”

Her waist, which was an inch slimmer than usual, was so tight that even bending slightly was burdensome. Because of that, her upper breasts, which were even more prominent above the dress, were also burdensome. She thought she wouldn’t be able to breathe properly throughout the ball because of her white upper breasts, which swayed seductively every time she breathed.

And one more thing.

Caelus’s gaze, which had been watching her throughout the preparations, was still felt behind her back.

What kind of expression would that man be making if she turned around now? She was curious but also afraid. Because he would be expressionless as always. Because he was a person without emotions.

An awkward silence continued. Eileen, staring at the door the maids had left through, opened her mouth as if nothing was wrong. It was time to leave soon, so she had to get rid of the awkwardness.

“You were really convincing earlier. You’re a better actor than I thought.”

“……Is that so.”

“Yes, looking at the maids’ expressions, they seem to think that Your Highness’s praise was sincere. It will probably reach the Princess’s ears that way too.”

“I see.”

His answer was somehow lukewarm. Eileen turned around and smiled calmly.

“You should get ready.”

“I will do it myself.”

“Ah, yes.”

Caelus, taking a big step, stood in front of the place where his new uniform was hanging and began to unbutton his shirt. Eileen, startled by the sudden undressing, turned away again. The wave-like dress fluttered softly, carrying a subtle fragrance. Caelus, momentarily pausing at the familiar and sweet scent that sweetly brushed the tip of his nose, straightened his spine to calm the momentary surge.

Soon, the sound of fabric rustling came. The palms of her hands holding the hem of her dress were sweating at the sound that stimulated her lewd imagination. Imagining Caelus, who was revealing his handsome body that she knew so well right behind her back and putting on his shining uniform one by one, her lower abdomen felt vaguely hot.

It hadn’t even been ten days, but how had she become so lewd?

She was embarrassed and ashamed. But Caelus, who had no way of knowing Eileen’s feelings, was just speaking in a calm voice.

“It’s all done, so let’s go.”

“Ah, yes.”

When Eileen turned around, Caelus came over and held out his hand. But somehow, the slightly crooked tie caught Eileen’s eye.

“Um, Your Highness? Your tie is a little…”

“Tie? It’s fine.”

It wasn’t fine at all. It wouldn’t matter if he was alone, but if his attire wasn’t perfect when he had a wife, it would be a flaw of the Grand Duchess, not the Grand Duke himself.

“If it’s not too much trouble, would you mind if I fixed it for you?”

Caelus, in response to Eileen’s attitude of not backing down and rather taking another step forward, quietly nodded.

Two slender hands came into view. Because the height difference was so great, even though she was wearing high heels, she was still a little short, so she slightly lifted her heels and pulled the subtly misaligned tie to the correct position.

She had only done it once before her father died, but thankfully, she still remembered the shape. Her father was also big like this man. He was also a knight who had lived his whole life on the northern battlefield.

Ah, that’s right.

The moment her gaze went to something she hadn’t even thought about because she was focused on the tie, her heart fluttered. She could clearly feel his thick, muscular chest slowly rising and falling, and the tips of her fingers trembled at the end.

“I-It’s done.”

“Thank you.”

The moment she turned around, unable to look up, her feet got tangled and she staggered.

“Ah!”

A quickly outstretched arm wrapped around her chest and pulled her in. In an instant, the man’s firm chest was pressed against her deeply hollowed back. Her head rang as she felt his rapidly beating heartbeat all over her body.

While Eileen was momentarily dazed, Caelus was in a dilemma. The source of the lewd scent that had been clinging to him to the point of suffocation and exciting him since she had touched what was around his neck was now in his arms.

Faint baby hairs that hadn’t made it into her updo were lightly resting on her white and slender neckline. The softly falling curve created a fantastic line from her straight shoulders to her half-covered round shoulders.

He wanted to tear the things on the woman’s body to pieces right away, capture her beautiful naked body in his eyes, and lick her from head to toe. The desire that he had been holding back continued to swell and pressed against his center.

But in the end, he had no choice but to let Eileen go. Never mind the Emperor, his subordinates, who had risked their lives fighting alongside him on the battlefield, were waiting for him in the ballroom. He had to allow them to enjoy the glory of a complete victory and the toast of respect. That was his last mission as commander.

He released the arm he had been holding tightly. He even felt a pang of regret as the soft mound that had been pressing down on his forearm fell away. But instead of fondling her voluptuous flesh as he pleased, he held Eileen’s arm to support her so she could stand on her own.

“I suppose we should be going now.”

“…Yes.”

Eileen, her face flushed red, answered quietly and followed Caelus out of the room. Count Roang, his aide, who had been waiting outside, beamed as he saw them. He also saw the Imperial Knights behind him offering their disciplined greetings.

“You’ve come out just in time. Let’s be on our way.”

“Alright.”