If I Disobey the Duke - Chapter 22

Bad Temptation (1)

“Hah!”

Lily took a deep breath and stood up.

It’s been a week since the knights left for expedition training, but there wasn’t a single day in which Lily did not have nightmares.

They were mainly dreams in which the trumpet announcing the news of her first husband’s death was replaced with a sound announcing the death of her third.

Lily looked around nervously, wondering if she had yet to wake up from her nightmare.

The bedroom was spacious and quiet today. The bell hanging outside the door rang as she pulled the string that came down to the bed. Talin opened the door and entered.

He was excluded from the expedition in the name of protecting Lily.

“Are you awake, Madam…?” Talin, who finished his greetings, was stunned. “Are you alright?”

The vision of her fine hair plastered to her forehead, moist eyelashes fluttering, was very dangerous.

Lily looked at Talin anxiously, fiddling with her hands. “Lord Talin… Is Vlad back?”

“Not yet. Originally, the duration of the expedition is at the lord’s discretion… But this time, he’ll come back early. He just went to take care of the affairs of the North Chapel.”

“In that case, did anything happen? Falling off horses, breaking bones…”

“The lord falling off a horse…” Talin shuddered as if it was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing. “He probably won’t fall even if he’s on a dragon. If the entire Order attacked him at the same time, you can rest assured that he is strong enough that he won’t even have to exert much effort to win.”

Lily’s body slowly relaxed at the calm explanation.

After the anxiety subsided, embarrassment filled the place.

As the mistress of the castle, she was the official decision-maker when the lord was absent.

I look weak every morning. It’s so pathetic.

If it continued like this, it was obvious that she would lose her reputation in an instant, deemed a commoner unfit for her position.

Lily took a deep breath and looked at Talin, her lips still bluish from her nightmare. “Thank you Lord Talin. I keep bothering you.”

The knight was filled with compassion.

Their mistress, who was already skinny in the first place, was getting thinner day by day.

“I think it’s better to tell your brothers to stay in the castle right away. Since the lord is not here, I think it would be better for your family to be next to you.”

Lily’s mouth opened a beat later as she blinked slowly.

“My brothers? I’ve never heard of them coming.”

“They arrived at the entrance to Cadis this morning.”

Lily’s expression, which had been dumbfounded, slowly wrinkled. She buried her face in her hands. “It’s such a sudden visit…” She had a headache. Even if her family was rich and powerful, it was an act against etiquette.

Besides, Lily had not yet settled on anything.

Not only did she not know about the estate, but also the most important thing: her husband.

Meeting her family now would be unpleasant in many ways.

Lily put her hand down. “What does Vlad usually do? When there is a sudden visit, that is.”

“Well… he really hates visitors but…”

“Then I’ll have to tell them to go back. I’ll have them write in advance and ask them to come back after getting permission.”

Talin seemed a little surprised by the unexpectedly decisive attitude.

It wasn’t that Lily didn’t miss her family either. They were her everything. Her life was for her brothers.

That was why she couldn’t make them look even worse in front of others.

“I’ll go and talk to them myself. That’ll be better.” Lily got out of bed.

She thought that she should pay attention to her makeup for today. Their meeting would be short, but it was still her first time meeting her family after getting married this time. She wanted to make them feel that she was being treated well enough.

In fact, it was true that this marriage was much better than the last two marriages.

“Just leave it to me! I’ll make you very dazzling!” The maids’ eyes lit up at the same time.

Lily’s reputation among the maids was quietly rising.

She wasn’t fussy nor too sensitive, just equally kind to all the maids.

It was an attitude that was not common even among ordinary noble ladies, or even commoners.

The maids were enthusiastic and quickly exchanged sign language and spoken language with each other.

– How about upbraiding her hair and giving it a natural look?

“Okay, let’s go with the blue dress that the lord had prepared.

– The accessories will match the color of Madam’s eyes. I have something in mind.

The finishing touches were a shawl long gloves lined with satin to give protection from the cold.

Talin was ecstatic when he saw Lily, whom the maids had poured their souls into grooming.

“It seems that my eyes have already gone blind. Madam. If I were the lord, I would want to lock you up in the castle and never let anyone see you.”

“The compliment is… unusual.”

“I’m against it! If I were a lord, I would brag to the whole world about my wife!”

Lily ran out of the room, leaving behind Talin and Buttercup engaged in a war of words.

***

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