If You Wish For A Married Couple’s Duties - Chapter 13
Episode 13. The Naughty Prince (2)
***
At the remarks of the Fourth Prince, the maids gathered there lowered their heads and glanced at each other.
What does he mean by ‘they had the talks of marriage first’?
Was the Duchess supposed to marry that naughty prince?
Meanwhile, Leonhart opened his mouth with a face colder than usual.
“Unfortunately, it seems that my wife will not be able to greet you today.”
“Why?”
“She is not feeling very well, so she is resting in her room.”
“Is the Duchess sick?”
“It seems that the environment had suddenly changed and so her body was not able to properly adjust. She seems to have a hard time getting out of the bedroom.”
“Oh, my. Just how bad is it that it hurts when she walks? This is upsetting.”
Justin shrugged his shoulders as if he couldn’t help it before crossing his arms.
“By the way, it seems that not all Bashalins are physically strong. You must be very worried, Duke. Your wife must be healthy so that she can quickly give birth to a successor.”
“…Thank you for your concern, but I’m not at the age to think of a successor yet.”
“Haha, that’s right! The Duke of Esbaden is still so young and healthy to the point where such news of your health comes all the way to the Imperial Castle every day!”
The prince burst out an exhilarating laugh at Leonhart’s serious reply and lightly slapped him on the shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m hungry. Shall we eat first? Of course, there will be alcohol, right?”
The maid, who stood silently, took a step forward at Justin’s question.
“At the request of the Duke, I have prepared a sweet wine that Your Highness likes,” she said.
The prince raised his lips when she said that she had prepared his favorite drink.
“Haha! The aristocrats in the center of the Empire should learn from the duke in this aspect. Shall we go now?”
Walking behind the maid, he looked much more pleasant than before because he liked the duke’s attitude, which was more docile than usual.
***
“My sister is a very smart person. However, I think she is too inadequate to become the emperor.”
Justin continued talking while slicing the steak from the meal with a knife.
“Why?”
“Because she’s a woman. Women are too weak. She is not fit for the heavy duties of the emperor. In the first place, a woman can break with even a little bit of force, right?”
He cast his hot gaze as if asking for affirmation from the duke.
Leonhart, who was sitting across from the fourth Prince and eating quietly, reluctantly opened his mouth.
“Your Highness, the First Princess that I know is not an easy woman to break.”
“Well, that’s true. Although she was born as a woman, her magical talents are outstanding. But I don’t know if a sick wizard would be of any use.”
Justin clicked his tongue in annoyance.
His only sister, who was also the eldest, the first Princess, Julia von Bentrum, was the first in line for succession to the throne and one of the most powerful wizards in the Empire.
She was also a thorn in the eyes of Justin.
If it weren’t for her, he would’ve easily climbed to the highest spot.
A few years ago, Justin was hoping she would die prematurely because of her illness, but he’s stopped hoping for it now.
“There’s a thing called order in this world. Healing magic can disrupt that order. People should have lived by their own orders instead of having healing magic used.”
He shrugged regretfully and knocked on the glass next to him with a fork.
However, the maids were busy paying attention to what the head maid had ordered instead of the signal that the glass was empty. The head maid had left a warning that no one but herself should step forward in front of Justin.
Unfortunately, however, the head maid had been away for a while to order the next dish.
Eventually, one of her maids stepped forward with a nervous face.
The opponent was a ruthless prince who would blow her head off even if she acted a little unorderly, so she was more nervous than usual.
The maid approached the prince and carefully tilted the bottle.
Perhaps it was because she was too nervous, but the maid’s hands were shaking, and she eventually spilled some of the drink onto Justin’s hand, which was holding the glass.
The faces of the maids who watched the scene were stunned.
“So- I’m sorry, Prince!”
The maid, who was pouring the wine, knelt down with her face turned blue.
Meanwhile, Justin extended his wet hand to her, without a care in the world.
“Wipe it.”
“Yes?”
The maid was bewildered by the behavior of the prince, who had held out his hand without even giving her a glance.
“Wipe it. You spilled alcohol, so shouldn’t you wipe it?”
At Justin’s words, the maid came to the prince’s side with kneeling steps, having regained her consciousness right then.
It was at that moment, when she took out her handkerchief and was about to wipe the prince’s hands,
A big hand, Justin’s, grabbed the back of the maiden’s head and pulled her back.
“Ahhh!”
The maid screamed painfully as he grabbed her hair, but the prince seemed unwilling to let go of her.
He ground his teeth as he watched the maid burst into tears with her shrill screams.
“Where are you getting these dirty pieces of rags?”
“Ahh, I’m sorry! I’m sorry…”
“Really? Are you sorry?”
“Yes, yes! Please, please, forgive me, Prince!”
Justin raised one corner of his lips while looking at the maid as she wiped his hand with both of hers.
“My forgiveness is expensive. How are you going to pay for it?”
“Th-that’s…”
It was then, when the embarrassed maid stuttered her words,
“Stop it, my Lord.”
Suddenly, Leonhart was staring at him with bloody eyes.
Eyes resembling the cold winter sky shone coolly.
Justin frowned, he didn’t like the Duke’s demeanor toward him.
“Even the Duke saw the disrespect that this girl had done to me, but you’re telling me you want me to stop?”
He waved the maid’s hair, revealing his teeth, smiling.
“Since a member of the royal family’s body is dirty, the sinner deserves to die…”
“Your Highness.”
At that moment, an ominous, low-pitched voice, which was different from before, penetrated the prince’s eardrums.
“Stop it.”
It was short, but bold. At the suggestion, which felt more like a threat, Justin turned his head and had a hardened face.
Leonhart, who was sitting opposite him, was staring intently at the prince, while emptying his glass of wine.
At the intense gaze on him, Justin shrugged his shoulders in resignation.
His pride was hurt, but his instincts told him to do as he said, so there was nothing he could do about it.
The knight, who was called the strongest in the empire, stared at him as if he was going to eat him alive. Who wouldn’t freeze in that situation?
It didn’t matter that he was a prince, he must take his hand off of her in front of him and his eyes. One move.
Eventually, when there was not even a drop of alcohol left in the glass, Leonhart quietly put down the glass and opened his mouth again.
“I don’t want any unnecessary commotion on the day Your Highness came to congratulate me on my marriage. Please be considerate.”
“Hmmmm! If you say it like that, I can’t help it.”
Justin let the maid free with an annoyed expression. The maid slumped in her spot, shivering, not even thinking of tidying her messy hair.
It was the head maid, who had just returned, who quickly raised the maid and rectified her situation.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I will sternly punish her so that she will never disrespect you again.”
“Okay, just shut up. I’m losing my appetite by looking at her ugly face.”
As Justin waved his hand to dismiss everyone in annoyance, the Duke helped him.
“Go away, everyone”.
At Leonhart’s words, the maids in the dining room ran out like the low tide.
The only people left in the dining room where silence dominated were the Duke of Esbaden, the Fourth Prince, and the Prince’s escort knight.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a long time, but I think the duke has very bad taste.”
Justin leaned against his chair and twirled his fork.
“Just look at the maids. Why did you only choose those ugly girls? If it were me, I wouldn’t have been able to even pick up a spoon because of how much I’d vomit. Oh, but maybe they are good at other things?”
It was absurd for a man of noble status to say such things, but Leonhart didn’t blink an eye.
He knew better than anyone that the Fourth Prince was always like this.
“Well, thanks to the duke’s peculiar taste, I spared her life.”
Justin shrugged his shoulders and then asked the Duke with curious eyes.
“So, what does our Duchess look like? Was she so ugly that you couldn’t even open your eyes in front of her as rumored?”
In response to the prince’s question, Leonhart unconsciously recalled the day he first met his wife.
That day, Dooha’s face, which was slowly revealed through the red hood, was definitely far from ugly and pale.
No, looking back on his memories, it seemed that she was rather dazzling. Of course, it must have been because of the sunlight shining on her from behind.
“Oh, no. She seems to be ugly enough to make you frown.”
‘Is it because I thought of her silver hair reflected by the sun’s light and frowned without realizing it?’
Justin looked at the Duke’s expression and giggled in amusement.
“Haha, it’s a shame. If she is such an ugly woman, you should have seen and rejected her.”
The prince smacked his lips as if he was really disappointed.
“Still, it is impossible to kill your wife, who is a symbol of the alliance. So, once again, I had no choice but to reject her. But I never thought that the Duke would accept this marriage with ease.”
“…It was for the sake of the alliance with Bashal, so it was natural to accept it.”
“Haha, I know very well why my father loves you. With such warm loyalty, he must feel very reassured.”
Leonhart lowered his eyes as soon as he saw the fourth Prince, who was rambling on his own.
The Fourth Prince, Justin von Bentrum.
Although he was called ‘The Naughty Prince’, there was more to that. A man, who became an empty shell after losing his two wives in accidents – it was clearly known to the public. But in fact, the truth was quite different from the rumors.
And Leonhart? He was one of the few who knew the truth.
