ELND Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Today, the One Who Dies is You

“You shameless wretch!”

Duke Bold grabbed my shoulders tightly and shouted.

Startled, I gritted my teeth and tried to push him away.

But overcoming the strength of a robust middle-aged man was far from easy.

“Let go of me!”

“You delayed our promise for five long years! And now you even have the nerve to play another trick?”

Duke Bold’s fury flared as he glared at me fiercely.

“Was this your plan all along? To use me to claim the position of Grand Duchess, taking only your share for yourself?”

“Stop it! Stop spouting nonsense and let me go!”

I struggled with all my strength to free myself from Duke Bold’s grip.

But he only gritted his teeth harder and lunged at me, pressing my neck forcefully against the wall.

“Ugh…!”

The grip on my neck tightened, and no matter how much I punched or kicked, it was useless.

Then, Duke Bold, glaring at me with a fierce look, suddenly began to laugh like a madman.

“Do you really think you can use me and escape my grasp so easily?”

“Kugh…”

“If you insist on defying me, I’ll divorce you and place my daughter from my mistress into the family, making her the Grand Duchess. And as for you?”

A sinister gleam appeared in his slanted eyes.

“Do you think I’ll let you live like this?”

It felt as if my air was being completely squeezed out.

For a moment, he paused his attack and leaned closer to my ear, whispering.

“So, before this gets ugly… bring me the ‘Heart of Lilian.’”

The foul smell of alcohol emanated from him, making it even more nauseating.

I glared at him, irritated by his words, and he ground his teeth, shouting.

“If you don’t… I’ll kill you right here… ugh?!”

At that moment, with a sudden scream, Duke Bold’s head jerked violently backward.

“Who dares to threaten death in the Dark Mansion?”

A woman’s icy voice echoed as the pressure on my neck lifted, and I bent over, gasping for breath.

It took me several moments to recover my composure.

“I… I can’t let go!”

I heard Duke Bold’s frightened voice and slowly lifted my head to see who was there.

‘…Mina?’

It wasn’t just Mina.

Several maids who managed the Grand Duchess’s quarters were also present.

Unlike their usual flowing dresses, they were all dressed in black, tactical outfits.

It wasn’t just their clothing that had changed.

The cheerful smiles they usually wore were gone.

Each of them now bore a fierce, unfamiliar expression, staring daggers at Duke Bold.

Duke Bold’s face turned pale as he sensed the deadly intent radiating from them.

“D-Don’t come closer!”

He shouted at the advancing maids, but they moved deliberately, like predators closing in on their prey.

Mina sneered at him softly.

“Oh my, what should we do? Looks like the one dying today isn’t our Grand Duchess…”

She whispered quietly into his ear.

“…It seems it will be you, Duke.”

Shivering under Mina’s grip, Duke Bold shouted furiously.

“I can’t let go! Do you know who I am to treat me like this?”

One of the maids behind Mina stepped forward and twisted Duke Bold’s arm behind his back.

“Aah…!”

“Do you even know who you’ve been recklessly confronting?”

The maids ground their teeth, their faces growing even sterner.

“Ugh, let… let go!”

Duke Bold staggered backward in pain.

Mina released my neck roughly, like throwing away trash, and approached me.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Her expression had returned to its usual gentle smile.

I stared at her, bewildered.

I had known she was hiding her strength, but seeing it firsthand left me dumbfounded.

“Your Highness, just give the order. If you want me to simply release Duke Bold, we can do that… though it would be such a pity.”

“…?”

“Or if you wish, we can bury him happily in a sunny spot of the Demon Realm Forest!”

Mina smiled brightly and added, “Then no one will ever know!”

I raised my thumb in admiration, and Duke Bold’s face turned even whiter.

“Y-You insane fools! None of you are normal! How dare you speak to me like this!”

Duke Bold was bound and screamed in frustration, his jaw trembling.

Whether it was due to rage or fear of the maids’ deadly stares, I couldn’t tell.

“How dare you speak such words to the Duke of the Empire! That half-demon woman… her vulgar nature will never be accepted!”

His provocation made the maids’ faces even colder.

For a moment, the air was thick with deadly silence.

“…Ugh!”

In an instant, Duke Bold groaned as I grabbed his collar again.

I held him close, staring directly into his eyes.

“I warned you, didn’t I?”

“…”

“Not to make me call you ‘Duke Bold.’”

“Y-You…!”

“Not only did you trespass into the Grand Duchy, threaten the Grand Duchess, but you also insulted the half-demons?”

Duke Bold trembled as my gaze hardened.

I sneered quietly.

“My patience for you has run out.”

His face drained of all color.

But only for a moment. He screamed one last time, trying to make a final defiant act.

“To humiliate me like this! I will make this known to high society! Everyone will know how uncultured and ignorant your half-demon kind is!”

One of the maids approached me cautiously.

“Your Highness, don’t worry. If you wish, we can erase Duke Bold’s memory before he returns.”

“Oh, really?”

I looked at Duke Bold with sparkling eyes, and he nervously bit his lower lip.

“If you dare… do such a thing to me…!”

“Since the memory will be erased anyway, adding a bit of pain won’t hurt.”

I smiled faintly at Duke Bold’s struggling form.

“From now on, he’s in your hands. Take him anywhere, do as you wish.”

Duke Bold’s face went even paler, trembling violently.

I raised a relaxed smile toward the maids, who were loosening their posture.

“Show him properly. Let him know he is no one to treat lightly.”

Finally, my command given, the maids smiled with satisfaction.

They grabbed Duke Bold’s arms and began dragging him toward the back garden.

No mere human could resist the power of half-demon women.

All Duke Bold could do was stomp his feet and scream helplessly.

“Let go! What are you vile creatures trying to do to me?! Ugh! P-Please…”

Mina forcefully covered his mouth, silencing him.

Leaving the begging Duke Bold behind, I walked calmly toward the Grand Duchess’s quarters.

‘Pathetic human. How dare you speak such nonsense here?’

Soon, even the sound of Duke Bold’s struggles faded into the distance.

A few hours later, inside the carriage heading south.

“…Huh!”

Duke Bold jolted awake, looking around in confusion.

Sweat covered his forehead.

“Duke, are you alright?”

The aide across from him asked anxiously, noticing his pale expression.

He had been at the Dark Mansion of the Twins Grand Ducal Family not long ago, yet now he was back in the carriage heading south?

“What on earth… ugh!”

Duke Bold suddenly screamed as sharp pain shot through him, his whole body aching as if beaten.

“He apparently fell down the stairs while drunk. The maids struggled to support him and brought him to the carriage.”

“I… fell drunk on the stairs…?”

No matter how much he tried to recall, his memory was blank.

He only remembered staggering toward the Dark Mansion, but nothing after that.

Even drunk, he had never lost his memory this completely.

Confused, he touched the back of his neck, wincing.

“Ugh…”

“Duke!”

His body was battered. Dark bruises under his eyes, chapped lips, and every movement sent sharp pain through him.

It was as if someone had thoroughly beaten him.

At that moment, the aide took an ointment from his pocket.

The foul smell made Duke Bold frown.

“Ugh, what is that?!”

“The maids gave it to you. It’s made from demon-world ingredients; it’ll help with your bruises and wounds.”

“I don’t care about some vulgar demon-world ointment… Aah!”

His lips split open again, causing another scream.

The aide sighed lightly and approached to apply the ointment.

Duke Bold did not resist, though the pain was evident.

He had planned to confront Rebecca seriously, yet he ended up drunk and beaten on the stairs.

All he gained was wounds.

Embarrassed, he only vented his frustration on his aide.

“What is this horrible stench! Ugh…! Gently… it hurts!”