Whether it was because of the principles of the Ferdia family, Duke Ferdia was indifferent to his wife, who married him for mutual benefit, and to his two sons of his own bloodline.
He naturally had no interest in me, an illegitimate child (not actually).
But it was strange that he didn’t forget to invite family meals.
Glancing at the Duke, our eyes met for a moment.
I was startled and almost looked away, but instead, I smiled broadly.
“Maybe if I flatter him in advance, he’ll look out for me later even if it’s revealed I’m not of his bloodline?”
That was my grand plan, however.
“…….”
The Duke looked at me for a very brief moment before turning his gaze away coldly.
Well, I didn’t expect him to meet my eyes and smile, so I wasn’t particularly moved.
The meal of deathly silence continued. The one who broke the quiet was Yansi.
“I heard the news, Mother. You’ve developed the antidote in such a short time. You are truly amazing.”
“I haven’t even made the news yet, and you’ve heard it. You really know a lot.”
The Duchess replied with a lofty smile. It wasn’t an admonishing or reproaching tone, but somehow it felt overwhelming.
I chewed on my salad, pretending not to listen, but my ears were tuned to their conversation.
After all, I was the one who developed the antidote.
Already accessing information that hadn’t been announced, it was truly like Yansi Ferdia, whose skills in gathering information were exceptional.
“In terms of gloominess, he ranks first.”
The conversation continued.
“You make poison well, but you usually take a long time to develop an antidote. What happened this time?”
“I was lucky.”
“Lucky?”
“Yes. I’ve got a competent pharmacist on hand.”
At those words, I tensed up greatly, fearing the Duchess might look at me.
But her eyes were on Yansi.
“Phew.”
My mouth felt suddenly dry, and I silently sipped my water.
Yansi asked the Duchess seriously.
“A pharmacist? Is he a reliable person?”
“Um…….”
“If you have any doubts, I can investigate.”
Choking, choking…!
“An investigation?”
The family’s eyes were all on me when I accidentally made a sound by choking.
I quickly diverted my gaze to the food.
Fortunately, they soon lost interest in me.
“Yansi wouldn’t find out that I made the antidote. Only the Duchess knows, so it won’t be revealed.”
I could only trust the promise I made with the Duchess.
Feeling somehow uneasy, I looked at the Duchess and caught her eye.
I saw her lips curl up slightly for a moment.
“Don’t be foolish.”
She left Yansi with a brief warning and refocused on her meal.
My secret seemed well kept, fortunately.
Relieved, I resumed my meal. The mansion’s head chef was excellent, after all.
“Liri, you don’t have to eat if you don’t want to.”
“Huh?”
I looked at my empty plate once and then looked back at Yansi.
Quite far away from me, he sat so that he could not see how much I had eaten; he looked quite flustered.
“I… ate it all.”
I smiled awkwardly back at Yan, who was smiling awkwardly at me.
“Yes. It was delicious, wasn’t it?”
Not long ago, I would nibble at my food in discomfort at every awkward dinner and return as a side dish, but now there was no reason to do so.
A family that had no love for one another anyway.
Even if I tried, I couldn’t be a family, and if I wasn’t a family even if I lived as I wanted…
‘I should just live comfortably, so what.’
The food is not guilty.
I finished the last dessert cleanly, put down the tableware, and stood up from my seat.
“Then I will go up.”
The atmosphere was a mess, but the food was really delicious!
[Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon]Tteuk…
Carlott froze with a knife in his hand. His gaze remained on the restaurant entrance where Elodie had gone.
“…Insane?”
No one answered Carlott’s astonished mutter.
Elodie always kept her seat until the end at the family dinner.
She just left the dining room saying she had eaten everything, so why didn’t anyone point it out?
“Father. Isn’t she strange?”
I asked the Duke Ferdia, almost accusingly, but he just drank wine silently in reply.
Carlott seemed to be the only one confused.
‘The person is crazy, why doesn’t anyone care!’
Contrary to Carlott’s thoughts, the other three people looked once at the entrance of the restaurant where Elodie had disappeared.
Even though I was under close surveillance, I had to attend official events at the family level.
One of them was the Emperor’s birthday party today.
On the way to the Imperial Castle by carriage.
“Do you have something to say?”
When I asked Adenmir, who was staring at me, he immediately denied it, narrowing his brow.
“Of course not.”
I almost felt a hole in my face as he kept staring at me all the way.
I pondered why he was acting like that and finally came to one conclusion.
‘Does he want an apology for falling?’
The carriage stopped the moment I thought that.
First, I had to enter the banquet hall, so I moved with Adenmir’s escort.
As soon as I entered the hall, Prince Adenmir was surrounded by his close aides.
“Let’s talk for a moment.”
“Yes. You may go.”
I courteously let Prince Adenmir go.
He seemed to have important conversations with the nobles of his faction.
Since our engagement was merely formal, we rarely spent time together or danced.
I had one thing to do at today’s party, so being alone was fine.
Soon, I moved to a new spot. I chose the place in front of the west pillar.
A place that seemed inconspicuous yet noticeable.
The reason for standing there was clear.
“Pleased to see you, Princess?”
Surely, to give this man an opportunity to approach me.
Prince Beltran Loke Willeunt, the 2nd Prince, was in front of me.
“I see Your Highness, the 2nd Prince.”
I greeted him with a faint smile.
The 2nd Prince approached me. The meaning of this fact was clear.
The aide to Duke Ferdia is colluding with the 2nd Prince.
Even before the content of the book began.
“I will handle it as His Majesty has instructed. But there’s one problem, Your Highness?”
“…….”
“Your Highness……?”
“Hold on.”
Adenmir had witnessed a scene.
It was none other than his fiancée Elodie talking with the man he despised the most, Beltran.
He was dumbfounded.
She’s smiling?
Moreover, Elodie even smiled faintly as she greeted Beltran.
The moment he saw Elodie blushing and speaking shyly flashed through his mind.
“Actually, I have someone I like.”
“…What?”
“I’m embarrassed.”
He was stunned.
Ha.
“That brat?”
The guy she said she likes?
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
_____
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