So the Duchess Disappeared

58. Trapped

“I’m going to kill the Duchess?”

Clint’s brow furrowed.

He looked somewhat puzzled.

Then, he shook his head slightly.

“Nonsense.”

Even if Psyche thought so, Clint steadfastly believed that there had never been any room for such a misunderstanding.

“But wouldn’t it be worth trying to talk to her once?”

“I have nothing to gain from killing the Duchess.”

Clint waved his hand as if he didn’t want to think about it.

“….”

Alexa was very curious about what the Duke thought.

As a subordinate, she couldn’t hold him accountable for not telling the truth, so she was in no position to question him.

Clint, who didn’t know the truth of the matter, didn’t take Alexa’s words too seriously.

He chuckled and spoke up.

“If I had wanted to kill the Duchess, she would already be dead.”

It was a chilling tone.

In a serious tone, Alexa replied, “Can I take your word that you have never attempted to kill the Duchess?”

Not knowing that their relationship was based on a contract, Alexa needed solid evidence that Psyche’s thoughts were just groundless suspicions.

But she immediately realized that saying that was a mistake.

Clint squinted one eye.

“Alexa, don’t overstep your bounds.”

“I’m sorry.”

Clint spoke as if he was uncomfortable.

“I didn’t bring you along as the Duchess’s escort to hear these strange stories from you.”

“….”

“This time, make sure she can’t escape no matter what happens. That’s your mission.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

Alexa nodded.

Finally, Clint, who had slightly relaxed his expression, lowered his gaze again and spoke.

“And tell the Duchess.”

“Please go ahead.”

“Tell her to attend the welcoming party with Shilard.”

“….!”

Yesterday, Alexa was surprised and puzzled to learn that their argument had originated from Shilard.

Since Psyche had become the Duchess, it was the first time she had shown such stubbornness, so everyone who heard about their fight had some doubts.

Some speculated whether Psyche was being stubborn because she still had feelings for Clint, or whether she was planning to divorce him soon.

Alexa was also perplexed when Psyche suddenly announced that she would take Shilard to the party.

“Well, then go ahead and tell her……”

“Since the Duchess still seems unfamiliar with the social scene, she needs to experience it firsthand.”

Alexa swallowed her saliva at his words.

She couldn’t shake off the feeling that their relationship was deteriorating rather than improving.

But she couldn’t oppose what her master was doing.

She nodded again.

“Understood.”

“Off you go.”

Alexa nodded in acknowledgment and left the study.

She felt even more bewildered than when she entered.

❖ ❖ ❖

Finally, the day arrived for the Queen of Tarann to visit.

The entire palace seemed busy preparing to welcome her.

The Duke’s residence was also busy in the morning, as it had been a long time since the Duke and Duchess went out together.

Because Shilard was going to the party, Clint and Psyche decided to use separate carriages to go to the palace.

Since that night, Psyche had never crossed paths with Shilard after receiving the declaration through Alexa that she could take Shilard to the party.

Even on the day of the party, she seemed too busy preparing to take Shilard to the palace since morning, with no time to spare for Clint.

Still, Shilard followed her quite gracefully.

“Oh, you look so good, Shilly.”

Psyche looked at the well-dressed Shilard with a satisfied expression.

Turning around in front of her, Shilard blushed and said, “Mamma is prettier.”

“Oh really? Shilard, you speak so nicely?”

Psyche chuckled brightly.

Even though it wasn’t particularly meeting the queen, Psyche still paid attention to various details because she couldn’t just go to the palace in any old way.

Previously, it was just a banquet she had to reluctantly attend with the duke, but now its significance was quite different.

It was obvious how people would perceive her if she brought Shilard along. So she paid even more attention to her appearance.

She had never dressed so lavishly before, but today, unlike before, she paid more attention to her dress and jewelry.

“Oh my, madam, you are so beautiful.”

Alexa, who came to the room to take them to the carriage, exclaimed repeatedly.

“Thank you, Alexa.”

“Big sister, what’s up!”

Seeing Alexa, who had grown up for once, Shilard also raised his thumb.

T/N: Im really sorry the genders keep shifting im so so sorry if it looks like mtl I really thought in between the chapters that I could be wrong about Shilard’s gende. From Now on Shilard is a boy and ill edit old chapters too.

Perhaps because he was a boy, he seemed more interested in the knight’s attire.

At the mention of ‘big sister,’ Alexa unconsciously blushed and smiled.

“It seems Shilard knows how to sway a woman’s heart more and more.”

“Oh, our Shilard already?”

Psyche laughed heartily.

“Yes, he’s becoming quite popular among the female servants.”

Alexa replied with a smile.

With his honey-colored blonde hair and blue eyes, Shilard looked like a nobleman from a fairy tale, and every day, his cheeks were flushed with redness, so much so that women would swoon over him just by his appearance alone.

However, since he only spoke nice words that others could hear, everyone liked him, regardless of his relationship with Clint.

“Our Shilard, already like this?”

Psyche looked at Shilard with a proud expression.

If Shilard wasn’t the Queen’s son, perhaps their days of laughing and chatting together wouldn’t last much longer.

Feeling a little disappointed at the thought of not seeing Shilard anymore, Psyche realized how much she would miss him.

She was well aware of how foolish she was to be involved in this charade.

She hadn’t overlooked the consequences of deceiving Clint and her own recklessness.

But people didn’t always make rational choices in life.

Even if she knew it was the wrong path, there were times when she chose to continue on it.

Moreover, since nothing was certain yet, she didn’t want to tell Clint and risk distorting things.

If he wasn’t the Queen’s son, it might be better to pretend he was her own son.

Of course, she knew it was impossible to keep deceiving the Duke forever, so she didn’t plan to continue this act for long.

‘If only our child were alive…’

Psyche thought absentmindedly as she watched Alexa and Shilard playing around.

Although she had tried hard to bury thoughts of the child, sometimes, they would invade her senses and tear through her daily life.

Trying not to get too sad for no reason, Psyche lowered her head.

“It’s time. The Duke is waiting, so let’s go quickly.”

Alexa said to Psyche.

Then they hurried out of the room.

It was a rare grand outing indeed.

Fancy carriages with Valentine patterns were lined up in front of the main gate.

In front of them stood Clint, dressed up elegantly.

Psyche still felt awkward around him, so she deliberately avoided eye contact.

And surprisingly, the person who welcomed Clint the most was…

“Uncle, why didn’t you come? I missed you!”

It was Shilard.

He let go of Psyche’s hand that he was holding and rushed towards Clint as soon as he saw him.

Clint’s stiff expression quickly softened when Shilard jumped into his arms.

“Uncle, why didn’t you come? I wanted to see you!”

Shilard kept talking to Clint without a break.

Despite the lingering awkwardness between Psyche and Clint, Shilard instantly eased the atmosphere.

“Uncle!”

Shilard clung to Clint and continued to chatter incessantly.

Shilard was now happily touching Clint’s cheeks.

Psyche, who was taken aback, quickly approached.

“Ahem, Sh-Shilard, let’s not bother Uncle.”

“I’m s-sorry…”

Due to Shilard continuously touching around Clint’s mouth, his pronunciation was affected.

Approaching them, Psyche didn’t know what to do and tried to stop Shilard.

But he seemed determined to keep touching Clint’s face.

“Are you coming with us, Uncle? We’re going on a trip with Mama!”

“…”

“…”

Psyche and Clint were both speechless.

Helplessly, Psyche boarded the carriage first.

Before Clint headed to his own carriage, he approached to put Shilard in the same carriage as Psyche.

“Come here, Shilard.”

As Shilard hesitated to leave Clint, Psyche tapped the seat next to her and gestured for him to come over.

He slowly approached her with a puzzled look.

“What’s wrong? Aren’t you going with Uncle?”

He asked, looking at Clint standing outside the carriage.

“The carriage is narrow, so it’s better to go comfortably.”

Psyche smiled and gave an excuse.

“Why? I want to go with Uncle!”

Suddenly, Shilard turned around and forcefully grabbed Clint’s clothes. Clint, afraid of hurting Shilard, reluctantly entered the carriage.

Seeing this, Alexa, who had been watching from the front, quickly intervened.

“We don’t have time. We need to leave.”

“…?”

“Please get inside, Your Grace.”

Alexa pushed Clint into the carriage and swiftly closed the door from the outside.

In an instant, Psyche, Clint, and Shilard found themselves trapped in the cramped carriage.