I Stole the Heroine’s First Love - Chapter 26

Episode 26

Aster was looking at him with a smile, but there was a subtle mana all around him.

The expression on the Archduke’s face quickly disappeared.

Huge anger was soon replaced with magic.

The air in the room became heavy with the mana and life that the ruler of power exhaled.

“I already know that the Archduke and his wife do not have a good heart for Karina. I was wondering if all this was the plan of the two of you.”

The Archduke slowly opened his mouth to make excuses.

It wasn’t the time yet.

“You are mistaken, Your Majesty. On the way home from work, I felt the powerful magical powers and only went there. As you know, the troublesome Raymond is in the capital.”

“You mean you went to check Raymond?”

“Yes.”

“And you happened to save the princess.”

The Archduke released a small amount of magic so as not to retreat from the increasingly sharp imperial force.

A cool breeze wafted through the room scorched by Aster’s heat.

Ironically, the Archduke was a winter wizard.

His father, who died, loved Andrew the most among his brothers.

Aster grew up being compared to him from a very young age.

And Aster had to give him a lot of what he had.

When the former emperor died, it was Andrew who Aster tried to kill first.

If it hadn’t been for Andrew’s nanny to take him away on the day the 2nd Prince caused a rebellion, he wouldn’t have been in this world any longer.

‘You’re lucky.’

But the Archduke was still worth using. At least for the sake of external image.

Aster harvested his magical power and said to the Archduke.

“I see. Whatever your intentions, it’s true that you saved the princess.”

At the words of the emperor, the archduke released his powers. His hands and back were damp with sweat.

“You may leave.”

At Aster’s invitation, Andrew quickly left the palace.

He had to figure out why Aster suspected him as the arsonist.

Arriving at the scene of the fire on Berris Street, he immediately recognized the cause.

Although very weak, traces of his magic remained.

Wizards born in the imperial family do not register their mana in the Magic Tower.

So it was difficult to track.

However, Aster knew the mana of the Archduke.

Perhaps he noticed as soon as he arrived at this place.

Moreover, it was quite a large amount to be used only to save Karina, and because of that, maybe Aster thought of Andrew as the arsonist.

“Raymond.”

Raymond was the one that made sense. It was the information he got from beating him up before he ran away.

Andrew thought of someone who might have offered Raymond his mana while instigating the fire.

“Tatiana.”

Suddenly, grinding his teeth, Andrew stood up.

Returning to the Archduke’s residence at once, he found Tatiana.

“Your Excellency, are you here?”

“Where is the Duchess?”

“She’s in her bedroom.”

The butler was nervously looking at the archduke who was sharper than usual.

These days, the atmosphere of the Archduke seems to be more brutal than before.

Even Tatiana, who was always smiling and relaxed, looked cautious.

‘What’s the matter?’

Only the butler knew the true story of these two, known in the world as a parakeet couple.

After Andrew ascended to the duchy and even managed their marriage, he still couldn’t forget the day after the wedding.

‘He put a knife to her neck and they couldn’t live together.

Since it happened right after the first night, the butler had a hard time keeping the lower servant’s mouth shut for the honor of the Archduke.

Of course, the couple’s bedroom, which they thought they would use as a single room, was also divided into two, so there was no fuss.

‘Why are you like that?’

The butler looked at the back of the Archduke going up to the second floor, worried about the two still being cold.

So far, the Duchess has been quiet because she hasn’t done much outside activities.

But these days, noises are starting to come from everywhere.

For now, he had no choice but to hope that the two of them would get along well.

~*~

Tatiana, who was in her room, was startled by the sudden sound of the door opening.

She was already so sensitive that she was startled by even the slightest noise, so she reacted nervously.

“Who is it?!”

However, the pressure she felt behind her back caused her body to jump on its own.

Tatiana quickly looked behind her.

“Hey… Andy.”

“Give me the bracelet.”

“What? Wh-why are you doing this?”

“Right now.”

Andrew grudgingly grabbed Tatiana’s arm as she stepped back.

As soon as he placed his hand on the bracelet on her wrist, he could see that the magic he had given her on their first night after the wedding had vanished.

He felt his eyes burn red with anger.

“What did you do with the magic I gave you?!”

Tatiana forced a smile and shook her head.

“Hey, how should I know it’s gone? I’m not even a wizard. How weird.”

“Then you’re saying that Raymond, who was crazy about you, drew his magic from here?”

She shut her eyes tightly, realizing that Andrew had come to know it all.

‘How do I get out of this?’

When she didn’t say a word, Andrew threw down her hand that he was holding.

His attitude as if he was throwing away trash broke her heart as Tatiana thought she couldn’t have him.

Thanks to her wearing the bracelet, she was able to face the black void above his head for the first time in a long time.

“You always make me sick of you. I’m sick and tired of it.”

“Andy.”

“I should have already told you not to call me that.”

Tatiana’s blue eyes fluttered with tears.

Glittering teardrops ran down her rosy cheeks, creating dark stains on the carpet.

It looked pitiful to anyone who looked at it.

Perhaps if others had seen her, they would have been clamoring to wipe away the tears of the neat and graceful lady.

But when Andrew saw Tatiana like that, his contempt boiled over.

“Please don’t cry in front of me. I’m the one who really wants to cry.”

“I-I was wrong. So why don’t you forgive me now?”

“Forgive? You ruined my whole life, and to ask for forgiveness!”

Andrew’s gaze, full of hatred, turned to Tatiana. She was terrified of accepting his hatred completely.

Seeing her shoulders trembling and crying with her pathetic eyes, Andrew grinded his teeth.

“Don’t forget, we’re still married because you said you could make me emperor.” (tl/n: ahhh knew it)

He growled at Tatiana, who sat down.

“Because I need that place to get back everything I lost.”

Those words were nothing more than a declaration that her use was nothing but a tool.

As soon as she got used to it, even though the words were familiar, her heart still broke. Tatiana lowered her head.

Andrew looked at her like that and walked out.

After she sat down for a while, Tatiana got her body up.

She did not have time for her to be broken like this.

She locked her door and changed her clothes.

Her black dress, which covered both her neck and arms, looked just like a mourning dress.

Her silver hair was tied up and pulled up, wrapped in her black hair net, and hidden under her hat.

She untied her bracelet, tucked it deep inside, and put on her black gloves as she headed towards the wall.

The escape route was opened in case of an emergency.

She checked behind her once more and went out there.

It was already dark outside.

She could see the dark night slowly encroaching on the reddish sky.

Tatiana got into a carriage from the other side of the Archduke’s house. Her coachman, without asking anything, took her to the forest on the outskirts of the capital.

Tatiana put her money down on the seat as the carriage stopped and she got off.

From there she saw a small hut as she went further into the woods.

She knocked lightly on the door, and the door opened as if waiting.

“Titi.”

“Ray, are you feeling much better?”

Raymond, whom she had not seen in a long time, had a much better face than before.

At first, his face was so swollen that she didn’t even know it was Raymond.

Tatiana only knew that the person who made his face that way was the owner of the tower.

For some reason, he didn’t say anything, so it could have been Andrew.

“Ha ha. Yes, come this way.”

Contrary to the rustic appearance, the inside of the hut was spacious and looked like an old-fashioned castle. Read only at pm tl.

All of this was done by Raymond’s magic.

Tatiana felt relieved by the sweet scent of flowers that enveloped the entire house.

“Would you like some tea?”

“Yes. It’s always nice to see what Ray gives.”

Tatiana sat by the table and waited for a while.

It’s been awhile since she has been here.

Feeling strange emotions, Tatiana touched her wrist to touch the bracelet she didn’t even wear.

However, she soon realized that it was not there and lowered her hand.

“Come on, here’s your favorite cherry blossom tea.”

“Thank you, Ray.”

Her heart sank when she saw the beautiful flowers blooming in the transparent glass.

When she was first served with this tea, she could not have imagined a situation like today.

“So what’s going on?”

“What?”

“You came to me because something bad happened. Do you have anything to ask of me? Shall I try to steal that recipe book again?”

“No, it’s over, Ray.”

Tatiana was pensive with her thoughts as she fiddled with the teacup.

Neither the recipe book nor Nivea was something that should be hard to obtain.

When things didn’t go her way, she told Raymond on a whim, that Tatiana herself didn’t know that things would get this big.

And Andrew would find out.

“Then what is it? Are you always so hesitant when you talk about difficult things?”

“Ugh. But this time, Ray got hurt because of me.”

As Daniel began to distance himself strangely, Titania’s dependence on Raymond increased.

Raymond was very pleased with that fact.

It was easy to penetrate the cracks as much as a weakened mind.

“I can do anything for you, Titi.”

Hesitating, Tatiana slowly raised her head.

She knew how dangerous this was, but she believed he would understand if it was Raymond.

“Help me kill Karina, Raymond.” (tl/n: bruh)

This time, it had to be different.

Tatiana was just as desperate.