The Reason The Villain Covets Me - Chapter 9

The day after Theodore named Annette Grand Duchess.

Every newspaper and tabloid in Lidere was covered with the same headlines.

[Grand Duke Theodore’s secret marriage to Annette, the only daughter of the dead Marquis of Scheringen].

The news of the marriage became a scandal. Whether it was a trivial scandal or serious affair. The social circles were bored and the story of Theodore and Annette was suitable for entertainment.

Rural weddings were also a lively way to inform the whole village. But, how could the royal family be married in secret?

He was illegitimate, but he was still the emperor’s son.

Besides, his sturdy appearance and intimidating, coercive attitude were even more overwhelming than that of the crown prince. Everyone just didn’t acknowledge him because he was a son from a mistress.

Ironically, Theodore received the royal treatment only at the moment he committed something unprincipled. It was to give them an excuse to acknowledge him.

The nobles who attended the wedding knew full well how horribly unlucky Theodore was to be royalty. Even though it was a failed marriage that did not yield a bride, it was all the more memorable.

Theodore’s first marriage was to Paula Stadler.

The Stadlers were a rare and respected aristocratic family. They were a court nobility without a title, but with honor instead.

They set an example for the nobility and built their prestige by giving to the commoners. While far from being as powerful as the moral prestige they had accumulated, fame was sometimes a force in its own right.

The respect that Stadlers received was the most necessary ability for Theodore, who was being looked down as a son of a mistress.

The previous Emperor was wedded to the daughter of a loyal subordinate in the hope that his beloved son would be less insulted.

At that time, if the marriage had glorified the Stadlers, Theodore would have been able to overcome one weakness.

So it was a marriage of choice.

Therefore, there were people who obstructed it.

Paula Stadler was poisoned at her wedding.

The bouquet she held contained a poisoned needle, and she was gradually poisoned from the moment she walked down the aisle.

The sweat she shed was thought due to nervousness was a cry for help. The bride’s shy, smiling face changed to one that revealed her fear of death after she held the flowers.

The bride-to-be collapsed in front of him, bleeding, but Theodore did not panic.

With eyes hardened with resentment, he looked not at the bride, but at the audience. He stared at the doubters, questioning who wanted to prevent his marriage.

He looked at the reactions of the guests, searching the suspicious people to find the culprit.

There were people everywhere who did not want his wedding to happen without a hitch, and one of them was the culprit.

Theodore looked for the culprit with his cold eyes and smiled.

No one knew if he made eye contact with the culprit that day, but he could not forget that everyone who made eye contact with him was horrified.

[The Devil Laughs In Front Of His Bride’s Death]

The newspapers reported that his cruel smile was his true face.

Theodore’s heartlessness attracted even more attention than the identity of Paula’s murderer. The marriage, which was intended to quell the forces that questioned his character, instead did harm.

From that day onward, those who saw his deathly smile avoided confronting him head-on as much as possible.

The two most prominent examples were Cassilia Scheringen and Bjorn Scheringen.

Annette’s aunt Cassilia and uncle Bjorn also witnessed Theodor’s eyes at the wedding.

So the fact that Cassilia and Bjorn had to endure Theodore’s gaze right here and now was extremely taxing. The way he looked at them was just like the eyes of the pursuer who was picking out the culprit that day.

In order not to be caught, they had to escape.

Bjorn shouted out loudly, as if to parrot his discomfort.

“What impertinence is that? Do you now follow me?”

Theodore suddenly appeared in the middle of the exclusive salon and sat down in front of the two Scheringens. He then threw words similar to an interrogation.

“I have been searching for the people who manipulated the documents related to Annette and forced her into a mental institution, and I have discovered the fact that the culprits are inside Scheringen’s.”

Of course, Bjorn and Cassilia denied it. Bjorn’s protest was particularly vehement.

“How many times have I told you? I said I knew nothing about it. No matter how high your status, you cannot incriminate a nobleman without proof.”

“Keep your voice down, Bjorn.”

Cassilia covered her mouth with her fan and whispered to Bjorn.

All the attention in the salon was on him. Since they were nobles who knew each other in the small social circle, it was obvious that today’s situation would spread.

“Sister, our family has just been insulted. No matter how high the Grand Duke is, he cannot ignore the Scheringens!”

“The insult is the insult my wife received in the asylum.”

“I said I had nothing to do with her being there.”

When Bjorn’s voice showed no sign of abating, Cassilia gently pressed  her brother’s hand with her fan.

Only then did Bjorn startle and look around at the curious eyes directed at him. Instead of Bjorn, who still needed calming, Cassilia dealt with Theodore.

“Where is my niece now? I trust that the daughter of Scheringen is not spending time with Your Highness without attending her father’s funeral.”

Cassilia then turned the conversation around. The blame shifted from Scheringen’s complicated family history to Theodore and Annette’s inappropriate relationship.

“She is not comparable to royalty, but she is a precious child of Scheringen’s blood. If indeed Your Highness has her, please return her.”

“My sister is right. The fact that the child has become the Grand Duchess is even stranger than the fact that she was locked up in a mental institution. Your Highness  must directly clarify whether the rumors in the newspapers are true.”

Even Bjorn joined in, and was accused of Theodore’s crimes, but Theodore did not make it easy for them.

“My wife is at home. It is now the home of the Grand Duchess. But she is refraining from going out, because her safety is not guaranteed.”

“I can’t believe she’s at the Grand Duke’s residence….are you saying that Annette has really become Grand Duchess?”

“Our engagement was simple between the two of us. I am sure the priest who witnessed our affair at the time can attest to that.”

Bjorn could not hide his bewilderment.

Cassilia thought her brother lacked emotions, but she too had trouble managing her expression.

That iron-like man did his best to protect Annette.

How in the world did Annette escape with the help of Theodore? Even becoming a Grand Duchess and stepping into untouchable shadows?

“How could my niece marry without a word to her family? In the first place, aristocratic marriages are never carried out in such a reckless fashion.”

Cassilia questioned resolutely, but all she got back was a thick piece of paper. It was a document proving Annette and Theodore’s marriage.

She skimmed through it and found it to be perfectly complete, with no problems with the legal process.

“You’re not the type of person who doesn’t know that marriage doesn’t just come down to a single marriage vow.”

Theodore was a grand duke of imperial blood. There was no way that a marriage of such a person could be established simply by a desire to marry. Cassilia thought it was nonsense and did not believe it.

When Bjorn clicked his tongue and and criticized him, Theodore laughed and handed him another object.

“This, this.”

This time Cassilia couldn’t stay calm.

“I think you know well enough what this pendant means. If you’re from the Scheringens, you would have been properly educated.” (Theo)

The pendant was engraved with a dragon with a red ruby in its mouth. There was only one person in the empire who could use the dragon insignia: the emperor.

The dragon held in its mouth a gemstone symbolizing the emperor

who bestowed the pendant. The garnet was the seal of Emperor Dominic, Theodore’s father.

“I will use this pendant for the marriage of Annette and I.”

“Using the emperor’s seal for your marriage.. is that what you mean?”

“It’s happening. I would give all I have to have my beloved Grand Duchess.”

Bjorn thought that it was time for Theodore to enter a mental institution.

The pendant with the emperor’s coat of arms was a kind of relic, a sign of authority.

Whoever possessed the pendant of the previous emperor could get  whatever they wanted from the next emperor.

The emperor had to listen to whatever the bearer asked, as long as it did not threaten his position or the very foundation of the empire.

The reason the current emperor was unhappy with Theodore but could not touch him recklessly was precisely because he was the one who had been given the pendant.

However, to finally use the shield that protected him, a maniac murderer. It was insane.

But Theodore’s face was calm as he looked at the astonished Bjorn and Cassilia.

“I have had the experience of losing the woman who would become my wife right in front of my eyes. I hope that you will understand that I cannot repeat the same thing twice, so I have secretly married.”

“Is it true that you married Annette……?”

“Yes.”

Theodore’s failed marriage served as an excuse to make Annette Grand Duchess. It sounded plausible that he had not revealed it because he was worried that the bride would die again during the wedding ceremony.

A few details revealed, but Bjorn, who had no talent for grasping other people’s true intentions, began to get confused.

Cassilia was angry at her foolish brother inwardly, but she regained her composure and took matters into her own hands on behalf of her dim brother.

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