When A Villain Meets A Villain - Chapter 66

Thinking that it was a little despicable for him to also have pretty earlobes, Atalante measured where she should pierce his ears.

‘Was mine pierced somewhere here?’

Atalante’s ears had been pierced by a sister that was two years older, but she couldn’t remember her name any longer. Of course, she didn’t pierce them in order to leave any special evidence like Lionel.

At that time, whether it was boys or girls, the children of the slums wore accessories on their ears, be it large or small. It was a meaningless jump on the bandwagon, nothing more or less than that.

Perhaps it was a struggle they’d done to appear a little stronger to those that threatened them.

“Don’t be nervous, Atalante.”

Only then did Atalante realise with a start that her hands were shaking, and it was a short distance away from him.

“In any case, it’s yours.”

“You make it sound like it isn’t a big deal. It’s more precious because it’s mine.”

“Hooh, I’m so touched to hear you claiming ownership over it.”

Atalante, who wanted to refute that, let out a deep sigh.

The number of times she’d won against this man with her words were pitifully few.

The grand duke was the one that liked her, so as he said, Atalante clearly had the upper hand in their relationship.

But this was rather strange.

Because Atalante was the one that’s constantly being swayed by him.

“Stay still. I’m really going to pierce it now.”

Don’t cry because it hurts.

Atalante, who knew that he wouldn’t be frightened and yet didn’t forget to make a smooth threat, stabbed the sharp end through his earlobes.

Although it was her first try, it was close to perfect. The location was also pretty, and above all, the blue piercing matched really well with his pale ears.

As Atalante looked at the slightly red ears with narrowed eyes, she asked cautiously.

“Does it hurt?”

“About that. It stings?”

“What do you mean, it stings? It’s not like you’re a kid.”

At the appearance of an expression inappropriate for a tyrant, Atalante snickered and ordered him to turn his head to the other side.

Now that she had succeeded once, she became a lot more confident.

“But the fact that you brought earrings in advance… Did you know that I’d choose the ears?”

“I’d like to reply that I did, but unfortunately, I’d never anticipated that you’d choose there. These earrings are something I treasured, so it was a coincidence.”

Lionel laughed pleasantly and obediently showed her the other ear.

It was rather surprising that he’d even brought it to this ceremony, but it wouldn’t be strange for him to always carry it with him if it was something he treasured.

She caught his earlobe with shining eyes momentarily, before belated worry rose in her.

‘One day… No, in the near future, he’ll most likely become an enemy.’

If he didn’t ‘truly’ love her, then someday, that sweet and blind smile that he only ever showed her will be shattered.

‘Possessing something that isn’t mine… It’s still uncomfortable, as expected.’

As she let out a deep breath shallowly, Atalante slowly removed the earring from his earlobes.

“Atalante?”

“…I’ll leave it like this.”

Lionel looked down at her with a questioning look. After returning the single earring back to him, Atalante spoke with a bitter smile.

“Listen to me on this side, and listen to the people you’re responsible for on the other side. I think it’s too much for me to possess both sides.”

It in itself was a rather plausible excuse. The reality was that… although there would be a day where he came to his senses, she didn’t want to be someone abominable to him.

It has only been a day since she vowed to use Lionel thoroughly, but she didn’t know why her heart became so soft.

‘This is the least amount of leeway I can afford to give you. After our marriage, I’ll really take full advantage of you. Until the day that I’ll have to pay the price.’

Atalante, who’d inadvertently made up her mind once again, looked at him with a clear gaze.

“Alright, you can do whatever you want.”

Lionel curled his fingers around the earring that she had returned and lowered his body with his hands on his back.

“But please remember this. My ears are yours. And listening influences the entire body and mind.”

“W—what do you mean?”

“It means that my everything is yours, dearest Atalante.”

Lionel, who naturally kissed the back of her hand, raised his gaze and looked up at Atalante.

If that was the conclusion he’s going to end up with, what was the point of this ceremony?

But before Atalante could let out a despondent sigh, Lionel called the servants a step faster.

“You’ve worked hard for the sake of this unfamiliar ceremony. Well then, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

My monarch.

Lionel smiled after mouthing those words while avoiding the servants’ gazes.

In order to avoid those enchanting lips, Atalante just focused on the ear that she’d personally pierced.

A strange reverberation of unknown origins began, and Atalante constantly tried to ignore it taking shape.

“Finally, the national wedding will be held tomorrow.”

Upon hearing Agnes’ words, Atalante came to her senses and found that she’d already arrived in her room.

After giving the giggling maids, who kept asking where she had chosen, a severe rebuke Agnes asked while slowly brushing her hair.

“You’re feeling weird, aren’t you?”

“It does feel odd that I don’t have to undergo that weird ‘care’ today.”

“What are you saying? We will diligently begin care after Miss Atalante goes to sleep. Please go to bed comfortably.”

As expected, they weren’t just skipping that today. Atalante let out a deep sigh, before slowly opening her mouth.

“Agnes, don’t you hate me?”

“…What do you mean?”

“Even if this was a foreign country, you must have heard of my notoriety. Why aren’t you objecting to me being the grand duchess, when my origins, my actions and every part of my life are dissatisfactory to you aristocrats?”

Perhaps because she has become quite familiar with the elegant manner of speech, so her pronunciation of honorifics appeared without difficulty.

“Truthfully, I was a little shocked at first. Even though I’d expected that His Highness wouldn’t marry someone normal.”

“You must have been more shocked when you met me in person.”

Instead of denying, a strange smile appeared on Agnes’ face.

“Miss Atalante, please take a look in the mirror.”

“Mirror?”

Atalante, who was tapping her well-trimmed nails, followed her words and looked in the mirror.

Lustrous and defined hair, glossy skin, soft and lovely chemise.

It felt rather unfamiliar from the person she’d seen for nearly 20 years. Ah, true, it might be natural for her to feel unfamiliar because she had never looked at her own face properly in the past.

“Who would think Atalante is the boss of an underground organisation when they look at this face?”

“…No matter how plausible I look, it doesn’t change my nature.”

Atalante took off the mask of a young lady and glared at Agnes through the mirror. Agnes remained quite nonchalant despite the fact that her gaze was quite sharp.

“But His Highness has chosen you as the grand duchess. All that I have to do as his servant is to follow his will. It’s not my job to meddle with his thoughts.”

“It must be good for the grand duke. Having such loyal servants.”

“When tomorrow comes, we’ll also become the grand duchess’s servants.”

Atalante looked at the reflection of her own face in the mirror for a long period of time, even after Agnes had finished brushing her hair and took a step back.

Was it because she’d done too many things that were unbecoming of her? Now… She was starting to get confused about what she was truly like.

“Oh right, Miss Atalante.”

Just before Agnes left through the door, she turned her head around gracefully and called her, whose gaze was still fixated on the mirror.

“Oftentimes, people don’t understand themselves more than they thought they did.”

“…what does that mean?”

Instead of answering clearly, Agnes merely gave her a meaningful smile as she spoke.

“There’s one more thing. In the Grand Duchy, there are many people that welcome Miss Atalante. Me included.”

After adding, “Please go to bed early for tomorrow,” Agnes closed the door quietly and disappeared.

But her final advice was overshadowed and Atalante wasn’t able to fall asleep easily that night.

Oftentimes, people don’t understand themselves well?

‘That’s ridiculous.’

Atalante knew herself best. They were the fools that thought of Atalante as a ‘good person’, despite not knowing her well.

But the longer she spent here, no, perhaps from the moment she began spending time with the grand duke, the more she seemed to lose her nature.

On the day she first killed someone, she made a decision. Even if she became a villain that everyone points at, she’ll somehow survive in this d*mned world.

For the sake of her survival, for the sake of living freely, she didn’t mind doing all sorts of dirty things.

She thought that this sort of lifestyle suited her. But…

‘Stop looking at me with a gaze like that.’

After recalling the gazes filled with friendliness and affection from the people of the Grand Duchy that she’d met here, and Lionel’s love-filled gaze, Atalante buried her face in her hands.

‘Don’t mess around with me. It’s not like you truly love me.’

She’d never dreamed that a day would come where she’d talk about the love that she’d mocked wholeheartedly. A sanguineous smile appeared on the corners of Atalante’s mouth while rubbing her face.

It’s not like you truly love me?

‘What if it was real? What he really did? If that happens, what are you going to do? Trying to have an actual love of the century with the Grand Duke of Blanc? You’re crazy, Atalante.’

Whether his feelings were real or fake, it didn’t matter. All she had to do was adjust this situation to Argo’s advantage as much as possible, and figure out how she’ll leave Lionel’s grasp one day.

Honestly, if the love potion was successfully reversed, the odds of getting away from that crazy grand duke was really low, so in the worst case scenario, she should put her focus on safely evacuating the gang members.

Rather, it’s fortunate that the grand duke’s feelings weren’t real. In the first place, he didn’t have any reason to fall for her.

“……It’s a luxury.”

On the other hand, although the thought of staying here under the pretext of ‘there’s no helping it’ did appear in her mind, it could only remain as a thought.

A thin thread fell from the arm that was covering her eyes. During which, two egos were struggling for dominance within her.

At the height of their struggle, the bride fell into a peaceful slumber.

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