**Stalker Duchess Episode 28**
**Stalker Duchess Episode 28**
He seemed bothered by what I'd said when he was about to force me to speak—that I was scared.
Afterward, the Crown Prince said he had business with the Vice Commander and dismissed me.
Riding the carriage back to the Duke's Mansion, I fell into thought.
Istal Forest was demon territory.
A place humans must never set foot in.
It was also where the Crown Prince faced his greatest trial at age 18 in the original novel.
The place where his dragon power first rampaged.
If not for the red dragon that happened to nest there, the Crown Prince probably wouldn't have stopped rampaging until the entire forest was destroyed.
Sending a mere 14-year-old Crown Prince to such a dangerous place.
Was I hoping for his death?
Or did I have expectations for him, perhaps?
Bad memories resurfaced after so long, so I drank heavily alone late into the night and passed out.
When I opened my eyes again, the Crown Prince was looking down at me with pitiful eyes.
Crown Prince...? Why was the Crown Prince here...?
The background was definitely my room.
Why had the Crown Prince entered my room at the crack of dawn?
Faced with such an unrealistic situation, I just blinked in bewilderment.
...I see. It's a dream.
Having grasped the situation, I closed my eyes again to go back to sleep.
If only the Crown Prince hadn't grabbed my hand and dangled it like a limp rag doll.
As always, he scolded me in an angry-sounding voice.
"You're really something. Drinking starts at 18."
"......"
Waking to the Crown Prince's nagging first thing in the morning made my stomach churn.
Wouldn't it be nicer if a sweet guy woke me instead?
I'd passed 18 long ago in real life, but the Crown Prince had no way of knowing that.
He wrinkled his nose at the pungent alcohol stench filling the room and said,
"How much did you drink? Who gave alcohol to this girl?"
He started berating the servants on my behalf, as I was still out of it.
* * *
The servants could only tremble without excuses, stunned by the Crown Prince's sudden visit to the Duke's Mansion and his stern reprimand.
And rightly so—everyone in the household knew how much Duchess Serabi, their master, had tormented the Crown Prince.
Though her temperament had mellowed recently, the servants thought her obsession with him had intensified, given how she visited the Imperial Palace daily.
But they had no idea the reality: it was always the Crown Prince summoning Duchess Serabi to the palace, and she was the one suffering under his daily nagging.
Thus, they assumed today's visit meant the Crown Prince had finally come to end things, unable to endure her torment.
They expected Duchess Serabi to get royally dumped, dragged to prison on some charge, or face the Crown Prince's revenge in some form.
But his actions were unexpected. With an irritated face, he kept saying to Duchess Serabi,
"Tsk, what a pathetic sight. Did you pour all the wine on your face like a slob?"
"Urk. Blegh,"
No wonder she looked unwell. Duchess Serabi's face paled completely, and she ended up vomiting up all the alcohol she'd drunk. Having chugged only wine the night before, it looked like she was coughing up blood.
"......"
"......"
The servants unconsciously stepped back in shock.
As if sharing telepathy, they all thought this was it—the Crown Prince would finally punish Duchess Serabi severely.
But his words were unexpected.
"You really... do all kinds of things."
His tongue-clicking words sounded like scolding Duchess Serabi, but his actions were the opposite.
A bit forceful perhaps, but the Crown Prince wiped the face of the just-woken duchess without minding his sleeve getting dirty.
"Nnghgrrrk."
Duchess Serabi let out a pained groan at the sudden face-rubbing, but the Crown Prince seemed unconcerned.
To the servants' eyes, he seemed affectionate at first glance, yet also like he was tormenting the duchess.
How could he perform two such opposing actions simultaneously?
Caught in that contradictory behavior, the Duke's Mansion servants debated whether to intervene.
After rubbing—wiping—her face for a while, the Crown Prince suddenly turned and ordered the servants.
"Hey, prepare wash water quickly. The lady of the house looks a mess. With the master in such a sloppy state, and you lot just standing there gaping."
'You're the one monopolizing the servants' duties, Your Highness...'
The words rose to their throats, but they had to swallow them.
Unfortunately, the only one who could object—their master, Duchess Serabi—was still drunk and wobbly.
The Head Butler recalled last night.
Duchess Serabi had gotten drunk and belted out bizarre songs she'd never sung before. More like noise than song.
Whatever grievance she had, she didn't stop her mad performance until dawn neared.
It was no wonder she couldn't wake easily. Her throat was wrecked too...
"Thirsty..."
"Tsk. Who’s the real child here."
Everyone thought today would be the day the Crown Prince ended things with Duchess Serabi.
But not content with wiping her face himself, he even held water to her lips when she said she was thirsty.
"Snap out of it quick."
His words were prickly as ever, but he acted just like her parent.
Incomprehensible to onlookers.
Just a month ago, he'd hated her enough to want her dead—could his behavior flip like this?
If Duchess Serabi's sudden meekness was somewhat understandable, the Crown Prince's 180-degree change was utterly baffling.
Watching dazedly, the Head Butler asked the Crown Prince with a ghostly pale face, as if seeing a specter.
"Your Highness, why on earth are you...?"
"What?"
"......"
The Crown Prince widened his eyes slightly and genuinely asked back, as if clueless.
Whatever his intent, barging into the Duke's Mansion at dawn unannounced to raid her bedroom and attend to her morning routine.
Plenty to point out, but he seemed oblivious to anything wrong.
* * *
With the servants' help, I barely washed my face, but my mind was still hazy.
Stepping out in pajamas with just a shawl over them, I saw the Crown Prince comfortably sipping tea, as if it had been his domain from the start.
Probably because of my vomit earlier, he'd changed into different clothes—likely borrowed from a servant.
The finest among what they had, but still commoner garb, yet he didn't seem to mind.
No, changing into house clothes made it feel like he owned the place.
"......"
His fluid, natural movements left me staring blankly for a moment.
Well, the Duke's territory technically belonged to the imperial family, so it wasn't entirely off-limits, but still.
Acting like the master in someone else's home.
What shameless nerve.
"If you're awake, get ready quick. There's somewhere you have to come with me."
Spotting me, he parted from his teacup slightly and said.
What was this sudden demand to prepare after barging in at dawn?
His speech, dropping key subjects casually, was still hard to get used to.
And "somewhere you have to come with me"?
...Magic lessons weren't for a while yet.
No matter if he was my superior, there was no law allowing him to storm into my home and drag me off.
I let out a deep sigh and said,
"Sigh, I'm officially on vacation right now..."
"Extra pay provided."
He cut me off and added.
Clutching my pounding hungover head, I said,
"...I'm not motivated by money. Just let me sleep."
He furrowed his brow dissatisfied at my reply but didn't yield.
A bad feeling this would drag on.
I considered changing clothes out of courtesy, but he didn't seem to care, and attire probably didn't matter for talking, so I sat across from him in pajamas. Then he explained why he'd come.
"I thought about the advice you gave yesterday. I agree. No point digging through books here. I've considered going myself, but it felt daunting... Right or wrong, I plan to visit the lair of that red dragon you mentioned. If it cooperates willingly, great—but if not, by force if needed..."
His voice grew lower and darker toward the end.
He clenched his fist, as if resolved to something.
I could hear the Crown Prince saying something, but my head hurt from the hangover, so it didn't register well.
"...Can't teleport to unknown places. You seem to know the location, so... Are you listening?"
"Of course."
"......"
I pressed my aching brow from the hangover and replied.
At my immediate answer, the Crown Prince eyed me suspiciously.
As if doubting if I'd really heard him.
