The Villainess Enjoys Her Married Life
Chapter 21
Chapter 21
Episode 21. All for the Sake of Her Son
2023.12.21.
Grand Duchess Riona of the Duchy of Klaus was dining.
Yuri, whose calves were still wrapped in bandages, attended to her meals, nimbly rearranging the dishes to suit Riona’s palate.
“Are you handling the task I gave you properly?”
“Of course, Grand Duchess.”
Yuri nodded and replied with a somber expression.
In truth, her condition was far from good.
The bruises from tumbling down the stairs still throbbed, and the cane strikes had left scars upon her calves.
On top of that, damn Eshika had declared she would cut off the gems sent from her maiden home.
With every turn of events working against her, Yuri grew all the more anxious.
‘There is no other way. I must carry this task out flawlessly.’
Clatter— At the sound of clinking cutlery, Riona knitted her brows.
“Yuri?”
Having drifted into her thoughts for a moment, Yuri hastily bowed her head and set the utensils straight.
And right at that moment.
Bang—!
The doors swung open with a resounding clatter, and heavy, stomping footsteps announced the entrance of Kalian Klaus.
Riona elegantly dabbed the corners of her mouth with a napkin, while Yuri stared blankly at him for a second before flinching and stepping back.
Kalian’s brow was furrowed, his complexion somewhat pale.
Unperturbed, Riona offered a radiant smile and asked,
“I heard you had matters to attend to even if it meant skipping dinner. It seems you have finished your work, Duke.”
“Mother. There is something I cannot understand.”
Thick confusion was laced through Kalian’s low voice.
His violet eyes trembled as he looked upon Riona.
“Whatever the matter may be, please sit, Duke.”
Hoping to soothe her son, who appeared startled or angered by something, Riona spoke softly and gave Yuri a subtle glance.
Yuri pulled out Kalian’s chair and looked at him, but he sat down without even meeting her eyes.
Trickle—
At the sight of Riona pouring water into his empty glass, Kalian’s brow twitched once more.
His mother—his one and only mother—gazed at him with warm, tender eyes.
“Has something unpleasant occurred?”
“I have just reviewed the ledger for Eshika’s allocated budget.”
“……Ah.”
The corners of Riona’s lips twitched faintly before settling back into place.
“Whatever made you curious about such a thing so suddenly?”
“Ensuring the household budget is being spent appropriately is my duty as the head of House Klaus.”
“Oh, Kalian. How meticulous of you.”
In response to her son’s stiff words, Riona praised him smoothly.
“Yet there was something that made no sense. You clearly told me, Mother, that Eshika’s extravagance was so severe it placed a strain on the estate’s management…….”
Kalian fixed a cold gaze upon Riona and asked,
“In the three years since our marriage, the ducal budget spent on her amounted to a mere twenty thousand rings.”
The annual salary of a maid in the ducal estate was around five thousand rings, and with experience, they earned two to three times that amount.
A single modest gown suitable for a noble lady cost twenty thousand rings, while an extravagant one was upwards of fifty thousand.
Even the dress Riona wore now was worth at least fifty thousand rings.
Yet, for a duchess to have spent less than the price of a single plain gown across three entire years……
It was an absurd record that bore no relation whatsoever to the word ‘extravagance.’
Riona’s eyes wavered as she looked at Kalian.
“……So, Duke, are you here to interrogate your own mother, accusing me of lying?”
In an instant, the atmosphere at the table froze over.
“I have not come to interrogate you, Mother. I only wish to know the truth.”
“The truth, you say…….”
Riona lifted her glass with chilling eyes and took a sip of water.
Then, letting out a soft sigh, she continued.
“Eshika was raised as the daughter of House Brigitte—a family that bought their title with coin—so she never received the traditional education granted to noble children like you, Kalian. Rather than the duties she ought to fulfill as a duchess, she cared only for the privileges she could enjoy.”
“…….”
“To become a proper member of the Ducal House of Klaus, the vanity of the Brigittes had to be purged from her. Thus, I believed I had to be stricter with that child, and I feared my soft-hearted son might misunderstand his mother’s deep intentions.”
At Riona’s words, Kalian’s hands twitched.
“Are you telling me that is why you lied to me?”
“Kalian.”
Riona looked at him with an exasperated gaze and said,
“Who do you think it was that elevated you to the seat of Duke?”
Kalian’s violet eyes wavered faintly.
If anything, Riona seemed to be scolding him.
As though deeply wounded that the son who had always trusted her unconditionally was now casting eyes of suspicion upon her.
“This mother of yours has lived with only one thought in mind: your success, Kalian. And I achieved it just as you see today…… The matter regarding Eshika is no different.”
“Even so, you should not have told me such a lie.”
Kalian spoke clearly and firmly.
When he had seen Eshika looking at him in a maid’s uniform, he had thought her utterly shameless.
Moreover, though she had worn that same red dress for who knows how long, the reason he had never imagined such circumstances was because of what his mother had told him.
In his mind, Eshika Klaus was nothing more than the woman his mother described: ‘an excessively extravagant woman capable of endangering the ducal estate’s finances.’
Yet, discovering there was a truth he had been blind to filled him with shame.
And along with it, a sense of defeat against Eshika Klaus.
Eshika would never bow her head before him. After all, she had never truly lived extravagantly.
“……Very well, Duke. Though it was a white lie told for your sake at the time, if it left you feeling bitter in the end, then that too must be my own error in judgment.”
“…….”
“However, you must know that everything I do is solely for you, Duke.”
Riona’s voice sounded sorrowful.
Whenever Riona gave him such a look, Kalian felt an ache in his chest.
A stifling wave of pity for the mother who had sacrificed her entire life for him welled up inside him.
“And…… I heard you reassigned Eshika’s room yourself, Duke.”
“Yes, Mother.”
Kalian’s fingers twitched.
Eshika’s relocation had also occurred after a conflict with his mother.
However…… he had had no idea she was staying in such a miserable cubbyhole.
No matter what fault she had committed, it was far too cramped and secluded a room for a noblewoman to reside in.
That was why he had unilaterally ordered her room moved without consulting Riona.
He expected she might find it displeasing.
After a moment, Riona’s voice rang out.
“You did well.”
At the unexpected praise, Kalian’s eyebrows twitched.
Yuri, listening from behind, clenched her fists tightly.
“In fact, as it seemed Eshika was sufficiently reflecting on her conduct, I was about to suggest moving her room myself. My own heart has always been ill at ease about it.”
Riona smiled with a bright, radiant face.
“Now that the Duke is taking such interest in the household affairs as well, I suppose only peace and harmony await our House Klaus.”
Kalian gazed blankly at Riona for a moment, thinking to himself:
‘Indeed…… Mother would never torment Eshika on purpose.’
Then, he replied composedly.
“Yes. I, too, desire peace for Klaus. However, I would like you to promise me one thing.”
Riona’s eyes flickered momentarily.
Kalian was never a child to talk back—especially when it came to internal household affairs.
“From now on, please consult with me before executing any disciplinary measures regarding Eshika.”
Riona’s brow twitched faintly.
Kalian’s expression was dead serious, his dark eyes demanding an answer.
The smile vanished from Riona’s lips in an instant as she lowered her gaze and answered,
“……I shall do so. Duke.”
**
House Brigitte were nobles of the Freehats region, situated south of Torres, the capital of Turesian.
Bordering the sea, the land was always bustling with merchant vessels and traders, and as the region flourished with greater vitality, so too did the Brigitte estate.
Having aided in revitalizing the imperial economy through trade sanctions during the war, House Brigitte was granted the title of Baron by the Emperor, and was now prospering the region not merely as a family of jewelers, but as merchant nobility.
Gossipers often chattered that the treasures in the storehouses of the Brigitte Barony could buy up petty noble houses of the capital as easily as filling a shopping basket.
“Eshika…… has sent a letter.”
Schwert Brigitte—the eldest son of the Brigitte Barony, he held full authority over the merchant guild in place of his aging father.
With handsome silver hair and striking blue eyes, his appearance was exceptionally distinguished.
Three years ago, his one and only younger sister, Eshika, had married into the prestigious Ducal House of Klaus in the capital of Torres. Though they had sent her off with an immense dowry, scarcely any word had reached them since.
They claimed that the ducal family’s etiquette was so strict that even close interactions with her own brother could become a blemish upon her name.
Though he continued to send jewels every month through Eshika’s childhood friend, Yuri…… he could not help the worry gnawing at his heart.
Rip—
Schwert tore open the envelope and unfolded the letter.
Written neatly with firm pressure—unlike Eshika’s usual hand, yet unmistakably hers—the letter was filled with her handwriting.
[To my dearest brother Schwert,
It is the season when unripe velvet grapes arrive at the port of Freehats. These days, I find myself missing their tart aroma, as well as the ocean fireworks I used to watch with you from time to time.
I write to you today because I have a few favors to ask, Brother.]
At the word ‘favors,’ Schwert’s brow furrowed.
Two years ago, when he had met her and asked if she needed anything, Eshika had merely shaken her head listlessly.
That child, who had always been so bright and spirited, had looked like someone whose soul had died.
Though worried sick, the look in her eyes begging him not to pry had forced him to turn his steps away with a heavy heart.
[Please stop sending jewels to me from now on. If anyone demands jewels using handwriting that is not mine, or claims that I requested them, it is all a lie, so please report that person to the Government Office.]
With a hardened expression, Schwert turned to the next page.
[And while this might be a somewhat difficult request, I would like you to receive my share of the inheritance from Father in advance. With that inheritance, please purchase the land marked on the enclosed map.]
Enclosed with the letter was a map, where a red circle was drawn over the wasteland of the Elmur region, west of the capital.
“This place is……?”
Schwert’s brow twitched.
As the territory expanded through wars of conquest, the Emperor wished to establish new hub cities across each region, and Elmur was one of the candidates being discussed for the west.
Of course, the region known as ‘Zühen’ had far greater potential than Elmur, as its divided waterways offered superior accessibility.
He knew that the Ducal House of Klaus had also invested in Zühen.
Yet Elmur, which Eshika had circled, had poor conditions compared to Zühen, making it far from appealing to investors.
“Why would Eshika choose Elmur……?”
The final sentence read:
[I ask this of you, Brother. Please.]
