Episode 38

His governments are innocent girls who believe that they are the one and only love of Dante Ihar, completely unaware of each other's existence. They are devoted girls who are willing to throw themselves into the world waiting for the day when they can officially marry Dante.

The Duke of Ballestena said, 'That young man is an upright man, fit for my son-in-law.'

He laughed at the craftsman for a moment. It was fortunate that the duke had no discerning eye, but Ines had the right judgment and the power to push through regardless of the adults' wishes.

"It's worth blowing your money. Look at Ines."

"… … ."

Since when did he call Ines so affectionately? It was annoying and disgusting that he was licking the newlywed woman's skin as if she were a candy, even though he was the one who had teased Cassel every time he saw her over a dozen years ago by saying, "Tell me about the miserable feelings of marrying a crow."

Cassel turned his head away as if he didn't want to deal with it, and closed his lips with a blunt expression.

However, Dante, who had been concentrating with his narrowed eyes on observing Ines, suddenly laughed with a deflating sound.

"I think I know why you can't take your eyes off me for a second."

"I hoped that someone would notice."

"That makes sense. I thought I'd lose my soul at the wedding mass… If it were me, I wouldn't have been sorry to waste money."

"… … ."

"Everyone doubted their eyes. Was there another young lady in the Ballestena family that we didn't know about?"

Cassel twisted his lips without answering.

Ines, dancing gracefully in a dress more splendid and gorgeous than ever before, still received the same shock, admiration, and amazement from people as when she appeared at the wedding mass in a beautiful, antique wedding dress.

Shock. Yeah, it was shocking.

Those who still couldn't get over the shock were dancing chaotically to get a closer look at Ines, stepping on each other's feet, and without even thinking about finding a partner, they were huddled together against the wall, leaning against it, appraising Ines from head to toe in astonishment, which I could clearly see from the seat at the top.

Cassel looked at a man who had stumbled to the side, then glared at him like an insect before returning his gaze to Ines.

At the wedding mass, she let down her hair, which had been neatly tied back, into a wavy coil, and braided her side hair, decorating the back with a few jewels. Unlike her noble appearance at the wedding mass, she looked strangely innocent.

The alluring neckline that revealed her shoulders and the upper part of her ample chest, the line that fell along her slender waistline, the hem of her skirt that spread out like flower petals as it went down, the hair that blew when she spun around, and her confident face that didn't seem awkward at all about it all.

Despite the astonished stares from people, he smiled kindly and did not ignore those who were annoying him or pretended not to hear or see them.

Although they were all completely different from their original appearances, the problem was that they were all natural, as if they had always dominated the social circle. Being the most beautiful woman at a banquet, being the main character of such a large banquet, naturally pushing and pulling people away, and lovingly leading the conversation with whoever they were talking to… These were all things that Cassel had never seen before.

According to the Duchess, this is the first time she has seen him as a mother.

Still, it was a perfect match from start to finish. I know that Ines probably didn't like that dress that much, but in the end, everything looked perfect. Ines was radiant. There's no reason not to acknowledge that.

Cassel quenched his dry throat with water and glared at Luciano's excited face.

'…Just that.'

Ines was Ines. The only things that changed were her clothes and her hair. Even considering that her smiling face was a bit more rare, it was only an expression.

And yet everything in the world seemed to have changed. It was funny. It was almost annoying. Whether she was walking around in a gorgeous dress or buttoning up to her neck and wearing the solemn expression of a priest—Ines, no matter what, was Ines.

Of course, she looked so pretty that the moment he entered the bridal chamber, he felt the urge to rip off that dress and climb on top of her… But anyway, he had an incurable disease that made him get excited even if she was wearing a thong.

Whether Ines Ballestena looked more beautiful or more radiant, the world that had suddenly changed into a savage transformation for whatever reason was not pleasant. Because only the people who impulsively wanted to gouge out their eyes were getting in the way and increasing in number.

"Where did such a jewel suddenly appear?"

Dante Ihar is a typical example. He was a man with a light butt, who would have kicked a woman's shins if she found out that he dared talk about jewels and such.

Even if we put aside the fact that Ines seemed a bit new and that he was just hanging around, not caring about being newly married, it was completely incomprehensible that he was hatching an unimaginable plan to use Cassel to approach Ines.

"When every day seemed so gloomy, like a funeral, I couldn't even see that face."

Anyway, this is a world where there are more than a few crazy people… Cassel muttered silently, slightly twisting his lips.

Dante, who had no idea what it was, said as if the thought had suddenly occurred to him.

"But it probably won't appeal to you anyway. Right now, you just seem to be distracted by the new taste…"

"… … ."

"I wouldn't have guessed that a body that was wrapped up so tightly would turn out like that. Of course, the hidden parts have their own charm, but as you know, Ines is so—"

"—What the heck?"

Cassel tilted his head back and asked halfway through, as if to say something. Dante smiled as if to cover it up.

"It doesn't mean anything. Anyway, isn't this an unimaginable stroke of luck for you? I thought I would be stuck in a swamp and unable to move… ."

"I imagined it. Not surprising."

"… … ?"

He answered meaningfully, but Dante did not understand at once and looked at him with a puzzled look.

Cassel waved his hand as if he didn't know anything. Dante lowered his head with a secret smile as if to say that he was okay with it.

"Even so, we're close friends—"

"—We're not close friends."

"I won't interrupt your good times. Of course, I don't have the ability to do that. How can I overcome this body and face?"

"If you know, then stop talking nonsense and get out."

"Just give me a chance if you ever get tired of being newlyweds. So I can comfort your wife—."

"If you get tired of living, just tell me. I'll kill you."

"Anyway, you just reach out and women will appear as if they were waiting for you, like magic. It's unfair that you can do whatever you want while Ines stays in the bedroom. Don't you think so? If Ines gets a lover, you can easily shake off the guilt you feel about the woman who has had a crush on you since you were six."

The sound of the dog barking incessantly made my heart sink to the bottom, and then the word unrequited love made me feel a stinging irritation as if I had swallowed a thorn.

The wedding mass was so quiet that the banquet was no different from the main ceremony. On the day of the wedding, there was no way I could sit at the head of the banquet held at the bride's house and shoo away the guests… Cassel pressed his temples and waved his hands again as if telling them to hurry up and go away.

"Oh my gosh, did you see that sideways turn just now? Ines danced so well."

"go away."

"… But did you dance that well? I've never been impressed when I saw you dance. Is it because of Master Luciano?"

"Shut up and get out."

Dante shrugged his shoulders and disappeared with the final words of dismay, "Luciano, wait for your turn." Ines would never do that anyway.

But Cassel stared at Ines with troubled eyes.

Despite her not-so-sociable personality, Ines was an extremely accomplished dancer, the pinnacle of social events. She had once said, "Dancing in front of others means being a spectacle."

It was always like that since she was little. Ines was not a child who followed the adults' orders faithfully, but when it was too much of a hassle not to follow, she often followed their wishes. For example, at events where she was forced to attend under the escort of Cassel, she occasionally danced with him.

She ignored it eight out of ten times, saying she didn't like dancing in front of people, but the other two times she did it periodically so the adults wouldn't explode.

Of course, the opponent was mostly her fiancé, Cassel. Even if it wasn't Cassel, there was her father, the Duke of Ballestena, and her older brother, Luciano, so he was the only man she had ever dated.

So the family is not a man, so he eliminates himself, and as Ines' oldest and only partner, Cassel was filled with strange doubts whenever he experienced her perfect dance moves with his body.

Most noble women were tutored by strict female elders in their families during their childhood, and were taught everything they needed to know to become a respectable noblewoman, including dancing at social events.

However, as for Ines, she had more than five records of chasing such adults within three days. Most of them had taught her 'how to be a woman of Ortega and obey her future husband with dignity', and Ines's mentality was far from being obedient, so perhaps this was an inevitable result.

And there hasn't been a single tutor who's been by her side for more than three days.

'…Where on earth did you learn that?'

The old question came to mind again, then I let it drift away, wondering what it would have to do with anything now.

As the Duke of Ballestena has said time and time again, he was a multi-faceted genius from a young age, so it is possible that this was also a talent for genius.

Cassel had been brainwashed by the Duke of Ballestena for over a decade, so he thought, he was a genius after all…