The Virtually Exiled Duke’s Daughter Is Troubled When Her Fiancé in a Neighboring Country Says, "I Will Never Love You" - Episode 12

That day, Butler Ashley had taken a half-day off and was out in the city.

This town, located not far from the Sisley residence, is the most prosperous in the territory. He entered one of the shops lining the main street, the general store Yorozuya.

“Do you have any alcohol?”

“Yes, yes, we have some good ones in stock.”

He bought two bottles of sake recommended by the stout shopkeeper and left the store. After that, he seemed to be wandering aimlessly. But that wasn’t the case.

Leaving the cobblestone-paved main streets and major roads, he entered the dirt-packed back alleys, sometimes taking detours, but still heading towards his destination.

In front of the entrance to an apartment complex, an elderly woman had set out a small stool and was sitting on it. When she saw Ashley, she extended her trembling hands and said,
“Oh, you young and healthy man over there, unlike you, I don’t have good eyesight, good hearing, or strong teeth and bones. Could you at least show me some mercy?”

Ashley muttered something under her breath—probably something like “damn it”—and handed her a bottle. Then, the old woman, who had been trembling and moving slowly, moved with such speed that she seemed to have aged thirty years younger, picked up the chair while holding the bottle, and disappeared through the door.

Immediately after, a small click was heard from the door just beyond the one the old woman had entered.

Ashley pursed his lips and opened the door to step inside. As he closed the door from the inside, he heard a click, and it was locked. In front of him was a staircase leading to the second floor. He carefully climbed the stairs, making sure not to trip in the dim light. At the door to the second-floor room, there was a wooden sign with an upward arrow drawn on it.

Ashley muttered another curse under her breath and placed her foot on the ladder leading to the rooftop.

While holding a bottle of sake and pulling up the ladder with one hand to go up to the rooftop, I saw an old man dressed entirely in black humming a tune and gazing at the cityscape.

The man quickly noticed Ashley and smirked.

“Oh, you’re back again, Dan-boy.”

“Please stop, Dan-boy. And what was that farce?”

When Ashley said it with a look of exasperation, the man seemed to immediately realize she was talking about the old woman (who was actually a disguised person) at the entrance. He laughed happily.

“Isn’t it great? No one realizes that thing is acting as the gatekeeper. So, what did you bring as a gift?”

“This”

Ashley hands the man the drink. He takes off his glasses and brings the label in front of his face.

“Well, this is nice. That person is probably enjoying it right now.”

He approached the small table set up on the rooftop and poured liquor into the two small glasses placed there.

“Dan, would you like a drink too?”

“No, I have work after this.”

“I see. That’s too bad.”

The man in all black sat down in a chair and crossed his legs. He clinked one glass against another before taking a small sip of his drink. Although he was old, his lively movements and the elegant posture that extended to his fingertips belied his appearance, creating a very picturesque scene.

“So, what do you want? Didn’t you just come by last week?”

“Is there any follow-up news about his country?”

The man was astonished.

“Hey, hey… Even though the war is over, we still haven’t restored diplomatic relations with that country. Without trade routes, the flow of people is limited. So, you should understand that information won’t come easily either, right?”

“However, we can’t afford to be leisurely! While we’re doing this, that woman might be winning over the servants one after another.”

When Ashley recounted what he had heard from Mrs. Lauren and how Shelly had completely sympathized with and become friendly towards Deborah, the old man raised his chin and laughed.

“Wow, that freckled girl, huh? When she first came to the mansion, she was always messing things up, but now she’s gone and started helping others. She’s really grown up, hasn’t she?”

“That woman, thinking she’s being so virtuous because she’s a hostage, but there’s no way the prince’s fiancée would think like that! She’s being deceived by an imposter!”

Ashley burned with the flames of anger in her eyes.

“I’ll peel off that woman’s mask. Absolutely.”

“Hmm? You?”

When the man said that with a playful tone, Ashley felt mocked and made a bitter face.

“Are you saying it’s impossible for me!?”

“It’s tough, huh? Because Mr. and Mrs. Lauren think that bride is the real deal, right? Are you claiming you have better judgment of people than those two?”

At the man’s words, Ashley’s eyes widened as if she had been struck from behind, and she was left speechless.

“That is…”

“If the bride is skilled enough to deceive those two while pretending to be innocent until the freckled girl trusts her, she wouldn’t reveal her true self in front of you anyway. So, it’s pointless to suspect her of being a fake.”

“But, but there must be some possibility!”

The man took another sip of his drink, set the glass down on the table with a thud, exhaled a long, thin breath, and then said.

“Then how about I take over? I’ll somehow whip this old body back into shape and keep an eye on that woman. You mourn.”

“Mr. Swallow…”

When the man’s once-closed eyes opened, he glared at Ashley.

“Dan, you should cool your head a bit. I understand your desire to hate that country. …I feel the same way. But are you really trying to take it out on the hostages?”

“……”

“The reason I passed the reins to you wasn’t for something like that. I thought you could support the master with matters of the mansion and the territory. The late lady must have thought so too.”

The young butler in his late twenties, after twisting his face as if about to cry, instantly regained his usual butler-like expression. Seeing this, the man broke his previously stern expression and returned to his cheerful, teasing demeanor.

“Well, if we’re talking about possibilities, anything can happen. For example, that bride might be a bit weak here, or something like that.”

The old man lightly tapped his head.

“Huh? Such a thing…”

“Well? There might be. The carelessness of saying something indecent on a first meeting, the lack of expression, the inability to finish a light novel without skipping parts, the kind of shortcomings that make a freckled girl want to take care of you…”

“Well, but they’re doing such exquisite embroidery.”

“People of that kind can’t be lumped together. There are those who show extraordinary concentration only in their areas of expertise and perform tasks better than the average person.”

The old man dressed in black—Swallow, who had been the head butler of the Sisley marquis family until six months ago—grinned at Ashley.

“Until then, the ducal family had desperately hidden the fact that she was somewhat lacking, but when her fiancé, the prince, fell ill and stepped down from his position as crown prince, they had no choice but to marry her off elsewhere. So, they foisted her onto this country, where they had no connections, as a way to get rid of her… what do you think?”

Ashley was taken aback and couldn’t respond. Even if she wanted to deny it, everything strangely added up.