The Devilish Duke Can’t Sleep

Proofreader: somnium

Sponsored Content

Miracle

Kahel’s gaze staring straight at her, Lena wondered what he was thinking, and she blushed again and asked in a small voice.

“Well, uh, please don’t tell anyone what you saw today.
Yes?”

The desperate appeal relieved Kahel’s tension, and his laughter, which he had not been able to control, burst out.

“Pfft! Uhhp! Never…… I won’t tell anyone.”

“To the butler.
Also to Count Langtail.”

“Never, no one.”

“Th, thank you.”

“Instead…….”

“Yes?”

“Sometimes be my dance partner.”

“Yes? Me?”

“As I said before, I don’t go to parties very often, and when I go out, I rarely dance.
But as a nobleman, dancing is a basic skill.
So, shouldn’t we practice so that I don’t forget it? You are my close maid, and it’s not unusual for you to take on such a task as an aide.”

When she heard it, it sounded plausible.
She couldn’t understand why he didn’t dance at parties, but she thought it was something she couldn’t understand because it was the nobles’ circumstances.
But she thought it was nonsense for a nobleman to not be able to find a dance partner as he said, and he needed a partner to practice with.

Sponsored Content

‘Yes, this will be one of the things I can do to please His Excellency,’ she thought, then she replied with a small smile.

 

“If it’s okay for you to do it with me, I’ll gladly…….”

“It is my honor, Lady.”

At the word ‘Lady’, Lena’s face reddened again, while the sound of the music gradually faded away.

“Thank you for dancing with me.”

“I, it is me…… thank you.
I felt like a real princess.”

“Keep the door closed, and take a rest.”

Kahel unknowingly touched Lena’s cheek lightly, then, startled by it, lowered his hand and awkwardly stiffened his back.
But Lena didn’t seem to notice his embarrassment.
He felt a bit awkward, greeted Lena twice and left the room.

As he walked out of Lena’s room and down the dark hallway to his room, he didn’t even realize he had a pretty bright smile on my lips.
Then, suddenly, the question came to mind, ‘How did Lena’s mother, who was said to be a rural woman, know how to waltz?’ His steps stopped.

He stood nervously for a moment, then shook his head.

‘She must have had a young lady from some noble family to serve.
It’s common to have a maid as a dance practice partner.
Yes, I think so.’

Kahel was making up excuses for himself in order to not question Lena’s actions.

* * *

The next day, at the table of the noble family, the Queen’s dress, which shone like the sun, became a hot topic.
The blue dress Liddell wore was also beautiful, but the Queen’s dress was so uniquely glamorous that they couldn’t keep their eyes off of her.

“By the way, is that what our Kahel sponsored?”

Sponsored Content

The madam, who had meticulously brushed her grayish hair, looked up at Kahel with a proud smile and asked.
It was Kahel’s aunt, Countess Mariela Delroot.

 

It was Mariela who spoke up, but all of the other relatives’ expressions looked similar.
Because when the Luaves flattened the Santella’s nose, everyone in the Luaves were happy.

“It was no big deal, Aunt.
Rather, Cesar was promoted to the Chief of the Imperial Knights, right? That’s even more amazing and great.”

“Oh my God, it must have been a lot of work, but thank you for taking care of your cousin’s business.
Cesar is just doing his best to imitate his cousin.
Right, Cez?”

She waved her hand as if it was nothing, but her eyes as she looked at her son filled with more pride than before.
Cesar, who had been handed over the question from the side, replied, looking at Kahel with admiration, perhaps trying to prove that his mother’s words were not false.

“Yes! That’s right! Brother Kahel, maybe we can have a duel together later……!”

“Oh my, Cez! Seems like an excessive request for a busy person.
Please understand, Kahel.
How much he loved you since he was little, it seems like he still has that childhood habit.”

“No.
Cesar and I are like brothers.
If we face each other now, I think I will lose, but if I have time in the evening, would you like to warm up for a while?”

“Really?”

“Cez!”

A warm smile floated over the large table at Cesar’s enthusiastic response, who was still 20 years old and still had a boyish look.
The people of the Luave family, whom everyone sees as ‘demons’ from the outside, didn’t laugh or chat loudly, but when they talked, they were rather affectionate.
Of course, they wore a completely cold mask outside, though.

In particular, their love for Kahel was extraordinary.
Born with tremendous magical powers from a young age, he was raised hearing that he would lead the revival of the Luave family, yet Kahel’s childhood was disastrous as he did not receive enough love from his sickly mother and was cursed with a terrifying devilish power.

Nevertheless, he persevered with a strong spirit that was not like a child, and now he is leading the family better than any other head of the family in the past.
Thanks to this, his close relatives also benefited a lot.
Most of the relatives were involved in the business of the Luave family.

Even if it was not for profit, the relatives loved Kahel.
His aunt, who felt pity for his plight, visited him often, took care of him like her own, and sent her sons as his playmates.
Other families would have coveted Kahel’s position as head of the household, but Cesar only looked at Kahel as a cousin.
Maybe, it’s because Cesar knows that the head of the Duchy of Luave is not a very comfortable seat.

The conversation returned to the New Year’s Celebration again.

Sponsored Content

“Ah, who is the young lady the Count of Kensington has brought this time? She was very pretty.”

The thing that drew the most attention at the New Year’s Celebration was the unmarried young men and women.

“It is said that she is the niece of the Count.
Gillion? Jillion? I heard that she is a lady from Barony with a similar name.
Why? Do you want a marriage partner?”

“What? Older Sister, you don’t have to joke around.
If I had been looking carefully at her, it was because I was looking for a partner for Aiden.”

“Ahaha! But if you’re still well-dressed, you’re worth looking at.”

“Why are you doing this to your older brother?”

Everyone joked and laughed.

“But these days, young people don’t really like their parents being the matchmaker.
I’ll have to ask Aiden’s opinion.”

“This guy? Ugh, don’t even talk about it.
He was completely taken by the girl, but she turned pale when she saw this guy’s face, perhaps frightened.”

“Ugh.
Aiden is handsome, but if he doesn’t show any emotion, he looks a bit cold.”

“Older Brother…… Are you in a position to tell others?”

A large, expressionless young man named Aiden quickly dyed the tips of his ears red, and his father secretly sided with Aiden, saying that he was still a child.

“There is someone I know from the County of Kensington, so let me ask for a hint.
But the first day of the ceremony is just over, wouldn’t it be nice to talk with the other girls, Aiden?”

“It doesn’t matter to me.
Maybe we should think more about Kahel’s marriage than mine.”

Aiden, who quickly wiped his embarrassed face, turned the topic around with a serious voice.
At those words, the friendly place quickly took on a worrying light.
Since Kahel is the only son, the issue of his successor was more sensitive, and everyone would be relieved if he got married and had children as soon as possible.

“Well, …… are you thinking of getting married, Kahel?”

Sponsored Content

Everyone knew that Kahel couldn’t have a normal marriage.
If he gets married, their contact will probably be all about a brief night to produce a successor.
That night, when all the blessings of purification from Calia, the potion of purification, and the priest were gathered.
A relationship where they have to have a bed only for reproduction, not love, and they can’t even see each other properly…….

There was no one who wouldn’t consider it unfortunate.
However, it was a long way for Kahel to even get a wife with that strong mental strength.
No matter how much he does to stop his devilish power, all kinds of variables always exist.
His wife might be crazy because of that variable, so families that valued their daughter would want their daughter to go unnoticed by Kahel.

“I don’t feel like sacrificing someone innocent just yet.”

At Kahel’s answer, Damien coughed lowly.

“Don’t worry.
We are researching various ways to break the curse in the Kasmanorov Temple, so the results will come out within a few years.
If you’re lucky, you might find a woman in the meantime who doesn’t react much to Kahel’s.”

“Is there such a person? Unless our blood relatives, the Santella family, or the royal family…… It is said that sometimes there are female priests who laicize, but that is very rare.”

“Not yet, but you don’t know for sure.
In addition, we are looking for a distant branch of blood relatives.
It’s not that marriage is impossible if you go beyond cousins once removed…….”

It was the hope everyone had hoped for.
The hope that one of their distant relatives has a rare constitution that did not respond to Kahel’s devilish powers, and that was the reason why Damien checked the distant bloodlines of the Luaves and royal families.

But at that moment, Kahel had one thought.

‘Is this the case with Lena?’

He wondered if she came from a very distant line of Luave, Santella, or the royal family, and was born with a constitution that did not respond to the devilish power, and she met him by great coincidence.

After Damien shifted the topic to the second day of the New Year’s Celebration, and everyone else had a peaceful meal, Kahel asked Damien for a little time.

“I keep thinking about it since I came here, but the mansion has been well maintained.”

“It’s all Arder’s work.
It would have been great if he had remained a knight, but seeing what he is doing now, I can’t tell you how fortunate I am that he has become a butler.”

Kahel, who was talking like that, led Damien to the top seat of the tea table in the office and asked someone outside to bring the tea.

Damien looked down at the garden outside the window and remembered the day he once walked through the garden with his healthy and cheerful wife.
At that time, he could not have imagined that his beautiful wife would be as feeble and pale as she is now.

His body is in Ardennes, but he can’t stop worrying for his wife, who is still lying in her bed all day.
He was frightened that she might die while he was away, and whenever he had time each day, he would offer prayers to the god not to take her away.