The Grand Duchess of the North Was Secretly a Villainess

The door opened and Eloine entered first. I stepped aside so that I could see Cayenne well.

Soon after, Johaim and Jayden entered. Johaim's gaze fell on me once and on Caien once.

"Don't tell me..."

Soon Johaim's gray eyes opened wide, and he immediately fell to his knees.

"Greetings, Your Royal Highness, Crown Prince."

I peeked at Caien. Cain eyes looking down at Johaim had a cold expressionless expression as when he was smiling.

'That face is close to his nature. Rather than the face earlier.'

No matter how much he lost his memory, he seemed to have the awareness of being the Crown Prince. So, it must be that expressionless face.

'I like that expression, too.'

It was not a good thing for the Crown Prince to smile at everyone. It was better to look hard to approach than to look friendly.

'It's a lot of pressure for memory loss, but..... well, memory loss doesn't change your nature.'

I introduced them to Caien.

"These are my people, Your Royal Highness."

They were the people who died with Eloise in the original.

"These are the people who will reclaim your throne with me."

And they were the ones Caien killed himself. I planned to put Caien on the throne and save them all. Unlike the original.
 

*****

It has been almost three weeks since Caien came to my estate.

"Eloise."

"Huh?"

"What are you looking at?"

And I became quite close to Caien.

'No. Is it too much to say that we became close?'

I put down the letter I was reading at the desk in the office and pondered for a moment.

'I think we've gotten closer.'

Caien was sitting on the sofa reading a book related to political history. Curious about the letter I had seen, he put down the book and sneaked up to me.

"Have you finished the book?"

"Yeah."

"So fast?"

"It was nothing."

I saw the book that Caien had put down. It was a thick book that seemed to be about a handful thick.

"What's the name of the emperor who did the waterway management?"

"Kertes."

Caien answered without hesitation and sat down next to me.

'How did you see it so quickly? It's amazing.'

If Cayenne had not lost his memory, I would have been convinced, but Caien still suffered from amnesia.

'As expected, aren't you pretending to have lost your memory?'

I narrowed my eyes and stared at Caien.

The drug turned his hair black, but in the sunlight it took on a lighter brown tint. At first glance, there was hair that looked like blonde hair, thanks to the strange angle of the sunlight.

'There's no need to pretend that you've lost your memory.... I'm confused.'

It was a bit questionable, but it was useless worrying. What he had learned in the Imperial Palace could have remained unconscious. Then it was not impossible to answer easily.

'Because me, too, know what Eloise knows remains in the unconscious. Isn't that the case with the Caien?'

Still, it was better to regain the memory as soon as possible.

'Eloine will come looking for someone in the capital.'

Maybe next week we'll find a clue to Caien memory.

"The letter. Can I see it?"

Cayenne asked me. Looking at Cayenne with my chin in my hand, I nodded slowly.

"Look. It's something you need to know anyway."

At my words, Caien took the letter and began to read it. I looked at him with an indifferent expression, as if I was a little bored.

'I wish you grow up fast. Become an Emperor, and I become the Emperor's teacher. That way, I'll live comfortably in the north later.'

Knowing that I was staring at him, Caien stopped looking at the letter and made eye contact. Then he folded his eyes and smiled.

"Eloise, do you have anything to say?"

Yes, I want to say you're pretty.

But I couldn't tell a 15-year-old boy that he was pretty. I asked the letter, pretending it was nothing.

"Have you seen it all?"

"Yes."

Caien sighed, lowering his eyelids half way down. As hid eyelashes fluttered like a sorrowful person, I felt like I was looking at a flower.

'Why does Eloine say he is reluctant when he sees him?'

In my opinion, he is soft and gentle. The memory of me telling Eloine to be careful of Caien came to mind.

'I think I know better that Caien is dangerous.'

I am constantly wary of Caien, but my vigilance has been broken because Caien is so pretty.

'Is it because he's been nice to me?'

I didn't mean to control Caien, who later became emperor. But it didn't feel bad that the most powerful person in the empire was nice to me.

'It may change to his nature again when the memory comes back......'

Before that, it was better to get close even a little.

"I was supposed to be there....."

But Caien muttered in a muffled voice. The letter said that the funeral was held under the leadership of Duke Ilysian, the younger brother of the emperor. The Crown Prince, his only child and the first heir, disappeared, but the funeral could not continue to be postponed.

"Remember this helplessness you feel right now, Caien."

"......"

"Because it was done by those who took your place."

When I said it, I felt like a bad teacher who seduced an innocent male lead.

'Things like that often appear in dramas. I thought he was a good teacher on the side of the main character, but then it turned out he was the villain.  Oh, wait a minute.'

Could it be that Eloise was in that position? I'm not going the original way, am I?

"Then the man who said he was my uncle..."

Caien eyes looking down at the letter was cold, and his fingers trembled involuntarily. It was an unfamiliar expression.

"Are you going to be Emperor now?"

Cayenne, who stared at the letter very briefly, immediately looked at me and asked back with a gloomy expression. The unfamiliar gaze that had been pointed at the letter was so short that I thought I was mistaken for a moment.

'.......There's no way I saw it wrong. Is it because I'm tired these days?'

As I stared at his face without answering, Caien asked, tapping my fingertips on the desk.

"What's wrong, Eloise?"

It was a cautious look. I must have been tired and seemed to have seen it in vain.

"Oh, nothing."

I shook my head slightly, answering Caien question.

"There is no official word yet, but it will be soon."

"I see."

"Do you remember anything? That day's situation.... "

Caien frowned as if he was trying to recall.

"My head hurts when I try to think of it."

Seeing Caien pitiful face, I felt strange again. Should I say that I feel like I've become a wicked woman who screams viciously to a young child who has lost his memory to remember it quickly?

"If I don't remember, I'm of no use to Eloise?"

Cayenne asked, wiggling his hand.

"What?"

"Because I can't remember anything right now. Only the shell is the Crown Prince."

No, it's not. You're destined to become emperor after you go back to the palace five years later and meet the saintess.

'In addition, since the saintess will be the heroine of the original story, she will live well while dating a dog.'

However, the original content could not be leaked. In the end, I decided to appease Caien.

"The fact that you are the Crown Prince doesn't change, Caien. Even if you lose your memory."

"Really?"

He smiled shyly, as if relieved by my words.

"But you have to find the memory, so that you can find the assassin and claim your rights."

Currently, I suspect Duke Ilysian, but it was only a suspicion. We had to find the real killer with conclusive evidence. Revenge should be done by Caien himself.

'Oh, I feel strange again.'

When I coaxed Caien, I felt like I was a bad teacher who colored the good main character again.

'I'm not going to end up with something else later, right?'

I imagined my future for a moment. I couldn't even imagine the appearance of a rebellion because of other greed. And I hated being bothered.

'There's already a lot to do, but what's the point of having more power here? Raising the male lead is also because I want to be comfortable in the future.'

When Caien ascends to the throne, the North will be quiet. Then I will be able to enjoy the comfortable northern life there. Even if the relationship with Caien broke out, it would have to be done if only the saintess was kidnapped.

'I don't think it's a bad idea to raise him quickly and send it to the female lead.'

"All right, Eloise."

Caien nodded his head with a good face, whether he knew what I meant. Then a knock was heard and the door opened carefully.

"Your Highness. Oh, Your Royal Highness was there, too."

"Did you find it?"

"Yes, I found it."

Joahim said in a stiff tone. It was a voice that didn't feel pity for his colleagues.

"Let's go, Caien."

I smiled coldly and got up from my seat.

"I'll have to check the rats in my castle."
 

*****

As soon as I introduced Caien to Johaim, I immediately started looking for a spy.

Caien official position in my estate was my cousin. The missing former Duke has a half-brother, and he has a son, who is Caien.

'In a word, it was the opening setting.'

I thought it would be a huge crazy setting, but fortunately, it worked because there were many cases in this world where the second and third wives were brought in.

'It would have been neater to set it as the illegitimate son of the previous duke.'

Eloise's father, the previous Duke, was a faithful husband. I couldn't tell a lie like he has a child out of wedlock.

'Still, I'm glad that I have a lot of trust among the knights.'

His hair and eye color were the same, and Eloine also guaranteed it. Thanks to this, we were able to keep people from suspecting Caien.

Johaim also said, 'Everyone seems to believe him because he has a similar atmosphere to Eloine.'

'I don't know what it means to say that Caien and Eloine have a similar atmosphere.'

In my eyes, it was only gentle and harmless, but I had no idea why such a story came out.

'After all, isn't Caien like the Southern Duke style? Kind and gentle..... Well, I guess that's what everyone feels about the title of a duke.'

The reason why I pushed a rather unreasonable setting was to let Caien live in the castle. There was also the intention of finding the spies hidden by other nobles.

"Which spy?"

I asked as I walked along Johaim. Johaim replied in a stiff tone.

"It's on the side of the Duke Ilysian."

"Well, if it weren't that man, who would dare to put a spy in my castle?"

Eloise's external image was not very good. Of course, it was hard to say that it was on the bad side, but most of them looked at it like a monster, not a person. With her wicked appearance, it seems that she kills not only monsters but also humans with ease.

'A person who looks bad in the first place feels more frightened if he does well.'

Eloise had an appearance that seduced people with a fan instead of a sword. She has the position of a villain full of wickedness that is often depicted in novels.

'That's not wrong because I heard that bad woman tittle from the readers.'

She wouldn't be afraid to kill people directly with her beautiful and seductive face. The things I'm going to do today will also creep into people's ears.

"How did you find it?"

"It was exactly what your Highness said."