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43: Battle of Wits
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The Duke's Unwanted Wife 44: Natalia's Gift
The next person to present their gift was Adelie. She came as a representative of the Temple of Ducroft, presenting a holy artifact excavated from the ruins of the very first temple of Ducroft. The Queen was pleased with the gift but the people of high nobility knew she wouldn’t keep the gift. It had to be returned to the temple because it was a holy artifact. Presenting it was a symbol of the good relationship between the royals and the temple. After a while, Alana came to present her gift. She was surprisingly escorted by Lord Orland who focused the attention of everyone on her. Lord Orland was another unmarried high noble who was overshadowed by Sebastian. Not only was he handsome, but he was also related to the future crown princess. It made no sense for him to be escorted by the irrelevant third princess but it was happening right before their eyes. The only one amused by this was Natalia. In her past life, this never happened. Rather, the one who escorted the third princess to
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 45: Natalia's Patience
{In as much as Madaline and I are not direct enemies, you still have to be careful around her. It looks like she has contracted someone powerful} “I would try as much as possible to avoid a direct confrontation. There’s nothing I would benefit from that. The first thing to do is avoid contact with Adelie” {She is quite dangerous. Dealing with Angels is hard, even for fae like us} Alana couldn’t fantom just how Adelie got herself involved with angels. She did have fairy blood but that was enough for the angels to throw her away. Just how did she get the power of the angels? It didn’t make any sense. “Your highness, I have come to escort you to the gift-giving banquet” “......Lord Orland?” She opened the door, staring at the one person she never expected to be there. There was a part of her that expected it to be Fredrich but she was just as surprised to see the young lord standing outside her door. There wasn’t a single servant in the entire back palace so the impression he would
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 46: Firework Show
“So, what are you going to do when the celebration ends?”“Truthfully, I’m not sure. Life goes on, I guess”“Natalia, do you want me to ask for a divorce in exchange for our support?”“Hmm, that might not necessarily work. He would want to hold me as a hostage to ensure your continued support. You know what you should do; Appoint someone to take over your work in your stead while you go to your future wife’s kingdom under the guise of courting her and establish a trade route there. They need it now more than ever so you need to become an asset there. When the time comes, we can leave here without regrets”“That’s a wonderful idea that comes with a terribly short duration”“I’m sure you can do it, Bastian”“Did you know his majesty spoke about an extermination campaign? It’s been a long time since we have done something like that so he wishes to make it a big affair. Most of the nobles would be coming to your territory and I’m sure the royal family would stay in the Castle on the Edge.
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 47: Temple Maiden
“Your holiness, why have you delayed your official appointment? The celebration ended a week ago and soon, everyone would be busy preparing for the Extermination Campaign”“I haven’t received a sign yet. We need to wait for more, ArchBishop”“But your holiness, this is the first time in 200 years that a saintess has been chosen. It’s important for the church of Ducroft to appoint a Saintess so we can establish ourselves as a powerful entity in the kingdom. We will soon be swept up into the noble faction because of their donations!”“If we rush the appointment, they won’t need a prophecy to tell them our intention. We have to make people believe staunchly in the power of the church. We need to reinforce ourselves as the standard. People now think of the church as an afterthought but with the foundation I have laid down, it won’t be long until they give their all to Ducroft”“I understand your plan, your holiness but everyone is impatient”“It’s your job to address their concerns. I wil
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 48: Wary Guests
The journey back home was more peaceful than Natalia expected. She fully braced for his attacks but they didn’t even ride the same carriage. He disappeared, just like their wedding, leaving her time for herself. Since she had fully resolved the cases, Corren handed over the household duties to her. Since it was something that she had done in her last life, it didn’t take time for her to get accustomed to it. Aside that, she sent a message to Amaika to accompany Sebastian to Polivia and a letter to Sebastian to allow Amaika to come along. In both lives, the two really never got along so she hoped they would be civil on this very important trip. They were following the princess back so they would hopefully be civil. The letters were sent in a safe manner that couldn’t be intercepted by anyone, burning them with magic. The Adamantine family had several ways of sending secret messages. Some of them were old, simple and complex while the rest were recently devised to make up for the mist
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 49: Careless Compassion
The mansion definitely looked different from the last time she was there. It was clear that it had a feminine touch, an elegant one at that. It looked a lot homier and less depressing. The darkness was limited to the outside as the inside was warm and inviting. She didn’t talk about it but it was clear that the Duchess was proud of what she had done. “The butler would direct your servants to the room you would be staying but for now, you can join us for lunch. Everyone here is excited to receive our dear princesses. The dining room is this way” she gestured, leading the way. All three women were surprised that the Grand Duke was still following them. While the second princess thought it was because of the good relationship between the Grand Duke and his wife, the Grand Duchess and the third princess knew better. “I would have to apologize in advance as I won’t be joining you for lunch today. I still have a pile of paperwork waiting for me back in the office but I will be joining yo
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 50: Marvis Jane
To be successful on a hunt, you have to study your prey, remain hidden and wait for the right time to attack. The cover of the night was the right time to attack but it wasn’t good to mindlessly attack. You have to wait until the prey was extremely comfortable before you made a move. “Let’s set up camp here. You there, you’re on the first watch” a rather rude voice said to the only man who had been walking the entire distance. They had traveled more than 5 miles, stopping to rest a few times and no one cared to acknowledge how tired he was, treating him like he was air. However, he didn’t say anything, nodding to acknowledge his request. He walked away from the party, finally letting down his hood. Long rough dark blue hair flowed out, reaching down to his waist. Reaching into the purse by his waist, he pulled out a pink ribbon and wrapped it around his hair. The long spear-shaped ears that were covered by the hair finally came out, covered by a bit of blue fur. Purple slit eyes obs
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 51: Pregnancy?
“It’s been so long since a tea party was hosted in the mansion of the Grand Duke. We almost thought it wouldn’t happen. Thank you for inviting us, your grace” the wife of one of the most influential Marquis in the southwest, Marquis Salam, bowed respectfully. Natalia smiled and welcome her in, doing the same with all her guests. It was the first time she was meeting the nobles of the southwest personally and she had made sure to invite all of them. There were some guests who came all the way from the capital, like the princesses and Lady Borisque. “The tea being served today is found in the deeper part of the Forest of Damnation. The leaves are very fragrant and sweet when boiled, even if you put in a little bit of honey. I hope you all enjoy it”The ladies took n hesitant sip after Natalia displayed the first show of trust by taking her own sip. The taste was as described and just like that, a trustworthy image of the Grand Duchess was igrained into the minds of the nobles. Their se
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The Duke's Unwanted Wife Epilogue
Upon hearing the cry of a baby, their hearts of multiple people became calm. The mother had been in labor for a total of two days, trying her hardest to push her babies out. The second followed the first closely and they were both taken out to be cleaned. The father of the child had been there the whole time, clasping her hand as tightly as she clasped his. He kissed her forehead and watched her until she fell asleep from exhaustion before going out of the room. "Is she well? Are the babies well?" He was bombarded with questions as soon as he came out. He nodded, smiling. Messangers were sent out immediately. The royal heirs of Polivia had been born. Natalia had always asked herself this question: What would a timeline without me look like?Since she was never born, her mother didn't have to go through the pain of bearing another child. Her relationship with Marquis Adamantine became better, she made the step to reconnect with her family and she went on to have a fruitful married l
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 159: Completion
They readied their weapons, holding their breaths. Fighting ascended gods was vastly different from fighting original gods. The weakest was Madaline, who was both lacking in the number of wings she had and an ascended god. Luckily, her barriers were the strongest in the world. “Wait. They’re just looking. It’s like they’re waiting for something or…someone.”They looked down at Nataroth and saw that giant white wings were sprouting from her back. She was growing larger by the second, soon dwarfing out the space. She stopped growing and focused her eyes on them.{My children. I…have returned}Marvis figured out the patterns and used the teleportation portal to get them to another room. It was relatively intact like the other rooms and it didn’t look like it was affected by the blast. But after seeing the coffin in the middle of the room, they soon realized why. Just as they were about to figure out their next move, Denitra fell into Marvis’s arms. They thought it was intentional until
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 158: The Revival
Even in the spirit world, where nothing was solid, the ground began to shake. The coffins that surrounded Nataroth opened of their own accord and a thick miasma formed on top of it. The bodies in the coffins rose, slowly climbing out of the coffins. Maowry watched this all unfold with fear in their heart. “You can still stop this, Maowry. They are still vulnerable.” “Even if I can, why should I, Uriel?”“You’ll regret this!”“I am regretting this but I want to see how far this can go.”“MAOWRY!”They ignored her, looking at the bodies slowly coming closer to her. They walked like the undead, unstable and unstoppable. In a way, they were undead but with the large spell, not for long. They could recognize the magic being used and the obvious bending of world order. However, there was something they didn’t recognize, something that transcended both magic and world order. It was the reason why the spell was working in the first place and there was only one god that could use it; Natarot
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 157: Madaline Vs Non
The fights between the gods raged on. If they met on neutral grounds, Maowry versus Uriel wouldn’t be a one sided beat down. However, Maowry’s powers were fading because Thiton and Madaline kept shattering the ancient barriers of the spirit world. Madaline also had to repair those barriers immediately so Thiton was able to get some blows in. “Why won’t you just roll over and die?! You have always been a pain in my neck and you keep making aggravating decisions that bring us to this point every single time! What is wrong with you, Madaline?”“The way you speak Thiton, makes it obvious that you are obsessed with me. That’s worrisome. I cannot let a disgusting creature disguised as a god profess his love to me that loudly. Why don’t you just die?”“You’re delusional. Your attachment to Nataroth even though you’re an ascended god just like us shows how much of a hypocrite you are!”“Coming from the person who killed me?! That’s laughable. You, of all people, are claiming to care for the
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 156: Three Months
“Lovely, isn’t it?” “I feel like you’re ignoring me. It is lovely. Is that made from purely cotton?” “Yes, it is. You love even lovlier in it, your highness. The wedding is soon, is it not? I cannot wait to be there.” “What about you? Why won’t we attend your wedding? Come on, Lady Natalia. You know you would look absolutely beautiful in a wedding dress.” “I hate wedding dresses.” “...I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.” “I’m not angry, Princess Temara. I know how much you care about me and I know how much you love my brother. Honestly, it worries me. Would you really slit your throat if he asked you to?” “...of course not.” “Your highness, you hesitated. Well, it doesn’t matter because he would never ask you to. Like I was saying, I understand why all of you are worried about me. Yes, I know you’re all behind that door. But I know what I’m doing. I’ve been doing it for a long, long time. But if you don’t all trust me to make the right decision, then is it really love?”
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 155: Natalia's Truth
In Madaline’s palace, there was a direct portal down to earth. Sylph and the fairy sent to rescue her were ready to send her soul back but it was too damaged to travel whole. They had no other choice but to wait for Madaline or find an alternative. It was difficult to patch a soul and not just any god could do it. If they waited any longer, it would affect her chances of escaping significantly.“Shouldn’t Madaline have returned by now? What’s taking so long?!”Back at the platform, the gods were amazed. The fight was on a different level than the one they watched earlier. Two of the most powerful gods going head to head without fear. The first weapon they used, they had both broken them even though they were items not built to break. They were fighting solely with magic, causing all forms of natural disasters. The sky began to darken all around the world, alarming the mortals. Madaline's magic was focused on barriers. No matter what anyone did, you couldn't get past her barriers. Her
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 154: Martial Law
"Grandmother!" Natalia dashed into the mansion, heading to the living room first. She found the butler and he told her she was in the office. She could finally calm herself and walk into the office. "Grandmother, you really came.""You have a very nice office, Natalia. This old woman is jealous.""I can make the exact one for you. I'm just curious. Why are you here?""Sit, we need to talk.""I'm terrified. If this is about my marriage, you need to give me more time…""This is not about that. It's about your inheritance.""You came all the way here for that? You could've just asked me to come to you. It must be more than that.""Yes. Why did you bring a hostage and ask the plan to be sped up? You know how sensitive the whole thing is! You didn't even tell anyone else about it and now you want to hasten it out of nowhere! What happened?""The hostage is critical. I had to put her away so she wouldn't affect my plans. Two, there isn't much time left. Even after I went back in time two
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 153: Alana's Goal
“W-What do you mean the god of death and destruction?!”“Yes, what do I mean indeed?” she just smiled, looking at the body in the casket. He just stared back at her with his eyes open. "I was very lucky to find him, you know. Gods are not just objects you find on the side of the streets. I actually built this whole thing because of him but not for him. He belongs in another world so you have to be curious as to why he's here. He won't say anything though which is disappointing.""Are you insane?! That is the most dangerous of the original gods!""I doubt he is as dangerous as Nataroth. Anyway, now that I've shown you my treasure, let's take you to your room, shall we?"They left the room, the doors locking behind them as they left. The boy laying still in the casket rose to sit up and stared unblinkingly at the door. As they faced down the two royal heirs, a servant came running out from the mansion, handing a letter to Sebastian. He frowned and burnt the letter immediately. "You w
The Duke's Unwanted Wife 152: Dungeon
After dinner and settling her friends and hostage into her home, she could finally rest. She soaked herself in the tub, feeling the knots in her body loosen. There was also the fact that she was being massaged by little fairies that fluttered excitedly around her. She sighed with content. "Do you like it that much?""Hmm, it's nice. Did you miss me, Madaline?""You worried me but you really came back without a scratch. Berinda is Uriel's territory so I cannot intervene at will. I'm glad it went well.""No, I got attacked and that's why I have a hostage. Now that you say it, she's probably Uriel's Saintess.""You took another god's Saintess?! Since when did you start acting so recklessly?""It was not a reckless or juvenile decision. You know what my goal is. By the way, I have a question.""What is it?""If Adelie is Ducroft's Saintess and Denitra is Uriel's Saintess, does that mean I'm your Saintess?""No, it's not you. It's Marvis's mother." "How cruel. You could've reserved that
