I Reincarnated As An Evil Duchess - Chapter 133
Translator: Nabi
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Chapter 133
Side Story 6 — Happily Ever After
Last night, with the help of Gawin, Lancelot, Bediviel, and Ella, Min-ha distributed all the potpourri she had made to the people in the mansion and sold all the dolls she had made.
The next morning, she met the merchant brought by Lancelot.
“All these items are worthy of the discerning eyes of the Duchess Persen.”
The middle-aged merchant, who appeared cheerful, seemed eager to impress her as he spread out a dazzling display of jewels in front of her and rubbed his hands together.
As she was casually glancing at a hairpin studded with a diamond the size of a fingernail, a necklace made of a sapphire the size of a quail egg, and a ring with a ruby large enough to fill one finger and a ring with small emeralds embedded around it, a ring with a light green gemstone stood out to her.
The green gemstone set on the gold ring, which was about the thickness of her half-finger, exuded elegance rather than extravagance.
Min-ha quickly pointed to the ring and asked the merchant about it.
“What kind of gemstone is that?”
“Indeed, Duchess Persen has a discerning eye! The gemstone embedded in that ring is called Peridot!”
“…Peridot?”
“Yes! Peridot has been a gem symbolizing the happiness, harmony, wisdom, and revolution of couples since ancient times. It was exchanged by lovers to pledge enduring love. Additionally, it’s known as the ‘gift of the sun’ and is cherished as a guardian gem that doesn’t lose its light even in the darkest night, protecting the owner from evil spirits and warding off misfortune.”
“Oh my, really?”
“Yes! Moreover, the Peridot in this ring was mined from the Kashmir Mines, one of the Empire’s finest mines! It’s truly a fitting possession for someone as esteemed as yourself.”
“I see. Is this place called the Kashmir Mines famous?”
Listening attentively to the enthusiastic explanation of the middle-aged merchant, Min-ha turned to Lancelot and asked. In response, he paused for a moment, then nodded lightly and replied.
“Yes. The Kashmir region has been famous for its mines since ancient times.”
“I see. It’s not something Seth would have, right?”
“That’s right.”
In response to Lancelot’s answer, she nodded her head and gazed at the Peridot ring. The fact that the gemstone that captured her attention at first glance happened to carry a favorable meaning was just a pinnacle.
She turned directly to the merchant and answered.
“I want to buy that ring. How much does it cost?”
“At least you should give me this much…”
Instead of providing a direct answer, the merchant subtly indicated the price with his fingers.
The price presented by the merchant was higher than what Min-ha had in mind, and she found herself in a brief moment of contemplation. The thought of considering something else crossed her mind for a moment that she should find something else, but soon, she shook her head, dispelling that idea, and spoke.
“Alright. I’ll pay for it…. Here!”
“Thank you, Duchess! You’ll receive great blessings!”
When she added a few more gold coins from the purse she had prepared in advance and handed it to the merchant, the man’s face beamed as he quickly placed the Peridot ring in an elegant jewelry box and presented it to her.
Carefully placing the box with the ring on her own lap, she spoke to the delighted merchant.
“Well then, I’ve finished taking a look.”
“Oh, there are still many other gems that would suit Duchess Persen well. If you could also take a look at those—”
“No, it’s fine. That’s enough for today. If I need anything else in the future, I’ll contact you through Sir Lancelot.”
“Yes, Duchess Persen! Please be sure to contact me next time!”
“Sir Lancelot, please escort our guest out to the entrance of the mansion.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Min-ha smiled awkwardly as the merchant bowed and followed Lancelot’s lead out of the room. As expected from a merchant, the tenacity of the merchant to sell more gems immediately after selling an expensive one was astonishing.
She shook her head slightly and gently caressed the jewelry box placed on her lap once again.
‘…Will he like it?’
She hoped he would. Just like she was happy to receive a marriage proposal from Seth along with his mother’s ring.
Making sure not to lose the small jewelry box that fit in the palm of her hand, she approached the table near the bed before placing it into the pocket hanging from the arms of the doll with a blue ribbon, one of the two small dolls sitting on top of the table.
As she securely tied the doll’s pocket with the blue ribbon, Min-ha embraced the doll with the blue ribbon and the one beside it with one arm, walking to the bedroom door.
It was time to go meet Noah, who must be eagerly awaiting her and Seth to open the presents together by now.
Walking straight out of the annex, she headed towards the east wing where Noah would be. The approaching noon sun made the air warm, but walking along the shade provided by the trees along the path to the east wing made it bearable. Min-ha quickened her pace, smiling slightly as she caught sight of the east wing building, which had begun to reveal itself.
“Sister-in-law–!”
It was then.
Noah, who had found her entering the east wing, called out to her in a loud voice. Min-ha bent down towards the child, who clung to her dress, and gently stroked his small back with the hand not holding the doll.
“How are you, our Noah?”
“I missed you, sister-in-law!”
“Yeah, I missed you too.”
“I wanted to go see you several times, but Vane said you still need to rest…”
“Ah, I see. I’m sorry, Noah, you must have been very bored.”
“Yes. But Vane and Gareth taught me swordsmanship! It’s still a bit early, but they said it’s not bad to learn in advance if I want to become a knight later!”
“Really? Wow, that’s amazing! Can you show me later?”
“Yes!”
Min-ha listened attentively to Noah’s chattering as he clung to her.
Come to think of it, she noticed bruises on his hands and arms that weren’t there a few days ago. She gently stroked the child’s bruised hands and arms, soothing her own worried heart at the sight.
‘This is a big problem, really.’
As Percival had pointed out before, she had a tendency to treat Noah like a child, indulging him excessively.
Determined to control her overly protective feelings for the growing Noah, she gently pulled away from the still-clinging child. Then, with a swift motion, she turned the arm that was holding the doll behind her so that the child couldn’t see it and bent down completely, meeting Noah’s eyes and parting her lips.
“By the way, Noah.”
“Yes, sister-in-law.”
“Do you have anything to give me?”
“Yes?”
“I have something for our Noah. Can you close your eyes for a moment and extend your hands in front of you?”
Perplexed but obediently following her request, Noah closed his eyes and extended his hands as she smiled. She then brought the arm, holding the doll forward, towards him. The next moment, she gently released the baby lion doll with a sword in her hand, letting it fall delicately onto the small hands of the child.
Surprised by the soft touch in his hands, Noah opened his eyes, gazed at the lion doll, and exclaimed with a wide smile.
“Wow! What’s this, sister-in-law?”
“I heard that during the Lavender Festival, people give gifts to their families or loved ones, so I made this for Noah. How is it? Do you like it?”
“Yes! I love it! This is Leo and Leona’s child!”
“Oh, is that so? Then, will you name this little one?”
“Yes!”
Min-ha looked at the child, happily hugging the doll, with a pleased expression. Even though it was hastily made, seeing him delighted more than she expected made her heart swell with joy.
However, when Noah, who had been smiling broadly while rubbing his face on the doll, suddenly pouted and stuck out his lower lip, she wondered what was wrong. Then, with a sullen expression, he hesitatingly handed the small doll he was holding to her.
She asked, tilting her head at his appearance like that.
“What’s wrong, Noah? Don’t you like it?”
“No… It’s cute and it smells nice, so I really like it.”
“Then, why don’t you keep it? I made it for you.”
“But, but… I haven’t prepared a gift to give to sister-in-law. So, I can’t accept it.”
“…Huh?”
“My brother told me to never mention the festival customs to you… so he said to give the gift after the festival had passed. Actually, I wanted to draw a picture, but he said that if I did, sister-in-law wouldn’t be able to rest properly, and you would have to make a gift for me… I’m sorry. Please don’t hate me.”
Min-ha looked at Noah, who was muttering with a sorrowful expression.
Knowing the customs, Seth must have said such things because he knew she would surely go to such lengths, but still, she didn’t like seeing the child being upset.
‘Anyway, if someone sees this, they might think I’m a delicate glass doll.’
While bearing the label of a witch, being imprisoned in an underground dungeon, and shuttling back and forth between worlds, she had experienced all sorts of things, but taking such convalescence for herself these past few days was unnecessary.
Min-ha clicked her tongue as she thought of the face of her lover and husband, who had been a bit overprotective of her recently.
‘I appreciate his concern, but I think I have to tell him not to do this in the future.’
With that thought, she then gently lifted Noah’s face, who had bowed his head, and gave a brief kiss on his exposed cheek.
“Why would I ever hate our Noah? No, I don’t dislike you.”
“…Really?”
“Of course. Just seeing our Noah grow up healthy is already a great gift. So don’t worry and accept it, okay?”
“But…”
Even with her comfort, he still hesitated, not withdrawing the arm holding the doll. At that moment, as she was contemplating what words of comfort she could offer to Noah…
“That’s right. This is a gift that she put a lot of effort into, so accept it.”
“….!”
Along with the warm touch of a large hand touching her shoulder, a gentle voice was heard. Min-ha, surprised, turned her head only to find Seth looking down at her and Noah with a tender gaze.
“…Brother.”
He walked towards Noah, who greeted him with a bright smile, and knelt down on one knee before softly stroking the chubby child’s cheek and opening her mouth.
“I should apologize first. I’m sorry, Noah, for making you unable to prepare a gift for her.”
“No, Brother…”
“Just like we’ve told you before, for us, growing up healthy is already a great gift. And, at your age, it’s okay not to reciprocate the gifts you receive. Just saying a word of thanks is enough to make us happy.”
“But the nanny said that if I always take without giving, you become a greedy and bad adult… I want to be a good and strong adult like Brother.”
“Noah…”
Despite Seth’s words, Noah still lowered his head and had a disheartened expression as if he was reluctant.
Normally, when a child wanted something, they would usually try to get their hands on it no matter what. However, the sight of a child who, while holding a doll, was full of reluctance and saying that he couldn’t receive it because he couldn’t give it in return made her feel proud and yet also lament the situation.
As Min-ha was about to insist once again that reciprocation was unnecessary, Seth embraced her shoulders as if to dissuade her. The next moment, he smiled fondly and tilted his head slightly towards her before he moved even closer to Noah, gently stroking the round back of the child and opening his mouth again.
“Noah, if that’s the case, I know a good way.”
“…A good way?”
“Yes. A way for you to have the doll and not be a bad adult.”
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Translator’s Note: Hello, it’s Nabi! I’m the translator of this novel ପ( ๑•ᴗ•๑ )ଓ♡ If you like the novel and would like to support me, please feel free to click the button below to go to my kofi~! Thank you so much for always supporting the novels I work on, even if you don’t buy me a coffee, I really do appreciate it a lot. ❤︎
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