"WHAT EXACTLY do you mean by a different world, Lady Rochester?"
"I'm saying that I'm not the real Lady Zoanne Rochester," Zoe said with a sigh. "I'm Zoe Kim from Korea, a country on the Planet Earth. My soul is not from this world. I only got to possess Lady Zoanne Rochester's body with the help of Miss Liane."
Isaak Viotto's eyes turned cold. "Don't mention the late empress's name so casually."
"I told you that I don't belong in this world, so don't scold me," she said with a scowl. "Plus, our cultures differ greatly from one another. It's hard for me to keep up, especially with the trendy fashion here. I mean, the dresses this body owns are aesthetically pleasing to the eye. But I find them very inconvenient." She clicked her tongue. "Nu-neun e-hae mot hal-gu-ya, Viotto-ssi."
His brows furrowed in confusion. "What did you say? What language is that?" He glared at her. "Did you curse at me?"
"No. I just said that you won't understand my sufferings," she explained. "I spoke using my country's language to let you know that I'm not really from here."
"How could I confirm that you didn't use made-up words?"
She blinked several times, then gave up. "Grand Duke, I already told you that I'm not smart. So why don't you think of a way to prove whether or not I'm telling the truth? Since this world has magic and other stuff like that, I'm sure you can find something akin to a lie detector machine to know that I'm not lying."
The Grand Duke looked confused this time. "Your words are confusing me. And I don't like how you're ordering me around, Lady Rochester."
"I'm not bossing you around, my lord. How could I?" she denied firmly. "I'm simply asking you to do the thinking for us because my brain cells are already dead."
He fell silent, and it looked like he was considering her suggestion.
[I should convince him more.]
"The former empress Lady Liane sent me here on a mission," she said carefully, obviously catching the ghoul duke's attention. "I'm supposed to do it on my own, but when I got here, I realized right away that I'm not smart enough to be doing this solo. I need someone else to help me, and I believe that you're the right person, my lord."
"But why me?"
[Because in the novel that I read, you were the one who took care of the abandoned Crown Princess.]
It wasn't like she could say it to his face, though.
"To be honest, I'm just planning to use you as a stepping stone to get close to His Majesty."
This time, the Grand Duke obviously raised his guard around her.
In a literal sense.
All of a sudden, she found it hard to breathe. Then she saw the dark mini whirlpool behind the ghoul duke. It reminded her that this person could control the wind.
[This handsome bastard is threatening me, huh?]
"You don't have to use your ability to knock me out of my breath, my lord," she said with a smile despite having difficulties breathing. It didn't help that her body was currently wrapped in a thick blanket. "If you want to do so, all you have to do is show your face to me, since I like it very much."
Isaak Viotto looked flustered by her "pick-up line." He glared at her again, but this time, it didn't look convincing because his face was red. "You–" He suddenly stopped talking midway and turned to the door. "Marquis Rochester is on his way here."
"Then why aren't you leaving yet?"
"Your father surrounded your room with a barrier to lock me up," he explained. "I can just break it, but if I leave now, it would look like I'm running away. And a Viotto never runs away from the enemies."
"My father isn't an enemy…" she trailed off when she noticed her bra on the floor. She would have grabbed it if she could move. But she was nothing but a human burrito at the moment. "Your Grace, pick up my bra!"
His eyes widened in shock. "W-What?"
She wanted to tease the Grand Duke for stuttering, but when she heard her father's footsteps, she panicked. "Pick it up. Pali-pali!" she said, speaking in Korean. 'Pali-pali' meant 'hurry' in Hangul. "If my father saw my undergarment, he'd think we're trying to have sex!"
The ghoul duke obviously panicked as well.
Then he raised his hand and used his ability to create a gentle breeze to lift her bra. It seemed like he was supposed to send it her way. But when the door suddenly opened, Isaak Viotto grabbed her floating bra and put it in his pocket.
She gasped when she realized what had just happened. [Oh my gosh! Grand Duke Isaak Viotto put my bra in his pocket!]
"Grand Duke Isaak Viotto," Marquis Rochester greeted the ghoul duke in a cold and stern voice. "What are you doing in my daughter's room at this hour?"
Ah, it seemed like her father wasn't in the mood for formal greetings.
"Lord Rochester, I can answer your question," Isaak Viotto, who seemed to have regained his composure, said politely. "But do you really want to know why I'm here at this hour?"
She almost choked when she realized that the ghoul duke was trying to imply to her father that they were doing something intimate in her room! [This? Coming from the man who panicked when I just mentioned the word sex? Wow! Talk about a 360-degree change!]
Or was it a 180-degree change?
Ah, whatever. Her brain cells were practically dead at the moment. Too much thinking was bad for her health!
Her thoughts were interrupted when her father turned to her.
The shocked look on Marquis Rochester's face when he saw her already told her that her father misunderstood the situation.
[Well, I'm wrapped in a blanket so…]
"Father, I'm a grown woman," she said with a bright smile on her face. "And a modern one at that. Plus, whatever happened between me and His Grace in this room is completely consensual."
The marquis took a deep breath before speaking again. "I understand that you and His Grace are both consenting adults. But this is still my house. Is it wrong for me to feel disrespected when my daughter invited a man into her room at this hour? I don't care how "modern" you think you are, Zoanne. As long as you're living in my house, you're obliged to abide by my rules."
Fair enough.
Plus, she couldn't hold the marquis up to her standards because the modern world that she came from was very different from the world of this novel.
"I'm sorry, Father," she said politely. "This won't happen again."
"I apologize, Lord Rochester," Isaak Viotto said politely. "This is my entire fault. I was the one who came here unannounced, so please don't scold your daughter."
The marquis glared at the Grand Duke. "I won't stop you from courting my daughter, Your Grace. But at least do it the proper way. Will it kill you to send a letter first before you visit our house?"
"I will do that next time, Lord Rochester," the ghoul duke promised. "Please excuse my discourtesy tonight."
Her father gave Isaak Viotto a curt nod. "You may leave now, Your Grace."
"Have a good night, Lord Rochester," Isaak Viotto said to her father politely, then he turned to her with glowing purple eyes. "I shall see you soon, Lady Zoe."
She raised a brow at the ghoul duke. [So, you're calling me by my real name now?]
Too bad she couldn't voice out her amused thoughts.
Plus, Isaak Viotto had already disappeared in a whirl of cold breeze, anyway.
[Ah, so he can really break through Father's barrier.]
"Zoanne Rochester."
Zoe flinched when she heard the marquis call his daughter's full name.
Even though Marquis Rochester wasn't her real father, she still recognized the gravity of your parent calling you by your full name. It usually meant getting scolded, after all.
"F-Father, I want to rest…"
"You'll rest after we talk," Marquis Rochester said firmly. "Fix your clothes and come me to my study."
[Ah, #RIP to my eardrums…]
***
"YOUR GRACE, are you really going to feed Lady Rochester the Pill of Truth?"
"I have no choice but to do it," Isaak Viotto said while leaning against the windowsill. "I can't make a mistake and blindly trust Lady Rochester's words. His Majesty's life is at stake."
Moreover, Lady Zoanne Rochester mentioned the late empress.
If she wasn't the only daughter of Marquis Hendrix Rochester, he would have taken the young lady for interrogation. But he couldn't make an enemy out of a strong and influential family like House Rochester. If he did, he would have put Emperor Rino in a tight spot.
[Empress Veronica's influence over the nobles is getting stronger than His Majesty. I can't let House Rochester turn their back on my brother. Thus, I have to deal with Lady Rochester carefully.]
"The Pill of Truth is a drug, Your Grace," Sawyer reminded him carefully. "It could kill a delicate lady like the successor of House Rochester."
"Lady Rochester is nowhere near "delicate.""
"Even so…"
"Lady Rochester won't die as long as she doesn't lie," he said firmly, ignoring the guilt in his chest. "Just get me the pills, Sawyer."
His right-hand man bowed to him. "As you wish, my lord…"
He noticed that Sawyer trailed off. It was rare for the knight to get distracted, so he got worried a little. "What is it?"
Sawyer raised his head and turned to him with an awkward look on his face. "Your Grace, there's something coming out of your pocket…"
His hand automatically reached for the pocket of his trousers. He felt the bump in the pocket and wondered what it was. Then he slid his hand inside and pulled out the piece of clothing that he just remembered where he got from.
[How could I forget about this thing?]
It was Lady Rochester's brassiere.
For some reason, his whole face felt warm suddenly. And that warmth was spreading down straight to a certain body part of his.
"Keep your mouth shut," he warned his right-hand man while putting Lady Rochester's underwear back in his pocket.
Sawyer once again bowed to him. "But where are you going, my lord?"
"Shower," Isaak grumbled softly. "I need a cold shower."
***
NOTE: Hi! Please consider ADDING 'I Won't Let The Ghoul Duke Go Hungry!' to your LIBRARY. Thank you! <3