I Awoke as an Imprisoned Villainess-Chapter 38 - Compared to the gaze of Lady Violet, the grand duke is nothing

“Claude, what are you doing!?”

I heard the impatient voice of His Highness, Johannes. Turning to face him, His Highness, whose expression was as impatient as his voice, said, “She is undoubtedly a criminal, but in no way is she going to be treated badly”.

“There is hard evidence, including the testimony of the servant she asked to sell her medicine, the ledgers of the places to which she sold the medicine, and the seized medicine that the royal apothecary certified as ‘this mastery is definitely Arbuthnot’s’. —But she is an Arbuthnot, and in view of her talent and youth, the grand duke has already spoken that the sentence should be lighter than before”

If the grand duke said such a thing, I would have nothing but a bad premonition.

I turned my attention back to the grand duke, and he let out a soft voice, still smiling.

“The current Marquis Arbuthnot is vigorously developing new drugs, but unfortunately, he doesn’t examine humans. —For the sake of the next king, we need young talents like you”

The next king.

With that phrase oddly ringing in my eyes, I think this must be a case for the throne after all.

But if that’s the case, aren’t Violet sama and Claude sama, who have learned the truth, also in danger...?

I felt a sense of discomfort that I couldn’t shake off, but just thinking what if that was the case made my blood run cold.

“Considering the severity of your crime, you should be in jail for a few years, but it would be a shame to let your talent be crushed by imprisonment. —I’m a magician who loves flowers, and I can make any plant bloom. No matter how barren, no matter how extinct, no matter what season it is, spring, summer, fall, or winter”

The grand duke put on a seemingly gentle smile as he said this.

“In such a place, your apothecary skills presumably won’t become dull. The official length of your confinement will be decided after the investigation including your family, which will be conducted in secret, is over. I’ll be responsible for taking care of you and watching over you, at least until things are settled. —You see, you won’t be treated badly. It’ll be more comfortable than that tower V-i-o-l-e-t lived in” (*He emphasized Violet’s name here, presumably because of he is aware of the body swap)

“Claude, now you know. I don’t know when you became friends with her, but she isn’t going to be treated badly”

“No, Your Highness. —I will not let anyone lay a finger on her”

This chapter is updat𝓮d by freēnovelkiss.com.

To the words of the grand duke and His Highness, Claude sama answered without hesitation. He moved his body to hide my figure, intimidating the knights around him.

However, Claude sama, who has come for an audience with His Majesty, isn’t wearing a sword belt.

I knew that Claude sama must be strong, but against a dozen or so knights who were armed, and against the duke who was called a hero, the odds were too much against him.

Even if he is lucky enough to escape. If he does so, then the medicine surely would never reach His Highness again.

—Even though I have the medicine right here. Even though there is no doubt the grand duke is the culprit.

But the grand duke is undeniably in control of this space right now. Even if I told them that the grand duke was probably the cause of His Highness’s illness or the culprit who had attacked Violet sama’s mother in the past, most likely, they wouldn’t believe me. I knew that the medicine wouldn’t be taken, and the situation would get worse.

—Then, what could I do?

I rebuked my legs, which were trembling with fear, and was about to take a step when I heard the voice of the grand duke.

“—Are you going to defy the royal family? Knight Commander of the First Order of Knights, Claude Bradley”

“More so because I’m loyal to the royal family”

At the bone chilling voice of the two, His Majesty, Her Majesty, and His Highness were bewildered and tried to stop them.

I was certain that some sort of punishment would be handed down to Claude sama at this point, so I forgot about my trembling and hurriedly tugged at his cloak.

“Claude sama! I..! I’ll go!”

“Wha—…, what’re you talking about!?”

“A crime is a crime! Please take care of Violet sama! It’s terrible that she can’t let out any voice due to magic!”

I guess Claude sama understood what I said, because he made a reaction, but he still got angry and said, “No!”.

But even if he said no, even though I was scared, this was definitely my last small chance.

When I looked at Violet sama, she had an angry look in her eyes as well, but she also had a difficult expression on her face, as if she had already realized that this was the only way.

Still, her frightening eyes are the same, and my heart is about to yield. It is really scary.

—Yes, compared to the gaze of Violet sama, the grand duke is nothing...!

With what little courage I had left, I shook off Claude sama’s attempts to stop me and headed for the grand duke.

The grand duke looked a little surprised for a moment, but then smiled thinly and reverently held out his hand to me. I boldly put my hand in his hand.

“…Then, Your Majesties and Your Highness. I will take her and return to my domain. —Please take care of the investigation” (*He actually addressed the king and the queen individually, but I didn’t want it to be like Your Majesty, Your Majesty, and Your Highness. Idk how this stuff work)

“Ah- Yeah...I got it”

His Majesty and the others replied to the beautiful bow of the grand duke with a puzzled look. It may be because of the situation, but His Majesty is somewhat reserved in front of the grand duke. Is it because he is naturally timid, or is it because he (*the king) is his (*the grand duke’s) younger brother?

While I was thinking about this, I noticed a blue glow at my feet. It must be the magic of teleportation. As his body floated away, the grand duke opened his mouth to Violet sama.

“I’ve told you before. —That I’ll send you flowers when the time comes”

Violet sama, who was staring at the grand duke, stared at him suspiciously.

—Send her flowers? Does he mean the scent of lilies?

While a large question mark appeared on my head, I smiled slightly at Claude sama and Violet sama the moment my body floated up.

(—I’m waiting for you to come get me...!)

The moment I wished for this, my body floated away. I was teleported from the royal palace to the northern land where the grand duke lived.

Translator’s Notes:

I translated Violet sama as Lady Violet in the Chapter name to seem more formal. I always tend to struggle with those stuff.