Chapter 16

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter Title: The Villainess Imprinted with the Male Lead 24

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Mary saw Rick silently receiving the box she handed him and naturally asked,

"You're not doing the handkerchief test anymore?"

Flinch.

Rick, who had been moving the box, squeezed his eyes shut at the subtle voice coming from behind.

'Haa. If it weren't for my mistake.'

Rick recalled being summoned to Richt's office.

"From now on, make sure you behave yourself and commit no rudeness."

Not content with a light reprimand, the newly added order instantly turned Rick into the weaker party.

'His Grace emphasized security, so I strengthened the guards...'

Rick had thought he was faithfully carrying out orders, but who could have known it would lead to such a hassle?

"You're not even answering me now?"

"......"

"Ugh! My throat suddenly feels sore..."

As Mary dramatically clutched her nape, Rick unwittingly shouted at the top of his lungs.

"I!"

"Oh my? Are you getting angry at me right now? You're so scary. What if I faint...?"

Her large green eyes, wide like a startled rabbit, blinked innocently.

"......I. Didn't I already apologize for the rudeness I committed that day?"

The other party was a maid from a family that the Captain seemed to regard quite importantly. He couldn't raise his voice at her.

From the faint freckles on the bridge of her nose to her overall tomboyish appearance, she was a woman who truly gave him headaches.

Rick sighed as he watched Mary cover her mouth and chuckle softly, seemingly amused by his inability to neither advance nor retreat.

At least one fortunate thing was that, unlike the other guys, this woman's spite cooled off quickly.

'She'd get along great with the chatty bunch in the knights' order, no doubt.'

Rick looked down at her head, which barely reached his chest, and escorted her out as she had requested before.

"How kind of you. Well, see you next time."

"Take care."

Slam!

'What a ridiculous woman.'

Rick had matched Mary's natural praise of his manners without backing down, then promptly shut the door.

A warm, soft sensation enveloped Richt, as if he had found cozy rest.

'Is this... a lucid dream?'

The moment his consciousness stirred, he realized he was dreaming. Just then, a familiar voice came from nearby.

"Richt."

"......!"

A tender call laced evenly with affection directed at him.

"Lady...?"

Richt reflexively turned around and spotted a familiar pink figure that had appeared from somewhere, asking in a dazed voice.

"Why the long face?"

Luciana, who had sweetly clasped her hands behind her back, tilted her head and approached, closing the distance between them.

"That's what I want to ask you... Ugh! What are you...!"

"Gotcha!"

Whoosh!

Like a cat pouncing on a mouse, Luciana crept up stealthily and hugged him tightly, heedless of his prickly demeanor.

"Mmm, so warm."

"......!"

Not only that, but she even grinned foolishly. Richt, unaccustomed to the sudden embrace that stole his wits or Luciana's approach brimming with goodwill, shouted as if fleeing.

"Hey!"

Her frame was tiny as a bean, yet her strength was incredible.

Richt tried to push away the arms wrapped tightly around his waist like ropes binding a criminal, but perhaps because it was a dream, they wouldn't budge.

"Richt? You're acting weird today. Normally, you're the one always bothering me."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. More importantly, are you going to let go?"

The warmth of their bodies pressed deeply together, separated only by a thin layer of clothing, seeped through entirely.

The small body burrowing stubbornly into his embrace was soft and pliant, unlike his own.

"Oh? Your face is red."

"What...!"

Luciana let out a low chuckle upon seeing his earlobes flushed prettily like a peach.

It was because Richt, who had bristled like a beast with hackles raised, suddenly fumbled like a broken toy—an unexpectedly fitting contrast to his fierce appearance.

'Damn it. Why the hell...!'

His body, trapped helplessly in Luciana's arms, kept defying his control and acting on its own.

What was he to do with his heart pounding as if he'd swallowed poison, his palms starting to sweat coldly, and the heat spreading across his face like spilled paint, showing no sign of calming?

"Pfft!"

Luciana gazed at him intently before bursting into harmless laughter.

She released her hold on his waist and stood on tiptoe, wrapping her arms around his nape.

"Why are you so cute today?"

"......!"

At Luciana's final words, his entire body stiffened as if he'd heard forbidden words.

But the rigidity from the ear-scratching sound lasted only a moment.

Smack.

What... was that just now?

"Gasp...!"

The moment her soft lips pressed against his cheek in a surprise attack, he awoke from the hazy dream.

Leaning against the bedhead, Richt's chest heaved with ragged breaths, his tensed pectorals bulging as if about to burst.

"What kind of nonsense dream was that."

Richt spat irritably, displeased, but then sensed an odd change in his body and slowly let his gaze drift downward.

The faint outline protruding on his left thigh came into view.

"......!"

A torrent of foul curses tangled like dough in his mouth.

His tightly pressed lips trembled. Ignoring the pull in his lower abdomen, Richt let out a hollow laugh.

He could die before admitting that the dream he just had was the cause of this.

"Now she's even appearing in my dreams."

A faint resignation tinged his self-mocking mutter.

Richt had ignored everything about Luciana until now, but far from improving, it only backfired.

His instinct, desperately craving its mate, raised its voice from a corner of his heart, but his reason, allowing not even the slightest waver, blocked it.

Yet unlike his mind, his body was increasingly drawn to Luciana, like an addict suffering withdrawal.

The soft texture of her hair brushing his fingertips lingered. When a light breeze blew, he fell into the illusion that a calm, fragrant scent reminiscent of that woman hovered nearby.

These bizarre symptoms only worsened with time, and standing firm between instinct and reason grew ever more burdensome.

Just look at today—he'd suffered a ridiculous dream as if he were her lover.

He was in his prime, yet he'd never once felt desire for a woman.

No wonder rumors once circulated in high society that Duke Cassio was impotent. It stemmed entirely from Richt coldly rejecting the young ladies who approached eyeing his position beside him.

For a man like that to show such an embarrassing reaction to a mere illusion in a dream—no excuse could soften the grim reality. To Richt, who always tried to push Luciana out of his territory, nothing could be more shocking.

"Damn it."

It had been like this ever since his rut.

No matter how consistently he ignored her, once the dam broke, he couldn't contain the yearning for her—like a vagrant gulping rain after long thirst.

—Still don't get it? You're already a body that can't live without its mate.

At that moment, the instinct that hadn't appeared for days showed up, swaggering and speaking to him.

—Look at the dream you had today. It's because deep down, you want Lucy. I know everything. No matter how much you deny it, I'm part of you, right?

It's been half a month since the rut. You want to see the living, breathing Luciana right in front of you!

Go to her now. You want to be by Lucy's side...

The voice shook Richt once and vanished, but the impression of Luciana it left scattered lingered around him like a deeply embedded afterimage.

"Kuh! I'm going mad."

Richt frowned at the vivid sensation shooting up his spine in that instant.

Feeling the fierce reaction from merely thinking of Luciana for a moment, he clamped his mouth shut.

The moment Richt felt the impulse to carve out that part of himself with a blade.