Fakes Don’t Want To Be Real Chapter 17

Chapter 17

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The next day,  past noon.

As agreed at the Association, Psychke bluntly stated her business the moment her fiancé arrived at the mansion.

 

“I’ll be going as well tomorrow.”

 

She knew it was rude to skip greetings and jump straight to the point, but her head ached from everything that had happened the day before. She had no composure left for etiquette.

Verndia had questions of his own, but having been preempted, he frowned.

 

“Where, exactly?”

 

‘Surely not.’

 

Verndia thought yet he couldn’t shake the bad feeling which was proven correct.

 

“The illegal auction house Lia mentioned.”

“… Do you even know why we’re going?”

“Yes, we’re going to steal something.”

Verndia let out a slow sigh, as if that settled it, “And knowing that, you still intend to come?”

“Yes.”

 

Psychke answered without hesitation.

She knew he disliked the idea, but the same thing had happened before, so she couldn’t back down.

Before her regression, there had been a report about a thief breaking into an illegal auction house disguised as a legitimate one but the culprit was never caught, yet nothing had been stolen.

Around that same time, she had received a letter from Verndia saying he was unwell and wouldn’t be able to meet for a while.

Putting it all together, it must had been Verndia stole the Keitan’s necklace as well but failed. The necklace had somehow ended up delivered to the Silkisia estate, and she herself had been framed and killed because of it.

Even if the Duke of Silkisia was now acting differently by keeping her as the duke’s daughter, she couldn’t relax.

This time, Verndia had to succeed in stealing Keitan’s necklace.

 

“What on earth are you thinking?”

 

At last, Verndia revealed his irritation.

 

Psychke couldn’t very well say, ‘You’ll fail if I don’t help’, so she brushed it off.

 

“Two people are better than one.”

“If one person fails to pull their weight, the other suffers as well.”

 

The look he gave her said plainly,’ So stay out of it’, but Psychke ignored it.

 

“I’ve said my piece.”

“Then why say anything at all if you were going to do as you pleased?”

“So you can hide your ring.”

 

Her indifferent gaze landed on his left hand, specifically, the gold engagement ring on his ring finger.

Only then did Verndia remember that when they were close, the rings resonated and glowed. He dragged a hand down his face.

 

“Then you simply shouldn’t come.”

“I’m not going because I want to.”

“Ha.”

 

Verndia exhaled sharply and kept his face buried in his palm for a long moment.

Then, as if a thought had struck him, he looked at her with disbelief.

 

“You’re not doing this on purpose to make me fail, are you?”

“… What?”

 

Psychke narrowed one eye. How does helping translate into that?

She studied him briefly, then looked off to the side and sighed quietly. Then, so he wouldn’t continue with such absurd misunderstandings, she spoke plainly.

 

“Duke Verndia, I’ll be honest. I want to break off the engagement as soon as possible.”

“…”

“Isn’t the only reason our engagement still stands because of you? You’re afraid that if we annul it, you’ll fall out of favor with His Majesty and lose support for the knight order.”

 

The blunt words left Verndia momentarily stunned, but he listened in silence.

 

“Yes, I understand your position. It’s because of how I behaved in the past. But people change. I no longer have any feelings for you and I never will.”

 

She expected a sharp rebuke for saying it to his face.

Instead, Verndia merely looked dazed, offering no real reaction.

It was simply too unfamiliar.

Someone like him, standing at the pinnacle of power and force, commanded attention merely by breathing. Even his enemies never dared show open dislike before the ‘mad dog of the North.’

Yet now, the woman who had once followed him around was telling him outright that she had no interest.

No matter how long she waited, he didn’t speak. She concluded firmly after deciding it was time to leave.

 

“No matter what happens, I intend to annul the engagement, so there’s no need for concern. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be going.”

 

Verndia only stared up at her vacantly, as though his soul had left him. He didn’t stop her.

With a final polite nod, Psychke left the reception room.

Not far from the room, she was abruptly stopped by Lillian, who glared at her fiercely.

 

“Wait, we need to talk.”

 

Lillian snapped, looking as though she’d been waiting here until the meeting ended.

 

“How could you do that?”

 

The question came without context and Lillian’s face was pale.

Her eyes and nose were red as if she’d been crying uncontrollably, and her breath burned hot with agitation and anger.

In stark contrast to Lillian’s blazing emotions, Psychke replied coldly.

 

“Do what?”

“You said you’d give everything up.”

 

Lillian trembled with indignation, clutching at her empty chest as she spoke through tears.

 

“The position of duke’s daughter. The position of Duke Verndia’s fiancée. You said you’d return everything!”

 

Yes, she already had.

The day Lillian arrived with Lenox and Melissa, Psychke had told her that everything belonged to the real one – that as the fake, she wanted nothing and Psychke had kept that promise. But clearly, Lillian failed to see the same thing.

 

“You’re truly cruel.”

 

As if she believed the fake duke’s daughter had deceived her, Lillian’s voice broke, and she burst into tears. The tears gathered at her eyes and spilled down her delicate cheeks.

Lillian had failed to win Verndia’s heart even in the past.

But she had firmly established herself as the duke’s daughter of Silkisia, so she had never lashed out like this, only pretending to be naïve and kind, offering pity like alms.

But now,

 

“What did you say to him? It’s obvious that you must have begged him, crying that you’d do anything so he wouldn’t abandon you! You promised me you’d give everything back! You liar, a hypocrite!”

“No. I didn’t.”

“Lies! This is all your fault. Because of you… Only because of you!”

 

Her resentment swallowed the rest of her words and Lillian buried her face in her hands and sobbed loudly.

Psychke frowned, pressing a hand to her forehead and closing her eyes. Her usual headache, combined with lack of sleep and Lillian’s wailing, throbbed painfully.

She understood too well why Lillian was acting this way.

No one knew better than Psychke how devastating it felt to have something you thought was yours taken away.

Which was why she had neither reason nor obligation to comfort Lillian. How could a victim console their perpetrator?

 

“Stop forcing it, Lillian.”

 

After counting slowly to ten, the pain eased slightly.

The conversation itself was exhausting, but being misunderstood like this was intolerable. So Psychke decided to correct her in a very kind way.

 

“I never once asked anyone to let me stay in the ducal house.”

“And you think I’ll believe that?”

“Whether you believe it or not is up to you.”

 

Psychke met Lillian’s tear-filled, viciously glittering eyes with numb indifference.

 

“If you find me that repulsive, go tell Father. Ask him to drive out the fake daughter.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You’ve already wrapped everyone around your finger—”

“There’s no way Father would value the words of a fake like me over yours, the real daughter.” Psychke let out a hollow laugh, “Or are you not confident?”

“… What?”

“That’s the only explanation.”

 

She stepped closer, closing the distance between them, and lowered her voice so Verndia, still in the reception room, couldn’t hear.

 

“Fine. Let’s say I begged Duke Verndia to keep the engagement. That would mean he valued me more than you.”

“…!”

“And the same goes for Father.”

 

After delivering the blow, Psychke stepped back and tilted her head slightly.

Lillian stood frozen, unable even to wipe the tears running down her chin.

 

“You may not believe me, but I did nothing. I understand wanting someone to blame, but don’t take it too far, unless you want the whole world to see that you’re lesser than me.”

 

With that, Psychke turned her back.

Lillian’s piercing gaze followed her until she rounded the corner of the corridor, but Psychke ignored it and walked away at a steady pace.