Tail’s Curse Chapter 31

 

“I do hope we can talk about herbs someday. Everyone was curious about why Lord Noah treasured his guest so much—now I see the reason.”

 

“Huh? Me?”

 

When Cordelia asked back, Lord Pierrot, who had spoken without thinking, flusteredly nodded in awkward embarrassment. 

 

Just as he was about to say something, the door burst open with a knock, and Grand Duke Wayne Herlian rushed in as if sprinting.

 

“I heard there was an accident! Are you alright, Miss Cordelia?”

 

After waking up in the morning, vomiting, and then sprawling back in bed until well past noon, he had only just managed to gulp down some hangover soup. He received the news that the host and his lady guest had gone out together.

 

What’s this? Weren’t they that close? Now they’re even going on outings? Just what is their relationship?

 

Having been idling around his cousin’s villa, nursing his hangover, he had rushed over immediately upon hearing the news of the accident from the butler.

 

“Ah, yes. It was just a minor incident…”

Her round, wide purple eyes, initially startled, softened with relief. Thank goodness.

 

“I was worried that madman might have done something strange again, dragging an innocent lady into trouble…”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Hahaha, no, nothing like that. Jacques, is she alright?”

 

As Wayne redirected the conversation, Lord Pierrot nodded as if he had been waiting for the question.

 

“Aside from being slightly frail, she’s perfectly fine.”

 

“I heard she jumped in from behind? What a strange fellow. I thought the city’s public safety was quite decent…”

 

“Exactly. Normally, given Lord Noah’s temperament, he would’ve thrown the culprit in jail, but it doesn’t seem like that’s happening…”

 

Listening to the two gentlemen’s murmuring, Cordelia suddenly interjected.

 

“By the way, don’t those who use the ‘Secret’ title usually belong to Katisha?”

 

I was just curious and asked, but the two of them shut their mouths as if they had already made up their minds. Then, they looked at each other, their faces filled with uneasy suspicion. Cordelia, too, grew anxious.

 

“Why? Did the person who hit the car use the Secretia spell?”

 

“Yes. A very young person in uniform, with long, tied-up blond hair. Their eyes were probably brown…”

 

“Ugh, that damn…”

 

Surprisingly, it wasn’t Wayne who let out that sigh—it was Sir Pierrot. Wayne, with a face like he’d bitten into a bitter persimmon, muttered under his breath.

 

“There are two damn lunatics…”

 

This was not a misunderstanding.

 

“Um, is that person perhaps… royalty?”

 

“They are royalty… Yes. They’re my cousin.”

 

Even Wayne, who had always been friendly despite dealing with the ill-tempered Noah, couldn’t hide his discomfort. He let out a short sigh.

 

“It seems Lady Cordelia’s existence has piqued everyone’s curiosity, just as it did for me. In a way, it’s my fault. When I spoke to my sister this morning and mentioned you, it seems the whole family found out. Damn it, I didn’t expect her to be having tea with my brothers. Why were those two there first thing in the morning? I wasn’t fully sober yet—I wasn’t in my right mind.”

 

‘If those brother-complex maniacs make a fuss, brother Noah will throw another fit.’ 

 

Wayne grumbled gloomily, and Sir Pierrot shook his head as if to console him.

 

“The rumors had already spread before that. When Lord Noah declared himself Lady Cordelia’s protector after rescuing her from pirates, word got around. Only a few knew, but how could you stop them from talking? Lord Noah is more of a star than even the biggest prima donnas.”

 

That’s why I was curious too. Lord Pierrot glanced at Cordelia, who looked utterly bewildered.

 

She didn’t understand and asked, “I’m just a guest—why is that such a big deal?”

 

As if they had been waiting for this moment, they eagerly poured out their thoughts on the current situation.

 

“He rarely lets anyone into his personal space. It’s not exactly obsessive-compulsive, but he hates being disturbed. Even the family head once barged into his younger brother’s room without permission, and it led to a huge fight. The family head’s beautiful silver hair was nearly torn out that time.”

 

“Is that all? When His Majesty the Emperor was still the Crown Prince, he once mishandled a piece of his prized art collection, and Lord Noah set his cloak on fire. Do you know how old he was then? Seven! Just seven years old! Thankfully, His Majesty had a gentle temperament and dismissed it as a childish prank, and with the late Empress and their aunt stepping in to mediate, things could have gotten very awkward. Their uncle had to hand over a considerable amount of bonds to the imperial family as an apology.”

 

“There’s another incident. Her Majesty Agnes once touched an orchid in Lord Noah’s cherished glass greenhouse, and he immediately uprooted the flower and burned it right in front of her. Back then, even the bold Agnes was just a girl, so she ended up sobbing uncontrollably.”

 

The more they shared, the more outrageous the stories became. 

 

What these tales revealed was that Noah Tudor’s sense of boundaries was no joke—if provoked, he would make anyone pay, no matter who they were. 

 

It was clear that from childhood, his temperament had not just been eccentric but downright monstrous. 

 

Seeing Cordelia’s exasperated expression, they nodded in understanding.

 

“That’s why the whole family is shocked you’ve been staying here for days. Everyone’s in an uproar, wondering who this lady is, if that devil is finally getting married, and—”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“Hahaha, got a little carried away there. Anyway, it’s that unexpected. It’s a shame, really—with that face, Lord Noah Tudor treats women like dirt.”

 

“I’m not his woman.”

 

“…What?”

 

“I’m not his woman, I’m a collateral. My family has quite a bit of debt, you see.”

 

Realizing she had to stop the misunderstanding before it grew worse, Cordelia calmly explained the general situation. 

 

However, despite her efforts, their expressions only darkened further. 

 

Collateral? Debt?

 

After a brief moment of cognitive dissonance, the two gentlemen’s faces twisted in anger.

 

“Now you’ve stooped to human trafficking? You damn bastard!”

 

“How many times have I told you, Aunt, that you mustn’t do such things! Are you insane? Miss Cordelia Marguerite, as a royal and a gentleman of this country, I will never stand by and let a young lady suffer such disgrace!”

 

“No, it’s not like that. It’s just that… he wants something from our family.”

 

“And what could that be? Judging by how you’ve been held here, your family must be so broke you don’t even have a pinch of flour left!”

 

Stunned by the unnecessarily accurate remark, Cordelia hesitated. Meanwhile, Lord Pierrot muttered with a pitiful expression,

 

“Ha, to have fallen into the hands of such a devil. Good heavens, what terrible luck.”

 

Well, he wasn’t wrong… As she blankly watched him make the sign of the cross, Wayne gripped her shoulders and spoke gravely.

 

“Tell me honestly—has that man demanded anything else from you besides the debt? Spit it out!”

 

Under the scorching glare of two pairs of eyes, Cordelia blurted out the truth without thinking.

 

“He said he wanted my eyes and hair. Because they’re… pretty.”

 

Wayne’s eyes widened as he shouted,

 

“What?! Now he’s into taxidermy too? I knew that bastard was obsessed with his ‘art’ from the start!”

 

“No, it’s not that. He probably wants to keep her fresh as a living ornament. Surely that money-obsessed freak isn’t trying to seduce her with cheap tricks.”

 

Lord Pierrot, who had always taken such pride in being a retainer of the Tudor family, adjusted his glasses and shook his head with a tone that suggested his loyalty had gone to the dogs. 

 

Cordelia stared blankly at them, completely absorbed in their theory about Noah Tudor being a demon.

 

Well… it wasn’t entirely wrong, but it wasn’t entirely right either.

 

But it was true—Noah had declared that he would take her eyes and hair a year later. The way he looked at her was undeniably filled with an aesthetic desire.

 

That gaze wasn’t limited to that day alone. 

 

Every time they crossed paths, she could feel it—cold yet feverish, like an appraiser examining a rare gem. 

 

Even when he didn’t outwardly show it, she couldn’t ignore the intensity of those eyes.

 

It was too detached and clinical to be called a man’s desire, yet too thick with greed to be mere admiration.

 

The irony was almost laughable. 

 

Never in her life had she felt so physically and mentally at ease, only to realize it wasn’t because she was being treated as a person—but as a pretty piece of collateral.

 

Shaking her head, she tossed out a question to divert the conversation away from their enthusiastic gossip about the mansion’s owner.

 

“By the way, what kind of person is the one who uses the Secreta middle name?”

 

“Looking for me?”

 

A languid voice echoed from the doorway, leaving the flustered maid Jane behind.