Duke, Please Let Go of My Ankle! Chapter 1

 

 

 

✿

 

“Hurry, Jenna, hurry!”

 

“Ho-ho. Almost there.”

 

Audrey stomped her feet and urged the maid. Jenna secretly smiled as she looked at her figure.

 

It was so lovely to see her face unable to move and only her hands and feet wriggling, because she was worried that her makeup might be ruined.

 

The sleepy girl, who always woke up at noon, suddenly for some reason got up at dawn and wanted her makeup done.

 

Along with a very philosophical phrase, ‘She’s already pretty even without decorations, she’s just naturally lovely as she was.’

 

Having guessed the reason at heart, Jenna smiled meaningfully and said,

 

“It’s done. Oh, you’re so beautiful today!” (Jenna)

 

“Thank you!” (Audrey)

 

“Oh, my lady! You’re going to fall!” (Jenna)

 

Audrey rushed out of the room as soon as the maid took her hands off on her.

 

It seemed that too much time was spent on dressing me up, so I was in anguish.

 

‘It only takes an order.’

 

However, It couldn’t be helped.

 

It’s because she had to endure these little hassles in order not to let others, even her family, know that she was a wizard.

 

‘What if my brother Claude left?’

 

The movement of stepping down the stairs on two or three spaces under the glamorous skirt was quick.

 

However, at this speed, Audrey had an ominous feeling that she would miss him without fail.

 

‘No!’

 

When the situation became tight, there was still only one corner to trust.

 

Audrey looked around carefully while she was running.

 

‘No one’s here, right?

 

And as soon as she confirmed that there was no one around, she cast a spell as if she had waited.

 

Swoosh~

 

The wind started blowing on her worn-out heels.

 

‘Faster! Faster!’

 

The Wizard’s Code of Ethics, which was revised for the first time in 10 years, flashed through her mind… It was only for a moment.

 

When about half a storey left, the wind that had blown only under the hem of her dress slowly subsided.

 

Audrey took one last breath and cleared her throat.

 

Then, when she took her last step, She began to imitate the ideal young lady behavior very skillfully.

 

“Father, are you going to work already?”

 

“…A-Audrey?”

 

Count Kevelson, who was just about to leave the mansion, looked back in amazement.

 

His daughter’s voice, which he couldn’t hear for a long time, sounded very strange and happy for some reason.

 

However, Audrey immediately turned to the person she wanted to see as soon as she greeted him.

 

“Oh, there’s brother Claude here too! What a coincidence!”

 

“…”

 

The act of pretending to be surprised with her eyes wide open was quite convincing.

 

The Count, who had spoken earlier, only fiddled with his beard as if embarrassed, but Claude smiled affectionately as usual and greeted her.

 

“Audrey, did you sleep well?” (Claude)

 

“Yes!” (Audrey)

 

“I’ve been seeing your face since Monday morning? I guess only good things will happen this week.” (Claude)

 

“…!”

 

The clown of truth that she couldn’t hide was excruciatingly excited.

 

‘What do you mean? Am I, like, the goddess of fortune?’ (Audrey)

 

Audrey couldn’t control her hands and feet and they kept twisting.

 

‘Even though I knew it was a short greeting that meant nothing to Claude, I kept thinking about it word by word and gave it meaning.’ (Audrey)

 

It was one of the habits created by a long unrequited love.

 

‘But don’t be too obvious. Make it as natural and lovely as possible…’

 

Audrey tried to pretend to not care, but love was like a gambling debt that could never be hidden.

 

Audrey’s face was already red.

 

‘It was really weird…’

 

I couldn’t control my emotions just by looking at that face like a fool… I felt itchy all over, and I felt dumb.

 

There were times when I wanted to stomped my feet, which were hidden by the hem of my dress for no special reason.

 

‘If only I could face this enchanting face every day… ’

 

Audrey was also willing to give up her 20-year history and tradition of being an owl and become a rooster.

 

“Heheh…”

 

The woman in love twisted her body back and forth.

 

The vivid appearance, which was like a flower that just bloomed, disappeared sooner, and now she was limp like a vegetable blanched in boiling water for a long time.

 

Hans, who was treated as the only one who wasn’t there, glared at them with disgusted eyes.

 

He was frowning, perhaps, it was horrible to see the look on his childhood friend’s face.

 

“Hey, can’t you even see me?”

 

“Yes, hello, By the way, what brings you here early on Monday morning?”

 

“Huh.”

 

‘This!?’ For a moment, a spark was seen in Hans’ eyes.

 

‘I’m not a beggar!’ (Hans)

 

The greeting, which she threw as if he was an enemy in 0.1 second, was not very sincere.

 

Either way, Audrey was only interested in his brother Claude.

 

Claude laughed lightly from the morning looking with lovely eyes at his younger siblings quarreling.

 

“Because Count Kevelson’s carriage was being repaired. The destinations are the same anyway, so I stopped by to ride with the Count, right?” (Claude)

 

“Oh, how fast you were! Father could have just rented a carriage at the rental office… I’m sorry for the troublesome thing.” (Audrey)

 

“We are going the same way anyway either, so there’s nothing bothering me. I don’t feel lonely, especially when I’m with the Count.” (Claude)

 

“That…”

 

All of a sudden, Count Kevelson became a shameless adult.

 

But even a nice and pretty daughter was useless in front of love.

 

That’s why Audrey’s eyes always sparkled around Claude.

 

A worried sigh came from the Count full of anxiety for the other person.

 

“It’s a big deal. I hope the carriage will be fixed soon… ” (Audrey)

 

“You really don’t have to worry about it.” (Claude)

 

“But we couldn’t keep bothering you.” (Audrey)

 

“It’s alright,I’m fine with it.” (Claude)

 

“Yes?”

 

“Thanks to that, I hope to see you again. What better excuse was there than this?” (Claude)

 

“…!”

 

Claude smiled brightly with a doubt.

 

Audrey, whose heart was unexpectedly beaten, stood blankly, forgetting what to say.

 

It was hard to hide my dark inner thoughts with that angelic smile in front of me.

 

‘… Even if I die, I wouldn’t say that the killer was him.’ (Audrey)

 

How could someone say that it was the daughter of Count Kevelson, not anyone else, who broke the wheel axle in the middle of the night?

 

So I had no choice but to laugh along innocently.

 

On the other hand, he couldn’t be left alone watching the loving scene of his childhood friend with a twisted stomach.

 

“But what, have you been to a ball since dawn? What’s with the curls of your clothes?” (Hans)

 

Openly, an unpleasant gaze glanced up and down through Audrey’s outfit.

 

‘That’s right.’

 

‘Trying to light a candle for someone else’s love!’

 

“Ho- hoho, What are you talking about? It’s embarrassing to show up looking shabby on Monday morning. Oh, if I knew you’d be here, I’d at least get my hair done.” (Audrey)

 

Audrey immediately combed her hair in embarrassment.

 

But a 15-years of friendship was never easy. While on the other side, he snorted sarcastically.

 

“What? Hey, look in the mirror. You’re so gorgeous that even the Duke was courting you right now?” (Hans)

 

“This-!” (Audrey)

 

Oops…

 

Audrey, who always had a temper, suddenly came to her senses.

 

‘Claude’s still watching!’

 

Audrey clenched her fist so hard that she lost strength to argue.

 

My hand, which was heading toward his stomach, turned sharply and toward his shoulder. My fingertips felt bitter as I gently patted my friend’s shoulder, pretending to joke.

 

“Hoho! Duke! Oh, that’s funny!” (Audrey)

 

“Hey, don’t touch me, this witch!” (Hans)

 

Audrey cleverly covered the top of his foot with the hem of her rich skirt, and trampled it mercilessly.

 

In a split second, she didn’t forget to cast the spell on her heels.

 

“Hey, you crazy witch!” (Hans)

 

Hans began rolling on the floor with a crumpled face.

 

He even screamed loudly, saying that all his toes must have fallen off.

 

However, Audrey sent off the two men very calmly, with a terrible scream as the background music.

 

“Father, brother. You’re going to be late. You should go…” (Audrey)

 

“…that’s right.”

 

“See you again, Audrey.” (Claude)

 

So the two men left the mansion almost as if they were being driven out.

 

Unlike the somewhat grumpy Count Kevelson, Claude kept looking back and smiling happily.

 

‘…He’s a young man who knows nothing.’

 

The Count looked sideways at Claude.

 

He must be a very healthy and intelligent young man, like the first groom candidate in the Empire, but sometimes something felt a little strange.

 

Should I say that people are optimistic because they are too positive?

 

Let’s not worry about my brother rolling around screaming at him to leave the mansion.

 

“That’s a lot of fun..It’s a good time.”

 

Laughing brightly while saying things like that… No matter how hard the Count looked at it, it didn’t seem normal.

 

 

✿

 

As soon as Audrey came to her room, she immediately lay on her bed

 

The decorations that had to be prepared from the early morning, became useless in an instant, as if they were all meaningless.

 

Hans, who witnessed the scene, was discouraged and felt twisted.

 

All of that laziness, if only Claude could see it.

 

As an excuse to be polite, Audrey felt ashamed of her clothes that she had been paying attention to since dawn.

 

‘How could you not say even a single word? This mean-witch…’ (Hans)

 

Like, ‘I’ve never seen that cravat before’, or ‘blue looks good on you.’ Or, rather, laugh at it.

 

How could you be so unsympathetic, uninterested, and rude?

 

Hans glared at the evil being who was rolling around the bed.

 

The grumpy hand loosened the cravat roughly and threw it away. For him, it was a little rebellion.

 

Or not.

 

Audrey has been busy reading the newspaper since morning.

 

“Huh? Ahh… hmm. Let’s see. What news do we have today?”

 

Today, the Imperial Newspaper remained the same.

 

Decorating the front page of the newspaper was a strange survey without foundation.

 

Unlike other newspapers that usually publish special news, it was a very drastic move.

 

 

【 .】

 

Ҩ: What about the unmarried man who’s likely to break the bed on the first night of marriage?

 

“…What? Who the hell was wondering about this kind of thing?”

 

Audrey frowned at the provocative theme.

 

Then, the names that fell to the 15th place were more clearly visible.

 

“Anyway, their taste was weird.”

 

Even though she clicked her tongue in disapproval, she couldn’t take her eyes off the newspaper.

 

Like a fish, the eyes that went back from the bottom were very careful and meticulous.

 

She seemed full of curiosity…

 

But the moment she found a familiar name in the rankings, she said,

 

“That’s crazy! No way!!”

 

Audrey crumpled up the newspaper without realizing it.