Revenge Costs Interest [EN]: Chapter 64

Revenge Comes with Interest Episode 64: (64/200)

Episode 64

October 3, 2023

Leah spotted Terrun standing in front of the door as soon as she exited the reception room.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she rushed into his arms. Her heart hammered against her ribs, and she couldn’t quite control her excitement.

“If I’d been any later,” Terrun whispered, burying his face in Leah’s thick, golden hair, “I would have kicked the door down to get in.”

“I finished talking with His Majesty,” she said.

She didn’t elaborate on the details for Terrun’s sake. He would only nag her relentlessly.

‘I have to succeed, even for Terrun’s sake,’ she thought.

Leah gazed up into his sparkling black eyes.

“What am I supposed to do when you look at me like that?” he asked, a playful glint in his eyes.

“Huh?”

“I want to devour you.”

“Not until my signature fills all the grape marks,” Leah retorted, shattering his fantasies with a teasing smile. Instead, she held out her hand to him and said in a gentle tone, “Let’s dance.”

“Will you sign if we dance?”

“Oh, you!”

“I won’t dance if you don’t sign.”

“Suit yourself. There are plenty of men who would love to dance with me.”

Only then did Terrun grab Leah’s hand tightly.

He had momentarily forgotten that there were people in this banquet hall who coveted his fiancée. The two of them walked hand in hand onto the dance floor.

Just as they arrived, the music changed to a waltz. As Leah and Terrun took their places, all eyes turned to them.

The opportunity to see the Duke of Courtois, who was famous for rarely attending social gatherings, dancing with his beautiful fiancée was a rare treat.

“Terrun, I need information about the Galdenia Crown Prince.”

“Let’s enjoy this moment. We can talk about other people later.”

“Ah! I’m sorry.”

Terrun knew perfectly well why Leah was asking about the Crown Prince.

“But I don’t know anything about the Crown Prince. I only know his name,” he admitted.

He simply had no interest in the man. It was ironic that he knew so much about Salame, who wasn’t even a major player.

‘What should I do? I need to know everything about the Crown Prince.’

In an instant, Salame was the first person who came to Leah’s mind.

As a brother, he would know the Crown Prince better than anyone else. But Terrun hated her being close to him so much that she couldn’t even dare to ask.

‘What should I do? I can’t go back empty-handed after coming all this way.’

Leah’s mind was racing, but she tried to shake off her worries. As Terrun said, their time together was more important.

She moved like a leaf floating on the water, surrendering to the music flowing like a river. It was better to enjoy this happiness with Terrun than to focus on dancing perfectly.

Terrun twirled Leah around, making her bloom like a flower. Even though it must have been uncomfortable with his one injured hand, he led her gracefully.

She even wondered if there was anything he couldn’t do.

‘Ah, he’s a bit clueless sometimes.’

Except for that, he was a perfect man.

Whether she was wearing rose-tinted glasses or not, she couldn’t find a gentleman as handsome as Terrun at the banquet.

Just then, the music changed, and an unexpected person asked Leah to dance.

“Duke of Courtois, may I have this dance with your fiancée?”

A ripple of murmurs spread through the crowd as Theresa stepped onto the floor.

“Your Majesty, please forget the unfortunate incident that happened at the riding grounds before,” Terrun said, offering her a polite bow.

“I will,” she readily answered, and Terrun handed Leah over to Theresa.

It was quite an interesting sight for the onlookers, since it was rare for women to dance with each other. But Theresa was wearing a uniform, so she looked like a man on the outside.

“It’s an honor, Your Majesty,” Leah said.

“The honor is mine as well. To be able to dance with such a beautiful lady.”

Leah was relieved that Theresa’s voice was bright. It seemed that the Emperor’s anger had subsided. Besides, Theresa played the male role quite well.

“That’s a first. Someone has said that to me,” Theresa said, leading Leah smoothly into the dance.

“I hate the word ‘give up’ the most. But I was hit right on the mark.”

“I am sorry.”

“No, there’s no need to be sorry. Just don’t disappoint me.”

“I will definitely succeed.”

Leah revealed her determination to Theresa. Living with her face covered by a black veil for the rest of her life was too harsh a fate.

“Your Majesty, I don’t know if I should ask you this…….”

“What is it?”

“What is the Crown Prince’s taste in women?”

Theresa tilted her head at Leah’s question. It didn’t seem like she was asking out of personal interest.

“Prince Salame is very cheerful and bright. But I was wondering what the Crown Prince is like.”

Leah couldn’t bring herself to tell her the whole story.

It felt like cheating to say that she was commissioned to make dresses for two young ladies attending the selection ceremony.

“Prince Salame? It’s better to call him Roberto. I don’t recognize him as a prince. Of course, I haven’t given him a title either,” Theresa said dismissively.

“I will do so.”

“Well, that guy lives his life as he pleases. He’s a free spirit. On the other hand, our Crown Prince is rigid. He rarely gets close to women.”

‘You don’t know him well,’ Leah thought.

Leah was slightly disappointed. She couldn’t get a straight answer even though she asked the Crown Prince’s mother directly.

“As far as I know, he likes intelligent, elegant, and wise women.”

“I see.”

“He also said that it would be nice to have a seductive charm.”

‘An intelligent, elegant, and wise woman is seductive?’

Leah chuckled inwardly. The best approach would be to ignore all the qualities that men list upfront.

‘In the end, he likes seductive women?’

That must mean he likes women who are modest during the day but exude sexual charm at night.

She seemed to have a rough idea of what kind of woman he wanted. She had obtained some useful information. She was reasonably satisfied.

“It’s such an unfair era. It’s frustrating that women have to be evaluated by men until they die,” Theresa suddenly said in an agitated tone.

“Men want their wives to be beautiful even when they get old, even though they are hunched over and can’t even perform their nightly duties properly.”

She only asked about the Crown Prince, but the conversation had taken a strange turn.

But she knew instinctively that it was something Theresa herself had experienced.

She wondered if she had been neglected by her husband because of her ruined face. Even though her husband was now dead, the resentment seemed to linger in her heart.

“Look over there,” Theresa said, gesturing with her eyes as they danced.

Leah followed Theresa’s gaze, and saw Terrun surrounded by young ladies and noblewomen.

“The Duke of Courtois will receive a lot of love letters tonight.”

“Yes?”

Leah raised her voice without realizing it and even stopped in her tracks.

Speaking without context was just like Salame. It felt like the conversation was inconsistent and jumping from one topic to another.

“You seem like an innocent young lady,” Theresa teased Leah, who was bewildered.

“Don’t you know anything about high society?”

“Yes……? I don’t think so.”

Before becoming Grace, she was so infatuated with Allen that she rarely attended small social gatherings. Of course, she didn’t go to big parties at all.

“Everyone knows. That Terrun is my fiancé.”

“So?”

“!?”

“Young lady, you need to know both the dark and light sides of high society to run a business targeting women. This is not just a story that belongs to the upper class.”

Leah was getting annoyed because Theresa was being so cryptic. Theresa noticed Leah’s gloomy face and explained in a gentler voice.

“High society looks glamorous, but it’s a breeding ground for corruption. Because you can have cross-relationships. Married women also have separate lovers, and young ladies want to become the mistresses of noble men they admire.”

Only then did Leah’s eyes widen and she understood at once. Soon, she couldn’t take her eyes off the letter in Terrun’s hand.

“Does it matter if he’s another woman’s man?”

“That’s right. Just the label of being the mistress of an emperor or a high-ranking nobleman can make you a celebrity in high society. Well, there are cases where they really like the other person. So, the Duke of Courtois must have received countless love letters.”

“I didn’t hear about that.”

“Then, be sure to check it out,” Theresa whispered in Leah’s ear.

In an instant, Leah remembered James handing Terrun a bundle of letters every morning. Those letters weren’t all about political affairs.

‘Am I innocent, or am I ignorant?’

It seemed that Theresa wanted to tell her that there was no such thing as eternal love for her.

In addition, it sounded like women were struggling to protect their men by working hard to groom their appearance and spending money on clothes, cosmetics, and jewelry.

‘No, that’s wrong. Women decorate themselves for their own satisfaction,’ Leah wanted to argue. But Theresa spoke first.

“Young lady, love has an expiration date, and men are bound to change. So, there’s no need to give your whole heart.”

* * *

Leah headed to the lounge. Frankly, every word Theresa said was unpleasant.

Terrun is like Allen? No, that man never loved in the first place, so he couldn’t be compared.

‘Other men may waver, but not Terrun.’

Leah shook her head roughly, shaking off the unpleasant feelings that had built up in her chest. But as soon as she stepped into the lounge, she overheard a strange conversation from beyond the partition.

“Isn’t the Duke of Courtois so handsome?”

“Did you finally give him a love letter?”

“Yes, I’ve actually been sending him letters steadily for several years.”

“Didn’t you see the Duke’s fiancée? Do you think he’ll look at another woman with such a woman by his side?”

Leah couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The very fact that such a conversation was possible felt surreal.

“Didn’t you hear the rumors about the Viscount Bizac’s daughter? Her body is as fragile as glass. No matter how beautiful she is, it’s useless if she can’t give birth to a son to inherit the family in the future.”

“Well, what’s the point of just being as pretty as a flower? Men will turn away as soon as they find out that their wives are barren.”

Leah was speechless at the young ladies’ conversation. She also realized for the first time that there were always rivals targeting her man, everywhere she went.