Yufil de Walte irritably slammed his fist on the table. The servant next to him recoiled in fear.
After recent events, the heir to the duchy was so outraged that he could hardly concentrate on his work. The younger sister he hated still wouldn't leave him alone.
For a whole year, the guy's life had seemed perfect. The annoying fly that had been buzzing around him all this time had finally disappeared. Yufil could calmly prepare for receiving the title and fulfilling his duties as heir. But...
As soon as Camilla crossed the threshold of their home again, all the peace that had been here before instantly crumbled. What was happening now, Yufil could only describe as lawlessness.
And although Camilla had suddenly changed and no longer pursued him, the problems didn't diminish. The girl found a new way to annoy him every day.
Not only was she wasting their family's fortune on a bunch of useless purchases. Not to mention that she had begun completely ignoring her relatives, showing open disrespect towards them. But her latest stunt drove the final nail into the guy's patience.
Although the de Walte family didn't have much influence and possessed only financial advantage, this was still a duke's residence. It wasn't a place where anyone could come and go as they pleased. Therefore, Yufil was even more outraged that his sister had turned their home into a flophouse!
How else could one explain the fact that she had brought into the house a girl about whose origins she knew absolutely nothing? Not only that, she had let her live in her own room. Thus, this wretch ended up in close proximity to the ducal family.
This commoner, pretending to be an innocent lamb, could well be an assassin sent by another noble family. After all, many aristocrats wanted to get their hands on the de Walte family's property, particularly their diamond mine.
Only an irredeemable idiot like Camilla wouldn't know that.
Yufil couldn't believe his father had actually allowed such a blunder. By leaving this dubious person here, they were all in danger. Even if she wasn't an assassin, a street girl didn't deserve to be here!
"I've had enough!"
The guy resolutely stood up from the table. Since Camilla had returned home, Yufil had already turned a blind eye to many of her actions. It seemed such leniency had made the girl completely forget her place.
"Obviously, Father and I have been too kind to her. And this is what came of it!"
Since the Duke was inactive, Yufil, as the family heir, decided to take control of the situation into his own hands.
Today, he intended to put an end to his younger sister's outrages.
"Your hands don't look their best... It's a good thing I thought to borrow some ointment from Doctor Xavier!"
Almost immediately, I noticed that the commoner's hands were covered in abrasions and scars. Of course, I attributed this to her hard work in the fields. She must have had neither the money nor the time to take care of herself.
"Actually, I just don't care..."
Kaena was surprised when the duke's daughter suddenly offered to treat her old scars. According to the girl, the ointment prepared by their family doctor was so effective that most imperfections would become unnoticeable after just one application.
The princess tried to refuse this offer, but Camilla was already sitting in front of her, diligently applying the medicine. Kaena watched her closely.
"Why are you doing this?" she frowned.
"Well... You are still a girl, after all," she explained uncertainly, "And hands are the first thing people notice."
"So what?"
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Kaena couldn't understand what she was thinking. Since the ducal girl was aware of her identity, she must also know about those terrible things she had done. She had received her first scar during her first battle at thirteen. After that, she simply stopped paying attention to such things.
When you kill people, it's impossible to keep your hands unstained. All these scars from various weapons served as a reminder of how much she had been through. Honestly, Kaena had never cared about how she looked.
But this woman, for some strange reason, didn't think so.
"Ahem... Also, I'm a little worried."
"Wh-what?"
Kaena stared dumbfounded at Camilla when she uttered these words. Hearing such a thing was as incredible as if someone had confessed their love to her. Impossible.
"Do you often worry about someone?" the princess decided to clarify. For some reason, this question suddenly troubled her greatly.
"No... Actually, you're the only one."
"What?" repeating this a second time, Kaena felt foolish.
"I mean, I've never had to save anyone before... So you're the first."
After the commoner's question, I thought about it myself. A year had passed since my rebirth, and I still didn't have a single close person in this world.
My only acquaintance, with whom we were lucky enough to reincarnate in the same universe, was thousands of kilometers away from me. Besides, Jeremy would soon be married... I didn't think a family man would have much time for me.
Not to mention the real Camilla's connections.
All her life, she had been too preoccupied with her relatives to make any attempts at acquaintances. Most of society didn't even know that the Duke de Walte had a daughter. I was like a shadow of this family.
Thus, my inconspicuous existence suited me up to a certain point. Now, when I actually thought about it, I felt a little sad.
"This poor girl devoted herself entirely to people who don't care about her... I really don't have any memories of myself."
My acquaintance with the commoner happened purely by chance.
And really... Why did I do it? Perhaps only now did I realize the true reason for my impulsive act.
I smiled weakly when it suddenly occurred to me that I had saved the girl solely out of my own selfish motives. I just wanted to be a significant person to someone. Being a savior in someone's eyes wasn't so bad.
The commoner stared at me in astonishment when I suddenly started smiling at my own thoughts.
Our idyll, where we just silently looked at each other in the quiet, lasted a few seconds. After which, a person whose existence I had almost forgotten about for the last few days rudely burst into the room.
Oh... This idiot still hadn't left me alone. This time, he didn't even bother to knock first.
I furrowed my brow.
Sometimes his behavior reminded me of my younger brother from my previous life, who liked to come into my room just to drop something or turn off the light. I couldn't believe that such a grown guy as Yufil could still engage in such things.
"What do you want?" I asked calmly.
"You still ask?" he shouted, "I demand that this beggar get out of our house immediately!"
When Yufil angrily pointed his finger at the commoner, she cast an unfriendly glance at him.
"Not happening."
"What?"
"Father has already given his consent for her to stay here."
"So? I don't agree with this!"
"Well... I don't think anyone cares."
My older brother choked with indignation when I said this to his face. Probably because lately the Duke's attitude towards me had become more lenient, I could allow myself a little more.
"I don't want to listen to you. Leave."
God. In the old days, this guy would have done anything for Camilla to leave him alone. So why was he doing this now?
As if I didn't have enough reasons to worry lately. His presence was the last thing I needed.
I frowned slightly, feeling a sudden headache.
"How dare you order me around?!"
Not wanting to calm down, Yufil continued to get on my nerves. However, since his position in this house was still higher than mine, I couldn't just rudely throw him out.
Wanting to resolve this issue diplomatically, I said neutrally:
"I've already said everything. Don't make me repeat myself. If you still have complaints, discuss them with father."
"..."
The heir to the duchy ground his teeth in hatred. He considered it humiliating that this girl dared to tell him what to do. Nevertheless, since he had come here to teach her a lesson, he wasn't going to leave just like that. "Just wait, you brat! You think just because father didn't do anything to you, you'll get away with everything?!"
Yufil decisively moved towards Kaena, intending to drag her out of the estate with his own hands. But the next moment, he couldn't even grab her by the collar. Yufil shuddered. He met the princess's gaze and saw that her golden eyes were full of hatred.
"I hadn't noticed it before because I never really looked at her closely, but what kind of look is that..."
The youth's mind clouded. Having moved in high society circles since childhood, Yufil had encountered various people. But even he had never seen such piercing eyes.
The woman standing before him didn't look at all like a simpleton before a noble lord. At this moment, she reminded him more of a predator threatening his life.
His gut told Yufil this was dangerous.
The duke's son, who had been frightened by a humble commoner, involuntarily swallowed. Then he blushed, as if insulted by his own reflexes. A desire arose in him to get out of here as soon as possible.
Nevertheless, wanting to preserve his dignity, Yufil simply pretended to have changed his mind.
"Tch. As if I need to waste my time on someone so insignificant!"
With these words, Yufil de Walte quickly retreated, as if fleeing. The Crown Princess followed him with her gaze and smirked crookedly.
"This cockroach... He'll need to be squashed first."