The Cold-Hearted Grand Duke Obsesses Over Me After My Death - Chapter 82

Chapter 82. You Can’t Have Everything

“Yes, it’s been like this since I was young.”

“I see. Your hair color is really pretty. And you’re handsome too.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Since it was the first time he’d ever been praised by someone, Damian felt dazed inside. And on top of that, praise about his looks. Emilia’s face, of all things, did not feel like it belonged to this world.

While they talked, the carriage arrived at the wine-making facility before they realized it. Damian escorted the Grand Duchess inside.

“I’ll explain how to make wine. First, wash the grapes thoroughly, then drain the water and crush them. Then put the grape juice into an oak barrel and let it mature.”

Emilia listened carefully to the young man’s explanation. She needed to learn it well so that later she could cultivate grapes and make wine.

“Like this? Like this?”

Emilia smiled brightly as she squeezed and crushed the grapes, asking various questions and showing interest.

“Yes. Like this.”

Damian kindly explained, showing her directly since Emilia was clumsy. The two of them strained the crushed grapes and made grape juice.

“Next, we’ll make enzymes and add them. You make enzymes by adding sugar to grape juice.”

“Ah….”

Emilia added the enzymes into the grape juice as Damian explained. Damian kept looking at the Grand Duchess, finding it fascinating that she was working so hard to make wine.

After the wine-making was finished, Damian guided Emilia to the wine cellar. The wine cellar was inside a cave, so the temperature stayed consistent.

“Wow….”

Emilia couldn’t close her mouth as she stared at the oak barrels filling the huge wine cellar. There were so many oak barrels she couldn’t count them.

“Your Highness the Grand Duchess, would you like to taste the wine?”

Damian opened the spigot on an oak barrel, poured wine into a clear glass, and held it out to Emilia.

“Thanks. Wow, it’s good.”

After taking a sip, Emilia let out an exclamation. It was sweet and slightly bitter, and it tasted cold and smooth.

“This is a wine made from a different kind of grape. Would you like to have a glass of this too?”

When Emilia emptied her glass, Damian held out another glass.

“Sure.”

Emilia quickly drank another glass too.

“You drink some too.”

“Yes.”

The two of them drank wine and chatted warmly about wine.

***

That evening, the three of them shared dinner together in the dining room of the count’s castle.

“Your Highness the Grand Duchess, how was it today?” Asher asked as he looked at Emilia.

“Lucian taught me well, so I learned a lot. And I drank a lot of wine too.”

Emilia was in a very good mood. It was because she learned how to make wine and drank several glasses of delicious wine.

“Then you must be drunk right now. Haha.”

“Yes, I feel really good. Hoho.”

Emilia smiled and reached her hand toward the wine glass in front of her. But she couldn’t grab it.

“…?”

A large hand grabbed her wine glass, took it away in an instant, and gulped it down.

“You’re doing this again? You keep stealing mine?”

Emilia pouted cutely. No, to others it might have looked like a cute pout, but she was genuinely angry.

“Stop drinking. You’re drunk.”

Louid looked at her with a stern face.

“Eating tasty things and getting drunk is fine.”

“Where did that come from?”

“I made it up.”

“Looks like Your Highness the Grand Duchess really is drunk. Haha.”

Asher laughed with an awkward expression.

“This is all because of you.”

The arrow turned toward Asher. Louid looked truly angry.

“What did I do? My only crime was letting you know about delicious wine.”

“That’s right. This wine is really delicious.”

Emilia pointed at the wine bottle and protested in a tongue-tied voice.

“Tsk.”

Louid clicked his tongue as if displeased and looked at her.

***

The next day, Lucian stopped by the count’s castle because he wanted to see Emilia again. He made the excuse of collecting empty wine bottles.

“Lucian, you came again.”

Just then, Emilia, who was taking a walk in the garden, spotted Damian and greeted him happily.

“Yes, Your Highness. Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, I drank too much yesterday, so I slept really well. Hoho.”

“I see. Hahaha.”

The two of them laughed, and the sound rang clearly through the garden.

Louid and Asher, who were standing by the window of the count’s office and talking about affairs of state, both looked out the window at the laughter coming from the garden.

“Who is that man?” Louid asked in a blunt voice.

He acted like he didn’t care, but to Asher’s eyes, it was obvious his friend was growing impatient.

“He’s a servant who makes wine and delivers it, and yesterday I told him to teach the Grand Duchess how to make wine. He’s diligent and a good kid.”

“I see.”

Then why are the two of them laughing? Louid was extremely curious about why Emilia was smiling.

***

“Lucian, will you become my aide?”

That day, Asher called Damian again. He liked how calm and diligent he was.

‘Aide?’

If he became the count’s aide, wouldn’t he be able to meet the Grand Duchess again?

Damian wanted to see Emilia again. It wasn’t interest as a man, but for some reason, he was drawn to her.

It must be because she’s so beautiful.

She really was beautiful. He thought that was why he kept wanting to see her.

“Yes, I will,” Damian answered without hesitation.

“Thank you. Starting tomorrow, you’ll stay at the count’s castle. Leon, my assistant, will tell you what you need to do. And Martin is old now, so it’ll be difficult without you, so from now on, I’ll let him live comfortably without working.”

The count even resolved Damian’s worries for him. Martin was not only his benefactor but also someone like a grandfather to him. For Damian, there was no reason to refuse when it meant Martin could live comfortably and he would also have more chances to see the Grand Duchess.

“Thank you, Count.”

At Asher’s words, Damian teared up and rejoiced.

Starting the next day, Damian took on the work of accompanying and assisting the count. And until Emilia left the count’s castle, he got to see her as much as he wanted. When she left, he even saw her off.

“The young man who became Asher’s aide is close with you,” Louid said inside the carriage that was departing for the imperial capital.

“Yes, we got close quickly. I feel like there’s something that clicks.”

“What clicks?”

“I don’t know exactly, but anyway, he’s a good friend.”

“You’re the same age, so I guess you really are friends.”

“How do you know Lucian’s age?” Emilia asked with a startled face.

“…I just happened to hear it.”

Louid spoke with an indifferent expression and pretended to look out the window at the scenery. But the vein at one side of his forehead kept twitching. He lifted one hand as if he were just rubbing his forehead.

Emilia sank into thought about Lucian. From the moment she first saw Lucian, he hadn’t felt unfamiliar, so it startled her. He didn’t feel like a stranger.

‘Where did I see him….’

Since Lucian was a commoner, it wasn’t like she would have seen him at a banquet, but she couldn’t remember at all where she had seen him.

Maybe because she felt a sense of familiarity, she became close with him quickly. If she got the chance, she wanted to see him again.

***

At that time, in the Prince of Billiot’s residence in the imperial capital, Ian was drinking all night and lost in thought. Ever since the day of the imperial palace banquet, the Grand Duchess kept coming to mind, driving him crazy.

‘Louid Richert! He has everything.’

Eighteen years ago, the Kingdom of Billiot lost the war and was still a vassal state of the Richert Empire, and the first woman he had ever liked in his life was the enemy nation’s Grand Duchess, a woman from a family that stood as an enemy to him.

But he was the kind of person who thought it made no sense to blame descendants for what happened in war. So he did not see Emilia as an enemy.

Even if it meant giving up what he had aimed for when he came to the Richert Empire, he intended to take Emilia from the Grand Duke no matter what.

He was a hostage by status, but he’d received a residence from the emperor and could move freely. He simply could not leave the imperial capital.

A few days ago, he heard through his subordinate that the grand ducal couple had gone outside the imperial capital. He wanted to know where she went and when she would return, but he couldn’t find out that far, and he also couldn’t follow.

Even though Emilia was the Grand Duchess, it was clear her marriage to the Grand Duke was a political one. The Richert Empire was a country where divorce was free, so if he made Emilia like him, he would be able to have her.

Ian bit down hard on his lip and began to think about what he should do to make Emilia like him.

“Louid, you can’t have everything. I’ll take her from you.”

Ian glared at the red wine that resembled Louid’s eyes. Hatred was boiling up in his eyes.