Become The Duke's Wife Or Die

"You said you didn't want to care about her anymore, My Lord!"  Stefanus shouted mocking Duke Kleo, chuckling as he followed his master.

"Damn Steff!"  cursed Duke Kleo as his feet darted towards Lyra's room.  His heart was beating fast as his brain explained the various possibilities of her current state.  'Is she okay?' he thought uncontrollably.

Lyra's bedroom door immediately opened, as her body slipped in, saw Lyra lying curled up from a distance.  His heart trembled at that as if he had become the evilest person in the world.  Even though he didn't mean to do that, he just wanted to give consequences so that she learns about her mistakes.

'Lyra, don't ever make me weak,' he thought.

His eyes blinked rapidly as if hit by a strong wind when he saw the slight movement of her, like a gentle sweep that finally brought him out of his daydream.  He saw several maids approaching her, surrounding her, without knowing what they were doing.

He didn't have to wait any longer to quickly divide the crowd of maids, making them immediately bow to him, saluting when they saw him approaching.

He didn't say anything, except for a low grunt as he watched her closing eyes.  "Isn't she already awake?"  he asked the servants, seeing Stefanus rushing in with the royal physician at his side.

"That's right, My Lord," nodded one of the maids.  "Miss Lyra did realize earlier.  Maybe she was too tired to fall asleep."

"She's not sleeping," Duke Kleo snarled, seeing the healer's arrival.  His eyes shot a look of disdain at his maids, while his mouth fell silent, and allowed the palace physician to examine Lyra.

The royal healer, Mr. Zen, checked Lyra's heartbeat.  He was a man in his mid-forties, gray hair, with a calm and thoughtful look on his face.  He was stunned, relying on his two fingers to confirm Lyra's condition.  Then his eyes scanned her face, looking at several sides politely.

"Miss Lyra came to her senses," said Master Zen.  "But now her consciousness is gone again. She's probably asleep.  Since she needed to eat something right away, I brought her some medicine."  His eyes looked at Duke Kleo and the maids in turn.  "So who will help me?"

Duke Kleo stepped forward as the main volunteer.  His hand lifted Lyra's head while Mr. Zen opened her mouth and stuck the medicine down her throat.

"Now we just have to wait until she is fully awake," Mr. Zen explained, looking regretfully at Duke Kleo.  "From now on I will check her condition regularly.  Will you allow me to do this, My Lord?"  Now everyone understood the depth of their master's jealousy, and they shouldn't have done anything about Lyra without him knowing, especially when it came to skinship.

"Sure," Duke Kleo nodded.  "I'll take care of her here anyway."

Like a stone hitting Stefanus.  He's the only one who understands why.  "Don't you still have a lot of work to do, My Lord?"  This was the first time he had opposed his master's carefree attitude.  "You can't just leave your job."

"I won't do that," Duke Kleo said firmly, gripping Lyra's hand tightly.  His eyes didn't turn to his bodyguard, but Lyra's pale, pitiful face.  "I'll keep working even if I wait for her here."

Stefanus was speechless.  His mouth quivered when Duke Kleo asked him to bring his desk, along with the documents, to Lyra's room.  His back turned swiftly to carry out the mandate, facing the servants who gaped at their master's orders.

"Did you hear right?"  asked one of the servants in a skeptical tone.  "Isn't His Grace's table the same as His Highness's unmoving chair?"

"You can continue to comment if you want to get the consequences."  Stefanus's statement immediately silenced the servants, causing them to carry out Duke Kleo's orders.

They were busy, picking up desks and chairs to move to Lyra's room as if they had been left in their original places.  The important documents were withheld by Mr. Bertus because the servants said the parchments would be the ones used to inscribe the date of their death if they made a single mistake.

Mr. Bertus rolled his eyes, didn't say much but quickly got to work.

Now Lyra's room was like a makeshift study for Duke Kleo.  Everyone gaped at that, a dizzying new sight.

The maids guarding Lyra were intimidated by the fact that they were still required to stay on duty.  Like being under the direct supervision of a predator, their movement even feels very restricted.  They wanted to cry but couldn't do it.  Finally, they could only mourn their misfortune in their hearts, while waiting for the shift to take care of Lyra.

"Is there a letter from His Highness today?  He said he would send me one, to give a decision on the status of the tax I just handled," Duke Kleo said to Stefanus, who was standing beside him as usual.  On his orders, his desk was moved, from what had been in the middle of the room to the edge near the window.

"There is currently no news, My Lord.  However, Balona asked to immediately build a new irrigation system because the drought epidemic that hit the city would still last a long time, while suddenly the wells and river water receded drastically."

"Why is there always so much trouble lately?"  snorted Duke Kleo, checking the documents related to the matter.  "Then is there another problem that I don't know about?"

"There is news from Jewemon that some bandits are robbing the jewelry shops.  There's no official report from the mayor yet, but you'd better find out earlier."

"Do you have any predictions on this case?  And when did it happen?"

"It is difficult to predict because some places are experiencing famine due to various things, but one of them is drought.  The bandits might have been ranchers or farmers who needed money soon.  But the famine has been going on for several months, which is why I thought it was a strange case."

"What do you mean?"  Duke Kleo turned his shoulders to get a better look at Stefanus.

"The robbery happened after you bought some jewelry at Jewemon, and got worse after you announced your marriage to Miss Lyra."

Duke Kleo clenched his fists, feeling various dangers trying to attack him.  His instincts always told him that his cousin was involved.

"It seems that someone is after Jewemon, to spend the jewelry stock there.  Apart from that, mining is also experiencing problems."

"Eastlandor is having difficulties regarding the mines as the demand for gold is increasing as it has to be used as a medium of exchange with other kingdoms.  Then suddenly the robbers came and took all the gold stock in the shop.  Mining is also having problems.  This is too common a problem to deal with all at once," Duke Kleo snorted.  "And I'm sure it's pretty much the same as Wolytone, involving outsiders as the cause."

"I believe so, My Lord," Stefanus agreed.  "And I'm afraid it will harm Miss Lyra."

Again Duke Kleo clenched his fists as if he couldn't hold it in any longer.  There was an urge that made him want to go to Marquess Helmut's residence and tear everything apart.  But sadly he couldn't act rashly, because now he had Lyra beside him, a weapon that enemies could easily use to knock him out.

He was sure that he could fight His Highness just because of Lyra, as well as kill himself.

***