I Choose The Villain Duke

"Oh, the flowers are so pretty!"

"The prince must have picked them out personally!"

The maids gushed on and on about the flowers and about Miyu's beauty while they helped her wear another white dress. Miyu was having a hard time trying to keep up her false cheery smile as the maids babbled on. Miyu breathed a sigh of relief when they were finally gone.

There was a knock on the door. Was it Glenn? She smiled.

"Come in," Miyu said.

It was one of the butlers, the oldest one.

"Greetings, Holy Saintess. His Highness has asked for you to dine with him this morning," the butler said.

"Oh," Miyu said.

Sh*t. What about her outing with Glenn?

The butler raised an eyebrow. "Did you have other plans this morning, My Lady?"

"No. Miyu is just surprised," Miyu said. "Please tell His Highness Miyu will join him shortly. Miyu just needs to change into a different outfit."

"No need, My Lady. You look beautiful already. I shall escort you personally," the butler said.

Argh.

"Um, Miyu just needs to fix her hair for a bit. Please wait!" Miyu said and closed the door in a hurry before the butler could eveb reply.

Miyu grabbed a pen from the table and quickly wrote a note that said, "Breakfast with the prince. Get me."

Miyu took the vase containing the purple hyacinths and placed it on the balcony. She then placed the note under the vase.

"My Lady? Is there something wrong?" The butler asked from the other side of the door.

Miyu hurriedly grabbed a ribbon from the dresser and tied it as a headband. Just as an excuse to why she took so long. 

"Coming!" Miyu said and went out of the room.

*

*

*

The prince looked like he came out of a painting, despite the scar on his face which had mostly faded already.

His golden blonde hair was shiny, his smile was dazzling as soon as she arrived in the dining room, and his blue eyes were inviting.

"Good morning, My Lady," Vincent said.

Miyu attempted a curtsy and almost tripped. Curses. She should ask Glenn to teach her how to curtsy properly instead of teaching her flower language. 

"Good morning, Your Highness," Miyu said.

"How is your stay so far? I do apologize for not showing myself. I've been busy with the state of the kingdom ever since my dear father passed away," Vincent said.

"Miyu has been treated generously. The kingdom is important and Miyu does not dare take your time away, Your Highness," Miyu said.

Miyu tried to eat but she felt like a specimen being studied by the prince. Was she chewing too loud? Did she take a bite too big? Was there a crumb on her?

"I confess I was taken aback with the royal advisor's announcement during the funeral. What was that about?" Vincent asked.

Miyu almost choked but she swallowed the food by force.

"Sir Jade advised for Miyu's presence to be known during the funeral so as to uplift the spirits of the people," Miyu said.

Was that the wrong move? She must have done something wrong. Argh. She didn't want to be in the prince's bad side. She had a feeling that he was scary when angry. 

"I see. I do request that my mother and I be informed next time before taking any actions like that," Vincent said.

The prince was smiling but Miyu felt nervous.

"Of course, Your Highness," Miyu replied smoothly. 

"So, what are your plans for the day? Lessons?" Vincent asked.

The door of the dining room suddenly opened.

"Good morning!" Glenn said cheerfully while the prince glared at him.

"What brings you here, Sir Jade?" Vincent asked.

"My student was missing and I see that you have taken her without telling me. Seriously, boy. Do you have the habit of stealing ladies?" Glenn said.

Miyu felt terrified being in the middle of the two men.

"I don't need to tell you anything, royal advisor," Vincent said, barely concealing his irritation.

"And I need my student now, boy. It's way past time breakfast and you're interrupting the schedule I've made," Glenn said.

"Fine," Vincent said and turned to Miyu. "You can go."

Miyu quickly got up and attempted a curtsy again.

"Have a good day, Your Highness," Miyu said.

"By the way, I'll be having her wear dresses that aren't white. She looks like a ghost haunting the palace corridors," Glenn said.

"You don't have the right. That's the standard color for the Saintess," Vincent said. 

"Really? I just saw the other Saintess wearing black to your father's funeral. Look now, boy, try not to restrict this one too much," Glenn said then lowered his voice to a whisper. "You might just lose this one too."

Vincent looked like he wanted to murder Glenn right there and then. "Fine but nothing scandalous. She's still a Saintess."

"Naturally," Glenn said and ushered Miyu out the dining room.

*

*

*

"Thank you for saving me," Miyu said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Let's go to your room first. I have a present for you," Glenn said.

"Really? A second one? No one told me I got a new birthday," Miyu said.

They went to Miyu's room and on top of her bed were two boxes.

Miyu opened a wide flat box and gasped. It was a beautiful red dress with black ribbons.

"Whoa! Omigosh this is so pretty!" Miyu said.

"I wasn't sure what color to get but I'm glad you like it," Glenn said.

"Anything but another darned white dress," Miyu said and stared at the red dress in awe.

"Open the other one," Glenn said.

Miyu excitedly opened the other box. It was a pair of red shoes with black roses at the sides. The shoes were flat and soft.

"We're going to be walking a lot today so I chose the flat ones. I'll give you heels next time," Glenn said.

Miyu laughed. "How did you even know my foot size?"

"I asked your maids," Glenn said.

"Yeah right. Creep," Miyu said while laughing.

"I'm not," Glenn said.

"Thank you, my creepy teacher," Miyu said.

"I'm not a creepy teacher. I'm the royal advisor," Glenn said, lowering his eyeglasses and trying to look at her sternly.

Miyu laughed.

"Wait outside. I'll just change my dress," Miyu said.

After a few minute, Miyu emerged out of the room wearing the red dress with black ribbons and the red shoes.

"So, how do I look?" Miyu asked while making a model pose.

"You look like the Saintess I was talking to earlier. She was wearing a white dress. Do you know where I can find her?" Glenn said pretending to look around. 

Miyu rolled her eyes. 

"You're beautiful," Glenn said. 

Miyu beamed at him then grabbed his arm. 

"Let's go?" Miyu asked.

"Let's go," Glenn said, looping her arm with his arm properly.

*

*

*

The sun was bright and warm on Miyu's skin but she didn't mind. She had been cooped up in the palace far too long for her taste.

"Good day, Sir. Necklace for your lady?"

"This brooch looks lovely to your lady, Sir!"

"Young couple, we have couple rings here!"

Miyu felt her cheeks getting warm.

"Glenn, um, we're giving them the wrong idea," Miyu said and tried to remove her arm from his but he held her hand.

"Are we?" Glenn asked brightly.

Miyu glared at him and pinched his hand.

"Ouch!"

Miyu continued walking beside him.

"You know that I can still feel pain, right? My healing power doesn't give me immunity to pain," Glenn said, frowning.

"That's too bad," Miyu said.

"But really, what do you want to buy? I'll buy for you," Glenn said.

Miyu raised an eyebrow. "Really? You're going to be my personal credit card for the day?"

"Your what?" Glenn asked, bewildered.

"My credit card," Miyu said.

"And what is a credit card?" Glenn asked.

"Something you use to buy things you can't afford," Miyu said, staring intently at a dress from a shop window.

"I see. Well, that is what I am for you today. Your personal credit card at your service," Glenn said.

"Good. Come on, let's go there," Miyu said and pulled on his arm, dragging him to a dress shop.

*

*

*

"Oh, a foreigner! You must have come from that faraway kingdom. Please take a long look around my shop," a middle-aged woman with white hair and a friendly smile said.

"Thank you," Miyu said and they began looking around the dress shop.

"A foreigner? Is it because of your green hair?" Miyu asked.

"I think so. They only have boring hair colors here in Aderlan," Glenn said looking proud of himself.

Miyu raised an eyebrow. "And there's a kingdom that has crazy hair colors like yours?"

"Yes. It's far away though. It's a beautiful kingdom filled with magic. It's called Feylantis," Glenn said.

"What kind of magic?" Miyu asked.

"Controlling the elements. Playing with fire, making water move, invisibility, and other types of magic that will take me months to tell you all about," Glenn said.

"Wow! I get that I'm in a different world now but that place you're describing sounds like the world I can only watch in movies," Miyu said.

"Movies? What's that?" Glenn asked.

"Hmm . . . It's like a play but everything looks real. The backgrounds look like the real thing, there's music and sound effects, and they do things to make magic look real. Do you have plays here? Before movies, there were plays. Have I told you that I was an actress before?" Miyu asked.

"Um, sorry to interrupt but I heard your conversation," a girl from behind them said.

The girl was pretty. She had light blonde hair and light blue eyes.

"My name is Ayla and there's going to be a play again in two weeks but I can't be the main actress anymore. I already have morning sickness and my husband would just worry if I exert myself too much," the girl said, rubbing her pregnant belly. It was still small but the bump was noticeable.

"Would you like to be the Moonlight Princess?"