Dylan explained to Avril as she was left went agape.

“Indeed. I spoke to his mistress, Lucy. He’s especially close to her and lately it seems like Avril is all he ever talks about. Like becoming a chair, or something…”

“A chair?”

“Yes, a chair. It seems like the former duke, who prefers subservient women, has a newfound admiration for bossy ones. Therefore, in order to encounter that kind of woman, he has to act submissive.”

“Wait… Is that why he’s suddenly interested in the lord’s work!?”

Does the former duke want to become a chair as well!? The other day, I sat on Lord Dylan’s lap and received some sweets. No way, the former duke admires that!?

Unbelievable.

On top of that, did the former duke and Lucy really have a serious discussion regarding such a topic? Recalling how stern and bitter the former duke usually looked like, Avril just couldn’t believe it.

Avril tilted her head, and when her head was about to touch his shoulder, Dylan, who was sitting next to her, help reposition Avril’s head.

“Claiming he has reformed might be an exaggeration, but this seems like an opportunity for him to correct his attitude.”

“Just how…?”

Wasn’t the former duke supposed to hate evil women? Avril was about to suggest for a doctor to be summoned, but Dylan sighed.

“The reason he surrounded himself with only innocent and meek women was so that they wouldn’t rebel against him. However, with his favorite mistress being revealed to have been involved in drug trafficking and then abandoning him, he must’ve had second thoughts.”

“In short, after the former duke got accustomed to having his way, the sudden appearance of an evil woman like me changed everything?”

“Roughly speaking, that’s probably the case. Lucy said that she couldn’t leave him alone. Still, considering how long we’ve been at odds with each other, Avril’s behavior alone being enough to change him doesn’t really make any sense.”

Seeing Dylan sighing repeatedly, Avril had mixed feelings.

I can see his point…

Originally, Lord Dylan had no intention of marrying. The reason for this was the former duke himself. Lord Dylan didn’t want to make anyone unhappy, so he chose to be alone for the rest of his life…

Although the former duke has been a concern for Lord Dylan for many years, one day, he suddenly began to act like a different person altogether. How would Lord Dylan feel?

Dylan was the first to notice that Avril was gloomy.

“You don’t have to make such an expression.”

“But…”

“Honestly, I also enjoy talking to Avril, so I can’t help but understand how he feels… Nevertheless, did Avril reveal her special talents?”

“Yes, I think I did well. He was so surprised that he withdrew!”

“…I’m getting more and more concerned, but it makes me laugh when I think about it.”

When she regained her composure and puffed out her chest again, Dylan appeared to truly be enjoying himself. Avril was relieved to find strength had returned to his face, which seemed to be troubled just a moment ago.

Then, the topic of the demolition of the separate building came up, and Avril asked what she had been curious about for a long time.

“…The mistresses who live in the separate building will be leaving the residence of the Duke of Lancester, won’t they?”

“That’s what I plan for the most part. Normally, we could employ them in some way if we wanted, but with the former duke around, doing that would only render the dismantling pointless.”

“Yes, you’re right.”

However, Lord Dylan is a generous person. If someone wanted to stay here—for example, to serve Lord Dylan in the townhouse in the royal capital, what kind of decision would he make?

In fact, the escaped Teresa was trying to win over Dylan.

There was no saying the other mistresses wouldn’t think about such things in the future when they had nowhere else to go.

Avril generally knew the personalities of the mistresses. All the women were calm and kind, which confused her.

What if… what if Lord Dylan decides to gather all the mistresses at the townhouse in the royal capital…!?

In that case, would the annex of the townhouse in the royal capital be turned into a residence for Dylan’s mistresses?

No, no matter how she looked at it, that was just preposterous, especially considering the circumstances surrounding Dylan’s request for a contract marriage and his hatred towards his father. Regardless, there was still a chance of it happening.

The mistresses were invited by none other than the Duke of Lancester family, and now we’re about to deprive them of their means of survival. If they have nowhere else to go, we can’t just abandon them!

If they had no other choice but to shelter the mistresses, would Avril be able to be someone like Lucy who brought them together?

No matter how she thought about it, that was just impossible. Avril didn’t have the set of skills that Lucy had. Even though she was his legal wife, she felt like she was going to end up at the bottom of the list. Although Avril intended to be the hostess, she couldn’t stand being cared for by Lucy and the other mistresses.

Moreover, according to Jesenia, the former duke often visited his favorite mistress, and the least favored sometimes ones as a consolation. In other words, would Dylan only visit Avril when he felt sorry enough towards her?

I—I don’t want that…!?

“What are you thinking about?”

Avril discovered that she had an entirely different issue. Just as Avril’s thoughts were heading off in a bizarre direction, she was brought back to reality by Dylan’s quizzical voice.

---

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***T/N: wow Wow WOW AVRIL HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!!! YOU ARE GOING FROM 0 – 100 WITH THAT MISTRESS THINGY.

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