A Villainess Should Be Strong

"You are..?" The Duke's son looked at the girl who was smiling with an angelic expression at him.

Weirdly enough, he felt intimidated in a bizarre way.

Estelle internally processed her next decision. She didn't know a lot about the man before her, but she had learned a bit when she was trying to approach Duke Miller years ago.

The heir apparent, Adrian Miller.

To say the man was incompetent would not be right, to say that he's not incompetent would also not be right. He was somewhere in between. Too normal and without any flashy achievements.

However, due to his natural friendly disposition, he was able to get a bit of traction in the socializing parts. Duke Miller was someone in the neutral in terms of nobility faction, but his son was shady.

Adrian Miller could be said to be a crafty man. No one knew what his true intentions are. As far as the public news went, he was quite close to all three factions: the Royals, the Liberals, and the Neutrals.

Which one did he prefer? No one knew the exact answer.

His list of acquaintances stretched near and far. He was easy to get along with, but not a single person has been declared a 'close friend' of this man in the society.

He was a Duke's son even if the Millers weren't that active. The prestige and status were there, although it would still be up to the person themselves to prove their worth and gain respect from others.

In this case, Adrian Miller was simply a man Estelle couldn't relax around before she was able to certify that he means no harm.

Estelle felt Adrian's scrutinizing gaze pass through her body and around the room, as if trying to seek out a certain something that could incite suspicion.

Estelle was confident in her play. Besides, Heine was knocked out cold. The only worry she had was if the man died all of a sudden because of the vomiting syndrome.

Even though she disliked the man, Heine was useful to her. The Ruler also had told her to recruit him to be a Constellation member, which definitely had an underlying significant meaning.

"Oh Lord, where are my manners? My sincere apologies. My name is Estelle Clareste, the lady of Clareste Dukedom," Estelle made a polite curtsy befitting of her status.

She then composed herself back up, watching as Adrian's facial expression warped.

She had expected this to happen when she revealed her identity.

After all, 'Estelle Clareste' was supposed to be a missing child that no one knew the whereabouts of. A phantom existence.

"Estelle.. that Estelle? Surely you are joking. You can not be that child," Adrian shook his head, scolding himself internally for even considering that Estelle's words were reality. "State your real identity now, or else,"

His tone hardened. Even if Estelle was a child, there were many things that a child raised to be monstrous could do.

In response, Estelle only giggled in place.

From the very start, she had known that she would be the victor in this match. Adrian was nothing but a small intruder for someone of Estelle's caliber.

Estelle coughed as she put her index finger up against her lips.

"Now, now, now. There are some secrets that are not meant to be spread. I'm certain that the wise future Duke is well aware of this fact," Estelle flashed him with another sweet smile. Too sweet that it was sickening.

Estelle calculated her movements as she wanted to secure the man from doing anything first. Her eyes were firmly locked at the large door behind Adrian, which was still half open.

She had to close it before Adrian could take any measures. After that, she had to silence him to prevent him from alerting others.

Estelle gave a light snicker before completing her plan that would let her out of this awkward situation.

She walked up to him slowly with a composed aura.

"Please do not be wary of me. My intentions are simply to extract some.. confidential information from your esteemed father. After all, he is my grandfather's close friend," Estelle chuckled lightly. "Well.. used to be,"

So far, Adrian did not pull back. His knowledge did tell him that the one he was talking to was indeed Clareste's lady. It was just that he had a strange foreboding feeling that put him in discomfort.

Right.

First of all, Estelle shouldn't even be here.

"Step back. Don't move," Adrian's gaze darkened as he pulled out a sharp dagger out of his suit. He brandished the blade towards Estelle's way and threatened the young girl.

Estelle immediately put her hands up. Her intention was to silence the man. Resisting would bring even more trouble.

"I wonder what this is about? I'm-"

Estelle's words were cut off by the man, who increased his volume.

"Don't talk!" Adrian pointed the dagger at Estelle's neck as they were now in close vicinity. "This room.. is not an openly disclosed room. Father wouldn't invite you here. Your bullshit will have to stop right there!"

He immediately went to strangle Estelle to prevent her from moving.

"This place is underground. It requires a key.. How on Earth did you get here? Answer!" Adrian interrogated Estelle.

Indeed, Adrian miscalculated largely.

This manner of actions and amateurish behavior, he should be flustered right now.

Estelle thought carefully.

If this was indeed a sealed off room, then Adrian shouldn't be here in the first place. If anything, she expected the Duke to come here after hearing Heine's scream.

She made a couple deductions.

Adrian is not in an amiable relationship with his father and was suspicious of the things happening in this secret room. He's here to investigate, and somehow found Estelle.

Duke Miller is not here because he left Heine to do his own thing, only to come back whenever the fae called him down. As such, he wouldn't be loitering around here.

Even so, Adrian made a huge mistake.

Estelle was by no means a normal person. By her standard, she couldn't be considered that strong, but she was confident in taking down someone like Adrian.

They were in close vicinity. If Estelle chose to attack right now, no one would realize because this was a secluded room.

A sharp kick aimed backwards would do the job, no?

[Perfect.] Estelle grinned viciously as she became braver.

Since she had confirmed that the room's location was underground, then she had the liberty to go bolder than ever.

Estelle positioned herself in a way that would allow her to gain as much momentum as she could possibly come up with in this close combat confrontation.

Estelle was determined to end it in one blow. But, where to attack?

Estelle wasn't all that proficient in close combat, and the force she could exert might not be enough at all considering that she was not in a position to enchant herself.

She pursed her lips and decided her target swiftly.

"I really am innocent, Sir," Estelle pleaded with a scared voice.

"I don't trust you," Adrian said, still putting the dagger against Estelle's slim neck as he maneuvered around to see what was hidden inside the room. He yanked the girl by her arms, forcing her to follow him in his steps.

Estelle frowned at the rough treatment, feeling herself lose her footing. She sighed internally as she had to find another chance to strike.

It was still alright. She could manage it. In fact, if Adrian could stop in a less bothersome place, it would be better.

For example, somewhere near the corners.

Estelle didn't put up a resistance, only playing her role as an annoyed and haughty Duke's daughter who was scared of whatever is happening to her. She was convincing enough.

It was Adrian's first time stepping into this foreign place, and he couldn't find anything amiss at first glance.

However, he was sure that his father was hiding something huge behind his back. He really couldn't bring himself to trust the old man.

After not finding anything out of the ordinary, he clicked his tongue. He then looked at the girl he was dragging with his grip and realized.

If Estelle could get down here, then there must be something she knew. Something she desired. Something that made her want to get inside this concealed room.

"Right.. since you are here, you must know something. What is it? What the hell is that old freak hiding?!" Adrian shook Estelle's shoulder, feeling frustrated at how things were turning out.

He thought that he struck gold. That he figured out what he had to do.

However, Estelle's response was unlike what he had expected.

"How would I know?! I was brought here by that man after I visited him years ago! Since then, I didn't even have the chance to meet my family, not even once! I also want to know what he wants to do, for God's sake!"

Estelle shouted, breaking into tears naturally and sniffling.

"Raised..? He has been raising you in this room all this time? What is he planning? No.. that can't be," Adrian released his grip out of the sheer shock.

He was, after all, just a rather manipulative person who hid his intentions. He wasn't a thorough villain.

Besides, he hadn't discovered Heine's existence even after searching. That was also quite a shame.

In face of Estelle's tears, he was stupefied for a moment and couldn't help but release her.

What a nice mistake.

Estelle would gladly exploit the situation to her favor, then.