I! Cleaner!
Chapter 186 - 186: 0161 Who is the winner?_1

Mouthy idiot!

Seeing the solemn front hall and the unmasked anger on the young prince's face, the elder of the Ryan family backstage couldn't help but curse silently, then hurried out to replace the one who had stepped on the mines precisely, smiling benevolently to smooth things over,

"All the same, all the same, no need to rush.

Whether it's Prince Joshua or Princess Veronica, both are children of His Majesty the King and can rightfully represent His Majesty and the royal family. Today, no matter which of the two attend, it is an honor for the Ryan Family.

Haha, speaking of which, the last time I saw Prince Joshua, he was only about seven or eight years old. In the blink of an eye, he is already able to represent His Majesty and attend the title succession ceremony of our Ryan Family. Time flies by so fast!"

Hmph! How can I be the same as her? You old geezer, selling age and seniority!

Watching the white-haired old man rush out from the backstage, trying hard to smooth over the situation, Joshua—with two irregular freckles on his cheekbones that seemed like dirt—narrowed his eyes, seemingly wanting to say more, but someone pinched him harshly at the waist.

"Your Highness!"

Hearing the slightly angry low call from his etiquette teacher and seeing the slightly panicked expression on his female companion's face, the freckled boy grudgingly bit back the reprimand that was about to spill out and impatiently urged,

"Fine then! When can your new duke make it here? Ask him to hurry, don't waste our time!"

"Almost there! The Duke should arrive shortly!"

Seeing that they had finally appeased the arrogant and volatile young prince, the two elders of the Ryan family simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief. They then stood up, guiding the guests back to their original positions, chatting with the freckled boy with smiles, and the tense atmosphere in the hall returned to harmony...until the commotion of horses neighing came from outside the manor.

"Duke! You have finally... hmm?"

Spotting the figure of someone he had been eagerly waiting to see, the expectant elder quickly went to meet them, eager to follow through with the remaining procedures.

However, upon meeting up, they discovered that the duke had changed his appearance since leaving; not only was his makeup wiped off, his carefully chosen accessories removed, and the specially tailored suit changed, but there was also a large stain on the front!

Damn it! The duke looks like he's fleeing from a disaster; how can the ceremony proceed? Is this how old York handles things?

Listening to the whispering among the guests in the hall and feeling the eyes resembling thorn pricks on his back, the elder of the Ryan family felt his world spinning!

"Duke!"

Seeing the stain on Leon's chest, the head of the Ryan family couldn't help but angrily and incredulously demand,

"What happened to you? Where's your makeup? Your clothes? Old York?"

"Uh..."

Seeing the desperate eyes of the two elders before him, Leon, who had barely spared the old butler from being sent off, felt guilty and replied awkwardly,

"The old butler... he suddenly had a heart attack, and I barely saved him. He is now lying in the car, and this stain on my chest is from when he had a fit and spat saliva..."

Oh... He was perfectly fine when he left. Did he just coincidentally have a heart attack?

Hearing Leon's explanation, the two Ryan elders exchanged a glance, both seeing deep helplessness in the other's eyes.

"Don't worry! There's still a way!"

Hearing the increasingly loud discussions in the hall, the elder of the Ryan family took a deep breath and instructed the panicked head of the family,

"You first find a way to calm the guests. I will take the duke to the back to redo his makeup and change clothes, then come out again. Maybe then it can..."

"No need to go to such trouble, I'll just say a few words."

Although he wanted to add, "or else... or else...", considering the two old men were quite advanced in age and might be provoked into further health incidents, Leon suppressed the urge to elaborate, instead pulling away the hand of the family head and striding toward the hall.

"Duke? Wait for a moment!"

"Wait! What... what are you going to do?"

Of course, what I want to do is to get rid of this unfortunate duke title!

Ignoring the two elders chasing him hurriedly, Leon pushed through the crowd of guests, stepped onto the main stage of the ceremony, and addressed the crowd below,

"I am here to announce something. If you insist on me being this duke, then I intend to use the entire Ryan Family..."

"Scoundrel!"

A familiar shout interrupted Leon's words as a notorious earl from the Capital City emerged from the crowd, compared him to the freckled boy with a dark face, and sinisterly provoked,

"Daring to arrive late for the succession ceremony, delaying the esteemed guests for this long, you don't offer any apology?"

You are... oh, so it's the little troublemaker.

Recognizing the speaker by the emblem pinned to his chest, Leon couldn't be bothered to reply, but he did glance at the pair of male and female guests in the front row.

The lady on the left in the plain gown seemed to be the Prime Minister's wife, whom he had seen in the newspaper photos with him, looked quite pleased; as Leon caught her gaze, she even nodded and saluted actively.

Whereas the half-grown child on the right with the "dirty" spot on his face must be Prince Joshua, who had once splashed him with mud and toppled a caravan on the road. This brat was glaring at him angrily, only restrained by people beside him.

Best not to come out! Saves me trouble!

...

Sadly, although Leon only gave a brief glance at "the esteemed guests," and immediately withdrew his gaze intending to finish quickly and abandon the unfortunate title,

the eyes are windows to the soul, and his seemingly had more transparency than others; even just a glance conveyed his inner disdain.

"How dare you!"

After meeting Leon's gaze for just a moment, with eyes showing three parts contempt and seven parts disgust, and underneath, a fierce looking down that couldn't be hidden, Joshua, already filled with suppressed fire, exploded.

Shaking off the arm of his companion, the freckled boy angrily looked up and scolded,

"You are nothing but a lowly commoner, who stumbled upon immense luck to inherit a title, and you dare look at me with those eyes?"

"..."

Are you an idiot?

Merely glancing at him resulted in an onslaught of incomprehensible insults, leaving Leon not even having the time to get angry, only feeling utterly bewildered.

Reasonably speaking, characters likely to explode with just another look like this disappeared twenty years ago; not even third-rate dramas use such a cliché for villains, yet here he was encountering one today?

Damn it! I must blind those damned eyes of yours!

Witnessing firsthand as Leon's gaze shifted from disdain, to doubt, then to sudden comprehension, finally revealing a hint of pity like that for a fool, Joshua, already stoked with fury, saw his anger flare like a roaring fire.

"You lowly..."

"Prince Joshua!"

It wasn't just Leon startled by the sudden outburst from the freckled prince; snapping back from shock, the etiquette teacher immediately stepped in, grabbing Joshua and sternly admonishing,

"Mind your poise! Don't shame the royal family and your sister!"

"Shut up!"

Pushing aside the etiquette teacher who stepped on a landmine, the freckled prince snapped with bulging veins,

"She is her! I am me! Don't bring Veronica's stuff to me! I am myself, not her copy!

And you!"

Looking at the man on stage who genuinely looked down on him, and feeling his self-esteem battered, the freckled prince stomped toward the main stage, raging as he walked,

"You festering commoner! Illicit fruit hung from a crooked tree! Black-haired mongrel mixed among dogs!

As a wild-born duke, you dare scorn me? Believe that I can have you removed from being duke! Tomorrow you could be packing up your wildlings and leaving the Capital City. I...

"Ah!"

After swinging his arm with all his might, landing a resounding slap that sent him spinning sideways, Leon felt considerably eased. Amid the ensuing silence, he lifted the freckled prince by his collar and spat viciously on his "dirty spot."

Raising his sleeve, he stretched it to wipe harshly at the spot with his saliva, realizing it wasn't dirt but his natural freckles. Leon, somewhat disappointed, withdrew his hand, patting Joshua's rapidly swelling left cheek under his terror.

"Want me gone as duke? Alright, you'd better do as you say! If not, I'll consider you my grandson!"

...

I might know why old York suddenly had a heart attack...

Watching the new duke who not only spat on the Prince's face but even threatened to be the King's father, the head of the Ryan Family felt his heart rate wildly accelerate, rushing past 180 and constantly pushing toward 200 beats per minute.

"Elder... Elder, think of something quickly!"

In the tight moment, it wasn't just nine deaths for one life but rather being better off dead, the head of the Ryan family turned to their only hope, but...

"Thud!"

Before the head could turn, the oldest of the three elder Ryan members, the very last pillar, had already rolled eyes up and collapsed on the carpet, mouth askew and twitching, seemingly predicting the Ryan Family's tragic fate.

Worse still, the new duke, who had landed the Ryan Family in deep trouble, casually tossed aside the trembling Prince, openly declaring to the bewildered guests,

"Listen up! If you insist on me being this duke, then I propose using the entire Ryan Family as my dowry to marry Princess Veronica! At worst, we...

"Okay!"

A clear voice rang from the back as a woman utterly unexpected in such a setting stepped swiftly into the front hall. Under gazes ten times more bewildered than before, she joyously responded,

"I accept your proposal! From now on, you're my prince!"

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