Chapter 12

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Chapter 12

“What if I do something bad to Arya?”

“What? What do you mean?”

The bandage wrapped around Kylian’s neck also loosened and flowed down. She thought she had to wrap it again, but the restraining hand didn’t allow her to move easily. Perhaps because they were both sitting on the bed, the spring could be heard bouncing at the slightest movement.

“I don’t think Arya is nervous at all, even though it’s just the two of us like this.”

Could it be that he hurt his head and became an idiot? In the original, Kylian was the epitome of sharpness and stinginess. The fact that he couldn’t see how afraid she was meant the problem was quite serious. Otherwise, he would not have said such a thing. And she felt strange, as if she could hear him speak directly inside her head as the wrist he was holding was getting hotter. She felt strange just touching him all of a sudden.

“Do- do you think so?”

“Yes.”

Arya’s body began to tense up as his dark purple eyes glared fiercely at her, like a predator. Her saliva dried up, and her gaze shifted to a different place as she pretended as if nothing happened to keep her voice from trembling. And yet, a strange pounding was squeezing her chest. As if he was ‘threatening’ her at will.

“At first, you said that you brought me because I was pretty, but now you say it’s not that.”

“Ah… that, that…”

“The only place I have is Arya, but Arya keeps trying to stay away from me.”

Because of what he said, she looked into his eyes again without realizing it.

‘Are you sure you lost your memory?’ Her heart pounded as she looked inside his pitiful eyes, which were contrary to the appearance of the Kylian she knew.

Dreadful.

“Duke, no, Sir Kylian.”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t tell you. Sir Kylian has a fiancée.”

That was a lie. Because in the original, he had broken off his engagement around the time Crown Prince Lionel was kidnapped. She thought he would let go if she said so, but his hand continued holding her. He grasped it so tightly that his thick fingers seemed to wrap her hand like a snake.

“Then, does the Duke’s princess have a fiance?”

“Not at all. If I had, I wouldn’t have kidnapped Kylian.”

Suddenly, she felt the edge of the bed hard against her shoulders as she had been pushed down and fell.

“Huh?”

As her back touched the bed, her hair fluttered. An expressionless face looked down at her between two thick arms, which locked her body like iron bars. The problem was, even looking up from below, Kylian had a perfect face without a single blemish.

“Is my fiancée as beautiful as the princess?”

Somehow his expression was strangely fresh, as if he could see through her lying. As if he knew he had already broken up and there was no fiancée.

“I don’t know. I’ve never seen her.”

As Kylian picked up a strand of her hair and kissed it, Arya had no idea what was going on. Drops of blood dripped from his neck and hit her cheeks. The cold liquid that had lost its temperature touched her cheek, making her dizzy, perhaps because of the smell of iron.

“What do you think I will do?”

“I think you’re going to choke me to death from the amount of blood falling on my face.”

At that moment, another drop fell on Arya’s nose. She felt like Rudolph. Rudolph became drunk because of the strong smell of alcohol. She tried to stay away from bad thoughts because he and his face were so close. Fortunately, the smell stopped the bad thoughts halfway through. She felt a little nauseous from the smell of blood. He let her hair go and moved his body.

“Pfft.”

Then he was shaking with his back turned, and Arya thought he was laughing. She looked at him, not knowing why he was laughing, but she decided to give up since she couldn’t understand him at all.

No matter how much I thought about it, I felt like I had to get Bell back. Since there was no Bell around, my life was full of situations where I didn’t know what to do. From having Kylian with me in my room, to sending him to the bathroom whenever I change my clothes. But there was a bigger problem now.

“If it’s tied at the back, how am I supposed to take it off by myself?!”

No, if you are a princess in the first place, of course you wouldn’t put on clothing alone, nor would you take them off by yourself! But what if I ask the maids to come in? If I’m unlucky enough, they will find Kylian. What if Kylian is caught? Then the duke will know. The duke loved Princess Arya very much, so he could even kill Kylian in order to avoid any misunderstanding. Then, in the future, Duke Rohenbert may ask about Kylian’s death and cause a territorial war. Then a civil war in Kallendia will begin, and Duke Deloraine and I will be doomed.

It had been a while since the territorial wars were stopped, but if they found out that Kylian was dead, the other side could use his life as an excuse to overthrow Duchy Deloraine. In fact, even without sparing Kylian’s life. In return for the territorial war, the duchy could be mortgaged or the commercial district could be taken away. In that case, Duke Deloraine could become a scarecrow with only his name left. The Duchy of Deloraine was fertile and rich in minerals. Also, many fish were found in the sea adjacent to the Duchy. Thus, if you take by force and occupy the territory within the Duchy… There would be no benefit left out.

Then, the duke and the princess, who were the major hindrance in taking the territory, will be killed.

“No way… that can’t happen.”

Arya looked at herself in the mirror countless times, stretching her hand behind her back, whining, trying to take her dress off. It was clear that Arya Deloraine was someone who had no flexibility at all. Her shoulder blades were so stiff she felt she would dislocate if she tried to put her hands behind her back. She didn’t know it was this difficult because the maid took good care of her when she wore the dress, but when she wanted to take it off, she was going crazy.

‘Next time, I’ll wear something I can take off by myself.’

“Aren’t you done yet?”

Perhaps he was tired of waiting, since she heard Kylian ask as if urging her. He must be bored, too, because she was spending a lot of time struggling in the bathroom. It took a long time for Arya to wrestle while looking in the mirror. She was sweaty, and with her hands behind her back, she started feeling dizzy from spinning around.

“Um… Kylian.”

“Yes.”

In the end, there was only one place to turn to for help.

“Please help me.”

“…”

A princess who can’t even take her clothes off alone. Of course she wouldn’t think that was a bad thing, but it seemed she might look pathetic. She was a princess who already lacked demeanor.

‘Nah~ won’t it be easier for him to forgive me if I look pathetic?’ Arya thought so and looked at Kylian, who was smiling as if it was funny. That’s why she couldn’t know what he was thinking.

“What can I do to help you?”

“Please untie this knot.”

At the moment she met his eyes, his face returned to expressionless again. Thus she felt even more strange. She felt ashamed because it looked like she was seducing him but if she sleeps like this, she might break her ribs. The clothes were too tight.

“I have tried to take it off by myself, but my arm can’t reach it!”

“Yes.”

She turned her back when she saw him approaching and pulled her long hair aside. The sound of the thread being pulled as he untied the knot with carefree hands. The tightness in her body disappeared with each touch, making it easier to breathe. Every time he untied the knot, his fingertips rubbed against her back, and she felt itchy and strange. There was the sound of the thread being pulled again, but this time his fingertips gently swept across her back.

“Aahh.”

It was a sound she made out of the tickling sensation without realizing it, but it was quite shameful. So she asked him quickly.

“Are you done?”

“Not yet. It’s harder to solve than I thought.”

Arya clenched her fists nervously in case she would let out another embarrassing sound. The thread was pulled taut and then loosened again. His fingers rubbed her back mischievously again, incomparably clearer than the brushing of her hair, causing her to cringe.

“Almost done.”

“Haaa.. Yes.”

Her back was bare, and she reacted sensitively to the cold hands whenever he touched her with his fingers. Kylian’s hands were cold. When she read it in the book, she didn’t think much and moved on. But now her whole body felt the cold sensation that rubbed her back, causing her waist to rock involuntarily. Besides, he must have been very aware of the coldness of his hands and how sensitively her body reacted to his touch. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so persistent.

“A- aren’t you done yet?”

“Almost done.”

Again, the string was pulled tight. Then it was untied, completely loosening the back. The bodice was loose and dropped forward, so she quickly grabbed it. Missing it would cause a lot of trouble, so Arya quickly caught it.

“Aren’t you taking your clothes off?”

“Oh, I can take it off by myself from here!”

Arya spoke firmly and held onto her clothes. Then she heard his faint laughter behind her back. She now felt her corset, which was wrapped around her back, completely untied. The cold air on her back cooled her skin.

“Ahk!”

Something cold touched her back, apparently his hand.

“You know what? When I was young, my mother liked this–”

“Ugh– Co- cold!”

“She used to write to me.”

It seemed that he was writing something on her bare back, but she couldn’t concentrate because of the cold and the shivering sensation down her spine. As expected, it was clear that he knew how cold his hands were. A tenacious, cold finger played back and forth on Arya’s back, then fell. But strangely, it felt so good because it felt like energy was flowing inside her. Apparently, she was going crazy.

“Aren’t you curious about what I wrote?”

‘Wait a minute. What do you mean your mother? Did your memories come back?’

In an instant, Arya’s body stiffened.

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