CH 92

The next day.

Knock, knock.

“Lady Cersinia.”

When there was no answer, Roena called for Cersinia one more time. But there was still no answer.

“I’m going in.”

Roena couldn’t help but grab the doorknob and spin it. The heavy door swung open, and she stopped at the view caught by her eyes.

“Gasp!”

Roena, looking down as if she had caught something, was so surprised that she fell back.

“Lady Cersinia!”

Cersinia, who should have been lying in bed, was lying on the floor in front of the door. Roena hurriedly approached her, wondering if she had fainted.

“Lady Cersinia! Wake up!”

“Umm…”

Cersinia slowly opened her eyes, whining at the voice that bothered her ears.

“Are you okay? Where do you feel sick? Shall I call a doctor?”

Roena bombed her with questions, who had opened her eyes.

‘Why is she making such a fuss?’

Cersinia frowned because her ears felt stung from it. But soon, she understood Roena’s overreaction.

“I’m not sick. I’m okay.”

She lifted herself up from the cold floor. She thought it had already been cured, but her sleepwalk seemed to have recurred overnight. She fell asleep in bed, but she woke up lying on the floor.

“Then why was Lady on the floor…”

Roena supported Cersinia with a worried look. Cersinia shook her head and walked over to the bed, refusing her touch.

“Sometimes it happens like this. Don’t worry.”

She slept on the hard floor for a very long time and woke up with a feeling of a bit of soreness. She thought it wouldn’t happen again, but it happened again and made her not feel good since the morning.

“Have you ever been like this? Do you want me to ask the doctor to treat you?”

Roena said, chasing after Cersinia.

“No.”

“Still… Wouldn’t it be better to see a doctor?”

Cersinia sighed and had no choice but to respond because of Roena, who persistently followed her.

“It’s just a sleepwalk.”

Cersinia went into the bed to warm her tingling body in the cold temperature and covered herself with a cozy blanket.

“Sleepwalk?”

“It’s not serious, but it happens sometimes, so you don’t have to care.”

Roena smiled a creepy smile without a word, then hid it as Cersinia’s eyes poked out of the blanket.

“Master said he would like to eat together with Lady when you wake up.”

“Yes, I will get up soon.”

“Then, please call me if you need anything.”

As Roena left, Cersinia wondered why her sleepwalking recurred again.

‘Did I feel stressed yesterday?’

The banquet was more tiring than she thought, but there was nothing particularly stressful.

“Or is it because of something else?”

Since she met Aronia, she can’t say that she went over it completely easy.

Cersinia had already woken up from sleep, so she warmed up for a while and got out of bed.

Yesterday, she eventually pretended to sleep in the carriage to return to the mansion. She could hear faint laughter next to her, but she closed her eyes tightly without caring about it. It was clear that Ben knew she wasn’t sleeping, but he pretended not to know.

She deliberately avoided his gaze from the moment she got on the carriage until she got off. It was because she didn’t know what else would have happened if she didn’t do that. However, her heart pounded all the way back.

The source of her trouble was that she put her hand down on the seat without thinking. Shortly after pretending to be asleep, the cold body temperature touched her fingertips as they rested on the seat. It was Ben’s little finger.

As if their minds were connected, the tips of each other’s little fingers were gently touching. Even the slightest touch was enough to feel each other’s palpitations. For some reason, Cersinia felt it lewder than overlapping their lips.

“Uh…”

While washing her face, Cersinia remembered their first kiss last night. Her face was burning red. She had no choice but to wash her face one more time to cool off.

* * *

“Engagement ceremony?” Cersinia asked with her eyes wide open.

Broccoli, which had been stabbed with a fork, fell onto the plate.  

“Yes, I would like to have an engagement ceremony soon, but what do you think about it, Cersinia?”

Ben was serving the salad in a glass bowl on Cersinia’s plate.

“You don’t have to prepare for the engagement ceremony.”

“Then I will have to plan a simple engagement ceremony and make the wedding grand.”

She put down the fork she was holding and looked at him.

“Ben, it’s okay not to worry about that kind of ceremony.”

The engagement ceremony didn’t matter. On the contrary, Ben would be tired from working on it. It would be good to just promise each other for the rest of their lives with the same heart.

“It’s my greed.”

“Pardon?”

“I want many people to know that I’m Cersinia’s man.”

He clasped Cersinia’s hand, which was placed on the table.

“I want to plan the ceremony grandly so that no one would look down on Cersinia.”

His eyes, facing her, contained deep desire.

Again and again.

She can’t believe he’s looking at her like that since the morning.

Cersinia shook her head to regain her composure when she found herself possessed by his gaze, which reminded her of last night. If she looks into his eyes, their lips will overlap again instantly.

As if to prove that, Ben’s hand gently stroking her hand was longing for something.

“Ben, you know I’m having breakfast right now, right?”

When Cersinia rebuked with a complaint, Ben drew a seductive smile.

“It’s nice to see Cersinia’s face better when it’s bright.”

“Huh…”

She burst into laughter when he acted sly without changing his facial color.

“You, aren’t you changing so much?”

His attitude, which has changed 180 degrees since yesterday, made her feel dumbfounded.

‘He wasn’t this reckless before…’

Somehow, Cersinia had a hunch that he would be like this all the time now.

Cersinia pulled her hand that was caught by him. However, Ben clenched her hand more tightly as if he had no intention of letting go of it.

“Nothing has changed. It’s just that I don’t put up with it anymore.”

Ben got up from his seat. When the legs of the chair were dragged on the ground and made a sound, Cersinia felt her nerves scratched.

She was in a dangerous situation. From Ben’s head to his toes, there was nothing that wasn’t dangerous. Even his lightly dressed clothes played a part. It was dizzying to see the outlines of his muscles were revealed every time he moved through his open shirt.

“Just talk from there!” Cersinia shouted in a hurry.

Ben was so close even though he only moved two steps.

“Cersinia.”

But he has already come closer to her. He grabbed the chair she sat on and turned it toward him at once.

“Gasp.”

The chair turned very light and smooth, like there wasn’t a person who sat on it. She opened her eyes like a startled rabbit. Ben’s chest was lying right in front of her.

Not knowing where to turn her gaze, Cersinia lowered her head and saw Ben’s hand holding the chair’s handle. A bunch of veins was popping from the back of his hand. Her heart pounded, and her mouth dried up in tension.

“Do you know how much I endured when we rode the carriage to go back?”

“…”

Cersinia shut her mouth. She had nothing to say because she was the one who pretended to be asleep the whole time in the carriage.

Ben’s hand ran to her long hair behind her ears. Cersinia shivered with a sense of spreading heat. There were goosebumps on her arms.

“This is a dining room…”

Even though there were only two of them right now, it was clear that servants would come in a little while. Not wanting to create an embarrassing situation, Cersinia squeezed her last strength and pushed him back, but it was useless. Looking up and facing him, Ben’s eyes seemed to have no intention of backing down. Ben smiled faintly and lowered his head.

“Yes, I know.”

A muffled voice pierced her ears. Soon after, his lips touched her round forehead and fell off with a mwah sound. Cersinia’s eyes fluttered like the flaps of a butterfly’s wings.

“If you’re concerned, let’s go to your room.”

She thought it would be better. She might be less shy doing it there than in the public space. Cersinia tried to answer yes but kept shut her mouth when Ben added with his sneaky voice.

“If we go up to your room, it will be longer than now.”

When she lifted her face with embarrassment, she saw him smiling with a strange smile.  

Cersinia was in a dilemma. If they go up to her room, she will probably be with him all day, but if they’re doing it in the dining room, she will never know when the servants will come. Cersinia was agonizing over whether there was an option to reject in the first place.

Ben smiled quietly as he looked at her in agony with a serious look. Her serious expression on what was so worrying was so lovely. He couldn’t hold up at whatever answer she gave.

“Then let’s go to my room…”

When Cersinia came up with her answer, Ben’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“I can’t.”

“…What?”

“I can’t stand it until we go to your room.”

As he bowed deeply, black hair tickled her forehead. The moment the hot breath was about to touch her lips.

“Your Excellency.”

The butler, Murchen, entered the dining room.

“I-I’m sorry.”

Murchen turned hurriedly, stunned by the sight in front of him. Cersinia blushed at the butler’s appearance and pushed Ben’s chest away.

“What is it?”

Annoyed by the disturbance, Ben showed his cruelty towards the butler.