CH 8

Did I share a bed with Duke Cassiar?

I took a deep breath and slowly lifted the blanket.

Fortunately, I was the only one in bed.

“Huh, I almost got caught by Duke Cassiar.”

“Are you thinking of running away from me as soon as you get up?”

I was about to breathe a sigh of relief that no accident had occurred, but Duke Cassiar leaned against the door and watched me at some point.

Since when have you been watching me?

I’ll be embarrassed and want to escape the Duke’s house as soon as he said he has been watching over there since I woke up.

“At the very least, show me that you’re moving.”

“I was thinking the same thing, but you seemed to be quite busy.”

The Duke of Casiar’s mouth rose softly in a circle.

Did you see everything from the beginning?

I laughed awkwardly as I looked back at myself a moment ago, when I had messed up my hair and turned the bed over like a crazy person.

“Don’t even think about running away. You also confirmed it with your own eyes last night. That the power you have still works.”

“Did I really mean to run away? Is that it all you’ve got to say to me? I’ve been taking care of you all night.”

I used my trump card when the situation became unfavorable.

“You’re too drowsy to claim you’ve been awake all night. You’d have no idea if I put you to bed.”

Was it the Duke who tucked me in?

Shame grew a little.

Are you sure you were dying yesterday? How can you be so energetic overnight?

The Duke appeared to be so healthy that it was difficult to believe he was sick enough to vomit blood yesterday.

“Did you pretend to be sick yesterday, Duke?”

“Pretend?”

“The person who vomited blood last night, looking as if he was about to turn his back on the world, is now perfectly fine to the point where his skin glows.”

Duke Cassiar nodded in agreement when I gave him a suspicious look.

“Normally, I’d have been bedridden for a week.”

Was that so?

“I think it’s also thanks to you that my body has recovered quickly. Perhaps you have more powers than I know. Congratulations on the Duke’s recognition of your talent.”

With a solemn expression on his face, Duke Cassiar clapped.

It was a far too formal occasion.

“You don’t want to be congratulated like this, do you?”

“Don’t I have to return now? There must be a lot of worries in Marquis’s residence because I had an unplanned night out.”

I’d forgotten about it.

I spent my first night in the Duke’s house yesterday.

My mother would have smashed my back ten times given the strict curfew and strict family environment.

My spine became cold when I remembered the taste of my mother’s hand, which was literally the spicy taste itself.

Should I just live in the Duke’s house?

I, who was seriously considering it, decided to return to the Marquis at a later time.

“I can’t go back without these kinds of results. There’s one thing I haven’t finished yet.”

“Is that so? I wish you could tone down your enthusiasm just a bit.”

Perhaps the lingering aftertaste of the romaine-only meal was left behind, but the Duke of Cassiar appeared to be discontented with my enthusiasm.

“I’ll get Fanny to get some clothes ready for you, so wash up and get out.”

“Wait.”

I grabbed the Duke of Casiar and stopped him when he turned around.

He stopped walking and looked back at me.

“Why did you listen to my request? I mean, I said I wanted to spend time with my family.”

Duke Cassiar had a poker face on when he looked at me.

I wondered if he was doing something for no reason, but I was curious about his intentions, which I didn’t understand.

“While I am away, you must take sleeping medication. Then you would have vomited blood or collapsed like yesterday.”

“They are precious to you. The Marquis’ family members. If you accept my proposal, you can think of it as a courtesy to you sacrificing for me.”

The Duke of Cassiar seemed to be considering his own options, despite speaking dryly and with a plausible reason.

I’d prefer him to be a little more ruthless. If that had been the case, I would have been free to do what I wanted while only thinking about myself!

To be cruel, I’d learned far too much about the Duke.

“I’m not going on a vacation with my family. Every day, I’ll be going in and out of the Duke’s house.”

“It’s nothing to be concerned about if it’s due to yesterday’s work. As you can see, thanks to you, my condition has improved.”

I placed my index finger on Duke Cassiar’s lips as he tried to persuade me.

“Shh! Be quite! I’ve already decided not to go. I’ll find a way for the Duke to fall asleep as soon as possible and escape from the Duke!”

The Duke of Cassiar muttered with his mouth pressed open as he watched me burn my will.

Please, just go away.

***

I felt refreshed.

I went downstairs to eat after taking a bath and felt rejuvenated.

The clothes that Fanny prepared for me surprisingly fit my body perfectly.

To be honest, I didn’t expect a high-quality dress because she was preparing it in a hurry, but it was a luxurious dress just by looking at it, so I was cautious about what I did.

“Have you come down, Madam? Oh, my, your new dress is perfect for you. You are beautiful.”

Fanny looked at me and clasped her hands together in awe.

I gave her a shy smile, embarrassed by the compliment I had received after such a long time.

“The hand didn’t appear to be old, so it was new clothes?”

“Of course. That is the dress that the Duke has prepared for you in advance.”

Duke Cassiar prepared a dress for me?

“Madam’s closet contains dozens of dresses in addition to this one.”

“Do I have a room already?”

“Yes, of course! The Duke instructed me to get ready to meet the madam as soon as possible.”

I had no idea.

I would not have taken the Duke’s bed and slept there if I had known I had a room.

Then I wouldn’t have to show the Duke my embarrassment like I did this morning.

“The Duke is stiff as an old tree, so he appears unconcerned, but the people he considers valuable aren’t delicate, so he looks after them.”

What was precious to the Duke was not me, but the power I had.

If I were a truly precious person to him, I might have been a little touched.

“Madam, are there any uncomfortable places because of last night’s work?”

Fanny approached me as I sat at the table, whispering, and asked.

“If you ever feel any pain or aching somewhere, please tell me. I’ll take care of everything.”

If it was last night, was she talking about taking care of Duke Cassiar?

“It’s all right. I didn’t stay awake all night, and when I fell asleep, the Duke moved me to the bed, where I slept soundly.” 

“Ah, I see. Until the Duke, exhausted from his illness, fell asleep. The Duke has now acted like a man.”

When I only told her that Duke Cassiar had brought me to bed while I was sleeping, Fanny’s face lit up.

Why is there a story about a Duke pretending to be a gentleman here?

Looking back on my conversation with her, I quickly realized that she had misrepresented the situation.

I thought Fanny had a big misunderstanding.

“Fanny, that’s not what I’m talking about.”

“Is the meal ready?”

The Duke of Cassiar came in when I was about to clear up Fanny’s huge misunderstanding.

“All that’s left is for me to put the soup on the plate. Please be patient. Lady.”

Fanny, who was delighted, gave the Duke of Cassiar a happy smile before disappearing into the kitchen to get some soup.

Fanny appears to have gone too far when I was trying to solve the misunderstanding.

I shifted my gaze to the table, observing her back, which exudes happiness just by looking at her gentle steps.

First, let’s eat and think.

My mind felt as if it had been stopped by hunger.

“That’s a whole lot of stuff. The Duke finished his breakfast. Isn’t it all because of Madam?”

Instead of looking at the tableware, Kyle, who was following Duke Cassiar, looked at the Duke sitting across from me.

“Why is the Duke having breakfast?”

Isn’t it obvious that if you want to live, you should eat breakfast?

Kyle finished organizing the dishes after I asked him as if I didn’t understand.

“Because he has an upset stomach, the Duke doesn’t eat breakfast. But, since Madam is here, isn’t he eating breakfast to get a better look at Madam’s face?”

“Oh, did you really? The Duke?”

“Someone just fed me a lot of romaine, and I quickly became hungry.”

Duke Cassiar’s piercing gaze fell on me.

Come to think of it, did I only feed the Duke vegetables yesterday?

The words he said as a light joke stabbed my conscience.

“Even the Duke is shy.”

“Kyle, you must be very free, aren’t you?”

“No. You two have a nice breakfast. I need to get down to business.”

It was no surprise Kyle was excited.

When he heard Duke Cassiar bark, he disappeared as if running away.

I turned to look at Duke Cassar, who was eating quietly.

To be honest, I thought he was a little skinny. I was not going to feed him romaine anymore because it didn’t work.

I suddenly remembered that the Duke liked meat while I was slicing meat.

“Here you go, Duke.”

I used a fork to pick up the meat and bring it to Duke Cassiar’s mouth.

The Duke was staring at the meat that had come to his mouth.

“I heard you like meat. I’m sorry I forced you to eat only bland vegetables the other day. Please accept my apologies and eat it.”

“Never mind. I am not a kid. I’ll handle it on my own.”

I knew the Duke would reject it, so I naturally grabbed my arm by the other arm with a fork.

“Are you going to let my hand continue like this? My arm is starting to hurt.”

It was the moment the Duke of Cassiar, who had failed to win in my eyes, opened his mouth.

“Damn, I didn’t see anything. Finish what you were doing!”

Fanny, who had just brought the soup, bolted blindfolded, clutching the plate she was holding.

“Oh, no,”

Fanny and I’s misunderstanding only grew worse.

***

“So, what are your plans for me today?”

Having finished eating, Duke Cassiar looked worn out even before he started.

In a nutshell, he felt desperate. Well, the sooner the Duke surrendered, the better.

“Today we’re going to meditate.”

“Meditation? It’s the first I’ve heard of it, so it can’t be harmful to my health, right?”

The Duke asked me a serious question.

Romaine and Chamomile seemed to have knocked the Duke of Cassiar’s faith in me off the cliff.

“Is it really necessary for me to inflict pain on the Duke?”

“It’s impossible to say.”

“You have to concentrate. Duke?”

I steadfastly went my way, ignoring Duke Cassiar’s reasonable reservations.

“Meditation is a mental exercise that helps to calm the mind and body. First, focus your mind.”

With terrifyingly focused eyes, the Duke of Cassiar stared intently at me in front of my eyes as I spoke.

“Duke, don’t focus on me; close your eyes and concentrate on yourself.”

“It’s difficult.”

I closed my eyes and continued meditating after confirming that the Duke had closed his eyes.

“Now slowly let go of your tense body’s strength. Let go of all your worries and relax.”

Perhaps the Duke of Cassir’s meditation was going well, but he was quiet.

Was meditation effective?

I opened my eyes slightly, curious about the Duke’s condition.

Finally, in a brighter field of view, the Duke of Cassiar sat in front of me, gently looking at me.