Chapter 6
Selachia frowned.
Habit?
She hadn’t spent enough time with Tenus to even call anything a habit. Excluding today, the only time they’d actually faced each other was on their wedding day.
She wanted to argue, but since she was pretending to have exaggerated amnesia, she couldn’t really complain if he treated her like a liar.
“My room is that bedroom from earlier, right?”
Selachia avoided the unfavorable topic and headed toward the door.
She planned to look over the documents Tenus gave her later. Her body, already exhausted, was on the verge of collapse. All she wanted now was rest.
Selachia placed her hand on the doorknob of the bedroom but didn’t have the strength to turn it.
“…”
It was the presence behind her that was extremely irritating. Unable to bear it any longer, Selachia turned around.
“What are you doing?”
“What do you mean?”
Tenus replied, his face all innocence, as if he didn’t understand a thing. It was annoying.
“Why are you following me?”
“Until I find a proper guard knight, I’ll protect you myself.”
“I just want to rest in my room. I don’t need protection.”
“Exactly. Get some rest. I’ll handle the guarding.”
A sigh escaped her lips.
Even as a high-ranking duchess, there was no need to be guarded inside the mansion. It’s not like Tenus suspected Aldrich, the estate’s head butler.
So this must be…
“You’re watching me, aren’t you?”
“You could say that.”
His bright affirmation left her speechless.
Although Selachia hadn’t left the ducal house of her own volition, Tenus—unaware of the truth—must’ve categorized her as a person of interest.
She didn’t blame him for wanting to avoid a repeat of any troublesome events. Still, she had no intention of enduring the discomfort of sharing a space with him just to clear up misunderstandings.
“Are you sure you have time to waste like this? Aren’t you about to inherit your title soon?”
Though she made her displeasure clear, it didn’t work.
Tenus, seeing she had no intention of opening the door, opened it himself. Even when the bedroom was fully revealed before her, Selachia stood stubbornly at the entrance. He gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her inside.
Forced by his strength, she had no choice but to move. The close warmth of his body distracted her so much, she wasn’t even aware of her steps.
“Today’s actually been one of my freer days. Compared to the past week, where I was running around like crazy.”
“…Running around for what?”
“You’re asking like you really don’t know.”
His low voice tickled her ear, sending a chill down her spine.
Selachia instinctively turned her head. Just above her, Tenus’s face came clearly into view.
Porcelain skin and finely sculpted features that were both delicate and powerful.
Tenus’s stunning appearance was exactly as it had been on their wedding day. The only difference now…
“You thought it was a coincidence I found you in that village?”
…was how tired he looked.
Tenus lowered his face to meet her eyes.
“So naïve, Selachia Seidon.”
His words, laced with laughter, felt like mockery.
She had believed it was purely coincidence that he’d found her. Even someone like her, prone to fantastical thoughts, hadn’t imagined that he had personally gone searching for her.
The reason was simple.
She didn’t believe she was worth such trouble.
“…”
Tenus gently pushed on her shoulders so she sat by the bed. He took the papers from her hand and placed them neatly on the nightstand.
“My innocent wife should get some rest now.”
When she snapped back to her senses, Selachia was already lying quietly on the bed.
Lying there while the future head of the household stood by made her feel awkward. After a moment of hesitation, she asked,
“What about you?”
Instead of replying, Tenus dragged over a chair and sat beside the bed. Crossing his legs, he stared at her with a stillness more stubborn than a stone statue.
Selachia stared back blankly. Tenus sternly declared,
“Give up. No matter how you look at me, I’m not moving.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Then?”
“I was just thinking… it must be nice being so useful. I mean, how many people in this empire can say they use the Duke of Seidon as their bodyguard?”
Even the emperor probably couldn’t manage that.
Though his reasons weren’t pure, this was the first time she’d received such treatment since her parents passed away. Even in the month she’d spent as the duchess in the Seidon household, it had been the same.
With Tenus guarding her like this, she almost felt like a real noblewoman.
“If you’re going to ramble, just go to sleep. Weren’t you trying to sleep?”
“I was going to, anyway.”
Despite her bold words, sleep didn’t come easily. Her body was on the verge of collapse, but her nerves were on edge.
Though Tenus didn’t make a sound, Selachia felt his presence like a mountain beside her.
After tossing and turning, she suddenly opened her eyes wide—and met his gaze immediately.
“…Hey.”
Unable to endure the awkward silence, Selachia started to speak while darting her eyes around.
“What about the Academy? How come you’re here?”
She had said it just to break the silence, but now that it was out, she was genuinely curious.
From what she knew, Tenus was right on the verge of his Academy graduation. He had rushed off immediately after their wedding to attend his remaining classes.
She had resented that he didn’t consider her situation as a new bride, but she could understand. He was eager to graduate and inherit the dukedom.
“If you don’t attend, don’t you fail? Is there some kind of substitute system?”
“Dunno. Never looked into it.”
“What do you mean? You didn’t have a plan?”
Startled, Selachia shot upright. Tenus pushed her gently back down by her forehead and casually replied,
“What does it matter? It’s not like I need that diploma.”
“But then all the time you spent at the Academy would be wasted.”
“Do I look like someone who’d care about something like that?”
His disinterested response held not even a trace of arrogance. He was simply stating the facts—and Selachia fell silent.
True.
Tenus was going to be the Duke of Seidon.
The imperial academies were mainly for noble children without inheritance rights, who used them for networking or political/business ambitions. For someone like Tenus, it was practically useless.
Still, if he could let it go that easily, why bother attending in the first place?
Selachia felt a lingering discomfort. Whatever his reason had been, she knew that he was missing graduation because of her sudden disappearance.
A part of her felt guilty—and that annoyed her. She was a victim, too, after all. Even if she couldn’t say it, she had been wronged. All those tangled, unspoken emotions ended up turning into resentment toward Tenus.
“You should’ve just married another noblewoman instead.”
Then you wouldn’t have had to drop out.
She muttered it quietly—and suddenly felt a sharp sting on her forehead.
“Ow!”
Selachia’s eyes went wide. At some point, Tenus had gotten close, and his large hand now covered her eyes.
“I told you—if you’re going to talk nonsense, just sleep.”
His warm hand blocked her vision. The firm, large hand that covered even her forehead felt strangely comforting.
Even so, the image of Tenus looking at her with faint disdain lingered behind her eyelids—and it soured her mood.
“…Fine. I’ll sleep for real.”
She meant for him to move his hand, but Tenus didn’t budge.
It seemed he didn’t plan to let go until she was fully asleep.
Accepting the slight discomfort, Selachia quietly folded her hands on the blanket and prepared for sleep.
“…What the?”
Suddenly, his hand left her face. A dim light seeped through her closed eyes, and she instinctively furrowed her brow.
“Your hand… What happened to it?”
Tenus’s hand, now lowered, grabbed hers.
