Chapter 17
He stepped closer without a word, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket and offering it to her.
She glanced between the handkerchief and Kalen’s face, puzzled.
“What’s this for?”
“You had sweat forming on your forehead.”
“Oh, thank you.”
She accepted the handkerchief a beat late.
Was he just incredibly observant?
Or exceptionally perceptive?
She couldn’t tell—he never took his eyes off the documents, yet absorbed every word of the letters perfectly, noticing all her movements with ease.
As she wiped the sweat away, Kalen said, “Let’s eat.”
“Yes.”
After he left, Elle headed toward the room connected to the study, just as before.
Once again, a lavish meal awaited.
“I’ll eat well. Please enjoy your meal too, Your Grace. No fainting this time, okay?”
Though no one would hear, she worried even about Kalen’s lunch, then began to eat with gusto.
While Elle ate, Kalen left the study and strode directly to Conrad’s office.
Conrad, engrossed in work, jumped up in surprise at Kalen’s sudden arrival.
“Has the Baroness already left?”
“No, not yet.”
“What brings you here?”
“Check if Edward Count has any estates in Melfield.”
“Melfield? Isn’t that royal land?”
“What lakes are near Ruki sand?”
“There’s Bowien Lake over there. That area’s also royal property.”
“I know that much. I just hope Prince Randol didn’t sell the land because he needed money.”
Conrad sensed something off and immediately stopped what he was doing, grabbing his coat.
“I’ll look into it.”
Once Conrad left, Kalen leaned against the wall, arms crossed.
“To think I’d uncover corruption through a love letter… What was her name again? Wendy, after the goddess of beauty, wasn’t it? Wendy Edgar, daughter of Count Edgar.”
Now, he felt compelled to thank the Edgar Countess in person.
Thanks to her love letters, he’d uncovered land the Edgar Count had acquired through shady means.
As his thoughts about Edgar Count cleared, Elle’s face popped into his mind.
She had worn a variety of expressions today.
For some reason, she seemed unusually tense.
“Is something wrong? Not a problem with the cabbage supply, I hope?”
Her face tensed often, and she kept sneaking glances at him, as if reading his reactions.
She had glanced at him before while reading the letters, but today felt different—he wasn’t just watching her reaction to the letters but something else as well.
‘There’s no reason for that.’
Kalen’s brow furrowed slightly.
“Please tell me there’s no real problem with the cabbage.”
Cabbage was one of the few vegetables he liked to eat, even though he usually ate sparingly.
Anything cooked with her cabbage always tasted better.
He pondered deeply, then concluded.
It might be childish, but…
“From now on… only I get to eat her cabbage.”
Thinking about Elle’s unusual tension today, Kalen resolved this quietly.
He had no idea that Lisa had assigned Elle to be a spy—at least, not yet.
When he returned to the study, Elle was already ready to continue reading letters.
“Shall we read the next one?”
“Let’s.”
“Oh, you ate enough for lunch today, right?”
“I did, so don’t worry.”
“Then I’ll read the letter.”
Elle lifted the letter, then quickly put it down again, moving a plate of chocolates onto Kalen’s desk.
“This is just in case,” she said.
“Now, the letter from Baroness Saen: ‘To the Duke Kalen, whom I greatly admire,'” she started. Hm.”
That opening line was as difficult to get used to as ever.
Elle let out an involuntary groan, catching Kalen’s attention.
“You ate too much lunch, huh? It’s… okay. Please continue.”
As Elle’s eyes returned to the letter, Kalen suddenly stood up.
Surprised, Elle hesitated but rose as well.
Kalen opened the door leading to a small sitting room.
Elle was dumbfounded—what was he doing in the middle of reading a letter?
Kalen looked at her silently, but she understood.
“You want me to follow you?”
“Yes.”
“Why? Where are you suddenly going?”
Elle set the letter down and rushed to catch up to Kalen.
They stepped into a small sitting room, which—besides the door they just came through—had two more doors.
One room with three doors.
Kalen opened one of them and glanced back at her.
Elle followed without hesitation.
“Where are you going? Wow!”
As the door swung open, the small garden where she had met him the second time appeared before her.
She muttered as she stepped outside.
“A door that leads to the garden. But why come out here all of a sudden?”
“I thought I’d take a short walk.”
“Now?”
“I think it’s a perfect time. Don’t you agree, milady?”
Elle stared intently at Kalen’s face.
There was no doubt—his invitation for a walk was because she had said she felt uncomfortable after eating too much lunch.
Truth be told, the first few awkward words had made her stomach churn, but Kalen was genuinely concerned about her health.
Clumsy when it came to romance but thoughtful and honest when it came to people.
Elle smiled softly.
“That’s a relief.”
“Relief? What do you mean?”
“Just that you have such a lovely garden. It’s the perfect place for a walk.”
“Then let’s take a short stroll and come back.”
With a light farewell, Kalen opened the door, then left her standing in the garden as he went back inside.
Suddenly, the smile vanished from Elle’s face, replaced by utter bewilderment.
“Are you seriously telling me to walk around alone in this unfamiliar place?”
Maybe his humanity wasn’t all that perfect after all.
For now, she’d settle on ‘somewhat decent’.
Nodding, Elle took a deep breath and slowly wandered through the garden.
Between late spring and early summer, the garden was truly a sea of flowers.
Bright blossoms exploded in colour everywhere she looked.
She eyed the roses climbing along the fence—not tiny ones, but blooms as big as her fist—and El’s lips parted in appreciation.
“Mother would love this. Maybe today I’ll ask for a rose to take with me as a bonus.”
Elle gazed at the roses for a while, then looked out over the wide lawn and bit her lips again.
“If we planted cabbage here, it would grow so well. White heads of cabbage on the green grass… what a beautiful picture that would be.”
Lost in her thoughts and imaginings, Elle decided it was time to head back.
But then, a sudden, threatening noise echoed from a distance.
“Woof! Woof! Woof!”
Startled, Elle turned toward the sound.
The barking grew louder, closer.
“Woof! Woof!”
“Woof! Woof! Woof!”
Dogs.
Not one, but two fierce dogs are barking loudly.
“Where is that coming from?”
Unease crept over Elle as she stepped backwards.
Judging by the sound, these were no small dogs.
She was only used to the tiny pups from nearby houses, so fear bubbled up inside her for no good reason.
Looking around, she spotted two hunting dogs charging toward her.
She had thought the barking was far off, but the dogs were much closer than she’d expected.
With the two large dogs racing fiercely toward her, Elle’s face drained of colour—she went pale as a sheet.
“Gah! Dogs!”
“Woof! Woof! Woof!”
“Woof! Woof!”
A sleek, golden-coated dog and another with glossy, deep reddish-brown fur charged toward her.
“Ahhh!”
Startled by the sudden rush of the dogs, Elle stumbled backwards and fell.
—
Meanwhile, after sending Elle out to the garden, Kalen picked up the documents.
Yet, for some reason, the words wouldn’t quite register.
He tilted his head to stretch his neck muscles and tried again to focus on the papers—but it was no use.
His gaze drifted to the table where Elle had been reading.
He couldn’t shake the image of her softly mouthing the words, her healthy pink lips moving gently over the letter.
At first, he was reading the documents, but gradually his eyes wandered to Elle’s face, as if under some spell.
Feeling dazed, he shook his head and muttered to himself, “Focus on the letter… that’s all there is to it.”
Tapping his fingers irritably on the desk, his eyes caught sight of the letter Elle had left unfinished.
Slowly rising from his chair, he approached the table where the letter lay.
“To the Duke Kalen, whom I admire from the depths of my heart. From Lady Saen, Baroness of the Saen family…”
He racked his memory, but the face of Lady Saen didn’t come to mind.
If she admired him, surely they had met at least once—but when?
Holding the letter up to eye level, his brows furrowed as he searched his recollections.
He remembered Baron Saen—a minor noble with a small estate in the south of the kingdom.
Did he have a house in the capital?
He was unable to recall.
With a soft sigh, Kalen turned away and glanced out the large window.
Through it, he spotted Elle.
He stepped closer and pulled aside the thin curtain.
Where before her figure had been blurred, she now appeared sharp and clear.
She walked slowly through the garden, pausing at a rose bush to inhale its fragrance.
Tilting her head, she seemed lost in thought.
Though only her back was visible, he could imagine the expression on her face—her small, sweet lips pursed, her eyes shimmering a shifting shade of blue, wide open to the world.
His lips twitched involuntarily into a faint smile, but he quickly turned away and checked the time.
“Focus on the letter again…”
“Woof! Woof! Woof!”
Just as Kalen tried to redirect his thoughts, Odin’s barking pierced the air.
“Woof! Woof!”
Then Shif’s bark joined in.
Kalen’s brow knitted tightly.
Dogs shouldn’t be barking this close, at this hour.
“What the…! Lady Moora!”
