Chapter 46
Just like he said, the dress was made of comfortable fabric in a simple design.
Riana appreciated the thought, but she remembered her earlier resolve and deliberately crossed her arms, acting cold.
“I didn’t even know the Isolation Tower had a bedroom. You’re always in your office.”
Instead of taking the dress, she shot back with a snide remark. Killian looked briefly caught off guard, but quickly smoothed his tone and continued the topic she had started.
“It’s a room I’ve never used.”
Her response came sharp.
“You should make use of it. Would make my life easier. If you really want to prove you’ve fallen for me, you could start by doing that—sleeping instead of keeping me up working all night.”
Her tone wasn’t half-joking like usual. She sounded genuinely fed up with attending to the Duke late at night.
“….”
“When I first took this job, I figured you’d just sleep at night. I was wrong. Turns out I had to handle every single errand you needed done while you worked through the night.”
A wry smile tugged at Killian’s lips.
“My apologies. I still have no plans to sleep at night.”
Riana shrugged like she hadn’t expected otherwise.
“I know. It’s not like you actually like me.”
A pause fell between them. This was the first time she’d outright called his bluff.
Still holding the clothes, Killian studied her before replying, his tone still gentle and unhurried.
“If I slept here, it would be you who’d have a problem, Miss Riana.”
His gaze slid toward the bed.
Naturally, Riana’s eyes followed—toward the crimson velvet blankets.
“….”
Right… that would put her at a disadvantage.
Her mind, ever creative, instantly sketched the scene:
Killian in a thin sleep robe.
His fringe falling over his forehead.
The open collar showing glimpses of a toned chest.
Sitting on the bed, blue eyes flashing as his lips parted—
“I don’t sleep at night, Miss Riana.”
—She froze. What kind of ridiculous daydream was that?
Killian noticed her expression.
“What are you thinking about?”
“I don’t think.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I didn’t misunderstand you, if that’s what you’re implying.”
“What I mean is—if I fell asleep, I couldn’t control it. That would be dangerous.”
There was no lust or ulterior motive in his eyes. Riana realized he wasn’t trying to make a move on her at all.
The only rotten thing here was her imagination.
“I told you before—rather than endanger others, I’d rather end my own life.”
His voice was calm, almost flat, like someone stating a preference for blue over yellow. He looked away as he continued.
“When I say I don’t sleep at night, it means I’ve lived like this for a long time. I’ve never fallen asleep in the Isolation Tower.”
For some reason, Riana found herself believing him.
This was the stage of the story, and the man in front of her was supposed to be an amateur liar pretending to have fallen for a maid at first sight. That’s how she should see him.
And yet, the line between reality and performance was starting to blur.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Why was she suddenly remembering the sound of his heartbeat by the lake?
“If someone has to get hurt because of me, I want to make sure it’s not someone who’s signed up to get hurt for my sake.”
His voice, heavy with sincerity, slid past her ears straight into her chest.
“So I’ll never sleep here.”
In front of Riana’s wavering gaze, Killian murmured something he’d never spoken aloud before—almost without realizing it himself.
“I’m always afraid. Afraid of when it will happen.”
Riana felt unsettled.
Because Killian’s last words sounded exactly like something she told herself every day.
I live in fear too…
Fear of when she’d become the story’s next victim.
Fear of how she’d be made to highlight the protagonist’s greatness before being executed as the villainess.
“How ridiculous… a villainess sympathizing with the male lead.”
Grumbling, she stroked a yellow dog beside her.
The dog—whom she had nicknamed “Nureongi” since she didn’t know its real name—panted happily, apparently content to be her unwilling conversation partner.
“…You are a real dog, right?”
She’d met the mutt that morning, just after leaving the Isolation Tower. It had run toward her from a distance and startled her at first, but turned out to be so friendly that she’d played with it for a while.
“Maybe the problem isn’t them anymore—it’s me. Look at me, talking to a dog like I’ve lost it.”
She quickly added,
“Not that you’re a bad listener.”
Pant, pant. Better response than a certain fake cat ever gave her.
Kneeling, Riana petted the cheerful dog, burying her fingers in its soft fur. In this harsh world, moments like this felt like finding the one soft thing that still existed.
Then a familiar voice cut in.
“Hey! Grab the leash!”
Gray came running over, looking furious.
Woof!
Nureongi started hopping excitedly when it saw him. Startled, Riana instinctively grabbed the leash.
“What?”
“Damn dog!”
Gray snatched the leash from her, glaring down at the dog. The mutt just panted happily, clearly enjoying their game of chase.
“I thought you were a knight, not a dog handler.”
“Long story. Damn mutt.”
Riana and the dog both glared at him until he corrected himself.
“No, not him—the vice-captain who stuck me on Willie duty.”
“Willie duty? So his name’s Willie?”
Gray dropped to the ground, brushing sweat from his hair and dirt from his clothes. He looked exhausted from chasing the dog all over.
Apparently, during task assignments in the knight order, things got shuffled and he ended up in charge of the dog.
He was too strong to be trained by anyone, but…
“They put me in as a trainer for an hour and I got cursed out so bad. Like, what, I can’t handle it?”
“….”
Yeah, he’d probably run the knights ragged without considering normal stamina.
“So now I’m on dog-feeding duty. Damn vice-captain.”
“So where’s the dog food?”
Gray pulled a piece of meat from the pouch at his waist and tossed it.
Willie lunged for it and started eating.
Watching the dog’s blissful face, Riana smiled warmly.
“How can something so soft exist in a world this miserable?”
“That’s because you’ve never taken him for a walk.”
Gray shook his head, saying a young, energetic large dog was basically a disaster waiting to happen.
“That wolf from back then was calmer, I swear.”
He held his hands like claws to mimic the wolf they’d been imprisoned with.
The casual mention of such a dangerous secret made Riana glance around in alarm before sitting right next to him.
“Hey, watch what you say. What if someone hears?”
“There’s only you.”
“And Willie!”
Gray snorted.
“No animal understands human speech.”
“….”
Riana pressed her lips together.
They do. Unfortunately, I know that.
Unaware of this, Gray kept talking.
“No way. Even that crazy desert experimenter tried everything to brainwash modified beasts into weapons—”
Before he could finish, Riana clamped a hand over his mouth.
“I told you to—”
Her scolding trailed off.
With his mouth covered, his red eyes were suddenly very close, staring right at her.
He had gone utterly still, and the silence between them was somehow loud.
What is he thinking?
She felt oddly self-conscious. They weren’t that close, yet she’d acted like they were.
Now she noticed their shoulders—and even their knees, from the way they sat—were touching.
And she could feel his breath on her palm.
I didn’t mean to get this close…
She started to pull her hand away, but he caught it.
“Wait.”
His deep voice landed heavily in her ears.
“There’s something I want to check.”
Blinking in confusion, she listened as he asked,
“Can I hold your hand again?”
