Chapter 12
As the sunset faded and the surroundings grew dim, he stood and lit the candles. Outside, dust might be brushed off by someone else, but here, Clyde did everything himself.
“Ah, that tag means it’s more important.”
When Edith pulled out a particular file, he immediately noticed the red tag with a star from across the room. Not only had he attached the tags himself, but he remembered each one.
There was no way to slack off—her days of easy living were over.
A deep sigh escaped from Edith’s pouty lips.
Even his suggestion to take a break felt burdensome in a situation like this.
By now, it was long past the time to leave work. She continued sifting through documents at her desk, looking the same as she had at 4 PM.
Her neck ached from reading, her wrist throbbed from writing, but she remained in her spot. Even at the academy, where she often held the top position, she had never studied this diligently.
No tyrannical superior was telling her to go home. She inwardly cursed at what an awful boss he was.
Should I just go home? Clyde himself said I could treat him comfortably.
After much deliberation, she hesitantly spoke.
“Your Highness, I… I’ll be leaving now.”
In front of a hard-working Edith, he had been scribbling absentmindedly and finally raised his head, pretending he had forgotten.
“Is it time to go to bed already?”
For a moment, her pupils shook like a leaf in the wind.
“Time… for bed?”
“You were so focused I couldn’t get a word in. That’s why I told you to take it easy.”
With ease, he rose and extended a gentlemanly escort hand toward her.
Was he joking? On the very first day of official duties, he had made her work overtime, and now he claimed he left her alone because it was hard to talk to her? Frustration surged to the back of her neck.
But he was the Crown Prince. Even if it was just the two of them in the private chamber, that fact didn’t change.
Suppressing her irritation, she forced a smile, expressing a positive look as she longed for the end of the workday.
Having entered the “real game” of social life, memories from her previous world resurfaced.
I was confident in my own social skills. Call it maximum political savvy. You can do this, Edith. Even if the night insects sing outside, I can go home anytime.
“Then… I’ll be going home now.”
“What, heading out at night? How about just resting here for a bit?”
“…Pardon?”
“Let’s see… It would feel wrong for me to make you sleep on the couch. I tried to make you a proper resting space, but three days isn’t enough to finish the renovations.”
She didn’t need a resting space—she just wanted to go home.
“Your Highness.”
“Or I could lend you my bed. I’ll sleep on the couch.”
“Make sense of what you’re saying. Seriously…”
Feeling that unfiltered comments might spill out, she pressed her own hand over her mouth to stop herself. Her thoughts had begun firing straight from mind to mouth without passing through reason.
This was bad. Clyde’s reckless remarks left her completely flustered.
Strictly speaking, the Crown Prince’s bedroom was not a personal space. Reports were received here, and he sometimes called people in to flaunt close relationships. In other countries, emperors even opened their bedrooms to many nobles.
So Edith occupying the Crown Prince’s bed was absurd. As soon as the attendant who signals morning enters, it would be chaos. Even with Clyde’s permission, she’d be embroiled in rumors and likely dismissed.
For Edith, whose life goal was to leisurely enjoy her salary and later a pension, this would be the worst possible outcome.
Despite her predicament, Clyde continued his nonsense.
“You must have had a tough day, Edith. Rest well. Feel free to use my bed.”
“You know that’s not allowed.”
Trying to prepare her for sleep without her consent, he attempted to guide her toward the bedroom. He waited beside her, presumably to remove her chair.
“Why wouldn’t it be allowed?”
Did he really need to voice that?
“For one, there are so many attendants coming and going.”
“No one will come until I call. Not even in the morning. Even for important events, I’ve made sure no one can disturb me.”
Slightly surprised. Clyde seemed to value privacy. She recalled never hearing that anyone discussed state affairs in his bedroom.
“Still… I’d be in big trouble if I lay on the bed.”
She gestured across her throat with her thumb.
Clyde, seeing no intention to move from her, took drastic measures. Grasping her upper arms, he lifted her upright and pushed her toward the bedroom like a train ride.
“Nothing will happen. Even if someone sees, my aides are all tight-lipped.”
“But Your Highness—”
“I’ll have two sets of water prepared. The staff will sweep through anyway. You can handle that, right?”
It felt like a newlywed game. He said he’d use the couch, yet his steps led them both toward the bed.
“No!”
She spun around, glaring at him.
An attendant bathing with the Crown Prince? Absolutely not. They weren’t romantically involved for the world to know.
“Prepare yourself, Your Highness. I’ll tidy up and go home.”
Drawing a firm line, he looked slightly disappointed but withdrew his hands.
He returned to the private chamber without calling someone to assist with the bed. Sitting half on the couch with a book in hand, he seemed to have no concrete plan, teasing her in a mischievous tone.
“I know you worked hard, Edith. But don’t you need to report on what you reviewed today?”
“No one told me to.”
“I just thought of it. Not every day, but I want to see the report. Include your opinions.”
Now it made sense why he was fickle. She hadn’t followed his suggestion to sleep over.
This man… why is he doing this to me?
Does he… like me? The thought circled in her mind like a baby cooing. She agonized over whether to ask.
Forget it. She’d do the report first. Curiosity about Clyde’s thoughts could wait. Asking now would be inappropriate. Later would be better.
If he said “no,” it would be embarrassing; if “yes,” extremely awkward. And she wasn’t ready to accept it anyway.
Clenching her teeth, she responded through gritted determination.
“Understood. The report.”
The situation had escalated so far that all sense of formality was gone.
Whether she behaved respectfully or like an old friend, he didn’t care.
She slumped back into her seat with a thud. Whether Clyde noticed her frustrated grumbling, she didn’t know. She promptly kicked off her tight shoes, letting them tumble under the desk.
Feeling her feet comfortable again, she felt a surge of relief. Her toes sank into the soft carpet as she vigorously spread out her papers.
Late into the night, the only sound in the quiet private chamber was the scratch of pen on paper.
It had been an overwhelmingly busy day. She had gone to the shooting range upon arrival, fired a gun herself, and even followed him to the audience room.
When the bell signaled bedtime, her pen paused halfway across the page.
Edith’s eyes closed, still as a statue.
She didn’t notice Clyde quietly brushing his hand through her platinum hair or carefully removing the hair accessory from the back of her head.
He secretly pressed a loosened strand of hair to his lips.
“Why even resist?”
His whisper dripped with honeyed warmth. He seemed completely different from the sly, mischievous man earlier.
“You could’ve just lain down when I told you to sleep over.”
Clyde lowered his head to align their faces.
Her delicate features and rounded nostrils were endearing. Her youthful appearance remained untouched, growing ever more lovely the more he looked.
His lips were magnetically drawn to hers.
Holding his breath so as not to smudge her, he restrained himself from stealing a kiss recklessly.
Consciously, he pulled back his forward-leaning head.
“Now I’ll move you to the bed.”
It should be okay to just look at her soft, downy ears.
Just observing isn’t a mistake.
“I hope you don’t wake up.”
She had appeared to sleep deeply in previous days, but lifting her would still be tricky.
“I’ll be careful, but if you wake up… could you pretend to stay asleep? Then I’ll lay you down without anyone knowing.”
Judging by her stable desk-sleeping posture, she seemed experienced—likely from her academy days. Even without lying against the bed, one could completely fall asleep.
Clyde slid an arm under her armpits, gently supporting her other arm beneath her knees.
He lifted her as quietly and lightly as possible.
Her weight felt lighter than expected, almost causing his upper body to tilt backward.
After a slight wobble, he steadied himself. Curling his arms around her, he held her soft, rounded body.
A sudden, intoxicating scent hit him.
Her unique aura came to him through warmth and fragrance.
Earlier, he had only smelled soap when near her. Now, holding her firmly, the scent pierced his nasal passages unmistakably.
It was a vivid floral fragrance.
A natural, skin-born aroma, only detectable up close—overwhelmingly fragrant, like a delicate flower.
This is a Beta’s scent? Impossible… impossible.
A warm body scent rose, delicate like wildflowers or lily of the valley.
Human skin’s natural scent was completely different from artificial perfume.
He felt an urge to bury his nose in her neck and inhale greedily—it was sensuous, almost intoxicating.
