Chapter 5
“Miss. The Duke is looking for you.”
Lucy flinched noticeably when she saw me lying in bed in my pajamas.
“The sun is high in the sky, and you’re still in bed?”
Muttering, she drew back the curtains. A faint light barely entered through the window. Through the gap, I could see a sliver of the moon. It was still early morning.
Lucy moved busily. She opened the window wide to let in fresh air and began hanging the clothes she had brought, one by one.
“Hurry. The Duke hates wasting time.”
Even with her soothing voice, I didn’t want to get out of bed. Honestly, I was afraid to see the Duke’s face.
‘I’ll talk to him later.’
He had quietly left after seeing Cherui with a nosebleed and me still panting heavily, looking all flustered.
“I… don’t want to go.”
“Why?”
She asked back and tugged me up immediately. I got up reluctantly, burying only my lower body in the sheets, scratching my head. I felt like a child refusing to go to school.
“Miss, why don’t you want to go? You have to tell me so I can help.”
“Lucy can’t help.”
“Don’t you trust me?”
Lucy’s hair color changed again as she spoke those familiar words. It was the same green as the herbal mixture I had applied to my hair. Just seeing the color brought back that disgusting smell.
“I gave the second son of this house a nosebleed yesterday.”
When I added a gesture to show a nosebleed, Lucy’s complexion immediately turned pale.
Under this strict class system, a commoner giving the Duke’s second son a nosebleed?
It seemed almost impossible for someone in this world to accept. She blinked for a while. I had never seen Lucy look so flustered.
“Miss, is this a short-life dream? You don’t want to live?”
Lucy shook my shoulders, checking my will to live.
Looking at Diane Haste’s track record:
-
Fell from a chandelier once.
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Hit her head on a stone statue once.
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Newly committed act! Gave the Duke’s second son a nosebleed once.
I looked perfectly like a short-lived dreamer. I had done things only someone ready to give up on life could do.
“No. I want to live a long life and be featured in the newspaper as a long-living grandmother…”
“Then change your dream, or change your methods a bit.”
Lucy shook her head repeatedly while her hands moved busily. She single-handedly completed the preparations that would usually require several maids.
“See? You’re not going to die again, right?”
The reflection in the finished mirror made me look like a proper noble lady.
“You speak as if you’ve died before, Miss.”
“Ah.”
It seemed like I had some experience with it.
“Lucy, by the way… you said the Duke hates wasting time, right? How long until we go so we’re not late?”
Even Lucy, who normally spoke well and answered well, stayed silent on this question.
“Duke.”
After Lucy finished guiding me, Jerob checked outside the window, frowned, and nodded slightly.
We were late.
In the study, only Jerob Dycus and I remained.
He was wearing his uniform again today. The button fastened tightly to his neck looked extremely uncomfortable. Next to him lay the sword Esther, which had once aimed at my neck.
‘Not that I mind seeing it.’
Sitting at the desk, flipping through documents silently, he was quite a sight. The mint scent he favored filled the air every time he breathed.
His neatly swept-back hair showed a determination to allow no flaw. His clean, revealed face was composed, with a strong bone structure from eyebrow to nose that emphasized his masculinity. His thick eyelashes fluttered whenever he blinked.
‘Glasses suit him well too.’
Unlike yesterday, he wore glasses while working. Through the lenses, his gem-like eyes moved busily.
The pen in his well-formed fingers moved quickly, scratching on the paper. He occasionally frowned slightly at parts that didn’t please him.
I needed popcorn. It would have been perfect to snack while watching.
…
“Haaah.”
I swallowed my eighth yawn silently. Holding back my yawns made my eyes water.
Sunlight poured into the study, which we had entered early in the morning. Quite some time had passed, but Jerob didn’t glance at me. The longer I waited, the more restless my body became.
I desperately wanted to ask if I could sit.
‘Miss, until someone of high rank invites you to sit, you must not take any action. Don’t speak first either.’
Before meeting him, Lucy had emphasized this repeatedly. She insisted three times that if I wanted to live long, I had to follow her instructions. I had already caused some trouble, so I wanted to remain as polite as possible.
‘My feet hurt…’
Normally, I could endure it somehow, but now the situation was bad.
The dress and shoes I wore were borrowed from the wardrobe. The shoes’ owner had very small feet. I couldn’t go barefoot, so I forced my feet into the tiny shoes. My toes were numb.
The high heels put all my weight on my big toes, making them ache. My calves tensed, and cramps began to form.
Cold sweat dripped. I tried alternating pressure on each foot to endure the pain.
“I want to hear about yesterday.”
At the edge of my patience, Jerob asked without taking his eyes off the documents.
“You touched me.”
I conveyed the truth to him as simply as possible. He lifted his head. Deep wrinkles formed on his forehead.
“Cherui’s face is swollen.”
“Yes.”
‘I hit with all my strength. Of course it’s swollen.’
Also, Cherui’s face was naturally a bit puffy, with chubby cheeks and a thick jaw that made him look especially warm.
“You could have used words instead.”
“I refused, so he tried to strike me.”
It was an unexpected answer. His expression twisted immediately, full of disdain and displeasure.
“Cherui…”
“Yes.”
I nodded deeply. Maybe I had yawned too much; tears ran down my cheeks. I quickly wiped them with the back of my hand to prevent misunderstanding.
Jerob removed his glasses and adjusted the bridge of his nose.
“I understand.”
With that brief answer, he returned to his documents. The scratching of the pen sounded uncomfortable again. His reaction was so strange I was confused.
“Is that all? No punishment? Am I safe this time?”
I at least expected something like: “Do you want to die? Isn’t your life precious?” or some punishment, or at least telling me to apologize to Cherui.
But his response was so bland, my protests about not wanting to go seemed meaningless.
“What does he even think I am…”
Jerob Dycus. I saw him as a ruthless villain from The Villainess Torments the Emperor Again.
Maybe he remembered what I did at our first meeting, because he suddenly stopped talking, sighing while touching his nape.
“I’ll sit a bit.”
He nodded slightly.
Once given permission, I immediately sat on the nearest sofa. I could no longer take another step.
“Ahh.”
I felt relief. I carefully removed my shoes under the table and checked my feet. They were bluish from poor circulation. I stretched both legs on the sofa. My toenails were completely pale.
Poor feet of mine.
Massaging the discolored areas gradually restored warmth, and circulation returned, tingling my legs.
“The shoes…”
I hadn’t noticed when he had stepped away from the desk. His voice came softly from above.
‘Is that an insult?’
Looking up, Jerob’s jawline was striking. His eyes, bright blue and red like a Taeguk pattern, rested on my feet.
“Aren’t there any shoes in the mansion?”
He frowned, looking at my feet.
‘If there were shoes, do you think I would be wearing these?’
Bang—
At that moment, the door opened.
“Duke! A message has arrived from the palace!”
“If you apologize, I might accept it.”
As I left the study, Cherui immediately spoke, as if waiting.
He hid his round, moon-like face behind a strange mask, leaning against the wall with one arm. I ignored him and hurried on.
“Hey! Don’t ignore me! Stop for a second!”
“Why?”
When I glared at him, Cherui flinched.
“You… you were punished by your brother too, right? You walk awkwardly.”
He hadn’t been scolded; his legs were uncomfortable because the shoes were too small, not because of punishment.
When I didn’t answer, he threw off his mask. His nose was swollen, and his cheeks were scratched.
“I don’t even remember being scolded! And you’re not even my type…”
‘Don’t remember…?’
Now that I think about it, Cherui’s whole demeanor had changed since yesterday. He wasn’t staring blankly into the distance anymore; he looked directly at me.
“My ring was taken too…”
This was the Cherui I knew from the original story. The timid second son of the Duke, unable to speak properly.
He looked sullen and completely intimidated. Slightly pitiful.
The black smoke from the ring changed his expression. He had hurt Aileen, and Cherui had changed.
Who—or what—is he really?
“Let’s reconcile. Or just tell your brother we reconciled. Okay?”
“Ugh! Don’t come closer!”
“Okay? We’ve reconciled, alright?”
He shook my shoulders, throwing a tantrum. The closer he got, the more I stepped back. I puffed up my cheeks, trying to keep him away. His bulging stomach almost touched me.
‘Is he pretending to be cute?’
“Ah… alright! I get it! Stop it!”
I had endured all kinds of attacks. There was nowhere left to run. Looking up, I saw inside his nostrils. I was forced to witness his insides.
‘He’s going to hit me!’
Clang—
Just as I shut my eyes, the glass window broke. A round mark remained on the wall. If he had been a bit closer, my head would have been pierced. The object embedded in the wall made a sound as it approached me.
Waaah—waaah—
‘What is that?’
