Even in this situation, she simply scratched her cheek and offered a sheepish smile.
“What the hell are you doing…!”
Nox, infuriated by Lize’s wordplay, brought his sword even closer to her. But the blade, which had remained unwavering until now, was suddenly pushed back by a gust of wind.
Despite everything, Nox was the Commander of the Northern Knights.
Though far inferior to Lucas in skill, he was still a master swordsman, known as the second-best in the North.
Yet even his sword was brushed aside without effort.
His face now held deep wariness toward the woman.
As Nox faltered, the surrounding knights—who had been tensely watching the scene—now raised their blades and surrounded Lize, clearly alarmed.
Oops. Things had escalated.
Still scratching her cheek, Lize smiled awkwardly.
The Grand Duke had been so good-looking that she’d failed to consider how suspicious she might appear.
“Um… I just got lost, really. I’m terribly sorry but…”
“……”
“I just wanted to wash up. I ended up covered in blood. Ah! And my leg hurts…”
Nox was speechless at the audacity of this suspicious woman. Was she insane?
From the furrow in his brow, Lize could easily guess what he was thinking, and she hastily waved her hands.
“I’m not crazy!”
Her clothes were obviously high-quality. She was unarmed, unaccompanied, and alone. And she was soaked in blood—though no one knew whose it was.
Despite the bizarre appearance, she was, by all accounts, objectively and subjectively stunning.
Analyzing everything, Nox reached a conclusion.
She was either completely insane or extremely suspicious and dangerous. An assassin sent to kill the Grand Duke, perhaps?
But since the Emperor’s regime changed, assassins had become rare.
What on earth… Nox was still struggling to find the right words when—
“Nox.”
Lucas, who had been quietly observing the situation, finally spoke.
“Lower your sword.”
Nox nearly burst a vessel.
ִֶָ___________𓂃 ࣪˖ ִִֶֶָﾒ ་༘࿐__________
To this day, he regretted not killing the woman when she first leapt toward His Grace.
For some unknown reason, the Grand Duke had taken her to the Grand Duchy residence.
As if they were old acquaintances, His Grace treated her with familiarity Nox couldn’t understand.
The man had never shown interest in women—or anyone, really. Why now?
Whenever Nox thought about that first encounter, his teeth ground together.
He had gone to tell the woman to follow the procession from the rear, only to witness a baffling scene.
‘Your Grace, my leg really hurts. Would it be okay if I rode that horse?’
‘Do you know how to ride?’
‘Of course. Want to ride together? Oh—maybe not, since my clothes are dirty.’
‘I’ll hold the reins. You ride. We’ll go slowly.’
In just that short moment—how had she charmed him like that?
Fine, even if she was a great beauty.
But it made no sense that her reckless behavior brought out a cheerful reaction from His Grace.
‘Your Grace, could I stay at the Grand Duchy for about a month?’
‘…Are you running away from home?’
‘Nope. Got permission from my younger sibling before I left.’
‘That can’t have been easy.’
‘So I staged a bit of a protest.’
Nox couldn’t understand what he was hearing even as he heard it.
With a blank expression, he stared at his master and the suspicious woman walking ahead.
‘Seems spring is coming for His Grace after all.’
Apparently eavesdropping, Vice-Captain Kishiev whistled with amusement.
‘She’s crazy. Just look at her. Clearly suspicious.’
‘Come on. His Grace isn’t one to be fooled. If she were truly a threat, he would’ve cut her down. The fact he brought her back tells you everything.’
‘It could be a fleeting whim.’
‘Hmm… maybe. Still, if she becomes the Grand Duchess, I’d be all for it. You saw how she handled herself in the mountains. She’s no ordinary lady.’
‘……’
‘She brushed aside your sword like it was nothing, remember?’
Nox glared at him with a murderous look, humiliated.
Kishiev merely looked up at the sky, pretending not to notice.
‘And most importantly…’
‘There’s more?’
‘Of course! She’s beautiful. She’s covered in blood now, but wait until she cleans up. She’s going to be stunning!’
Nox seriously considered burying him in the snow.
Come to think of it, Kishiev did have a weakness for pretty women.
From that point on, Nox ignored anything the man said.
Naturally, when they arrived at the Grand Duchy with a woman instead of a monster corpse, the entire castle fell into chaos.
Garnet, teary-eyed and moved, bowed deeply to the woman in awe.
It was absurd.
But the most annoying part of having the woman stay at the castle came later.
It was also the reason Nox constantly ground his teeth around her.
“The Duke’s left jawline is killer, okay? So if he ends up fighting a monster himself, you have to catch it on this—understood?”
“…I’m not exactly in a position where I have time to film things.”
“But you’re always near His Grace! It’s the perfect spot for recording with this magic orb!”
Every time they went out for subjugation, she pressed a recording orb into his hand.
He refused at first. But as her treatment within the castle became more favorable, it became harder to say no.
Eventually, he accepted it every time, pretending to be reluctant.
At first, her status had been ambiguous.
His Grace’s woman? Not exactly confirmed.
Too risky to treat her casually, and she clearly wasn’t just a passing traveler.
She acted like someone of high status, and most importantly—His Grace didn’t seem to mind her.
So she hovered somewhere between esteemed guest and possible romantic interest.
Nox silently begged Lucas for help, but the Grand Duke, despite seeing and hearing the woman’s absurd requests, simply turned away and pretended not to notice.
That silence was tacit permission.
Kishiev, of course, cackled like a hyena and fanned the flames.
Nox seriously considered destroying the recording orb entirely.
That’s when the woman casually tapped his shoulder.
“That orb? Super-duper expensive. Don’t break it, okay?”
Now she was reading minds, apparently.
ִֶָ___________𓂃 ࣪˖ ִִֶֶָﾒ ་༘࿐__________
Peaceful. The day began as usual with a dose of eye candy—His Grace’s face—and I felt light as air.
“His Grace is heading out now.”
“Oh, really? I should go see him off!”
My daily routine was simple.
Breakfast with the Grand Duke. A bit of rest. Then I saw him off for his monster-hunting expeditions.
Afterward, I sipped tea, strolled, and enjoyed some free time.
Before sunset, I’d welcome them back, wait for His Grace to finish washing up, then join him for dinner and call it a day.
On days he didn’t leave the castle, I lounged around his study instead.
Thankfully, he didn’t seem to mind or criticize me for it.
Garnet, bless her, was the MVP of my routine.
She brought me His Grace’s schedule daily like a diligent little bird. I was quickly adapting to castle life—on day five, no less.
“Your Grace!”
“Don’t run.”
As I clutched my dress and darted toward him, revealing my ankles, the Duke gently caught me.
I always lost my footing when I ran. So he had taken to catching me before I fell.
“Be careful today, okay?”
“…I will.”
“If you’re worried, why not come along, my lady?”
Kishiev teased with a grin.
“That’s a no from me.”
I was always a firm believer in setting boundaries.
Fighting monsters in the North? Not part of my one-month vacation plan.
I came here to eat, rest, relax, and heal my eyes with His Grace’s unfairly perfect face.
And high-value assets like me don’t move easily.
“By the way, Your Grace! I asked the chef to make shrimp for dinner. Do you like shrimp?”
“I don’t particularly avoid anything.”
“Perfect!”
“My lady… You just had breakfast, and you’re already planning dinner?”
Kishiev sounded dumbfounded.
Why is he always so snarky?
I glared at him until he awkwardly coughed and retreated.
“Ahem. Anyway. Until then, I’m going to visit that dessert shop today. Garnet says their carrot cake is legendary!”
“All you talk about is food.”
“Eating, sleeping, and playing—that’s what life is all about.”
I winked, adding a playful tone to my words. His Grace looked at me like, Really?
Okay, that was a little embarrassing.
Just then, Nox arrived to inform him it was time to depart.
Before he even turned to leave, His Grace paused and looked back at me with a strange expression.
“What is it? Is there something on my face?”
“…On your first day, you didn’t know how to turn a doorknob and broke the door.”
“What? Me? That’s news to me!”
That story again?
I feigned ignorance with a sweet smile.
Deny everything. That’s the key.
“On the second day, you said you couldn’t be a useless freeloader, helped the chef, and burned not just the food—but the entire kitchen.”
“Oh dear, that’s… unfortunate.”
They had to call in one of the rare northern mages to repair the damage.
But it was fine! Everything had been restored.
I ignored the cold sweat on my back and kept smiling.
It didn’t last long.
“On the third day, you tried to help the maids with laundry, fell into the lake, and came back looking like a drowned rat.”
“Who was that inconsiderate person…?”
Not me. Absolutely not.
Feeling guilty, I fidgeted and looked down.
“I’ll clean up whatever messes happen inside the castle.”
“…….”
“But outside—try not to cause trouble.”
“…I don’t think I’ve done anything that bad…”
“I’ll give you a proper tour of the estate on a rest day. Until then—please, fewer incidents.”
This déjà vu…
I suddenly remembered Theo and the people back at the Marquis estate.
I could only nod dejectedly.
I’m supposed to be a villainess, for goodness’ sake. Causing a few accidents is part of the deal.
But then again… the Duke is hot. So—he’s forgiven.
