Don’t Tame It [Novel]

1.

The world tilted, and her body pitched forward. Her toe caught on a protruding tree root.

This happened often. Once Irene was lost in thought, the rest of the world ceased to exist for her.

Because of this, slamming her face into tree trunks, slipping on patches of ice, or finding herself doused in stagnant water were not exactly rare occurrences.

This is why one shouldn’t think while walking. But given that the Professor had instructed her to ponder carefully…

She regretted it, but it was already too late. Before she knew it, the ground was right before her nose. Irene squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for the impact.

She would likely be forced to walk around with a bandage on the bridge of her nose for a while. Perhaps she might even earn yet another unwanted nickname.

The very moment Irene resigned herself to her fate:

“!”

A firm grip caught her waist and wrist. Her falling body froze in mid-air.

For an instant, she couldn’t process what had happened. Time hadn’t stopped, nor had she suddenly gained the ability to fly.

She tentatively opened her eyes. The ground was still inches from her nose, where a sharp stone waited for her arrival.

Had she fallen as she was, it wouldn’t have ended with a simple bandage. At the very least, her forehead would have split open, and if she were unlucky…

“…….”

She didn’t want to die yet. No, not ever.

Only then did her heart start thumping. Her breath grew shallow, and her pulse raced. A familiar voice drifted down to Irene, who had been coolly analyzing her own state.

“Are you alright, Irene?”

It was a voice tinged with faint amusement. She didn’t need to look up to identify the speaker.

There was only one person who called her “Irene,” and only one who smiled while doing so.

The sense of relief was brief; Irene’s body began to stiffen again. She had belatedly realized the sensation of another person’s touch.

It was firm. And it was hot. Goosebumps erupted everywhere his hand made contact.

“…….”

Duke Diego Cassis narrowed his eyes as he felt Irene turn as rigid as wood. He tightened his hold on her waist.

Irene’s body went even more taut. Eventually, she began to shiver like an aspen tree.

Why?

Was this not more like fear than disgust?

The next moment, Duke Diego Cassis pulled her upright as if he hadn’t noticed anything amiss. Irene’s body defied gravity, regaining its balance.

Only then did he slowly pull his hand away. He raised both hands to shoulder height, like an enemy soldier declaring surrender.

“I know that you dislike contact, Irene, but it was unavoidable. I hope you will take that into account.”

“Grand Duke Cassis.”

Irene, who had let out a shaky sigh, barely managed to part her lips.

She didn’t know what that relief was for. Was it relief at not being hurt, or relief at being freed from his touch?

She looked up at the Duke with a steady gaze. Then, as if she found it unexpected, she tilted her head slightly.

The Duke was third in line for the throne and a powerful ruler of a vast territory. Whether by force or influence, he could have easily compelled her.

However, he did not. He withdrew his hand of his own volition.

Early in the semester, her eccentric behavior had made her a target. Playful male students would forcibly grab her hand or intentionally touch her belongings.

One particularly mischievous student had even gone as far as to hug her.

—This is called shock therapy. You’ll thank me later.

At that moment, Irene’s teetering mind had snapped. According to what she heard later, her breathing had even stopped for a short while.

The lecture hall had descended into chaos. There were students shouting for a professor, others reciting amateur medical advice, and Maxy, who had punched the offender square in the jaw.

After that, the pranksters disappeared. It would be more accurate to say that students began to dodge her whenever they saw her.

No one wanted a trivial prank to result in a funeral. In any case, it worked out well for Irene; her school life became significantly more peaceful.

“That was close. A moment later and it could have been a disaster.”

Irene’s mind, which had been wandering, finally returned to reality. She didn’t know why he was here, but thanks to him, she had avoided the catastrophe of a facial injury.

“Thank you.”

Irene bowed slightly to the man who looked like a smiling potato. Then, she continued on her way.

Duke Diego Cassis, his eyebrows arched, fell into step beside her.

“It seems you have a busy schedule.”

“I have to move out of the dormitory by this week. I need to hurry with my packing. Meanwhile, it seems you are more at leisure than I thought, Your Grace.”

Duke Diego Cassis narrowed his eyes, maintaining his smile. He wondered if it was sarcasm, but there was no change in Irene’s expression.

Does she mean nothing by it?

Perhaps she was truly asking if he was at leisure. At this hour, here, with her.

It was refreshing. To a man accustomed to the aristocratic way of speaking, where every word was laden with double or triple meanings, Irene’s straightforward tone was pleasant.

As was her direct gaze.

“I have not yet achieved the purpose for which I came here.”

“…….”

“When I return to my territory, you will be with me, Irene.”

Irene, who had been walking in silence, suddenly stopped and looked at him with profound intensity. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but a flicker of regret seemed to pass through her eyes.

The Duke, smiling slyly, tapped his temple with his index finger.

“Do not worry. My memory is perfectly intact.”

Irene, nodding as if relieved, began to walk again. His smile deepened.

Duke Diego Cassis walked side by side with Irene, while Javier stood behind him like a shadow. Irene’s gaze flickered to Javier, then drifted away.

It was her own way of showing a quiet acknowledgment.

“If you leave the dormitory this week, what do you intend to do? Do you plan to go home?”

For an instant, Irene faltered, but she stepped forward silently, as if nothing had happened.

There was no way the Duke, who was far from naive, would miss that subtle change.

Did she plan to go home?

Irene shook her head inwardly. Once she did, her previous thoughts began to link one after another.

Should she accept Professor Figueras’s proposal? Or should she seek another way? Before that, was there even another way?

Although she hadn’t made a decision yet, returning home was not among her options. Reading her hesitation, the Duke whispered in a sweeter voice.

“My territory has everything you desire.”

“Everything I desire?”

Doubt clouded her eyes. How could he know what even she herself did not?

The Duke curled his eyes into soft crescents and smiled kindly. Even so, to Irene, he still looked like a cleanly peeled potato.

“Wounded soldiers waiting for your treatment, money, honor, and…”

He paused for a moment, then added meaningfully:

“Freedom.”

“……What kind of freedom?”

“Freedom from everything you wish to escape.”

For instance, a prison-like home, the prejudices against a female surgeon, the ridicule toward her germaphobia, or her ghostly, faint presence. Freedom from all of it.

“Javier.”

The Duke, who had been observing Irene with a knowing intensity, held out his hand. Only then did Javier hand him the paper bag he had been carrying.

The Duke passed it to Irene. She stared blankly at the bag, momentarily baffled by the inefficiency of the gesture.

He shook the bag lightly, urging her to take it.

“…….”

Irene was wary of unsolicited goodwill. Especially from those she didn’t know well. Of course, since she had no one she was close to, that meant she was wary of everyone.

But a sweet, familiar scent drifted from the bag. It was a fragrance she could not refuse.

“Is it a sweet potato?”

Irene asked before she could stop herself. The Duke covered his mouth with his hand, though his eyes remained fixed on her with amusement.

“Ahem.”

He cleared his throat, hiding his laughter, and replied with feigned nonchalance.

“It’s a cake made of sweet potatoes.”

He did not mention that he was bothered by the fact that she had missed a meal yesterday because of him. No, he told himself, he wasn’t bothered. He simply wanted to hire her as his personal physician, and having learned she liked sweet potatoes, he was leaving no stone unturned to secure his target.

“Sweet potato cake……”

Irene murmured quietly, unable to tear her eyes away from the bag. However, the fear that she would have to pay a price for this kindness kept her rooted to the spot.

As if reading her mind, the Duke whispered in a gentler tone.

“As it happens, the chef at the Count Rodri estate, where I am staying, has a talent for baking. I brought it simply because you came to mind. Please, take it. I have no ulterior motive for offering you a mere cake.”

“Yes, then.”

Irene accepted the bag without further protest. The sweet scent of potato brushed against the tip of her nose.

In the student cafeteria, sweet potato cake was never served. At best, a salad of mashed boiled sweet potatoes was the limit of their culinary ambition.

She fully understood the chef’s hardships; to make enough cake for every student, one would have to stay up all night.

That was why, to Irene, the cake in her arms was infinitely precious.

She would savor it.

The Duke fell into step with Irene as she began to walk again, his voice casual.

“I do not know if you are aware, but the Norte region is famous for its sweet potatoes.”

At those words, Irene cast a suspicious look his way.