30.
“I mean that Imsi is already mine.”
At Gerald’s possessive remark, Zero’s eyes lit up with interest. His reaction was far more amusing than expected.
Meanwhile, Olive’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Oh-ho.”
“Olive, kick that guy out. You stay.”
“Yes.”
Olive, who quickly composed himself, poked Zero in the side, causing him to recoil in alarm.
“Wait, the trade isn’t over yet.”
“It’s late. His Grace the Duke needs to rest. You should rest as well, Mr. Zero.”
“I’m going, I’m going! Stop poking me.”
Knowing Zero couldn’t stand being tickled, Olive continued to target his side.
“Go and get some sleep.”
“I told you to stop! Olive Oil!”
“I am Olive Lion.”
Unfazed by Zero’s attempt to twist his name, Olive replied with a gentle smile.
“I’m going, I’m going.”
Zero kicked the door shut with a dissatisfied look on his face. The sound of his grumbling footsteps faded away down the hallway.
“Olive.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Find out who the author of the fairy tale ‘The Crow Who Repaid Kindness’ is.”
“Understood.”
“You may go now.”
“Yes. Please rest.”
The moment Olive quietly closed the door and left, pain surged into Gerald’s eyes once more.
“Damn it.”
As the agony flared in his eyes, his other senses began to run wild, as if waiting for this very moment.
The senses he had suppressed in anticipation of Zero’s noise rebelled even more.
“Kay.”
“……”
Kay appeared before him and knelt.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Gerald finally commanded.
“……Find Mandlesong and bring it to me, prepared just as Imsi does. And I order eternal silence regarding this matter.”
“……”
Kay hesitated for a moment before bowing his head and disappearing.
He didn’t know how effective this would be, but he had to ensure no one knew about it.
If a plant that didn’t even look like a medicinal herb truly had the effect of relieving pain, then he had truly received help from the person he had been mocking earlier today.
Suddenly, the story of ‘The Crow Who Repaid Kindness’ came to mind.
Who was the crow, he wondered—her, or him?
***
“And so, Snow Princess And The Seven Elves lived happily ever after while preparing for another adventure.”
I had adapted ‘Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs’ into a story about the adventures of the Snow Princess And The Seven Elves. This fairy tale had so many twists and turns that it ended up being two hours long.
My throat felt parched from reading without a break.
As I took a small sip of the water I had prepared beforehand, I narrowed my eyes and observed the Duke.
‘Isn’t there any book that doesn’t end with living happily ever after?’ I expected some sort of cynical comment like that to follow.
But it was quiet.
For the past few days, the Duke had been very strange.
He followed along obediently even when I applied Mandlesong to his eyes, and he rarely threw any objections while I read the fairy tales.
It’s suspicious. Very suspicious.
A Duke who didn’t pick fights felt unfamiliar.
Could it be that he found out I was lying?
With an anxious expression, I picked up the wet towel and approached the Duke.
“Here is the wet towel.”
I no longer worried that he might wake up in the middle of it. I knew that he woke up the moment the reading ended anyway.
After approaching the Duke, I held out the wet towel gracefully with both hands. But for some reason, he didn’t take it today.
He, who had always wiped his own face with the towel, remained still.
“Do your job as Imsi.”
The Duke’s firmly shut red lips opened slowly.
“Pardon?”
I asked back with wide eyes.
“You said you’d wipe it for me, didn’t you?”
The Duke replied indifferently.
“Me?”
……When did I? Swallowing the rest of my words, my emerald eyes trembled with embarrassment.
“You said it the first time, didn’t you?”
“Ah…… Yes, I will.”
It was something I had said when I first handed him the towel, but I had forgotten about it. Of course, I had said it expecting him to decline, as he usually did.
He had been so quiet for the past few days. Was this how he intended to stab me in the back?
With trembling fingers, I peeled away the cloth.
Green herbs were smeared over the black ribbon covering the Duke’s handsome forehead and eyes.
“I, I’ll do it.”
Olive had said that the Duke hated being touched by others and rarely even saw a doctor.
What if I accidentally touched him the wrong way and ended up being executed?
Biting my lower lip, I tightened my grip on my trembling fingers, which felt as fragile as aspen leaves.
“Do it.”
“I really am doing it.”
Saying it once more to reassure myself in a timid voice, I slowly reached out toward his face.
Come on, hand. Just a little more. A little more.
Unlike the encouragement in my heart, my hand was moving at a snail’s pace.
“Imsi.”
He must have been frustrated by my sluggish movements.
The Duke grabbed my wrist, which was holding the wet towel, and pressed it against his forehead.
It, it touched. No, if he was going to do that, he could have just done it himself.
Grumbling inwardly, I delicately wiped his forehead.
As expected of the male lead, his smooth brow was quite beautiful.
I stepped one step closer to the Duke.
Trying my best not to touch his body, I wiped him thoroughly and carefully. Because he hadn’t seen the sun in a long time, his skin was fairer than a young lady’s.
If he doesn’t see the sun, he’ll be lacking Vitamin D. They say his diet is poor, too. The employer needs to be healthy so I can get paid on time. Only then can I earn enough money to achieve a happy future with my mother.
My thoughts continued, one tail after another.
“Are you planning on peeling my skin off entirely?”
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
I pulled away from him hurriedly, as if burned by fire.
As I tidied up the cloth and towel, the Duke spoke.
“Imsi.”
“Yes.”
“Who is the author of ‘The Crow Who Repaid Kindness’? Olive hasn’t been able to find it no matter how hard he looks.”
“Ah, I wrote that one.”
I replied nonchalantly, continuing to finish my cleanup.
“Is that so.”
His voice rose slightly, as if surprised, but I didn’t notice it.
Having finished tidying up, I grabbed the handle of the trolley and offered a bright goodbye.
“Then, I shall take my leave now.”
“Imsi.”
Just as I was about to turn, he caught me with a low voice.
“Yes.”
“……Make a wish.”
“Suddenly?”
I stared at him with an incredulous look.
What is this? What’s with this sudden turn of events?
The Duke, who had been leaning indolently against his chair, gave a slight nod.
“It’s a reward.”
“You’re suddenly giving me a reward?”
When I asked with wide eyes, he began to count down.
“10. 9. 8. 7……”
“Ah, no. Wait a minute, Your Grace. Give me some time to think……”
“6. 5. 4……”
“It’s all so sudden, so I……”
I clasped my hands together and twisted them, my mind racing anxiously.
Think fast. This is a chance! I can’t miss this opportunity.
“3. 2……”
Isn’t he counting too fast?
“A walk!”
“1.”
Marin and the Duke exclaimed at the same time.
Having blurted it out, I clicked my tongue against my lips with a dazed expression.
What did I just say?
Damn it, my lips. Why on earth did ‘a walk’ pop out of there?
“A walk?”
“That is, I thought it would be good for you to take a walk, Your Grace. Since you haven’t been outside in such a long time, I didn’t think it would be good to go out into the bright light immediately, and since it’s night right now…… I thought it might be nice to try it out little by little.”
I swallowed my tears inwardly and continued to ramble.
It was the result of a train of thought that started from his fair skin and led to my future, spilling out of my mouth.
“Why?”
“Um, for exercise?”
“Are you worried about my muscles?”
One corner of his lips curled up crookedly.