Failed to Train the Beast Male Lead

“Hello.”

“Welcome.”

“Today, it’s warm onion soup.”

Carol energetically led the trolley into the Duke’s room.

“That’s right. It’s common to get sick the most when you think the weather has warmed up.”

“Right.”

“Can you put it on the table?”

These little things have changed.

Previously, she handed the food to the Duke without any thought.

At first, she thought he was angry because she was meddling in trying to do well for the young lady Chesworth, but that was not the case.

‘It’s because of the hand I slapped.’

The Duke’s behavior, which had changed over the past few days, was clearly telling her.

She didn’t know he would be so sensitive about it.

After slapping his hand, she thought lightly that this was an opportunity to feel a proper distance. It was her clear mistake.

She knew how sensitive the Duke was about this part, but still.

Afterwards, for fear that she might have a hard time, she had hurt the Duke deeply.

“Can I hand it to you directly?”

“…You don’t have to go out of your way.”

Despite the Duke’s refusal, Carol stubbornly placed the onion soup on a saucer and handed it to the Duke.

“It seems like you’re misunderstanding something.”

“Misunderstanding?”

“You’re bothered by the slap on the hand that time, aren’t you?”

At Carol’s words, the Duke made a flustered expression. It was a face that didn’t expect her to bring up that incident again.

“That… I understand. I just hoped for too much and you don’t need to feel responsible for it.”

“I was just flustered because I couldn’t measure the distance. It’s not because I thought you were a monster.”

She thought she should clear up the misunderstanding even if he kept his distance. She also didn’t like the awkward atmosphere that arose even if their hands slightly brushed against each other.

The Duke’s eyes widened as if he didn’t expect her to speak so bluntly.

“…”

“I told you I look hideous, didn’t I?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t believe her, but the Duke nodded for now.

Since she had reincarnated as a beastman, she couldn’t say that she thought of herself as a monster, so she vaguely glossed over it. The important thing was not the content, but the empathy.

“I know how meaningful it is to accept someone as they are.”

“Isn’t the situation completely different?”

“To me, it’s not a different situation.”

“Yes. It’s meaningful. But I don’t want to be accepted forcibly.”

He still didn’t believe her. He knew that since she was paid, the probability of her sincerity being distorted was high, but wasn’t this almost like an iron wall?

“Sigh…”

It would have been better to bear the embarrassment and speak up at that time. Now that she was finally speaking, she felt even more embarrassed.

When she beat around the bush, it sounded like she was grasping at straws.

“That’s right.”

“…Huh?”

“That day, I actually didn’t have enough time to wash.”

“What?”

“But you suddenly came close, so I was flustered and slapped your hand.”

“…”

“And I’m sorry for overstepping my bounds by saying to treat Miss Chesworth well.”

The Duke couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“Ha ha!”

His heart melted as if asking when he had been hurt. It was truly a miraculous thing.

The Duke realized anew how much influence her one action, one word had on him.

It was as if she had read his heart, not only discovering a wound he didn’t even know about, but also making it okay in an instant.

“Don’t laugh.”

“I thought too sensitively.”

“…I hope you have that much faith in me in the future.”

At Carol’s words, the Duke nodded his head vigorously.

“Yes. I won’t distort your actions.”

“That’s a relief.”

“And about Miss Chesworth, I also apologize. You must have said it out of kindness.”

She didn’t expect the Duke to apologize. Carol blushed, lowered her gaze, and answered in a slightly smaller voice.

“…I overstepped my bounds.”

“…Not at all.”

Clatter.

Carol picked up her share of the plate, suggesting they eat the onion soup quickly.

For the past few days, she didn’t know whether she was eating with her nose or mouth, but today she could taste the food very well.

From the sweetly caramelized onions to the well-melted green cheese on top.

“The soup is especially delicious today.”

“Is that so.”

“How much of the book did you read yesterday?”

“All of it.”

“Already?”

“I was engrossed in it.”

“I’m glad you liked this book as well.”

“Not as much as the last one.”

“That book was the one I wanted to recommend the most.”

“By the way, I heard that the garden house is old and needs to be repaired.”

“Oh. Is that so?”

“So you’ll have to wait a little longer.”

Anyway, Margaret didn’t seem to be going anywhere for a while. Carol awkwardly smiled without revealing her true feelings.

‘I have to talk about Noah…but I have no idea how he’ll react.’

She knew in her head that she had to talk about Noah, but she wanted to enjoy this peace for a moment.

But as if to mock Carol’s feelings, there was a thunderous knock.

Knock knock!

With a desperate sound, the door flung open.

It was Mrs. Wells. She had run here, holding the hem of her dress, and her breath was rough. Even her always neat hair had a strand sticking out.

Without anyone asking, she quickly explained the reason for her visit.

“Young Viscount Walden has come.”

“Why? He’s not a guest anymore, is he?”

At first, he became a guest because he came with Margaret, but he had already left.

Once he had left, he was no longer a guest. It was really unpleasant that he came back without being invited again.

The Duke had no intention of accepting him as a guest in his mansion again.

“What’s going on?”

Carol knew. Even though he was tricky, he always kept his word when Carol spoke seriously.

But the fact that even Mrs. Wells called her urgently meant that something was happening.

“Your brother…has collapsed.”

“…What?”

Carol asked back with a blank expression for a moment.

“He said he brought him home, called a doctor first, and then came to let you know.”

The next person to speak was the Duke.

“…I’ll assign a doctor from the Duke’s Mansion.”

Carol got up from her seat with a thud.

“…No. If Louis called, it would be the doctor who has been looking after him for a long time.”

“Tell me if you need it later.”

“Yes. Thank you. That…today…the lesson is…”

The contract stated that she had to go to work every day unless it was difficult to move due to a natural disaster.

Carol touched her forehead.

The fact that Louis came out separately meant that it wasn’t serious enough to stick around all the time.

Thump thump.

She understood it in her head, but her heart didn’t.

“We’ll skip today’s lesson.”

“…My brother won’t be very sick. He’s healthy.”

It was no different from talking to herself. She gently pressed her trembling legs with her hand.

But even though she tried to hide it, her anxiety was clearly visible.

“You have to see it with your own eyes to be reassured.”

“…”

“Today, I’m not in the mood to take a lesson.”

He didn’t like the fact that Young Viscount Walden came, or that he naturally assumed the role of a protector.

But what he disliked even more was that all he could do was send her off.

“I hope he recovers quickly.”

Mrs. Wells also comforted Carol as if to tell her not to worry.

“I’m sorry.”

The sound of Carol hastily leaving the room was heard.

“The two of them seem to be very close.”

After spitting out the words, his mood became even more gloomy.

It’s disgusting to see someone sick.

The Duke, as if not expecting an answer, got up from his seat and approached the window.

“Tsk.”

It’s not pleasant to be of no help at all.

The pitiful beast trapped in the castle muttered bitterly.

Until the cheese on top of the onion soup cooled and hardened, the Duke stared out the window that couldn’t be seen.

The room was at the end of the castle, so he wouldn’t even hear the faint sound of her leaving.

“Jessica.”

“Yes.”

“Check again when Miss Chesworth is leaving.”

He responded coldly, but he didn’t think badly of Margaret to the extent that he would accommodate her as much as possible.

“Yes. There’s a limit to pretending not to know that the maid of the young lady is ransacking the Duke’s Mansion.”

Mrs. Wells, who had heard all the servants’ whispers, knew that the two were investigating the Duke’s Mansion.

They seemed to be moving secretly, but they overlooked how closed and exclusive the northern people were.

At Mrs. Wells’ words, the Duke nodded his head slightly.

“And there’s one thing I want to ask…”