Thud.
The door closed. But Carol remained standing there, speechless with shock, until the three people left the garden house.
While it might have been a simple kiss to others, it held a different meaning for Carol.
So suddenly?
Her mind froze from the abruptness.
It was a clue she had just found.
It was an attempt worth trying, even if it took a long time, and she had planned to put a lot of effort into it.
She thought today might be an opportunity, but didn’t have high expectations. Variables can always occur.
Gulp.
Carol swallowed dryly as she looked at the Duke.
“…Are you alright?”
He looked fine on the outside, with no visible changes.
The Duke, not understanding the intent of Carol’s question, asked back.
“Why wouldn’t I be alright?”
“Well… Weren’t you surprised to suddenly receive a kiss?”
She stared intently at the Duke, who seemed unfazed.
“You’re seeing me as too fragile.”
“No, that’s not what I meant…”
She felt frustrated, unable to explain why she was asking.
‘Why isn’t anything happening?’
Had she assumed something wrong?
Could it be that Noah doesn’t love the Duke yet?
That couldn’t be it.
A kiss that bursts out from emotion couldn’t be done without affection.
A young child doesn’t know how to hide emotions, and although still awkward and subtle, it was clearly familial love to anyone who saw it.
If magical power wasn’t the issue, then was it about love?
Did it have to be erotic love to meet the conditions?
“I don’t know what’s going on, but how about we take a breather and have some mulled wine?”
Carol felt deflated at the Duke’s leisurely suggestion.
“…Alright.”
Carol slumped onto the sofa with a dazed expression.
What on earth had she missed?
She kept thinking incessantly while sipping the cooled mulled wine.
“This is really strange. Did something happen in such a short time?”
Carol shook her head. It wasn’t that something had happened, but that what she thought would happen didn’t occur.
“…No. It’s nothing. Would you like another glass, Duke?”
“That would be nice, thank you.”
The long-simmered mulled wine had become a bit sweeter than before. Carol sipped her drink, lost in thought.
Then a forgotten idea suddenly struck her.
‘Is it because of the last condition I couldn’t remember?’
She pressed her forehead, frustrated by the elusive memory fragment.
She was certain there were more conditions, but not being able to remember what they were was driving her crazy.
What could that condition have been that Noah didn’t meet it?
It surely wasn’t something as grand as holy power.
The Duke slowly walked around the room, leaving Carol to her worries. Though the room size was different, it was structured identically to the Duke’s room, so he had no trouble moving around.
Step.
After circling the room once, the Duke stopped in front of the bookshelf.
Carol knew she had moved books she didn’t read, but was curious about exactly which books were there, not knowing the specifics.
The Duke pulled out a book from the shelf.
Though unaware of Carol’s thoughts, he intended to bring the book over and talk about it.
The Duke sat back down and placed the selected book on the table.
“Could you read the title of this book for me?”
Thud.
“Pardon?”
Carol’s eyes widened when she saw the title of the book in the Duke’s hand.
[The Teacher’s Secret Education]
She thought she had hidden all such books in the back shelves, so why was this book here?
There were plenty of other normal books. She had hidden all the adult literature, leaving mostly books whose titles alone could put one to sleep. Why, of all books, did he choose this one from among them!
“Since it’s not in braille, I can’t read it myself,” the Duke said.
Carol’s lips quivered.
The title was so exquisitely chosen that she wondered if he knew the book’s content and was teasing her.
“Well…”
“And if possible, I was thinking we could read this book together.”
It was one of the books she had skimmed through when she first arrived.
“What?”
“Why are you so surprised?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
Who on earth had been reading such adult literature? The book didn’t look that old, which made it even more confusing.
“So, what’s the title?”
“The Teacher’s…”
“…?”
“…Impact on Student Development.”
It wasn’t entirely untrue. It did show development of students in a different way, sneaking in at night.
“Oh?”
The Duke placed his hand on his chin, looking intrigued.
“Cough. I don’t think you’d find the content interesting, Duke.”
Carol quickly interjected, standing up with the book in hand.
The Duke’s wish was half-fulfilled. Carol’s mind had completely shifted from thinking about the curse to that book.
“Is that so? It sounded quite interesting to me.”
Fearing the Duke might ask to read it again, Carol hastily returned the book to its original place.
The other books Carol had hidden were still well-placed at the back of the bookshelf. This book was the only one she had mistakenly left out.
“Another book…No, thank you for your consideration earlier. Shall we head back now?”
Carol leaned against the bookshelf, smiling awkwardly. It wasn’t strange to suggest leaving now, as quite some time had passed since the three had left, and dawn was approaching.
Clank!
The wind violently rattled the window.
“Yes. The weather seems ominous.”
“Indeed. Just a moment. Let me tidy up a bit.”
Carol took “The Teacher’s Secret Education” from the shelf and quickly inserted it back where she had hidden the other adult books.
At that moment, another fierce sound came from outside.
Boom!
“…Huh?”
The sound was too close to be thunder.
“That’s some frightening thunder.”
“Is thunder usually this loud?”
“It must have struck nearby.”
Soon after, more sounds followed in succession.
Crack.
Rumble.
There was a sound as if the entire garden house was shaking.
It wasn’t a good sign. Looking out the window, heavy snow was falling fiercely. It was such severe snowfall that it seemed impossible to see even a step ahead if one went outside.
They had noticed the worsening weather too late. This was clearly Carol’s mistake.
“I’ll just go and check what’s happening for a moment.”
She had to somehow manage the situation. Even when cloudy, morning would come, so they needed to leave before then.
It would be difficult to lead the Duke out in this weather, but there was no choice.
“…Be careful.”
“I’ll just check and come right back.”
“Alright.”
The Duke, knowing he wouldn’t be of help if he went out, clenched the hand he had started to extend to stop her.
Carol first headed towards the entrance to check outside.
Click.
Rattle.
But before she could assess the situation outside, her path was blocked. The door wouldn’t open.
It wasn’t locked. The door was slightly ajar. Looking through the gap, she saw a tree in front of the door. The dull sound that had shaken the building earlier seemed to have been caused by this tree.
“No.”
Carol hurried to the back door. If only that door would open. They could exit that way.
But Carol’s hope quickly faded.
Rattle.
Rattle.
The back door wouldn’t open at all. Carol hurriedly returned to the room where the Duke was.
“The doors won’t open.”
“The front door too?”
“Yes. It seems a tree has fallen right in front of it.”
Only then could the Duke deduce the cause of the earlier sound.
“…So that’s what caused the thunder-like sound.”
Carol couldn’t maintain her composure. Things had been going almost too smoothly lately.
The curse hadn’t been broken, and now they were trapped here.
Carol paced in circles, unable to stay still. In her anxiety, she began biting her nails.
“Did you know the back door wouldn’t open?”
“I’ve heard that sometimes snow piles up and the back door won’t open. But usually, it doesn’t matter because the front door opens well…”
The Duke trailed off. Saying more would only cause more panic.
But even with the sentence left unfinished, the implication was clear enough.
Carol’s face turned pale.
“This can’t be happening.”
“Try not to worry too much.”
“…”
“When morning comes, they’ll surely notice we haven’t returned and come looking for us.”
The Duke spoke to reassure Carol, but her pale complexion showed no signs of improving.
That wasn’t the problem.
“…What about going out through the window?”
“The windows are too high. You’d get hurt.”
And even if Carol somehow managed to climb out, the Duke would be left alone.
Even if she went back to request help, the weather wouldn’t allow movement until morning anyway.
“Sit down for now.”
“Alright.”
Carol sat down as the Duke suggested. Standing and pacing around would only make her more anxious.
But she couldn’t easily hide her unease. Carol chose to remain silent instead of speaking unnecessarily.
“You’re angry with me.”
“No, that’s not it. It’s just too sudden. My siblings will be worried too.”
Carol made excuses while rubbing her face. She should have returned home early. The moment Noah failed to break the curse, she should have gone back to sort out her thoughts alone.
‘I was too lax.’
She resented herself for thinking they could have time alone to rest.
I’m crying this is too goofy 😭💀