His tone was like that of someone willingly accepting punishment.
When she heard his words, it was the first thing that came to her mind.
Juliet turned to look at the man, who had dutifully appeared when she called for him. He was standing not far from the doorway.
Juliet, whose eyesight wasn’t particularly good, couldn’t see his expression due to the considerable distance, but there were things she could deduce without looking.
Surely, his face must be filled with remorse.
In the past, Juliet had hated that look on his face. The fact that his face always looked regretful, despite not feeling remorse, seemed like mere pretense.
In fact, if it wasn’t a pretense, there was no way to explain it.
However, the man she subsequently came to know genuinely regretted numerous decisions. He just had a lot of thoughts and not enough words.
However, by then, it was too late to simply criticize him as a fool, so she could only remain silent, despite knowing the truth.
But now, it is different. Juliet encouraged the man, who remained standing without closing the distance.
“Can you come closer, please?”
It was probably the kindest thing she had ever said.
Asking for a favor was an unfamiliar way of speaking to Juliet. Juliet was not particularly affectionate, partly due to her upbringing as a princess, where she never needed to bow her head.
Even though she had used a somewhat gentle tone when she lived in her homeland, it disappeared after she married the man.
Since she was always irritated or angry, her words did not come out pleasantly.
Whether it was because of this or not, the man seemed quite surprised. Juliet watched as he slowly walked toward her. The closer he got, the more clearly she could see his apologetic expression.
“Is this close enough for you?”
He asked, standing about five steps away from the bed.
To Juliet, it seemed like an awkward distance, but he seemed to feel it was sufficient.
Of course, she didn’t like it, so Juliet shook her head.
“Please come closer.”
Then the man took two more steps forward.
Still an awkward distance. Juliet considered asking him to sit on the bed altogether, but she held her tongue. They weren’t close enough for her to make such a request, and she was tired.
“First, I want to apologize for what happened this morning. I’m sorry, I acted inappropriately.”
Her face was red from the fever, and her words were raspy, but it was the best she could do. Juliet was not accustomed to apologizing.
Of course, the other party did not make a big deal out of it.
Instead, he said something very much like him.
“You don’t have to.”
It would have been nice if she could have let it go like that, but it wasn’t going to happen.
Juliet raised her chin slightly. It was a habit she had when she had something to say.
“No, I’ll do it.”
Her stubborn attitude seemed almost frustrating, and for a moment, the man seemed at a loss for words.
Looking at her with a blank expression, he said,
“Really, you don’t have to.”
“No.”
“But,”
“I’m going to apologize, and you can choose to accept or reject it.”
It was a problematic attitude for someone apologizing, but neither of them realized the mistake.
One lacked experience in apologizing, while the other couldn’t believe the situation itself.
Belonging to the latter, Enoch thought as he looked at the woman in front of him. Is this a new form of expressing her annoyance?
But there was no such indication on the woman’s pale, haughty face. It was an indifferent expression, but that was simply her habit.
It was the same.
Compared to the faces he had seen before, it felt somewhat friendly.
This kindness confused him even more.
Enoch had never imagined a situation like this where Juliet wasn’t angry, he even thought she might slap him.
In fact, if slapping him once could calm her down, it would be worth it.
Enoch knew how hard his mother had tried to please the late emperor.
She gave him everything she had. Honor, devotion, life, and heart—things like that.
Yet, despite everything, he had never given her even a glance.
Enoch didn’t think his fate was the same as hers, but he couldn’t deny the similarity.
In the first place, it was the curse of the family. Wanting only one thing desperately, yet never being able to grasp it.
But a slap would hardly be too much.
He could offer her more if she would only let him.
But Juliet wanted no such thing. Instead, she said.
“I’m going to apologize, and you can choose to accept or reject it.”
There was nothing as difficult for him as this, yet the woman’s expression remained unchanged.
At times like these, his tongue felt like it had turned to stone. Enoch forced his reluctant lips to open.
“……I accept.”
Of course, it was not fitting for his status. Everything about Juliet was more than he deserved. Let alone an apology.
But Juliet did something he didn’t deserve, and her casualness made it feel even more excessive.
“Thank you.”
She smiled along with those words.
It was a faint smile, devoid of the slightest hint of strength, but even so, it had been too long. Enoch found himself staring at her face without realizing it.
Juliet spoke to him as he captured the moment in her eyes with the intention of engraving it in his soul.
“And I can’t stay in this room for as long as you said.”
This was expected. Enoch nodded slowly. Yes.
He had left a request, but he didn’t think Juliet would follow it. How could his opinion matter so much to her that she would heed it?
What he didn’t expect was what she said next.
“Don’t misunderstand; it’s not because I dislike being here.”
Juliet continued, her tone still overly friendly.
It sounded like an explanation. Enoch thought it was strange, but answered anyway.
“Yes.”
“But this is your bedroom; if I occupy it, where will you stay?”
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
It wasn’t an empty statement. If Juliet was going to use his bedroom, he could go somewhere else.
There were plenty of vacant rooms in the mansion, and Enoch wasn’t particular about his own space.
However, Juliet seemed to think otherwise.
With a firm expression, she shook her head.
“I do worry.”
“……Do you?”
If that was the case, then so be it. Enoch accepted her words. If she felt uncomfortable, then it was right to address it.
But Juliet was acting very strangely today, and she didn’t just let him accept things as he usually did.
Juliet spoke again.
“But I do agree that it’s too much to ask you to move right away. So could you lend me this room for a few hours?”
Enoch stared intently at the woman, who had a somewhat pale complexion. Unweary, it seemed, as she was treating him quite affectionately.
He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t hoped for this, but his puzzlement outweighed his joy at having gotten what he wanted.
It was understandable, considering her expression up until yesterday.
Even yesterday, Juliet didn’t eat anything at the dinner table.
What on earth happened overnight? The thought crossed Enoch’s mind, but he couldn’t ask directly. That would have disrupted this unfamiliar peace.
In the end, Enoch swallowed his questions. Anyway, Juliet seemed fine. And there was nothing she could say that he couldn’t be okay with.
After all, his answer was already given.
“As you wish.”
₊✩‧₊˚౨ৎ˚₊✩‧₊
“…Okay.”
As always, Juliet rolled her eyes while responding to the man, who readily acquiesced.
She hadn’t planned to end the conversation like this, but she had nothing else to say.
She tried not to be conscious of the man still standing firmly before her, racking her brain. What kind of conversation do people have in situations like this? How did she used to talk with her brother?
“What were you, uh, doing?”
Screw it. Juliet regretted her words as soon as they left her mouth. Even if she didn’t have anything to say, she couldn’t believe she’d asked such a seemingly random question.
It seemed forced, even to her.
The man blinked his blue eyes a couple of times, as if he were thinking the same thing.
“I’m sorry, I’m not sure what you mean.”
Juliet almost screamed at his honesty. Forget what you heard earlier; it didn’t mean anything.
Suppressing the impulse, she straightened her posture.
“I mean, before coming to me.”
“I was taking care of some business.”
Right, that must have been it.
Juliet swallowed the words that threatened to spill out of her mouth at any moment. Of course, she knew he had been doing something. Such a diligent person wouldn’t have been idling.
However, the purpose of her question was to continue the conversation, and in that sense, his answer was not helpful at all.
It would have been better if it was a topic she somewhat knew about, but Juliet knew nothing about half of what he was doing.
She had never learned about politics or diplomacy, and matters related to her before marriage, such as the affairs of the palace or assets, were managed by the people her brother, Driene, hired.
At least in Rosenta, that was the case. She had no throne to inherit, no diplomatic responsibilities to fulfill, and no duties to fulfill that all children of monarchs were expected to fulfill.
No one knew how long she would live, so her family didn’t burden her with many obligations.
She simply enjoyed activities and hobbies that suited her temperament and lived as much as time allowed, but then this man appeared. And then…
…What a useless thought. Juliet reined in her wandering consciousness. After all, nothing has changed since then.
Even here, she lived in luxury, perhaps even more so than in Rosenta.
There were no obligations that came with it. The domestic affairs were taken care of by the man, and even troublesome matters were resolved on his end.
Yet, it was an undeniable fact that she felt miserable.
Some holes couldn’t be filled with gold. Juliet had to learn the hard way—the way she didn’t want to.
As she briefly recalled the past she had decided to leave behind, she looked at the man. His blue eyes, filled with unease, lay before her.
Without avoiding those eyes that evoked many thoughts, Juliet continued.
“Were you very busy?”
“Not really.”
“Did I disturb you?”
“Not at all.”
It was the answer she had expected. That’s what he would say, no matter what she said. Even if she asked for half the estate, he would remain unchanged.
It wasn’t hard for Juliet to picture the conversation. “Can I have half your land?” she would say.
And he would reply. “Yes, do as you please.”
But that wasn’t what she wanted.
Trying to ignore the fluttering in her chest, Juliet smiled again.
“But still, thank you for coming right away.”
