After their private meal ended, Kaela thought it was strange as she watched Peon’s back as he reluctantly turned to look back but ultimately headed to his office.
It was Kaela who had been left alone in the dining room chewing tough meat, not Beatrice, but today their positions had switched.
She realized this atmosphere was possible before Beatrice stirred things up. But she also knew it would end here. Not from tomorrow.
‘Not from tomorrow.’
She turned away and prepared for the night. The nights in Lusenford were long and deep. She needed to wash her body with warm water, quickly wrap herself before the cooled water stole her warmth, and hurry into the bed warmed by a bed warmer.
‘Well, when else would I enjoy such hot water and a warm bed?’
The now-exiled former head maid, Doris Windgood, had deliberately assigned only incompetent maids to Kaela who would either heat the water too hot or too lukewarm.
When Kaela scolded them for risking injury or constant colds, the maids would burst into tears, and the head maid painted the Grand Duchess as a difficult, nasty person.
As time passed, this transformed into the image of a hysterical woman who wasn’t receiving her husband’s love.
The so-called “mistakes” weren’t limited to just getting the water temperature wrong or forgetting to put in the bed warmer. In the brutal cold of Lusenford, she withered away day by day like that. It was a terrible time.
“Good night, Your Highness.”
“Sleep well.”
In Lusenford, survival was the biggest issue. Kaela no longer knew how to survive. She had tried everything against those who disliked her, and after failing at everything, she had died. So she had no strength left to think further.
‘Beatrice Ravalley sweeping through Lusenford might be an opportunity. While everyone is focused on her, I should send Marie away first. Next week? Yes, next week would be good.’
She had to hurry.
‘Hurry up and die.’
She had to disappear by dying.
Just because things had changed a little didn’t guarantee her survival. No, she was just sick and tired of surviving in this place.
And she didn’t have the strength for it either. Kaela closed her eyes and sank into darkness. If only she could die like this, sinking down.
Quietly.
“Where else?”
Without pain.
“To my wife.”
Following the sound of the door closing with a thud, Kaela opened her eyes. The silhouette of the man who had closed that door and entered was revealed in the white moonlight shining through the half-drawn curtains and the red fireplace light.
Kaela stared blankly at that man. Had she already fallen asleep? Was she dreaming now?
His usually neatly combed black hair was slightly disheveled and wet, falling down. He stood there with his shirt buttons undone. It was an even more embarrassing appearance than their first night.
What was most surprising was the voice Kaela had heard with her eyes closed. The voice was clearly casual yet dangerous, and the content was even more perplexing.
“Did I wake you? Oh, I’m sorry, Your Highness.”
But as soon as their eyes met, his voice changed completely. The voice that had been almost arrogant now apologized politely to Kaela, not knowing what to do.
“Is someone outside?”
When Kaela asked quietly, Peon tensed up without realizing it.
“Yes. Please don’t worry about it and go back to sleep. I’ll leave soon too.”
He had planned to sit quietly without disturbing her, sitting far away from the bed, and then slip out once Beatrice left. He must not disturb Kaela’s rest at all costs.
“Is it Lady Ravalley?”
Unexpectedly, Kaela hit the mark sharply. And at that moment, Peon anticipated what Kaela would say if he answered.
–You should go. Don’t worry about me. It’s fine. Go ahead.
It was all words he didn’t want to hear. She would say those unpleasant words knowing full well what it meant to send her husband to another woman at night.
“Yes. She’s been persistently following me, which is quite unpleasant. I came to you, hoping she would finally respect some boundaries.”
So he spoke deliberately more firmly and clearly, leaving no room for doubt.
“It might be uncomfortable for you, but I’ll need to stay here for a few hours. Please don’t mind me and go to sleep.”
Speaking so strongly, Kaela couldn’t find any reason to say more. There was nothing to say anyway.
This was clearly Peon’s bedroom, and who could stop the owner of the bedroom from claiming to stay here? And the relationship between Peon and Beatrice was his business, not something for Kaela to interfere with. She was an outsider after all.
So Kaela had no choice but to lie back down.
“Yes, good night to you too, Your Highness.”
“Sleep well.”
In an instant, it felt like Peon had filled the bedroom again. The presence of this massive man was equally massive.
He moved very quietly, but Kaela couldn’t disconnect her senses from him. A heavy scent followed the man as he used a towel to dry his hair, added more firewood to the fireplace, and sat in a nearby chair.
Kaela gently opened her eyes that she had closed. She could see Peon’s profile as he sat facing the fireplace.
His face, where bright light and deep shadows danced simultaneously, was strong and beautiful. His unwavering eyes were staring directly at the flames, but a fleeting expression of fatigue crossed his face for a moment.
“Your Highness.”
She called out in a small voice, almost whispering, and he immediately turned to her. As if he had never been tired, he smiled gently.
“Do you need anything?”
“Come up here and sleep. The bed is wide enough.”
Peon suddenly stiffened.
“Don’t worry about me. There’s enough room if we sleep on opposite ends.”
“I can’t share a bed with a patient.”
“There’s room for two people and more. Besides, it’s my job to ensure Your Highness is not uncomfortable.”
The new head maid was determined to get rid of this ridiculously large bed, but nonetheless, this bed was functional.
Kaela’s words were reasonable, given that the bed had space to spare even for Peon to use comfortably, despite his exceptional physique even among the tall and well-built people of Lusenford.
But Peon was very troubled by those words. Especially the last part. ‘My job,’ she said. Always reminded of his young wife before the regression, he couldn’t help but learn things about his current wife that he hadn’t known before.
Had Kaela spent their entire marriage just trying to fulfill her responsibilities as the Grand Duchess out of a sense of duty? Had she never had any affection for him?
‘Am I crazy?’
How could there be any affection after what he had done? Peon was both disgusted with himself for being shocked only now and still suffered from the shock.
