IDEFYEM - Chapter 84
Black Man, I'll Do Everything For You Except Marriage!
I placed my hand on the forehead of the man who was spitting out strange sleep-talk.
Could it be that it rained even a little? It felt a little hotter than usual as if his fever had risen.
I tried to be patient and wait a little longer, but his mouth would no longer open.
As I was thinking about our conversation earlier, I remembered something I once heard.
'I heard that there are cases where if you talk to someone who is dreaming, they will answer.'
I spoke to the man, being careful not to completely wake him up.
"Raphael."
There was no movement in his expression.
"Where are you now?"
I had to be persistent. I asked calmly, thinking I was trying to hypnotize him.
As if in response to an earnest wish, an understandable answer soon came back.
"In the North..."
By the northern part, do you mean the Grand Duke's residence?
"What are you doing?"
"Holding a dying woman in my arms."
Goosebumps appeared on the back of my neck because of the creepy content I heard.
The rain that had been falling before I went to sleep had stopped, but the rainwater that had collected on the roof was dripping onto the window frame.
Such a gloomy atmosphere was created that I swallowed my saliva without realizing it.
'No. When you can talk like this, you have to get some information.'
The dying woman, if by any chance it is Enrica, is consistent with the original. It was a great clue to be considered a coincidence.
I shook my head to shake off the awkward feeling and asked again.
"You killed her? Why?"
But that night, no matter how much I asked, Raphael's mouth would not open again.
After dozens of questions, I gave up on getting information and laid down. Before I went to sleep, I put my hand on his forehead again, and as the rain stopped, his fever seemed to have slowly come down, so there was nothing to worry about.
But there was no way I could fall asleep again in such a distraught mood.
So, on the first night of my marriage to the Grand Duke, I spent the night wide awake.
'But I didn't die until morning."
I guess the reason I survived was because I didn't want to die and struggled all this time. Maybe the original story was already distorted and I was making a fool of myself.
"Phew...."
There was nothing I could know right away, but I was so distraught that I sighed.
Meanwhile, a new sun was rising, as if commemorating a turning point in life.
***
Early morning, the sun was barely starting to rise.
I stared at Raphael, who was sleeping on the floor, and waited.
And finally, as soon as the man woke up and opened his eyelids, he said.
"Let's go quickly."
"... Good morning. What did you just say?"
"Let's hurry and leave for the villa."
"Didn't you consider canceling your plans until yesterday?"
I muttered, pretending not to have heard Raphael's words.
"Hmm. I guess I really don't remember."
"Did you cause trouble in your sleep?"
"How are you feeling?"
"Have I ever been sick?"
A strange conversation that seemed to make sense but didn't, continue.
I left Raphael, who had a very confused expression on his face and finished saying what I wanted to say.
"Anyway, I want to go to the villa quickly. I will call the maid and get ready, so please bring the schedule forward a little."
After the early morning conversation, my curiosity about the northern villa grew even more.
I wanted to visit the place that was the setting of Raphael's nightmare.
"I heard it's where you were born, Raphael. Maybe we can find the cause of the curse there."
"Aren't you mad at me?"
Raphael asked a question as if he had no idea what was happening.
Actually, I don't know that yet.
To the question that was difficult to answer. I lightly shrugged my shoulders and left the room.
***
Since it had rained once, the sky was particularly clear and bright. It was the season when the leaves, which had begun to turn yellow, began to fall one by one.
Since she would only be able to stay there for a week at most, Sarah decided that it would be better to remain in the capital and monitor the Dukedom's movements.
Raphael also said that there was no one to take with him except his aide.
With only a small number of people, we packed up our simple luggage and set out on our trip.
"Is it okay if we leave now?"
"Yes, I'm okay."
When he gave a signal to the driver, the wheels began to roll with a clunk.
Even if you use the portal along the way. It took about two days to reach the north.
"..."
There was silence. I once again began to worry about the remaining two days.
In the end, I couldn't stand the silence and took the first step to bring up a trivial topic.
"Is it still cold in the North?"
"It won't be warm weather."
Did he grow up in a place where all four seasons are winter, so why are his eyes so blue?
While thinking about something ridiculous, I folded my hands and fidgeted.
Actually, this wasn't what I really wanted to ask right now.
Since my fear of the Grand Duke had subsided considerably, I asked on impulse.
"Is it true that you love me?"
"I'm serious."
Even though the question was sudden, the man answered without any hesitation.
"Aren't you really afraid that I might run away? For now, it's the only clue to breaking the curse."
"If you want to leave even now. I will do my best to help."
Well, he doesn't know, but I already turned down Tristan's offer once.
Even though I would be angry at Raphael and hate him, I had no intention of leaving.
"I might regret it a little bit."
I muttered bitterly.
"What if I had been honest with you from the beginning about why I was afraid of the Grand Duke? We could have put our heads together and found a solution."
A 5-year-old who was afraid of fairy tale villains who did not exist in reality.
It felt like I had become that 5-year-old child and then suddenly returned to reality.
"Actually, I'm not sure how I should feel about you, Raphael."
"..."
"To think that every moment was a lie, to think that I lived in a world created to deceive me for months... I feel like my insides are twisting."
I closed my eyes tightly and poured out my feelings. I had no intention of making the atmosphere this serious from the beginning.
Raphael opened his mouth after a while.
"If you think of something that would put your mind at ease, let me know."
"Are you going to do anything?"
"Yeah, anything."
"Then make it funny."
Perhaps thinking he had heard wrong, he tilted his head.
It was a golden opportunity to ask Grand Duke Kronhardt for anything, but in the end, this was what I chose.
"Try your best to make me laugh. Then I think I'll feel at ease."
I didn't want to ride a carriage in this suffocating atmosphere for two whole days.
"I don't have any talent in that area."
"Did you think it would be easy to heal the wounds in my heart that have accumulated over the past few months?"
As if it was an acceptable answer, he rested his chin and began to think in earnest.
It looked so serious that I thought someone would misunderstand it if they saw it.
'Is this the taste of power?'
It wasn't a bad thing to see the Grand Duke looking at me and thinking.
After a long period of contemplation, Raphael shifted his gaze towards me.
"Do you know what a cat will say when you talk to it?"
Hmm, was this really the best?
I blurted my eyes out and asked roughly the answer that seemed like a cliché even if I didn't hear it.
"What is it?"
There was a silence that seemed like it would never end.
"Why...."
I thought he was a little cute since he was someone I liked.
'I don't know how to react.'
Meanwhile, Raphael's ears became increasingly red, becoming a color similar to the autumn leaves outside the window.
"So, comparing the answer to why' to the sound of a cat crying..."
He started explaining late, but the situation only got worse.
It was the same for me, but my request to lighten the mood seemed to have made the situation worse.
I blinked and cleared my throat.
"Ah. I stayed up all night and ended up like this."
I muttered to myself for anyone to hear and leaned my head against the window.
"... Sleep well, Enri."
The rattling carriage was not a good environment for a good night's sleep, but my eyes quickly closed due to the fatigue accumulated from last night.
***
When I opened my eyes, I was lying down on something that looked like a hard pillow.
'I obviously fell asleep in the carriage?'
As soon as I raised my head while wondering, I screamed in surprise.
"Ahh!"
My last memory was leaning my head against the window, but now I somehow found myself resting my head on Raphael's lap.
"Oh, are you awake?"
"Why is my posture like this...."
"The road was rough and the carriage was very shaky. I couldn't just watch you hit your head against the window."
What I thought was a hard pillow was Raphael's thigh. Unlike me, whose face naturally blushed, I found it a bit odd that he was calm.
"I think I slept for over 10 hours."
I rubbed my eyes and he answered.
"That much time has passed."
"Yes?"
"We will soon arrive at the inn where we will stay for the night. I also take care of our meals."
I was dumbfounded, opened my eyes wide, and looked around. I never thought I would sleep so soundly.
After waiting a bit, the carriage soon stopped in front of an old inn.
"Please bear with me even if it's a little uncomfortable today. We will arrive by tomorrow night."
"Why isn't camping?"
As soon as I said it didn't matter and got off the carriage, a chill hit me.
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