There's no telling when the group of black magicians, including Empress Giselle, might chase me and attack me.
Before my memories returned, I was embarrassed that the daughter of the prestigious magic family, Argenthoz, suffered from magical amnesia, and was afraid of being excommunicated from my family, so I was unable to borrow money to save Thiels.
But now I think differently.
Duke Argenthoz, that is, my father, would never expel me. Nor would Barden...
Now I know that both my father and Barden love and cherish me very much.
I wish I had approached them more closely and treated them more gently before.
Knowing how blessed life is to have a family, I will cherish my father and Barden.
Now, on the contrary, I want to protect my father and Barden.
If we get involved with those black magicians, it'll be hard for my father and Barden.
'I'll just take care of saving Thiels and dealing with the crazy warlocks.'
Since I've already saved enough money to buy Thiels by selling the Rhodia grass Bath Salt, I just need to get Thiels quickly.
'Yes. Once we confirm that Rudnine is up and running... let's find out where the Thiels Mine is and head there quickly.'
Rudnine, still asleep with his eyes closed, shows no sign of waking up.
I got up from my seat and carefully placed the fan and vial of reagent I had brought as evidence from the Palace of Peace in my lime-green locker.
These alone are not enough to constitute evidence.
If there are clear circumstances later, it would be more advantageous to submit them as evidence at trial promptly.
I closed the locker, turned around, and chuckled at the sight of Pembe nodding off.
“Pembe. If you’re sleepy, go to my bed and sleep.”
"Huh? Is that okay? I'm tired from working so hard today, treating both you and this guy for the first time in a while! Haaam."
"Yes. Of course. Thank you, Pembe. I'll bring you more special snacks tomorrow."
"Yay. Really? It's a promise!"
As I watched Pembe's back as he left the lab, his voice trembling with excitement, I turned my gaze back to Rudnine's sleeping face.
When will he wake up?
I have a lot of questions for this person.
I wonder how on earth he found me collapsed in front of the glass greenhouse. I also wonder how hard it was to get me to the Argenthoz mansion...
“I also want to tell you stories that I couldn’t tell you at the palace.”
I leaned my chin on my neatly folded knees and looked at Rudnine obliquely, then yawned softly.
'Haam.'
There was so much going on today.
I'm tired and lethargic.
In the silence that has settled inside the windowless, quiet laboratory, only the sound of his rhythmic breathing resonates.
The sound is so cozy and relaxing that it makes me fall asleep.
'This.'
I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids kept drooping.
I can't sleep....
Hmm... how long did I sleep?
My eyes opened on their own, and I couldn't even guess how much time had passed.
It's so hazy.
I slowly lifted my head from my knees and raised my upper body, trying to come to my senses.
‘I should drink some water and wake up...’
The moment I turned around to get up, I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand.
A large arm wrapped around my shoulder and, in an instant, pulled me from behind and hugged me.
'Uh?'
My body leaned back, but I immediately settled softly on his firm chest.
Slap.
A pair of black eyes looking down at me entered my still half-asleep gaze.
Immediately after, a low, bass sound rang in my ears.
“Where are you going?”
Where are you going?
That's it, the most beautiful lake in the world, clear as snow, into your eyes...
Are you crazy?
Even though it was just a dream, I laughed because he seemed a little out of his mind, but then his arms tightened around me.
“Don’t go.”
Half-asleep.
Only then did my mind, which had been floating on the border between dreams and reality, come to a complete awakening.
“Rudd?”
"... Yes."
A slightly trembling voice.
“When, when did you wake up?”
Did it happen while I was sleeping?
Surprised, I tried to turn around in a hurry to check on Rudnine's condition, but I couldn't.
"Ah."
Because he didn't relax his grip on me even a little bit.
“Rudd, just a moment.”
“Just a moment... Can we stay like this? Just a moment.”
“Oh, so. Is this it?”
I can feel your hot breath as you sit down, hugging me from behind and bowing your head...
Hey, do you want a back hug?
'Oh, my God.'
In this posture, where his solid muscles, body odor, breathing, and even heartbeat were all transmitted in perfect detail, my ears gradually turned bright red.
"Yes..."
A desperate reply came from behind me.
I swallowed hard and spoke in a raspy voice.
“I won’t run away... Why should I...?”
This is my lab, and Rudnine is here, so why would I run away?
In the safest place, with the person who saved me, and with the man I love.
Rather, I wish time would stop, or rather, I wish I could be trapped like this forever.
As I was trembling with fear, wondering what would happen if my feelings were revealed in my actions, I heard his voice again from behind me.
“I’m sorry. But...”
"Yes?"
"I'm just checking. Is Yvonne alive? Your heart wasn't beating this hard earlier. Your breathing was weak."
Rudnine tightened his grip on my waist and shoulders, hugging me tighter.
‘Wow, I’m going crazy...’
Really...
Raise your hand if you know what it feels like to cry because something is so good, but you can't express it freely.
And honestly, my heart and lungs are working harder than usual right now.
You're making me jump around so excited because you're hugging me so tightly from behind!
'Ah... I really think I'm going to faint again at this rate. I want to tell him to let me go.'
Because of the mindless hearts and lungs that party without knowing anything, the innocent brain is ripening.
'Hmm.'
But when I glanced back and looked at Rudnine's face, unlike my cheeky self, he was very serious.
A stiff, set mouth, eyes still filled with worry.
Oh, right.
According to Pembe's explanation, Rudnine managed to remove the poison and bring me here alive, but I was in a state of near-death.
You must have been very worried.
'This is not the time.'
I was sorry to be rude to him, the man who saved my life, so I quickly erased the unwanted thoughts from my mind and patted his arm to calm him down.
"I'm fine. I heard you saved me. Thank you so much."
“...”
“Really? Don’t you believe me?”
“...I believe.”
After a moment of silence, the answer was affirmative, but there was no confidence in his voice.
'Oh my, what should I do?'
How did this person end up like this?
Was the wound on my calf from the bite of that snake familiar called High-ranking servant familiar, really that terrible?
Maybe it was so hard to get the poison out of that wound that it became traumatic!
'I'm sorry.'
I felt a sense of duty to somehow comfort and calm him, so I patted his arm that was tightly wrapped around me.
“Excuse me, Rudd. Let me go.”
"Yes..."
Rudnine hesitated for a moment, then relaxed his arms slightly.
I quickly turned around, sat down facing him, and looked up at his face. Then, my mouth fell open in surprise.
“Why is it like this?”
He had been sleeping and seemed quite comfortable, but now he was stiff and stiff.
It's like someone who has encountered a scary, evil spirit in a dream and has been greatly shocked.
'Oh my god.'
Since the eyes looking at me were still lifeless, I unconsciously placed my hand on his cheek, looked straight into his eyes, and whispered.
“It’s all okay now, Rudd.”
"Yes."
“There are no familiars. I’m all better now.”
"... Yes."
"I'm sorry I showed you that. And thank you so much for saving me. Thanks to you... I survived."
As I finished speaking, Rudnaine's eyes began to focus again.
“Yvonne.”
He called me exactly that.
Even his pale face began to turn red, and he returned to his original self.
'Thank god.'
“Yes, Rudd.”
Now that I felt relieved, I deliberately smiled and answered, but he still didn't smile.
And then he took my hand that was on his cheek and brought it down, and spoke firmly and firmly in a stern tone.
“From now on, this kind of thing must never happen again.”
"Ah."
What does he mean by 'this kind of thing'?
The thing about me almost collapsing in front of the glasshouse? Causing trouble for him? I shouldn't make things difficult for him.
My head was spinning and I couldn't answer, but he held my hand and gave me a firm squeeze.
I looked at him again, and he opened his mouth.
“If there is something you absolutely must do, please take me with you.”
“Yes? Rudd?”
“Yes. Didn’t I tell you last time that you could use me?”
“That, that’s it...”
I hesitated and avoided eye contact.
‘No, how could you, a noble Duke, be used by someone like me...!’
As I was thinking the same thing as last time and talking nonsense, I suddenly remembered what Prince Felix had said teasingly.
A saying that a Princess has everything but lacks discernment.
'Oh, no... this isn't it.'
I turned my head again.
He was still looking at me.
'Ah.'
I think I understand a little now. I finally realize it.
This person's sincerity.
The heart of this man who risked his life to carry me and run here...
My fingers were shaking slightly.
“No way, that’s not it.”
My throat was so dry that my voice cracked and sounded ugly, but I couldn't stop.
“Because you... like me?”
I asked with difficulty, and the answer came back quickly.
"Yes. I like you. So, I never want to see Yvonne like that again."
A shadow appeared around his eyes as he remembered the way I had fallen, but he smiled as soon as he met my eyes again.
He likes me.
As expected, what he said in the Palace of Peace was true!
Why on earth do you like someone like me?
The more I realized the dedication, ability, and affection he had shown in bringing me here, the more I became puzzled.
At this moment, when I remember the stupid things I did in the past, I don't understand anymore.
There must be many women who are better-natured, more capable, cuter, kinder, and prettier than me.
They said he only worked in the northern territory, so is this because I was the first woman he met privately?
Or maybe...
‘It’s not that I like him as much as he does... I’m just a little interested, but he’s such an affectionate person, so I might be mistaking his feelings.’
But I like him too much.
So, even though it was a bit cowardly, I decided not to miss this opportunity.
Rudnine took a deep breath and clenched his teeth with a determined expression.
“So, next time...”
“Rudd.”
I cut him off and asked cautiously, glancing at his expression.
“Can I like you too?”
Rudnine's lips and eyes, which had been stiff, loosen up.
I was trembling because I could see his reaction so closely, but I didn't want to delay it any longer.
"I already liked you so much. I'm finally going to ask you directly."
I mustered up my courage again and asked.
“...Is that okay? Is it okay if I like you?"
Before my memories returned, I was embarrassed that the daughter of the prestigious magic family, Argenthoz, suffered from magical amnesia, and was afraid of being excommunicated from my family, so I was unable to borrow money to save Thiels.
But now I think differently.
Duke Argenthoz, that is, my father, would never expel me. Nor would Barden...
Now I know that both my father and Barden love and cherish me very much.
I wish I had approached them more closely and treated them more gently before.
Knowing how blessed life is to have a family, I will cherish my father and Barden.
Now, on the contrary, I want to protect my father and Barden.
If we get involved with those black magicians, it'll be hard for my father and Barden.
'I'll just take care of saving Thiels and dealing with the crazy warlocks.'
Since I've already saved enough money to buy Thiels by selling the Rhodia grass Bath Salt, I just need to get Thiels quickly.
'Yes. Once we confirm that Rudnine is up and running... let's find out where the Thiels Mine is and head there quickly.'
Rudnine, still asleep with his eyes closed, shows no sign of waking up.
I got up from my seat and carefully placed the fan and vial of reagent I had brought as evidence from the Palace of Peace in my lime-green locker.
These alone are not enough to constitute evidence.
If there are clear circumstances later, it would be more advantageous to submit them as evidence at trial promptly.
I closed the locker, turned around, and chuckled at the sight of Pembe nodding off.
“Pembe. If you’re sleepy, go to my bed and sleep.”
"Huh? Is that okay? I'm tired from working so hard today, treating both you and this guy for the first time in a while! Haaam."
"Yes. Of course. Thank you, Pembe. I'll bring you more special snacks tomorrow."
"Yay. Really? It's a promise!"
As I watched Pembe's back as he left the lab, his voice trembling with excitement, I turned my gaze back to Rudnine's sleeping face.
When will he wake up?
I have a lot of questions for this person.
I wonder how on earth he found me collapsed in front of the glass greenhouse. I also wonder how hard it was to get me to the Argenthoz mansion...
“I also want to tell you stories that I couldn’t tell you at the palace.”
I leaned my chin on my neatly folded knees and looked at Rudnine obliquely, then yawned softly.
'Haam.'
There was so much going on today.
I'm tired and lethargic.
In the silence that has settled inside the windowless, quiet laboratory, only the sound of his rhythmic breathing resonates.
The sound is so cozy and relaxing that it makes me fall asleep.
'This.'
I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids kept drooping.
I can't sleep....
Hmm... how long did I sleep?
My eyes opened on their own, and I couldn't even guess how much time had passed.
It's so hazy.
I slowly lifted my head from my knees and raised my upper body, trying to come to my senses.
‘I should drink some water and wake up...’
The moment I turned around to get up, I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand.
A large arm wrapped around my shoulder and, in an instant, pulled me from behind and hugged me.
'Uh?'
My body leaned back, but I immediately settled softly on his firm chest.
Slap.
A pair of black eyes looking down at me entered my still half-asleep gaze.
Immediately after, a low, bass sound rang in my ears.
“Where are you going?”
Where are you going?
That's it, the most beautiful lake in the world, clear as snow, into your eyes...
Are you crazy?
Even though it was just a dream, I laughed because he seemed a little out of his mind, but then his arms tightened around me.
“Don’t go.”
Half-asleep.
Only then did my mind, which had been floating on the border between dreams and reality, come to a complete awakening.
“Rudd?”
"... Yes."
A slightly trembling voice.
“When, when did you wake up?”
Did it happen while I was sleeping?
Surprised, I tried to turn around in a hurry to check on Rudnine's condition, but I couldn't.
"Ah."
Because he didn't relax his grip on me even a little bit.
“Rudd, just a moment.”
“Just a moment... Can we stay like this? Just a moment.”
“Oh, so. Is this it?”
I can feel your hot breath as you sit down, hugging me from behind and bowing your head...
Hey, do you want a back hug?
'Oh, my God.'
In this posture, where his solid muscles, body odor, breathing, and even heartbeat were all transmitted in perfect detail, my ears gradually turned bright red.
"Yes..."
A desperate reply came from behind me.
I swallowed hard and spoke in a raspy voice.
“I won’t run away... Why should I...?”
This is my lab, and Rudnine is here, so why would I run away?
In the safest place, with the person who saved me, and with the man I love.
Rather, I wish time would stop, or rather, I wish I could be trapped like this forever.
As I was trembling with fear, wondering what would happen if my feelings were revealed in my actions, I heard his voice again from behind me.
“I’m sorry. But...”
"Yes?"
"I'm just checking. Is Yvonne alive? Your heart wasn't beating this hard earlier. Your breathing was weak."
Rudnine tightened his grip on my waist and shoulders, hugging me tighter.
‘Wow, I’m going crazy...’
Really...
Raise your hand if you know what it feels like to cry because something is so good, but you can't express it freely.
And honestly, my heart and lungs are working harder than usual right now.
You're making me jump around so excited because you're hugging me so tightly from behind!
'Ah... I really think I'm going to faint again at this rate. I want to tell him to let me go.'
Because of the mindless hearts and lungs that party without knowing anything, the innocent brain is ripening.
'Hmm.'
But when I glanced back and looked at Rudnine's face, unlike my cheeky self, he was very serious.
A stiff, set mouth, eyes still filled with worry.
Oh, right.
According to Pembe's explanation, Rudnine managed to remove the poison and bring me here alive, but I was in a state of near-death.
You must have been very worried.
'This is not the time.'
I was sorry to be rude to him, the man who saved my life, so I quickly erased the unwanted thoughts from my mind and patted his arm to calm him down.
"I'm fine. I heard you saved me. Thank you so much."
“...”
“Really? Don’t you believe me?”
“...I believe.”
After a moment of silence, the answer was affirmative, but there was no confidence in his voice.
'Oh my, what should I do?'
How did this person end up like this?
Was the wound on my calf from the bite of that snake familiar called High-ranking servant familiar, really that terrible?
Maybe it was so hard to get the poison out of that wound that it became traumatic!
'I'm sorry.'
I felt a sense of duty to somehow comfort and calm him, so I patted his arm that was tightly wrapped around me.
“Excuse me, Rudd. Let me go.”
"Yes..."
Rudnine hesitated for a moment, then relaxed his arms slightly.
I quickly turned around, sat down facing him, and looked up at his face. Then, my mouth fell open in surprise.
“Why is it like this?”
He had been sleeping and seemed quite comfortable, but now he was stiff and stiff.
It's like someone who has encountered a scary, evil spirit in a dream and has been greatly shocked.
'Oh my god.'
Since the eyes looking at me were still lifeless, I unconsciously placed my hand on his cheek, looked straight into his eyes, and whispered.
“It’s all okay now, Rudd.”
"Yes."
“There are no familiars. I’m all better now.”
"... Yes."
"I'm sorry I showed you that. And thank you so much for saving me. Thanks to you... I survived."
As I finished speaking, Rudnaine's eyes began to focus again.
“Yvonne.”
He called me exactly that.
Even his pale face began to turn red, and he returned to his original self.
'Thank god.'
“Yes, Rudd.”
Now that I felt relieved, I deliberately smiled and answered, but he still didn't smile.
And then he took my hand that was on his cheek and brought it down, and spoke firmly and firmly in a stern tone.
“From now on, this kind of thing must never happen again.”
"Ah."
What does he mean by 'this kind of thing'?
The thing about me almost collapsing in front of the glasshouse? Causing trouble for him? I shouldn't make things difficult for him.
My head was spinning and I couldn't answer, but he held my hand and gave me a firm squeeze.
I looked at him again, and he opened his mouth.
“If there is something you absolutely must do, please take me with you.”
“Yes? Rudd?”
“Yes. Didn’t I tell you last time that you could use me?”
“That, that’s it...”
I hesitated and avoided eye contact.
‘No, how could you, a noble Duke, be used by someone like me...!’
As I was thinking the same thing as last time and talking nonsense, I suddenly remembered what Prince Felix had said teasingly.
A saying that a Princess has everything but lacks discernment.
'Oh, no... this isn't it.'
I turned my head again.
He was still looking at me.
'Ah.'
I think I understand a little now. I finally realize it.
This person's sincerity.
The heart of this man who risked his life to carry me and run here...
My fingers were shaking slightly.
“No way, that’s not it.”
My throat was so dry that my voice cracked and sounded ugly, but I couldn't stop.
“Because you... like me?”
I asked with difficulty, and the answer came back quickly.
"Yes. I like you. So, I never want to see Yvonne like that again."
A shadow appeared around his eyes as he remembered the way I had fallen, but he smiled as soon as he met my eyes again.
He likes me.
As expected, what he said in the Palace of Peace was true!
Why on earth do you like someone like me?
The more I realized the dedication, ability, and affection he had shown in bringing me here, the more I became puzzled.
At this moment, when I remember the stupid things I did in the past, I don't understand anymore.
There must be many women who are better-natured, more capable, cuter, kinder, and prettier than me.
They said he only worked in the northern territory, so is this because I was the first woman he met privately?
Or maybe...
‘It’s not that I like him as much as he does... I’m just a little interested, but he’s such an affectionate person, so I might be mistaking his feelings.’
But I like him too much.
So, even though it was a bit cowardly, I decided not to miss this opportunity.
Rudnine took a deep breath and clenched his teeth with a determined expression.
“So, next time...”
“Rudd.”
I cut him off and asked cautiously, glancing at his expression.
“Can I like you too?”
Rudnine's lips and eyes, which had been stiff, loosen up.
I was trembling because I could see his reaction so closely, but I didn't want to delay it any longer.
"I already liked you so much. I'm finally going to ask you directly."
I mustered up my courage again and asked.
“...Is that okay? Is it okay if I like you?"
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