Duke, Please Let Go of My Ankle! - Chapter 23 - 3. Derek Doesn't Stop

Audrey woke up at noon on Sunday after sleeping in.

“Hmm? Why are the curtains still closed?”

But the room was completely dark.

The mansion, which should have been noisy, was also unusually quiet.

Audrey tilted her head in confusion and reached for the curtains.

Just as she was about to spread them open, a pale-faced Jena rushed in urgently.

“M-Miss! Don’t!”

“Huh?”

The curtain, which had opened just a sliver, was instantly closed again.

Jena held onto the fabric with her whole body.

“Miss. Please don’t be alarmed, but listen. Outside… there’s a strange person standing.”

“A strange person?”

“Yes! I don’t know how long they’ve been there, but when I looked at dawn, they were standing right in front of the main gate. And the atmosphere feels a bit odd.”

Audrey blinked in confusion.

I mean, who on earth would stand in front of someone else’s gate for hours?

They really have nothing better to do.

“Of all days, when the Count isn’t here… For now, I’ve drawn the curtains in every room so we can’t be seen from outside. Everyone’s pretending not to be here, so you should also keep quiet today, Miss.”

“But I was supposed to go to Hans’s house today.”

“I’ll prepare the carriage at the back door. You’re going to wash up now, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll get everything ready quickly!”

Jena tiptoed away carefully.

Audrey remained standing blankly in front of the curtains.

‘If I open it just a little, I won’t be seen, right?’

She thought about peeking through a finger-width gap to catch a glimpse of the madman’s face.

Just in case she needed to avoid them if she encountered them on the street.

─Swish.

“Who on earth… Eek!”

─Thud.

Audrey fell on her bottom with a face as if she’d seen a ghost.

Goosebumps ran all the way down to her tailbone.

‘It, it’s Duke Frith!’

The one standing squarely in front of someone else’s gate was Derek.

Her neurosis symptoms, which had calmed down, began to resurface.

Could he have figured out that she sent the letter? Is that why he came to catch her? But if so, shouldn’t he have barged in already?

“…”

Audrey closed the curtain with trembling hands.

Then she began to peek outside through the tiny gap.

Strangely enough, he didn’t seem to have any particular business.

His stern features, neat hair, and fluttering clothes were the same as usual.

But why on earth was he blocking someone else’s house entrance?

Standing there alone majestically while driving others into fear, he looked like the Grim Reaper himself.

If she took even one step out, would he immediately behead her?

‘…I need to sneak out.’

Oh my, how frightening. She had no desire to encounter him, not even as much as Hans’s nose hair.

‘Someone will surely go and stop him.’

Audrey quickly finished preparing and secretly left the mansion.

Derek, unaware that she had slipped out through the back door, continued to stand there blankly for a long time.

Chapter 3. Derek Doesn’t Stop

The Countess Emilton greeted Audrey with her usual welcoming face.

“Oh my, Audrey?”

“Countess Emilton! Where’s the Count?”

“He’ll be out soon. You don’t need to greet him formally. But what brings you here so early in the morning?”

“Ah, I have something to give to the sons of this house.”

“Is that so? How kind of you. Go on up then.”

“Yes!”

Audrey naturally climbed the stairs. Having come and gone here like her own home since childhood, she didn’t need any guidance.

As she was turning the corner of the staircase, she heard a familiar voice from below.

It was Count Emilton, the captain of the Duke’s knights.

“May, would you like to go for a morning walk with me?”

“My goodness! You’re too much.”

“What is…?”

“How could you tie your cravat by yourself? I’m starting to feel left out!”

“…Well, you were sleeping so soundly.”

“Still…”

“My love, please don’t be upset. Hmm? You can tie it for me now.”

“Of course I should. Come here, Willy.”

The lovely conversation of the Emilton couple could be heard from behind.

‘They’re still so in love.’

To be so sweet on a weekend morning despite having two grown sons.

It was easy to guess where Claude’s affection came from.

Hans was an exception, like a mutant.

Anyway, today she planned to give a gift to each of the two men of the Emilton family to commemorate the launch of the communication device.

It was a sort of investor perk.

As soon as Audrey arrived at the familiar door, she flung it open without knocking.

“Claude oppa?”

“H-Hey, y-you crazy girl!”

Hans, who was in the middle of changing clothes, turned around in shock.

He tried to cover his naked body by hurriedly grabbing some clothes, but that made him look even more alluring.

“I’m asking where Claude oppa is?”

“Hey!”

But Audrey showed no interest in her childhood friend’s sensual figure.

“Why aren’t you answering?”

“Are you crazy? Close it quickly!”

“Look who’s talking, you’re so mean!”

─Bang!

The sound of stomping footsteps faded away.

“…”

How can she be like that?

Hans, standing there with a dumbfounded face, suddenly seemed to realize something and quickly checked his own state.

‘Good. It was pretty perfect.’

For a pose taken so suddenly, it was cool, and the abs peeking through his reliable arms were incredibly sexy.

But what was the point? That girl didn’t even give him a second glance.

Her attitude of not caring at all after peeking at someone else’s half-naked body was disheartening.

“…Fine, whatever.”

Somehow, his body which had seemed solid and dependable just moments ago now felt as pathetic as a raw chicken.

“Oppa! Where are you?”

“Haah…”

The clear voice echoed through the hallway. That wasn’t a person, but a runaway train that didn’t know how to reverse.

Audrey often seemed to forget that Hans was a man.

No matter how long they’d known each other, he was still clearly of the opposite sex.

Yet every time she acted so casually like this, it made him feel uneasy for no reason.

He felt the urge to slightly pull at his waistband to check if what should be there was still in place.

It’s absolutely unlikely, but… he wondered if his gender had somehow changed.

‘Does she think of me as the same sex?’

He felt the need to periodically check if what should be attached hadn’t fallen off somewhere.

***

“A communication device?”

“Yes. They say you can contact and see each other’s faces even from far away.”

“Can Lokt make such things? Anyway, thanks. I’ll use it well.”

“Hehe.”

Before they knew it, the three of them were huddled together in Claude’s study.

Claude seemed to like the gift. Seeing him fiddle with it curiously made her feel so proud.

Meanwhile, Hans narrowed his eyes and looked back and forth between the two.

‘What’s going on? So, was she rejected or not?’

That acorn was impossible to figure out.

Was she thick-skinned or just shameless? After crying that much and even drowning in alcohol, shouldn’t it be time to give up?

The fact that she was chasing after him even more actively than before was beyond the understanding of any normal person.

Still, it was a relief to see her face looking relaxed.

She had been looking gloomy these past few days, oppressed by Duke Frith.

“Ah, right! I learned something interesting recently.”

“Something interesting? What is it?”

“They say there’s something called palm reading in the Old Continent! Apparently, you can tell your destiny by the shape of the lines?”

“Just by looking at palm lines? Wow, that’s really fascinating.”

Hans’s eyes narrowed.

What was she up to this time? It already smelled suspicious.

“Shall I read your palm too, Claude oppa?”

“Sure, I’d like that. I’m looking forward to it.”

“Then, give me your hand!”

“…!”

That, that cunning girl!

Hans couldn’t sit still, fidgeting like a puppy that needed to pee.

It was because Audrey had naturally taken Claude’s hand under the pretense of reading his palm.

‘That, that’s full of ulterior motives!’

Sitting close face to face with their heads together, peering at the palm, they looked quite intimate.

“This is the lifeline, they say. It tells you about a person’s lifespan.”

“Really? Is this length okay?”

“Of course!”

The small finger traced along the line, running across the palm.

Was it just his imagination that the lecherous fingertip seemed to be oozing with ulterior motives?

“Here is… the heart line. If it’s unbroken and extends upwards, they say it means you’re faithful, only looking at one person.”

“…”

“The person who becomes oppa’s wife will be lucky.”

Claude smiled silently.

Audrey was looking at the palm lines with a serious face, when suddenly she playfully tickled his palm.

“Ah, that tickles.”

“How about this?”

“Ah, Audrey!”

The large hand started to flee here and there. The incomparably smaller hand mischievously chased after it.

The two laughed like naughty children while playing this childish game.

“Stop, stop! I surrender!”

“Ticklish, right? Hm?”

“Please, pff-haha, Audrey!”

Well, well?

The game ended as Claude’s hand swiftly caught both of Audrey’s hands.

‘Ha! They’re not three-year-olds!’

Hans, who had been a spectator from start to finish, was thoroughly annoyed.

Do these two have any awareness that they’re adults?

How many times are they going to hold hands under the excuse of such childish play?

“Hey, what about me?”

“What?”

“How long am I going to live?”

“…”

The palm suddenly thrust out was out of place.

Audrey looked at Hans’s palm halfheartedly with a face that had lost all excitement.

“Well, you’ll live long enough, I guess.”

“Is that all? Look at it more sincerely.”

“Wow, you’ll live until you smear poop on the wall! Congratulations. Happy now?”

“You, really!”

“Eek! Gross! Get away! I said get away!”

Claude watched the two friendly people with a pleased smile. Then he stood up holding the communication device.

‘Hmm, where should I put this?’

Even as the two younger ones were screaming for help from each other, his mind was completely sold on the communication device.

‘Ah. That place would be good.’

After much deliberation, the place he chose was on the desk, strewn with blank letter papers.

When he turned his head again, the study had turned into a complete mess.