Heavy rain poured down on Sheriton since early morning. The servants’ loud voices pierced through the clamorous sound of the rain.

“Miss!”

“Miss! Please come out!”

“Aren’t you going to have breakfast?”

It was incredibly noisy in front of Delia’s bedroom as the servants called out to her at the top of their lungs. 

One of the maids sighed with a worried look on her face. 

“What’s wrong with Miss……. She was fine until yesterday.”

“Well, actually, she’s been acting a little strange since yesterday. I went to escort her at the Grand Duke’s command in the evening, and even then, she seemed out of it.”

“Is that so……? But I’m sure she’ll come out by lunchtime, right?”

However, contrary to the maids’ expectations, even after quite some time had passed, not a single footstep could be heard from inside the room. 

As they considered various possibilities, they soon came to a dreadful conclusion. One of the servants spoke urgently. 

“L-Let’s call the Grand Duke. Something must have happened to Miss! What if she collapsed again like last time!”

It was then. 

Click, clack.

The doorknob rattled, and the tightly shut door opened a tiny crack. 

And a small voice could be heard through the gap.

“Don’t call him.”

“What?”

“If you dare call him, I’ll never forgive you.”

The servants exchanged troubled glances. 

When it came to Delia’s problems, the most effective solution was to call the Grand Duke for help.

But to tell them not to call the Grand Duke, of all people?

“M-Miss! Please tell us what’s wrong……”

“It’s just a change of heart. Nothing’s wrong. So don’t even think about calling anyone!”

But as soon as she finished speaking, the green eyes that had been visible through the crack in the door widened in surprise.

“Miss, but still……”

Slam!

“…….”

The slightly opened door slammed shut again. 

What in the world was wrong with her?

As the servants exchanged words filled with worry and concern, 

“H-His Grace, the Grand Duke!”

At one servant’s cry, the commotion died down instantly. 

“W-What brings you here……?”

To think he would come all the way here without being called. 

Kaiel, whom the Miss had just emphasized not to call, had appeared in front of them. 

Sensing the strange atmosphere among the maids, Kaiel furrowed his brow. 

“Delia is…”

At his stern expression, no one dared to open their mouths. Finally, one of the maids spoke cautiously.

“Well…… Miss has skipped breakfast and hasn’t responded to our calls. And she locked the door.”

She decided to keep to herself what Delia had said through the crack in the door. Still, now that the Grand Duke was here, she thought maybe things would be resolved. 

However, Kaiel stared at the door for a moment and spoke quietly.

“Tell her I’m gone.”

“Pardon?”

This was ridiculous. He should be ordering them to open the door.

But Kaiel simply stepped aside and gave them a look.

‘Tell her.’ 

The servant swallowed nervously and shouted towards the door.

“M-Miss……! His Grace, the Grand Duke, has left……?”

“…….”

As expected, there was no answer from inside. 

“Do it again.”

The servants watching from the side struggled to understand the situation.

The Grand Duke they knew commanded armies with a single glance and directed battlefields with a nod. Surely, a single word from him would be enough to make anyone do his bidding….

“Miss, His Grace the Grand Duke has left. Please come out and get some fresh air.”

Did it make sense that they were stuck here because of one person who wouldn’t come out?

“Your Grace, wouldn’t it be better to call her yourself……”

“Keep doing it. Until she comes out.”

The servant’s desperate voice rang out several more times. 

Meanwhile, Delia, inside the room, was at her wit’s end.

Whenever she used the character search, Kaiel’s name would pop up right in front of her.

“His Grace the Grand Duke has left, so please come out, Miss!”

Left, they said! These people……!

“Sigh……”

Delia let out a sigh. 

Having failed twice to kill him, she couldn’t bear to face him. She couldn’t predict how he would react, and his strangely calm demeanor made her even more uneasy. 

‘It would have been better if he had been angry or resentful.’

As Delia continued her futile worries,

Thump! 

A loud noise suddenly boomed from beyond the door. 

“……?”

What was that…….

Crash!

After just two loud sounds, the doorknob clattered to the floor. 

“Crazy.”

Delia instinctively stepped back from the door.

Thud.

As if mocking her efforts to lock it, the doorknob fell to the floor along with the latch. 

“That crazy—!”

He broke the door down just because she wouldn’t open it?!

But she couldn’t just stand there in shock.

Once that door opened, Kaiel would come in, and she wouldn’t be able to avoid him.

‘Run, run!’

Delia ran to the window, pulled the curtains closed to hide herself, and quickly slipped out onto the balcony. 

Just in time, the bedroom door burst open. 

Relieved that she had escaped just in time, Delia immediately regretted it as soon as she stepped onto the balcony. The heavy rain had soaked her to the bone in an instant.

‘Why! Of all times!’

Delia looked up at the sky with a resentful expression.

It was a torrential downpour, so heavy it felt like it was pounding on her head. 

The dark sky seemed to mirror her future. 

‘Still, he wouldn’t think I’d be out here in this weather, would he?’

Delia went to the corner of the balcony, pressed herself against the wall, and crouched down. 

‘Just leave already…….’

She had to make another attempt to kill him before the 24 hours were up.

So there was no need to see his face and distract herself.

‘I’ll go in after counting to 5 million.’

Delia closed her eyes quietly, letting the pouring rain soak her.

“One, two, three……”

But who knew.

Bang!

“Fo-fo-four……”

The window swung open just three seconds after she started counting.

A heavy voice cut through the sound of the rain. 

“Delia.”

“…….”

At the approaching presence, Delia opened her eyes slightly without turning her head. 

“I’ll push you if you come any closer. Don’t come any closer.”

It was a threat delivered without even looking at him or meeting his eyes. 

As expected, Kaiel ignored her threat and stood before her.

“Delia, you’ll catch a cold. Let’s go inside.”

“You know I’m out here to avoid you.”

“I know. That’s why I’m telling you to come in.”

Kaiel bent down to lift her up. Startled, Delia pressed herself against the wall, leaving her nowhere else to go.

“I told you not to come closer! Don’t touch me, don’t even acknowledge me! I told you I’d push you! Why won’t you listen to me?”

Her desperate cries, mixed with the sound of the rain, sounded even more miserable. 

At that moment, the system, which she never thought would ring in this situation, sent a cheerful notification.

Ding.

[The system has detected an opportunity.]

[Eliminate the villain ‘Kaiel Ceder’ and fulfill the author’s responsibility.]

It seemed the system now recognized every situation as an opportunity.

Perhaps now, it wanted her to push him off the balcony.

Delia grabbed her rain-soaked, heavy skirt, got up from her spot, and took a few steps back from Kaiel. Her feet, moving on their own, bumped against the railing. 

Kaiel rushed towards her, but Delia shouted.

“Don’t you dare come any closer!”

Kaiel stopped in his tracks.

“It’s dangerous. Come here for now.”

“I told you I’d push you! Do you not believe a word I say?”

Delia spat out as sharply as she could, but Kaiel just sighed and said,

“Push me, then.”

In the blink of an eye, Kaiel closed the distance between them and pulled Delia back inside the balcony. Caught off guard, Delia gritted her teeth.

“Th-this……!”

“Go on. Push me.”

Kaiel gently placed her hand on his shoulder, as if ready to be pushed.

Delia reflexively pulled her hand away and gasped as she caught a glimpse of her palm. It was stained with red blood from his shoulder. She took a deep breath and clenched her fist.

“Why didn’t you treat your wound?”

“This much is……”

“I brought you bandages and everything! Why did you just leave it like that? Why! Why?”

Finally, Delia started hitting his chest with her clenched fist as if to push him away. All her pent-up frustration poured out. 

“What kind of person are you? If someone tries to kill you, you should be angry, ask for a reason, or punish them! Why do you just let it go as if it’s nothing? It’s infuriating!”

Kaiel’s waist, which had been yielding to her every push, suddenly bumped against the railing. 

Delia, who had been fuming, abruptly furrowed her brows. 

“Shut up, you—! I know, I know!”

Just then, Kaiel, who had been leaning against the railing, spoke quietly.

“Didn’t I punish you yesterday?”

His gaze, which had flickered towards her ear and back, gleamed strangely.

“It seems it wasn’t enough.”

Delia was speechless. A moment later, her face flushed as she drew out her words. 

“That’s not what I’m talking about……”

“That’s what I’m talking about.”

As Delia’s eyes widened, Kaiel took a step back. He let out a light sigh.

“Push me.”

“What?”

“You keep saying it. Push me. Now.”

And then, instead of widening the distance between them, he suddenly closed it.

Delia instinctively reached out with both hands to create some space. 

“Ah……!”

However, reaching out at such a close distance was no different from pushing.