‘What’s wrong with me?’

Come to think of it, this has been happening a lot lately.

Whenever Emma was near Caden, she felt unnecessarily tense, and a subtle warmth would rise from her body. Her heart would ache constantly as well.

‘Is it because I’m scared? Or… could it be?’

A hypothesis suddenly flashed through Emma’s mind.

‘You’ve lost it, Emma Brown! Feeling lust for your superior?!’

As embarrassing as it was, there was no other explanation except “lust.” It seemed like her body, which had experienced its first physical union with a man, was biologically reacting to its partner.

‘Th-this makes sense! It’s a natural phenomenon, isn’t it? Humans are animals too, and reproduction is an instinct for animals. Both of us are adults, so it’s not strange to feel this way about His Grace!’

She had been feeling strange for days, but now she finally understood the problem. Her body was reacting to her partner after recalling the memory of that night. It might even be a natural response.

But she couldn’t allow herself to be swept away by this physical attraction. History within the Empire had shown time and again that unchecked lust clouded reason.

She needed to cool this heat somehow. To do that, she had to keep as much distance as possible from Caden’s overwhelmingly sexy presence.

“Can I step back a little?”

She was about to put some distance between them to regain her composure.

“Who said you could?”

Caden, who had been staring at her with a sharp expression, reached out his large hand toward her.

“Ah!”

In an instant, their bodies were pressed together with no space between them.

Emma couldn’t even breathe properly. How long did they stay like that? Her face turned pale, and a bluish tint began to appear due to the lack of air.

“You really are a troublesome squire.”

It sounded like a scolding, but there was an odd trace of amusement in his tone.

Caden stretched out a finger and lightly tapped Emma’s lips. His touch was soft, almost as if he were soothing a child.

“Haa…”

And just like that, as if it were a lie, the breath she had been holding escaped through her parted lips.

“How can you prove anything like this? You can’t even breathe properly in front of me, let alone handle physical contact—”

Caden couldn’t resist adding a jab, but before he could finish, Emma reached out and grabbed him by the collar. Or rather, she clung to his neck.

—Remember, Emma. During the day, be a graceful lady. At night, become a siren who devours men. That’s every man’s dream.

—What? Isn’t that just being two-faced?

—Whether it’s two-faced or three-faced, remember this: in the bedroom, it’s all about confidence! If you want to win, you have to take the lead.

Confidence is key in the bedroom! It didn’t resonate much with her, but since it came from Brenda, the most popular girl at the academy, Emma decided to trust her.

That’s why she grabbed Caden’s collar and impulsively pressed her lips against his.

Her night with Caden had been like a storm. She remembered kissing him multiple times, their tongues intertwining, but she couldn’t recall how it started or ended.

For Emma, who was entirely new to such things, all she could do was pant and follow Caden’s lead as he swept her along.

She remembered the heat that surged to her head, the sweat, the sound of heavy breathing, and the unfamiliar sensation of skin against skin. What remained afterward were soreness in certain areas and muscle pain.

Having experienced one night, she thought everything would somehow fall into place once she initiated.

‘This… this isn’t right…’

But theory and reality were different. The rough, aggressive Caden who had practically devoured her that night was nowhere to be seen.

Instead, he stood like a statue, lips tightly pressed together.

Sensing something was off, Emma squinted her eyes.

“…!”

The first thing she saw was Caden’s bored expression. He looked like someone wondering if a mosquito had just bitten his lip.

‘No matter how clumsy I was, this is just humiliating…!’

She thought he could at least humor her a bit. But then again, it wasn’t something Caden needed to consider.

‘After all, I’m the one who’s supposedly in love with him, desperate to get closer to him.’

Feeling embarrassed, Emma pulled her lips away. Caden, looking as nonchalant as ever, asked her an awkward question.

“Have you ever kissed anyone before?”

His face practically screamed, “There’s no way someone like you has.”

“Of course I have! I may not look it, but I’ve had plenty of experience! It’s just… I got nervous because it’s Your Grace! That’s why I was a little clumsy, that’s all.”

Her excuse was hastily made up, but it sounded convincing enough.

“…I see. So you’ve had plenty of experience.”

Was it her imagination, or did a mischievous glint flash across his previously expressionless face?

‘What’s with him now?’

His voice dropped slightly, sending a chill down her spine. She couldn’t understand the flow of his emotions. But then again, Caden’s mood swings were nothing new.

“Yes. I didn’t just study at the academy, you know. A kiss is no big deal…”

In truth, the only person Emma had ever kissed was Caden.

Though it had been just one night, they had kissed so much that their lips barely parted. Surely that counted as “plenty of experience,” didn’t it?

‘It’s not exactly a lie, right?’

Caden, who had been staring at her swollen lips, abruptly turned away.

“Your Grace! Where are you going?”

He didn’t answer. Slinging a bow over his shoulder, Caden left the tent without a word.

Left alone, Emma shrugged. She had no idea what had upset him this time, but she decided not to dwell on it. It wasn’t the first time, and she had more pressing matters to attend to.

—

How much time had passed?

Emma had dozed off while waiting for Caden and the knights to return from their hunt. By the time she woke up, the surroundings had grown dim.

Stretching her arms wide, Emma stood up. Sleeping with her arms wrapped around her knees and her head resting on them had left her body aching all over.

“One, two, one, two—!”

She began doing stretches she had learned from her senior in the swordsmanship department.

Rustle.

A faint sound reached Emma’s ears.

“What was that?”

She stopped her movements and looked around. All she could hear were the sounds of insects and the distant murmur of a stream. There was nothing unusual in sight.

“Was it just a bird…?”

Deciding it must have been a bird taking off from the trees, Emma turned her attention to preparing dinner.

Caden and the knights would return soon, so she needed to hurry.

Using the fresh vegetables, spices, and salt she had brought along, she hoped to prepare something that would suit Caden’s taste.

“I’ll grill the meat and vegetables for now. Tomorrow morning, I’ll make soup with the leftovers and serve it with dry bread.”

Emma was confident in her cooking. After her father passed away, she had started cooking to take care of her family, even though her mother had never lifted a finger in the kitchen.

She had to learn how to make nutritious meals with limited ingredients to feed her twin siblings.

At first, her hands were covered in cuts for months, but it was worth it.

‘At least I learned to make decent food with minimal ingredients.’

By the time she was twelve, she had even worked briefly as a kitchen assistant at the village tavern. Cooking had since become an essential survival skill for her.

While she couldn’t prepare the kind of gourmet dishes that would satisfy a duke’s palate, she was confident she wouldn’t embarrass herself.

“Let’s start by building a fire.”

For someone like Emma, who had mastered countless odd jobs, starting a campfire was child’s play.

She was busy gathering dry firewood when—

“Hmm…”

“…!”

With a loud thud, the firewood she had been holding dropped from her arms.

“Ouch!”

One of the falling logs hit her foot, causing her to cry out in pain. But she didn’t have time to dwell on it.

“I definitely heard something…”

Emma looked around nervously, her eyes filled with unease.

“Hmm…”

She hadn’t imagined it.

‘That was definitely a person’s voice! Maybe from over there…?’

The faint sound of groaning came from a patch of bushes about twenty steps away.

Emma held her breath and listened closely. Along with the groans, she could hear the rustling of dry leaves, as if someone was shifting their body.

‘There shouldn’t be anyone here. No one is allowed here. Who could it be…?’

Emma’s expression grew serious. If what she heard was indeed a person, it was a big problem.

This land was Blackwood’s private property. Entering without permission was illegal, and trespassers were subject to severe punishment under the duke’s authority.

‘Could it be a villager sneaking in to gather wood? Or maybe a poacher…?’

Either way, they wouldn’t escape punishment.

Recently, there had been reports of desperate commoners trespassing on the lord’s lands to survive.

‘Starving to death might seem worse than getting caught and punished…’

Emma understood the kind of desperation that drove people to such actions.

If it was a poacher, the situation would be different, but for a starving villager, it was likely an act born of necessity.

Emma felt a heavy weight in her heart.

Caden wasn’t the type to easily forgive lawbreakers. While she hoped he might consider the circumstances, Emma couldn’t predict how he would react.

That left her with only one option.