“Serena.”

As he entered, a place so dark appeared that he wondered if mushrooms might be growing somewhere.

In the pitch-black darkness, scarlet eyes flashed.

As he narrowed his eyes, something with those red glowing eyes jumped up.

‘A rabbit?’

He squinted his eyes.

A rabbit with a pencil on its back and hugging a notebook hopped over and ran to the food bowl in the corner.

‘…It seems she’s been feeding it.’

It was unexpected.

Considering she hadn’t been eating properly herself.

“Serena.”

“……”

She showed no reaction.

Curled up under the blanket with her mouth tightly shut.

“Serena.”

He didn’t remain silent and called her name again as he strode towards her.

Then, something under the blanket trembled once.

“I told you, you like warmth.”

Instead of forcefully pulling off the blanket, he gently placed his hand where she seemed to be.

The sensation of touching her back felt quite flat and smooth, as if she was lying face down and curled up.

“You don’t have to force yourself. But stay where I can see you. Don’t avoid me.”

Magnus said.

Serena doesn’t answer.

Though he frowned at the long silence, Magnus understood that she needed her own time and waited quietly.

“…Magnus.”

As expected, after a while, Serena finally spoke first.

“Yes.”

“Is that person dead?”

Serena asks cautiously in a frightened voice.

“That person?”

Magnus slightly furrowed his brow.

He couldn’t immediately grasp what she was talking about.

After a while, Magnus recalled the last person she had interacted with and narrowed his fine brows.

“You don’t mean that merchant, do you?”

“…Yes.”

Serena nodded.

“…How could that be?”

Magnus asked back, seeming a bit surprised.

Of course, the shock must have been great, but normally one doesn’t die from a single egg breaking.

It just hurts like hell.

“…Really?”

Serena’s eyes widened.

“Yes, really. If you want, I could even show you his face tomorrow.”

Serena’s eyes grew wide.

She took a deep breath and slowly rubbed her face.

She buried her head with a face contorted as if about to cry.

“…Thank goodness.”

Her small muttering voice was soaked in relief.

And for good reason, Serena thought the other person had died.

Because he screamed and fainted like that.

[It’s okay, he deserved to die for hurting you, Serena! Besides, you’re supposed to be the bad guy!]

When Nyx showed her that written on a sketchbook while she was locked in the room, Serena was so distressed she almost lost her mind.

‘Why on earth did I do that?’

She had moved her body out of anger. After hitting him, when she came to her senses, belated regret washed over her.

Of course, the other party had been rude.

Serena knew that too.

He was rude, but Serena had experienced many such rude incidents anyway.

Was there even one person in her life who hadn’t been rude?

Such rudeness, honestly speaking, even if she couldn’t laugh it off, wasn’t something to go crazy and hit over.

‘Am I really becoming a villainess by being here?’

The moment she saw the man collapse, foaming at the mouth and fainting, what came to her was fear.

After being gripped by fear, what followed was depression and a sense of helplessness.

She thought she’d be okay if she rested in her room for just a day.

Even though she hugged Nyx and talked about various things, her unsettled feelings didn’t easily subside.

Serena became afraid.

Afraid that she had already truly become the same as the ‘villainess’ Serena Lavernia.

As if she had become that way after constantly hearing it.

“…Really, thank goodness.”

“What’s there to be thankful for?”

Magnus narrowed his brows.

There was nothing in this situation that she should be thankful for.

Magnus didn’t like that.

What’s the big deal about hitting that rude bastard?

In fact, even if he had died from the beating, the guy would have had nothing to say.

How dare he run his mouth in front of the only Duchess in the empire, where no one should dare to speak carelessly.

‘…It’s absurd.’

Thinking that the reason she had been hiding all this time was because of that annoying man made him even angrier.

“That guy was going to be half dead by my hand even if it wasn’t you.”

He said.

“…Dead? Why?”

“Because he dared to run his mouth carelessly at you.”

Serena peeked her head out from under the blanket.

Magnus found the dark room quite stuffy, but he didn’t show it.

He didn’t open the curtains, and watched Serena as she gradually revealed herself.

“…You’d better wash up.”

Magnus said, looking at Serena’s haggard face as she revealed it.

‘…I know I look messy, but…’

That’s why I told you to see me later!

Serena felt wronged.

She pleaded to see him tomorrow, but it was Magnus who forcefully came in.

She blushed red and burst out.

“…I told you I’d see you tomorrow!!”

Then she hides back under the blanket.

“No, if you show such signs of having cried…”

Magnus continued his words, looking at Serena who had disappeared again as if hiding in a snail shell.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to let that guy live.”

“…Huh?”

“Right now, I’m at the point of half-killing him, but if you keep being like this, I’ll have no choice but to kill him.”

At Magnus’s words, Serena startled and raised her head. Magnus looked at her blankly.

“So it would be wise to come out quickly and erase those marks.”

Serena blinked and peeked her head out from under the blanket.

“Uh… huh?”

The atmosphere that had been dark and gloomy until just now suddenly reversed.

“…I’ll wash up and come out, so please wait outside.”

“Since when did we start being so formal with each other?”

Magnus said, recalling how she would walk around in just a camisole when bored.

Of course, he overlooked it because she didn’t go outside the room like that.

Besides, weren’t they at a point where they had seen everything there was to see of each other?

“If you want, I can wash with you.”

“No!!”

Serena jumped up from her seat, startled.

“No, I’m fine. I’ll… wash alone.”

Serena stood up awkwardly.

Magnus narrowed his eyes with his arms crossed.

Serena got up hurriedly, wrapping the blanket around her body.

Magnus’s eyes narrowed slightly.

It wasn’t like the usual Serena, no matter how he thought about it.

She wasn’t particularly shy about showing her body. She even liked wearing revealing clothes.

But now she’s reluctant to show her n*ked body?

A person who had such indifferent eyes even when bathing with Magnus?

‘…There’s something.’

Magnus’s eyes gradually sank.

He pondered for a moment with a slightly darkened face.

Forcing her doesn’t seem good, but the atmosphere has lightened a lot now.

“Serena.”

“Uh… yes?”

“Why don’t you lower the blanket?”

For now, Magnus gave her a choice.

Seeing Serena’s pupils trembling isn’t a very pleasant feeling.

Because he knew it was a gesture she made when lying.

More precisely, it’s the expression she makes when she’s making up words to hide something.

“Ah, I’m n*ked underneath right now.”

“Don’t you walk around n*ked in the bathroom just fine?”

Despite Magnus’s blunt words, Serena shows only embarrassment rather than shyness.

So Magnus found it strange.

If being n*ked was the problem, it would be normal for her to be shy.

If she had shown any signs of being shy, Magnus wouldn’t have pressed further.

“That’s, because it’s the bathroom…”

“Then I’ll go into the bathroom with you.”

But what’s reflected on her face is just embarrassment.

An expression of not knowing what to do because she’s embarrassed. That’s why it’s strange.

The excuse and expression don’t match at all.

“Serena, be honest. What are you hiding?”

Magnus gave up on asking subtly.

He approached her carefully and embraced her.

At the same time, he caught a faint smell of blood from her.

“…The smell of blood?”

Magnus’s face wrinkled as he muttered softly. Serena’s shoulders also flinched greatly.

“Don’t tell me…”

“That’s…”

Magnus slightly opened his mouth, and seeing Serena’s perplexed face at the same time, he unknowingly loosened his hands that were embracing her waist.

‘…So that’s what it was.’

This time, it was Magnus who had a troubled expression.

She took a deep breath and clenched her fists tightly. As if she had made a great resolution.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was that time…”

“I’m sorry, I scratched because it was too stuffy…”

The two who were speaking simultaneously blinked as they belatedly understood each other’s words.

“…What?”

“Hmm?”

They both closed their mouths with expressions that seemed to be at a loss for words.