Elena waved her arms widely, grateful that no one was watching.

‘If many people saw me flattering like this, I’d want to die of embarrassment.’

Compared to the experience of almost dying of shame on the first day she met the Grand Duke, this wasn’t quite as bad, but the feeling was similar.

“Since you don’t love that noble young lady who just passed by, you’ll focus on work, right? That’s why I said that, so please don’t misunderstand.”

Elena emphasized, even raising her index finger.

“What misunderstanding.”

Seeing his highly raised chin and exposed neckline, she knew her words had improved his mood.

‘Now I just need to finish well.’

And she planned to go to the library and focus on work with peace of mind.

“Come to think of it, a woman loved by Your Highness would be fortunate. A beautiful man with a picture-perfect face looking only at her. She might look for places to hide every day, embarrassed by Your Highness’s warm gaze.”

Elena put her hands together on her chest and tilted her head.

“Do you like that sort of thing?”

“Me?”

Elena was speaking like she was envious, but when the arrow turned back to her, she was slightly flustered. Having been picking only pleasant words to say, she momentarily couldn’t respond.

‘She’d like it, wouldn’t she?’

With this thought, she nodded vigorously with a broad smile.

“Wouldn’t anyone like it if someone looked at them lovingly?”

She spoke vaguely, thinking that’s how it would be between people in love.

Not knowing how her words would drive her day into terror.

“You really have a way with words.”

“I told you that’s my means of expression. So I have to be good at it.”

Rudfelix burst into laughter with a refreshed expression. As he pushed back his hair, looking relieved, Elena laughed along and faced him.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Yes.”

Her lips sparkled as she quietly murmured, “That’s good.”

“Then I’ll be going now.”

“Aide Elena.”

Rudfelix extended his hand with a bright smile. Elena was so surprised that she couldn’t understand why he was reaching out.

“What does it mean when you smile and extend your hand like that? Surely you’re not asking me to hold it?”

Thinking he wanted her to take it, she hid both hands behind her back.

“I’m not someone who should receive Your Highness’s warm gaze. Of course I’d like it, but that’s only under the premise that……”

Before she could explain that they weren’t the type to hold hands, making it awkward, Rudfelix spoke faster.

“Hand it over.”

“What?”

Elena’s clear eyes turned toward him.

“The card.”

When Rudfelix demanded the library access card, Elena shook off her remaining smile.

* * *

Rudfelix followed Elena with dissatisfied eyes. After taking back the library access card, when she protested that he’d given it only to take it back, he threatened that since she had no card, she’d have to stick close to him.

When he said he couldn’t trust an aide who eavesdrops on others’ conversations on the way to the library, Elena came along obediently despite feeling wronged.

When she entered and said she wouldn’t interfere, he looked suspicious but slightly distanced himself, and it had remained that way.

“Who’s calling whom a workaholic.”

Since entering the library, she hadn’t looked back once, even though she knew he was watching.

[Could there be a woman who would melt that cold man’s heart?]

Amusingly, the words of a woman whose face he didn’t know calmed his confused mind.

From the beginning, being confused meant he was concerned about her and his heart was drawn to her. The fact that his eyes kept going to her unlike other women meant his heart was directed toward her, but it took quite some time to realize it.

Rudfelix openly stared only at Elena.

Her slender silhouette appeared and disappeared repeatedly between the desks.

The thin fingers holding up books disappeared in the sunlight streaming in.

“She’s small and thin.”

That was his conclusion from observing her. Until now, she had been firm, standing up to him well and diligently finding her work with a determined personality. Compared to that, her body was light and weak enough to be easily pulled along.

Elena disappeared behind a bookshelf again. Their eyes met for just a moment. And then she vanished, clearly hiding from his sight.

“She said she’d like it.”

She had said she’d be embarrassed by his warm gaze, but she herself wasn’t feeling it at all.

The confusion that had heavily pressed on his heart when he embraced her body earlier had drained away. Now Elena was no longer someone who confused him.

Rudfelix continued to stare at Elena with a stiff posture.

“It’s scary.”

Elena shuddered.

“Even if he thinks I’m slacking off, does he have to monitor me like that?”

As Elena piled books she wanted to read in her arms one by one, she glanced at Rudfelix secretly.

“I only heard because they were talking about him, it’s not like I went looking to eavesdrop.”

She kept expressing her grievance, but it didn’t work at all. Coming to the library together and watching over her to see if she was working or doing something else filled her with frustration up to her neck.

“How petty.”

I need to finish quickly and leave.

Elena took out one by one the books she had noted. Holding them in her arms and securing them with her left arm, the weight gradually increased, but not to the point where she couldn’t carry them.

When she was about to take out the last gleaming book, the weight pressing on her arm disappeared, and her left arm awkwardly floated in the air.

She didn’t need to look at her arm to know why.

“Your Highness.”

Inevitably, the Grand Duke had come and taken the books.

“I can carry them just fine.”

“You could put them on the desk little by little, but you’re trying to move them all at once because you can carry them?”

“That’s right.”

“You could just be a little more diligent, but you choose an inelegant method.”

Elena flared up but suppressed her excitement. Getting angry at someone trying to help would be petty. It was very small help after continuously monitoring her, but if she responded unkindly just because the other person’s words weren’t gentle, it would only lead to a fight.

“Please understand it was to use time efficiently. I was about to take this last book.”

Whether or not he heard her say, “Thank you for carrying them,” was unknown, but he turned around anyway with the books. And he was showing ‘This is how you do it’ as he placed the books on the table.

“I’ll move diligently.”

Inwardly irritated at wasting precious time on such a small quarrel, Elena took out the last book. As she pulled out the palm-sized thick book titled ‘Research on Job Creation,’ Elena momentarily lost her balance and staggered.

Elena, who prevented herself from falling by supporting her body with Rudfelix’s large hand wrapped around her arm, raised her dazed eyes.

‘What’s this?’

She wasn’t carrying books in her left arm, only trying to take out one book. It was absurd that she almost fell.

She looked up at the book she was about to take out. The cover of the book, half-protruding from the bookshelf, was gleaming brilliantly.

‘Gold?’

The cover appeared to be a gold plate about 1cm thick.

She thought it might be gold-plated, but the weight she felt when taking out the book just now was truly heavy.

“I feel wronged.”

Elena expressed her feelings first, omitting all context.

Despite his scolding, she had firmly tried to take out the last book to show him, but instead nearly fell disgracefully.

She wanted to say it wasn’t her fault.

‘Who would have known the book cover was made of gold?’

It was absurd, but more important was the Grand Duke’s gaze.

As expected.

It was a look that said he knew this would happen.

“I really feel wronged. I was trying to carry the books all at once to finish quickly, and I didn’t know this book was covered in gold.”

“Have you forgotten where you are?”

It seemed like arguing that ‘I know it’s a library used by the imperial family, but I certainly wouldn’t associate it with gold’ would only prolong the dispute. Elena raised her hand first.

“I’m sorry.”

“Remember that forcing yourself doesn’t make work finish faster.”

What could she do? Even that was because she felt pressured by the Grand Duke constantly watching her, but his words were exasperating.

“That’s because Your Highness kept monitoring me.”

“I wasn’t monitoring.”

“Then what was that gaze? Or was it the gaze of someone looking at a person they love? That?”

Rudfelix nodded immediately. He wasn’t her enemy, so why monitor her.

“Something like that.”

Elena was startled.

“Your Highness. If it’s really like that, then save such gazes for love, for a woman you love.”

Please don’t look at me like that, it’s frightening.