“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Of all hands it had to be her right hand — it would be quite inconvenient if she couldn’t use it at all…..

He had wrapped the bandage so firmly that his intention to absolutely prevent her from using her hand was palpable.

“Is your right hand your dominant hand?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm….”

“In that case, could you leave my fingers free?”

I won’t be able to do anything with this hand.

Because he wrapped all five fingers together so they couldn’t even bend, it looked like she wouldn’t be able to lift even a spoon, let alone a pen.

“I will help with any necessary care. You just focus on resting so your hand heals well.”

“…Pardon?”

His Grace will personally attend to me?

What nonsense is this.

The meaning of that seemingly absurd statement was quickly revealed.

He really… really did attend to Saena.

Food was brought into the room as if he had ordered it brought up. The delicious-smelling dishes were mainly easy to eat or gentle on the stomach. It made her feel like quite the invalid.

Whil bringing a spoonful of creamy stew to her lips, he said.

“Open up.”

“……”

“Ah.”

He seriously repeated for her to say ‘ah’.

“I-I can do it… mmph.”

“You opened too small so it won’t all fit.”

The soft stew invaded her mouth, wetting her tongue.

“It got on your lips too.”

Setting the spoon on the stew bowl, he traced her lips with his thumb. Lick. Then he stuck out his tongue to lick the stew that had gotten on his thumb.

“……”

Was that the sound of her heart pounding that she heard, or was it her imagination? Her face seemed to be getting hotter and hotter — was that also just in her imagination?

Him watching her eat… Especially at how he seemed to stare intensely at her lips — was this also an imagination?

She couldn’t tell. It was confusing, yet the fact that it didn’t feel unpleasant made it even more bewildering.

“Open wide again.”

But I’m not an invalid…..

Though flustered, Saena obediently opened her mouth. The food in the approaching spoon safely entered her mouth at a steady pace.

“You eat well.”

She had thought the atmosphere flowing between them was like the tension between a man and woman, but hearing such strange praise made it feel more like caring for a child.

Nevertheless, she didn’t particularly insist on doing it herself and finished eating what he gave her.

As she lay in bed preparing to sleep, the Duke meticulously spread and covered her with the blanket before leaving through that suspicious connecting door.

“……”

It had been a day full of strange events.

The snow would surely stop by tomorrow.

‘It’s just one day…..’

Comforting herself thus, Saena fell asleep.

* * *

“Ugh……”

Her fever spiked overnight, making her successful endurance of cold and wounds seem futile. Though she had avoided frostbite, it seemed she hadn’t avoided catching a cold. Through the haze of consciousness reddened by fever, fragments of past memories seeped in.

‘Cough! Cough!’

The memory of when one day, her coughing wouldn’t stop, leading to coughing up blood.

‘Why do you look like this? How can a woman not know how to take care of herself, tsk tsk.’

Her husband who scolded her haggard appearance from illness rather than noticing she was sick.

‘Oh dear. Could you have something like pneumonia? What if it’s contagious? Wouldn’t it be better to go recuperate somewhere?’

Her in-laws worried about catching her illness rather than worrying about sick Saena.

In the end, she had to leave for a provincial estate with her weak body.

Under the pretext of recuperation, Saena was abandoned to die.

“Ugh… ugh……”

The memory of dying lonely and miserable seemed more deeply imprinted than expected.

Just recalling the scenes from then made her tears overflow. Sobs leaked out like nightmares, sinking into the dark room.

“Shh….. Saena.”

Someone stroked her forehead. The cool palm felt good against her fever-hot forehead. Saena burrowed her face into the large palm, seeking that coolness.

“Nothing’s wrong. Just sleep comfortably.”

A seemingly monotone, low voice seeped in steadily. If voices could have firmness, it was the kind of voice that would feel very solid.

Feeling stability from that voice, Saena burrowed deeper, seeking to feel more of the cool sensation.

“Ugh….”

Her body was too hot. Not long ago she felt like she would die from cold, now she felt like she would die from heat. Moreover, the cooling touch on her cheeks had left.

‘…No!’

Please come back.

Having clung to the cool energy then losing it somehow made it feel even hotter. Now it felt like even her throat was burning up. But she didn’t have the strength to ring for service.

Water. If only someone would give her water…..

Saena just lay there suffering. Straddling the boundary between consciousness and unconsciousness, neither properly sleeping nor fully waking, all she could do was groan.

“Saena.”

Then, she felt the cool touch again.

Ah. Saena clung to that coolness like someone who had found an oasis in the desert. A cold hand wrapped around her nape. As the hot temperature at the back of her neck dropped, her splitting headache seemed to ease slightly.

“Mmm.”

Something hard touched her lips and poured water. But more water flowed out than entered her mouth. She moved her mouth seeking more, the amount was too small to wet her parched throat.

More, more…. please…..

As if someone had heard her wish, water filled her mouth. The liquid that filled her after suffering terrible thirst felt sweet enough.

“Haa……”

Saena desperately clung to whatever was providing water with a soft touch. Though she grimaced when a bitter liquid entered partway through, she had to swallow it when she suddenly couldn’t breathe through her nose.

The bitter taste remaining in her mouth was diluted and disappeared with additional water that entered. Only after consuming a satisfying amount of water did Saena finally release her grip on the hand she had been clinging to.

The fever felt more bearable than before.

Saena gradually felt herself becoming peaceful as she sank back into the world of unconsciousness.

* * *

When she opened her eyes with a hazy mind, what greeted Saena was a stifling wall blocking her view.

She slowly blinked her eyes.

Flesh color filling her entire view.

Flesh color…..

Even after blinking again and looking closer, it was definitely flesh colored.

It seemed the left cheek she was pressing against was someone’s bare skin…..

“……!”

Saena raised her head in sudden realization of this.

Having been pressed skin-to-skin until now, their separating skin made a sticky sound.

‘….Oh no?!’

In her bed… beneath her… was Duke Kramer.

Seeing him asleep leaning uncomfortably against the headboard, it seemed he had fallen asleep here while caring for her during the night.

Given how her arm was wrapped around his waist… it wasn’t that he hadn’t tried to leave, but that he couldn’t. She had been gripping him very firmly, as if to prevent him from escaping .

‘Oh god….’

The fever that had risen all night was surely not a dream.

Nor was it likely a dream that she had rubbed her face against his chest trying to cool her hot cheeks.

‘Oh god!’

She literally wanted to grab her head and scream.

Instead, Saena unwound her hands that had been tightly wrapped around him and slowly backed away. All while frantically watching his face.

No matter how much she must have pressed against him while sleeping, his robe had come completely undone, revealing his firmly toned chest and abdominal muscles.

‘….Isn’t this almost *ssault?’

She could feel heat rapidly rising to her face in real time.

‘How on earth am I supposed to face His Grace….’

She wanted to hide in a mouse hole right this instant.

But making her wish to somehow avoid this situation seem futile, she saw his eyelids slowly rising.

‘Ah, no…! Please sleep more!’

Despite wanting to hit his head and knock him out again, Saena could only watch the scene frozen like a wooden block.

“…Saena?”

The Duke shot up as soon as he recognized her and stroked her face with his hand. Saena flinched at the sudden contact, freezing even more.

“…I thought the fever had broken, but has it risen again?”

“……”

“You’ll need more medicine. Wait here a moment….”

“No, it’s not that!”

Saena desperately stopped him. Though she reached out to grab him, finding nothing to grab but his open robe, she quickly withdrew her hand.

“Your face is red?”

“Th-that’s……”

“……?”

“Because it’s embarrassing……”

The Duke, who had been examining Saena’s expression with a face wondering what was embarrassing, looked down at himself then showed an expression of realization as he spoke.

“Ah, my attire was inappropriate. I apologize for showing you an unseemly sight.”

The Duke hurriedly closed his robe and retied the belt.

‘No… that’s not it…..’

What’s embarrassing is my behavior last night. By any measure, Your Grace only acted as a human fever reducer… but I seem to have done something terrible…..

While muttering to herself about the perversion inherent within her, he reached out his hand. When his cool, large palm heavily covered her forehead again, Saena startled and jerked.

“The fever dropped again quickly? Your color has returned too…..”

The Duke asked detailed questions about Saena’s condition, asking how she felt now.

“No, it’s turning red again… is it acute?”

Seeing her face flushing again from embarrassment, the Duke’s expression grew increasingly serious.

“No….. I’m really fine.”

“But you don’t look fine at all? I should call a doctor.”

Toward the Duke who seemed about to immediately call for a doctor, Saena confessed almost shouting.

“—It’s because I’m embarrassed!”

The Duke paused his movement at her cry and seemed to think for a moment.

“….Hmm. I was inconsiderate. Would you like to wash and change clothes? I’ll have a maid sent up.”

No, she wasn’t embarrassed about showing her bare morning face….. Well no, that was embarrassing too, but that wasn’t the issue…..

“…Haa, yes……”

But since explaining in detail what was embarrassing seemed even more embarrassing, Saena just vaguely answered while squeezing her eyes shut.

Behind her closed eyes, his firm and clear chest and abdominal muscles that she had just seen flickered.

‘Shoo!’

Though she shook her head hoping they would quickly disappear, it didn’t help much.

It only deepened Constantine’s worry as he watched Saena’s condition appearing unwell.

* * *