“Then, please put me down! This scene is more likely to be misunderstood, don’t you think?”

“Anticia, as long as you don’t shout, there won’t be any misunderstandings, will there?”

Lucas chuckled, then carried Giselle and began ascending the stairs. Giselle squirmed for a moment, then gave up and covered her face with her hands.

The oversized shoes dangled from her toes, swaying with each step he took up the stairs. And it felt as if a weight had been added to her chest, rocking back and forth.

Her clothes, still slightly damp from the rain, were almost dry, but there was still a musty smell, almost like the scent of seawater.

Though Lucas, who was holding her, must have sensed a similar feeling, he showed no outward sign of it.

Instead, the warmth emanating from Lucas seemed to envelop all of that.

“But why did you come back at this late hour?”

Giselle casually said something, feeling awkward and strange about the pounding in her chest. From above her head, Lucas’ calm reply came.

“There were some documents I had left behind.”

“Couldn’t you have just asked your secretary to get them? But why…”

“That’s true. For some reason, I felt like coming here myself today, and it seems I ended up finding an unauthorized intruder.”

Lucas responded with a slight hint of amusement, unlike his usual self. But Giselle couldn’t bring herself to laugh along.

“Unauthorized intruder…are you referring to me just now?”

Giselle tilted her head back to look up at him. His sharp jawline came into view. The slightly upturned corner of his lips also seemed faintly visible in the dimness.

“It’s good that you understand. We’re here.”

They had apparently reached the top of the stairs, and Lucas put her down. Giselle was about to argue against the ‘unauthorized intruder’ remark, but when she saw the large door in front of her, her eyes widened in surprise.

“This is, um, your personal rest area, isn’t it, President, I mean, Senior?”

“Yes.”

Lucas nodded in response to her words, then opened the door to the rest area. But Giselle hesitated to go in and carefully asked a question.

“You can’t possibly be…asking me to spend the night here, are you?”

“This will be much better than the office. There’s a bed here.”

“A b-bed…how can I possibly enter this room? That’s absurd!”

Giselle shook her head firmly, her face flushed.

This room was Lucas’ personal rest area. It was a space where he could take breaks while working, and no one else was allowed to enter.

Moreover, he had mentioned that there was a bed inside. It was essentially Lucas’ most intimate, private space.

“It’s fine. You can go back down to the office before the others arrive in the morning.”

“But still…”

“Do you think it’s better to not rest properly and risk affecting your work tomorrow, Miss Anticia?”

Lucas’ tone had returned to his usual manner, speaking as her ’employer’. Realizing the change, Giselle hesitated, then responded in a small voice with her head bowed.

“That’s not what I mean, President.”

“Then go inside and rest properly. I’ll be leaving now, so feel free.”

Lucas stepped aside by the door and gestured. She reluctantly shuffled her feet and slowly entered the rest area.

* * *

Giselle heard the door close behind her. Soon after, his footsteps faded away.

Just as he had said, it seemed he was leaving to retrieve the documents. After all, he only came back for that purpose, so he could simply gather the papers and return.

She had, inadvertently, caused him to waste time.

“…Phew.”

Giselle finally looked around.

The interior of the rest area was far more luxurious than the name ‘rest area’ implied.

Compared to this, even the lavish bedroom of her stepmother would be no more than a storage room.

“I wonder how incredibly grand his actual home must be.”

She muttered unconsciously, then let out a small chuckle. It was a foolish thing to say, given that he was the wealthiest in the kingdom.

“Anyway, I’ll rest well.”

Giselle murmured to herself as she surveyed the empty room, then went to sit on the armchair near the window.

There was a bed and plush sofa, but she couldn’t bring herself to sit or lie down on them.

“Even without a backrest, it seems comfortable since it’s expensive.”

She pushed the chair close to the window, leaned her back against the wall, and looked outside.

The dark night sky was visible. The rain had stopped, but the clouds still remained thick, obscuring the stars.

The faint moonlight peeking through the clouds was the only solace.

Just as this comfortable chair provided comfort amidst the darkness of her uncertain future.

“…”

Giselle turned her gaze to the opposite side. In the direction of Lucas’ office. Since the office and rest area were connected, his office must be beyond that wall.

‘…He’s probably already left.’

She stared blankly at the wall, then lowered her eyes. A small smile touched Giselle’s lips as she took in the sight of the oversized shoes.

Was this the reason he hurried back? It was unimaginable, the composed and cool-headed man rushing up and down the stairs.

“I must have been mistaken. …Yawn.”

Giselle wiggled her feet inside the shoes and let out a small yawn.

Perhaps the tension had finally eased, and drowsiness was setting in. She leaned her body against the window frame and closed her eyes.

When daylight came, another headache-inducing problem would be waiting, but for now, she just wanted to sleep.

As he had said, she couldn’t risk affecting her work tomorrow.

* * *

Lucas had gathered the documents and was heading downstairs when he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“…”

Uncharacteristically, intense emotions were swirling deep within Lucas’ navy-blue eyes, unlike his usual composed demeanor.

It was a change he was unaware of himself.

How much time had passed?

Lucas resumed his steps, but this time, he headed towards the private rest area, not the stairs. The carpeted hallway muffled his footsteps, making them exceptionally quiet.

Yet, even accounting for that, his steps were incredibly light. It would be impossible without deliberately walking with care.

Reaching the rest area door, Lucas briefly looked at the doorknob before lifting his gaze to the door.

The soundproofing was effective, so the sounds from within wouldn’t be easily heard, but he felt he could almost hear the sleeping person’s breathing.

Shhh.

A faint smile crossed Lucas’ cool features. He recalled the sight of Giselle sleeping, which he had accidentally witnessed during their days at the academy.

It was on an evening when everyone had already returned to the dorms. The sound of breathing coming from a secluded corner of the library.

There, a female student with pink hair was sleeping soundly, face-down on a thick book.

And the round glasses in front of her.

That scene was nothing particularly remarkable, yet it remained vividly etched in Lucas’ memory.

He slowly, carefully turned the doorknob, then paused.

“…I can’t just barge into the room where a lady is sleeping.”

Lucas murmured in a low voice, then chuckled. But his eyes had sunk into a cold chill, in contrast to his smiling lips.

He had only intended to stop by and retrieve the documents. If not for the security guard’s words, that’s what he would have done.

「It seems the President also has some business upstairs. The female employee was here just a little while ago, saying she had something to do on the second floor.」

Among the employees he had hired, there was only one woman — Giselle Anticia, his former junior from the academy.

「But that employee seemed a bit strange. She didn’t seem to be here just to work. I just pretended not to notice, as I didn’t want to interfere.」

Apparently, the security guard had also noticed Giselle’s unusual behavior.

Lucas recalled the sight of Giselle sitting in the office — her bruised cheek, tear-stained face, and swollen eyes. Even her feet were in disarray.

Unconsciously, he gripped the doorknob tighter. As he did so, the door opened a little. Clicking his tongue at his own mistake, Lucas hurriedly tried to close it.

But before he could, the sight of the sleeping Giselle caught his eye. She was curled up, sleeping on the chair by the window.

“…There’s a bed and a sofa, too.”

Why would she be sitting on a chair without a backrest or armrests?

Lucas frowned as he looked at the curled-up, sleeping Giselle. It was understandable that she might feel uncomfortable in a room meant for a man’s use.

He gave her a disapproving look for a moment, then closed the door. While her curled-up sleeping position looked uncomfortable, he couldn’t just pick her up and lay her on the bed.

Of course, he had touched her feet to put on the shoes, and had carried her up the stairs earlier.

But laying her down on the bed was…

“Ahem.”

He cleared his throat, feeling a tightness in his chest. Even though it was indoors after the rain had stopped, he felt warm.

Lucas turned his gaze back towards the rest area, then headed towards the stairs.

His steps were unusually hurried.