Chapter 3 (Part 9)

Coming out of the guest room, Yuliana’s mind was filled with the lingering sensation of the passionate kiss with Anthus.

She touched her lips. They were swollen. Her entire tongue felt numb. She hadn’t realized how good kissing felt while doing it, but she hadn’t known it would hurt this much afterward.

But she didn’t dislike it. Even if it hurt, she wanted to do it again. Yes, it was a problem because she liked it too much.

In the end, she had clung to Anthus’s neck and kissed him even more… Embarrassed, Yuliana rolled around on the bed, pulling at her hair in shame, wishing she could hide in a hole.

“I’m crazy! I’m crazy.”

“Lady, it would be better if you stopped tormenting the Duke and accepted him.”

“Luda…”

Maid Luda felt frustrated watching Yuliana avoid Anthus out of embarrassment, even though the cold-blooded war maniac was clinging to her. It felt like a potato was stuck in her throat all the way down to her stomach. Seeing them obviously attracted to each other made Luda think it was time to act.

“People in society already think you are dating, you are openly affectionate in the guest room, and you’ll even enter the ball as partners. Plus, you’ve shared an irreversible kiss. If you don’t date him, Lady…”

Luda spoke seriously.

“Lady…”

“Yes, me?”

“Young Lady… May I say it? It’s a bit harsh.”

“It’s okay. Speak, Luda.”

“You won’t get mad, right?”

“I don’t know what you’re going to say, but I promise I won’t scold you, even if it’s about me.”

“If you don’t date Duke Rockbellion after kissing him and making him cling to you, you’ll be seen as someone managing multiple suitors.”

Luda’s words about managing multiple suitors hit Yuliana like a slap.

“Luda, did you just say I’m managing multiple suitors?”

“Think about it, Young Lady. Imagine I have a man I like.”

“Yes, a man you like.”

“And that man accepted my confession and kissed me every time we met!”

“Luda, what kind of bad… trash are you meeting?”

“It was just an example. An example.”

“Even as an example, you shouldn’t meet such a man, Luda.”

“What you’re doing right now is the same as that man.”

Yuliana was shocked by Luda’s words.

“Accepting his confession and kissing him but making him wait for an answer is like draining the blood of the person who confessed.”

“I know. But does the Duke really love me? I’m not sure.”

“You may not know because you haven’t dated, but when a man falls in love, he becomes like Duke Rockbellion.”

“What do you mean by ‘like Duke Rockbellion’?”

“The Duke’s eyes always follow you, Lady. Who would call him a cold-blooded war maniac seeing how sweetly he looks at you? To me, he looks like a small boat tossed in the rough waves of love.”

“A small boat…”

“You’re the only one who doesn’t know how sweetly he looks at you. The staff at Loengrin residence can all tell how much the Duke loves you.”

Luda hesitated as she brushed Yuliana’s hair.

“And Lady… I must say.”

“Yes?”

“I like that the Duke loves you so much. Unlike with Young Lord Beonar, we receive many gifts, and we walk around with pride these days.”

“I tried not to accept the gifts… but somehow I did.”

“And Lady, there’s something very important right now.”

“Important?”

“Summon the water spirit to heal the red marks on your neck and collarbone. If Master or Young Master Louis sees them, they will foam at the mouth and faint…”

Yuliana stretched her neck and looked at her neck and collarbone in the mirror.

“I wasn’t bitten by mosquitoes…”

“Those aren’t bug bites; they are kiss marks left by the Duke.”

“Kiss marks?”

“When Duke Anthus sucks on your neck like a mosquito, those marks appear. If Master sees them, he might kill the Duke, so summon the spirit and heal them.”

Yuliana’s cheeks and ears turned bright red at Luda’s words.

“From now on, we should call him Duke Mosquito instead of Duke Rockbellion.”

Leaving Yuliana’s room, Luda returned to her room in the Earl’s residence, turned on the lamp, and sat at her desk with stationery and a quill.

She sighed continuously as she wrote the letter. The quill kept breaking with each letter she wrote, so she had to pick up another. But it kept breaking. The pile of broken quills grew.

“Stay calm.”

The content of Luda’s letter was as follows:

[Dear Butler Ferrell of the Rockbellion family, 

Hello. This is Luda, serving Lady Yuliana. Currently, our lady is on a diet to fit into the dress for the Crown Prince’s birthday banquet. Please keep this in mind during meals. The dress colors for this week are beige on Monday, crimson on Tuesday…]

Luda sent considerate letters to Ferrell to ensure that Lady Yuliana was comfortable even at the Duke’s residence.

The reason she included information about the dress colors was so that the Duke could choose matching uniforms. For example, if Yuliana wore a pink dress and the Duke wore a green uniform, they wouldn’t match.

Luda debated whether to add a request to refrain from leaving kiss marks but decided it was too presumptuous. Instead, she resolved to keep a closer eye on the lady she served and put down the quill on the desk.

* * *

Anthus met Yuliana every day. Today, he made another reservation at the same restaurant Yuliana liked from their previous visit.

Entering the room, Anthus dismissed the staff. Once everyone had left, Anthus gently hugged Yuliana and kissed her cheek.

“I missed you, Yuli.”

Yuliana reached out to touch Anthus’s cheek and caressed it. Anthus tidied her hair and slightly opened the door to order the food.

Anthus told the staff they wouldn’t need any attendants. As a result, all the dishes were brought to the table at once. Anthus skillfully cut the meat and placed it on Yuliana’s plate.

“Thank you, Duke.”

Throughout the meal, Yuliana kept stealing glances at Anthus’s face.

Whenever their eyes met, he gave her a genuinely bright smile. Yet, his face also held deep sadness and melancholy. She wondered why that was and what was going on. At the same time, she recalled what Luda had told her.

<Young Lady, you kissed and got close to him but aren’t taking responsibility?>

<That’s what managing multiple suitors means.>

“Yuli, the dressing on this salad is lemon. This dish is filling even with a small amount and tastes good, so have a bite.”

“Yes, Duke Anthus.”

“The Crown Prince’s birthday is coming up soon. I asked the chef to prepare a menu that wouldn’t make you gain weight and is healthy, thinking you might be worried about your dress.”

“Thank you. I didn’t expect you to be so considerate. I was actually thinking I needed to manage my weight a bit.”

“I will support you to reach your goal.”

Instead of saying she was beautiful without losing weight, Anthus’s words about supporting her efforts touched Yuliana.

The Anthus in front of her was very different from what people said. He was so kind and considerate. And he was very clear in expressing his affection.

Leaving the kind person’s heart unaccepted while indulging in his lips and touch. Since when did I become so desirous! Just as Luda said, I was managing my fish.

“Yuli… Are you not feeling well today? Did it upset you that I kissed your cheek as soon as we met today?”

Breaking the silence, Anthus anxiously observed Yuliana’s reaction.

“Yuli, I’m sorry. I won’t kiss you carelessly again. Please forgive me.”

Anthus’s voice, trembling with emotion, looked incredibly endearing to Yuliana.

“No, it’s not that.”

At Yuliana’s words, Anthus’s eyes sparkled with joy.

“I feel like I’ve been irresponsible.”

“Irresponsible?”

“I’ve kissed you several times without taking responsibility.”

“What I’m waiting for is not responsibility but your heart, Lady Yuliana Loengrin.”

Anthus’s words made Yuliana’s heart feel soft and marshmallow-like. And she suddenly wondered what the love he spoke of was.

“I’m curious about what love feels like to you, Duke.”

Anthus and Yuliana’s gazes met.

“When I just look at you, it feels like time stops. Just looking at you makes me feel good, and then, after blinking once and looking around, I realize that time has passed faster than I thought… And when I feel that time moves unbearably slow when I’m not looking at you.”

Yuliana focused on his gentle words.

“When I see you, the flow of time changes. When I keep following you with my eyes and smiling, I know I’m in love. If that’s not love, I can’t explain the feeling. Someone told me not to bet everything on love, but if I have to bet everything to gain love, I’m willing to do it.”

Knowing that Yuliana was someone else’s fiancée tore Anthus’s heart apart daily. Though he complained that unrequited love was too painful and hard, it was just an excuse to see Yuliana. He was wounded every day, but he couldn’t give up. Whenever it was painful, he strived to become a man worthy of Yuliana. For one year, two years… for 9 years.

As their eyes met, Anthus moved closer to Yuliana, who was sitting opposite him, and gently embraced her, kissing her.

“So please don’t accept my confession out of responsibility. Answer me when you feel the same emotions as I do.”

“Yes, I will.”

Yuliana didn’t quite understand the feeling of love, but Anthus’s expressions of affection made her heart feel warm. He always considered her, kept looking at her, and wasn’t shy about expressing his love gently.