“H-how…”

I swallowed dryly, stumbling over my words.

No matter what, this was the grand duchess’s bedroom…

How could someone do this to someone else’s bedroom?

“……”

I unconsciously turned around to find the Grand Duke still behind me, not having turned away yet.

Who could have done this?

Entry of outsiders was strictly regulated in this castle, so the probability was high that it was the servants, but I couldn’t blindly suspect them.

If not the servants, then it must have been outsiders. The only outsiders who had visited the castle today were the attending physician who came to see me and servants sent from the Azanie family.

They had come to deliver a medicine box containing tonics for recovery, claiming the Count’s family was concerned about my health.

Of course, that medicine box was only allowed into my room after an apothecary had thoroughly examined it and confirmed it truly contained recovery tonics.

Suddenly, I wondered if perhaps one of those servants had sneaked in here.

They could easily disguise assassins as servants, couldn’t they?

To somehow kill both me and the Grand Duke!

“No…!”

I quickly looked at the Grand Duke.

This wasn’t just dangerous for me, but for him too.

Right now, he was the only one who could protect me from the Azanie family and the Grandis Imperial Police Investigation Bureau!

“Whoever did this to my room might be hiding somewhere. Order guards to protect your room! They might be preparing to attack with ill intentions!”

The Grand Duke, who had been looking at my ruined bedroom, looked down at me as if I’d said something preposterous.

“If they failed in their attack and are planning something else, it could be serious!”

“……”

“No, wait. My bedroom being like this might mean the locations of the rooms have been exposed. Your Highness should sleep somewhere else too!”

The Grand Duke, who had been carefully examining my face, glanced at the ominous curses and insults written at the entrance of the bedroom.

“Then you.”

“Yes?”

“Where are you planning to go?”

As I placed a pillow on the sofa, the Grand Duke looked at me with a contemplative expression.

“……”

Contrary to my suggestion that he sleep elsewhere, the Grand Duke intended to sleep in his bedroom, with the only change to his plan being that he had brought me along.

“I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

“Why state the obvious?”

Right, a man with manners as sharp as a knife.

Of course the owner would use the bed and the unexpected intruder would sleep on the sofa, but I didn’t expect to be openly criticized for it.

“I can go back to that hospital-like room where I stayed before.”

While walking down the corridor, leaving my ransacked bedroom behind, I had said this to the Grand Duke, but he brought me to his bedroom instead.

‘What if you secretly made your room like that to escape suspicion?’

For that reason, he said he couldn’t let me stay in a guest room or any other room.

So according to the Grand Duke, the wounds on my body were self-inflicted.

And the bizarre scene in my room was also my handiwork.

“Hmm…”

No matter what, this intimidating man would always suspect me.

I need to make him fall for someone else quickly, get compensation, and smuggle myself out.

“Good night.”

“……”

Instead of answering, he quietly leaned back on the bed, and I also laid down straight with my head on the pillow.

The bedroom filled with a bluish darkness as starlight filtered through the window.

Beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, the Milky Way seemed to flow leisurely, looking as if it might pour down at any moment.

It strangely reminded me that this world, though surreal, was now my reality.

Lying on the sofa and gazing outside blankly, I turned over to face the table.

“……”

What’s this?

Light began to flow from a book on the table.

It was the same light I had encountered in the newspaper before.

I instinctively jumped up and reached out to open the book.

[Someone wants to help you. Will you accept?]

“Help…?”

“What?”

“Eek!”

I turned my head with a start at the sudden low voice from the air.

The Grand Duke, reading a book in bed, was looking at me.

You were reading a book?

Come to think of it, books were placed all over—on the bedside table, the table, consoles, everywhere.

“Um, well.”

After glancing at the brilliantly shining book, I looked back at the Grand Duke.

Can’t that man see the light coming from this book?

Now that I thought about it, despite the bright light, no light or shadow was cast on the vase on the table or the cushion in front of me.

“I, I was just going to read a book too.”

I quickly pretended to read, making a show of turning the pages.

“You seem to like reading. There are many books placed here and there. Is it okay if I read one too?”

“It doesn’t look like you’re asking for permission.”

“What?”

“You’re already reading it.”

“Ah…”

As he said, I had opened the book long before asking for permission.

“Heh, that’s true?”

When I unconsciously grinned, he sat far away with a calm face, his lips firmly closed.

Perhaps due to the light from the antique lamp on the bedside table, his long, deep eyes under slightly disheveled hair, high forehead leading to a prominent nose bridge, stubbornly closed lips, and jawline seemed accentuated.

Below that, his protruding Adam’s apple, broad shoulders, and bare body with defined muscles were exposed.

If he had been n*ked below the waist earlier, I would have fainted from shock.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

Feeling his gaze lingering on me for a long time, I carefully asked if there was a problem.

“You don’t look very serious.”

“…?”

“You don’t seem to be thinking much either.”

“……”

Wondering what he meant, I opened my eyes wide, then remembered the scene we had encountered in the grand duchess’s bedroom.

Did the Grand Duke think I would naturally be overwhelmed with shock from seeing that?

“Are you talking about… my bedroom that we just saw?”

While the room must have looked wretched to the Grand Duke, I had actually lived in worse places before, so I was more curious about who had done it than shocked.

Moreover, who was it that said I might have made my bedroom like that?

I chose to shrug my shoulders and smile freshly.

“I was certainly surprised. But even if I worry about it now, nothing will change. I can think about tomorrow’s problems tomorrow.”

“…Were you always like this?”

“What was I like originally?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

“Hmm…”

“Read your book.”

The Grand Duke indifferently took his eyes off me and started reading again.

Looking at his face with half-lowered gaze, I could understand why the newspapers had praised his appearance so much.

I stared at his high forehead visible through his disheveled hair, his prominent nose bridge, and elegantly stretched eyes, then suddenly came to my senses and grabbed the book.

“This is no time for that.”

Why would I refuse when I could get help?

I quickly selected ‘Accept’ in the book I was holding.

The window message disappeared and then reappeared with new text.

[Congratulations! A helper will appear for Lea Azanie.]

A helper?

[An anonymous helper has sent you your first message.

Would you like to view it?]

Of course!

Before pressing the answer, I glanced at where the Grand Duke was.

I was afraid he might find me strange if he discovered I was just pressing the book rather than reading it.

Fortunately, he seemed to have little interest in me.

I quickly pressed ‘Yes’.

Then a message inbox was activated, and a new message with a preview disabled popped up.

As if entranced, I clicked on the new message 1 that had arrived for me.

[Do not fall asleep tonight under any circumstances.]

“What?”

Don’t fall asleep?

Just as I reflexively frowned, the hologram displaying the message disappeared.

While it was very welcome news that a helper would appear when I thought there was no one to ask for help…

Don’t fall asleep…

“……”

If there was someone here who might help me, I could think of the butler who was somewhat friendly toward me.

Though it was more like formal courtesy than goodwill.

“Yaaaawn… hup!”

As my mouth opened involuntarily from fatigue, I covered it, and I felt the Grand Duke slowly raising his gaze as if he had sensed my presence.

Only the sound of him turning the page of his book echoed in the quiet bedroom.

“I believe you haven’t been holding that book for long.”

His tone, speaking steadily without even looking at me, was similar to the strict manner of a teacher scolding a drowsy student during class.

Thanks to this, I instinctively straightened my back and raised the book up to my face, pretending nothing had happened.

“I’m not sleepy. I was really focused on reading just now.”

“Impressive that you can read just by tapping with your hands.”

As expected. He was a world champion at sarcasm. He keeps making me think twice.

“You saw…?”

I peeked my head out from beside the book.

The Grand Duke had already put his book down and was looking at me.

“Well, um, the book is a bit…”

Thinking of making some excuse, I closed the book and examined the cover.

“Immutable Strategies—Historical Edition”

Well. With a book like this, one would fall asleep immediately upon seeing the cover, regardless of the era.

“…It seems a bit different from my area of interest.”

As I casually added this while putting the book back on the table, something indescribable spread across his expression before quickly disappearing.

“I see.”

What should I do now?

My lips felt dry, not knowing what to say.

The silence was hard to bear, and I thought it would be better to pretend to sleep rather than continue the conversation.

The message from the anonymous helper said not to sleep, so even if that man fell asleep, I needed to stay awake.

“Aren’t you going to sleep?”

“……”

“I’m going to sleep now.”

After glancing at the Grand Duke, who seemed to disregard everything I said and didn’t particularly enjoy conversing with me, I lay down on the sofa.

“Sweet dreams.”

It felt like talking to a wall, but well, this was a situation I had become quite accustomed to.

Eventually, the Grand Duke must have gone to sleep too, as the bright light that had been cast from far away disappeared.

My consciousness grew faint, and something vaguely appeared in my blurry vision.

In the Grand Duke’s bedroom, where deep dawn had arrived and only silence flowed, footsteps approached steadily, and then a presence settled right behind me.

“……”

Had the Grand Duke stopped behind the sofa?

I exhaled quietly, keeping my eyes closed, pretending to be even more deeply asleep.

Soon, I heard footsteps starting to walk again and thought the Grand Duke was returning to bed.

Thud—

“…!”

That wasn’t it.

He had opened the door and left.