5. Maybe… You Want a Little More Affection?

“You don’t like me!”

The heir to the Duke of Egenhart, now eight years old, said in a sulky voice directed at Evelyn.

His face, as beautiful as an angel’s, was full of pouting and anger.

‘What is it this time that’s upset him again?’

Evelyn Berge, now living her second life at the age of ten, muttered inwardly.

She had just returned after hearing Lady Mariware declare that she would no longer be his “playmate,” and her own mind was already in turmoil.

With Mariware gone, Evelyn was now the only girl left among the Duke of Egenhart’s “playmates.”

‘Of course, well-bred noble girls couldn’t possibly endure that brat’s tyranny.’

The heir to the Duke of Egenhart looked like a cherubic angel straight out of a painting.

Pale white skin, platinum blond hair, sapphire-like blue eyes, and chubby cheeks.

But the real problem with this little one was his personality.

Arrogant, domineering, violent, self-centered, and insolent.

You’d run out of bad words trying to describe him fully.

‘Just look at him now…’

For reasons known only to him, he was standing on top of a garden tree, staging a protest.

She wanted to just leave the irritating brat alone, but…

‘The problem is, I’m his so-called playmate.’

Actually, it was more accurate to say nanny than playmate.

Evelyn was beginning to suspect that the Duke’s household had chosen playmates with that purpose in mind from the start.

“Lord Rashid, please come down from the tree. It’s dangerous.”

Evelyn coaxed Rashid, who was currently staging a protest atop a garden tree.

“Go away! You don’t even like me!”

Rashid shouted the same thing again.

Not you hate me, but you don’t like me. A glimpse into the arrogant nature of the boy.

“Lord Rashid, it’s impolite to refer to me as ‘you.’”

“Then what am I supposed to call you?”

“You should call me Lady Evelyn or Lady Evelyn Berge, at least. I am a noble, however insignificant.”

“Insignificant noble…”

Rashid frowned and mumbled before immediately snapping back.

“But Lady Evelyn uses bad words too!”

“Yes, but I’m just the daughter of a failing baronial house. My Lord, on the other hand, is the heir to the esteemed Duke of Egenhart. You ought to be more mindful.”

When she responded with sound logic, Rashid sulkily shut his mouth.

He was smart for his age, but still only eight.

His mind and even his height hadn’t caught up to Evelyn’s yet.

With a two-year age difference, Rashid was still a full head shorter than her.

“Lady Evelyn never does what I want!”

“That’s because I’m not a toy for His Grace to control as he pleases.”

“How dare a lowly human—!”

And then Evelyn realized the root of the problem.

This noble little duke was a dragon—an inhuman being. He had no sense of respect for ordinary humans.

Dragons, the strongest beings in the world.

That one fact alone had twisted the boy’s nature.

“If I displease you so much, I can stop being your playmate as of today.”

The moment Evelyn said that, Rashid flinched.

His eyes, directed at Evelyn, shimmered with something close to betrayal.

“I never told you to quit!”

“Then what would you like me to do?”

“Just… be a little kinder…”

“I think I’m already being quite kind, though.”

“Well, I mean…”

Seeing the boy nervously biting his lip brought a sudden thought to Evelyn’s mind.

“Maybe… you want me to dote on you a little more?”

At that moment, Rashid’s fair cheeks flared up bright red.

Seeing him squirm and avoid her gaze, Evelyn became certain.

‘Right, he’s still only eight…’

Maybe, just maybe, that nasty personality of his could still be fixed.

If so, then she could truly change the plot of the original story.

‘He’s only eight. There’s still hope.’

So, should she give him a little more affection?

“Understood, Lord Rashid. I’ll show you a little more affection from now on.”

At Evelyn’s words, Rashid’s face lit up instantly.

“Then I’ll come down now. Catch me, Lady Evelyn.”

‘Who told him to climb up there in the first place?’

Still, Evelyn had just promised to be kinder to him. She opened her arms toward Rashid.

Without hesitation, Rashid jumped into her embrace.

‘H-He’s heavy.’

Just as Evelyn let out a strained breath under his unexpected weight—

Suddenly, Rashid tilted his head up and pressed his lips to hers.

“……!”

Evelyn’s green eyes shook violently for a moment.

‘What the hell is this brat thinking!’

While Evelyn panicked inwardly, Rashid looked up at her with a bright smile.

That sculpture-like handsome face now wore the mischievous grin of a cheeky little imp.

It was the expression of a beast, fully satisfied after a hearty feast.

Then Rashid quietly rested his head against Evelyn’s shoulder.

The vibrant platinum hair scattered over her worn-out dress left Evelyn momentarily speechless.

‘Well… I guess I have no choice.’

Looking down at Rashid, who snuggled calmly into her arms, Evelyn sighed inwardly.

‘If I can tame this violent little duke like this, maybe I can rewrite the original story.’

She had been under a delusion.

To put it bluntly, the original novel 《Duke’s Secret Seduction》 was not a childcare story.

No matter how much effort was put into it, changing the personality of Rashid, the original male lead, was doomed to fail.

And that was something ten-year-old Lady Evelyn Berge had yet to realize.

***

“There’s just no end to the work…”

Evelyn muttered quietly, wrestling with the stack of documents that had piled up the moment she arrived at the office.

It had already been three years since she began working as Rashid’s secretary.

The workload had steadily grown heavier.

In the past, it had been enough to handle just her own duties, but starting this year, she frequently had to manage Rashid’s personal affairs as well.

Things like sending gifts—flowers or jewels—to women he was dating, or delivering break-up messages to exes, for example…

“To use someone as talented as me for this kind of stuff… What a waste.”

Just as Evelyn was grumbling—

“Lady Berge. Can I see His Grace the Duke right away?”

The office door suddenly burst open, and a staff member rushed in.

“What is it, Martin?”

“A telegram just came from Port Borten! The mayor has finally agreed to approve the harbor development!”

“Really?”

Port Borten was a trading port located in the southern part of the Empire.

It handled 30% of the Empire’s exports, but it had been over fifty years since it was built and was now severely outdated.

There had been discussions about constructing a new harbor for years, but the astronomical costs had made the mayor hesitant to commit.

Only a few months ago, Rashid’s company, Bris Company, had proposed a new harbor project to the mayor.

Until now, the mayor had only responded with the usual line about “reviewing the proposal,” but today, he had finally sent his answer.

Before any rival company caught wind of this, they needed to inform their employer as quickly as possible.

“Is he still not up?”

But Rashid was nowhere to be seen in his office today.

‘He hasn’t gone out yet, so he must still be in the mansion.’

Which meant the only place Rashid could be right now was his bedroom.

Evelyn rushed toward Rashid’s room but came to a halt at the end of the hallway.

‘Oh, right. That little menace is there!’

Basking in the radiant morning sunlight, a cat’s silvery-gray fur glowed brilliantly.

With a slender, graceful build reminiscent of a Siamese, the cat’s name was Veronica—Vero for short.

The Duke’s office, bedroom, garden, and every beautiful and luxurious spot in the estate all had a place reserved for Vero.

Though she currently appeared as an ordinary cat, Veronica was in truth a mystical creature who had lived in the Duke’s household for ages.

Naturally, she possessed intellect and could communicate with people.

But that communication was limited strictly to her master, Rashid.

To all other humans, she regarded them as inferior beings.

‘Anyway, this is an emergency.’

Resolving herself inwardly, Evelyn approached Veronica, who was lying in front of the Duke’s bedroom door like a sentinel.

“Hi, Vero? I have something urgent. Can you please let me through just this once?”

She asked sincerely enough, but the cat immediately turned her head away, as if to say she would never entertain the pitiful requests of a human.

‘Her personality’s just as nasty as her master’s!’

But Evelyn couldn’t give up here.

“This is really important for Lord Rashid, okay? I’m begging you.”

She smiled as sweetly as she could and tried again.

Still, the mystical creature remained silent.

Her unnaturally red eyes simply stared directly at Evelyn.

Then, after a pause, Veronica stood up from the doorway and plopped down on a carpet further away.

‘What? Did she actually listen to me?’

She had no idea what had possessed the creature to cooperate, but that didn’t matter now.

Bang!

Evelyn flung open the door to the bedroom and darted inside, quickly scanning her surroundings.

“Good, he’s awake at least.”

But the large bed was empty.

Evelyn hastily moved to search the room.

Splash.

That’s when she heard the sound of water.

At the same time, a moist, distinctive scent reached her nose.

“…Ah.”

Evelyn instinctively turned her head—and locked eyes with the room’s owner.

Of all moments—it was while Rashid was bathing!

It had recently become fashionable among noble households to install bathrooms with plumbing directly in the bedrooms.

But Rashid, citing the hassle, had delayed the renovations.

Because of that…

Evelyn had walked right in and found Rashid soaking in a bathtub set up in one corner of the bedroom.