Chapter 5 (Part 2)

Roberta, saying she needed to know the physical condition first, seriously touched Nancy here and there.

“Why are you…… so firm? You have quite a bit of muscle.”

Nancy proudly placed her hands on her waist.

“I was even more toned before I started serving Madam. Back then, I cleaned all day long.”

“There’s no need to worry about basic physical strength.”

“Of course. It’s the stamina I built by carrying buckets of water up and down the stairs. Knight, I can also chop wood well! Since I was young, I did it instead of my brother.”

“Really? Hmm. Then maybe a Dane axe would suit you better. No, since you’re short, a longsword might be more fun…….”

Worrying about Nancy’s weapon, who had never held a sword before. Roberta seemed genuinely invested in Nancy’s swordsmanship training.

Sellakia watched them excitedly chatting from one side of the bedroom and recalled the pressing issue before her. Now that she thought about it, it wasn’t the time to leisurely support Nancy’s swordsmanship training.

The ‘problem’ that troubled Sellakia. It was none other than the upcoming banquet.

“I really don’t want to……”

A deep sigh escaped. She wondered if this was how it felt to helplessly watch a massive tidal wave approach. The situation felt as dire as the direct threat posed by Aldrich.

She wanted to run away out of fear, and also wished to ruin the banquet so badly that it would make Tenus grimace.

On the other hand…… she was ambitious. She wanted to successfully fulfill the duty given to her for once.

“Then first, I need to get my hands on the ledger.”

The ledger symbolizing the rights of the household was essential for performing the role of the hostess. By looking at the previous expenditure list, she could find out what needed to be prepared for the banquet.

Now that she had set her goal, it was time to move. However, Sellakia hesitated and couldn’t easily get up from her seat.

To say she would take over the ledger, she needed to meet Tenus. Although Aldrich currently managed the ledger, she needed the actual owner, Tenus’s permission first.

But perhaps because of last night, she felt uneasy about seeing him.

“Madam, do you need anything?”

Nancy, who was being tested for stamina by Roberta in the corner, quickly turned to Sellakia.

Sellakia, who was hesitating, jumped up in surprise.

“Oh, it’s just…….”

“Are you going somewhere? The garden? Or do you want to go to the library to read?”

“Not that. ……I was thinking of going to the Duke’s office. There’s no need to follow. Nancy, you continue training here with Sir Belfona.”

“What are you saying? Of course, Madam comes first before training! Right, Knight?”

Roberta, who had been watching Nancy with her arms crossed, swiftly opened the bedroom door.

“Of course. Especially after what happened yesterday, how can we let Madam go alone? Let’s go, Madam.”

In the end, Roberta and Nancy accompanied her all the way to the office door.

The office door boasted a heavy presence today as well. Sellakia hid her complicated feelings and knocked before entering the office.

Roberta and Nancy naturally stayed outside, and Dominic greeted her as if he had been waiting, bowing his waist.

“Madam, you have arrived.”

“Good afternoon, Dominic.”

“Then I shall take my leave.”

Without asking, Dominic quickly left the office. There was no chance to stop him. She felt as if she had unintentionally driven Dominic away.

While Sellakia awkwardly stared at the door Dominic disappeared through, a low voice came from behind.

“Have you finally decided to put Aldrich on a slave ship?”

Tenus was sitting and looking at Sellakia crookedly. Sellakia calmly ignored his nonsense and sat on the sofa in the middle of the office. Having been here once before, she moved naturally as if it were her space.

“I want to manage the ledger for a while.”

Not wanting to waste time unnecessarily, Sellakia went straight to the point. Her gaze was fixed on the wide window behind where Tenus sat. The picturesque garden view was perfect for soothing her mind.

However, she couldn’t enjoy it for long. Tenus stood up, blocking her view. 

Damn his robust build.

He approached as if an explanation was needed. Sellakia stubbornly kept her eyes straight ahead.

“It’s not that I want to keep it forever. To prepare for the banquet, I need the ledger……”

Coincidentally, Sellakia’s eye level was near Tenus’s wrist as he stood. Her gaze involuntarily landed on his left wrist, which bore the remnants of an injury. It was unavoidable.

Hidden by the loose sleeves of his shirt, nothing was visible. However, when Tenus sat opposite her and ran his hand through his hair, his firm arm muscles pulled the fabric slightly, revealing his wrist.

“What?”

Sellakia forgot what she was saying and frowned. The knot of the bandage was very familiar.

“Didn’t you call Rupert? Why is the knot I tied still there?”

“I don’t intend to call Rupert for this. Continue what you were saying.”

“What do you mean by ‘for this’? Do you plan to call the doctor only after becoming a corpse?”

Tenus fluttered his silver eyelashes with a face that seemed unaware of the problem. Sellakia let out a breath of disbelief.

She had thought he was an extreme hypochondriac because he repeatedly emphasized that not dying was the duty of the Duchess. Apparently, that wasn’t entirely the case.

Feeling that it was pointless to continue the conversation, Sellakia abruptly stood up. She intended to call Rupert immediately.

“Sit down. There’s no need to call Rupert and cause unnecessary misunderstandings.”

“You can just say it was for a check-up.”

Tenus watched her with calm, sunken eyes. Sellakia instantly understood what that gaze meant.

“……You’ve never had a check-up, have you.”

“Now we’re communicating. Sit down.”

She didn’t want to sit down obediently. Sellakia stood tall and glared at the blood-stained bandage. It bothered her too much to leave it alone.

Was it because it was a scar that appeared in her place? Whether it was a sense of responsibility or guilt, she couldn’t tell, but it disturbed her.

“This is the Duke’s office, right? Unlike the bedroom, there should be first aid supplies here, right?”

Without waiting for an answer, Sellakia rummaged through the office at will. Fortunately, she soon found clean cloth and a mysterious bottle of medicine in the built-in cabinet.

Pleased, Sellakia carried them and headed to sit next to Tenus. Tenus looked at her sitting close to him as if it was unexpected.

“Are you going to treat it yourself?”

“You talk as if I didn’t do it yesterday. Give me your hand.”

Tenus’s eyes widened slightly. Although it wasn’t a significant change in expression, she could quickly notice that he was surprised since he usually kept his emotions in check.

“I said give me your hand.”

Tenus didn’t move. In the end, Sellakia yanked his left hand towards her. The large hand, caught like a fish hooked in the yard, flinched once.

A quick glance at Tenus’s face showed it was stiff. His neat lips were tense, and the muscles in his jaw bulged as if he was clenching his molars.

Apparently, he really disliked this contact. Sellakia felt a bit wronged.

He had freely watched and touched her while she was sleeping last night……. Of course, he hadn’t directly touched her. Anyway, he had done that.

As she readjusted her grip on the large hand she almost let slip, Sellakia slapped the back of his hand with emotion.

“Stay still.”

She didn’t forget to give him a warning look. Although Tenus wiggled his fingers, he didn’t pull away from her grasp. Feeling as if she had tamed a hunting dog, Sellakia felt smug.

“Ugh. Even so, you won’t call Rupert?”

As soon as she carefully unwrapped the bandage, a clicking sound of disapproval came out. Although the bleeding had completely stopped and the wound wasn’t large, the open flesh looked terribly gruesome.

Sellakia hurriedly poured the contents of the medicine bottle over the wound. Tenus, who had been keeping his mouth shut, let out a chuckle and asked in a hoarse voice.

“Do you know what you’re applying?”

“Whatever it is, it must be good since it’s in the Duke’s office.”

Seeing that Tenus didn’t stop her, she was sure. Having gained confidence from her assumption, Sellakia emptied half of the full bottle.

Whether it stung or not, Tenus was smiling slightly. He only frowned when his skin made direct contact with Sellakia’s. It seemed that unavoidable contact was more unpleasant than the painful wound. Feeling a surge of indignation, Sellakia wrapped the cloth around the wound with all her might. Tenus didn’t make a sound of pain.

Tenus, who had been silently watching Sellakia focus on tying the knot, spoke up.

“Aldrich manages the ledger, so go get it from him directly.”

“Me, directly?”

Sellakia’s hand paused. As she stared blankly at the bandage soaked in white ointment, she heard his voice.

“When you feel trapped between the devil and the deep blue sea.”

“…….”

“Start by taking a moment to look around. Don’t recklessly jump into danger.”

Sellakia raised her head at the unexpected words. With eyes as deep and blue as the sea, Tenus continued.

“You might not be trapped alone.”

“…….”

Sellakia realized a moment later that this was an answer to the question she had asked yesterday.

She hadn’t expected Tenus to respond. She hadn’t asked the question hoping for an answer in the first place. It was more of a complaint, muttered in self-pity.

Since he hadn’t said anything yesterday, she thought he wasn’t concerned, but perhaps that wasn’t the case. The answer he seemed to have pondered over for a whole day was very unexpected.

True to the diligent heir of the Seidon family, it was a sound and somewhat…… cute answer. Sellakia couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

Tenus stared at her laughing for a long time before asking in a tone of incomprehension.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Because I’m deeply impressed.”

“You laugh when you’re impressed?”

“Can’t I laugh?”

Sellakia abruptly stopped laughing. Thinking he might have misunderstood something, she added an explanation.

“I’m not mocking you. I just thought, as expected, the Duke of the Seidon family is different. Composure, it’s nice. It’s good advice.”

“Then keep laughing.”

“No, thanks.”

The impression she had received quickly faded with his dry response.

With a sulky face, Sellakia finished tying the knot. And before Tenus could withdraw his hand, she pushed it away. Childishly, she felt as if she had won, and her mood improved a bit.

“What? Why?”

She even shot a triumphant look at Tenus, who seemed dumbfounded.

Nevertheless, she didn’t feel like jumping up and leaving the office. She wanted to delay facing Aldrich as much as possible.

No matter how unsatisfactory Tenus was, he was far better than Aldrich, who had slashed his wrist for her sake.