Chapter 3.6

Greta lay on her bed, feeling as though her heart might burst. It felt as if her heartbeat was echoing throughout her entire body.  

“Aaahhh!”  

She finally let out a small scream, flailing her arms and legs in every direction.  

If the summer expedition had ended early, it would have been a massive topic of gossip in the capital. Although newspapers reporting on the capital’s news were published daily in Debius, Greta didn’t enjoy reading them. She was too busy to find the time.  

‘The Duke came all the way to Debius. This feels like a dream! And he said he was glad to see me! He said it was nice to meet again after such a long time! And he even said I could call him by his name in the capital!’  

Unrequited love is like dark chocolate, with 90% bitterness and just a hint of sweetness. It’s bitter most of the time, but the intense sweetness that comes on rare occasions makes it impossible to quit. In the end, there are only two outcomes: either you grow tired of the bitterness and give up, or the sweetness becomes more pronounced.  

Whether it was Greta’s misunderstanding or Ragaen’s intention, the sweetness he offered was slow but steadily growing stronger. At this moment, Greta was certain—she could confidently say that even if she dunked her head into a bathtub filled with melted chocolate, it wouldn’t be as sweet as this!  

“Kyaaah! Aaaaah!”  

I want to confess! I really like you, Your Grace! So, hold my hand! Kiss me! And do everything else, from family-friendly to 19+ rated things!  

After rolling around on her bed for quite some time, unable to calm her excitement, Greta gulped down a glass of cold water to steady herself.  

“Phew, I need to calm down. Slow and steady wins the race.”  

Right before departing for the estate, Isabelle had said:  

‘Greta, think of Ragaen as a sensitive and suspicious beast. You must never release the bowstring with half-hearted resolve when dealing with such prey. Wait until you’re absolutely certain—until you’re sure now is the perfect moment. Hold your breath and wait. Don’t act rashly just because you’ve pulled back the string. Understand?’  

It’s sweet. She wasn’t sure if they were looking at the same thing, but she was certain they were at least looking in a similar direction. Greta decided she would hold her breath and wait until she was confident.  

She would wait and wait, and in the end, she would win him over.  

Love is something I have to fight for!  

***

Ragaen left Greta’s room and quickly returned to his own, as if fleeing.  

“This is insane….”  

He muttered to himself repeatedly, like a refrain in a song, “I’m crazy, I’m out of my mind.”  

Greta’s face kept appearing in front of his eyes. Her small, pretty face, glowing red in the firelight from the fireplace. Her beautifully shaped forehead, her sharp and elegant nose, her soft-looking cheeks, and her red, delicate lips—all of it was so pretty. It wasn’t until he found himself wanting to touch that face that he realized he was in Greta’s bedroom.  

As his entire body heated up, memories of the dream he had the previous night flashed through his mind like a panorama. He felt as though he had committed a grave sin against Greta. His heart was racing like a galloping horse, and he was terrified that she might have heard it pounding in his chest.  

Even after returning to his room, his excited heart and the heat coursing through his body didn’t subside.  

“D*mn it.”  

Even if he sewed his brain back together or chopped it into pieces and buried it in the mountains, it wouldn’t be enough.  

He knew that Jespa, Obil, Countess Roana of Titania, and even Crown Prince Hayel had subtly tried to pair him with Greta over the past few months. He had scoffed at the thought, wondering if they had no better match for a young, noble lady raised in luxury than him.  

He had thought it was simply admiration from a fan, a healthy and innocent relationship.  

But the desires welling up inside him were far from innocent. They were sticky, filthy, and completely removed from the word “wholesome.” Just thinking about those desires made him feel as though he was committing an unforgivable sin against Greta.  

Ragaen had spent a crucial period of his life surrounded by vulgar mercenaries, where obscene jokes and crude behavior were the norm. The first woman he had been with during his adolescence had been a courtesan. As a result, his understanding of relationships between men and women was deeply rooted in concepts far removed from conventional moral standards.  

Thanks to years of education under Crown Prince Hayel, he had learned to discern right from wrong in a socially acceptable way. Still, when he thought about “relationships between men and women,” what first came to mind wasn’t warm, tender, and caring emotional bonds. Instead, he thought of raw, messy, and primal connections where words were secondary to physical interactions.  

“No… I need to get a grip.”  

Ragaen thought of Jespa, who had instilled in him various moral values and social norms over the years. He imagined what Jespa would say if he found out about the desires Ragaen harbored for the one and only female fan who admired him with a pure heart.  

‘Your Grace, you’re trash.’  

‘How could you think such filthy things, Your Grace?’  

‘Copy the 15th edition of <Ethics and Morality of Yegahen> from start to finish!’  

‘We’ll resume lessons on “Proper Conduct and Ethical Ideals” starting today.’  

‘Obviously, the young lady has feelings for you, Your Grace!’  

“D*mn it!”  

A memory from long ago suddenly interrupted his moral reflections.  

It was what Jespa had exclaimed with great excitement on the day Ragaen first went to meet Greta after the early spring hunting competition.  

“Of course that’s not true. D*mn it.”  

Even now, he couldn’t help but deny it.  

He wasn’t someone as valuable as to be loved by someone like Greta—someone so beautiful, sweet, lovely, and even young.  

‘Do you wish to remain just the Duke of Adantie to her?’

This time, Crown Prince Hayel’s question echoed in his mind.  

Ragaen shook his head furiously.  

Even if he wanted to be more than a hero to Greta, what difference would it make?  

Forget about it. Forget about it and go to sleep.  

Ragaen took several cold showers before he finally managed to fall asleep. However, it was all in vain, as that night’s dream was once again filled with vivid, sensual images that tormented him until morning.  

***

At dawn, the investigation team departed for the Snowfields. Their goal was to complete the investigation and return within three days.  

As soon as they left, Greta ran to the lord’s office.  

“Tara!”  

“What?”  

“I, I! Can I take half a day off this afternoon?”  

“Half a day off? What is that? I didn’t expect to find such progressive labor practices here in barren Debius. Is this a revolution, sociology student?”  

Greta had majored in sociology during her academy days, while Tara had double-majored in ancient languages and sociology.  

“Down with the tyrant boss, Tara Debius! Pay me my overdue leave!”  

“Wow, a temporary worker who hasn’t even worked for two months is being so demanding. Anyway, what’s the reason?”  

“I have a date with the Duke!”  

“The Duke of Adantie? You knew he was here?”  

Tara couldn’t hide her surprise.  

She knew Greta admired the Duke of Adantie deeply, but she had assumed the Duke’s whereabouts were a closely guarded secret, given their importance to the Crown Prince. Even Tara hadn’t seen the Duke’s face; she had only been discreetly informed by Lucas Nindella that “the man is actually the Duke of Adantie, and it’s a secret.”  

“He told me last night.”  

“Last night?! What happened? Tell me everything, from start to finish, without leaving out a single detail! Hurry up!”  

A friend’s love life is always fascinating, especially when there’s a mountain of boring work to do.  

“Well, last night, I was walking down the corridor—oh, right. The lights in the corridor were out. The magic stones need replacing.”  

“Is that important right now? Just tell the staff about it. What happened last night? What is it? What happened?!”  

Greta recounted everything that had happened the previous night.  

“This is huge! He said he was happy to see you after so long? Did he really say that?”  

“Yes! I thought my heart was going to explode!”  

As the story continued, Tara became just as excited.  

“Wow, he even gave you permission to call him by his name? This is serious. This is a green light!”  

“Is it really? Does it seem like it?”  

“Yes. This is undeniably a green light! Confess to him! Go for it!”  

“Green light!”

To understand the meaning of the term “green light,” one must go back to the war between the Empire of Yegahen and the Kingdom of Orden.

When Pint Adantie, the Duke of Adantie then, advanced to the Iron Fortress, which was Orden’s last line of defense, the Prince of Orden, sensing inevitable defeat, draped the entire fortress in green cloth—the color of Yegahen’s imperial flag—and opened the gates. The exaggerated tale of dozens of green banners fluttering under the sun, as if emitting light, led to the term “green light” being used to signify a bloodless surrender.

Recently, the term gained traction in a gossip column where it was used in a love advice article. The columnist likened confessing one’s feelings when the other party reciprocates to entering the green-lit fortress of Orden without resistance. Since then, “green light” has become a popular term in romantic contexts.

“Yes! It’s a green light! The gates are wide open!”

“Ugh! I want to do it! I want to make him mine!”

“Wait, was this mutual all along? I thought you were the only one with a crush. When you said the atmosphere was good during the hunting competition, I thought you were exaggerating.”

“Wow, that’s harsh. Anyway, it’s still a bit uncertain.”

“Isn’t it clear enough already?”

Greta shook her head.

“His Grace is just so kind. He’s just too nice as a person.”

“…?”

From the various rumors Tara had heard, Ragaen Sol Adantie was often described with phrases like “cold,” “rational,” and “utterly indifferent to others.” Words like “kind” or anything similar had never been associated with him.

But since she had never met him in person, maybe he was actually kind-hearted, and people just misunderstood because of his intimidating appearance?

“Anyway! My contract is almost up, and since Sir Murray is here now, can I go on a date this afternoon? Half-day leave! Afternoon off! Evil employer Tara Debius, you should improve the working conditions of your contracted employees!”

Greta sprawled on the office floor. Tara immediately stood up.

“Greta Lievo! You’ve made history in Debius labor records! Savor the honor of being the first contracted employee in Debius history, with only a two-month contract, to be granted an afternoon off!”

“Tara Debius, you’re the best! I’ll work hard in the morning, my employer!”

Greta dashed out without looking back. Watching her go, Tara muttered in exasperation.

“I really hope she gets rejected.”

Beside Tara was a mountain of paperwork, and inside her drawer was a breakup letter from the man she had once thought of marrying, still preserved as if new.

Her life was sweet, while mine is as bitter as tea steeped for three hours.

“Ugh, I really hope she gets rejected.”

She hoped things would work out for Greta, and it seemed like they already had. But still, she wished Greta would get rejected!

END VOL 1