“Not coming out of the water at all and surprising people, and now, what’s with the fuss?”

“Well, that’s something I don’t know. You didn’t know if I had hidden gills. You just didn’t know.”

Maeyana burst into louder laughter.

“If there were really such a thing, I couldn’t have missed it. No matter how secretive or hidden it was, I would have found it.”

“Just a moment ago, you should return the words you said exactly. This is still young Arianthe’s room, and it’s broad daylight.”

The next moment, the two locked eyes and burst into laughter simultaneously. Perhaps because it was so quiet outside, they unknowingly held their breath, and when they finally stopped laughing, their throats felt tingling, and their foreheads were warm as if they had burst into laughter.

“Oh my, I shouldn’t be like this. I didn’t come here to sit with my employer on the sofa and chat like this.”

Maeyana said, fanning her cheek with her hand. Cedilloi, who was laughing, gently swept away her slightly disheveled hair.

“Whatever you came here for, it doesn’t matter to me now. But you still say those things for your sake, right?”

In an instant, Maeyana’s expression became complicated as if she had just discovered an unseen flaw. The smile that appeared on her lips was faint.

“Yes, that’s right. I’m a scared and selfish woman. I want the duke, and I’m happy with the duke’s affection, but it’s hard for me to accept it straightforwardly. There are too many high walls.”

“Yeah, I get it. But in my opinion, you’re not a coward. You’re just hesitating.”

“That’s right.”

“No, you’re different. If you were a coward, we wouldn’t be facing each other like this. You wouldn’t have known how to hug Arianthe. If you were really a scared person.”

Cedilloi’s upper body leaned slightly toward Maeyana. Watching that, it felt as if someone was deliberately turning the clock’s hands slowly. Everything, even the strands of his hair wavering, seemed to be vivid. And warmth and a broad embrace were felt.

Cedilloi, who gently embraced Maeyana’s body, whispered.

“As always, thank you for today.”

Maeyana, who slowly closed her eyes in his arms, answered with a sigh.

“Calling Jocelyn head maid here was a good move.”

If Cedilloi were himself, he wouldn’t have asked Jocelyn, who had left the house, to be called back. However, he did, and the household employees strongly clung to her as if trying to make up for the shock.

“I did that on purpose.”

Maeyana, who pushed Cedilloi’s chest slightly away, made a puzzled expression.

“You did that on purpose?”

Maeyana repeated Cedilloi’s words exactly. Then Cedilloi, with a somewhat ambiguous smile, gently stroked the back of her hand.

“Yeah. To put it bluntly, it’s like a giant bear hunt.”

It became more and more incomprehensible. As Maeyana frowned, Cedilloi, who was sitting on the sofa after throwing the book on his knees onto the table, leaned slightly and leaned against the sofa.

“A bear is very fast and intelligent, so it’s not easy to hunt unless you’re careful. It’s impossible to deal with an old one whose size has grown with just one or two arrows. So, when hunting a giant bear, hunters prepare very small arrows. They can shoot them quickly. They also apply poison slightly. If you shoot it and spin around the prepared safe zone, the bear, unknowingly poisoned, sticks its head anywhere without distinguishing between front and back. Even in a huge tree or rock… When it’s so out of its mind, finally, using a crossbow, they finish the hunt.”
Now I could fully understand the reason he mentioned bear hunting. Hunting a bear itself didn’t resonate as something familiar, but… At least, it was clear that what Cedilloi brought Jocelyn to kneel before Arianthe today was like a small poisoned arrow.

“Do you expect Jocelyn head maid to stick her head anywhere?”

“Figuratively speaking, that’s the case. And it wasn’t the first time.”

Maeyana stared at him intently.

“There’s something, Duke. Isn’t that right?”

“Yeah. And maybe… I might need your help at some point.”

After finishing speaking, Cedilloi took Maeyana’s hand and lifted it, leaving a kiss on her fingertips. His warm and firm lips were so smooth, like the enchanted threads in a fairy tale, evoking a kind of delightful excitement.

“I’ve already promised you, Duke. I’ll help with anything I can.”

“I know, and I appreciate that. So, thank you.”

Having rested his cheek on Maeyana’s shoulder for a moment, Cedilloi straightened up.

“After dinner, when we’re done, bring Arianthe to my room. Otherwise, I might go hungry too. Got it?”

“Perhaps the lady and I are so alike?”

Cedilloi laughed as if he found it amusing.

“Aren’t fathers and daughters naturally similar?”

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Around dinner time, Arianthe was more excited than ever. She made Veinti and Ivy sew the vivid autumn leaves into a long garland and then spread it out like lace decoration by the window, enjoying it for a long time.