Shall I Save You, Duke? (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 8
“Um… Your Grace…?”
Seeing the duke’s face—pinning her with both arms and glaring fiercely—made her throat feel as if it were burning dry.
Everything had happened so suddenly that her mind seemed to have completely short-circuited.
‘What does he mean, “Who are you?” What on earth is he talking about?’
Stammering in response to the duke’s cryptic words, Lina continued hesitantly.
“I’m Lina. Your maid, Your Grace…”
“…Lina?”
“Yes!”
Yet despite Lina introducing herself, the duke showed no sign of letting her go and instead closed the distance even further.
“Your Grace? Could you please—”
She spoke toward the duke looming over her. His disheveled appearance, having just woken up, looked almost dangerously unstable.
Pushing aside her flustered feelings, Lina began assessing the situation.
A man and a woman were together in bed, in a sealed room—and extremely close.
‘This feels… dangerous.’
Memories from that night began bursting unbidden into her mind.
The sensation of being devoured by those yellow eyes crept up from her toes, sending chills through her.
‘Besides, I’m lying in the duke’s bed, and this man is straddling me…’
Lina squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head vigorously, trying to banish the impure thoughts flashing through her mind.
‘What am I thinking! No!! Stop it right now! Stop!’
“You…”
As the duke opened his mouth to speak, his lips overlapped in her vision with those of the man who’d swallowed her whole that night.
“S-stop—!!”
The moment she heard the duke’s voice, the words that had been circling only in her head burst out of her mouth—and she kicked her leg up as if having a seizure.
Thud—!
Anyone who’s ever recalled an embarrassing or shameful memory has probably kicked off their blanket at least once.
Lina was no different. Unfortunately, her foot happened to hit the duke’s leg.
When Lina’s flailing foot struck the duke’s shin, a low groan soon followed.
“Ugh.”
“H-huh! Your Grace!! Are you all right…?”
Taken by surprise, the duke pulled away from Lina. Hearing his groan, Lina panicked and hurriedly sat up.
Whack—!
This time, the duke’s head and Lina’s collided—neither had managed to dodge in time.
“Ah! …Huh? Y-Your Grace?! Are you okay?”
The duke, who’d been unexpectedly struck on both shin and head by Lina, remained silent, merely holding his forehead where they’d bumped.
An icy stillness hung in the bedroom for several minutes.
Soon, the duke moved away from Lina while still holding his forehead. Seizing the chance, Lina quickly slipped off the bed.
But her face had gone pale—she’d unintentionally assaulted the duke.
“T-that is…! You wouldn’t move aside, so I just…”
‘I must be insane…! How dare I lay hands on His Grace.’
Though the duke’s face was hidden by his hand, it was clearly frozen stiff.
Hesitating over whether to wait for him to say something, Lina quietly stepped backward toward the door and spoke.
“I-I’m so sorry! Your Grace…! Then… I’ll take my leave now!”
Seeing the duke still give no reaction, Lina desperately wanted to escape the situation as quickly as possible.
‘Ah, I don’t care anymore! I’ll just get out of here fast…!’
Without even waiting for the duke’s permission, Lina fled the bedroom as if running away.
Slamming the door shut behind her, she ran without looking back and reached her quarters in an instant.
Sliding down the door that had shut with a loud bang, Lina sank to the floor.
“This time, I might really die by the duke’s hand…”
It hadn’t been intentional, but laying hands on the duke—there couldn’t be a greater act of insubordination.
“Worse yet, I even left the room without his permission.”
But in that moment, running away was all she could think to do.
“Should I go back right now and apologize…?”
She quickly shook her head. What good would apologizing do at this point?
“Going now might just make him angrier… I’ll just kneel and beg for forgiveness first thing tomorrow morning!”
She had to admit fault unconditionally. Right now, that was her only option.
“Lina, did you place the incense burner properly in His Grace’s room last night?”
“Huh? Oh, yes…”
Unable to hide her anxiety at Emma’s call right after waking up, Lina stammered.
“That’s good to hear. I was worried since there’d been no word after you went to the duke’s room last night. From now on, don’t go straight back to your quarters after finishing work—report to me first.”
“Yes. Understood. I’ll be more careful from now on.”
Expecting Emma to ask about what happened with the duke last night, Lina cautiously inquired while watching her expression.
“Um… Did His Grace happen to say anything?”
“Hm? Was there something?”
Emma asked back with a look of complete ignorance. Apparently, the duke hadn’t given any orders or hints about last night’s incident.
“Oh, no! I just wondered if His Grace slept well!”
“He rarely shows it, even when tired. But more importantly, urgent matters came up in the domain, so His Grace left at dawn.”
‘So he’s not in the mansion right now?’
Relief loosened the tightly wound string of tension in Lina’s chest upon hearing the duke wasn’t present.
“Then, when will he return?”
“He should be back by tonight at the latest. We’ll need to prepare fresh clothes and bathwater for when he arrives, so stay awake and wait—even if you’re tired.”
“Yes. Understood.”
Click—.
“Haa—.”
Stepping out of Emma’s room, Lina sighed deeply as she thought.
‘It’s lucky he’s away, but better to get punished quickly. How long can I wait anxiously until nightfall?’
Outside the window, the sky was filled with dark gray storm clouds, as if rain might fall at any moment.
“It’s going to rain soon, isn’t it?”
‘Now that I think of it, I still have so much to do—fetch yesterday’s laundry… and close the windows too. Sigh—. Worrying won’t solve anything. I’ll deal with this later and just finish my pending chores first.’
“Lina, His Grace has just passed through the main gate. Hurry and prepare fresh clothes and warm water.”
“Yes. Understood.”
‘Coming home past midnight… I’m going to be exhausted.’
To calm her nerves, Lina had worked nonstop since morning, and now her heavy eyelids and weary body had long since chased away her earlier anxiety.
‘I’ll just finish my remaining tasks quickly—and if I see His Grace, I’ll simply apologize! He surely won’t actually kill me, right?’
Feeling bolder from sheer exhaustion, Lina hurried toward the bedroom carrying the duke’s change of clothes.
Upon reaching the third-floor corridor, the sound of fluttering fabric became clearly audible.
“The wind…?”
Lina walked toward the source of the sound—and found the window midway down the corridor wide open, greeting her.
Wind rushing through the open window made the curtains billow dramatically, asserting their presence.
“Who on earth left the window open at this hour?”
Lina hurried toward the window to stop the draft.
But an unexpected gust of cold air snatched the clothes from her hands, sending them flying down the corridor.
“Oh!”
After quickly shutting the window, Lina rushed to pick up the fallen clothes and bent down.
As she kept brushing off the garments—worried they might have picked up dust—someone approached her.
‘Who is it?’
First, she noticed an elegant pair of men’s shoes, damp as if wet from rain.
Before she could identify their owner, a familiar-looking hand suddenly reached out and picked up the clothes.
“D-duke?”
He silently looked down at Lina, who was crouched on the floor. For a moment, time seemed to stop—only silence filled the space between them.
Snapped back to her senses by another gust of wind, Lina spoke.
“Oh. I’ll bring new clothes—”
“It’s fine.”
The duke then held the clothes out toward Lina again.
Staring blankly at the duke’s outstretched hand, Lina reached out to take them—and felt a fleeting warmth brush against her fingertips.
‘What was that? Just now, with his hand…’
For a brief moment, it felt as if the duke’s fingertips had grazed her own. Feeling oddly flustered, Lina looked up at him—but his expression remained as impassive as ever.
‘Was it just my imagination…?’
“Weren’t you coming to my room?”
“…Huh? Oh, yes.”
Following the duke toward his bedroom, Lina watched him curiously—he hadn’t mentioned a word about last night.
‘But why isn’t he saying anything at all…?’
After placing the clothes on the bed and filling the tub with warm water, Lina carefully addressed him.
“Your Grace. Your bath is ready.”
“I see.”
‘I suppose it’d be easier to receive forgiveness if I apologize first…’
Hesitating, Lina opened her mouth to bring up last night.
“Um… About last night…”
“I’m tired. You may go.”
“Oh, yes! Then please rest well.”
Closing the door after the duke’s dismissal, Lina tilted her head in puzzlement.
‘It almost seemed like he deliberately cut me off…?’
Thinking that since the duke wasn’t speaking, she didn’t need to either, Lina trudged away with her exhausted body.
Days passed—night turned to morning, and then another day came—but the duke never said a word to Lina, as if he didn’t remember the incident at all.
‘Is he just going to let it go?’
After all, if he intended to punish her, knights would’ve dragged her to the dungeon that very night.
‘Or maybe he doesn’t remember…? Right. He might think it was just a dream—since it happened right after waking, he might not even believe it was real!’
“So… will it just be as if nothing ever happened?”
After observing him for several days, the duke’s behavior remained exactly as before.
‘He even looked quite well-rested!’
The issue that had been weighing on Lina’s mind seemed to resolve itself.
Not knowing why, but convinced the duke wouldn’t make an issue of it, Lina strolled down the corridor with noticeably lighter steps.
She even occasionally hopped along cheerfully.
“That cheerful expression of yours…”
—Until a familiar baritone voice came from behind the corner.
‘!!!’
Lina’s joyful steps halted abruptly, as if hitting an invisible wall.
Stiff as an unoiled iron gate, she slowly turned her head sideways—and saw the duke leaning against the wall, arms crossed, looking down at her with a crooked smirk.
“Your Grace…?”
“I found it amusing watching you dart around like a frightened mouse, checking every corner.”
The duke pushed off the wall and took a firm step toward Lina.
“So—did you really think I’d just let it go?”
Male lead Asks for a Divorce Every Day
It’s not often you come across a plot like this in the female-dominant genre — make sure to check it out!
This is a novel I’m planning to reread as well.
The male lead is strong, skilled in martial arts, and not the usual fragile type you often see in matriarchal novels.
Meanwhile, the female lead is a scientist—rational and logical. Even when she falls for the male lead, she doesn’t let her emotions cloud her decisions.
If you push through the first few chapters, you’ll gradually find the story really intriguing.
It has a mix of mystery, detective elements, and romance.
The author’s writing style is like crafting a puzzle—except they deliberately leave out a few pieces, making it hard to predict what happens next, yet keeping you hooked.
In the end, everything will come together and be explained.
One-sentence summary: Wife, stop playing with beakers and look at me!
In a laboratory accident, research scientist Zhu Wansheng accidentally travels to a matriarchal world. The original owner of the body is an eighteen-year-old only daughter of a wealthy rouge merchant, already married with a handsome young man.
Zhu Wansheng grins: Nice! She always said she was heaven’s favorite granddaughter. After a life of toil in her previous life, she can enjoy blessings in this one.
However, her joy lasts no more than three seconds as bad news arrives: the original owner’s family is about to go bankrupt, and her husband wants a divorce.
Even worse, she’s stuck with a research system full of restrictions.
Zhu Wansheng: ? Is this the destiny of a research dog?
——
Faced with this mess, Zhu Wansheng pours herself a bowl of wine to drown her sorrows. In her drunken haze, her husband arrives.
His figure is imposing, holding a long sword, with a dignified air that captivates Zhu Wansheng.
Gu Yingqing, however, looks at the alcohol-reeking Zhu Wansheng with undisguised disgust and coldly asks, “Divorce or not?” The intoxicated Zhu Wansheng mumbles vaguely, “I think… it’s not… it’s not… impossible!”
——
The next day, after sobering up, Zhu Wansheng is full of energy, rolling up her sleeves ready to make a big move. As for yesterday? She has no memory of it.
Zhu Wansheng is ambitious; a research dog fears nothing!
Upgrading rouge, extracting fragrances, producing perfumes, researching lipsticks… all shall bow to the power of modern technology!
The original owner’s dying rouge shop is revitalized. Her mother is pleased and with a wave of her hand, passes on the family business to her. As she takes control and her experimental results gain popularity, it’s the pinnacle of her life…
——
But there are always those who can’t stand to see her doing well. Jealousy, scheming, assassination attempts – they want nothing less than her life.
The person who has always kept his distance from her suddenly holds her tightly in his arms, eyes full of concern.
She is unharmed, but he falls into a pool of blood…
Zhu Wansheng feels guilty, “I can grant you one wish.”
Gu Yingqing tentatively circles his arms around her, carefully resting his head in the crook of her neck, pleading softly, “I regret it. Can we not divorce?”
Zhu Wansheng: ? When did I agree to a divorce?
[Small Theater]
The newly developed rouge is beautifully packaged, and Zhu Wansheng is eager to try it.
Gu Yingqing suddenly appears: “My lady, may I apply it for you?”
Cool fingertips lightly brush her lips. His Adam’s apple bobs as he leans in for a light bite.
Zhu Wansheng: ?
Gu Yingqing: It smells so good, I wanted to taste it…
On a warm spring day, Zhu Wansheng tries a new perfume: “Spring Night.” Gu Yingqing corners her against a wall.
Warm breath lingers on her neck.
“My lady, from now on, may I test the fragrances for you?”
[Humorous female scientist vs scheming live-in son-in-law male lead]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
MANGA DISCUSSION
2 Comments
Chapter Comments (52)
Why is ml always starting with being rude and mean to the fl?
she is being bullied alright,just run away,leave that man
the duke is totally a baby, eventhough he wants to be close to lina all the time
YOUR COMMENT
2. Inline comments are now available. Tap the end of any line in a chapter to share your thoughts instantly.
Log in to comment.
Blairwoods
“But her face had gone pale—she’d unintentionally assaulted the duke.”
No girl, he did!!!
debban23
lina thought she is out of the bushes haha,think again