Trapped in the Mad Duke's Snare (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 14
Adeline, leaning against the quiet bedroom, gradually felt her flaring emotions subside.
After realizing she’d been overly sensitive, Adeline couldn’t tear her eyes away from the bedroom door.
She waited for his return, but Cassis never came back to the room—not even once—before she finally drifted off to sleep.
Perhaps it was due to the exhausting day; Adeline had fallen fast asleep while waiting for him.
Even after a full day passed, the heavy rain continued to pour without any sign of stopping.
When Adeline opened her eyes in the morning, her body felt as heavy as a waterlogged clump of cotton.
“Cough. Cough.”
Overwhelmed by sudden thirst, Adeline struggled to sit up and reach for some water.
The moment she rose, something fell from her head—a damp washcloth.
Someone had clearly tended to her through the night; extra cloths and a basin were neatly arranged on the nightstand.
Adeline reached toward the fallen washcloth, then hesitated—she noticed the bandage neatly wrapped around her right hand.
Last night, she hadn’t even thought about replacing the bandage that had become a mess.
‘So he came by while I was asleep.’
Apparently, while she slept, he’d carefully rewrapped it for her.
A wave of guilt washed over her for no reason.
Adeline decided to leave the bedroom to look for the duke.
She had clearly intended to get up, yet a sudden dizziness made her stagger and lose her balance.
Unintentionally, she ended up plopping back down onto the bed.
“Have you caught a cold?”
Last night, Adeline had been chased through the pouring rain.
Her thin dress had been utterly insufficient against the icy downpour.
Her body, which had been tightly wound from hiding even from the knights, had finally relaxed.
That, it seemed, was why last night’s chase had left her with a fever.
Though the world spun around her, Adeline gathered her wits and cautiously stepped out of the bedroom.
Nowhere on the second floor could she find any sign of Cassis.
Only the sound of relentless rain filled the air. The hallway on the second floor—where the bedroom and study were located—was utterly silent.
Gripping the railing, Adeline slowly descended the stairs, step by step.
As she neared the first floor, an inviting aroma began to stir her appetite. She followed the scent with her feet.
At the end of her path lay the kitchen.
On one side of the kitchen, half-cut vegetables lay scattered in disarray. Beside them stood a man, his back turned as he diligently prepared something.
“Mel?”
Her voice barely came out.
The duke, stirring something in a pot, turned around at the scratchy sound of his name being called.
“You’re awake?”
He spoke rather coldly, then strode over and placed his hand on Adeline’s forehead.
“Get back to bed. Why did you come out?”
At the cool touch on her forehead, Adeline closed her eyes.
“It feels cool.”
Like an oasis found in the desert, Adeline grasped the duke’s hand.
She hadn’t even realized she’d done it—she just wanted to feel that cool sensation a little longer.
“It’s not that my hand is cool. You’re just feverish right now.”
The duke frowned, clearly annoyed.
“I’m making soup, so wait in your room. I’ll bring it to you.”
“I’ll stay here.”
Adeline didn’t want to return alone to the silent second floor.
“There’s nowhere to sit here.”
True, there was no seat—but perhaps because she was unwell, Adeline stubbornly insisted.
“Still, I’ll stay.”
Sighing as if giving up on convincing her, the duke relented.
“Fine.”
Suddenly, as if searching for something, he began glancing around.
His eyes settled on a table by the window, and he quickly cleared off all the ingredients piled atop it.
He draped a large tablecloth over the now-clean surface, then swiftly walked back to Adeline.
“Hold on.”
In one smooth motion, the duke scooped Adeline up by the waist.
In an instant, she found herself seated atop the table covered with the tablecloth.
“Stay here.”
Adeline couldn’t tell whether the warmth she felt came from her fever or from the duke.
Having just placed her on the table as if nothing had happened, the duke returned his focus to cooking, acting as though nothing unusual had occurred.
To the savory aroma, a sweet fragrance now mingled.
Seemingly finished with the soup, he turned off the flame, scooped a spoonful, and blew on it gently.
“Want to taste it?”
Adeline stared blankly at the spoon suddenly offered to her, then nodded and reached out with her left hand.
But he didn’t let her take it. Instead, he lifted the spoon high—just out of her reach.
“Open wide.”
He caught Adeline’s reaching hand and gently pressed it down onto the table, enclosing it between his own and the tabletop.
In an instant, her hand was trapped between the table and the duke’s palm.
Though it was he himself who had blocked her hand, he teased her playfully.
“No hands, huh?”
He leaned closer and closer, until Adeline finally accepted a spoonful of his soup.
“Is it good?”
Surprised by how delicious it was—far better than expected—Adeline answered sincerely.
“It’s really good.”
Seeing Cassis break into a guileless smile at her praise, Adeline was suddenly reminded of yesterday’s incident.
Had she been too harsh? She finally voiced the words she’d kept bottled up inside.
“Hey, Mel… about yesterday… I was too sensitive. I’m sorry.”
With just those few words of apology, all the lingering resentment the duke had held seemed to melt away.
He smiled warmly.
Looking at the duke’s smiling face, Adeline couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes directly out of sheer embarrassment.
The flush from her fever, which had already reddened her cheeks, now spread across her entire face—even to the tips of her ears.
Finding her utterly adorable, the duke leaned in even closer toward Adeline.
It was too close.
As they leaned closer together, Adeline’s back was about to touch the windowsill—
Crack! A sudden snapping sound echoed, and Adeline’s body tilted further backward.
“Del!”
Quickly grabbing her waist, the duke lifted Adeline and gently set her down safely.
Whether from their suddenly reduced distance or the shock of nearly falling backward, Adeline’s heart pounded loudly.
The duke, glancing toward the window, pointed.
“Oh dear, the window’s broken again.”
The hinge of the old window had given out once more. Every piece of wood forming the frame was worn and decayed.
The heavy rain must have seeped through the gaps, accelerating the corrosion of the frame.
Already weakened, the window frame couldn’t withstand their combined weight and detached from its hinges.
Now the window hung crookedly.
“The study window’s been like that too. We’ll need to get it fixed.”
“Yes, we should fix it.”
Adeline readily agreed with the suggestion to repair it.
“Other parts of the house might start failing soon too. Let’s call a repairman.”
“That… we can’t.”
Yet again, she could only insist they couldn’t call a repairman.
“Del… is there a reason you can’t call a repairman?”
The duke sensed something odd once again.
The lightning-struck tree, the broken window—it wasn’t something an ordinary person could fix.
The way she’d fled desperately through the rain as if being chased.
The way she’d snapped at him when he’d come to meet her in the middle of the night.
And now, again today, her refusal to allow any repairman into the house.
Adeline was clearly hiding something.
“Del… you’re being pursued by someone, aren’t you?”
At the duke’s direct question, Adeline sharply held her breath. Pretending anymore was simply impossible.
‘Ah, I give up.’
Convinced she could hide it no longer, Adeline squeezed her eyes shut and finally spoke.
“Yes, we really are hiding.”
The duke’s eyes widened at Adeline’s confession.
“Hiding?”
“Yes. We’re being chased.”
“Chased by whom?”
After a long pause, Adeline finally answered.
The duke had come here after being wounded by someone, and Adeline had fled here to escape the Crown Prince.
It wasn’t entirely wrong to say they were being pursued—she just omitted the true reason.
“We ran away because our families opposed our relationship.”
Since she’d already pretended they were lovers, Adeline decided to add a bit more to the lie.
Thus, Del and Mel—the pair who had fled their noble houses—were fully formed.
“Our love never faded, despite our families’ opposition. That’s why we eloped…”
Adeline struggled for more to say, then hastily concluded.
“In any case… that’s why our families are looking for us.”
“Being pursued?”
Adeline’s explanation sounded hastily cobbled together and somewhat unconvincing.
But the duke, with his lost memories, couldn’t pinpoint exactly what felt off.
“If your family is well-known enough that even a repairman might recognize you, wouldn’t that be a problem? We’ve even gone into town before…”
“I—I’m a commoner! I… I fell in love with you without knowing you were nobility. Our different statuses left us no choice but to run away.”
Not realizing how deeply he might probe, Adeline continued to fumble through her excuses.
“We have to stay hidden so they won’t find us.”
The duke immediately caught the flaw in her reasoning.
“Then why didn’t you tell me this from the beginning?”
Flustered once again, Adeline tried to sound composed as she continued.
“I didn’t want you—who’s lost all your memories—to bear such a sad burden.”
“…I see.”
Though a trace of suspicion still lingered in his mind, the duke chose to let it go for now.
Right now, the ailing Adeline mattered more.
“But wouldn’t it be fine as long as they don’t find us?”
“Huh?”
“I understand you’re being pursued. But I still need to take you to a physician.”
He placed his hand on Adeline’s forehead, which had grown even hotter during their argument.
“You’re literally burning up. Let’s go see a physician first.”
“I told you, we’ll be found out! Your red eyes and hair aren’t exactly common! Ah…”
Adeline raised her voice forcefully, then trailed off, overcome by dizziness.
“Choose one.”
The duke raised a finger, clearly done indulging her stubbornness.
“One: Dress in disguise and go out with me to see a physician.”
“Two: Or give me your cold.”
As he spoke the second option, Cassis leaned in until his lips were barely a finger’s width from Adeline’s.
Flushed from the fever, Adeline’s face—and even the tips of her ears—turned crimson.
“Right… we should go immediately.”
Though there was no more distance left to close, Cassis leaned even closer, leaving Adeline utterly flustered.
“O-One! The first option!”
Adeline reached out and pressed her hand against Cassis’s lips.
“Good choice.”
With her palm covering his mouth, Cassis gave a slight, amused smile.
Adeline could distinctly feel his lips against her palm—the soft pressure traveled through her hand, tickling her heart and stirring something deep in her chest.
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
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MANGA DISCUSSION
2 Comments
Chapter Comments (50)
That vile scoundrel hoped Adeline would escape and not be caught.
From now on, I hope her whereabouts will not be revealed to her father.
Haha, the duke is so possessive and obsessed with this scoundrel, Hero, who clearly likes her.
Inline Comments (27)
He couldn’t allow anyone to take Adeline away. He needed to confirm that she bel
It’s unusual how quickly the Duke seems to have developed feelings for Adeline. These feelings appear to go beyond ‘I believe this person to be my lover therefore I treat them well’
He understood perfectly how anxious the butler and the rest of the household mus
Who said the Duke is the hero? He’s a filthy, despicable bastard. How could he do that to her and abandon her? Didn’t she mean anything to him? The people I hate most are the scoundrels who deceive girls and leave them. Poor Adeline, it’s a truly awful novel.
His tender voice sent an involuntary shiver down Adeline’s spine. Still pretendi
Isn’t this a pretty bad lie for her to go with? What if the seal is found in the luggage? This girl appears to be losing intelligence the longer the story goes
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Artemtisforaday
How long will his memory be gone? I wanna know if he reacts poorly or obsessively once he regains his memories
Miioo
Haha, the Duke is very cunning. I feel he was in love with her even before he lost his memory.