Being a mere human, she felt as if she would be swept away. To calm him down, Nelia quickly grasped what would be the equivalent of his neck.

“Your Grace…! Get a hold of yourself!”

However, Duke Hart did not stop moving, as if he had lost his senses.

Nelia was flung about, hanging on to the snake’s head.

If it were reality, she would have been thrown away by now, but perhaps because it was a dream, she was still clinging on.

“Nelia.”

Then a gentle voice reached her ears.

Had the rampaging Duke Hart come to his senses?

“If you hold on so tight… it’s hard for me to bear.”

What did that mean?

Nelia felt a strange disconnection between the dream and the voice.

Then, the vast fields disappeared, and Duke Hart, the human, appeared.

“The real… Your Grace…?”

“I am always real.”

Duke Hart smiled. Then, she noticed his eyelashes trembling minutely.

Nelia finally realized.

That she was very close to him.

Moreover, her hand was wrapped around Duke Hart’s neck.

As if being pulled towards him.

She had been gripping the snake’s neck so tightly and not letting go, it seemed she had actually been gripping Duke Hart’s neck.

Heat rose to her face.

‘What kind of disgrace is this?’

Nelia tried to pull away from Duke Hart, releasing the arm that was wrapped around him.

“I’m sorry, I was dreaming and I…”

But Duke Hart’s hand was firmly wrapped around her waist, preventing her from distancing herself.

“Yo, Your Grace…?”

“Your body is warm, Nelia. I don’t want to let go.”

The duke buried his face in her neck like a child. His highintensity skinship made her heart pound.

“If Nelia moves away, it gets cold.”

“I, I’ll ask Ton to turn on the heater then.”

The weather was chillier than usual because of the rain, but it was not so cold. She thought that Duke Hart’s body temperature might be low, hence he might feel colder.

A cool aura emanated from the duke.

As a result, her skin, which had been heated up, felt refreshed, as if she were stuck to a marble stone.

The more she tried to move away, the tighter Duke Hart held her. Completely immobilizing her.

“I don’t need Ton. I think I will warm up just by staying like this.”

His tone was petulant.

But Nelia soon came to her senses.

This wasn’t right.

It wasn’t appropriate for a man and woman with no particular relationship to be so close to each other!
Nelia gently pushed the Duke away from her chest. Finally, there was a gap between her and Duke Hart.

Thanks to that, she was able to see Duke Hart’s face more clearly. A hint of dissatisfaction marked his features.

“If you’re cold, put on more clothes, or light the fireplace.”

Nelia rebuked the Duke in a firm voice. The Duke, seeming to have no choice, got up.

“Hoo, Nelia is indeed cold.”

At the Duke’s lament, Nelia flared up for a moment.

“Cold! I’m uncomfortable being too close to you, Duke…”

“But you were the one who hugged me first.”

Nelia, caught off guard, scrambled for words.

“That’s because… because of a dream…!”

“What dream? Hopefully, it’s not about another man?”

The voice of Duke Hart, who was asking, was low.

“No, it was you, Duke. But you were a giant snake.”

The Duke’s eyes hardened.

“…A giant snake?”

“Yes. It was gentle at first, but suddenly it seemed to be in pain and writhed.”

“And so…?”

Nelia explained, observing Duke Hart who looked serious.

“So… I just hung around its neck.”

Even though it was just a dream, Duke Hart seemed serious as if it had really happened.

“Duke?”

Nelia called cautiously. Only then did Duke Hart awkwardly smile.

“Sorry, I was lost in thought.”

“Yes…”

It looked like there was a reason, but Nelia didn’t ask any further.

She didn’t have the confidence to handle any more of Duke Hart’s secrets.

People should know when to step in and when to step out.

Nelia hurriedly changed the subject.

“Duke, you said you visited the palace.”

“Yes, I had to go as I had been away for a long time.”

“…Was everything alright at the palace?”

Nelia asked, checking his complexion. The Duke responded with an unbothered face.

“It’s fine if I take the medicine.”

“Ah, I see… I was just asking just in case.”

Just as Nelia was about to get up, she realized she was on her own bed.

Nelia was taken aback.

‘I… I was sleeping on the bed in the room, not working.’

It was clearly negligent. Regardless of the master of the mansion being away, it wasn’t appropriate for a maid like her to sleep in the room.

“Speaking of which, Nelia.”

Just then, the Duke’s stern voice was heard.

Nelia raised her head, preparing herself for what was to come.

The Duke frowned and spoke.

“The bed seems too hard. I told them to prepare the best one.”

The Duke pressed the mattress of the bed with a dissatisfied face.

“That’s why Nelia woke up quickly.”

Nelia was perplexed at the moment.

“No, Duke. The mattress is not the issue right now.”

“No? The mattress is very important. If Nelia had slept a bit more…”

Duke Hart stopped midsentence.

‘A bit more…?’

Clearing his throat, Duke Hart averted his gaze.

“No.”

Although Nelia was curious about what he was going to say, she didn’t ask. She had to finish what she was saying.

“Duke, it’s not right for me, a maid, to sleep in the room instead of working.”

“Nothing is going to happen to the world if Nelia takes a little break.”

The attitude of Duke Hart, who was pampering her like a pet, was rather discomforting.

It felt as if their roles of master and servant had reversed.

“You can rest whenever you feel tired.”

His soothing voice caressed her shoulders, relieving the tension.
Occasionally, it seemed to her that there was an enchanting spell in his voice.

When he whispered quietly, she would often find herself unconsciously nodding along.

“And now… the bandage on your foot has been untied.”

Nelia, roused from hypnosis, opened her eyes wide.

“You untied the bandage?”

“Look here.”

As Duke Hart lifted his trouser hem, skin, hidden for so long under the bandage, was revealed.

It was truly a moment of awe.

A shackle finally unbinding…

“Your foot is healed, but they say there will be lingering effects.”

“Yes…?”

Lingering effects, a phrase that made her hair stand on end just from hearing it.

“There should be no problem with walking or exercising, but the damaged nerves could occasionally cause pain, so bear that in mind.”

The Duke casually mentioned while he felt her foot.

Nelia felt like tearing at her own hair.

If she had known this would happen, she would never have worn highheeled shoes…! She should not have been distracted by the party dessert…!

The one small consolation in this situation was that the Duke did not take this fact too negatively.

As Nelia resentfully stared at the Duke’s foot, she asked.

“What do we do now?”

The Duke shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, there’s nothing we can do.”

Then he smiled slightly.

“Nelia will just have to make up for it by staying by my side forever.”