After dinner, the servants do not come up beyond the fourth floor. The Duchess had returned to the ducal mansion.

So the person knocking could only be one person…

Pondering whether to pretend to be asleep, Nelia eventually got up, just in case.

There’s such a thing as an emergency.

When she opened the door, as expected, the person she had anticipated stood there.

“Nelia.”

Duke Hart. He had left this room less than thirty minutes ago and had returned.

Moreover, it didn’t seem urgent at all.

Annoyed, Nelia’s voice turned cold.

“Why have you come again?”

Duke Hart spoke with a worried expression.

“I can’t seem to sleep alone.”

“You’ve slept alone all this time.”

She knew he had insomnia, but he wasn’t completely sleepless.

Nelia’s eyes were guarded.

What’s his game this time?

“After sleeping beside Nelia, I find I can’t sleep alone anymore.”

“It was just one day.”

And even that day, they had hardly slept. Rather… they had slept far less than usual.

“It’s actually two days. I’ve slept beside snaketransformed Nelia too.”

“One day or two days, it doesn’t matter…”

Duke Hart suddenly grabbed Nelia’s hand. The touch of his cold hand made Nelia flinch for a moment.

“I know what you’re worried about.”

His eyes were desperate.

“I promise, what happened yesterday won’t happen again. I swear on the honor of the House of Hart.”

Nelia swallowed dryly. Even the House of Hart’s honor was at stake now…

“I just remember sleeping soundly next to you.”

His earnest plea weakened her solid resolve. Gradually, Nelia’s stern gaze softened.

“And…”

Duke Hart lowered his eyes. The final destination of his gaze was his feet.

“My feet are throbbing so much that it’s difficult to fall asleep.”

The mention of feet flustered Nelia.

“I told you that can happen when I transform from a snake back to a human! But I didn’t transform today…”

“I don’t know… maybe it’s still in the process of healing.”

His silver eyes met hers, radiating a trapped light as he gazed intently at Nelia.

Face to face with those eyes, her resolve weakened again.

Those subtle eyes made her hardened heart waver.

It was suspicious that he only complained about pain when it suited him, but it was also hard to pretend not to know.

After all, she had stepped on his foot and caused him discomfort, even aftereffects.

Mentioning his foot was like a cheat code to move her.

One might think it’s just a foot getting stepped on, but if you’re unlucky, tripping on a stone can crack your skull and kill you.
So it was something that couldn’t be discussed recklessly unless you were a party involved.

Nelia finally made up her mind.

“…Alright.”

Strength flowed into the duke’s hand she was holding.

“Thank you, Nelia.”

The brilliant smile that came with the words of thanks was just a bonus.

Nelia raised a finger, vowing not to be charmed by that face.

“But you absolutely must not have any ulterior motives…!”

“Of course.”

The duke smiled knowingly and led her by the hand towards Nelia’s bed.

“I slept in my room last night; shall we sleep in Nelia’s room tonight?”

“…Alright.”

Nelia nodded her head.

Since the bedding in his room was the same as in hers, it didn’t particularly matter where they slept.

“Please lie down first.”

The duke kindly lifted the blanket for Nelia.

Nelia lay on the bed, thinking even a princess wouldn’t be treated this well.

The duke walked to the other side and climbed onto the bed. It seemed rather filled with both of them on the previously empty, large bed.

Nelia wondered for a moment whether she should warn him again not to cross a certain line, but decided to trust him since he said he wouldn’t do anything today.

After all, his breach of that line would be meaningless anyway.

If only her own resolve was steadfast, it didn’t matter whether the Duke Hart seduced her or slept; the heads of the Hart dukedom seem to melt hearts, if not outright liquefy them.

So, she’d completely fallen for it yesterday.

Nelia looked sideways at Duke Hart with resentful feelings.

But…

‘…What? He’s really asleep.’

The duke, who was quietly breathing with his eyes closed, seemed genuinely asleep.

She felt more disappointed than relieved. Had she known he would fall asleep so easily, what was there to worry about?

For a while, Nelia looked down at the sleeping duke’s peaceful face.

An expressionless face that was still so breathtakingly handsome.

It felt a bit unfamiliar seeing his face completely devoid of expression. What would an expressionless duke look like? On impulse, Nelia lightly touched the tips of his long eyelashes.

Silver eyelashes, neatly arranged like those of a doll, were fascinating. She could only touch them like this when he was asleep.

The duke slightly scrunched his eyes. It seemed he reacted to her touching his eyelashes.

Nelia hurriedly pulled her hand back. She had no intention of waking him.

After that, Nelia still couldn’t sleep and continued to stare at the duke’s face.

Looking at his unrealistically handsome face, last night’s heated encounter felt dreamlike.

‘Did I really sleep with this man?’

With the villainous Duke Hart from the novel…?

And suddenly, she became curious.

Why did Duke Hart step back from the idea of marriage?

For some reason, he’d relinquished his firm stance on marriage that he’d maintained until morning.

Was it out of consideration for her? She still didn’t understand. It was a good thing, but deep down, she was curious about his reasons.

Then the duke scrunched his eyes again. As if something was troubling him, a rough breath escaped his lips.

He seemed to be having a nightmare.

“…Why Father…”

Soon, the duke mumbled as if sleeptalking. Despite being in a dream, a sense of resentment was palpable in his voice.