“Yes… I am aware.”
But instead of affirming, Nelia bowed her head.
“I apologize for the disturbance, Your Highness.”
“You often have to apologize on behalf of your family, don’t you?”
Often…? When, if not now…
“It was your brother who dropped the necklace, wasn’t it? Yet you apologized for him.”
Nelia’s eyes widened.
She knew back then that Layton was the culprit.
Seeing Nelia’s eyes widen like a startled rabbit, Carlos lowered his hand.
“Well… it’s all in the past. I don’t intend to dwell on the necklace incident.”
Carlos took a few steps closer to Nelia and bent down to meet her eye level.
“More importantly…”
His dark eyes flashed for a moment.
“Have you been feeling unwell?”
His cold expression and low voice carried a trace of emotion.
For a moment, as their eyes met, Nelia realized why Carlos was asking her such a question.
‘I went to see my sister. She fainted on the street a couple of days ago and hasn’t returned home.’
Was it because of what Layton said earlier?
Nelia slowly opened her mouth.
“Yes… I did faint briefly a few days ago, but I’m fine now.”
Tsk. Carlos clicked his tongue.
“You look so frail; it’s no wonder you fainted. You seem exceedingly weak.”
Despite indulging in sweets while spending time with the Duke, she still looked skinny. Certainly, Nelia’s physique didn’t easily put on weight…
As Nelia awkwardly stood there pondering ‘Is that so…?’, Carlos spoke while looking away.
“I shall invite you to dine with me sometime.”
Dine? Nelia didn’t quite understand what Carlos was talking about.
“There’s a debt to be paid, and the highquality cuisine of the palace will surely benefit your fragile constitution…”
Just then, the Duke’s voice interrupted from behind.
“Your Highness, you don’t need to concern yourself with that.”
The person who interrupted Carlos was Duke Hart, who came over and warmly grasped Nelia’s shoulder.
“Nelia is my maid, after all.”
Nelia lifted her head to look at his face; though his lips were smiling, his eyes were icy cold.
Carlos momentarily stiffened his expression but then relaxed it.
“Sure, she’s your maid as you say. But does that give you the right to treat her any way you wish?”
The Duke could not immediately counter Carlos’ point.
Then Carlos chuckled and removed the Duke’s hand from Nelia’s shoulder.
“Have you not considered that your attitude might distress your maid?”
“…”
“Being entangled with the Duke may harm this young lady… It’s unlike you, Duke.”
Carlos sharply pointed out the peculiar tension between the Duke and Nelia.
In fact, Nelia somewhat agreed with Carlos’ words.
The guards at the back gate had known about her. Those who had never met her facetoface somehow knew of her existence, probably due to the rumors.
So far, she had been known merely as the Duke’s maid, which avoided strange rumors. But if such ambiguous behavior continued, misunderstandings would inevitably occur.
Nelia did not want to receive any more attention.
Not for her sake, but for the Duke. Specifically, because she was concerned about his curse.
Being a person with a secret, the Duke would find excessive attention poisonous.
“Would you like to answer, young lady? Do you need the Duke’s permission even to dine with someone else?”
As the question was aimed at her, Nelia looked back and forth between the Duke and Carlos.
It was a rather tricky question.
If she said she needed the Duke’s permission, that would be tantamount to acknowledging a personal relationship with him. Saying no would mean she’d have to dine with Carlos.
‘Hmm…’
Nelia organized her thoughts and then slowly moved her lips.
“I don’t need the Duke’s permission for my actions. He’s not the type to be controlling.”
“In that case…”
“However, I also wish to decline Your Highness’s dinner invitation. If I were to dine alone with you, it could lead to misunderstandings.”
At Nelia’s refusal, one of Carlos’s eyebrows twitched. Nelia’s heart fluttered nervously as she watched him.
“If my answer sounded rude, I apologize, Your Highness. But this is my honest sentiment.”
“Then how about dining with the Duke as well?”
Carlos interrupted Nelia and suggested. A palpable silence followed his words.
‘What is he talking about?’
Receiving no answer from Nelia, Carlos’s gaze shifted to the Duke.
“What do you think, Duke?”
“……”
“It wouldn’t be so bad to have a meal with you after such a long time.”
The Duke seemed to ponder. However, he soon responded with a calm voice.
“Very well.”
Carlos lifted the corners of his lips. His smile, though handsome, did not appeal to Nelia.
‘What’s his scheme?’
Carlos seemed suspicious, and Nelia felt sorry for the Duke.
Although he acted indifferent, he must be very displeased deep inside.
But Carlos would feel the same. After all, he has always shown a distinct dislike for Duke Hart.
Nelia observed Carlos, who had wiped away his smile and maintained his usual indifferent expression.
“Come to the reception room in the palace the day after tomorrow. You, Duke Hart, are familiar with the way.”
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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