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Chapter 7 …
I spent the entire night wide awake.
I’d thought about trying to escape, but it seemed impossible.
Escaping from such a massive estate in the middle of the night was close to unthinkable.
The security was so tight that even at night, servants patrolled the halls with lamps in hand.
“I need information.”
If I wanted to escape, I needed to know more.
First, I had to figure out the layout of this place.
I didn’t even know where the exits were.
Maybe I could ask Jane to somehow get me the mansion’s floor plans.
“Ugh… look at these dark circles….”
When I looked in the mirror, my hair was a mess and my eyes were bloodshot.
All because he had ransacked my room last night.
Just thinking about the embarrassing scene made my face burn.
“I’m so tired….”
Early in the morning, the maids came in and hurriedly dressed me up.
Apparently, I was to have breakfast with him.
They put me in a light lavender dress that reached down to my calves, with an ivory ribbon tied around my waist.
Since I usually wore only trousers, wearing something like this felt awkward.
“Ah, what do I do….”
The thought of sitting face-to-face with him over breakfast had never even crossed my mind.
I didn’t even want to speak to him, let alone share a meal.
This was hell—actual hell.
“Ha….”
Thump.
“Obediently…”
That was one of the thoughts I’d had last night.
Escaping on my own was impossible for now, so I had no choice but to obediently follow his lead.
If I gained his trust to some degree, I might find an opening later.
Thump.
“How did things end up like this….”
Lying on the bed, Elena stared up at the ceiling painting, lost in thought.
When had everything gone wrong?
From the moment I ended up here?
Or from the time I was sold to the slave trader?
“My head hurts.”
The more I thought about it, the more my head throbbed.
I wanted to wash all my thoughts away under a shower.
Knock knock—
The sound of knocking jolted me out of my thoughts.
“Come in.”
It was probably Jane.
I had told her yesterday to come at breakfast time.
“My lady, did you sleep well?”
“Yeah, well….”
Jane poked her head in, then slowly closed the door behind her.
“My lady, you don’t look so good.”
She looked worried as she saw me lying there like a corpse.
“No, no, I’m fine.”
I didn’t want to make her worry about me too.
Forcing a smile, I reassured her.
“Let’s go down.”
Like a dried squid, I weakly got out of bed.
The thought of having breakfast with him filled me with dread.
I didn’t know what would happen this time.
I had to brace myself.
“You don’t have to be scared, my lady,” Jane said, looking at my tense expression with concern.
“Yeah, thank you. I’m fine.”
I said I was fine, but I wasn’t.
The closer we got to the dining room, the harder I swallowed.
Like a high school senior before a college entrance exam, I clenched my fists in nervousness.
“Then, I’ll open the door.”
Creak—
The moment the massive doors opened, I saw him in his neatly tailored uniform.
The Grand Duke tilted his head slightly and stared straight at me.
“Sit.”
I glanced at him briefly, then cautiously sat down.
My heart felt like it was going to jump out of my chest the moment I saw his face.
“It looks like you couldn’t sleep. That pretty face of yours has completely fallen apart.”
“……”
I sighed inwardly at his words.
Does this man not know the meaning of self-awareness?
The reason I couldn’t sleep was because of him, yet he acted like he didn’t know.
Not wanting to engage, I lowered my head and stared at my cracked fingernails.
“Is the food not to your taste?”
“……”
His faux concern felt suffocatingly fake.
When I continued to stay silent, his voice turned slightly annoyed.
“Even the servants know you’re not deaf.”
“……”
“Elena Helios.”
“My apologies, Your Grace.”
He set down his fork quietly.
Was he surprised by my sudden use of formal speech?
The Grand Duke narrowed one eye and spoke.
“To think you’d speak formally to me.”
“I’m merely showing proper respect to Your Grace.”
“Respect, huh….”
He chuckled with clear disbelief.
Scrape. The chair scraped harshly against the floor as he stood.
The sound of his shoes grew closer, steady and deliberate.
My heart began to race.
“Respect… yes, that’s good.”
“……”
“But your eyes are full of defiance.”
Before I knew it, he was standing beside me, placing his hand on my delicate shoulder.
“You look very dissatisfied, Elena.”
His low, smooth voice against my ear sent a shiver down my spine.
I couldn’t even lift my head—my eyes stayed fixed on the dish in front of me.
“You’re not challenging me, are you?”
“Ugh…!”
He suddenly jerked my chin upward to face him.
My trembling eyes met his up close.
“What’s the reason for that?”
Tilting his head, he stared at me intensely.
Gritting my teeth, I finally spoke.
“Let go of me….”
Dekarus smirked as if he’d been waiting for that.
“Are you giving me an order, Elena Helios?”
I couldn’t respond.
The heavy pressure in the room made me swallow hard.
“No, Your Grace.”
“Then I suppose we’ll have to fix that insolent behavior first.”
My gaze wavered as it met his.
His oppressive presence made me avert my eyes.
“You should look your husband in the eye.”
“……”
He gave a short laugh at my frozen face.
“You were the one who provoked me first.”
“……”
“Why do you look so scared then?”
His eyes moved to my untouched plate.
“You didn’t even touch the soup. I had the chef make your favorite today.”
“That’s none of your concern….”
“You really are a handful.”
He chuckled lightly, then scooped up some mushroom soup with a spoon.
“Eat.”
“Ugh…!”
When the spoon was shoved toward me roughly, I clamped my mouth shut.
Soup dripped down my lips, staining the dress.
The once-pristine outfit looked like it needed immediate washing.
“What is this…!”
“Ah, sorry. I spilled it.”
He laughed softly as if he were enjoying the situation, then leaned in to whisper by my ear.
“It’s a husband’s duty to feed and take care of his wife. Since my dear wife won’t eat properly, I have no choice but to feed her myself. Don’t you agree?”
“Ha….”
I let out a short, incredulous laugh.
Who gave him the right to call himself my husband?
Slowly, he reached out and wiped the soup off my lips with his finger.
Startled, I tried to lean back, but his firm grip on the chair didn’t allow it.
“How clumsy, Elena.”
Smack—
“Don’t touch me.”
I slapped his hand away.
He smiled faintly, as if amused.
“There’s fun in taming a wild thing.”
“Shut up.”
“Ah, now that’s more like you.”
He gripped my shoulder tightly, making it ache, then brought another spoonful of soup to my mouth.
“Eat.”
“Ugh…!”
The pain in my shoulder made me involuntarily open my mouth.
The warm soup that entered tasted annoyingly good.
“Does it remind you of the past?”
Just thinking about that time made me shudder.
I’d been locked away like an animal in a cold, unknown place for nearly a week.
How miserable, how agonizing it had been.
I’d endured alone in a gray space with barely any light.
But he didn’t seem to care about those painful memories at all.
“Remember that time well, Elena.”
The Grand Duke set down the spoon and slowly stroked my hair.
“You can always go back there.”
My small lips trembled, soup dripping down.
The thought of being locked in that cold place again filled me with fear.
“And don’t try anything foolish.”
His grip on my head tightened.
“Escaping me is impossible.”
It was as if he had read my mind.
I stared at him with trembling eyes.
“You’re a demon.”
He smiled at the word.
“If you wish, I can be worse.”
“Ha…!”
I didn’t want to waste another second with him.
The more I talked, the more disgusted I felt.
I pushed my chair back and stood up.
Thud.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
He wrapped his arms around me, holding me firmly in place.
“Let go of me.”
“Where would you go when I’m right here?”
“Let go!!!”
I struggled with all my strength, but it was useless against his.
Overpowering a grown man with brute force was impossible.
“You’re always like this.”
“……”
“You rebel, but you tire yourself out in the end.”
I couldn’t even refute that.
It was always me who threw the first punch, but I was always the one who ended up hurt.
“Shut up….”
“Look at me, Elena.”
He held my shoulders firmly and forced me to meet his eyes.
Then, brushing away my disheveled hair, he spoke.
“I’ve been looking for you for a long time.”
“……”
“I don’t want to lose you again.”
I was suffocating.
How could someone I didn’t even know have been looking for me?
“I don’t know you.”
“That’s fine. You’ll know soon enough.”
He gently pulled my head toward his chest.
The sound of his heartbeat echoed in my ears.
“Even if you ask me to let you go, I won’t.”
“……”
The warmth of his hand stroking my hair slowly seeped in.
“I don’t care if you break.”
“……”
“As long as you stay by my side.”
We were looking at each other but heading toward different destinations.
For the first time, there was sincerity in his eyes.
But it didn’t matter.
Because there was someone far more precious to her than him.
“Forever.”
