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Chapter 14
“You’re wearing the top.”
“Well, yes, but… You didn’t say there was only one set of sleepwear!”
Avalkin frowned, clearly not understanding why she was suddenly so upset.
“Who wears two sets of pajamas?”
“That’s… true, but… I thought there’d be a spare. I…”
Bellaxina looked around, clearly flustered, not knowing where to rest her eyes.
Seeing her usually calm face looking so embarrassed made Avalkin chuckle.
“Why are you laughing?!”
“Because it’s funny.”
Bellaxina bit her lip and scowled in anger.
Even though her face was red from seeing a half-naked man, her angry expression wasn’t all that intimidating.
“I suggest you just get under the blanket and go to sleep. Whether it’s clothes or blankets, both are just pieces of cloth to cover yourself with.”
“….”
She regretted wiping the soot off her face.
She remembered Avalkin saying he wasn’t fond of women with dirty, soot-covered faces.
Grumbling to herself, she crawled under the blanket.
“Isn’t it normal in this kind of situation for the man to give up the bed and sleep on the couch?”
“If I did that in Yeshken, you’d find my frozen corpse in the morning.”
Bellaxina lay her head on the pillow and looked at Avalkin’s face, who had already closed his eyes.
“Hmph, so dramatic. It’s not that cold.”
“You’ll change your mind when winter comes.”
Was Yeshken’s winter really that cold?
Well, it is only early autumn now.
In the southern regions, even sleeping outside at this time of year might only give you a mild cold.
Just then, Avalkin took a deep breath, still with his eyes closed.
“…I’m sorry.”
Bellaxina thought she’d misheard.
Did this stiff, grumpy man just apologize?
“I… um…”
Avalkin hesitated, turned to face her, and bit his lower lip, unable to continue.
He clearly wasn’t used to apologizing.
“I’ll be more careful about the heating from now on.”
“That’s what you wanted to say?”
Bellaxina let out a disbelieving laugh, then lay back down and closed her eyes.
Despite sharing a blanket with a half-naked man, she felt oddly at ease.
“Fine. Just make sure the room stays warm. I thought I was going to freeze to death.”
“You’ve got a lot of ways to die, don’t you? Falling, burning, freezing…”
“Shh. Just go to sleep now.”
Avalkin nodded and stayed quiet.
He knew that the longer they talked, the more likely they’d end up arguing.
****
A few more hours passed.
In the stillness between night and dawn, Avalkin quietly opened his eyes.
The bed was large enough, but he was so used to sleeping alone that someone else’s breathing and warmth felt unfamiliar.
He turned his head and saw Bellaxina lying beside him, her wet hair clinging to her frowning forehead.
She was sweating—cold sweat.
Maybe the fireplace wasn’t enough?
Perhaps the chill from the west tower still hadn’t left her body.
Or maybe walking around at night in thin clothes caused it…
Or maybe it was from washing herself with cold water.
She really has a lot of reasons to be sick right now, he thought with a troubled look.
He could have just turned into a unicorn and used his healing magic—it would’ve been simple.
As long as someone wasn’t completely dead, unicorn magic could heal almost anything.
The problem?
They were inside—the lord’s bedroom, no less.
As a unicorn, Avalkin was much larger than an average horse.
He’d hit the chandelier just by standing still, and if he moved even a little, the furniture would be destroyed.
“…”
In the end, Avalkin chose a more indirect and human method.
Squelch.
He soaked a towel in cold water, wrung it out, and gently placed it on Bellaxina’s forehead.
Then he made sure the room stayed warm—classic bedside care.
“Mm…”
But Bellaxina tossed and turned, knocking the towel off her forehead, uncomfortable with something resting there.
Avalkin picked up the towel and muttered to himself:
“…What am I doing, fussing over a slave like this?”
He’d already locked her in a windowless room so she wouldn’t fall to her death, made her warm drinks to keep her from freezing…
And now he was letting her sleep in his bed—his bed—after she’d caused a fire.
“Please, just get better soon—even half as strong as your loud personality.”
As he reached out to place the towel back on her forehead, he noticed her pajama top had ridden up, exposing her pale thighs and the shadows between.
“…”
The faint scent of her skin stirred something inside him.
He decided he’d better hit the training ground and swing a sword first thing at dawn.
****
“Goodness gracious!”
The loud, high-pitched voice made Bellaxina frown in her sleep.
Maribel, you fool. I stayed up late last night. Did you really have to wake me now?
She was about to snap harshly—then suddenly remembered.
This wasn’t the Duke’s estate.
And that wasn’t Maribel’s voice either.
“…!”
Her eyes shot open.
She was lying alone in a large bed, surrounded by a crowd of maids staring down at her.
“Wh-what is this?”
“Congratulations, my lady!”
My lady?
Before she could even process the unfamiliar title, the maids giggled among themselves.
e“Oh, don’t be upset the lord left early. He’s just an early riser. I’m sure he wanted you to rest as long as you could.”
“Yes, yes! He even told us not to enter the room before lunchtime—to let you recover after your exhausting night.”
“Oh my, don’t say it like that! What do you mean ‘exhausting night’? Heehee!”
They chirped like little birds on a branch, full of amusement that Bellaxina couldn’t understand at all.
“What kind of uncivilized behavior is this?!”
A stern voice snapped from behind the crowd.
It was Ingrid, the head maid, who came to restore order.
“We’re sorry, Head Maid!”
“So sorry!”
“Don’t apologize to me. Apologize to the lady.”
“Sorry, my lady!”
The maids quickly lined up and bowed.
The title “my lady” wasn’t the reason they were behaving—it was Ingrid’s scolding that kept them in line. That was a problem in itself.
“My apologies for disturbing you this morning.”
“Indeed. It’s been a long time since I woke up this annoyed.”
Bellaxina crossed her arms and replied with dignity—but it was a lie.
Since her downfall, she hadn’t had a single comfortable night’s sleep.
In fact, this was the first soft, pleasant bed she’d had in ages.
One maid, looking nervous, offered a suggestion.
“If you’d like, we can prepare a hot bath for you. It must be, uh… uncomfortable.”
“I don’t need to explain myself, but—”
Bellaxina raised her voice slightly, making sure they all heard clearly.
“Nothing happened last night. There was a fire in the west tower, and because all the servants abandoned their duties, I had nowhere to go and simply stayed with the duke.”
“A fire?”
“Good heavens!”
“It could have been an attack on the lady!”
“We must investigate immediately and find the culprit!”
Hic!
The word “culprit” made Bellaxina hiccup in surprise.
Because the culprit… was her.
She was the one who accidentally spilled an oil lamp on the bed.
“Th-there’s no need. It was an accident!”
“Are you sure it was an accident?”
Hic! “I told you, it was!”
“Understood.”
Thankfully, Ingrid didn’t press the issue further.
She must’ve sensed that Bellaxina didn’t want to talk about it.
Then Ingrid turned to one group of maids.
“Select five of you and go clean up the lady’s room in the west tower.”
“Yes, Head Maid.”
“The rest of you, help her bathe and dress. Tell the kitchen to prepare her meal.”
“Yes, Head Maid.”
The maids left the room in an orderly line.
Then Ingrid turned back to Bellaxina and bowed.
“Once again, I apologize for their rude behavior.”
“It’s fine. I’m already wide awake now.”
Bellaxina casually threw off the blanket and began to get out of bed—
But she paused when she noticed Ingrid staring in shock.
Following the maid’s gaze, she realized she was wearing Avalkin’s sleepwear.
“T-this is… I mean—!”
“I understand.”
Ingrid smiled gently, as if touched.
She was clearly misunderstanding.
“It’s not what you think! My clothes were dirty, so I just borrowed it, that’s all!”
“What did I say, my lady? There’s no need to explain. I already understand.”
No, she clearly didn’t understand.
Bellaxina clutched her head and sighed deeply.
There’s time. I’ll clear up these little misunderstandings later.
“What time is it?”
“Two in the afternoon. If you get ready quickly, you can still join the lord for afternoon tea.”
Not that she particularly wanted to have tea with Avalkin.
But after everything that happened, it didn’t sit right with her to just ignore him.
“Fine. I’ll go.”
