You Said I Was a Persecuted, Terminally Ill Grand Duchess? - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 27

 

The silk shirt draped loosely over the Duke’s upper body had its front completely open.

 

I tried my best to look away, forcing myself to meet the Duke’s eyes instead.

 

‘Huh?’

 

But…

 

The man’s hydrangea-like eyes, which always shone sharp and clear…

 

Now had a strangely murky gaze, unlike usual.

 

His eyes were open, but…

 

Somehow it seemed like his mind was somewhere else entirely.

 

‘Still, I’m relieved that it’s the Duke who appeared.’

 

Though I didn’t completely trust the Duke, if it had been some other stranger, that would have been far more terrifying…

 

Just then, the Duke suddenly began striding toward me.

 

I stepped back in surprise.

 

Perhaps noticing my fear, the Duke hesitated and then slowly raised both hands as if to prove his innocence.

 

“I didn’t mean to… frighten you. Don’t be scared.”

 

“…”

 

…Why are you talking like that?

 

If I’d been just a little closer to the Duke, I would have blurted that out without thinking.

 

His usual emotionless, blunt way of speaking was nowhere to be found—instead, he sounded quite tender and affectionate.

 

Where did he suddenly pick up this cheesy act?

 

The Duke right now was definitely suspicious beyond measure.

 

Rather, as my wariness deepened, the Duke let out a soft chuckle.

 

“Rene.”

 

“Uh… me?”

 

“Yes, you.”

 

I glared at him warily, sensing the Duke’s strangely different atmosphere.

 

‘Until now he’s been calling me by my full name with the surname. What kind of trick is this now?’

 

The Duke had always called me ‘Rene Blanche’ by my full name, which left this Korean feeling rather hurt.

 

That was probably his way of showing me how pointless our marriage was—a clear rejection.

 

I hadn’t yet been acknowledged by him as ‘Rene Celeste.’

 

Well, honestly, I didn’t care how he addressed me, whether by name or surname.

 

I’d never once minded it or felt hurt by it.

 

After all, why should I care about his acknowledgment?

 

But…

 

“I’ve thought this before, but you have a pretty name. The pronunciation is soft.”

 

“…Why are you suddenly acting like this?”

 

I tried to suppress my pounding heart and replied with deliberate coldness.

 

The current Duke was far too unfamiliar.

 

Had he been thoroughly bewitched by some psychic-type demon?

 

How else could he act like such a different person!

 

Maybe he really was someone else who just happened to look identical.

 

Enough to list various possibilities—he was as unfamiliar as his relaxed attire(?), wearing a languid smile.

 

‘Usually he had a sharper, more unapproachable impression… but now he’s like some kind of Casanova.’

 

In this state, if he seriously tried to seduce someone, he could probably charm everyone in the world.

 

The problem was that seemed to apply to me too!

 

‘No! Get it together, remember all the terrible things that bastard did!’

 

Ugh! Why am I so weak to good looks!

 

“Why are you out here?”

 

The Duke, completely unaware of my impious thoughts, asked.

 

I just shrugged, pretending to be nonchalant.

 

“That’s what I want to ask you… What are you doing out at this hour?”

 

“I couldn’t sleep.”

 

“Same here. …But aren’t you cold?”

 

I gestured toward the Duke’s chest with a slight nod of my chin.

 

‘Button up.’

 

Stop trying to bewitch me with lustful demons!

 

It was an action meant to contain my own rebuke.

 

“Hm?”

 

The Duke glanced down at his attire, but surprisingly seemed to have no particular thoughts about it.

 

“Ah.”

 

But his next action was completely unexpected.

 

“I’m cold.”

 

“Then hurry back to the main residence and sleep…”

 

Before I could finish speaking.

 

The Duke approached with heavy steps and instantly pulled me into his arms.

 

“!!!”

 

So, that is to say, between him and me, an ’embrace’ occurred…

 

A very unseemly incident indeed!

 

I froze like a statue.

 

“Why, why, why, why are you doing this?”

 

“I’m cold…”

 

The Duke lowered his head and rubbed his cheek against the top of my head like he was sulking.

 

It didn’t seem to be a lie that he was cold—the Duke’s entire body was as cold as ice.

 

The sudden chill seeping through my skin made goosebumps rise from my toes to the top of my head.

 

At the same time, an indescribable sensation bloomed in one corner of my chest.

 

Perhaps because of that feeling, my heart had been beating far too fast.

 

I was worried it might actually burst.

 

But what worried me most was something else.

 

‘Earlier, I definitely…’

 

Embrace aside, I had clearly seen his bare feet revealed in the moonlight.

 

This was definitely proof that the Duke’s condition wasn’t normal.

 

‘But why is it that I’m not scared?’

 

He seemed a little… pitiful, even.

 

No, no. Pitiful!

 

After quickly shaking my head, I coldly escaped from his embrace.

 

I absolutely didn’t want to show him a flustered side of myself.

 

The Duke surprisingly let me go without resistance.

 

It seemed his claim about not wanting to frighten me was still true.

 

“L-let’s go inside.”

 

I had no choice but to lead him toward the cottage.

 

The Duke followed me inside like a large dog sticking close to its owner despite his big frame.

 

“Even though I’ve lived in the Duke’s Castle my whole life, this is the first time I’ve been inside here.”

 

He looked around the house with interested eyes.

 

There wasn’t a single corner of this cottage that my hands hadn’t touched.

 

‘Look at the inside of this house. It’s amazing.’

 

Hehe. I felt somewhat proud and wiped my nose smugly.

 

But the Duke’s brief review was:

 

“It’s like a storehouse.”

 

…As expected, his social skills are completely destroyed.

 

“That’s not something you should say in front of the person living here, is it?”

 

I responded with a mischievous grin.

 

Now he seemed like the Grand Duke I knew.

 

Ugh, I wondered why he was being so docile today.

 

So he hadn’t become a different person after all?

 

‘Hmph.’

 

I decided I wouldn’t bother arguing back anymore and coolly turned around, dragging the Grand Duke to the bed and making him sit down.

 

Since he said he was cold, I planned to cover him with a blanket and put him to sleep, then go to the main residence to call for someone.

 

“Just lie down for a moment and cover yourself with the blanket. I’ll add more firewood for you…”

 

Before I could even finish speaking.

 

“Don’t go.”

 

“Ah!”

 

The Grand Duke, who had been half-sitting on the bed, suddenly pulled my hand toward him.

 

As a natural consequence, my face collided with his broad chest once again.

 

He must have controlled his strength because it didn’t hurt at all.

 

‘Isn’t his chest a bit too close?’

 

He keeps trying to turn this all-ages romance novel into something R-rated!

 

This is troubling!

 

I silently cried out in distress, pouring out complaints that no one could hear.

 

Regardless of my protests.

 

The Grand Duke lay down completely on his back, tossing and turning to find a comfortable position as if he was seriously going to sleep.

 

With me completely on top of his body now!

 

“Um… this is a bit…”

 

When I glanced at the man, his eyes were completely closed.

 

‘Ugh, so hard…’

 

I tried pushing against the Grand Duke little by little in defiance, but as expected, he didn’t budge at all.

 

After squirming around pointlessly, I thought ‘Oh, whatever’ and settled into a comfortable position.

 

Thinking of him as a stone bed made me feel much more at ease than before.

 

“…”

 

The man’s vast embrace was quite warm, unlike before.

 

The idea that when you’re stranded in a blizzard or have an accident in freezing water, you huddle close together to share body heat.

 

I thought that was just some romance formula learned from media, but it was actually real.

 

Well, penguins do it too.

 

They huddle together in circles to share body heat and survive in Antarctica, right?

 

‘Right! So this is just like penguins – a way to survive in the cold!’

 

Out of necessity, so this really is out of necessity…

 

“…Sigh.”

 

Yeah, honestly I knew it was nonsense too.

 

But… without thinking that way, I felt like I’d really overload and my head would explode.

 

‘What kind of situation is this.’

 

I was thinking how ridiculous I looked rationalizing to myself when.

 

“I keep worrying about you…”

 

The low voice of the Grand Duke, whom I thought was asleep, pierced my ear.

 

Thump, thump, thump.

 

The man’s heartbeat was transmitted through our touching bodies.

 

That feeling was strangely peaceful.

 

Just like this dawn.

 

Under the moonlight of the full moon that had settled quietly.

 

Only the softly spreading sounds of insects and the gentle heartbeat filled the silence of the night.

 

I couldn’t tell if the pounding rhythm was the Grand Duke’s or mine…

 

I deliberately squeezed my eyes shut tight.

 

I was afraid strange thoughts would start creeping in.

 

Then, the Grand Duke continued speaking.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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