Chapter 46
“Sia, could you prepare the seal?”
“…Are you referring to this one, right in front of you, Lord Nox?”
“That’s right.”
Sia stared at Nox, who had been acting strangely these past few days, then picked up the seal. Immediately, she could feel subtle gazes turning her way.
“You just need to stamp it here.”
She wanted to say, isn’t this the Duke’s job, but instead, Sia silently stamped the approval documents as she was told.
“This one, too?”
“Yes, stamp it here.”
“…Me?”
“I don’t have hands available right now, so I have no choice.”
Sia bit her lip and pressed the seal down hard, instead of pointing out that he would have hands if he just put down the documents he was holding. The Duke’s coat of arms, with its sword, shield, and banner, was stamped in vivid red.
“Thank you.”
“…It’s nothing.”
Sia seriously wondered if she had misunderstood. After the valley incident, she’d thought they’d become closer, even joking around with each other, but was that just her own illusion?
Maybe she should have known her limits when it came to teasing, and now she was being picked on for being clueless. Just as she’d done to the aides before, a bit of petty revenge.
Sia found herself unconsciously staring at Nox. Feeling her gaze, Nox grew more and more tense, sitting even more upright. The aides, too, watched the two of them exchanging glances out of the corners of their eyes.
“…Your Grace, it’s break time. What would you like to do?”
One of the aides raised his head and cautiously asked Nox. In the past, this would have been unthinkable, but now, even the aides didn’t find it strange.
“Is it that late already? You all go on ahead.”
“Yes, sir.”
Even as they left, the aides couldn’t help but keep an eye on Nox’s reactions. In the past, they’d been afraid even to meet his gaze, but lately, with Nox openly courting Sia, he somehow seemed more approachable.
After all, they themselves had once eagerly pursued their own wives.
One aide, in fact, even gave Nox a thumbs up for encouragement before leaving the office.
Sia, who didn’t see this, quietly tidied up Nox’s desk and let out a sigh.
In truth, working as a personal butler wasn’t difficult. Nox, worried about her always standing, had even set up a private sofa for her, so she could sit when not needed.
But lately, he’d been asking her to do so many trivial errands. Just now, asking her to stamp the seal for him was a first, but he’d also started asking her to open new ink bottles, tidy up the quills, and so on.
There were so many little things she’s now doing that she’s starting to wonder if these were really part of a butler’s job.
Of course, as a personal butler, it was her job to take care of her master’s environment, but wouldn’t it be easier for him to open an ink bottle himself, especially since he was so strong?
“Shall I prepare tea, then?”
“Hm…”
Nox watched Sia, who was deep in thought, and couldn’t answer right away. In fact, he’d recently realized how serious his condition was.
Just looking at her made him happy, but the urge to touch her kept welling up uncontrollably. He wanted to play with her hair again, or poke her plump lips with his finger every time she said something with that little mouth.
In fact, it wasn’t just that. He… wanted to be even more intimate. He’d even imagined what the hidden place beneath those fair legs would be like. Without realizing, his cheeks flushed red.
“The weather is nice… Would you have tea with me outside?”
By now, spending break time together had become natural, so Sia happily accepted Nox’s suggestion.
“Sure!”
When he acted like this, he didn’t seem like he was bullying her, so why did Nox treat her this way?
Watching his pleased face, Sia admired his good looks all over again. His deep, elongated eyes were especially striking. When he gazed at her with those sharp eyes, she sometimes got goosebumps. She wasn’t sure if it was out of fear, or if it was just precisely her type.
In any case, with that face, she felt like she could forgive anything. With that thought, she left the office first. Nox hurried to follow after her.
She wasn’t sure if Nox was really trying to torment her these days, but with all the extra errands, she found herself looking forward to break time more than anyone. Eager to rest even a minute more, she became just a little impatient.
Stepping ahead onto the stairs, Sia began to hop lightly down. As she stepped onto the next landing, she suddenly missed a step.
“Ah—!”
“Sia!”
Nox, who was following right behind her, swiftly reached out with one arm and caught her around the shoulders as she slipped. Fortunately, disaster was averted, but Sia’s hand, which had reflexively grabbed the stair rail, was scratched.
The railing was made of iron, and there were some sharp spots. Her hand was scraped, and blood welled up.
The scent of blood spread out from that spot, and Nox couldn’t help but hold his breath.
He never could have imagined that a human’s blood would smell so sweet.
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