Still sleepy. I don't want to wake up. But I'm hungry.
—— I opened my eyes thinking, there was a Duke's face right in front of me.
... wow.
"Morning, Cattleya"
Good morning, sir.
While returning my greetings, I blink several times.
My head didn't work well and I didn't immediately understand the situation I was in.
I slept with the Duke on the couch in the library.
The sofa is fuzzy, big enough to stretch out your legs and lie down, but not big enough for two adults to be in big letters and relax.
In other words, I woke up in a situation like the one I had only seen in a romantic novel: depositing my body in the chest of the Duke of Reiki and being held in his arms.
... wow.
"He seemed tired for a long time. I slept a lot."
"Oh, that's embarrassing..."
From the edge of my mouth as I said it. I felt who would tell me. Wow.
The duke laughed when he grabbed it with his hand to sneak away the evidence. It's not my color anymore. I heard who was out of line.
For now, being this close, I tried to get out of the handsome sofa, although just a little bit of a shame, because my forehead acne marks and sunburn marks and other facial alas seemed to find out.... but it doesn't allow the arms turned by my body to leave me.
"Um, Duke..."
"A little more, just like this. I don't want to let you go yet."
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Now the Duke hugs my body even harder with a little embarrassing dialogue that even a romantic novel hero wouldn't say. When I get soaked in his arms, I'm reminded of last night's fever and my cheeks are lit up like they were burned.
Still, I can't believe I don't want to let you go.
That's the only dialogue that my brothers would likely arrest if they spoke, but when a beautiful young man like a painting says it, it's almost like being forgiven. Like this, if I get whispered in my ear, I'm set to be thrilled.
... What a thought, the appearance of my brothers throwing up a sweet dialogue in the back of my brain floated. At the same time, overflowing moments suddenly squeeze away.... my, idiot.
Don't remember what's inside you in these occasions. I learned one important thing.
Well, that slept well anyway. To be honest, the Duke has the worst sleep in his arms and a sore neck, but thanks to all the surprises, he wakes up refreshed.
I want to get my stomach full first. I wonder what the mansion here will get for breakfast. I'd love an eyeball grill.
"... hmm?
Even in the dump, I noticed there.
The interior is strangely bright. I hear little birds chirping, and the sun is slipping through the gaps in the curtains.
"... in the morning"
"Oh, it's morning."
"It's morning!!
"Grr!"
My elbow plunged into the Duke's face at a good angle as I tried to jump out of the shock less.
Both hands that were wrapping me at the same time are released.
"Oh, I'm sorry. An important face."
"Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry about it."
The Duke waves his head as he restrains his face, so sweet to your words I rush to the window.
And spread the thick curtains vigorously.
Dazzling.
The sun was already firmly on his face from the mountains. There is a beautiful blue sky above the sky with no clouds rather than morning burns.
"How..."
Step away from the window with your trembling voice.
Morning. I don't care what you think, it's morning.
Morning I couldn't worship, dead or dead, or running away or crying once in a while.
I mean, I got out of the loop...
"Master Crusade! Are you here!
Keys and closed doors on the couch shudder squeamishly.
Through the door, I heard a man in a hurry.
"Farrow."
"Yes. Good, you came here. I have something to report to you. May I come inside?"
"Wait. Open now"
Stand up while the Duke still restrains his face. I'll follow you, too, and shift the couch in front of the door with you. It was kind of a dumb joint effort.
The Duke tried to open the door indefensibly as it was, so he hurriedly grabbed his arm and pulled back. The surprised Duke looks here. The moment the door opens here, it won't go out of style.
For once the vigilance continued, but fortunately, it was not the assassin with the blade that emerged from the gap in the door, but the real Deacon Farrow.
"Excuse me.... Oh, was your wife with you? This is good."
Deacon Farrow admitted to me and turned his eyes slightly, but immediately bowed his head respectfully.
But apparently he's in a hurry, restless.
The Duke also seemed uncomfortable with the Deacon's haste, tightening the look that was a little loose.
"What's the matter, Farrow, not even like you"
"That's -- in the morning, there were a lot of servants who suddenly disappeared."
"... disappeared?
"Yes. I was wondering if a dozen people would give a crap, even just those who had reports. We are currently asking other servants to confirm who is absent."
"It's possible they got involved in something."
"I don't know. But there were reports of personal effects disappearing without a trace from the rooms of the missing servants."
"... I mean, a dozen servants have gone all by themselves in the night," he said?
"Situationally, I can't even take it that way..."
The servant disappeared.
Hearing those words reminds me of the assassins who were mixed up in the hall.
No way......
And there was a little noise in your wife's room.
My room.
Yes, it's almost dawn. We have to go and make sure everyone's safe and sound!
I don't want to think so. I pop out of the library. From behind, I heard the Duke calling me.
"Katrea!"
"I'm going back to my room! The Duke, come too!
◇
By the time I crossed into the west wing, I ran into some servants. In the morning, it's natural to have people around. I can't afford to be vigilant at any rate, so I slip past them for a moment and head to my room.
When I went out to the hallway leading to my own room on the third floor of the west wing, I saw a crowd behind the hallway.
Getting closer, I saw a lady of age standing in front of the door calling indoors with a troubled face.
"If you're a wife, other servants are currently looking for you. It's time to leave the room."
"I'd love to, but I can't open this door to not being able to make sure my sister's okay. This one's coming to a limit. I'm sorry, but I need you to find that idiot ASAP."
"But..."
I can hear your brother. Based on the conversation, it looks like he was still caged properly. Good.
"Yes, yes! Yes, I'm here!
Speak up as you draw out the crowd. The lady in front of the door noticed me and lowered her head.
"Ma'am. Um, looks like Master Haltris is in your wife's room... Some of them seem to be on your wife's side or other customers, but you can't open the door when you call them..."
"I instructed you to do so. In the meantime, can I ask you all to step back?
Keep the people surrounding the room away from the door, including the samurai. Everyone looked surprised but retreated as instructed.
Could it have come with a little Duchess Aura for me, too?
... I knock on the door just to be safe while I think about it.
"Dear brother, it's Cattleya. Good luck with the cage castle. It's morning, you can come out."
……
With no reply, the door opens slowly.
Where's Serenia? And Teresa? And the samurai? And, out of my mind, I tried to get inside, and, yeah, I collided with the wall and I buttcaked.
It wasn't a wall. It was Brother Tris.
"Aww! Brother, I'm sorry to bother you. Do not block the entrance!
"... Rae, it's you"
A low voice sounds sloppy. My feelings when I was about to dawdle calm down when I got stuck...
When I looked up in awe, I had a rugged brother's face that raised blue muscles tingly on my forehead.
Angry. I'm so angry.
Well, I didn't think you'd get mad, but I didn't know the morning was coming in the first place, so I acted a little unscrupulous.
... Even I could have been a little more cautious if I had known I could get out of the loop.
As my brother looked down at me for the first time in a long time, genuinely angry, and I was getting smaller, I could see Teresa from the gap in my brother's meat wall.
"Lady!"
"Teresa!"
Teresa pushes her brother away and rushes to me. And when I grabbed both my shoulders, I shook them out of my mind.
"Oh no more —— I knew the lady was impotent and thoughtless, but I can't believe this is happening...! If you'd told me what was going on, I would have cooperated properly. How stupid are you!
"That...... Teresa, do you know about the case?
"After you left the room, Lord Risel told me about the assassin."
The detailed part stays down, but my brother says.
'Cause all you could tell was that criminals weren't good in the mansion for now.'
"Because I was in a hurry... and yes, the others are!
I stood up waving Teresa's arm off, over her brother's wall, and now it's time for me to go indoors.
Inside were Serenia sitting on the floor surrounded by the samurai and Riselle standing upright next to the furniture (Ines).
Petra and Harrier looked at me for trauma and made me stretch my face.
Mr. Risel lowered his head toward me at first sight and with regret. And then I changed my body's orientation slightly to shelter somewhere.... he said he won't kick anymore.
"Sister-in-law......!
Serenia gets up quickly and walks over here. And he grabbed my hands and shook them. Surprisingly powerful.
"I'm glad you're okay. When the night breaks, you're not coming back."
"Oh, I'm sorry..."
I slept, I can't say.
"Why did you leave the room suddenly? Of course, I was very worried about my sister-in-law, Mr. Haltris and Mr. Teresa."
"Because there was a place I really had to go..."
"Where do I have to go? Which is it?"
Serenia attacked me unexpectedly. She seems a little angry, too.
Turning to anger and fear from many quarters, as he pondered how to answer, he heard a brother named "Son-in-law" from the entrance.
"Ah, Duke."
The Duke enters the room with his eyes open. He was first amazed at the facade he aligned indoors, then at the furniture he piled up, and then at the unbroken wedding dress ripped in the back of the room.
"What the hell is this situation...?
With the most questionable mouth, the Duke turns to me.
"Eh. We had a little situation, and you were in my room the other night."
"Circumstances? But you don't say a word about that..."
"Oh."
Serenia reacts heartily to the Duke's whining words.
"Let's just say... Could it be that your sister-in-law was with your brother?
"No, that's"
"Oh, she was with me until earlier."
Faster than I stop, the Duke affirms lightly.
At that moment, my blaming gaze all over the room focused on me.
◇
The circumstances were then briefly explained to the Duke, and in the end the cage castle group stayed put in the room, including me. He said he was currently forming a guard unit with soldiers unlikely to dream eaters under Deacon Farrow's arrangements. Until we're ready for that, we'll have to pull into the room.
Ines was transferred to a separate room, wrapped around a roll. Mr. Risel said to the Duke, "We need to talk," and went somewhere with him.
As for me, my brother was also looking down at me with a scary face.
"It's dangerous to walk around. Why did you leave the room when you were making noise?"
"It's..."
"Besides, I didn't know you were with your son-in-law and you didn't explain any of the circumstances. Keep your mouth shut. Really, what were you doing?"
"Gu"
I have to roar when people ask me questions that are difficult to explain. 'Cause there's Serenia and the other ladies, and all of a sudden I can't tell you how the loop is...
He glanced strongly at me for not saying a clear answer after all this time, and then his brother sighed deeply, "I'm glad you're okay."
"Really, you, don't look over there. Behave yourself. Then you will not be rewarded in the afterlife."
"How did you get your grandmother's name here?"
"... there, you don't understand."
Leaving my understanding behind, my brother shakes his head as if he were frightened. And then he took his right hand everywhere.
Though I thought it was a rash, my brother's palm just messed up my hair a few times, and he walks away so much.
Is that it?
Poking, his brother sighs again and heads to the exit of the room. On my brother's back trying to walk away, in a panic I called out.
"Where are you going? It's not safe in the castle yet."
"Toilet"
I see.
When I didn't say anything, my brother went for a small run to wash his hands. Exactly, that didn't hold me back.