#39. There’s No Way You Could Hate Me

 Although the Duke thinks she’s a man……

 “A friend…… I thought you were quite close since you’re living together, even if temporarily, but I guess not. Seeing as you don’t even know your friend’s preferences.”

 Yes, that was it. Although he thinks she’s a man, he thinks she’s someone who likes men.

 Nothing ever goes right.

 “What do you mean?”

 Kalkus’s round eyes twisted slightly.

 “Oh my, oh my…… It’s rather awkward for me to bring it up first if you don’t know. It’s about Clyne’s private life, you see.”

 “Your Grace!”

 Chloe felt her face burning up as she tried to stop the Duke.

 Please stop!

 “What is it, Clyne?”

 The Duke looked at her calmly, without changing his expression one bit.

 “Even though I may be…… like that! Still, you shouldn’t look at Kalkus and me that way. We’re not that kind of relationship!”

 “Aah haha…… Hmm, I see.”

 The Duke replied with an almost irritatingly playful chuckle.

 “Clyne, what are you talking about?”

 “I’ll tell you later.”

 Because Kalkus would understand everything about why the Duke misunderstood……

 “No, tell me now. What do you mean?”

 Kalkus’s face had completely hardened as he pressed her.

 Huh……? Maybe he couldn’t understand everything after all? Why is he being so serious?

 Since the day she first met Kalkus, she had never seen such an expression on his face.

 “Clyne, now that I think about it. What you told me before, that seems to be true.”

 While Kalkus was clearly frozen with anger, strangely, the Duke’s face seemed to become more and more relaxed. As if he were sitting on his home sofa, drinking tea that made him want to laugh.

 “What do you mean?”

 At an inappropriate time, she asked out of habit.

 “That you like me……”

 “Ah! That! Yes! I remember what you’re talking about!”

 Why is that coming up now!

 As much as her expectation that Kalkus would understand everything later had gone wrong, she couldn’t let any more misunderstandings pile up. So she couldn’t let the Duke finish saying that she liked him.

 “Seeing as you told only me about your preferences that even your supposedly close friend doesn’t know about, I suppose those words were true after all. I didn’t believe it until now, but now I understand. That you were sincere with me.”

 “What?”

 To believe now that she likes the Duke. Of all times, at this timing!

 “Now that I know your true feelings, I’ll seriously consider them from now on.”

 “Wh-what? Seriously con… consider?”

 Chloe gaped in disbelief. No matter how she heard it, it sounded like he was considering whether to accept her confession or not.

 Were you really that sick yesterday? Enough to change your sexual orientation? Or do you remember the kiss? Don’t tell me you enjoyed kissing your cross-dressing servant? If not that…… are you setting up to kick me out by mentioning the kiss? If not that either, are you trying to tease me because you’re upset about me trying to kick you out of our house?

 “Clyne, what does His Grace mean? Tell me.”

 To make matters worse, Kalkus continued to probe aggressively.

 “Kalkus, let’s talk later. His Grace is here now……”

 “Don’t talk about me when I’m not around, just say it now. Should I say it? I don’t mind.”

 The Duke spoke nonsense again.

 What do you mean you don’t mind!

 “No!”

 Please just keep your mouth shut!

 She was just bewildered by how the atmosphere had become so strange. The Duke seemed to be in better spirits than ever, while Kalkus seemed to be at his worst. It felt like the Duke had suddenly become unusually smooth while Kalkus had become equally prickly.

 “No, I think it’s better if I say it. Kalkus Tarkan, the truth is Clyne likes me. In a special way. So there’s no way he would dislike me staying at this house. Right, Clyne?”

 “……!”

 ‘Have you lost your mind?’

 Chloe openly glared at the Duke.

 Even if you’re the master, this is crossing the line!

 If the Duke truly believed that she sincerely liked him, shouldn’t he refrain from speaking about her feelings in front of others like that! Even if it was actually a made-up, nonsensical false emotion that she had hastily concocted!

 “I hate it!”

 “You hate it? Then were your words to me last time a lie?”

 The Duke suddenly asked with a stern face. It felt like he had seen right through her true feelings. As if he were trying to punish her now for getting through that crisis with a lie back then.

 The fundamental lie caught up with her again like this. It wasn’t just anything, but concealing her gender. The lies that derived from that, and other lies had piled up neatly.

 “No, Your Grace! I meant I don’t want to have you sleep in such an uncomfortable place.”

 “I said I don’t mind.”

 The Duke smiled, instantly relaxing his expression. As if the unpleasant expression he had worn just moments ago had been a lie.

 “Then I’ll go check the bed in mother’s room……!”

 Chloe suddenly froze mid-sentence. As if that weren’t enough, even the fine hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Because the Duke had reached out over her head while she was speaking and ruffled her hair. As if petting an obedient dog.

 She stared at the Duke with wide eyes.

 ‘What are you doing, Your Grace?’

 Though she couldn’t say it out loud, the meaning must have been clearly visible in her eyes.

 “Yes, there’s no way you could hate it. There’s no way you could hate me.”

 However, the Duke smugly raised the corner of his mouth as if he hadn’t noticed her shock at all. While still stroking her head with one hand.

 Ah! This is weird! Really weird.

 “Duke Hughgray Wulfaz.”

 Kalkus’s cold voice came from beside her. Her widened eyes unconsciously turned toward Kalkus who was calling the Duke.

 Duke, he said. Not Your Grace. Just Duke.

 Kalkus’s face was completely frozen. His usually puppy-like round eyes were now emanating a fierce energy. At this moment, he looked more like an angry lion than a puppy.

 How did the atmosphere become so strange?

 Why did she end up having to be mindful of not only the Duke, her employer, but also Kalkus, who had been her most comfortable friend, in what should have been a relaxing home during vacation?

 “Haha! Your Grace! Why are you doing things you’ve never done before?”

 Unable to openly swat away the Duke’s hand, Chloe slowly scooted her hips sideways.

 The Duke was sitting on the sofa across from her. Yet because his arms were so long, his hand could reach her head. So to get his hand off, she needed to move to a place where his hand couldn’t reach.

 The Duke looked at his palm left in the air, then stared straight at Chloe. Though she hadn’t openly swatted it away, he must have clearly known that she was trying to avoid his touch. Now she felt conscious of the Duke’s gaze too.

 Tap tap tap.

 The Duke drummed the table with the hand that had been touching Chloe’s head. The noise he made sounded like a warning signal foretelling something to come.

 “Things I’ve never done before, you say.”

 “Yes?”

 “Don’t you remember how you insisted on following me into the bathroom to help me bathe? That was just two days ago.”

 Help him bathe? Ah…… that day after returning from Kinden? What happened that day…… Ah!

 She finally realized what the Duke was talking about.

 Two days ago, when the Duke returned from Kinden looking so exhausted that she thought she should help him bathe, the Duke had ruffled her hair. Just like he did moments ago.

 But the Duke had gone into the bathroom leaving her completely frozen, as if it had been an unconscious action with no particular meaning or significance on his part.

 She had completely forgotten about it, thinking it was just a meaningless action the Duke had done unconsciously. But seeing him speak like this now meant that while it might have been an unconscious action, he remembered it. But the reason he remembered it so precisely and was reminding her of it was…… could it be that it wasn’t an unconscious action after all?

 “Cl……yne. What do you mean by helping him bathe? You were doing such things?”

 Kalkus asked with an even more hardened expression than before.

 Ah, now even the bathing assistance has become an issue.

 Generally speaking, it would be natural for a personal attendant to help with bathing. But her situation was a bit different, wasn’t it? The Duke probably spoke so casually about the bathing assistance because he thought Clyne was a man, but Kalkus was shocked like that because he clearly knew she was a woman.

 Just imagining what Kalkus might think about her having helped the Duke bathe made her head spin.

 In fact, every time during his vacations, Kalkus had thoroughly questioned her about her work at the Duke’s mansion. Including questions about whether she helped with bathing and such. He had told her to quit immediately if they made her do such things. Saying he would somehow manage to get the money. Even though he was in the same situation as a penniless orphan.

 What had she said then? That she absolutely never did such things, probably? Actually, until her last vacation, she had never helped with bathing, and had no idea she would ever have to do so.

 Chloe suddenly realized her face had turned bright red. Why was her face burning up in this situation of all times.

 “You didn’t know? That’s something a personal attendant naturally does. Besides, Clyne particularly enjoys helping with baths. Isn’t that right, Clyne?”

 The Duke answered Kalkus’s question.

 Who asked you to answer! And when did I ever enjoy helping with baths?

 “Ha! Haha! I didn’t enjoy it that much, Your Grace.”

 Chloe barely managed to answer while grinding her molars. Not knowing how to get through this crisis, she felt like an angry bull’s breath might burst from her nose.