Chapter 16

0.8 — Night escape? Night trip! (2)

Translated by Nabi

“….”

“I also thought that the Young Lady was running away from me at night.”

Unlink the playfully raised corners of his lips, his eyes were not smiling at all. I swallowed my saliva at the sight of Cain and shook my head quickly.

“It’s… it’s absurd to run away at night! For what reason would I avoid the Grand Duke?”

“Because you did something wrong to me.”

“Me, me—?”

With a calm answer, his gaze shifted to the bed. When I turned my head to follow his gaze, I saw a book lying on the side of my bed where he was sitting.

The Mad Grand Duke Loves Me.

The title, which had been beautifully engraved in gold to give a luxurious look contrasting the dark turquoise cover with low saturation, was clearly visible.

“Well, that book…!”

“Let’s sit down and talk.”

“….”

“Because the night is very long.”

After finishing his words, he naturally winked and pointed to my bed.

At that, I smiled awkwardly and sat down on the bed. Cain, who saw me sitting quietly, took a chair from the desk on one side of the room and took a seat. I eventually cautiously opened my mouth at his gesture to speak with his head tilted.

“Well, that’s a misunderstanding.”

“….”

“It’s true that I wrote the novel and that the male lead in the novel is the Grand Duke, but that didn’t mean Your Highness.”

“I’m the only Grand Duke in the Lian Empire, though I’m not the male protagonist in the Young Lady’s novel?”

“Yes! Actually, the title of Grand Duke was only used to set an attractive male protagonist. You know, young, rich, tall, and handsome are the original rule of the male protagonists.”

“….”

“So, what the title Grand Duke means is a tool to show that he’s rich and capable.”

Even with my quick addition of words, his face was gloomy. Seeing Cain’s face like that, my mouth kept feeling dry.

“An, and craziness was written to make the male lead more attractive, nothing related to Your Grace.”

“Young Lady seems to think that a maniac is attractive.”

“If you say it like that, it doesn’t seem very attractive, but being crazy about me is a surprising selling point.”

Sitting on a chair with his legs crossed, his head tilted sharply.

I was impatient with his unresolved expression, so I added more words.

“In that sense, I borrowed the position and the nickname of Your Highness…Well, not identical… Anyway, that’s what I wrote, and I didn’t really intend to use it to ridicule or embarrass the Grand Duke.”

“….”

“O, of course, the main character’s name is, coincidentally, very coincidentally!—like the Grand Duke! Though, it’s just a coincidence…”

There was no change in the expression on his face, even with the quick words I persisted with. Somehow, some impatience flashed on his consistent expression, so I said, holding up the book.

“If you don’t believe what I’m saying, would you rather read it?”

“….”

“No, I’d rather just read it to you. That would be better.”

Saying so, I opened the book I was holding to prove my innocence. Cain’s eyebrows narrowed as he gazed at me quietly.

“Heum, heum. Cain Destro… He was the only Grand Duke of the Lian Empire. He has dark black hair and red eyes, as red as blood—”

Screwed, screwed!

I should have changed the name a bit!

As I read the novel while peeking into his eyes for a moment, his eyes, which had been shining sharply until just a moment ago, were already shut.

Closed?

Are his eyes closed…?

I glanced down at the book, thinking that I must have misunderstood. After all, he was someone who was suffering from severe insomnia. In addition, I had not read more than a few lines, so I did not think he would ever be sleeping so peacefully.

“Dark black hair and red eyes, as red as blood…”

But, it was strange no matter how much I thought about it. The look of him sitting motionless in the same posture as he had just a while ago was as if he had fallen asleep.

Isn’t it? It should not be… 

I have not even read three lines yet?

“Dar, dark black hair and red eyes, those red eyes suppress…Grand Duke?”

This is kind of weird…

How could there be no response like this, unless he is really sleeping…?

“Don’t tell me you’re falling asleep now… Huh?”

For some reason, even though I stared at him and carefully called out his name, he did not even move.

I laughed out loud at the absurdity. In the quiet room, I could hear his quiet breathing as if he was making fun of me. It was outrageous to see what had happened less than a minute after reading the book.

“No, I heard he has insomnia? It said he stayed up all night with his eyes open every day…!”

The voice of dissatisfaction that burst out from my amazed mind was louder than I expected

Startled at the sound of my voice, I hurriedly shut my mouth and shut my eyes tightly. However, there was only the sound of the clock ticking and the sound of an owl crying. I did not hear any thundering roar, nor could I feel the furious gaze that seemed to burn my face.

Eventually, I squeezed all the courage I had and the courage I did not have and opened my eyes. Staring at Cain carefully, he was still asleep with a shallow breath.

Really? Is this really—

…Is he really sleeping?

Getting up from the bed I had been sitting on, my cheeks were twitching in embarrassment. Contrary to my desire to question him right away, my steps were creeping like a stray cat.

“Your Highness, are you really sleeping…?”

Sleeping.

The male lead, who had never slept properly for five years due to insomnia, was sleeping so soundly.